Alex Fernandes, 45, had been afraid of needles ever since he was a child. In the last fifteen years though, he has donated blood three times a year, as he is one of 45 people in the city who have the rare Bombay blood group (BBG).

During a blood donation camp at his church in Chembur in 1996, the doctors identified his blood group as BBG. Since then Fernandes, has been donating blood whenever a patient with the same group requires it.