Private schools, colleges' staff under ESI purview

Employees with less than Rs 15,000 salary are eligible

The decision will benefit lakhs of employees working in private schools, colleges, engineering, medical and other educational institutions, who hitherto did not enjoy ESI facility.

Speaking with mediapersons here, Labour Minister B N Bachegowda said the Department of Public Instruction, Pre-University Directorate, Universities and other Educational Directorate have been asked to furnish details of employees working in private institutions coming under their purview. The Government is yet to announce a time-frame to implement his decision.

Various benefits

Employees getting gross salary of Rs 15,000 or below are entitled for ESI benefit. The employer’s contribution is 4.75 per cent while the employee contributes 1.75 per cent of the salary. The total contribution of 6.5 per cent is deposited with ESI Corporation. ESI benefits include unlimited medical treatment, pension, sick leave provision, maternity leave benefit, funeral expenses, besides accident disability pension among others.
Bachegowda revealed that a section of managements had opposed the move to bring employees of private educational institutions under the ESI scheme. However, the Government was firm in its decision. The minister also announced a slew of programmes to improve services under ESI scheme.

New hospitals

He said new state-of-the-art 100-bedded ESI hospitals will be set up at Bommasandra, Doddaballapur and Shimoga at a cost of Rs 250 crore. The existing hospitals at Davangere, Hubli and Mysore will be upgraded at a cost of Rs 300 crore.

New ESI health centres will be set up at Nayandahalli, Sunkadkatte, Sahakarnagar and Nagavara. The existing health centres on Sarjapur Road,  Gottigere, Laggere, Peenya Industrial Area, Mathikere, Konappana Agrahara, Madanayakanahalli, Bashethalli and Kormangala will be upgraded.

Hi-tech ambulance will also be provided to all ESI hospitals. An Intensive Care Unit and Haemodialysis facility will be established at Indiranagar ESI hospital in Bangalore. In a bid to draw the services of part-time specialists and super specialists, ESI hospitals will also hire their services by paying them salaries to the tune of Rs 40,000 and Rs 60,000, respectively, the minister said.

The doctors will have to put in three hours, five days a week. They will be paid Rs 2,000 for every two additional hours and Rs 10,000 if summoned for emergency duty, Bachegowda said. The salaries of doctors working in ESI hospitals will be hiked ranging between Rs 3,000 and Rs 11,000 per month, he said.