ISLAMABAD: Parliament on Friday moved to form a special joint committee for the PIMS fire probe, as Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal vowed action against anyone found negligent.
The August 26 fire at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) killed 14 newborns in the Mother and Child Hospital. One infant survived, according to hospital and government accounts.
Speaking in the Senate on August 28, Kamal said authorities would spare no one found responsible. He also offered to be accountable and urged lawmakers to wait for evidence from the formal investigation.
Meanwhile, the Senate unanimously approved Senator Sherry Rehman’s resolution calling for a special committee to investigate the tragedy.
Read: PIMS Nursery Fire: Hospital Releases Victim Details
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Ali Zafar also proposed equal representation for the government and the opposition. The National Assembly later approved a motion moved by Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar.
Read: PIMS Nursery Fire Kills 14 Newborns at Islamabad Hospital
It authorised National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, in consultation with Senate Chairman Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, to constitute a special parliamentary committee and determine its terms of reference.
Separately, Tarar said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had formed an inquiry headed by former interior secretary Shahid Khan. The committee must submit its detailed findings within seven days.
The federal government has also announced Rs5 million for each bereaved family. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry began handing over the compensation cheques on Friday.
