Ma Su inaugurates blood donation awareness marathon at Madurai GH

CHENNAI: Health minister Ma Subramanian inaugurated the blood donation awareness marathon and a biogas plant at the Government Rajaji Medical College Hospital in Madurai on Sunday. Registration and Commercial Taxes Minister P Murthy was also present at the inauguration.

The biogas plant has been set up at the hospital at a cost of Rs 50 lakhs. This would be used for cooking in the medical college and there will not be any need to procure gas cylinders. Health minister said that this was one of the 110 announcements made by the department for the financial grant and they are being implemented gradually. He said that the government is taking various measures to protect the environment and one of them is to put biogas to use.

Talking about the blood donation awareness, he said that 4,500 students participated in the marathon and they will be educating the people about the necessity of blood donation through such awareness campaigns. Health minister also donated blood at the blood donation camp at the hospital.

He said that many new blood banks have been announced and even the rural areas in the State are having access to blood banks.

"A total of 107 blood banks have been set up by the government in Tamil Nadu and there are 2,228 private blood banks. Until last decade, Tamil Nadu was the leading State in blood donation, but now it has come to the second place. Blood donation camps are being conducted and blood banks are being established in government hospitals to make Tamil Nadu lead in donating blood again, " the minister said.

He added that radio frequency identification devices are being used at Madurai Government Hospital and all the details of the blood bag can be known through this device. Radio frequency identification device with various technical facilities is being implemented as one of the announcements announced by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister in 2021-22. Madurai Hospital blood bank is the second largest blood bank in Tamil Nadu that also identifies and segregates the components of blood for donation.