In Visakhapatnam, a kidney racket that collaborated with an unregistered hospital was recently exposed. The lucrative nature of the organ trade is apparent from the statistics available from various sources. On average, Andhra Pradesh sees 15 to 20 kidney transplantations daily, and at least 10% of them may be illegal. These illegal transplants usually come to light only when the donor lodges a complaint about cheating in payment by the middlemen.
The shortage of organs is due to a rise in kidney failure cases, a scarcity of eligible relatives who can donate, and few deceased organ donations. Only 7,000 to 9,000 of the one to two lakh people who require organs every year in the country receive transplants. In Andhra Pradesh, over 3,000 people have been waiting for organ donors for years, and at least 1,800 people require kidney transplantation through Jeevandan. The number of organ donors is a small fraction of this requirement, leading to a thriving black market in organ trade.
Illegal trafficking is disguised as altruistic donations, where someone donates an organ to someone they are not related to, or even to a stranger. Recent kidney racket incidents in parts of the state reveal how gangs lure poor people by promising hefty returns for organ donation. Approximately 90% of kidney transplants in the state are legal, where the donor is either a relative or friend of the receiver. However, 10% of transplants may be illegal, involving financial transactions.
The investigation into the Vizag kidney racket is ongoing, and more accused are expected to be arrested. People who cannot find a legal kidney donor are willing to spend large sums of money, making the kidney rackets thrive in the state. The network of kidney traffickers, including doctors, hospital management, and brokers, target poor people by offering them money. The donor and middlemen are often unaware of the doctor who performs the illegal transplants, and everyone involved in the trafficking gangs receives large sums of money from the receiver of the kidney.
The practice of selling and buying kidneys is unethical and exploits the poor, yet it continues to thrive. Interestingly, most cases of illegal kidney transplantation come to light when the victim approaches the police, claiming that they were paid less than the promised amount by the broker.