Three senior women doctors will head Delhi’s largest central government hospitals simultaneously for the first time.
The appointments include leadership roles at Safdarjung Hospital, RML Hospital, and Lady Hardinge Medical College.
The move highlights increasing female representation in India’s public healthcare leadership.
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has appointed three senior women doctors to simultaneously lead some of Delhi’s largest central government medical institutions, a development being described as a rare milestone in India’s public healthcare administration.
According to ministry orders issued on May 22, 2026, Dr. Akhilandeshwari Prasad has been appointed director of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences (ABVIMS) and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Dr. Himani Ahluwalia will lead Lady Hardinge Medical College, and Dr. Kavita Rani Sharma has assumed charge as director of Vardhman Mahavir Medical College (VMMC) and Safdarjung Hospital.
The development marks a significant administrative milestone, with women simultaneously heading three of Delhi’s leading tertiary-care government medical institutions at the same time, an occurrence that appears to be rare in the capital’s public healthcare system.
Together, these institutions handle several million outpatient visits annually and serve as major centres for specialized treatment, trauma care, medical education, and national public health programmes. Safdarjung Hospital alone records approximately 30 lakh outpatient visits annually and has grown from 204 beds to nearly 3,000 beds over the decades, making it one of India’s largest central government hospitals.7
The ministry stated that Dr. Akhilandeshwari Prasad and Dr. Kavita Rani Sharma assumed charge with immediate effect, while Dr. Himani Ahluwalia is expected to take over at Lady Hardinge Medical College from July 9, 2026.
Dr. Akhilandeshwari Prasad, a senior radiodiagnosis specialist, has served at RML Hospital and ABVIMS for nearly three decades, including as head of the radiodiagnosis department. She is an MBBS gold medallist from Lady Hardinge Medical College and completed her MD in Radiodiagnosis from RML Hospital.
She said her priorities would include operationalising the super-speciality block, ensuring uninterrupted essential services, strengthening patient-centric care, and accelerating integrated digital healthcare systems.
Dr. Prasad previously served as Medical Superintendent of RML Hospital and was associated with strengthening radiology and diagnostic services at the institution.
Dr. Himani Ahluwalia, director professor in the Department of Physiology, has been appointed director of Lady Hardinge Medical College, one of India’s oldest medical institutions established in 1916.
The institution was among the first medical colleges in India established primarily to advance medical education opportunities for women and continues to remain one of the country’s prominent centres for women’s medical education and clinical training.
Meanwhile, Dr. Kavita Rani Sharma officially took charge as director of Safdarjung Hospital and VMMC after holding the additional responsibility since March. An anesthesia specialist, Dr. Sharma said patient care, medical education, and research would remain key priorities under her administration.
Dr. Sharma has previously served as Medical Superintendent of Safdarjung Hospital before assuming the director’s role.
Safdarjung Hospital is among India’s busiest tertiary-care public hospitals. According to the hospital’s official institutional profile, it records approximately 30 lakh outpatient visits, 1.7 lakh admissions, and nearly 60,000 surgeries annually.7
Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital has also undergone major expansion in recent years. Parliamentary data shared in 2025 stated that the hospital’s bed capacity is expected to increase from 1,532 to 2,198 after completion of its Super Specialty Block project.8
Large tertiary-care government hospitals in Delhi continue to manage rising outpatient loads, referrals from neighbouring states, expanding medical education responsibilities, and increasing pressure on emergency and critical care services.
Safdarjung Hospital, RML Hospital, and Lady Hardinge Medical College collectively function as treatment centres, teaching institutions, and research hubs under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Administrators at these institutions increasingly balance patient care with infrastructure expansion, workforce management, academic coordination, and digital transformation.
Government data has highlighted the heavy patient burden on Delhi’s major central government hospitals. Parliamentary data previously showed Safdarjung Hospital with over 1,500 beds, Lady Hardinge Medical College and associated hospitals with more than 1,200 beds, and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital with nearly 1,000 beds. These capacities have continued to expand through recent infrastructure projects and super-speciality developments. 8,9
The hospitals also serve as major referral centres for patients from neighbouring states including Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Bihar, contributing to consistently high patient inflow across outpatient and emergency departments.
Also see: Women Leaders Transforming Healthcare in India: From Research to Hospital Leadership
The appointments mark an important moment in the evolving administrative landscape of India’s public healthcare system.
Women today make up a substantial share of India’s medical workforce, particularly in medical education and several clinical specialties. However, senior administrative positions at large government hospitals and medical institutions have historically remained male-dominated.
Recent analyses examining gender representation in India’s healthcare sector have highlighted the continuing leadership gap despite rising female participation in medicine. A 2024 study published in PLOS Global Public Health reported that women constitute nearly 29 percent of allopathic doctors in India but remain underrepresented in leadership positions across professional medical associations and institutional administration.11 Another healthcare workforce analysis cited by Forbes India reported that women occupy only around 18 percent of healthcare leadership positions in the country.10
The appointments at Safdarjung Hospital, RML Hospital, and Lady Hardinge Medical College reflect a gradual increase in female representation within senior institutional healthcare administration.
The newly appointed directors have also emphasized infrastructure modernization, healthcare digitization, and paperless hospital systems as important priorities. The focus on digital coordination aligns with broader efforts to modernize healthcare delivery and administrative systems under initiatives such as the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
References:
1. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. “Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://www.mohfw.gov.in/.
2. Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences. “About Us.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://rmlh.nic.in/.
3. Lady Hardinge Medical College and Associated Hospitals. “History and Institutional Profile.” Accessed May 26, 2026. http://lhmc-hosp.gov.in/
4. Safdarjung Hospital and Vardhman Mahavir Medical College. “About the Institution.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://www.vmmc-sjh.nic.in/.
5. National Health Authority, Government of India. “Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://abdm.gov.in/.
6. National Medical Commission. “Medical Education in India.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://www.nmc.org.in/.
7. Safdarjung Hospital and Vardhman Mahavir Medical College. “Director’s Message.” Accessed May 26, 2026. https://vmmc-sjh.mohfw.gov.in/directors-message.
8. Medical Dialogues Bureau. “Delhi's RML Hospital Expansion to Boost Bed Capacity, MBBS Seats: Minister Tells Parliament.” Medical Dialogues, March 29, 2025. https://medicaldialogues.in/news/health/hospital-diagnostics/delhis-rml-hospital-expansion-to-boost-bed-capacity-mbbs-seats-minister-tells-parliament-145750.
9. Press Information Bureau, Government of India. “Availability of Beds.” May 3, 2013. https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=95495.
10. Forbes India. “Women Occupy Only 18 Percent of Healthcare Leadership Positions, Earn 34 Percent Less Than Men: Dasra Report.” December 13, 2023. https://www.forbesindia.com/article/news/women-occupy-only-18-percent-of-healthcare-leadership-positions-earn-34-percent-less-than-men-dasra-report/90313/1
11. Singh, Pratishtha, Veena Sriram, Sonali Vaid, Sharmishtha Nanda, and Vikash R. Keshri. “Examining Representation of Women in Leadership of Professional Medical Associations in India.” PLOS Global Public Health 4, no. 8 (2024): e0003587. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0003587.
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