The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare observed the 16th Indian Organ Donation Day on 3rd August 2026, highlighting significant achievements in India's organ transplantation program. The national event, organized by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), showcased record-breaking transplantation numbers and launched several new initiatives to strengthen the ecosystem.
India performed 20,138 organ transplants in 2025, representing the highest annual count recorded and a 6.5% increase over the 18,911 transplants performed in 2024. This marks a fourfold increase from the 4,990 transplants conducted in 2013. India retains its global leadership position in living donor organ transplants and ranks third worldwide in total organ transplants, after the United States and China. Deceased donor transplants showed particularly strong growth, increasing more than fourfold from 837 in 2013 to 3,526 in 2025.
The government reported that over five lakh Aadhaar-verified organ donation pledges have been registered since the launch of the national digital pledge portal in 2023, with over 2.58 lakh citizens pledging to donate their organs and tissues in 2025 alone. Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Smt. Anupriya Patel attributed this growing participation to sustained government awareness efforts and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's inspiring appeals.
Several landmark initiatives were launched during the event. The 'Jug Jug Jiyo Abhiyaan' is a year-long nationwide awareness campaign designed to promote organ donation as a life-saving act and expand awareness to every village across India. The 'e-प्रत्यारोपण' platform is a unified, secure, transparent national digital ecosystem that integrates hospitals, doctors, donors, and recipients into a seamless network for registration, wait-list management, organ allocation, and monitoring. The NOTTO Mobile Application was introduced to provide easier access to organ donation and transplantation-related services and information for citizens and professionals.
Policy frameworks were strengthened with the release of National Brain Stem Death Certification Guidelines and National Guidelines on Swap Transplantation, which provide practical frameworks for transplant professionals and support states and union territories in implementing robust, ethical transplantation programs.
The institutional infrastructure has expanded significantly with a network comprising NOTTO, five Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (ROTTOs), 26 State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (SOTTOs) spanning 31 states and union territories, and approximately 1,200 registered hospitals. Financial support continues through the National Organ Transplant Programme (NOTP) for strengthening infrastructure, donor maintenance, organ retrieval, and transportation. Kidney transplantation is covered under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), while additional financial assistance for economically weaker patients is available through Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi.
The event also featured the release of the NOTTO Annual Report 2025–26 and the latest NOTTO e-Newsletter, which highlighted activities, achievements, and best practices across the network. National Organ Donation Awards were presented to various stakeholders, with PGIMER, Chandigarh receiving Best ROTTO (Northern Region), Tamil Nadu recognized for the highest number of deceased organ donors, Assam as Best State in North Eastern Region, and Delhi as Best Union Territory.