Vilasrao Deshmukh set to undergo kidney and liver transplant, after being put on the 'super ultra-emergency' list

Vilasrao Deshmukh is going to get his liver and kidney transplant soon. A 31 year-old driver who was declared brain dead after being hit by an ambulance on Saturday near Kovalam was going to be the unwitting donor. On the same day, Deshmukh's case was flagged as a 'super ultra-emergency' by Global Hospitals. According to media reports a team from Global Hospitals has already retrieved the organs from the Government General Hospital in Chennai where the driver was admitted.

Earlier, his son Riteish had showed a willingness to donate a part of his liver but the minister needed a whole liver. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra had tweeted "Instructed Gujarat's health department to procure cadaver liver on top priority for Vilasrao Deshmukh, who is undergoing treatment."

The 67-year-old minister, diagnosed with liver cancer, was flown to Chennai by an air ambulance last Tuesday. The driver's family however had to be convinced who were unwilling to part with his organs.

Organ harvesting is not popular in India. Only 250 organs have been harvested in Tamil Nadu since September 2008. There's usually a huge waiting list but the allotment rule is broken only when there is an emergency of a patient's condition irreversibly going down rapidly. "This is the first time we have a VIP on the waitlist," said a health department official.