Nearly two decades after the initial proposal, Odisha is set to witness the establishment of a state-of-the-art ESI Medical College and Hospital at Andharua, Bhubaneswar.

The Labour and ESI Department of the state has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) to launch the new institution. 

To facilitate the immediate start of operations, the existing 100-bed ESI Hospital at Chandrasekharpur will be handed over to ESIC. 

According to The Times of India, the facility is being upgraded to a 220-bed hospital, offering comprehensive healthcare services, including dialysis and super-specialty treatment, to ESIC beneficiaries across Odisha.

Officials noted that the medical college and hospital will not only expand medical education opportunities for general students and the wards of ESIC beneficiaries but also serve as a referral and tertiary care centre catering to patients from across the state.

The MoU was reportedly signed by Rajesh Kumar Agarwala, Additional Secretary of the Labour Department, on behalf of the Odisha government, and Madhumita Nayak, Director of the ESIC Scheme.

The ESI Medical College and Hospital has been a longstanding demand in Odisha. Back in 2008, ESIC had proposed introducing undergraduate and postgraduate medical teaching programmes along with establishing a medical college in every state. 

Odisha reportedly allocated 25 acres on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar for the project. Although local organisations in Rourkela had advocated for the facility to be located in the steel city, the state government ultimately recommended Bhubaneswar as the preferred site.