Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday requested the Centre for its intervention for early implementation of the proposal of setting up of a 500-bedded Super Specialty Hospital on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.
In a letter to Union Minister of State for labour and Employment, Bandaru Dattatreya, Patnaik said the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) of the Ministry had decided to set up a medical college and hospital at Jagannathprasad on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar for which the State Government earmarked 25 acres of land in 2009.
“The foundation stone for ESI Medical College and Hospital was laid on March 2, 2014 while the construction of boundary wall over the allotted land has been completed at a cost of Rs 13.97 crore. But in a letter to the State Government on January 14 this year, ESI Corporation informed that the project work had been deferred by the Centre as it later decided to set up a Super Specialty Hospital,” Patnaik said.
Maintaining that Odisha is on the way to rapid growth in the industries and the service sectors, he said there are 3,78,270 insured persons under the ESI Scheme in the State and the figure is likely to exceed eight lakh with the proposal to extend coverage of ESI to the entire State.
“I, therefore, seek your early intervention for implementation of the proposal to provide tertiary health care to 32 lakh beneficiaries,” said Patnaik.