National Organ Transplant Games 2026 Opened at Talkatora Stadium

Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan opened the National Organ Transplant Games 2026 at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi on 1 November 2026. The meet brings on to one stage the people who have received a transplanted organ, those who have donated an organ while alive, and the families of donors who died. Its purpose is to carry the cause of organ donation into everyday conversation.

Who organised the Games

The meet was put together by the Renal Care Foundation together with Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization, known by its short name NOTTO, which works under the Union Health Ministry. Dr. D. S. Rana, who chairs the Sir Ganga Ram Trust Society, is Chief Patron of the Games, and Dr. A. K. Bhalla is its Organising Chairman. Dr. Anil Kumar, who heads NOTTO as its Director, was also at the stadium.

Organ donation called a Mahadaan

Speaking at the opening, the Vice-President called organ donation a Mahadaan, the greatest of all gifts, and pointed to the story of Maharshi Dadhichi as an old Indian example of giving oneself up for others. He said that a single donor who has died can save as many as eight lives. He asked for the myths that stop families from agreeing to donate to be cleared away, and urged everyone to tell their own relatives what they want done. He added that the cause has gained pace in India because the Prime Minister has returned to it again and again in his Mann Ki Baat broadcasts.

A world record in Tadasana

The high point of the day was a record attempt in which 570 transplant recipients and donors held the Tadasana posture together. The World Book of Records, New Delhi, handed the organisers a certificate for the largest gathering of transplant recipients and donors doing that yoga posture. The Vice-President also brought out the 'Zindagi Dobara' calendar and honoured the medal winners of the World Transplant Games 2025, which were held at Dresden in Germany.

Others at the event

Prataprao Jadhav, Union Minister of State for Health, and Bansuri Swaraj, who sits in the Lok Sabha, were present. The Vice-President took the Organ Donation Pledge along with the gathering and watched exhibition matches of kabaddi, table tennis and badminton.