Addressing his monthly radio programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, highlighted the noble gesture of organ donations and said awareness about such a kind move is helping those who need it, besides strengthening medical research in the country. He was talking in reference to the death of a 10-month-old girl, Aalin Sherin Abraham, from Kerala, whose parents decided to donate her organs.
"Just a few days ago, we lost Aalin Sherin Abraham, a little innocent girl from Kerala. She left this world at the age of just 10 months. Imagine she had a whole life ahead of her, which abruptly ended. So many dreams and joys remained unfulfilled. The pain her parents must be undergoing is beyond any expression in words," he said.
But, even amidst such profound pain, Modi said Aalin's father, Arun Abraham, and mother, Sherin, made a decision that has filled the heart of every citizen with respect.
The parents decided to donate Aalin's organs, and this single decision reveals the expanse of their thinking and the magnitude of their personality, he said.
"While on one hand, they grieved the loss of their daughter, on the other, they were also filled with a spirit of helping others. They wanted that no family experiences such a fate. Aalin Sherin Abraham is no longer with us, but her name has joined the ranks of the nation's youngest organ donors," he said.
The prime minister said the awareness about organ donation is steadily rising in India these days, and this is helping those who need it. He said it is also strengthening medical research in the country, and many organisations and individuals are doing extraordinary work in this direction.
Like Aalin, many people have given a second life to someone through organ donation, Modi added.
For example, he said, Lakshmi Devi from Delhi, who travelled to Kedarnath last year.
For that, she had to trek 14 kilometers, and people will be surprised to know that she undertook this trek after a heart transplant, he said. Devi's heart was functioning only at 15 per cent, and then she received the heart of a deceased donor, which transformed her life completely.
PM Modi said Gaurang Banerjee from West Bengal has been to Nathu La, which is located 14,000 feet above sea level, twice. The special aspect is that Banerjee achieved this feat after a lung transplant, and Ramdev Singh of Sikar, Rajasthan, had to undergo a kidney transplant, and after that, he is excelling in sporting activities, he said.
"You will come across many such inspiring examples. This proves once again that a single noble act can change the lives of countless people. I heartily commend all those who have undertaken such noble deeds," Modi said.