How collective support helped Thane autorickshaw driver get back on the road with a new heart

Javed Padvekar, 60, was alarmed when persistent chest pain turned out to be fatal. For the Thane autorickshaw driver and his family, the diagnosis of terminal heart disease was devastating. With a minimum daily income of between 600 and 700 rupees, access to treatment seemed impossible.

However, a month later, a successful heart transplant gave Padvekar a second chance at life. His recovery is a fitting example of how institutional support, community involvement and philanthropy can help a family in need.

The heart transplant was performed in Bombayfrom Dr LH Hiranandani Hospital on December 26, by a team led by Dr Pravin Kulkarni, Director of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Kulkarni told indian express that Padvekar had a low ejection fraction (the heart struggles to provide enough blood to the body) and had been suffering for quite some time. “We put him on the transplant list so that he could eventually earn a living. We also took into account his socioeconomic status,” she said. “It was the first heart transplant for our institute, while in total our team has performed 16 transplants,” he added.

For Padvekar, a local doctor’s initial diagnosis that he could only survive three or four months, as his heart’s pumping power had reduced significantly, was devastating as his family depended on him. “Fortunately, some doctors helped us get an appointment with the heart transplant team,” he told The Indian Express.

Three months after registering to receive a heart, the hospital team connected with Padvekar when a donated heart became available through the Zonal Transplant Coordination Center from a 38-year-old brain-dead woman donor at Mahaveer Jain Hospital.

Help soon arrived from the Chief Minister’s Medical Relief Fund, Government of Maharashtra, dad Trusts, Shri Siddhivinayak Trust in Mumbai, crowdfunding platform ImpactGuru, etc., for the transplant cost, approximately Rs 20 lakh.

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“The addition of heart transplant services significantly strengthens the clinical depth of the Cardiac Center of Excellence,” said Dr. Sameer Kulkarni, CEO of Dr. LH Hiranandani Hospital.

Dr AV Ganesh Kumar, Director of Cardiology, Dr LH Hiranandani Hospital, said: “Performing a heart transplant requires extensive planning and specialized expertise. These results reflect our focus on safety, evidence-based care and long-term patient well-being.”

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a senior editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, he is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism on health, science, environment and research developments. She also has a keen interest in covering women’s issues. Professional Background Education: Gold Medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and Masters in Literature. Author: She is the author of the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, former chief scientist of the WHO. Key Focus: Combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human interest narratives. Awards and Recognitions Anuradha has won several awards including Press Council of India National Award for Excellence in Journalism in Gender Based Reporting Category in 2019 and Laadli Media Award (Gender Sensitivity -2024). She received the Lokmat Journalism Award (Gender Category-2022) and was also shortlisted for the RedInk Awards for Excellence in Journalism-2021. Her first book, At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan, the inaugural Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization, was also nominated in the People’s Choice category of the JK Paper AUTHER Awards. She has also held competitive fellowships including Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious India 2025 cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.” Recent Featured Articles (Late 2025) 1. Cancer and Specialty Healthcare “Tata Memorial finds a way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells” (November 26, 2025): Report on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease. Discipline, Diet and Purpose; How a 97-Year-Old Professor Challenges Aging” (November 15, 2025) Report on Professor Gururaj Mutalik, the first head of department at Pune’s BJ Government Medical College, who at 97 attributes his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose 2. Environmental health (“Breathless” series. Pune”) Prolonged exposure to even “moderate” air causes chronic heart, lung and kidney problems” (November 26, 2025) – Part of a research series highlighting that even “safe” pollution levels are harmful to vital organs. “For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was a 6-8% increase in medicine sales” (November 23, 2025) – Using commercial data to demonstrate the direct link between air quality and respiratory diseases in Pune. 3. Lifestyle & Wellness News “They Didn’t Let Cancer, Diabetes, and Heart Disease Stop Them From Traveling” (December 22, 2025) – A collaborative article featuring survivors sharing practical tips for traveling with chronic illnesses. At age 17, his blood pressure shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study points out why hypertension in children and adolescents doubled between 2000 and 2020” (November 12, 2025) – a report that focuses on a 17-year-old’s hypertensive crisis and reflects the growing global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents. 4. Scientific Infrastructure and Recognition To promote science and communication and gender diversity: IUCAA professor featured in Nature” (November 25, 2025): Covers global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics. Pune researchers find spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe” (December 3, 2025): A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe had only 1.5 billion years. , one of the first to be seen so far Signature Beat: Health, Science and Women in Leadership Anuradha is known for her reporting on COVID-19, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed information on the trials of Covishield and Covaxin. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, and often profiles women researchers who are breaking the “leaky pipeline” in STEM fields. health experts from the institutions.
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