HC stresses on need for more blood banks in Mumbai

The Bombay High Court today emphasised on the need to set up blood banks in every ward and to ensure that safety regulations are followed strictly in a metropolis like Mumbai where accidents are common.
"How many blood banks are presently here? Are safety regulations followed? We need to have such banks in each and every ward and it is also important to ensure that safety regulations are adhered to so as to avoid contamination of blood. This is a very crucial issue particularly in a city like Mumbai where accidents are common. Most of the times we hear blood is not available in hospitals," the court said.

The bench headed by Justice V M Kanade was hearing a public interest litigation by NGO Azad Hind Seva Dal.
While the petition raised the issue of food safety and the need to set up food quality testing labs in the city, the court extended the scope of the petition to blood banks and forensic laboratories.
"Something also needs to be done to increase the quality of forensic labs in the city. 99 per cent of cases which rely heavily on forensic evidence end up in acquittal because the results of the forensic labs are inconclusive," the court said.
The bench directed the Union government, Maharashtra government and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to file their affidavits in response to the petition within four weeks.