Bhubaneswar, June 14: The blood bank of the municipal corporation’s hospital here, which was closed for about four months for renovation, resumed its services today.

The blood bank of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Hospital was closed on February 8 following suspension of its licence by the directorate of drugs control and administration for inadequate infrastructure and alleged unhygienic conditions.

The renovated blood bank has a donor refreshment room, a blood collection room and a donor registration and medical examination room, which are essential requirements for running the facility under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.

More than 20 units of blood were collected on the first day after the blood bank’s reopened today.

“We have revoked the temporary suspension of licence after an inspection,” said deputy drugs controller Mamina Patnaik.

The drugs control directorate has also ordered to destroy 200 blood units after it was shut down temporarily.

An official of the blood bank said that though it used to collect and store about 2,000 blood units every year earlier, the current annual collection has shot up to nearly 14,000.

However, blood bank officer J.K. Ghosh said the blood component separation unit would become operational only after two more months.

“We require some additional instruments for the functioning of the component separation unit. A tender in this regard has already been floated,” said chief medical officer of the hospital N.K Sahu.

However, shortage of manpower at the blood bank is yet to be addressed.

“We need two more laboratory technicians and two permanent sweepers,” said an official.