Supreme Court Tells Centre to Frame National Policy for Organ Donation; Seeks Uniform Rules, Action Against Bias and Exploitation

The Supreme Court on Wednesday laid down an extensive set of directions to overhaul India’s organ donation and allocation framework, calling for a uniform, transparent, and equitable national system. A bench led by Chief Justice BR Gavai, sitting with Justice K Vinod Chandran, issued the directions while hearing a PIL by the Indian Society of Organ Transplantation.

The bench directed the Union government to frame a national policy containing “model allocation criteria” for organ transplants. The policy must eliminate state-wise discrepancies and ensure uniform criteria for donors across the country .

The court emphasised that the new framework must directly address gender- and caste-based disparities that affect access to organ transplantation.

The court noted that several states ha