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Time of India
02-08-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Liver on the line... Doctors use Bengaluru Metro to beat city's weekend traffic and save life
Bengaluru: In a dramatic race against time and the infamous traffic of Bengaluru, a team of doctors turned to an unlikely lifeline — a Namma Metro train — to transport a donated human liver across the city for an emergency transplant. It was a first-of-its-kind operation in the tech capital and only the second in the country. The mission unfolded Friday night, when a liver retrieved from a 24-year-old accident victim had to be urgently delivered from a hospital in Whitefield to another in Rajarajeshwarinagar (off Mysuru Road), a distance of about 30km. Under normal circumstances, this journey by road would have taken at least two hours in the city's notorious evening traffic. But for a critically ill patient battling severe hepatitis-related liver failure, time was a luxury he didn't have. At 8.38pm, an ambulance carrying the organ and a team of seven medical personnel, including a doctor, from Vydehi Hospital arrived at Whitefield Metro station. There, BMRCL staff and an assistant security officer (ASO) facilitated swift clearance, documentation, and security checks. Escalators and lifts were kept clear, and BMRCL's operations and security teams worked in tandem to ensure not a second was lost. By 8.42pm, the team boarded a Metro train. A coach was reserved for the organ and the medical staff, who embarked on their 32-station journey. At 9.48pm, the train reached RR Nagar station, where another ASO and Metro staff received the team. An ambulance was already waiting at the station. The liver was rushed to Sparsh Hospital, where a high-stakes transplant surgery began. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru Dr Mahesh Gopasetty, head of liver transplant and HPB surgery at Sparsh Hospital, said, "A road trip for transporting the organ might have taken over three hours because of the Friday evening congestion. Time was crucial. If we had taken the road, the organ might have been wasted. Metro rail gave us the fastest and safest option." The overnight surgery was successfully completed by 3am and the patient, who had been waiting over two months for a suitable donor, has been declared stable and is under post-operative care. According to BMRCL, the entire operation was executed following protocols laid out by the ministry of housing and urban affairs. The event marks a major milestone in urban medical logistics, as BMRCL confirmed this was only the second time in India that a Metro train was used to transport an organ for transplant. In Jan this year, Hyderabad Metro created a green corridor for transporting a donor's heart, covering a distance of 13km. According to doctors, vital organs such as heart, liver, kidneys and corneas from a brain-dead patient remain viable only for 6-12 hours during normal conditions. Every minute saved during transportation boosts transplant success, they added. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Friendship Day wishes , messages and quotes !
India Today
02-08-2025
- Health
- India Today
Video: Bengaluru hospital trusts Namma Metro to transport liver for urgent surgery
A video of a liver being transported via Bengaluru's Namma Metro to reach a critically ill patient on time, avoiding the city's notorious traffic, has gone viral on social media. It was the first time the Metro was used for such a medical emergency in the patient had been battling severe hepatitis-related liver failure. He was given a new lease of life after the donated liver was rushed to SPARSH Hospital in RR Nagar using the organ, retrieved from a 24-year-old accident victim, travelled from Whitefield to the hospital, covering over 31 kilometres and 30 Metro stations, in just 55 minutes. In the now-viral clip, a team of hospital staff can be seen deboarding the last coach of a Metro. Moments later, they are seen rushing the organ container, assisted by Metro ground the viral video here: To make this possible, green corridors were created at both ends of the Metro journey: a 5.5-kilometre stretch from the private hospital to Whitefield (Kodugodi) Metro Station, and another 2.5-kilometre route from RR Nagar Metro Station to SPARSH Hospital, according to a hospital statement issued on key concern was the evening traffic, which could have delayed the transplant beyond the organ's viability window, the statement last coach of a scheduled Purple Line service was cleared exclusively for the medical team, with full security arrangements and on-ground coordination.'Time was of the essence. Had we taken the road, the organ could've been wasted due to heavy weekend traffic. The Metro gave us the fastest and safest option. We are deeply grateful to BMRCL and SOTTO Karnataka for their swift and wholehearted support,' said Dr Mahesh Gopasetty, HOD and Senior Consultant - Liver Transplant & HPB Surgery, SPARSH RR transplant surgery was completed overnight, wrapping up around 3:00 AM. The patient remained stable in the ICU under close post-operative care at the time of reporting.- EndsMust Watch
