A high-level meeting on the incident was held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during which the inquiry committee, headed by former Interior Secretary Shahid Khan, presented its preliminary report. A CCTV video of the incident, lasting approximately two minutes, was also shown during the meeting.
The eight individuals identified by the committee include PIMS Executive Director Professor Dr. Imran Sikandar, Joint Executive Directors Dr. Mateen Shah and Dr. Waris Ali Shah, Head of the Neonatology Department Professor Dr. Saadia Riaz, Senior Registrar Dr. Naghma, Dr. Nosheela Amjad, PIMS Assistant Director Security Muhammad Usman and CDA Director General Emergency Services Dr. Abdul Rehman.
The prime minister directed that action against those held responsible should not be limited to departmental proceedings and that criminal proceedings under the relevant laws should also be initiated.
He also approved action against the private security company responsible for security at the hospital and its relevant officials.
The preliminary inquiry revealed serious shortcomings in PIMS’s fire safety and emergency response arrangements.
According to the report, the hospital had no detailed standard operating procedures or adequate training for dealing with fires and other emergency situations. Of PIMS’s 13 SOPs, references to fire or emergency situations were found in only two subsections.
The inquiry found that supervisory staff were not present on duty when the fire broke out. Only two nurses, a female security guard and a house officer were present in the ward at the time.
The fire spread rapidly, engulfing the entire ward within approximately two minutes.
The report further revealed that emergency services were contacted six minutes after the fire started, while the first emergency response arrived at the hospital 15 minutes later.
The neonatal ward also had no fire alarm or sprinkler system, while violations of relevant World Health Organization fire-safety guidelines were identified.
The inquiry committee noted that no officer had been specifically assigned responsibility for dealing with fire emergencies at the hospital. Instead, the responsibility had been given as an additional duty to the assistant director.
The report also pointed out that a fire had occurred at the PIMS nursing hostel just one month earlier in July, but no serious measures were taken afterward to improve fire safety arrangements at the hospital.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the immediate suspension of the eight individuals identified in the inquiry report and ordered that new officials be appointed in their places without delay.
He also directed that Dr. Muhammad Salman, Chief Executive Officer of the National Institute of Health (NIH), be appointed as Acting Executive Director of PIMS.
The prime minister further ordered that another nurse who was present in the ward and the female security guard be made Officers on Special Duty (OSD) to facilitate further investigation into the incident.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the award of Sitara-e-Imtiaz and a cash prize of Rs1 million for Nurse Razia Noreen, who saved a child’s life moments before the fire engulfed the ward.
The prime minister praised her courage and sense of duty, saying that she risked her own life to save the child and demonstrated an outstanding example of responsibility and humanity.
He said the entire nation was proud of the nurse and that no amount of praise was enough for individuals who performed their duties with such courage.
The prime minister said those responsible for criminal negligence would not be shown any leniency and must be brought to justice.
He described the deaths of innocent children as a heartbreaking tragedy and expressed sympathy with the affected families.
Shehbaz Sharif directed the inquiry committee to complete further investigations and submit a more detailed report.
He also approved the immediate public release of the preliminary inquiry report, directing the Ministry of National Health Services to publish it on its official website.
The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Ahad Khan Cheema, Attaullah Tarar and Syed Mustafa Kamal, inquiry committee head Shahid Khan, Barrister Nabil Awan, Major General (retd) Khurshid Attra and other senior officials.
