The Hindu : Karnataka News : Finding soul satisfaction in blood donation

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Wednesday, Aug 27, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Finding soul satisfaction in blood donation

Firoz Rozindar

Nurullah has donated blood 54 times in the past nearly 15 years

Mohammad Nurullah at his vegetable shop in Chitradurga.

Chitradurga: Mohammad Nurullah is an ordinary man but his benevolent nature makes him stand distinguished. The 32-year-old vegetable merchant of Chitradurga city has taken up the noble cause of saving lives of people by donating his blood.

Nurullah, whose blood group is AB+, has donated blood 54 times in the past nearly 15 years.

According to him, he donated blood for the first time when he was studying in the ninth class. Recalling the days, he said that there was an accident that occurred on the outskirts of the city in which several people were injured. Some of them were admitted in Davangere and were in need of blood for survival. “I and my friends were at the accident spot to help the victims. Later, we went to Davangere to donate blood. At that time, I did not even know about my blood group,” he said.

Since then he has been donating blood to save lives. Later, he and some likeminded men formed a group with an objective of donating blood. Now, the group has 50 members who are involved in various occupations. They include autorickshaw drivers, pan shop owners, lorry owners, students and petty businessmen.

Nurullah had to discontinue education (he has studied till the 11th) owing to poverty. “With four children, my father, who was working as an agent in a private transport company, could not earn enough to support our family. So I used to drive autorickshaw at night to pay my college fees. I gave up my studies and started the vegetable shop in 1995,” he said. An ardent believer in God, Nurullah said that as his intention was only to help people, he never kept a record. He, however, said that he has donated blood 54 times. “Though every donation gives a sense of relief of having saved a life, the most soul-satisfactory action is donating blood to a woman who has been delivered of a baby, because here is a question of two lives,” he averred.

Though he is happy to donate blood, he feels disappointed when relatives of patients call just because blood is available free. “They have to first find a person in their own family to donate blood. Only if they have none to help, they can call us,” he said. He said that several members of group have donated blood more than 20 times.

Nurullah is also a member of a city-based organisation called Sanmarga. The organisation has opened a library with religious books. From the Bhagavad Gita to the Quran to the Bible, various religious books are available for the public. “We believe that no religion preaches disharmony and every religion talks of tolerance and respect to each other’s religion. Through our small effort, we wish to propagate this message,” he said.

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