Persistent delays in ESIC hospital management: BJP MP renews call for central takeover

New Delhi/Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada BJP MP Captain Brijesh Chowta met Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Friday to press for expedited approvals allowing the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) to assume direct administrative control of the 100-bed ESI Hospital in Mangaluru, a facility that has languished under state oversight despite repeated central interventions.In a formal letter submitted during the meeting, Capt. Chowta outlined a timeline of advocacy stretching back over a year.

He referenced his February 6, 2025, discussion with ESIC Director General Ashok Kumar Singh, where direct ESIC management was first proposed as the solution to persistent operational failures. Multiple communications from the ESIC DG to the Karnataka government had urged formation of a dedicated ESI Society to unlock central funds and oversight, requests that went unheeded for months until pressure from Capt. Chowta, local MLA Vedavyasa Kamath, and state Labour Minister Santosh Lad prompted compliance.

The hospital, serving approximately 2,50,000 insured persons from Dakshina Kannada and adjoining districts (including cross-border areas in Kerala), remains critically understaffed. Reports indicate stark shortages, a sanctioned 100-bed capacity undermined by minimal personnel, leading to compromised emergency care, diagnostics, and routine services for industrial workers, port employees, and informal sector contributors who rely on the ESI scheme.