This World Blood Donor Day, a story from Koderma holds up a mirror to everyone who has never once rolled up a sleeve. Ritesh Madhav, who works at JJ College, has donated blood 87 times by the age of 45, and along the way he has handed a fresh lease of life to countless strangers in need. Now he has set himself one more milestone — to complete 101 blood donations in his lifetime.
Where the journey began
In a special conversation, Ritesh Madhav traced the habit back to the year 2000, when he was still a student at Patna University. It was at a donation camp organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad that he gave blood for the very first time. That single moment turned into a turning point — on the same day he quietly resolved to keep donating regularly for the rest of his life and to keep showing up for those in need.
A donation every three to four months, for 25 years
Ever since — for roughly 25 years now — Ritesh has donated without fail at intervals of three to four months. His blood group is A positive, and whenever someone needs it, he is ready without a second's hesitation. For him, donating blood is far more than a social duty; he sees it as the single greatest way of handing life to a complete stranger.
The pandemic could not stop him
Even during the most frightening days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the whole country was gripped by fear, Ritesh's resolve did not waver. He expressed his wish to donate and made his way to the blood bank at Sadar Hospital. Given the rising risk of infection at the time, however, the blood bank staff did not permit him to donate and sent him back home.
The road accident where a life was saved
During the conversation, Ritesh grew emotional as he recalled one particular incident. About two years ago, right in front of JJ College, a car and a truck collided. One man was killed on the spot, while his wife was critically injured. The hospital needed blood immediately. In that desperate moment, Ritesh Madhav donated his own blood, helped with the woman's treatment, and played a key role in saving her life.
'Blood in the body is like water in a well'
To explain why donation matters, Ritesh offers a simple comparison. The blood in our body, he says, is just like the water in a well — if water is not drawn out regularly, it begins to rot. In the same way, the old blood cells in the body keep dying off over time. When we donate, he explains, the body starts producing new cells and our health actually improves. That is why he counts saving someone's life through blood donation as the greatest good deed of all.
Still completely fit after 87 donations
Despite giving blood so many times, Ritesh remains perfectly healthy — and he treats that fact as a message in itself. He follows no special diet and keeps no extraordinary routine; ordinary meals and an ordinary lifestyle, just like everyone else, are all he relies on. His firm belief is that for any healthy person, regular blood donation is entirely safe.
Honoured from the district to the state level
For spreading awareness about blood donation and for his steady record of community service, Ritesh Madhav has been honoured by several social organisations and NGOs, from the district level right up to the state level. The Jharkhand government has also felicitated him. Ritesh believes such recognition does more than encourage him personally — it inspires others, too, to step forward and donate.
