As part of a programme to increase the number of organ donors in the city, the citizens' group Project Mumbai has taken the campaign to Regional Transport Office (RTO) agents who can convince driving licence applicants to join the noble cause.
After the Regional Transport Commissioner initiated mass awareness campaigns about organ donations last year, Project Mumbai started an awareness campaign to make more aspiring drivers to pledge their organs. Project Mumbai acts as a bridge between donors and the government by educating potential donors about the process of pledging their organs.
Project Mumbai's awareness campaign
With Project Mumbai’s efforts, the road and transport department took up the initiative to let people opt as organ donors while applying for a driving licence. Shishir Joshi, CEO and founder of Project Mumbai, said, "As most of the driving licence forms are filled by RTO agents, awareness among the agents is necessary so they can motivate applicants to pledge their organs. We want to bring conversion in people pledging organs to donate them."
Project Mumbai has been organising these awareness camps at Wadala and Andheri RTO offices every Wednesday for the last three months and will be starting the programme at the Borivali and Tardeo offices soon. Through these camps, the organisation has succeeded in spreading awareness about organ donation to 1000 people including RTO agents and rickshaw drivers. According to Project Mumbai, the fraction of people pledging their organs after attending these camps has gone up from one per cent to fifteen per cent. In the last three months, over 150 people have pledged their organs after attending the awareness campaigns.
A team of doctors from the Amar Gandhi Foundation have been assisting Project Mumbai with medical expertise in the organ donation drive. Apart from the doctors, this initiative is supported by volunteers from different age groups. A senior citizen’s group called ‘Maitri’ has been an active volunteer participant in this project. Saachi Sahasrabuddhe, who leads the group, said, "Senior citizens have been our best champions when it comes to transforming minds. The response from citizens has also been overwhelming as for them to realise that each one of us can contribute to at least nine lives, is the game changer."
Project Mumbai has several projects envisaged to make Mumbai a better place to live, work and play by finding solutions for challenges like clean water, food, mental health, accessibility and inclusivity. The organisation runs multiple campaigns in the city at various locations every week with the help of volunteers across the city. Last year, the organisation launched the ‘Har Ghar Hai Donor’ campaign to inspire entire families to pledge their organs.
