Southern Indian State to review kidney donation policy

(July 27, 2011) Campaigns by two Christian priests have convinced a southern Indian state to review kidney donation guidelines, which currently prohibit donations by non-relatives. Kerala state Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said on Tuesday that he would press federal authorities for an early response for voluntary kidney donations. Chandy said he was not aware of the problem until the priests took up the matter. “I’ve directed the principal secretary of health to look into the matter,” he added.
Chandy’s comments came in the wake of a hunger strike by Fr. Santhosh George of the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church on July 20. The 39-year-old priest wanted to donate one of his kidneys to a critically ill 17-year-old Hindu girl, but the organ transplantation committee denied permission, since he was not related to her. The Indian organ transplantation rules, bar government hospitals from conducting kidney transplants, if the donor has no blood relation to the patient. Fr. George staged the hunger strike in front of the Kerala government headquarters in Thiruva-nanthapuram to demand “humanitarian consideration” for kidney patients. Fr. George, who manages an orphanage in Chennai, capital of neighboring Tamil Nadu state, wants the government to review the “inhuman law” that mostly affects the poor.
Kerala has about 2,000 patients waiting for the medical board’s nod for kidney transplantation. It takes a lot of time to get permission meanwhile, many people die,” the priest added.