-The Hindu The primary health-care system in India, intended to enable affordable health care, has not delivered on its promise. Rural, public health facilities are unable to attract, retain and ensure the regular presence of trained medical professionals. Health centres and hospitals in the public sector have proliferated but they are distributed inequitably. India may have one government hospital bed for every 1,833 people, but the reality is that while in...

-PTI At present, it is mandatory for firms with 20 or more workers to subscribe to social security schemes New Delhi: In a bid to provide social security to additional 50 lakh workers under retirement fund body EPFO, the Labour Ministry has decided to halve the threshold for coverage of firms to 10 workers through an executive order. At present, it is mandatory under the Employees' Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act for...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Rickshaw pullers, autorickshaw drivers, Anganwadi and Asha workers and other such vulnerable groups may get complete medical care (from primary to tertiary) under the umbrella of employee's state insurance (ESI) scheme. They may also be entitled for a range of cash benefits during exigencies arising out of their jobs such as death, injury, disablement, maternity and unemployment as guaranteed to workers in organized sector under the...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Now, lakhs of labourers working on construction sites can avail medical benefits under the labour ministry's Employee State Insurance (ESI) scheme. "The Employee State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has approved extending benefits of the ESI scheme to workers deployed on construction sites from August 1, 2015," said an official. The decision is seen as a big step by the BJP government to extend social security coverage to a...

-Business Standard No consensus as yet on social security code  Even though the Indian Labour Conference (ILC) could not build a consensus on forming a labour code on social security schemes, it recommended a slew of measures to broaden their coverage. The two-day conference, a tri-partite platform of trade unions, industry and the government, concluded here on Tuesday with a series of recommendations. It recommended that Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) coverage be expanded...