New Delhi, Dec. 18 -- Thalassemia patients' groups have urged the Union government to urgently pass the National Blood Transfusion Bill, 2025, arguing that the recent incidents of children getting infected with HIV after blood transfusion point to systemic lapses rather than isolated failures, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

The Bill, seeking to regulate blood collection, testing, storage, and transfusion to prevent transfusion-transmissible infections such as HIV and hepatitis, was introduced during the Winter Session of Parliament earlier this month. It also proposes penalties for non-compliance.

The issue was raised a day after it came to notice that four minor thalassemia patients, who underwent blood transfusion ...