• Source:JND
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Bengaluru’s Namma Metro facilitated the transport of a donated human liver for transplant, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) announced on Friday.

According to BMRCL, the liver was safely brought by ambulance from Vydehi Hospital to Whitefield Metro Station on August 1 at approximately 8:38 PM, accompanied by a doctor and a team of seven medical personnel. There, a medical team, comprising a doctor and seven staff, coordinated with BMRCL personnel. An Assistant Security Officer (ASO) and metro staff facilitated the necessary documentation and security clearances.

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The liver was then transported via a metro train that departed Whitefield at 8:42 PM and arrived at Rajarajeshwarinagar Metro Station by 9:48 PM. Upon arrival, another ASO and metro personnel ensured a smooth handover to a waiting ambulance, which rushed the organ to Sparsh Hospital for a critical transplant.

The total distance between the two hospitals is 32 kilometers—a journey that typically takes around 1.5 hours by road, but was significantly shortened thanks to the metro’s involvement.

“We facilitated organ transport with passengers on board. We had given the medical professionals the last coach of the train. Most of the procedures and subsequent arrangements took place within minutes, spontaneously,” said a BMRCL official.

BMRCL confirmed that the entire operation was conducted in accordance with the Joint Procedure Order (JPO) and the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). With this successful mission, Bengaluru becomes only the second city in India to utilize a metro system for organ transport.

The first such instance occurred in 2021, when Hyderabad Metro transported a heart harvested from a brain-dead donor. The organ was brought to Nagole Metro Station by ambulance and then moved on a dedicated, non-stop, passenger-free train to Jubilee Hills Check Post Station, covering a distance of 21 kilometers in under 30 minutes.

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In 2023, MoHUA amended the Metro Railways (Carriage and Ticket) Rules, 2014, officially permitting the transport of human organs or tissues via metro systems. This is allowed as long as the organ is carried by a hospital-authorized individual under the provisions of the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994.