Class XII Girl passes away, but gives six people a new lease of life

Stories like these restore our faith in humanity. The family of a 21-year-old from Erode in Tamil Nadu who lost her to an accident gave a new lease of life to people by donating her organs. Puma was in Class XII and had just given her final exams when her parents lost her in a tragic road accident. The entire family was driving back from Bengaluru after attending a family function, when the driver lost control of the vehicle. Following which Puma's parents and sister somehow managed to be stable but doctors couldn’t heal Puma's head injury.

Also read: Inspiration: Thief snatches her phone, woman chases and nabs him, hands him to police

The parents then decided to donate her kidneys, heart, skin and eyes, making sure the young girl lives on, by virtue of the people whose lives the gesture changed. Using green corridors the traffic police transported her liver to Coimbatore. Whilst her skin and eyes were flown to Chennai while a city hospital received her kidneys. The six people to whom the organs were donated will no doubt be always thankful to Puma.

If this particular incident has inspired you, here is what you need to know about Organ Donation.

Some basics from the main provisions of The Transplantation of Human Organ Act and the newly passed Gazette by the Government of India include the following:

• A living person can donate without any legal formalities.
• When  it comes to the relatives - mother, father, brothers, sisters, son, daughter, and spouse are allowed to donate.
• For Brain death - the certifications are required from doctors after 6 hours post death, and the declaration form has to be signed by doctors nominated by the appropriate authority of the government with one of the two being an expert in the field of neurology.
• Regulation of transplant activities is under an Authorization Committee (AC) and Appropriate Authority (AA.) in each State or Union Territory. Each has defined roles.
• The THO act defines a proper Application Form which should be filled with proof of identity and address, marriage registration certificate, family photographs, etc. with attestation by a Notary Public.
• The gazette states that before removing a human organ from the body of a donor before his death, a medical practitioner should satisfy himself that the donor has given authorization in Form along with more clarifications and other authenticity.
• Reasons as to why the donor wishes to donate and a declaration that the donor is not a drug addict or known person with criminal record are also included.

Also read: Draupadi & other mythological women are great symbols of Feminism

When the demand of organs in India is high and few hospitals and committed NGOs in the country are always campaigning for organ donation, it is heartening when families like that of Puma come forward for such notable deeds.

Feature Image Credit: Times Of India