In Joy of Giving Week, Shridhar University Pilani Rajasthan Students do Voluntary Blood Donation

Online, October 6, 2010 (Newswire.com) - While in India just about 50% of the blood the country needs every year is met through voluntary donation, in China the voluntary blood donation has gone up from 45% in year 2000 to well over 98% in recent times. Access to safe blood is a key component of effective health care and voluntary donors are the cornerstone of a safe blood supply.

Against an annual requirement of 8 million units of blood, India is able to collect only 5.6 million units of which only about 3 million units are from voluntary blood donors. Further in India there are just about 4 voluntary blood donors per 1000 population as against 70 in Japan and 113 in Switzerland. It is expected in general that about 1-3% of a country's population should donate blood voluntarily to meet the entire demands of the country.

It is unfortunate that Voluntary blood donation, traditionally considered a fulfilling task, seems to be losing its appeal. Statistics prepared by the Association of Voluntary Blood Donors' Forum (AVBDF) on the percentage of voluntary blood donation to the total blood collection in individual states during the last one year, shows a rapid decline in the number of donors throughout India. Only five states namely Tripura, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Punjab and Maharashtra have achieved the record where the percentage of voluntary blood donation to total collection stands above 80%.

The Joy of Giving Week September 27 to October 3 is a new national movement that aims to engage every single Indian in giving back to society in some way or other. The National Voluntary Blood Donation Day is observed in India on October 1.

Way to Transform Shridhar University Pilani students had donated blood on June 14, World blood Donor Day and are aware that the 2010 global campaign by United Nations - World Health Organization (UN - WHO) focuses on Young Donors, with the slogan "New blood for the world" and expects that a new generation of idealistic and motivated voluntary unpaid blood donors will form a pool that provides the safest blood possible for use wherever and whenever it is needed to save life.

On October 1, 2010, a team of 35 students of which many were first time donors led by Pro Vice Chancellor Shridhar University Prof BR Natarajan donated blood at the Birla Saravajanik Hospital Blood Bank. Prof Bir Singh had coordinated the entire campaign. The students of Shridhar University Pilani have beyond doubt taken up voluntary blood donation as a mission with passion.