15-05-2025
‘State must enforce mandatory thalassemia testing for grooms'
KARACHI: Founder and Chairman of Saylani Welfare, Maulana Muhammad Bashir Farooq Qadri, announced that 92 children undergoing treatment at the Saylani Blood Bank and Thalassemia Centre have been successfully rehabilitated. These children no longer require blood transfusions and can now lead normal lives like other children, dream of a brighter future, and look forward to milestones such as marriage. Currently, 300 more children are receiving treatment at the centre.
Addressing a seminar held to mark World Thalassemia Day, Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority Secretary Dr Darnaz Jamal emphasized the need for collective efforts to combat thalassemia.
The seminar also featured speeches by prominent figures, including Hamdard University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Shabib Hassan, Director of Clinical Science Division Hamdard Laboratories Prof Dr Hakeem Abdul Hannan, Prof Dr Faisal Haider, Dr Tabiba Saima Ghayas, Dr Azra Rafiq, Dr Zaneer, Dr Abdul Qadeer, Director of Saylani Blood Bank Center Iqbal Qasmani, Dr Sarwar, Dr Younus Jamal, and others.
Maulana Muhammad Bashir Farooq Qadri urged the state to strictly enforce the law mandating premarital blood tests for thalassemia minor for grooms. He cited the successful implementation of this law in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom, which have achieved thalassemia-free status.
Dr Darnaz Jamal lauded Saylani's efforts in combating thalassemia and called for research into possible treatments using Unani medicine. She suggested that if marriage registrars were to refuse to solemnize marriages without thalassemia-free blood test reports for grooms, and if banquet halls and catering services declined bookings without such reports, controlling the disease would become much easier. This is crucial because when both the bride and groom are thalassemia minor carriers, their children are at high risk of being born with thalassemia major.
She also expressed concern over the lack of awareness, highlighting instances where families have multiple children suffering from this condition. Dr Jamal stressed that the goal is not to impose undue restrictions on marriages but to prevent the annual addition of 10,000 thalassemia-affected children.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
