Naveen Announces Cremation Of Organ Donors With State Honours

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday announced that the cremation of organ donors would be performed with state honours.

The state government’s initiative aims at honouring the courage and sacrifice of the donors to save the lives of other people, he said. Besides, it would create awareness in the society about the importance of organ donation and motivate more and more people to come forward in this regard, he added.

“Organ donation is a noble gesture. The relatives of brain dead people, who take courageous decision on donating the organs, play an important role in saving many human lives,” he said in a press release.

In order to facilitate the process of organ donation, the state government set up State Organ & Tissues Transplant Organization (SOTTO) in 2019. The government has also instituted Suraj Award for the organ donors in 2020, the chief minister said.

The award has been instituted in the name of Suraj from Bhanjanagar of Ganjam district. Suraj sustained critical injuries in a road accident and was declared brain dead by doctors during treatment. His relatives decided to donate major organs of Suraj. Their decision helped save the lives of 6 persons later.

The government has been providing Rs 5 lakh from Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to the family of organ donors. Besides, the chief minister has been honouring their relatives on World Organ Donation Day on August 13.