Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Labour & Employment
16-December-2016 18:10 IST
ESIC Introduces a New Scheme to Promote Registration of Employers/Employees
The ESI Corporation has taken some very important decisions towards extending the Social Security cover of the ESI Scheme to the whole of India and for medical care for serving the workers. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge), Government of India, chaired the 170th Meeting of the ESI Corporation.
ESIC has also approved the enhancement of the ceiling on medical expenditure from Rs. 2150/- to Rs. 3000/- per insured person with a sub-ceiling of Rs. 1250/- for "Administration" and Rs. 1750/- for "Others." It also approves its Annual Report and Annual Accounts for the year 2015-16.
To extend the coverage to the entire workforce, a new employer-friendly scheme has been approved as a one-time opportunity to:
(a) Encourage employers to register themselves;
(b) Encourage employers to register employees, if any, who have been left out of coverage, including contractual, casual, temporary, etc. The proposed scheme will remain open for a period of three months from 1st January 2017 to 31st March 2017. The proposed scheme shall have the following features:
i. Employers registering during the period will be treated as covered from the date of registration or as declared by them.
ii. Newly registered employees shall be treated as covered from the date of their registration.
iii. This will not have any bearing on actions taken/required under the ESI Act, if any, prior to 1st January 2017.
iv. The Chairman, ESIC, may be authorized to remove difficulties, if any, in implementing the scheme.
In order to improve medical services under state-run ESI facilities, the august body of the ESI Corporation has approved a remarkable decision to increase the per capita ceiling of sharing expenditure with state governments from the existing Rs. 2150/- to Rs. 3000/- with a sub-ceiling of Rs. 1250/- for "Administration" and Rs. 1750/- for "Others." With the enhancement of this ceiling, state governments may now further equip their medical services to better serve ESI beneficiaries in its ESI medical institutions. The enhanced ceiling of Rs. 3000/- will be fixed from 2017-2018 to 2019-2020 and reviewed annually from 2020-21 on the basis of the WPI and expenditure pattern of the states.
The Employees' State Insurance Corporation today approved its Annual Report and Annual Accounts for the year 2015-2016 for submission to the Central Government and laying on the table of both Houses of Parliament. The Hon'ble Minister announced that the ESI Scheme is on the path of sustained growth. It is now catering to the social security needs of more than 2.13 crore insured persons, which is likely to increase manyfold in the next two to three years. The number of beneficiaries covered under the scheme is now 8.28 crores, which will also increase accordingly in the next 2-3 years.
Since the last two to three years, the ESI Corporation has achieved a lot towards bringing more workers under the Social Security Coverage of the ESI Scheme; bringing the Health Reform agenda under "ESIC 2.0"; and also creating a digital environment for ESIC's working towards better delivery to our insured persons and beneficiaries.
ESIC has been paying cash benefits to its beneficiaries directly into their bank accounts. Besides this, the Minister also informed that the Ministry of Labour & Employment and all its divisions, along with ESIC, have taken up a special drive for getting bank accounts opened for the workers.
Smt. M. Sathiyavathy, IAS, Secretary, Labour & Employment, Government of India, and Shri Deepak Kumar, IAS, Director-General, ESIC, were also present at the meeting. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya briefed the tripartite body, i.e., the Corporation, about the recent initiatives/developments/achievements of ESIC:
- Creating "Ease of Compliance" and "Ease of Business" by getting all important processes of ESIC online.
- Launching of the Public Grievance Module for online redressal of grievances of the workers.
- Extending coverage of the Social Security net of the ESI Scheme in the remaining North-East States.
- Total revenue of the Corporation is Rs. 14372.22 crores during the year 2015-16 in comparison to Rs. 13588.58 crores last year.
- The Corporation spent a total of Rs. 6819.47 crores in the year 2015-16 on medical, cash, and other benefits.
Regards,
[Username]
Government of India
Ministry of Labour & Employment
16-December-2016 18:10 IST
ESIC Introduces a New Scheme to Promote Registration of Employers/Employees
The ESI Corporation has taken some very important decisions towards extending the Social Security cover of the ESI Scheme to the whole of India and for medical care for serving the workers. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge), Government of India, chaired the 170th Meeting of the ESI Corporation.
ESIC has also approved the enhancement of the ceiling on medical expenditure from Rs. 2150/- to Rs. 3000/- per insured person with a sub-ceiling of Rs. 1250/- for "Administration" and Rs. 1750/- for "Others." It also approves its Annual Report and Annual Accounts for the year 2015-16.
To extend the coverage to the entire workforce, a new employer-friendly scheme has been approved as a one-time opportunity to:
(a) Encourage employers to register themselves;
(b) Encourage employers to register employees, if any, who have been left out of coverage, including contractual, casual, temporary, etc. The proposed scheme will remain open for a period of three months from 1st January 2017 to 31st March 2017. The proposed scheme shall have the following features:
i. Employers registering during the period will be treated as covered from the date of registration or as declared by them.
ii. Newly registered employees shall be treated as covered from the date of their registration.
iii. This will not have any bearing on actions taken/required under the ESI Act, if any, prior to 1st January 2017.
iv. The Chairman, ESIC, may be authorized to remove difficulties, if any, in implementing the scheme.
In order to improve medical services under state-run ESI facilities, the august body of the ESI Corporation has approved a remarkable decision to increase the per capita ceiling of sharing expenditure with state governments from the existing Rs. 2150/- to Rs. 3000/- with a sub-ceiling of Rs. 1250/- for "Administration" and Rs. 1750/- for "Others." With the enhancement of this ceiling, state governments may now further equip their medical services to better serve ESI beneficiaries in its ESI medical institutions. The enhanced ceiling of Rs. 3000/- will be fixed from 2017-2018 to 2019-2020 and reviewed annually from 2020-21 on the basis of the WPI and expenditure pattern of the states.
The Employees' State Insurance Corporation today approved its Annual Report and Annual Accounts for the year 2015-2016 for submission to the Central Government and laying on the table of both Houses of Parliament. The Hon'ble Minister announced that the ESI Scheme is on the path of sustained growth. It is now catering to the social security needs of more than 2.13 crore insured persons, which is likely to increase manyfold in the next two to three years. The number of beneficiaries covered under the scheme is now 8.28 crores, which will also increase accordingly in the next 2-3 years.
Since the last two to three years, the ESI Corporation has achieved a lot towards bringing more workers under the Social Security Coverage of the ESI Scheme; bringing the Health Reform agenda under "ESIC 2.0"; and also creating a digital environment for ESIC's working towards better delivery to our insured persons and beneficiaries.
ESIC has been paying cash benefits to its beneficiaries directly into their bank accounts. Besides this, the Minister also informed that the Ministry of Labour & Employment and all its divisions, along with ESIC, have taken up a special drive for getting bank accounts opened for the workers.
Smt. M. Sathiyavathy, IAS, Secretary, Labour & Employment, Government of India, and Shri Deepak Kumar, IAS, Director-General, ESIC, were also present at the meeting. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya briefed the tripartite body, i.e., the Corporation, about the recent initiatives/developments/achievements of ESIC:
- Creating "Ease of Compliance" and "Ease of Business" by getting all important processes of ESIC online.
- Launching of the Public Grievance Module for online redressal of grievances of the workers.
- Extending coverage of the Social Security net of the ESI Scheme in the remaining North-East States.
- Total revenue of the Corporation is Rs. 14372.22 crores during the year 2015-16 in comparison to Rs. 13588.58 crores last year.
- The Corporation spent a total of Rs. 6819.47 crores in the year 2015-16 on medical, cash, and other benefits.
Regards,
[Username]