Supreme Court Directs Centre To Examine Lack Of Uniformity In Rules On Cadaveric Organ Transplant Across States

The Supreme Court on Monday, directed the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to expeditiously examine the lack of uniformity in rules regarding cadaveric organ transplant across states with the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Rules, 2014. The direction was issued in a petition seeking issuance of appropriate directions to State Governments for regulation and monitoring or the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act,1994 and bringing uniformity in Rules across various states in consonance with the Central Rules of 2014. As per the petition, the imposition of the mandate of producing a domicile certificate for the purpose of registration of an organ recipient in State registry in case of cadaveric organ transplant was arbitrary and not in consonance with the central Act or the Rules made thereunder. As per the petition, the OCI patients were being treated at par with NRIs and had to obtain an NOC from High Commission of the country whose citizenship they held in order to register as a recipient of cadaveric organ transplant and even after that they were the last ones in order of priority.