SURAT: A heart was transported by train for transplantation for the first time in India after the organs of a 36‑year‑old brain‑dead man from Odisha were donated at Surat New Civil Hospital, marking the hospital’s 96th successful organ donation and giving a new lease of life to four patients.
The donor, Mithun Swain, a native of Kalakhadi in Odisha’s Ganjam district who was living at Kim in Surat and working in a weaving unit at Pipodara, donated his heart, liver and two kidneys following consent from his family.
According to hospital authorities, Swain suffered a medical emergency on July 28 after returning to his room following a meal. His mouth became distorted and the left side of his body, including his arm and leg, stopped functioning. He was initially taken to a private hospital before being shifted by a 108 ambulance to Surat New Civil Hospital because of his critical condition. After receiving emergency treatment, he was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.
A medical board comprising RMO Ketan Nayak, plastic surgeon Nilesh Kachhadiya, neurologist Prayag Makwana and neurosurgeon Keyur Prajapati declared him brain dead at 4:01 p.m. on July 30.
Following the declaration, Organ Donation Charitable Trust volunteer Iqbal Kadiwala and counsellor Nirmala Kathude counselled Swain’s wife, brother and other family members about organ donation. The family agreed to donate his organs with the hope of saving other lives and encouraging greater awareness of organ donation in their native village.
A prayer meeting was held at 5 a.m. before the retrieval procedure, attended by in‑charge Medical Superintendent Parul Vadgama, Medical Officer Solanki, Iqbal Kadiwala, the counsellor, doctors and hospital staff, who paid their respects and prayed for the departed soul.
The liver and both kidneys were allocated to the Institute of Kidney Diseases and Research Centre (IKDRC) in Ahmedabad, while the heart was transported from Surat Railway Station to the U.N. Mehta Hospital in Ahmedabad aboard the Mumbai Central‑Gandhinagar Capital Vande Bharat Express.
The journey took about 217 minutes, or three hours and 45 minutes, making it the first reported instance in the country of a heart being transported for transplantation by train.
After the Vande Bharat reached Ahmedabad, the organ was moved to the hospital through a green corridor created by the Railway Protection Force and Gujarat Police to ensure timely delivery for the transplant procedure.
Hospital authorities said the success of the operation was made possible through the coordinated efforts of Surat New Civil Hospital, Indian Railways, the Railway Protection Force, Gujarat Police, transplant teams, the Organ Donation Charitable Trust and volunteers.
