The Hindu Business Line : ESIC to set up own property maintenance division

In a major policy decision, the Employees State Insurance Corporation has decided to take away the responsibility of repair and maintenance of its hospitals and other facilities from the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and the State Public Works Departments (SPWDs).

It has decided to do the job itself and will be converting its existing construction division into a full fledged Property Management Division (PMD).

The move is aimed at ensuring better maintenance and protection of ESIC properties, which are spread across the country, officials said.

Sources said many ESIC properties are lying unattended and there are also several reports of encroachments.

Over the past five decades the corporation has acquired approximately 2,213 acres of land and built up around 25,74,850 square metres of building all over the country.

The ESIC provides medical facilities to all the members covered under its scheme who earn a salary of up to Rs 6,500 per month. It runs 143 hospitals, 43 annexes, 322 specialist chambers and 1,452 dispensaries and has a total number of 27,099 beds.

It has been found that the maintenance cost is increasing each year.

The total expenditure on this account was Rs 50.21 crore in 2004-05, Rs 69 crore in 2005-06 and is estimated to be Rs 81 crore in the current financial year.

This includes the charges paid to the agencies.

In 2004-05 the total amount paid to the agencies included Rs 7.03 crore for repairs and maintenance, Rs 0.58 crore for special repair and maintenance and another Rs 0.30 crore for capital works, taking the total to Rs 7.91 crore. "For 2005-06 the total stands at Rs 10.92 crore and for 2006-07 it is estimated to be Rs 12.17 crore, officials said.

On the other hand, it has been estimated that if we develop a full fledged property maintenance division headed by a chief engineer and some 100-150 engineers under him, the quality of our maintenance would improve while costs would be lower," officials said.

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