17-year-old brain dead girl saves nine lives through organ donation

CHIKKAMAGALURU: A 17-year-old brain-dead student, who was involved in an accident, gave a fresh lease of life to nine people by donating her vital organs on Thursday.

The heart is being airlifted to Bengaluru.

Rakshitha, a native of Somanahalli in Kadur taluk, fell while getting down from a bus on September 18 and had suffered severe head injury. Despite all efforts, doctors could not save her. After she was declared brain dead, her family decided to donate her organs. She was a PUC student at the Government PU College, Basavanahalli.

The police created a green corridor to transport the organs by road.

A team of surgeons harvested her organs in Chikkamagalur district hospital. The heart was airlifted to Bengaluru . The Chikkamagalur district administration appealed to the public for cooperation to transport organs to Mangaluru and Manipal. The police had cleared the roads of traffic between the hospital and the helipad and also created zero traffic roads from Chikkamagaluru to Mangaluru.

Lakshmi Bai, the organ donor’s mother.

“My daughter should be happy somewhere in this world. We are sad because she is not physically with us, but she will be alive through those nine people. My daughter is saving nine lives. We are sad, but as a parent I wish her to be happy,” said Lakshmi Bai, the girl’s mother.