TN: ESIC Medical College Hospital to come up for fireworks industry workers at cost of Rs 150 crore

Sivakasi: With an aim to cover the needs of workers in the fireworks industry, the Tamil Nadu government has made a proposal to the union government to establish an ESIC Medical College Hospital with advanced treatment facilities in Sivakasi.  

The announcement was made by Minister for Labour Welfare and Skill Development C.V. Ganesan on Monday, who was speaking at a workshop on Fireworks Safety. 

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He said that there are around 56,000 registered workers in the fireworks industry, who are prone to fire accidents due to the nature of their work. The state government, therefore, has decided to establish an ESIC Medical College Hospital at a cost of around Rs 150 crore. The proposal has been sent to the centre for consideration, said Ganesan. 

He said, "Whenever an accident is reported in the fireworks unit, the workers are badly injured and often are required to undergo plastic surgery. The Chief Minister has ordered a proposal to establish the hospital with advanced treatment facilities." 

Further, Revenue Minister K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran said that the district administration has been asked to identify suitable land for the hospital. He said, "After the Government Medical College at Virudhunagar, the Chief Minister has given a second medical college hospital in Sivakasi for the workers' benefit." 

Minister for Industries Thangam Thennarasu said that majority of the accidents in the fireworks industry department was caused because of human error or negligence, adding that the industry and workers need to work towards ensuring zero accidents in the industry, as per a media report in the Hindu. 

Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Labour Welfare and Skill Development, Md. Nasimuddin said, "The State government has made the proposal for the new medical college hospital under the Aspirational District category." He said that the hospital would be built exclusively for the workers in the fireworks industry and would have facilities to cater to their needs. According to Collector J. Meghanath Reddy, 16 acres of land have been identified in Sivakasi to build the hospital. 

Others who were present at the event include Principal Secretary and Commissioner of Labour, Atul Anand, MLAs A.R.R. Srinivasan, A.R.R. Raghuram and G. Ashokan, Superintendent of Police M. Manohar and Deputy Chief Controller of Explosives S. Kandasamy. 

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