National Blood Policy: Target to establish one blood centre in every district by December 2026

Key facts

• The Ministry of Health (Health Ministry) aims to establish at least one blood centre in every district by December 2026, in line with the National Blood Policy.
• Approximately 10 per cent of districts in the country currently do not have a blood centre.
• Performance of blood transfusion services was evaluated against a framework of 10 key performance indicators (KPIs) using data from eRaktKosh, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), and the Blood Bank Management System (BBMS).
• The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) reiterated the national goal of ensuring timely access to safe blood in every district with zero transfusion-transmitted infections.
• The review of blood transfusion services covered five critical stages: Licensing and Renewal; Donor Screening and Blood Collection; Testing for Transfusion-Transmitted Infections (TTIs) and referral/linkage of reactive donors; Processing, Storage and Issuance; and Reporting and Record-keeping.
• Priority actions identified include ensuring 100 per cent licensing compliance of all operational blood centres and scaling up voluntary blood donation through structured outreach and awareness campaigns.