My friend Suresh, a skilled technician from just outside Kochi, is the reason I started this petition. For years, his family was protected by the ESI health insurance scheme. Last year, he received a small, well-deserved annual pay raise that took his salary from ₹20,800 to ₹22,500. Instead of relief, it brought his family deep anxiety.

That tiny increment pushed him over the outdated ESI salary limit. Overnight, he, his wife, and his two young children lost their entire healthcare safety net. This is the story of this petition.

 

 

The Problem: The ₹21,000 "Trapdoor"
 
Suresh's story isn't rare. It is the reality for millions of hardworking Indian families. The problem lies with a single, outdated rule: the Employees' State Insurance (ESI) salary eligibility limit has been frozen at ₹21,000 per month since January 1, 2017.

For over eight and a half years, this number has not changed, while our salaries and the cost of living have steadily increased. What was meant to be a safety net has now become a trapdoor. A routine annual increment, meant to help a family cope with inflation, now punishes them by taking away their most crucial benefit. They are not rich enough to afford expensive private insurance, but are suddenly considered "too rich" for the social security they have paid into for years.

The Proof: The Numbers Don't Lie
 
This isn't just a feeling; it's a mathematical fact. The system has failed to keep pace with economic reality.

The ₹21,000 ceiling was set in 2017.
Since then, cumulative consumer inflation has soared by over 50%.
This means the real value of that ceiling has plummeted. To have the same purchasing power today, the limit should be at least ₹32,000.
The gap between the cost of living and the value of this social security rule grows wider every single day.

 

 

 

What We Are Losing: Access to a Modern Healthcare System
 

Here is the cruel irony: at the exact same time this ceiling is becoming more and more outdated, the benefits of the ESI scheme are becoming better than ever.

The ESIC is undergoing a massive transformation, offering incredible new benefits like:

Cashless access to over 30,000 Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY hospitals nationwide.
The creation of new, state-of-the-art ESIC medical colleges, with seats reserved for workers' children.
These are life-changing opportunities for healthcare and education. It is a profound injustice to deny millions of deserving families access to this modernized system because of a simple number that hasn't been updated in nearly a decade.

 

The Time to Act is NOW

 

On June 27, 2025, the ESIC board announced these fantastic new reforms. While this progress is commendable, they failed to address the most critical issue: the outdated salary ceiling.

We must urge them to complete the job. Let's send a clear message to the Ministry of Labour & Employment: Don't let an 8-year-old rule exclude millions from a 21st-century healthcare system.

We ask you to raise the ESI ceiling to a more realistic and future-proof figure of ₹35,000.

Sign this petition to demand a fair salary ceiling for a stronger, more inclusive, and truly modern social security system for all.