PM orders implementation of Pims inquiry reccomendations within 3 months

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday directed authorities to implement the short-term measures recommended in an inquiry report into the fire at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) within three months.

He issued the directives while chairing a meeting on an action plan for improving Pims, where the inquiry report and the performance audit by the Ministry of National Health Services were reviewed, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The August 26 fire at a nursery in Pims’ Mother and Child Hospital claimed the lives of 14 newborns. The incident raised concerns over fire safety measures and sparked calls for accountability, with criminal action being ordered against eight officials.

During Wednesday’s meeting, the prime minister directed that the short-term measures in the inquiry report should be implemented within the next three months.

He also emphasised taking “every possible step” to improve the hospital and align it with international requirements. He directed that assistance and recommendations should be sought from the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute and Research Centre for the fire safety system.

He also directed that measures to ensure the free provision of medicines and facilities at the hospital be made part of the action plan.

The prime minister called for personnel with strong professional reputations to be employed at the hospital, adding that a comprehensive action plan based on the recommended long-term measures should be formulated.

PM Shehbaz also directed to carry out an audit of Polyclinic Hospital to address irregularities, adding that a plan for its restructuring should also be prepared.

He said that Capital Development Authority (CDA) should ensure the implementation of fire safety measures in all public and private hospitals in Islamabad.

“The CDA and relevant agencies should also conduct fire safety audits of public and private offices and buildings and ensure the implementation of safety measures,” the premier was quoted as saying.

During the meeting, the premier was informed that the performance audit of Pims found only 39.7 per cent compliance against indicators assessed.

It was also informed that immediate implementation was being ensured on 37 proposed measures in light of the investigative report. The meeting was also briefed on short, medium and long-term measures for improving the hospital.

The inquiry committee was formed on PM Shehbaz’s directives on the day the fire occurred. It presented its findings and recommendations in a 43-page report on Wednesday.

The committee said that the deadly blaze was most likely caused by a localised electrical failure, while also calling out the hospital management for systemic and institutional failure that turned the fire into a catastrophe.

The committee, headed by former interior secretary Shahid Khan, said in its report that abnormal localised electrical heating — possibly from excessive current, a high-resistance connection or another localised defect — most probably caused insulation failure and ignition of nearby combustible material.

The report, however, pointed out a “history of known but incompletely closed risks”, citing prior warnings, such as the fire at the nursing hostel in Pims. “Yet those warnings had not been converted into a comprehensive, time-bound and independently verified corrective programme before the nursery fire,” the report regretted.