She was put on Oseltamivir or Tamiflu on July 30. But her condition deteriorated and she died Monday, the first death in the country because of H1N1 virus.

An upset and emotional Sajid Shaikh, Rida's father, said: 'If they (the private hospital) had sent Rida's samples to the NIV earlier, probably my daughter would have been alive today.'

Her aunt, Ayesha Shaikh, added: 'We didn't know then, but now we know that Ruby Hall, where Rida's samples were sent for tests initially, was not authorised (to test for swine flu).'

'Initially the hospital said she was suffering from pneumonia, then they said she was suffering from some respiratory disorder. When her lungs got affected they told us that there was nothing to worry because her other organs were not affected.

'When we realised what the truth was, it was too late,' she added.

On Monday, union Health Secretary Naresh Dayal said in New Delhi that the girl was given anti-flu medicine at a very late stage.

'It appears she was treated late. If she had been treated earlier, she could have been saved,' Dayal said.