No ESI Hospital In Bhubaneswar, Says Union Minister

Bhubaneswar: Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Santosh Gangwar on Tuesday said the proposal of the Odisha government for setting upan Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Medical College in Bhubaneswar is out of the question.

“The Supreme Court has restrained the Labour Department from setting up the hospital and categorically told us that the responsibility of our department is only to look after the welfare of the labourers,” Gangwar said while addressing the Regional Conference of State Labour Ministers and Principal Secretaries of Eastern States here.

On the demand of the state government for setting up of hospitals in Paradip, Jeypore, Balasore and Berhampur, the Union minister said the demands would be taken into consideration subject to the fulfillment of criteria.

The state Labour & Employment Minister Susanta Singh in a statement in the State Assembly last year had said that the ESIC in an announcement on October 7, 2008 had decided to construct a medical college in every state. Accordingly, the state government had provided 25 acre of land to ESIC to set up the project on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.