Mysuru: A KPTCL officer from Mysuru city crossed the milestone of donating blood more than 100 times, an achievement that remains rare even for regular blood donors.The death of his aunt in Tumakuru decades ago, when no one came forward to donate blood, inspired him to begin donating after reading appeals in newspaper. Today, he boasts of donating blood 103 times, mostly to patients in govt hospitals across the state, as his job involves frequent transfers. This resident of KRS Road, T Tyagaraju, 56 years, reached the century mark in voluntary blood donation after a journey that began nearly four decades ago. Tyagaraju, a B-positive blood group donor, first donated blood in 1987 when he was pursuing his diploma. Since then, the act became a lifelong commitment to saving lives. The inspiration for this humanitarian mission came from a personal tragedy. His aunt died in Tumakuru due to the non-availability of blood at a critical moment. At that time, awareness about voluntary blood donation was very limited, and blood banks were mostly available only at district headquarters. “I asked many who were present during my aunt’s death why they didn’t donate blood. That was when I realised that awareness level was very low. So I decided to take up this task,” he told TOI. “Earlier, people who needed blood for their relatives used to publish requests in newspapers. I was an avid newspaper reader. Whenever I read such news, I visited hospitals and donated blood,” Tyagaraju recalled. Over the years, he continued donating blood wherever he was posted for work. For the past 15 years, he has maintained a consistent schedule of donating blood four times a year. Tyagaraju has also been actively involved in organising blood donation camps to encourage voluntary participation. Apart from his humanitarian work, Tyagaraju is also a writer and authored 15 Kannada books so far. SE Girish, trustee of Jeevadhara Blood Bank, said Tyagaraju is one of their most regular and committed donors. “Post-Covid, there was a noticeable increase in voluntary blood donation, with many people coming forward passionately,” he said. Meanwhile, Devendra Parihariya, 36, founder of the Blood On Call Club Mysuru and a businessman, said Tyagaraju is the only person in Mysuru known to have donated blood more than 100 times.
