Bengaluru: The Namma Metro in Bengaluru turned into a true ‘lifeline’ for the city on Friday evening after it transported a human liver to a destination 32 km away in record time. Bengaluru became the second city in India, after Hyderabad, to use the Metro for transportation of a human organ.
According to officials, the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) executed the operation in coordination with medical personnel and security teams.
The liver, retrieved from a donor at Vydehi Hospital in Whitefield, began its journey at 8.38 pm on Friday. It was first taken by ambulance to the nearby Whitefield metro station. There, a team comprising a doctor and seven support staff coordinated closely with BMRCL officials. An Assistant Security Officer (ASO) facilitated documentation and ensured all safety protocols were in place.
The liver was placed on board a regular metro train bound for Rajarajeshwarinagar station at 8.42 pm. This 32-km ride spanned nearly the entire east-west corridor of the city. The organ reached its destination at 9:48 pm, just over an hour later. On arrival, another ASO and Metro staff swiftly handed over the organ to a waiting ambulance, which then rushed it to Sparsh Hospital for a time-sensitive transplant procedure.
“What would normally take around 90 minutes by road, depending on traffic, was streamlined through Metro travel. The operation was carried out in strict adherence to the Joint Procedure Order (JPO) and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) guidelines, ensuring minimal disruption to regular services while prioritising the medical emergency,” a BMRCL official said.
Through this move, Namma Metro has set an example for other cities that have metro services. It has showcased the potential that metro networks have to assist in life-saving interventions during peak traffic hours.
The only other example of metro-based organ transport in India was in 2021, when Hyderabad Metro helped move a donated heart 21 km in under 30 minutes.