Ahmedabad: When Harish Patel donated blood as a teenager in Feb 1985, he followed a simple push from his father and a family culture of showing up for others. Four decades later, that first step promises to turn into a national first on Sunday when the 58-year-old will donate blood for the 300th time. This tally is unmatched and spans 125 whole-blood donations, 173 single-donor platelet (SDP) donations and one plasma donation after recovering from Covid.The event is scheduled at Pandit Deendayal Auditorium where many Amdavadis will cheer his feat by donating blood themselves. “For my family, we find joy in giving and donating blood is the best donation one can make as it cannot be manufactured,” said Patel, owner of a chemical unit in the city.Dr Vishwas Amin, general secretary of the Ahmedabad branch of the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS), said Patel is tipped to be the first triple centurion donor in the country. “We checked across branches and available records; we haven’t found anyone else at 300,” Amin said. “It’s a proud moment for Ahmedabad—and it should push more people toward regular donation.”Patel traces his earliest motivation to children living with thalassemia, who need frequent transfusions to survive. “Back then the aim was straightforward: make sure at least 40 children in Ahmedabad had blood every week.”That goal scaled into a community machine. Through his voluntary organisation Satya Sai Group, Patel and fellow volunteers have organised 1,994 blood donation camps and collected about 80,000 units—roughly 40 units a week, five a day. “My 300 is one number,” he said. “The real story is thousands of donors saying yes.” He credits the network with helping create about 20 centurion donors—people who have each donated 100 times.If the whole-blood count reflects discipline, Patel says the platelet donations reflect urgency. Single-donor platelets are often sought when patients face critically low platelet counts—common in certain cancers, post-transplant care and severe infections. “When hospitals call for platelets, time isn’t a luxury,” he said. “I built a reputation for not saying no.” Nearly half of his 173 SDP donations were made between midnight and 6 am. “If it’s needed at 2 am, you go at 2 am,” he said. He has donated during major festivals as well. “Navratri, Diwali—blood shortages don’t take holidays.”Patel’s legacy has inspired his family too. Patel’s wife Ami has donated 90 times, and their son Kanhai, a doctor, has donated 50 times, pushing the family’s collective tally beyond 440. “My daughter and son’s fiancee have also donated blood at camps.”Patel points to an unintended benefit: staying donation-ready has kept him attentive to his health. “If you want to keep giving, you can’t be careless with your body,” he said.Ahmedabad’s blood-donation culture has long been a point of civic pride, and Patel’s milestone lands on a city already known for pushing the envelope, said Red Cross officials.
