In a serious allegation, Manicktala Central Blood Bank has been accused of not utilising and destroying around 800 pouches of blood after the dates expired. This comes at a time when there is a crisis of blood in various hospitals in the state and patients are seen running pillar to post for blood. As there is a huge pressure of patients in all the state-run medical colleges and hospitals in the city, the blood blanks of the hospitals often run dry. As a result of this, patients' family members often run from one hospital to the other for a unit of blood. Having found no option, the family members of patients have to buy blood from private blood banks at a higher price.
It has been alleged that the pouches with expired dates on them were found in a drain near the Manicktala Central Blood Bank on Monday. Notably, with the increase in temperature, the crisis of the blood will be intensified.
Some of the relatives of patients who visited the Central Blood Bank in Manicktala on Monday accused the blood bank authorities of such an incident in which many pouches were dumped in the dustbins.
There was an allegation that the validity of some of these pouches expired in January this year while some others in February. It has also been alleged that some of the pouches that were still lying in the cold storage of the blood bank have also expired and they could not be used. It was learnt from the sources that the Manicktala Central Blood bank receives around 2,000 pouches of blood every month.
Some have, however, raised questions why the Manicktala Central Blood Bank did not deliver the pouches to other blood banks before their validity dates expired. Meanwhile, a senior official of the blood bank refused to comment on the allegation.