Pune: Chakan to Get First 350-Bed ESIC Hospital as MIDC Allots 8.5 Acres

Pune: The Chakan industrial corridor will soon have its first 350-bed hospital operated by the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), after the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) recently allotted 8.5 acres for the project.

Officials from ESIC confirmed that the land allocation has cleared a major hurdle for the long-awaited healthcare facility. Sukanta Das, Joint Director at ESIC, said the corporation is preparing to move to the next stage. “With the land now in our possession, the groundwork for construction will begin shortly. The insured workforce in Chakan has grown significantly over the years, and the need for a full-fledged ESIC hospital has been consistently raised by stakeholders,” he said.

Apart from Chakan, ESIC has also secured land parcels in Baramati and Satara, where 100-bed hospitals are proposed to serve insured workers in those regions.

Currently, ESIC directly manages two hospitals across five districts of western Maharashtra — one at Bibvewadi in Pune and another in Kolhapur. Additionally, two facilities are operated by the state government under the ESIC scheme at Mohannagar in Chinchwad and in Solapur.

However, several insured workers have flagged limited access to advanced medical services at these centres, often compelling patients to seek treatment at empanelled private hospitals or government-run institutions.

The upcoming hospital in Chakan will be developed in Phase II of MIDC and is expected to serve not only the Chakan industrial area but also neighbouring hubs such as Talegaon and Khed-Rajgurunagar.

Industry representatives have welcomed the development. Dilip Batwal, CEO of the Federation of Chakan Industries, said the proposal had been pending for years. “This demand has been repeatedly placed before the authorities. Although the Union Labour Minister had granted approval for the project in 2022, procedural delays, particularly related to land allocation, slowed progress. The recent allotment has finally set the project in motion,” he said.

According to industry bodies, over seven lakh workers from the Chakan MIDC area alone are enrolled under the ESIC scheme and are expected to benefit from the new hospital once it becomes operational.