MP Aprajita Sarangi seeks super-speciality
ESIC hospital in Bhubaneshwar
Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament from Bhubaneshwar Aparajita Sarangi today called on Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Labour and Employment Santosh Gangwar to seek the construction of an Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) super speciality hospital at Bhubaneshwar.
The ESIC Employees’ Union had also submitted a memorandum to the ministry and Sarangi appealed to the minister to look into the matter. The minister assured her all support on it.
It must be mentioned that on October 22, 2019, Gangwar had stated before the Regional Conference of State Labour Ministers and Principal Secretaries of Eastern States that the proposal of the Odisha Government for establishment of an ESIC medical college in Bhubaneswar was being rejected as the Supreme Court had ruled that the department was meant to look after the welfare of labourers, not to set up medical colleges.
After the conference, Gangwar had told mediapersons that the other proposal of Odisha government to set up hospitals at Paradip, Jeypore, Balasore and Berhampur would be considered if the state fulfils the criteria.
A year earlier, Odisha Labour and Employment Minister Susanta Singh had announced in the state assembly that an ESIC medical college and hospital would be set up in the capital. Singh had mentioned in reply to a question in the Assembly by Ranendra Pratap Swain that the ESIC had decided on October 7, 2008, to construct a medical college in every state and the Odisha government had provided 25-acre land to ESIC for the project, in Bhubaneswar.
In another development, Sarangi met Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman yesterday to apprise her of the problems faced by the Odisha Employees’ Pension Fund (EPF) pensioners. She discussed with the minister the issues raised by Odisha EPF Pensioners’ Association, Bank Retiree’s Federation and Ex-Servicemen, who retired before January 1, 2006 and were re-employed in State Bank of India or Public Sector Banks. Sarangi tweeted after the meeting that Sitharaman assured her support in the matter.
In a related development, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had urged the Union Government to increase the monthly pension of EPF pensioners. Patnaik wrote to Gangwar to take appropriate steps to give the pensioners “reasonable financial and social security”.
.“Around 1.62 lakh EPF pensioners of Odisha, who with a paltry monthly pension after their retirement, are facing much hardship in their advanced age. Time and again these EPS-95 Pensioners’ Association are putting forth their grievances for revision of minimum pension by the Government of India and giving their memorandum also at the state level for redressing their cause,” Patnaik had written in the letter.