New Delhi: In a deeply moving story and a case of twisted fate, the loss of a young couple's child ended up saving the lives of five people including a 5-month-old infant. ALSO READ | India’s First Air Taxi Service Flagged Off; Check Routes And Other Details


39-year-old Ashish Kumar and his wife Babita from Rohini suffered an irreplaceable loss when their daughter, who was soon going to turn 2 years old, died after falling from a balcony of their home.

On the evening of January 8, Dhanishta became unconscious as she fell from the first-floor balcony of her home while playing. She was rushed to Gangaram Hospital where despite the best efforts, she did not recover. The doctors declared her brain dead on January 11.

But as fate would have it, their child in her parting ended up saving the lives of five critically ill patients including a 5-month-old infant - all of them are reported to have been on their deathbed.

The 20-month-old Dhanishtha has become the youngest cadaver donor in India. Doctors at Sir Gangaram Hospital in Delhi retrieved her heart, liver, both kidneys, and both corneas, and transplanted them in five patients including the infant, as reported by news agency IANS.

Dhanishtha's heart was transplanted in the 5-month-old infant at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital. Her kidneys and liver were used in adults.

The parents had voluntarily decided to donate her organs as they saw the plight of patients during their stay in the hospital.

"During our stay at the hospital, we saw many patients dying because of a lack of organs. When we asked the reason from the doctors, they told us that there is a scarcity of organ donors. We thought to donate organs of our child since there was no hope for her to come back to life," Kumar said while speaking to IANS.

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"We had already lost our child and we did not want others to suffer the same fate. Hence we voluntarily asked the doctors to retrieve Dhanishtha's organs and donate them to the needy ones. While she is not with us but we can see her living in others carrying her organs," he added.

Kumar is proud that his child became a medium to save the lives of five patients. "I will not say that I'm happy but whenever I would remember her, I would be proud that she became the reason for saving the lives of many patients," Kumar said.

"This proud moment will replace the painful memory," he added.

Authorities of Gangaram Hospital praised the family for their noble act while appealing to others to follow their example.

"This noble act of the family is really praiseworthy and should motivate others. At 0.26 per million, India has among the lowest rate of organ donation. On an average 5 lakh Indians die every year due to lack of organs," said Dr D.S. Rana, Chairman, Gangaram Hospital.

Kumar also urged people by saying: "There are myths attached to it like the person whose organs are retrieved will be born without them in the next life. People should not believe in such things. If there is an opportunity to save the lives of others, one should do that".

(With Agency Inputs)