President Asif Ali Zardari has approved the Tamgha-e-Shujaat for Razia Noreen, the staff nurse who rescued the sole surviving newborn from the PIMS fire (Express Tribune).
What she did
During the fire in the Mother and Child Hospital ward on 26 August, which killed 14 newborn babies, Noreen risked her own life to carry out the one child who survived.
The awards
| | | |—|—| | Tamgha-e-Shujaat | approved by the President | | Sitara-e-Khidmat | approved earlier by the Prime Minister | | Cash award | Rs10 million |
Shehbaz Sharif: “Nurse Razia Noreen, by placing her own life in danger, saved the newborn with courage… for this noble act, may Allah Almighty bestow abundant reward.” He said the nation took pride in her.
The thing that should be said alongside it
She deserves the medal. Nothing here is a criticism of her.
But it is worth setting the award beside what this newspaper reported four days ago. On 12 September the Senate’s human rights committee had to order the registration of an FIR over the same fire, because none existed — weeks after the prime minister had directed criminal proceedings and the termination of eight employees. A PIMS official confirmed to the committee that no case had been filed.
So the state has moved quickly to honour the one person who behaved well, and slowly to investigate the circumstances that required her to. Those are not the same institutional capacity, and the gap between them is the story of the PIMS fire.
What else is unresolved
The inquiry we reported on 27 August found that oxygen equipment had exploded beside an incubator and that treatment and facilities were below international standards — but never established the cause of the fire itself.
What is not established
It has not been reported whether an FIR has since been registered, whether any official has been charged, or when the awards will be conferred.
[Image: X via The Express Tribune]
