Family donates 22-yr-old’s organs after death in accident

Koraput: In a story that blends tragedy with immense courage and compassion, the family of 22-year-old Ashish Choul Singh, a youth from Sunabeda in Koraput district, turned their personal loss into a legacy of life. After Ashish was declared brain dead on Saturday night following a road accident, his family made the courageous decision to donate his organs giving a new lease of life to five persons.
Ashish, a trained ITI fitter, had been working as an apprentice at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Sunabeda and was living with his sister Sasmita and brother-in-law Amit Pradhan in the DP camp area of Sunabeda. On April 1, a regular ride turned tragic when his motorcycle collided with a car near Sunabeda B zone.
He was critically injured and was rushed to HAL Hospital before being shifted to SLN Medical College and Hospital. As his condition worsened, he was moved to a private hospital in Visakhapatnam, said Ashish's sister Sasmita. Despite exhaustive medical efforts, Ashish succumbed to his injuries, she added.
In the midst of unspeakable grief, the family was approached by the hospitals transplant coordination team. With quiet resilience, they gave their consent for organ donation.
Two kidneys, liver, pancreas, and small intestine were retrieved. The organs were allocated based on seniority, in adherence to the AP's Jeevan Dan protocol, said K Rambabu, state coordinator of Jeevan Dan programme, Andhra Pradesh's deceased donor organ donation initiative.
"The act has resonated far beyond the family's circle. Even in death, he chose to give. He may be gone, but he continues to live on through others. That is something we are deeply proud of," said Sasmita.
Ashish's final journey ended at Swargadwar in Puri, where his last rites were performed. The loss has come close on the heels of earlier bereavements of his father dying due to Covid-19 in 2021, and his mother earlier this year.
Last month, family of Chandrasekhar Nayak (22), of Dukum village in Rayagada district had donated his organs after he died in a road accident.