India Launches First-Ever National Guidelines for Animal Blood Banks and Transfusion.
National
In August 2025, India's Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (MoFAH&D), unveiled the nation’s first comprehensive guidelines—establishing standard procedures and infrastructure for veterinary blood transfusion services.
- India’s livestock sector comprises over 537 million animals, while companion animals number more than 125 million—together contributing approximately 5.5 percent to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and over 30 percent to agricultural GDP—making the recently launched veterinary transfusion guidelines a vital boon to food security and rural livelihoods.
- The meticulously crafted “Guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Blood Transfusion and Blood Banks for Animals in India” fill a longstanding void in veterinary care. Before this, blood transfusions were carried out in emergencies without standard donor screening, blood typing, or storage protocols.
- Under this framework, blood typing and cross-matching are now mandatory to avoid transfusion reactions. The guidelines also specify donor eligibility—covering criteria such as health, vaccination status, age, weight, and disease screening—and emphasize voluntary, non-remunerated donations backed by informed consent and a Donor Rights Charter.
Main Point :- (i) To improve infrastructure and coordination, the guidelines propose the creation of state-regulated veterinary blood banks with biosafety-compliant facilities. They also envision a National Veterinary Blood Bank Network (N-VBBN) that includes digital registries, real-time inventory tracking, and an emergency helpline.
(ii) Education and capacity building are central to the framework: transfusion medicine modules will be incorporated into undergraduate (BVSc & AH), postgraduate, and Continuing Veterinary Education (CVE) curricula. Additionally, training for practitioners will ensure widespread adoption of safe practices nationwide.
(iii) The guidelines also pave the way for future innovations—encouraging mobile collection units for remote areas, cryopreservation techniques for rare blood types, and mobile applications to match donors and recipients in real time—strengthening both emergency preparedness and long-term veterinary care infrastructure.
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