CHANDIGARH,23.10.24-Continuing its tradition of extraordinary accomplishments, PGIMER has added another milestone to its credit. Over the span of two consecutive days, two organ donations, facilitated by four green corridors spanning four locations across the country, have given the ‘gift of life’ to eight terminally ill organ failure patients.

In both cases, the families of young individuals who tragically lost their lives in road accidents made the courageous decision to donate their loved ones' organs, thereby, saving eight precious lives with the transplantation of Heart at Medanta, Gurugram, Lungs at KIMS, Secundrabad, 2 Livers at ILBS, New Delhi, 2 Simultaneous Kidney-Pancreas and 2 Kidney transplants here at PGIMER.

Prof. Vivek Lal, Director, PGIMER, paying homage to the brave-hearted donor families, stated, “These back-to-back organ donations have illuminated the generosity of human spirit, even in the darkest times. Their decision, in the face of unimaginable grief, has brought hope to thousands of patients across the country and demonstrated the profound impact of organ donation. Organ donation is a gift that goes beyond the donor and recipient—it touches the lives of their families, communities, and medical professionals. Each donor is a hero, and the courage shown by these two families is truly inspiring.”

Lauding the PGIMER team, Prof. Vivek Lal said, “The successful allocation and transplantation of all vital organs over two days showcased seamless coordination and a monumental effort by all stakeholders. This collective endeavor is a testament to PGIMER’s exceptional capabilities and determination to save lives.

On October 22nd, a 24-year-old male road accident victim’s organs were donated after the family made the selfless choice to offer hope to others. As there were no matching recipients for the heart, lungs, and liver at PGIMER, ROTTO PGIMER swiftly acted to allocate the organs across various hospitals via their apex body NOTTO. The heart was airlifted to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, the lungs were sent to KIMS in Secunderabad, and the liver was flown to ILBS in New Delhi. Additionally, a simultaneous kidney-pancreas and a kidney were transplanted at PGIMER, saving two more lives locally. This magnanimous decision saved a total of five lives.

A day earlier, on October 21st, another 18-year-old male, declared brain dead at PGIMER, had his organs donated. In this case, the liver was allocated to ILBS, New Delhi, while a simultaneous kidney-pancreas and a kidney were successfully transplanted at PGIMER, saving two additional lives.

**One of the donors’ father, **embodying strength in their grief, expressed, "In our son’s memory, we wanted to give others a chance at life. This is what he would have wanted."
The same sentiment was echoed by another donor’s mother as she said, “Our pain will always remain, but knowing that he lives on in others brings us some peace.”

Prof. Vipin Koushal, Medical Superintendent and Nodal Officer, ROTTO North, PGIMER, praised the coordination efforts, stating, “We are deeply thankful to the families for their noble gestures, and to the Chandigarh Traffic Police for their unwavering support in making these green corridors possible. It is this teamwork that makes organ donation a reality.”