Indian Railways has transported a donor heart by Vande Bharat Express for the second time in two days, carrying the organ from Ankleshwar to Ahmedabad in another time-sensitive mission to facilitate a heart transplant, officials said on Sunday.
The donor heart was transported aboard Train No. 20901 Mumbai Central–Gandhinagar Capital Vande Bharat Express on August 2 after being retrieved from Jayaben Modi Multi Speciality Hospital in Ankleshwar.
The organ was being transported to the U.N. Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre in Ahmedabad for transplantation.
To facilitate the life-saving mission, the Vande Bharat Express made a special halt at Ankleshwar railway station for the first time, allowing the donor heart to be safely loaded into Coach E-01 without delay.
After the train reached Ahmedabad, railway commercial staff, the Railway Protection Force (RPF), and the Gujarat Police created a green corridor from Platform 1 to ensure the organ reached U.N. Mehta Hospital in the shortest possible time.
According to Western Railway, the transplant procedure will be performed by the specialist medical team at the U.N. Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre.
This operation comes just two days after another milestone, when a donor heart was transported from Surat to Ahmedabad on the same Vande Bharat service.
Railway and medical authorities had described that mission as India's first donor heart transport by train. Despite heavy rain and flood-like conditions in parts of Gujarat, the organ reached Ahmedabad in about two hours, highlighting the potential of high-speed rail for time-sensitive organ transportation.
Since donor hearts must reach recipients within a limited time window to remain viable, railway officials said the speed and punctuality of the Vande Bharat Express are helping reduce delays and improve transplant outcomes.
Western Railway said it worked closely with hospitals, state police, medical teams, and railway officials to ensure Sunday's transport operation was completed smoothly.
In a statement, the railway said, "Indian Railways once again demonstrated its commitment to serving humanity and saving lives by playing an important role in the rapid transportation of a living heart through the Vande Bharat Express."
Officials added that the successful transport of donor hearts on consecutive occasions shows that the railway's modern, high-speed services are contributing beyond passenger travel by supporting emergency medical care.
Western Railway also reaffirmed its commitment to extending all possible assistance for similar humanitarian and life-saving operations in the future.
With Inputs From IANS
