Pouches of blood stored in a refrigerator at Chhapra sadar hospital. Telegraph picture

Chhapra, April 5: An urgent need for blood from outside can lead to a crisis situation in the district as the blood bank at Chhapra sadar hospital has scant stock to meet the requirements of the people.

The blood bank is proving insufficient in meeting the needs of the people for lack of proper power supply and other necessary facilities required for stocking blood.

The blood bank was established in 1980 but it started functioning only two years ago after its maintenance was handed over to the Indian Red Cross Society.

While fluctuating power supply poses a challenge for the hospital, there is also no alternative arrangement of gensets. As a result, the three big refrigerators provided by the AIDS Control Society, Delhi, are lying defunct for the past few months.

Secretary of Red Cross Society Shyam Chamaria told The Telegraph: “In 2009, the Nitish Kumar government signed a memorandum of understanding and the blood banks of 17 districts were handed over to the Indian Red Cross Society for maintenance. The society has no funds and it functions on its own arrangements. Bihar State Health Services allotted Rs 7.5 lakh to the society in 2009 but the society is still to receive the amount. Till now, Rs 2 lakh has been spent which was given by Bihar AIDS Control Society.”

“A sum of Rs 4 lakh, provided for the maintenance of air conditioners and beautification of the blood bank, is lying idle with the society. The money if spent will go in waste for want of adequate power supply and non-availability of gensets. The three air-conditioners at the hospital have been reduced to showpieces,” Chamaria added.

He said a two-storeyed building of Red Cross Society built in 2000 with the fund provided by the then MP, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, was occupied by the welfare department, which runs a remand home there. “We have requested the authorities several times, but that has not yielded any results yet,” he said. Despite these adversities, the society has managed to organise 15 blood donation camps and arranged a total of 149 units of blood. He said one small fridge is functional in which 30 pouches of blood are maintained and the rest are sent to Patna.

Dr Shambhu Nath Singh, in-charge the blood bank and the deputy superintendent of Chhapra Sadar Hospital said: “Around 20 to 30 people benefit from the blood bank a month.

The number could have been more than 200 a month, if all the facilities were available.”