Blood Shortage Hits Pune Hospitals, Citizens Appealed To DonateÂ
Pune City Faces Acute Blood Shortage Amid Ban On Inter-State Transfers
Pune hospitals and blood banks are facing an acute blood shortage due to reduced donations during the Diwali holiday season, as well as Maharashtra assembly poll campaigns impacting critical surgeries and emergency treatments. Hospitals are urgently calling on residents to help alleviate the crisis by donating blood at their nearest blood centers.
A representative from a local hospital explained that the shortage is largely due to fewer donation drives, which typically sustain supply levels, and an overall decrease in donors due to holiday travel and now the poll canvassing. “We are experiencing a critical need for all blood types,” he said, emphasizing the risk to patients in need of immediate transfusions.
Ram Bangad, founder of Raktache Nate, highlighted the severity of the shortage, which is further strained by the festival-related drop in donations, impacting the availability of emergency blood supplies.
Some hospitals, like Jehangir Hospital, anticipated the shortage. “We face blood shortages every festive season as donors travel home, making donation drives difficult. However, we arranged in-house donation events at Jehangir, which allowed us to sustain our blood supply during Diwali,” said Dr. Shashikant Patil, Head of the Blood Bank at Jehangir Hospital.
Dr. Purnima Rao, Secretary of the Maharashtra Chapter of the Indian Society of Blood Transfusion and Immunohematology and Senior Consultant at Sahyadri Hospitals, pointed out that the shortage has been ongoing for over a month, exacerbated by remote work and fewer available donors. “We are arranging donation camps across the city and welcoming walk-in donors at the hospital to manage emergencies,” she said.
Dr. S K Raut, Head of department, Blood Bank and Director of Noble Hospital added that the city’s blood banks urgently need community support to replenish essential supplies. Citizens are encouraged to visit their nearest blood bank to help ensure hospitals can meet critical needs. Last month was critical for every medical facility during Diwali season. At present, many social organisations are busy with the poll campaigns and have restricted such drives. But the situation is slowly improving as blood donation drives are resuming in corporate companies and within two weeks the situation may come under control.
