State Blood Bank to hold camps on second Saturday of every month

The State Blood Bank at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Hospital in Shimla will hold a blood donation camp on The Ridge here every second Saturday of the month to meet the shortage of blood in hospitals. This is the first initiative in the state where a blood bank will directly invite people to donate blood at camps.

The bank will invite two other blood banks in Shimla — the ones at the IGMC Hospital and the Kamla Nehru Hospital — every alternate month to hold camps on The Ridge,in association with voluntary organisations already contributing in the field. The decision was taken in a meeting of the state’s Blood Bank Committee,chaired by Deputy Commissioner J S Rana in Shimla on Tuesday.

Another decision was taken to make public appeals to meet the shortage of blood in banks and the requirement of rare blood groups in time of emergency. “We have allowed to put up three notice boards in the centre of the town,appealing for blood and displaying the patient’s details,” said the DC. Sarvjeet Singh,a member of the committee,said the boards would be maintained by The Living Treasure,a voluntary organisation represented by him.