ESI infrastructure below WHO standards, says study

Despite ESI Corporation's revenues of Rs 2,400 crore in fiscal 2005-06 and an operating surplus of Rs 1,130 crore, ESI infrastructure and rules did not match upto industry growth and were way below WHO standards, says a study.     

As per the study conducted by TeamLease, a leading staffing company, the Employee State Insurance Corporation had one bed per 1882 people to be served.     

Key findings of the study include ESI being seen as an ineffective health insurance scheme for the organised sector's temporary employees with only two percent of those who paid it using it, says the study.     

Only 30 per cent of  the two per cent who used ESI facilities were satisfied with the facilities. Poor and dilapidated conditions were primary reasons for poor usage.     

Nearly 70 per cent of the temporary employees view the ESI deduction as a form of tax for which they get no or very poor return. Only 15 per cent of the employees surveyed knew how the scheme functioned.     

The scheme was plagued by high transmission losses, poor quality and low absorption capacity.     

"Our research points that to an immediate need to revisit the fundamentals of the ESI scheme to address the radically changed employment scenario in India. ESI reforms need to be prioritised because of the poor value for money, poor design and lack of consumer choice", says N Venkataraman, CFO, TeamLease Services.