Delhi residents can now register an organ donation pledge online after the Delhi government launched a dedicated digital portal and made the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation operational at G.B. Pant Hospital. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta launched the initiative on September 17 and became the first person to register on the new portal, according to the government. After completing the online pledge, residents receive an automatically generated digital certificate that can be downloaded.

The programme is part of the month-long Seva Sankalp Abhiyan, being held from September 17 to October 17. Alongside encouraging more people to pledge their organs and tissues, the government says the new SOTTO system will strengthen coordination between hospitals, transplant teams and patients waiting for organs in the capital. However, making an online pledge is only one part of the process. National guidelines make clear that family or legal next-of-kin consent is still required before organs or tissues can actually be retrieved after a donor's death.

Organ Donation Portal in Delhi: How the New Online Pledge System Works

The new organ donation portal is designed to make pledging simpler for Delhi residents. Instead of depending entirely on physical forms or awareness camps, residents can register their willingness to donate organs through the online system. Once registration is completed, the portal automatically generates a digital pledge certificate. The Delhi Health and Family Welfare Department has also listed an Organ Donation Portal among its public health services.

The basic process is:

1. Access the Delhi organ donation pledge portal.
2. Enter the information requested during registration.
3. Select the organ or tissue donation options available.
4. Submit the pledge.
5. Download the digitally generated pledge certificate.
6. Inform family members about the decision.

That final step is particularly important. NOTTO's national guidance says an organ donor pledge records a person's wish, but after death, consent from the family or legal next of kin remains mandatory before donation can proceed. So, keeping a digital certificate is useful, but discussing the decision with family members is equally important.

What Is SOTTO and Why Has Delhi Made It Operational?

SOTTO, or the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation, is the state-level coordinating body within India's national transplant network. Delhi has now made its SOTTO operational from G.B. Pant Hospital. The government says this will create a dedicated mechanism for coordinating donation and transplantation activities across the capital. National guidelines list several broad functions for a SOTTO. These include:

• Maintaining state transplant waiting lists
• Maintaining a state-level registry
• Connecting transplant and retrieval centres
• Coordinating organ procurement
• Supporting matching and allocation
• Coordinating transportation and storage
• Supporting brain-stem-death certification and retrieval teams
• Spreading public information and awareness
• Organising training for healthcare professionals

This means the initiative goes beyond collecting online pledges. A functioning SOTTO can help coordinate the process from identifying potential donors to matching available organs with eligible recipients and moving organs between hospitals.

How Will SOTTO Help Patients Waiting for Transplants?

Organ transplantation involves multiple institutions working within very short time windows. When a deceased donor becomes available, medical teams need to identify which organs are suitable, confirm the donor's eligibility, locate suitable recipients, organise retrieval teams and transport organs quickly. A state-level body helps coordinate those activities. NOTTO guidelines state that SOTTOs are expected to maintain waiting lists and coordinate organ and tissue procurement, matching, allocation, transportation, storage and transplantation.

The Delhi government has also said SOTTO will support the registration and authorisation of hospitals involved in retrieval and transplant procedures and help ensure organs are allocated through an organised system. This coordination is particularly important because organ availability is limited and medical urgency, compatibility and allocation rules all influence which recipient receives an organ.

Organ Donation Pledge Does Not Mean Automatic Retrieval

One misconception the new campaign needs to avoid is that simply signing up online means doctors can automatically retrieve a person's organs after death. That is not how the process works. NOTTO explicitly advises people to tell their families about their decision because family consent is required before organs or tissues are retrieved after death. People aged 18 and above can formally pledge their organs and tissues under the prescribed donation process. The national Form 7 allows a person to indicate which organs or tissues they wish to donate. The pledge can also be withdrawn later. This makes the online portal primarily a way to formally record a person's intention and encourage conversations about donation.

Which Organs and Tissues Can Be Donated?

Under India's national donation framework, deceased donors may potentially donate several organs, subject to medical suitability and the circumstances of death.

The official pledge form includes:

• Heart
• Lungs
• Kidneys
• Liver
• Pancreas
• Corneas or eyes
• Skin
• Bones
• Heart valves
• Blood vessels
• Other eligible organs and tissues

There is also an important difference between organ donation and tissue transplantation. Major organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys usually need to be retrieved under specific hospital conditions after brain-stem death. Some tissues, including corneas and skin, may also be retrieved after cardiac death within medically defined time limits. NOTTO notes that certain tissues can be donated even when death occurs outside the ICU, depending on circumstances and timing. The new Delhi system is intended to support both organ and tissue transplantation activities.

What Is the Seva Sankalp Abhiyan?

The portal was launched under the Seva Sankalp Abhiyan, a month-long programme running in Delhi from September 17 to October 17. The campaign coincides with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday and includes a range of government welfare, health and public-service initiatives. For the health department, organ and blood donation have been major components. Alongside the online portal, the Delhi government organised a large blood donation camp at Thyagaraj Stadium. Officials said 2,080 units of blood were collected during the event. The government says the organ campaign will also use:

• Digital platforms
• Educational institutions
• Hospitals and healthcare facilities
• Awareness drives
• Community-level programmes

The objective is to encourage more residents to understand donation and formally record their willingness to participate.

Delhi Government Wants Organ Donation to Become a Public Movement

The Delhi government has described the online system as an attempt to move beyond occasional awareness campaigns and make participation easier. Health Minister Pankaj Kumar Singh said the digital portal would make the pledge process more accessible and potentially increase public participation. The government also wants the operationalisation of SOTTO to connect awareness with a stronger transplant system. That distinction matters. Increasing the number of people who express willingness to donate is useful, but an effective transplant programme also requires trained coordinators, registered hospitals, recipient waiting lists, organ matching and rapid transportation. The new SOTTO structure is intended to address those operational requirements.

Can Someone Be Paid for Donating Organs?

No. India's transplant framework prohibits buying or selling human organs. NOTTO states that compensation or payment for organ donation is not permitted under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act framework. The purpose of a donor pledge is voluntary therapeutic donation - not a commercial transaction. The national framework is intended to regulate transplantation while preventing organ trafficking and other forms of commercial dealing.

Why Families Should Know About the Pledge

For Delhi residents considering organ donation, one of the most useful actions after registering online is to tell close family members. A digital certificate records intent, but it cannot replace that conversation. NOTTO's awareness guidance explicitly asks potential donors to discuss their wishes with relatives because next-of-kin consent will still be needed when donation becomes possible. This is especially important because families may otherwise have to make a difficult decision during an emotionally stressful period without knowing what the deceased person wanted. A clearly communicated pledge can make that decision easier.