August 31, 2026
By Hashir Ahsan
ISLAMABAD
The Senate Standing Committee on Health, chaired by Senator Aamir Waliuddin Chishti, convened a meeting on Monday, August 31, regarding the tragic incident involving the deaths of 14 newborn babies at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), a government hospital in Islamabad. Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal, Executive Director PIMS Dr. Muhammad Salman, and committee members attended the meeting.
At the beginning of the meeting, prayers (Dua-e-Maghfirat) were offered for the newborns who lost their lives in the tragedy. Committee Chairman Senator Aamir Waliuddin Chishti stated that today’s meeting is extremely important regarding PIMS Hospital, as the deaths of 14 newborn infants have shaken everyone to the core. He said that committee members visited the site of the incident, and the objective is to prevent such occurrences in the future. He mentioned that he had expressed dissatisfaction regarding PIMS Hospital in the past as well, although upgraded facilities do exist at the hospital.
The Committee Chairman stated that today’s meeting consists of a single-item agenda, and the Ministry of Health must provide a comprehensive briefing to the committee regarding the PIMS incident.
CCTV footage discussed
During the meeting, CCTV footage of the tragedy that occurred at PIMS Hospital was also shown to the committee members; however, members expressed severe reservations over the footage.
Senator Nasir Butt rejected the footage, stating that this CCTV video is fake and that the original video should be shown to them. He questioned how everything ended within a single second. He demanded that a full video of at least two minutes from the time the fire broke out be shown to the committee. Nasir Butt stated that the video has been removed and what is being shown is unacceptable. He said there were no doctors or nurses present in the nursery at that time, and everything being told is a lie. The matter of an earlier fire that broke out in the nurses’ hostel at PIMS was also discussed during the committee meeting.
Senator Masroor Ahsan said that a fire had also broken out in the PIMS nurses’ hostel on July 6, but the Executive Director did not inform the Health Minister about the incident. He questioned how an inquiry into this matter could be conducted now when no evidence from the previous incident was preserved. He added that they were not even told how the first fire started.
Allegations of ‘record being removed’
Senator Masroor Ahsan, referring to multiple corruption allegations against the former Executive Director of PIMS, said that nothing was questioned from the former ED.
“Fourteen (14) newborns were killed to save one man. Is this some kind of joke?”
He alleged that the PIMS record had been removed by former ED Rana Imran and that he was being protected. Ahsan said that if this situation continued, such accidents would keep happening in the future.
“Babies are born in Civil Military Hospital (CMH) as well, but a fire has never broken out there because that is where military officers get their treatment, whereas no Executive Director even likes to get treated at PIMS,” he said.
In a briefing to the committee, the PIMS administration said that entering the nursery had become impossible even within a minute after the fire broke out, whereas the nurse on duty had immediately rescued a baby located near the door.
Prime Minister inquiry report
The interim report of the committee constituted by the Prime Minister was also provided to the members during the meeting.
Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal informed the meeting that the Prime Minister’s committee submitted its preliminary report within 48 hours. The committee summoned the hospital staff and recorded their statements, which are part of the report. Mustafa Kamal said there was no pressure of any kind on the high-powered committee and the investigation was conducted independently.
Kamal revealed that he came to know about the earlier fire at the PIMS nurses’ hostel only after the PIMS incident occurred. He said that the Ministry of Health was not informed about that incident, while the investigation committee’s report also mentions the earlier fire. Kamal said that he was told that a spark from the AC had been the cause following which the fire broke out, whereas the Chairman of the Standing Committee was told that the AC was out of order.
Health Authority criticised
Several questions were also raised in the meeting regarding the performance of the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority. Committee members questioned when the Healthcare Regulatory Authority issued a license to PIMS Hospital and when the hospital was last inspected.
The Committee Chairman said that it has been revealed that the authority did not issue a license to PIMS Hospital, nor did the authority ever inspect PIMS Hospital. The committee was also informed that the incubator protocols at PIMS Hospital were not properly followed.
Senator Rubina Khalid also raised questions about the performance of the Regulatory Authority, asking when the last inspection of PIMS Hospital was conducted and who appointed the person heading the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority. She said that if the concerned person owns a medical college, it constitutes a conflict of interest.
Addressing the Federal Health Minister, Rubina Khalid said, “Minister Sahib, abolish this institution at the earliest opportunity,” to which Mustafa Kamal replied that it was not his prerogative to abolish the institution.
“The Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority does not fall under the Ministry of Health, and the government has no direct role in this institution,” he said. “The authority’s board was formed in 2024 and it came into existence following Cabinet approval.”
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority was also present in the meeting; however, he could not provide suitable answers to the committee members’ questions. He stated that the last visit to PIMS was made some time ago.
Fire safety standards at PIMS
Rigorous questions regarding fire safety at PIMS were also asked during the meeting. Senator Masroor Ahsan asked when the fire safety inspection had been last conducted and how many emergency gates were present in the nursery.
Senator Agha Shahzaib Durrani questioned whether sprinklers had been present in the nursery at the time of the fire. He also asked what measures nurses and doctors took to save the children and where PIMS’s own fire safety staff was located.
Senator Nasir Butt said that those who have been suspended, including the former ED, should be called before the committee so that answers to these questions can be obtained from them. He said that the ED has been suspended, but he remains accountable.
Mustafa Kamal also pushed for the suspended individuals to be called and asked the questions.
Nasir Butt raised the question that if no one was accountable before the committee, then why had the committee meeting been convened?
A member of the committee also said that no doctor was present there at the time of the fire. Kamal said that the inquiry committee should be called to PIMS for a briefing, as the committee currently possesses more information regarding the incident.
Administrative issues
On the other hand, Senator Rubina Khalid raised questions about the oversight and regulatory framework of PIMS Hospital, stating that if hospitals are not regularly inspected, how will responsibility be fixed?
Kamal also spoke candidly about the administrative system of PIMS. He said that PIMS operates under its own rules, and according to the rules, the Executive Director of PIMS will be the head of the hospital. He informed that rules had to be relaxed to appoint the new Executive Director.
Criticizing the existing government system, Mustafa Kamal said, “This system is a rotten system; you cannot do anything.” He said that even if a peon is removed, he brings a stay order the very next day.
The Federal Minister for Health suggested that powers of recruitment and suspension should be given to the Chief Executive Officer. He said reforms were needed in the PIMS rules, and matters cannot be corrected under the current system.
Mustafa Kamal said that in PIMS, a department head does not even speak to another department. Describing the current situation, he said, “This is a fiefdom; these are several fiefdoms.” He said that the government should step out of the current system of ‘running hospitals’. The government spent 1,156 billion rupees, yet it could not satisfy even 10 percent of the people. He said this is not an issue of a single day, but the same system has been running for many years.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the Senate Standing Committee on Health sought details from the relevant authorities for further investigation and fixation of responsibility regarding the PIMS tragedy, while the Chairman of the CDA was also summoned before the committee regarding the PIMS Hospital matter.
Committee members emphasized that a complete investigation must be conducted covering all aspects, including CCTV footage, fire safety arrangements, staff present in the nursery, incubator protocols, and the earlier fire incident, so that the true facts behind the deaths of 14 newborn babies can come to light and future incidents of this nature can be prevented.
The Standing Committee of the National Assembly on National Health Services also met today, in which Federal Minister Mustafa Kamal, Raja Khurram Nawaz, Sabeen Ghoury, and Aliah Kamran, along with other members, expressed their views.
Mustafa Kamal told the committee members that following the fire incident, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif formed a committee at 4 PM, and we did not conduct any investigation after that committee.
He said that all the information is with the committee; call them and they will provide details. The committee stated that without forensics, it cannot be determined how the fire broke out.
Alia Kamran said that no one accepted responsibility politically, whereas across the world, responsibility is accepted in such incidents.
“I have reservations about the committee formed by the Prime Minister; how is a criminal case registered?” she questioned. “This is just another consolation prize given by Shehbaz Sharif. The person who had performed their duty was rewarded, whereas it was their duty; but those who did not perform their duties are not being questioned by anyone. We should be thankful they were also not given rewards of 10 crore rupees.”
During the meeting, Raja Khurram Nawaz said that the Prime Minister and the Minister should also have authority according to their positions; why didn’t the female security company personnel at the hospital save the children?
“If the nurse did her job, why is she being given a reward?” he asked. “If those responsible have been identified, why are cases not being registered? It was stated that criminal cases would be registered, so they should be filed against them.”
MNA Sabeen Ghouri added that the CDA Chairman and all relevant departments related to PIMS should be summoned at once to answer questions.