Kerala govt sets up advisory panel for effective implementation of organ transplantation procedures

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has set up an advisory committee for the effective implementation of organ transplantation procedures in the state.

Health Minister Veena George said on Sunday that it is for the first time that such a panel is set up in the state and a notification has been issued in this regard.

The government advisory panel would function in accordance with the Transplantation of Human Organs Act 1994, it said.

Stating that the responsibility of the advisory panel is to assist and provide guidance to the appropriate authority, the minister said the panel would also adopt steps to make the organ donation procedure more transparent.

The Health Secretary would serve as the chairman and the Health Director would be the member secretary of the panel which has a tenure of two years.

It would have nine members comprising a member-secretary, medical and legal experts, social activists and representatives of NGOs and persons who had received organs earlier.

In Kerala, the Director of Medical Education Department is functioning as the appropriate authority who is responsible for license related activities of hospitals which perform organ transplantation and investigating and taking action on complaints of violation of rules in this regard, the statement added.