ESIC to Directly Manage All New Hospitals to Ensure Better Care

New Delhi (IANS): The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) on Tuesday approved a series of major proposals to strengthen its healthcare infrastructure, expand medical education, and boost overall service delivery.

Labour & Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya chaired the meeting, which introduced sweeping changes to how the corporation operates its medical network.

Direct Management of New Hospitals

In a major policy shift, the ESIC decided that it will directly manage all upcoming and newly commissioned ESI Hospitals. State governments will continue to manage hospitals currently undergoing reconstruction or upgradation, unless they choose to hand them over to the ESIC.

Expanding Healthcare Infrastructure

The ESIC greenlit several localized healthcare projects to enhance specialized treatment:

• Occupational Disease Centres (ODCs): The corporation will establish ODCs and Zonal Rehabilitation Centres in Sanathnagar, Faridabad, Ludhiana, Beltola, and Bhubaneswar.
• Cancer Care in the East: The board approved a state-of-the-art Radiation Oncology Block at the ESIC Medical College & Hospital in Joka, Kolkata. The facility will house a High-Energy Linear Accelerator, CT Simulator Unit, Brachytherapy Unit, and PET-CT Scan to serve beneficiaries across West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, and the North-Eastern states.

Administrative Expansion and Welfare Extension

Following its expansion under the Code on Social Security, 2020 (which took effect on November 21, 2025), the ESIC approved five new Sub-Regional Offices (SROs) to decentralize administration and improve compliance. The new offices will open in:

• Meghalaya
• Chhattisgarh
• Rajkot (Gujarat)
• Jamshedpur (Jharkhand)
• Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh)

Massive Boost to Medical Education

The corporation gave the green light to several initiatives aimed at expanding medical, dental, nursing, and allied health science institutions:

• Structural Overhaul: The ESIC approved the reorganisation of its Medical Education Division. This includes creating functional verticals, adding new posts, and forming an ESIC Medical Education Advisory Board.
• New Infrastructure in Delhi: The body cleared plans to build a Dental College (with UG and PG facilities), a Super-Specialty cum OPD Block, staff quarters, and hostels at the ESIC Medical College & Hospital in Basaidarapur, New Delhi.
• New Medical College in Uttarakhand: The ESIC will set up a new medical college in Haridwar with an annual intake of 50 MBBS students. The facility will utilize the existing Haridwar ESIC hospital infrastructure starting from the 2027–28 academic year.

Strategic Partnerships and Modernization

To offer holistic care, the ESIC approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Ayush. This partnership will integrate and promote Ayush services within the ESIC network to tackle occupational and lifestyle-related health challenges.

Additionally, following the enactment of the Code on Social Security, 2020, the corporation adopted a new consolidated MoU for State ESI Societies, replacing the outdated 2017 models. It also approved the framing of the new Employees’ State Insurance (General) Regulations, 2026, to replace the 1950 regulations.

Welfare Extension: In a major relief for workers, the corporation extended its unemployment allowance scheme for Insured Persons for another year, running from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027.