Organ donation is considered a noble cause as it helps save lives and many people get over their disability. However, the gender disparity in India is a common reason why most women do not get equitable access to life-saving surgeries. According to the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO), four out of five organ recipients in India between 1995 to 2021 have been men.

Also, 80 per cent of live organ donors in the country are women – mostly wives, mothers, and daughters of those seeking organs. It not only signifies a complex interplay of patriarchal societal mindsets that is deeply rooted in India but also exposes gender preferences and the economic roles played by both males and females.

“Socio-economic pressures play a pivotal role in the majority of the cases, compelling women to assume caregiving roles within the family. The social conditioning that has been happening since childhood in our country paves the way for this disparity. In the majority of the households, gender roles are set wherein male members are the primary breadwinners whereas female members are the nurturers,” Dr. Jaya Agarwal, Assistant Professor, Solid Organ Transplant, Amrita Hospital told Times Now.

According to Dr. Agarwal, societal expectations are too heavy for women. “These dynamics of traditional upbringing and the expectation from the society compels females to come forward as an organ donor in the majority of the cases perpetuating this imbalance,” she added.

The NOTTO also data says that for every woman who underwent an organ transplant during the stipulated period, men outnumbered them. That is, of the 36,640 donations during this period, only 6,945 or 18.9 per cent were women recipients.

The data draws attention to the ‘breadwinner dilemma’ that makes men more reluctant to be organ donors. Since males are the sole earners in many families, doctors say there is a sense of heightened responsibility among family members - especially the women, to donate their organs for the men.

"Women are expected to be emotionally giving, especially when their loved one is suffering. It is a psychological dilemma for the females in the family compounded by the societal expectations that force them to come forward as an organ donor,” said Dr. Agarwal.

“This phenomenon highlights the implicit bias against women’s welfare and health that continues to exist within family structure.

Organ donations, despite being safe in the long run can be physically and emotionally stressful for women if they have been coerced to do so.

Alarming statistics say most women in India are anemic and malnourished. According to a 2022 survey of National Family Health Survey, 182.9 million people are malnourished in the country - a majority of them being women and children. A rise in anemia has been recorded across several states among women aged between 15-49 years. And so, organ donation being a complex surgery can have lasting and negative effects on the donor.

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