For the first time, the Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has decided to accept the responsibility of managing the ESI's Chinchwad hospital in Pune. Generally, ESI hospitals are constructed by ESIC and run by the State government.

But recently ESIC, which is a Central Government body, was asked by the high court to take the responsibility of building and operating ESI hospital in the Pune city after the Maharashtra government showed its reluctance, saying that the city already has one hospital to cater to the needs of the ESI members. Thus, acting upon the plea from small-scale industry workers for the urgent need of starting a new ESI hospital in the area, the Court directed ESIC to fulfill the workers' requirements of a new hospital.

Following High court's decision, the ESI Corporation (ESIC) constructed a 100-bedded general hospital, and is running it as well. It was built with an investment of around Rs. 6.8 crore. This will be the second ESI general hospital in the city in addition to existing 320-bedded hospital at Aundh (run by the state government) for ESI members.

Talking to this correspondent, Dr. A. M.Patil, medical superintendent of the Chinchwad ESI hospital, said, "The OPD for the new hospital has recently been started and the operation theatre facility would take off in yet another three months." He further elaborated that the need for the second hospital was felt due to the large population of industrial workers in the Chinchwad area, which is an industrial zone.

Presently, there are 13 ESI hospitals in Maharashtra run by the State government, of which Mumbai with the population of 6-8 lakh ESI members, accommodates eight ESI hospitals followed by Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur and Solapur. The latest ones to be added in the list includes super-speciality ESI hospital in Bibwewadi, at Pune and a 100 bedded ESI general hospital at Kolhapur. "The ESIC has invited tenders and would soon start the work on the same," said Dr. Patil.

In Pune region there are around 2-3 lakh of ESI members and Dr. Patil believes that with the new hospital the ESI members would not have to go to other hospitals and the new hospital would provide every facility under one roof. "We have already recruited 13 specialists and it would take some more months for the other departments to start running in a full-fledged condition."

He further added that the hospital would also cater to the western region of the country and all the workers with the occupational diseases can be treated here. "We would also identify the occupational diseases and spread awareness amongst the workers regarding the preventive measures to be followed to avoid occupational diseases."

Dwelling on the ESI super-specialty hospital at Bibwewadi, he said, "The hospital at Bibwewadi would be a cardiac hospital. Only ESI members would be treated here."