Two Former Mumbai Blood Centre Employees Booked For Diverting Blood To Private Bank
An FIR was registered on July 2, 2026, against two former contractual employees of the government-run Sir J.J. Mahanagar Blood Centre for allegedly diverting 50 blood bags collected during a donation camp in Chinchpokli, Mumbai, to a private blood bank in Badlapur.
The complaint was lodged by Dr. Suhas Mohanalkar, Deputy Director of the Public Health Department and Assistant Director of the State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC), following directives from the Maharashtra government.
The accused have been identified as former contractual Medical Director Dr. Hitesh Pagare and former contractual Medical Social Officer Ajay Bhise. The charges relate to a blood donation camp organized by the Tarun Mitra Mandal in Chinchpokli on January 4, 2026.
During the Chinchpokli camp, the Sir J.J. Mahanagar Blood Centre collected 188 units of blood. According to the FIR, Bhise allegedly removed 50 of these blood bags without the knowledge or approval of senior officials and transported them to the private Maya Blood Centre in Badlapur.
An internal departmental inquiry in January 2026 previously addressed the matter after Bhise admitted to the unauthorized removal, submitted a written apology, and reimbursed Rs 55,000 for government processing charges. At the time, Dr. Pagare was issued a warning for inadequate supervision, and the matter was closed.
However, the case resurfaced after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspected the Sir J.J. Mahanagar Blood Centre on June 22 and 23, 2026. The FDA uncovered serious deficiencies and temporarily suspended the facility's operations.
Following the inspection, the SBTC constituted a three-member committee on June 24, 2026, to scrutinize the records of donation camps conducted over the past three years. This committee discovered major discrepancies between the number of blood bags collected and the entries in official registers, suggesting a systematic diversion of blood bags.
Investigators also suspect that government-owned equipment and consumables meant for the Mumbai centre were shifted to the private facility in Badlapur. Additional allegations against the accused include supplying free blood to private centres, misusing a government vehicle, and manipulating expenditure records to submit false claims.
The accused have been booked under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. The SBTC has ordered a comprehensive audit of all blood bags procured, collected, and utilized over the last three years, which will be examined by the Audit Inspection Department in Pune.
