1) The letter summarizes concerns over two recent ESIC directives regarding alternate treatment for insured persons during the COVID-19 pandemic and contributions to the PM CARES fund from ESIC employees. 2) It argues that designating ESIC hospitals as dedicated to COVID-19 will deny insured persons treatment for other ailments, and that decisions were made without consulting regional committees. 3) The letter demands that meetings be held with regional committees and private hospitals be enlisted to better support COVID-19 treatment while protecting insured persons' rights.

1. All India Trade Union Congress
AITUC Bhawan: 35-36, DDU Marg, Rouse Avenue, New Delhi – 110002
E Mail: aituchq@gmail.com Tel: +91 1123217320
To 12/04/2020
Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar
Honourable Minister of State (Independent Charge)
Ministry of Labour and Employment,
Shram Shakthi Bhavan, New Delhi-110001
Subject: In Ref. to ESIC Directives
(a) File No. PT No. A/48/15/3/2017 Med-1 dt. 8.04.2020, regarding alternate provision for
secondary/SST treatment to IPs &
(b) No. A-48/15/3/2020-E.III dt. 6.04.2020, regarding contributions to PM-CARES Fund from
ESIC Employees.
Dear Shri Santosh Gangwar ji,
(a) First of all, the so-called alternate arrangement in tie-up hospitals for secondary/SST
treatment to the IPs in terms of ESIC hospitals declared as dedicated Covid-19 hospitals, will
only turn out to be denial of any treatment to IPs in reality. It is a common experience that the
private tie-up hospitals are generally averse to treating the ESIS IPs because the rates paid are as
per CGHS rates, which are much less than those charged by the private hospitals and are paid
after the relevant bills are raised. Thus in the name of fighting Covid-19, the IPs are being denied
their rightful treatment for ailments other than Covid-19. To give an example, in Haryana alone,
Gurgaon has 16 lac IPs while in Faridabad, there are 6.5 lac IPs who would be affected.
Already, the ESIC OPDs are turning away IPs, who are forced to pay for their treatment, inspite
of being covered under the ESIS.
Secondly, even if some facilities of the ESIC are to be made available for Covid-19 treatment as
isolation wards, the choices made on the ground beat all logic. Again, taking the example of
Faridabad, Haryana, the 10th floor of the Faridabad ESIC Medical College Hospital has been
acquired as isolation ward for Carona affected people, while an old facility with 200 bed capacity
near the Medical College and another ESIC Hospital with 200 bed capacity in Sector-8 are lying
vacant! In Gurgaon, the only ESIC hospital has been designated as reserved for Caron's patients!
The knee jerk decisions taken by the ESIC authorities/Haryana State Government are without
any consultation with the Regional Committee, which is a tri-partite body, with representatives
of the Unions, who can give fruitful suggestions to help fight Covid-19, while also protecting the
rights of the IPs.

2. Here we would like to remind you of a “Samvad” meeting you had convened on 12th February,
2020, with trade union representatives for an interaction which you termed “Santusht”. One of
the topics was specifically to discuss the working of ESIC. Our representative had pointed out
that there already was a tripartite forum which was tasked with overseeing the running of the
ESIC and its Schemes. He had urged you not to usurp the functions of the existing tripartite
body. But here we have a concrete instance of bypassing that tripartite body in the State of
Haryana with disastrous results for the IPs. There are several such reports from various States.
Thirdly, while the fight against Corona has to be given the top priority, using only the ESIC
facilities without enlisting the infrastructure of private hospitals for the purpose raises doubts
about the strength of your Government’s political will to engage with the might of the
Corporates while mobilising resources for the Corona fight. It is to be noted that many private
hospitals have taken advantage of government largesse, such as cheap land, cheap infrastructural
facilities etc. But you have chosen the easy option.
We demand that you convene meetings of State Regional Committees before high-handedly
implementing the Circular (a) referred to above.
There are reports that some MPs belonging to the ruling party BJP are advocating use of “surplus
funds“ lying with the ESIC for distribution to all the IPs under various Schemes under the ESI
Act, without one word about implementing the Advisory issued by your Ministry to the
employers, which, to your knowledge, they have simply ignored. We strongly oppose any such
irresponsible squandering away of the corpus of the insurance scheme.
We demand that the ESI Schemes for unemployment be implemented in consultation with the
State Regional Committees, along with your Advisory dt.20.03.2020.
(b) This circular, while seemingly making the contribution to PM CARES Fund voluntary, in
fact threatens the employees, by making it compulsory to give in writing if anyone wishes not to
contribute! Why can a person not contribute to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund?
The AITUC opposes this circular as being discriminatory and a veiled threat to the employees.
Yours sincerely,
Amarjeet Kaur
General Secretary
9810144958