LUCKNOW, April 6 -- The Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA), Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday suspended operations at six more blood centres across the state after uncovering serious safety violations during a statewide inspection drive, officials said. The latest action included three centres in Aligarh, two in Bahraich and one in Shamli. These closures come in addition to 43 blood centres where operations were suspended since the inspections began on March 30, according to an official statement issued on Sunday. FSDA commissioner Roshan Jacob said the inspections were part of a special drive targeting 201 blood centres run by charitable trusts and societies across 43 districts. Of these, 159 centres in 18 districts underwent detailed scrutiny, revealing major lapses that put patients at risk. "Nearly one-third of the inspected facilities were found to be non-compliant with essential blood safety standards" FSDA commissioner Roshan Jacob said. Officials said that the violations were far from minor procedural lapses. Key issues included the absence of mandatory ELISA testing, improper storage of blood and blood components, failure to maintain cold chain systems, and the lack of donor and recipient records. Many centres were found to be operating without qualified medical officers and technical staff for prolonged periods. In some cases, blood was transferred in bulk without proper documentation, while unhygienic conditions were observed at several facilities. Lucknow reported the highest number of inspections at 26, of which seven centres were shut, followed by Agra (23 inspections, five closures) and Meerut (18 inspections, two closures). htc...