ESIC scheme adds 11.82 lakh new members in October

Around 11.82 lakh new members joined the ESIC-run social security scheme in October 2022, according to official data released on Friday.

The data is part of a report -- Payroll Reporting in India: An Employment Perspective - October 2022 -- released by the National Statistical Office (NSO).

It showed that the gross new enrolments with the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) rose to 1.49 crore in 2021-22, from 1.15 crore in 2020-21. It was 1.51 crore in 2019-20 and 1.49 crore in 2018-19.

From September 2017 to March 2018, around 83.35 lakh new subscribers joined the ESIC scheme.

The report said gross new enrolments with ESIC from September 2017 to October 2022 were 7.49 crore.

The NSO report is based on the payroll data of new subscribers of various social security schemes run by ESIC, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA).

According to the report, net new enrolments with retirement fund body EPFO stood at 12.94 lakh in October 2022.

It showed that from September 2017 to October 2022, around 5.99 crore (gross) new subscribers joined the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) scheme.

The report also said that since the number of subscribers is from various sources, there are elements of overlap and the estimates are not additive.

According to NSO, the report gives different perspectives on the levels of employment in the formal sector and does not measure employment at a holistic level.