All about the New Timeline in Organ Transplantation

Abstract

Abstract Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues (THOT) Act was enacted in 1994 by the Parliament of India to provide regulation of removal, storage and THOT for therapeutic purposes and for the prevention of commercial dealings in human organs and tissues. Under Section 9 of the 1994 Act, there is a mandate for the formation of Authorisation Committee, whose primary responsibility is to oversee and approve organ transplant procedures involving donors and recipients who are not near relatives. Although this approval is crucial and plays a critical role in the transplantation process to prevent illegal practices, the timeframe within which the Authorisation Committee should conduct interviews and make decisions is not prescribed in the Act. This has been causing significant delays in the transplant process and there have even been some cases where the recipients have in fact passed away, awaiting the decision of the Authorisation Committee. The Honourable High Court of Delhi has recently made a significant judgement and fixed the timeline for living donor organ transplantation on considering the petition filed by a patient and his donor for an order directing the Authorisation Committee to grant approval for kidney transplantation. This literature covers the analysis of the aforesaid judgement, an overview of the THO Act 1994 and the THO Rules 2014, the new timelines to be followed in the transplantation of organs and its implications.