A recent media report accused Apollo Hospital, Delhi and Dr. Sandeep Guleria of running an illegal kidney racket that lured poor people from Myanmar to sell their organs for money. The report claimed that the hospital paid and flew the donors to Delhi, where they donated their kidneys to wealthy Burmese patients.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) took cognizance of the report and asked the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) to investigate the matter. The DGHS letter, quoted by ANI, stated that the report alleged a serious threat to the health and well-being of vulnerable individuals and asked the NOTTO to take appropriate action as per the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), 1994.
However, the hospital denied the allegations and said that they were false, ill-informed and misleading. The hospital, which is part of the Indraprastha Medical Corporation Ltd. (IMCL), one of the country’s largest hospital groups, said that they shared all the facts with the concerned journalist and complied with every legal and ethical requirement for transplant procedures.
The hospital spokesperson said that they required every donor to provide a ‘Form 21’, which is a certification from the foreign government that the donor and recipient are related. The hospital also said that they reviewed and re-validated the documents with the concerned embassy and the government-appointed transplant authorization committee. The hospital added that they conducted several medical tests, including genetic testing, for the patients and donors. The hospital also said that they followed the Indian law, which allows only close relatives to donate organs, except in humanitarian cases.
