The Union Health Ministry has advised states to prioritise women on organ transplant waiting lists and give preference to close relatives of deceased donors in need of transplants. The recommendations, issued by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) on the 15th Indian Organ Donation Day, aim to address gender disparity and encourage more donations.
The advisory also calls for expanding organ and tissue retrieval facilities to all trauma centres and medical colleges, training emergency responders to identify potential donors and appointing state-level brand ambassadors to boost awareness. Hospitals have been directed to regularly submit donor and recipient data to the national registry, with non-compliance inviting action under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), 1994.
