BHUBANESWAR/BERHAMPUR: One life ended. Four others got a second chance. A heart raced against time aboard a Vande Bharat Express, turning a migrant worker’s final act of kindness into a milestone for India’s organ transplant programme.Mithun Swain, 36, a textile mill worker from Odisha’s Ganjam district, became the country’s first organ donor whose heart was transported aboard a Vande Bharat train for a life-saving transplant. The railways ministry called it “a heartbeat of hope, delivered on time”, describing it as a landmark made possible through seamless coordination between the railways and Gujarat govt.A resident of Kalakhandi village under Sorada block, Mithun had worked in Surat for nearly two decades.

He fell ill on July 28 after losing movement in his left arm and leg. He was first admitted to a private hospital before being shifted to a govt hospital, where doctors declared him brain dead on July 30.His family chose to turn grief into hope. After counselling, they agreed to donate his heart, liver and kidneys. “We agreed to donate his vital organs,” said Mithun’s younger brother Sanatan Swain, who also works in Surat.

The kidneys and liver were destined for Institute of Kidney Diseases and Research Centre, while the heart was to be sent to UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre — both in Ahmedabad. Bad weather ruled out air and road transport for the donor heart, given its delicate nature. Doctors then turned to Mumbai Central-Gandhinagar Capital Vande Bharat Express (20901). The heart travelled from Surat to Ahmedabad in two hours and 38 minutes before a green corridor created by RPF and Gujarat police sped it from platform 1 to hospital. Entire time-sensitive journey took 217 minutes. The kidneys and liver travelled by road.“He not only gave a new lease of life to four patients but also became a part of history,” said Odisha-based social activist Sukant Rout.