Yog Raj Sharma
The North News
Shimla, July 25
A 27-year-old woman has died less than a day after delivering her child through cesarean section at a government hospital in Shimla, triggering a medical inquiry and renewed scrutiny of patient care standards in public health institutions. Archana Sharma, from Garhaav village near Shimla, died at Kamla Nehru Hospital (KNH) on Friday morning. According to her family, Sharma had given birth to her second child at 11:30 am on Thursday and was declared dead just hours later, at 8:30 am the following day.
Her relatives allege she was forced to walk and shift rooms despite her fragile post-operative condition, resulting in dizziness, sudden bleeding and death. The incident has prompted widespread calls for accountability, particularly from patient rights groups and civil society organisations. Medical Superintendent Dr Sunder Singh Negi has refuted claims of negligence, saying Sharma was clinically stable at the time of the incident and was moved in accordance with hospital protocol. He added that an internal investigation has been launched and a report is expected within three days.
“Two rare medical causes are being examined — amniotic fluid embolism or airway obstruction,” Dr Negi said. “All procedures followed were standard for post-delivery care. The final conclusion will be based on the inquiry findings,” he added.
The case has emerged as a flashpoint for ongoing concerns about the quality of public healthcare in Himachal, where resource limitations, staff shortages, and procedural lapses continue to undermine service delivery.
In a separate but similarly troubling incident at Shimla’s Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), the son of a 72-year-old woman who died last week has accused doctors of delaying treatment. Hospital officials have denied the allegations, saying the patient was suffering from advanced-stage blood cancer and died of cardiac arrest despite being administered appropriate care.
Both incidents have renewed pressure on Himachal Pradesh’s health authorities to improve clinical oversight and reinforce institutional transparency. The public health system — particularly in hilly and rural regions — has faced ongoing challenges balancing volume of care with quality and protocol adherence. The latest cases are expected to reignite debate over the governance of government hospitals and the standard of maternal and geriatric care.
