Bhubaneswar, March 2 (IANS): Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday sought early intervention of the union labour and employment ministry for establishment of a 500-bed super specialty hospital on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.

In a letter to union Labour and Employment Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, Patnaik said the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) of the ministry decided to set up a medical college and hospital at Jagannath Prasad, on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar, for which the state government earmarked 25 acres of land in 2009.

The construction of boundary wall over the allotted land has been completed at a cost of Rs.13.97 crore and the foundation stone for ESI medical college and hospital had been laid on March 2, 2014.

But, Patnaik said, in a letter to the state government on January 14 this year, the ESI Corporation informed the state that the project work was deferred by the Centre as it later decided to set up a super specialty hospital.

Patnaik said the proposed medical college and hospital would provide tertiary healthcare to 32 lakh beneficiaries, including four lakh insured people under ESI scheme.

He said the figure was likely to exceed eight lakh with the proposal to extend coverage of ESI to the entire state.