Labour minister launches annual health check-up programme for ESIC members aged above 40

Union Labour Minister Bhupender Yadav on Saturday launched annual preventive health check-up programme for Employees’ State Insurance Corporation’s insured members aged 40 years and above in pilot mode at ESI hospitals in Ahmedabad, Faridabad, Hyderabad and Kolkatta.

Besides, in the ESIC’s 186th meeting here chaired by Yadav, a proposal was also cleared for construction of 500-bed ESIC Hospital at Gurugram (Manesar) for expansion of services of existing 100-bed hospital.

Talking to the media after the meeting, Yadav said, “We have started a pilot project under which we are providing for free medical check for insured persons (IPs) of ESIC who are of 40 years or above age every year. We have a dream of ‘swasth Bharat’. We have around 3.5 crore IPs. So if we also run preventive care moment in ESIC along with curative, then we can achieve that vision.”

The minister also informed that this pilot would be further expanded in coming days with the increase in number of IPs to five crore with implementation of Social Security Code. The minister said the ESIC also wants to improve its hospitals to super speciality ones so that referral to others can be reduced in coming days.

The minister also talked about roll out of a mobile app ‘Santusht’ for ESIC beneficiaries for improving delivery of services.
Yadav further said that the construction of two ESIC hospitals at Bihta in Patna and Alwar in Rajasthan has been completed and soon these would be inaugurated.

Informing about approving the proposal for construction of 500-bed ESIC Hospital at Gurugram (Manesar), Yadav said that ESIC has approved deposit of funds required for the purpose.

On ESIC’s request, the Haryana government has identified 8.7 acres of land for allotment. The ESIC on Saturday approved the proposal to set up 500-bed ESIC Hospital at HSIIDC, Manesar and of acquisition of this plot for the purpose.
He also informed that a 100-bed ESIC hospital would be built.

The Uttar Pradesh government has identified a piece of land measuring 2 hectares and conveyed approval for free of cost transfer of the land for 90 years. The ESIC on Saturday approved proposal and process of acquisition of identified land for construction of 100-bed ESIC Hospital at Meerut.

It also approved taking over of the state government-run ESIC Hospital, Tinsukia, Assam by the ESIC. Its subsequent running as a 100-bed ESIC-run hospital state government of Assam has consented for handing over the state run hospital at Tinsukia to ESIC.

The ESIC also approved acquisition of land for proposed 30-bed ESIC Hospital at Atchutapuram, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Land measuring 2 acres or 8,089.07 sqm has been allotted in Atchutapuram, Vishakhapatnam free of cost. ESIC also approved setting up of a Sub-Regional Office (SRO) of ESIC at Jharsuguda in Odisha. The ESI Scheme is implemented in 24 districts of the State.

The ESIC also relaxed the contributory condition in the ESIC COVID-19 Relief Scheme. In order to provide help and succour to the families of the IPs who died due to COVID-19, the ESIC COVID-19 Relief Scheme was introduced.

This contributory condition of payment of 70 days contribution is proposed to be relaxed to an extant that contributions for at least 35 days should have been paid instead of 70 days. The ESIC also adopted the Audited Annual Accounts of the ESIC for the Financial year 2020-2021 together with the report of the C&AG of India.

It also adopted annual report of the ESIC for the year 2020-2021 and Analysis thereof.