Chandigarh/Mohali, August 20, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Punjab has recorded a major milestone in advanced public healthcare with three successful liver transplants performed within a week at the Punjab Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (PILBS), Mohali, Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education and Research and Higher Education Minister Dr Balbir Singh said on Thursday.
Addressing the media at PILBS, the minister said the achievement demonstrated the growing capability of Punjab’s government healthcare institutions to provide complex super-speciality treatment.
He said the three procedures also reflected exceptional family support, with a wife donating part of her liver to her husband, a mother to her daughter and a son to his father.
“With these three latest procedures, PILBS Mohali has now successfully performed a total of five liver transplants,” the minister said, describing the achievement as a significant step for Punjab’s public healthcare system.
PILBS to Become Liver Transplant Hub
Dr Balbir Singh said the state government was developing a hub-and-spoke model to expand liver transplant services across Punjab. Under the proposed arrangement, PILBS Mohali would serve as the principal hub, while government medical colleges would function as spokes for patient identification, evaluation, referral and post-transplant care.
He said all four government medical colleges were being developed to strengthen the state’s organ transplantation ecosystem and enable patients to access specialised treatment closer to home.
Renal Transplant Services in Mohali, Patiala
The minister also announced that renal transplant services would soon begin at government facilities in Mohali and Patiala, further expanding the availability of advanced transplant care within Punjab’s public healthcare system.
He congratulated PILBS Director Dr Virendra Singh and the institute’s medical team for successfully conducting the specialised procedures, saying their coordinated efforts demonstrated the growing expertise and infrastructure available in the state’s government institutions.
PILBS Expanding Patient Services
Sharing details of the institute’s services, Dr Balbir Singh said 239 FibroScans had been conducted at nominal charges during August, while 139 indoor patients were receiving treatment and care.
He said the addition of 170 beds would further strengthen PILBS’s capacity to provide specialised liver and biliary care.
The minister said the Bhagwant Mann-led government would continue to invest in infrastructure, manpower, equipment and specialised services across government hospitals and medical institutes, with the aim of making advanced healthcare accessible to people within Punjab and reducing dependence on facilities outside the state.
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