Then on January 2, an email from Nidhi Taparia was waiting for him.

Nidhi works with rediff.com and was tracing Kantibhai for this assignment. She posed as someone who wanted to bypass the auction process and buy the kidney from him directly. Her brief was to find out if this was a prank or was organ sale really happening online. Her quest ended in this bizarre tale of desperation and life…

Kantibhai is suffering from a severe handicap since he was six months old. He went to a school for special children. There he met a girl, as badly challenged as he was. They fell in love. But their families objected to an alliance. So they waited till Kanti could land a government job. And then they married.

Though the job did not pay well, things looked bright for the couple when Kanti discovered computers in the accounts department. Like so many before him, he fell in love with the machines and taught himself as much as he could.

By now Kanti had twin daughters and he decided to augment his income by putting up a small business on the side. He bought a computer, some peripherals and furniture by privately raising funds of over Rs 50,000. He started a data entry and accounts management shop with a neat contract from a local bank. Now there was money to buy a scooter and a sidecar, a boon to the disabled couple.

But tragedy struck as swiftly as the business was built. Kanti is not forthcoming with reasons for his financial catastrophe. Yet the fact remains that he had to sell off the computer and the scooter and is now struggling to crawl out of a crippling debt.

There was no hope. And then suddenly, there was, on a computer screen in a cyber café…

Kanti was making himself comfortable in the café when several browser windows loaded with pages about the human kidney caught his attention. Perhaps a medical student had just finished browsing.

Kanti first began reading casually and then with rapidly growing interest. Realisation dawned in the glow of the monitor: Kidneys could be transplanted. And those who needed the organ were willing to pay.

Sale of human organs is banned in India. Yet a huge business in 'organ donations' thrives in the impoverished country. The media regularly reports about the shady network of organ brokers who arrange for a poor person to 'donate' an organ and receive a 'gift'.

With a baby boy added to the family just months ago, Kanti was now more than determined to sell his or his wife's kidney. Not wanting to expose himself to the law, Kanti avoided hawking his kidney openly. Instead, he began scanning newspaper classifieds in the hope of finding somebody who needed a kidney. He found one ad. But neither his nor his wife's blood group matched that of the patient and the deal was called off.

He discussed his plan with close friends who warned him against organ brokers. So to avoid their cut and safeguard his identity he turned to the Internet again.

He posted his kidney for sale on an auction site. Obviously, he was not doing a very good job of hiding his identity. Through just one email and an instant messenger chat, rediff.com was able to trace and confirm his name, home and office addresses and phone numbers.

Dilip Gohil, our correspondent in Gujarat, made some preliminary enquiries before meeting up with Kantibhai and telling him the truth about Nidhi. Here follows an excerpt from their conversation…

Why are you taking such a drastic step? Can money not be arranged in any other way?
No. I have thought about it from every angle. I even thought of getting some loans but who will give me money? My salary is around (Rs) 5,000. So I can't pay big monthly instalments. I want to return all the money (over Rs 300,000) and regain peace with myself. Now I don't have capacity to take further loans. So selling my kidney is the only way out.

For how long have you been trying to sell your kidney?
I don't exactly remember. But it has been some time now.

On how many sites have you put up your appeal?
Only on one. I am an avid surfer. I know all about the Net. So I thought, okay, let us try this e-commerce site. This auction site. (Name of the site withheld to safeguard Kanti's identity).

Have you also tried to sell your kidney via email or by using any other features of the Internet?
I just tried the auction site. But not long after, you people got into touch and all this has suddenly happened. I have not received any response yet. Now I have deleted my post on the Internet.

Why did you choose the Internet? Is it because you thought it would be easier to protect your identity this way?
Yes. I was a little worried and wanted to keep my identity secret till the deal was struck. I can't put out newspaper ads just like that. And then I thought, okay, there are these sites where people do sell and buy, let's try there.

Do you know of any other people who have tried to sell or have actually sold a kidney or any other organ by using the Internet?
No. I don't know of any other. I tried it on my own. I am a computer enthusiast. I look after the computer department in my office. And I regularly go to cyber cafés. So I thought about it on my own.

Do you know that it is illegal to sell or buy any body organs in India?
Yes I know it is illegal. But it happens regularly... And I think doctors and other people know how to find a way out.

What precautions have you taken to safeguard your identity?
I have taken precautions. And I have close friends whom I have told this. So if there is a problem they can help. So that's not the worry.

But how can you stay anonymous? We found you. If a serious buyer does get in touch, how will you proceed with the deal?
Okay... but now I think… I am a little confused. From the Net I have deleted the request... let's see... let me think again. And well... maybe I will find out another way to earn money.

How much do you earn?
Rs 5,600 per month.

How old are you?
37.

What is the minimum price that is acceptable to you?
That is negotiable if at all I will sell it now. I don't want to mention the price here to you. (He had told Nidhi he would accept nothing less than Rs 300,000 plus hospital expenses. On the auction site, the starting price was Rs 250,000).

With reports from Nidhi Taparia in Bombay
and Dilip Gohil in Ahmedabad

The Great Organ Bazaar

Kidneys? Livers? Testicles? Everything's up for sale online. Most of them are pranks. Like the one a certain Zamiel from Pune is trying to play on bidders at Baazee.com. Zamiel is offering his testicles for a king's ransom of $750,000 after knocking off 25 per cent on the original $1 million along with medical expenses. In an email correspondence, he claimed to have a high sperm count, wants to donate his specimens so that he can have enough money to live life and refuses to negotiate on the price. Cash on delivery is his choice of payment! He wants to be contacted only through email and provides no phone numbers. Organ sale on the Internet is not a new phenomenon. In 1999, popular auction site ebay had to halt the sale of a kidney. Bidding for it had started at $25,000 and reached something shy of $6 million. Last month, Business Standard reported a prank about how two human kidneys were put up for sale for Rs 500,000 and Rs 20,000 each on Baazee.com. While these auction sites halted the bids and removed these postings, it hasn't dampened prospective organ donors and pranksters alike. A search through egroups threw up a huge list of wannabe kidney donors. For those interested in livers, there are some online too!. But egroups and auction sites are not the only medium. Many are emailing strangers, offering to donate their organs. Read Timothy's account of what he found in his mailbox one morning.