In Mohali, first-ever liver transplant performed at Punjab govt’s hospital

Congratulating the team led by Dr Virendra Singh, director, PILBS & Professor and Head of Hepatology, and Dr K Rajasekhar, professor and head, Liver Transplant and Hepatobiliary Surgery, the Minister termed it a “major milestone” for Punjab’s public health sector.

Virendra Singh also expressed gratitude to PGIMER, Chandigarh, for facilitating the organ retrieval from a brain-dead donor in Haryana. He extended heartfelt thanks to the donor’s family for their “exemplary act of organ donation,” which helped save multiple lives.

The Health Minister said PILBS is rapidly evolving as Punjab’s foremost centre for advanced liver and biliary care, offering 24×7 emergency, ICU facilities, and complex procedures. A new 175-bed patient care block is under development. The recently built Diagnostic Block is functional with a Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA) system, while new CT, MRI, and advanced biochemistry units are being added. A state-of-the-art blood bank has also been established.

He further announced that Government Medical College, Patiala, will soon become the first government facility in the state to conduct renal transplants, and all government medical colleges will be developed as organ receiving centres.

Appealing to the public to pledge organ donation, Balbir Singh said Punjab, currently ranked 9th nationally with 20,000 registered donors, is poised to rise to the top.

Reiterating the government’s commitment to free healthcare, he confirmed that agencies have been finalised for rolling out Rs 10 lakh cashless treatment under the Mukh Mantri Sehat Bima Yojna, to be launched statewide in January 2026.