The parents of a 20-year-old student, who died of injuries in a motorcycle accident, donated his kidneys, liver, heart, corneas and skin in the hope that their son would live on through the recipients.
The organs of Sajal Kar, who was declared brain dead at CMRI on Wednesday afternoon, were harvested at the hospital on Thursday morning. The process began around 9am. By 1.30pm, the organs were transported in ice-boxes to various hospitals in the city for prospective recipients.
One of the kidneys went to a woman at CMRI while another to a man at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals.
The heart went to Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, the liver and skin to SSKM Hospital and the corneas to Sankara Nethralaya in Mukundapur.
“He was a lively boy. He loved being around people. We were initially reluctant... but realised he would continue to live on if we donated his organs,” said Sajal’s father Sumit Kar, an employee of a private firm.
Sajal, a resident of Kolaghat and a BCom (honours) student of Bagnan College, was in an accident on NH41 between Mecheda and Haldia around 8.30pm on Monday.
He had been to a friend’s place in Haldia and while returning the motorcycle skidded, his uncle Amit Kar said.
The ambulance carrying Sajal’s heart leaves the hospital at 11.29am Picture by Gautam Bose
There was intermittent rainfall throughout the state on Monday and Tuesday.
He was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident but the strap wasn’t fastened properly, his uncle said.
He was flung off the bike and his head hit the road. He was taken to a hospital in Tamluk and shifted to CMRI around 2 am on Tuesday.
“His skull had multiple fractures and there was a lot of internal bleeding. He underwent a neurosurgery but there was no significant improvement,” a CMRI official said.
“His condition deteriorated and he was declared brain dead on Wednesday afternoon,” the official said. The family gave formal consent for the organ donation around 7.30pm.
“We salute the courage of his parents. They have set an example,” another official of the hospital said.
Sajal’s heart went to Habibur Rehman, 40. The Murshidabad resident was admitted to CMCH with dilated cardiomyopathy — enlarged heart with low pumping capacity. “The surgery went well. The patient will be kept under observation for at least 72 hours,” a hospital official said.
The kidney that went to Apollo was transplanted into Debajyoti Mukherjea, 55, an aeronautical engineer with a airline.
“He has been undergoing dialysis at Apollo since September. Doctors said he would need a cadaver transplant but was not sure about the waiting time,” his wife Mala said.
The couple got a call from the hospital about a prospective donor on Wednesday and Debajyoti was admitted hours later. The transplant surgery ended after 5pm on Thursday. “He will be kept under observation at the ICU for at least three days and may have to undergo some post-operative tests,” his wife said.
Sajal’s liver went to Jaypratim Ghosh, an auto driver from Baruipur, at SSKM. Jaypratim, a habitual drinker, has had liver cirrhosis since 2014, his mother Sandhya Ghosh said. “On two previous occasions, a profile mismatch prevented a transplant.”
This the second instance of multiple organ donation by parents of a person killed in an accident in the city. Amit Mukherjee, a resident of Shakuntala Park in Behala, met with a bike accident in Ultadanga on October 15. He was declared brain dead at Apollo three days later. His parents had donated his heart, liver, kidneys and corneas.
