The number of organ donations in the city was at a 15-year high in 2012, with a fifth of the all the donations done since 1997 taking place last year.

Since the inception of Mumbai Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee (ZTCC) in 1997, 345 cadaver organs — 290 kidneys, 53 livers, and two lungs — have been donated so far. In 2012, 63 organs were donated — 43 kidneys, 18 livers and two lungs. The rise came after a big dip in 2011, when just 20 kidneys and six livers were donated.

According to experts, the awareness about organ donation has increased after Congress leader Vilasrao Deshmukh’s death. After the former CM passed away on August 14, as many as 11 people have come forward to donate organs of their kin. In 2012, 27 people donated their relatives’ organs.

“Increased awareness after Vilasrao Deshmukh’s death has led to a lot of cadaver organ donations in 2012. People now understand the meaning of a brain dead patient and have themselves started coming forward to donate organs,” said Dr Sujata Patwardhan, secretary, Mumbai ZTCC.

Small hospitals that are not registered with the ZTCC also helped to identify donors, who were then shifted to registered hospitals for cadaver donations, said Patwardhan.

The state health department is now trying to make the other ZTCC centres in Pune, Nagpur, and Auran-gabad more active and has proposed to give each of them Rs61,000 each month. “We want other centres to be as active as Mumbai. We have had meetings with them to chalk out a plan,” said TC Benjamin, state health secretary.