AP secures 6th spot in national organ donation list

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh has secured the sixth position in organ donation nationwide, health minister Satya Kumar Yadav announced on Tuesday, citing the latest Organ Donation List-2025 released by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), the apex body under the Union ministry of health and family welfare.According to official data, in the first two months of 2026, organs from 18 brain-dead donors benefited 64 recipients — a sharp rise compared to previous years. In the same period of 2025, 31 organs were transplanted from 12 donors, while in 2024, 30 organs were transplanted from 10 donors.Addressing officials during a review of the state's Jeevan Daan programme, the minister said 64 patients received a new lease of life in just two months, reflecting growing public response. He noted that the number of government hospitals performing organ transplants has risen from 3 to 9, including KGH Visakhapatnam, VIMS, Guntur, Kurnool and Vijayawada GGHs, SVIMS Tirupati, AIIMS Mangalagiri, Padmavathi Children's Heart Centre Tirupati, and Palasa Kidney Research Centre.Permissions have also been granted to hospitals in Kakinada, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Ongole, Anantapur, Kadapa, and Tirupati to retrieve organs from brain-dead patients and transport them to transplant centres.So far, 8 kidney transplants and 1 liver transplant have been performed from brain-dead donors through KGH, VIMS, Guntur, and Kurnool GGHs, in addition to 87 kidney transplants from living related donors. Since inception, Jeevan Daan has facilitated transplants for 1,200 patients, including a record 301 in 2025.Currently, 5,347 patients are registered for organ transplants in the state, most between 20 and 50 years of age, with 38 children below 9 also awaiting surgery. The minister added that a proposal to enhance financial assistance for donor families from ₹10,000 to ₹1 lakh is under consideration.