Mumbai Faces Acute Blood Shortage Despite Festival Drives, Patients Wait Over 24 Hours For Units

Mumbai: Mumbai is grappling with a severe shortage of blood, leaving patients and their families in distress despite large-scale donation drives during festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi. Many patients have been forced to wait over 24 hours for the blood they need, while social media platforms are flooded with urgent appeals for donations.

Families Struggle to Source Blood Across the City

At Borivali’s Municipal Bone Marrow Transplant Center, young Rudransh Gadekar required O-positive blood. His father visited multiple blood banks across the city and could only secure the unit after 24 hours from a facility in Thane.

Similarly, Moin Sheikh spent an entire night searching for O-negative blood for his 25-day-old daughter, visiting both government and private blood banks before finally obtaining it the following day.

Supply Falls Short of City’s Daily Demand

According to the State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC), Mumbai has 58 blood banks. However, daily consumption ranges between 500–1,000 units, far exceeding available stock. Major hospitals, including KEM, Nair, Sion, JJ, Bandra Bhabha, and Tata Blood Bank, collectively hold just 1,101 units—enough for only two to four days.

Experts Cite Donor Gaps and Seasonal Factors

Nitin Maniar of Samarpan Blood Centre, Ghatkopar, confirmed the gravity of the situation. “Our daily requirement is being met only by daily collection. The demand from my blood bank has doubled,” he said.

Maniar explained that many regular donors are away during school and college vacations, and those who donated during August–September are still ineligible to donate due to the mandatory three-month gap between donations.

He added, “I receive 8 to 10 calls every night for blood. Many relatives check the SBTC website, and when they cannot find the required units, they contact me directly, as my number is registered there.”

Call for Consistent Donor Participation

Vinay Shetty of the Think Foundation highlighted the city’s urgent need for regular donors, noting that Mumbai requires around 1,000 blood donors daily. Shortages tend to worsen during festivals like Diwali when donation drives are minimal. Authorities expect the situation to ease within a week, but the current crisis underscores the pressing need for continuous donations.

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The shortage is a stark reminder of the critical need for voluntary, regular blood donations to ensure timely medical care in Mumbai.

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