Organ transplant games opened in New Delhi on 1 November 2026, when Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan inaugurated the National Organ Transplant Games 2026 at Talkatora Stadium. The organ transplant games bring transplant recipients and donors together in sporting competition, with the stated aim of spreading awareness about organ donation and showing that life after a transplant can be active.
The organ transplant games were organised with support from the Renal Care Foundation, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization, known as NOTTO, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Prataprao Jadhav, Lok Sabha member Bansuri Swaraj, Sir Ganga Ram Trust Society chairman Dr D. S. Rana, organising chairman Dr A. K. Bhalla and NOTTO director Dr Anil Kumar were among those present.
During the programme, the Vice President released the Zindagi Dobara calendar and felicitated medal winners of the World Transplant Games 2025, held in Dresden, Germany. He paid respects to deceased organ donors and their families, and described organ donation as a mahadaan, a great donation, in remarks carried by the Press Information Bureau.
Organ transplant games set a Tadasana congregation record
The opening day featured an attempt at a world record for the largest congregation of transplant recipients and donors performing Tadasana together. A total of 570 transplant recipients and donors took part in the yoga session. Following the successful attempt, the organisers were presented with a certificate by the World Book of Records, New Delhi, for the largest congregation of transplant recipients and donors performing Tadasana.
Tadasana, also called the mountain pose, is a standing yoga posture. The choice of a group yoga pose for the record attempt put the emphasis on participation rather than on elite performance, since recipients of different ages and fitness levels could take part in the same session.
The organ transplant games themselves are a sporting event for recipients, with competition across disciplines. Earlier transplant games in India have included badminton, table tennis and chess, alongside events for donor families and medical staff. The 2026 edition follows that pattern, using sport as a way for recipients to meet each other and for the public to see recipients competing.
Organ transplant games and the case for donation awareness
Inaugurating the games, Radhakrishnan called for misconceptions surrounding organ donation to be dispelled and for awareness to be spread, so that fewer lives are lost while patients wait for organs. He urged people to make informed decisions about organ donation and to share their wishes with family members, saying greater awareness could help ensure that more patients receive transplants.
Pointing to India’s progress in organ transplantation, Radhakrishnan said the country recorded over 20,000 organ transplants in 2025, more than four times the 4,900 transplants recorded in 2013. India now ranks third globally in the total number of organ transplants, he said. The country also recorded over 1,200 deceased organ donors in 2025, the highest annual figure so far.
He also recalled an instance in Tamil Nadu where seven organs from one donor were given to seven different recipients. The example was cited to show how a single donor decision can change several lives, a point that organisers return to when they ask families to discuss donation in advance rather than at a moment of grief.
Organ transplant games celebrate recipients and donor families
Radhakrishnan said the National Organ Transplant Games were more than a sporting event, as they celebrated the resilience of transplant recipients and recognised the contribution of healthcare professionals. He commended the participants for their courage, discipline and sporting spirit and declared the games open.
The Vice President said the games would inspire people awaiting transplants and demonstrate that life after transplantation could be full of possibilities. That message is aimed at patients on waiting lists, for whom a transplant can seem distant, and at families weighing whether to register as donors.
For NOTTO and the organising hospitals, the organ transplant games also serve a practical purpose. Public events that put recipients on a stage give donation campaigns a face that statistics do not, and they give donor families a public acknowledgement of a decision made in private. The record Tadasana session on the opening day gave the 2026 edition a shared moment that organisers can point to in later awareness work, with 570 recipients and donors standing together in one stadium.