ESIC, Employees’ state Insurance Corporation of India has come forward to provide upgraded medical facilities in Odisha. It has decided to invest Rs. 1100 crore for the upgradation of the hospitals and construction of new medical college.
Mr. K Suresh, Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment stated that they have taken up certain projects for upgrading the hospitals in Odisha and establishing a new medical college with the aim of providing better medical facilities to the local people.
According to Suresh, the foundation of the medical college is to be laid in January 2014 with the proposal of stating the academic session from the year 2017. He also stated that an amount of Rs. 800 crore is expected to be spent for the establishment of the medical college.
The medical college will have 500 beds and will offer special medical facilities to the patients according to the guidelines laid down by the Medical Council of India. Apart from other facilities, the medial college will also have an OPD and an operation theatre.
25 acres of land has already been finalized for the project in the capital. The area is bounded by a wall with other preliminary works that have been completed with an investment of Rs. 4.6 crore said the minister.
In the discussion with the minister, the information came up that the project has been delayed because of the dispute in venue selection. Initially the college was planned to be set up in Rourkela but the state capital was finalized as its location later.
With respect to the upgradation of the hospitals, the minister said that the Rourkela hospital will be upgraded from 50 beds to 100 beds with high-tech facilities and all this will be done with an investment of Rs. 100 crore.
According to the minister, the Bhubaneswar hospital is also under the upgradation process by the ESIC. The ESIC will invest Rs. 66 crore in upgrading the hospital. Earlier, this hospital was run by the state and ESIC invested only on its infrastructure.
Apart from this, the minister has also announced the names of certain districts which will be covered under this upgradation process for improving the medical facilities. The major districts covered under this process include Keonjhar district, Kalahandi district and Cuttack district.
ESIC has also decided to set up a sub-regional office in the Rourkela region so as to cater the needs of the western region of Odisha.
