Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan inaugurated a voluntary blood donation campaign at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi today.
The blood donation camp orgsed by AIIMS on the eve of Independence Day is dedicated to both soldiers as well as COVID warriors who lost their lives while safeguarding the country and its citizens. Two families were invited as guests of honour including the family of a killed soldier and the family of a fallen COVID warrior of AIIMS.
Appreciating the initiative taken up by AIIMS, the health minister said, "On the eve of our 74th Independence Day, this voluntary blood donation camp is a tribute to both fallen COVID white coat warriors and the Kargil martyrs. We must remember the ultimate sacrifice made by the COVID warriors including doctors, nurses or paramedical staff while saving people's lives in the pandemic."
Highlighting the importance of voluntary blood donation, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, "In view of COVID-19 pandemic, restrictions due to lock-down and apprehension about hospital environment, the number of voluntary donations and blood donation camps saw a significant decline. Blood is required for emergency surgeries, blood disorders like thalassemia, blood cancers and road traffic accidents and trauma cases. Hence the best way to serve humankind is voluntary blood donation".
On India's fight against COVID-19, Vardhan said, "India's continuously rising Recovery Rate and progressively falling Case Fatality Rate have proven the success of the COVID-19 containment strategy followed by all States and UTs."
"We have successfully ramped up our testing capacity which has crossed more than 8.4 lakh milestone today with more than 1450 testing labs spread across the country. I have confidence in the scientific developments taking place in the field of treatment and vaccines for COVID-19 and soon India will achieve more success in our fight against COVID-19," he added.
Dr. Randeep Guleria, Director, AIIMS, other senior faculty and voluntary blood donors were present at the event.
( With inputs from ANI )