ESI hospitals not upto the mark: Minister

He inaugurates ESIC Sub-Regional office in Mangalore

The primary and secondary health care which is offered by the State run Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) hospitals is not upto the mark. The State has to send a proposal to the Union Labour Ministry seeking financial support for renovation and repair of the ESI hospitals, said Minister of State for Labour and Employment Kodikunnil Suresh.

Stressing on the need to improve the primary health care offered by state run ESI hospitals, which is generally neglected, he assured that the ESI Corporation in the Centre would extend financial support to the State ESI, for the betterment of hospitals. The Central government has spent Rs 2,000 crore on ESI hospitals in Karnataka in the last 10 years, he said.

He was speaking after inaugurating the ESIC Sub-Regional office in Mangalore on Thursday. The ESIC is trying its best to offer high class medical treatments to labour class, by entering into tie-ups with multi-speciality hospitals. The government has spent Rs 126 crore on super speciality treatment in Karnataka, in 2012-13, he noted.

“With the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) hospitals facing shortage of doctors and paramedical staff, the ESI Corporation has opened medical colleges in Bangalore and Gulbarga. More number of hospitals will be opened in the future, for solving the problem,” he said.

State Labour Minister P T Parameshwara Naik said that the ministry will develop a skill development training institute in Mangalore at an expenditure of Rs 42 crore.
The institute will train the youth who face unemployment problem. The State government in its budget has also sanctioned 100 new Industrial Training Institutes in the State to boast the employment training, he said.

MP Nalin Kumar Kateel who was present at the programme, demanded the Labour Ministry to upgrade the ESI hospital in Mangalore and to start new ITIs in Belthangady and Sullia taluks each.

6 sub-regional offices in State

With the newly opened ESI Sub-Regional office in Mangalore, the State now has six Sub-Regional offices. The office has been opened at City Point building in Kodialbail. It has been opened with an intention to ease the difficulties of employers and the insured persons.

The office covers 12 centres in its jurisdiction spread over Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. According to the figures available with the ESIC, nearly 2,000 factories/establishments have been covered under ESI scheme and around 2,20,000 insured persons are obtaining the benefit under the scheme.