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Bengal

Blood Donors’ Forum urges people to donate blood

West Bengal Voluntary Blood Donors’ Forum has requested people to donate blood to meet the acute crisis of blood in the state.

The general secretary of the forum Apurba Ghosh has requested the State Health department to start collection of blood from donors in the evening to meet the challenge. Because of non availability of doctors, technicians and even vehicles it is difficult to organise blood donation camps on Sunday.

The situation has turned from bad to worse as the Election Commission has issued notification imposing a ban on political parties to hold blood donation camps till the election is over. The election will start on April 4 and continue till May 5. The results will be out on May 19. Then there will be swearing in ceremony of the government. Things will become normal and blood donation camps can once again be held in July.  Ghosh has requested the EC to allow blood donation camps to be held without banners or symbols of a political party.

The state requires 60,000 to 70,000 units of blood per month which means around 9 lakh units are required per year. Kolkata alone requires around 4.5 lakh units per year.

But as camps cannot be held since the code of conduct came into force, the collection of blood has dropped sharply. Voluntary blood donation took the shape of a movement since the end 1980s. Thousands of camps were held throughout the State. The movement became so popular that the Left Front government had decided to set up multi crore Bakreshwar Thermal Power Plant by organising blood donation camps. Majority of the blood donors were the youth.

Ghosh regretted that with the passage of time many of the youth had lost interest in donating blood. 

The number of young donors in the camps dropped sharply. The campaign launched by the forum urging people to donate blood has lost much of its steam.
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