The national human rights commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of the death of a patient following a fire at a private hospital in Dehradun, with the rights panel observing that the incident, if true, raises serious concerns of human rights violations.
In
a release, NHRC said it had sought detailed reports from the Uttarakhand chief secretary and the senior superintendent of police, Dehradun, within two weeks regarding the fire incident that occurred at a private hospital in the district on 20 May 2026.
According to the commission, media reports stated that 14 patients were rescued from the hospital and shifted to another medical facility after the fire broke out. Among them, one woman patient later died while four others were discharged after treatment.
“The contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of human rights,” the commission said while issuing notices to the state authorities.
NHRC referred to reports indicating that the fire allegedly started after a short circuit and explosion in an air-conditioning unit inside the intensive care unit (ICU) of Panacea Super Speciality Hospital.
Meanwhile, Dehradun police have registered a criminal case against the hospital management following allegations of negligence made by the family of the deceased patient, identified as 55-year-old Veervati Devi.
The first information report (FIR) was lodged at Nehru Colony police station on the complaint of her son, Sunny Pal, under Section 106(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, dealing with causing death by negligence.
In his complaint, Mr Pal alleged that his mother was admitted to Panacea Hospital on 19 May 2026 after beds were reportedly unavailable at another government hospital. He claimed that ambulance staff persuaded the family to shift her to the private facility instead of the other hospitals they had considered.
The complaint further alleged that nearly ₹50,000 was charged for treatment, tests and medicines within around ten hours of admission. The family has accused the hospital administration of failing to ensure patient safety despite collecting substantial medical charges.
According to the FIR, the complainant received a call from his elder brother on the morning of 20 May 2026 informing him that the ICU had caught fire. Ms Devi, who was later shifted to another hospital, was declared dead on arrival by doctors there.
The complaint also accused the hospital of lacking adequate fire safety arrangements and trained personnel to handle emergencies. It further alleged the existence of a referral network involving ambulance operators and hospital-linked personnel who allegedly directed patients towards the facility.
Police have started examining CCTV footage, fire safety records and the role of hospital employees who were on duty at the time of the incident. Investigators are also looking into allegations involving ambulance personnel and emergency referral practices.
Eyewitness accounts and videos circulating after the incident have also raised questions over the hospital management’s initial claim that only smoke had spread inside the ICU. Visuals from the site reportedly showed burnt walls, damaged equipment and extensive smoke marks inside parts of the hospital.
Officials said the fire broke out after a reported short circuit in a split air-conditioner installed inside the ICU, triggering panic among patients and staff. Several patients were evacuated using stretchers and bedsheets, while police personnel reportedly broke ICU windows to ventilate smoke-filled areas during the rescue operation.
Three police personnel also suffered from smoke inhalation during the evacuation effort and later required treatment.
Following the incident, the Uttarakhand government ordered a magisterial inquiry to examine the cause of the fire, the hospital’s emergency preparedness, fire safety systems and the response of hospital staff during the crisis. Emergency services at the hospital have also been sealed.
Subodh Uniyal, Uttarakhand's minister for parliamentary affairs and forest, has directed the Dehradun chief medical officer to inspect private hospitals in the district to verify compliance with fire safety and operational standards.
Senior administrative officials, including Garhwal commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey and police officers, visited the hospital after the incident. Fire department officials said teams reached the site within minutes of receiving the alert and noted that the hospital had multiple exits, smoke sensors and firefighting equipment installed.
However, the ongoing investigations by the police, district administration and NHRC are expected to determine whether the available safety systems were functional and whether lapses in emergency response contributed to the death of the patient and injuries to others.
