The mother of blood donation movement
KANTA Krishen, wife of Haryana’s first Chief Secretary Saroop Krishen, was the founder of the voluntary blood donation movement in India. A blood donor herself, she made her biggest donation — her body — to the PGI after breathing her last on November 30. She joined a small band of people (including her late husband) who feel that mortal human remains should be used for science instead of being cremated or buried.
Not happy sitting idle at home, she wanted to serve society. The PGI had just been set up in 1962, and Dr Jai Gopal Jolly, director of the Blood Transfusion Department, was keen that blood should be collected from voluntary, non-remunerated sources only. Kantaji (as she was commonly known) got half a dozen housewives together and set up the Blood Bank Society, PGI. Educating and motivating people to donate blood was their mission. No leader was too big to be approached for help. They ensured that not even a drop of blood was collected from blood sellers in Chandigarh. In recognition of her yeoman service, the government bestowed the Padma Shri on her in 1972. This gave her the incentive to spread the movement first all over North India and then throughout the country. She spearheaded the establishment of the Indian Society of Blood Transfusion & Immunohaematology and served as its secretary for decades.
When attempts to convince political leaders in New Delhi to ban commerce in blood and its components failed, she approached Common Cause, an NGO, with the help of HD Shourie and me. A public interest litigation was filed, seeking a ban on buying and selling of blood countrywide. The directions issued by the Supreme Court in 1996 were a game-changer. Consequently, no unlicensed blood bank can be set up and trade in blood is prohibited.
Despite the judgment, the struggle did not end. The directions had to be implemented. Kantaji led a delegation of MPs and voluntary workers to then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee; this prompted the government to frame the National Blood Policy. To ensure the supply of safe blood from voluntary sources, the Blood Bank Society joined hands with Rotary to set up the Rotary & Blood Bank Society Resource Centre in Chandigarh; it is open 24x7 and supplies blood to anyone in need.
Since she was our children’s grandmother, all of us started calling her ‘nani’. Her interests also included gardening, cooking, sewing and classical music. She motivated all of us — her children, their spouses and grandchildren — to promote voluntary blood donation, be it by donating themselves or motivating others to donate. Thanks to her, 60 years after its birth, the Blood Bank Society’s secretary general is her daughter, Niti, and its president her son-in-law. She helped save millions of lives by her selfless efforts. ‘Nani’ will be missed, but the voluntary blood donation movement will go on forever.
