India, Feb. 1 -- The State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC) has issued a strict warning to blood banks against collecting excess blood and transferring it in bulk to other states for profit, officials said on Saturday.

The SBTC recently directed all blood centre heads across Maharashtra to adhere to guidelines, following complaints that some centres were deliberately collecting far more blood than needed. Allegations indicate that surplus components, especially packed red blood cells (PRBCs), were being transferred out of state or supplied to plasma fractionation companies for commercial gain, violating norms.

Dr Purushottam Puri, Assistant Director, SBTC, said, "Blood centres found violating SBTC guidelines, engaging in bulk transfers ...