UP: 7 held for smuggling Blood Units mixed with saline water at exorbitant prices

Lucknow: A gang consisting of seven members who used to smuggle human blood units to a charitable institute in Rajasthan and sell them through blood banks in Lucknow and other parts of UP has been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (UPSTF) from Midlife Blood Bank and Hospital in Thakurganj. 

Seven people were arrested including the head of the gang and two owners of two blood banks in Lucknow. The task force recovered 302 units of blood kept in ice bags, 21 forged documents from a charitable blood bank of Krishna Nagar, 7 mobile phones, Aadhaar, ATM and PAN cards, two cars, and Rs 20,000 in cash from them, reports The Times of India.

Also Read:Doctor among 6 held for allegedly smuggling Codeine cough syrup

The accused were identified as Naushad (kingpin) of Kushinagar district, Asad of Chowk in Lucknow, Rohit of Unnao (an employee of a private hospital), Karan Mishra of Madiaon in Lucknow (a technician of a private hospital), Mohammad Ammar of Bazaarkhala (owner of the private hospital Midlife Blood Bank and Hospital), Sandeep Kumar of Gudamba (employee of a blood bank) and Ajeet Dubey of Krishna Nagar (owner of Narayni blood bank).

According to STF deputy SP Pramesh Shukla, their team was tipped off about the smuggling of human blood, following which a team comprising STF officials and assistant commissioner, drug, Manoj Kumar and drug inspector Madhuri Singh performed a raid at the hospital. Shukla said, "The team found a car laden with packets filled with blood stopped at the gate of the hospital and two of the accused carried the cartons filled with blood packets inside the blood bank at the hospital. Two other miscreants remained seated in the car. The team rounded them all and interrogated them. They disclosed the names of their aides and the police arrested them also."

Naushad admitted that they had supplied two cartons filled with blood packets to Narayani Blood Bank in Krishna Nagar and two cartons to Midlife Blood Bank. He added that a few charitable institutes collected blood bags by organizing blood camps in Rajasthan and sold them at higher rates to smugglers using forged documents. He said that his team supplied blood bags in Lucknow, Bahraich, Unnao, Hardoi and other districts after procuring them from different cities in Rajasthan. 

Naushad, who is the head of the gang, had completed his DMLT diploma from Ramchandra Institute of Paramedical Sciences in Prayagraj and had also worked as a lab technician at Ambika Blood Bank in Jodhpur in 2018. He learned about the trade while working there and allegedly earned huge profits through the illegal supply of blood. He reportedly got in touch with several lab technicians of different blood banks in Rajasthan and learned that blood unit were collected through blood donation camps organized by different charitable trusts. An official said these units were sold to different blood suppliers by not making entries in the blood banks later. 

The blood units were mixed with saline water to increase the quantity and maintain their freshness before being brought and sold to different private and charitable blood banks in Uttar Pradesh. The blood units were stored in cartons by the suppliers while transporting them from Rajasthan to UP and did not maintain the cold chain mandatory required for healthy blood. 

Shukla told TOI, "Naushad used to purchase the blood bags for Rs 700-800 each which is the market price, and later sold these bags at a higher rate of around Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000."

Asad and Naushad revealed the names of six other blood banks that obtained blood units from the gang, reports the Hindustan Times. An STF official said, "Apart from Midlife Blood Bank and Narayani Blood Bank, Manav Blood Bank of Krishna Nagar, Lucknow, City Charitable Blood Bank of Unnao, Universal Blood Bank of Sandila, Hardoi, Abha Blood Bank of Fathepur, Hasan Blood Centre of Bahraich and Maa Anjali Blood Bank of Kanpur also procured blood units from the same blood suppliers, as revealed by the duo during rigorous interrogation."

The official added that the drug administration department would be initiating further action against these blood banks. 

Also Read:New Delhi: Fake MBBS admission racket busted, PhD holder held for duping aspirants