Mangalore: Young Swarna Dies of Freak Accident, Lives on Through Others
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore/Mangalore
With Inputs from DHNS
Bangalore/Mangalore, Dec 27: She died of a freak accident in her college, but young Swarna Jaswanth (20), a Mangalorean, lives on through others. On the night of Christmas, Sunday December 25, her organs were successfully transplanted to three recepients, thus giving them a new lease of life.
Swarna Jaswanth passed away after battling for her life following a fall through a flimsy glass floor in Vogue College of Fashion Technology, Bangalore. On December 21, she was on her way from the canteen to the second floor, when a step on a staircase gave way, and she fell on to the glass floor on the side. The glass smashed, and she plunged to the ground floor 20 ft below.
She was immediately rushed to the hospital in a comatose state, and breathed her last on December 25 morning.
The same night, her organs were transplanted on three recepients - liver on a patient at BGS Global Hospital, one kidney on a patient at Manipal Hospital and the other on a patient at St John’s Medical Hospital.
The heart valves were harvested and taken to the Narayana Hrudayalaya, where they will be preserved and used on needy patients. The corneas were retrieved and taken to Lions Eye Bank. The heart was retained, since there was no recipient available.
The entire co-ordination with the donor’s hospital and recipients’ hospitals was done by Zonal Coordination Committee of Karnataka for Transplantation (ZCCK), the government agency which takes care of counselling and cadaver transplants.
According to a ZCCK counsellor, the entire cadaver transplantation went off smoothly since Swarna's family readily agreed to organ retrieval and gave enough time for the doctors to harvest and transplant the organs successfully.
Speaking to Daijiworld, Swarna's mother Hemalatha said that she was deeply shocked by her daughter's death and was not in a state of mind to talk. The family has not decided yet on whether to take any action against the college, and will wait till the last rites are over, she said.
After the organ retrieval, Swarna’s body was taken to Victoria Hospital for a post-mortem. On Monday, her body was brought to Mangalore for the last rites.
Swarna, after completing second PU education at St Aloysius College in the city, had joined fashion technology course in Bangalore. She was a second year student of this course. The students of St Aloysius College had planned to collect funds for her treatment after Christmas, but unfortunately she passed away before they could help.
College clarifies
Meanwhile, M M Kariappa, chairman of Vogue College of Fashion Technology, said he was not absconding as alleged by the parents of some of the students, but was not receiving any calls from unknown numbers as there was a threat to his life, due to protests by some groups.
“I was constantly in touch with the doctors of Columbia Asia Hospital and have visited the hospital twice to ensure the best of medical treatment for the injured student. Financial assistance was also offered.
I was constantly in touch with the principal and the other staff members of the institution all along, monitoring the situation. However, the agitation by the students took a violent turn leading to law and order problem. A few anti-social elements joined in, intending to take advantage of the situation. At this point of time, since there was a serious threat to my life, I was forced to keep myself away from unknown callers,” he added.
Kariappa said he even spoke to Hemalatha, Swarna’s mother, on Sunday and expressed his deep sorrow and condolences. He said he ensured that the principal and other staff members visited the hospital on a regular basis during the past 11 days.