During a crisis, society calls for individuals to take prosocial actions that promote crisis management. Indeed, individuals show higher willingness to help after a disaster. Since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been concern about the availability and sufficiency of blood transfusions to meet patient needs. In lieu of tackling this challenge, the Union Health Minister has announced a portal that will store all the information pertaining to the availability of blood across the country, which can be used by any person to get requisite information easily. This will help patients who are in dire need of blood transfusion to locate the nearest available blood bank.
Union Health Minister Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya said that a web portal has recently been created to provide information on the blood types available in the banks across the country, thus giving a momentum to the voluntary blood donation movement.
The minister, who is a physician, told a virtual press meet from Delhi that 7,017 NGOs joined hands to float eRaktKosh.in for giving out all necessary information on blood availability, as part of the Centre’s ‘one nation, one platform’ initiative.
“Once someone logs into the portal and clicks on a particular state and then a district, one can see the blood banks accessible in that area and the specific contact details,” Mandaviya said at the meet attended by regional reporters from different cities, including Kolkata.
To a question, he also said that the portal would further help set up a national registry, where all information regarding blood availability and requirement would be collated.
The minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi aimed to make the country free of tuberculosis by 2025.
“The rate for TB eradication, however, has not reached expected levels as of now. We have to ensure there is not one person suffering from TB in all spheres of society. Currently, there are 13 lakh TB patients in the country,” he maintained.
Mandaviya asserted that India was praised by the entire world for its COVID-19 management and its response to the pandemic.
The country earned praise for its vaccination management, although “some people politicised the drive”, he said.
The media, nonetheless, played its role “truthfully” by disseminating the right information, he added.
Source: https://theprint.in/india/
