Blood donation on birthdays in Ranchi

For Dr Abhishek Verma, a Ranchi-based pathologist, it was a birthday celebration of a never-before kind.

A blood donation camp was organised at his Ashok Nagar laboratory on his 37th birthday on Thursday when he and his friends donated 12 units of blood in about an hour for children suffering from thalassemia.

“It’s really a pleasure to do such a thing for those children who need blood transfusion regularly,” the doctor said, adding he was glad that his friends gave this “precious gift” that made his birthday a happier occasion. It may not be a big donation in terms of quantity but that also matters a lot for those thalassemia children, the doctor further said.

Abhishek’s birthday is not the only occasion, such camps were organised on birthdays of at least 150 more people in the past one year and many more are lined up,” said Atul Gera, founder of Life Savers, a voluntary organisation that organises such blood donation camps regularly for thalassemia children receiving regular transfusions at Thalassemia Day Care Centre at Ranchi Sadar Hospital.

“The next such camp will be organised at Namkum on the occasion of birthday of Kunal Sharma on November 2 and another on November 4,” Gera said, adding there will be around 15 such birthday special camps in November.

“That will be my 25th birthday and I have invited my friends and neighbours to donate blood for thalassemia children on that day,” informed Kunal who is pursuing a management programme at the local Xavier Institute of Social Service.