CHANDIGARH, July 13 —Showing a remarkable act of courage and compassion, the family of 23-year-old Navneet Singh, declared brain dead at PGIMER, donated his organs, saving the lives of three critically ill patients.
Navneet, an engineering student from Gangath, Nurpur in Kangra district, suffered a severe head injury after falling from a rooftop on July 3. Despite all medical efforts, he was declared brain dead on July 11 in accordance with the Transplantation of Human Organs Act (THOA) protocols.
Amidst their profound grief, his father, Janak Singh, took the courageous step to donate his son’s organs. “Deciding to donate my son’s organs was not easy. But knowing that his organs would give others a chance to live has brought us some comfort in our sorrow. We are proud that Navneet’s legacy will continue through these lives,” he said.
Following the family’s consent, Navneet’s heart, both kidneys, and pancreas were retrieved by transplant teams at PGIMER. The kidneys and pancreas were transplanted into two recipients at PGIMER, while his heart was sent to Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital in New Delhi for a 26-year-old recipient.
To ensure swift delivery of the heart, a green corridor was created early Saturday morning from PGIMER to Chandigarh International Airport. The organ was flown to Delhi under the coordination of ROTTO North and NOTTO.
At PGIMER, a simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplant was performed by the renal transplant team led by Dr. Ashish Sharma. The second kidney went to a patient suffering from end-stage renal failure who had been on long-term dialysis.
PGIMER officials hailed the family’s decision as an inspiring example of selflessness in the face of loss. “This gesture not only gave life to three individuals but also reinforced the power of organ donation in saving lives,” said a senior transplant coordinator at the institute.
