The Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has extended the Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana (ABVKY), its unemployment allowance scheme, by another year. According to reports from the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the decision was approved during the 198th meeting of the ESIC, chaired by Union Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. The scheme, which was set to end on June 30, 2026, will now remain in force from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027. As reported by Mint, this extension allows eligible ESI-insured employees to continue receiving temporary unemployment allowance during job loss and financial hardship.
The Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana is an unemployment relief scheme for workers covered under the Employees' State Insurance (ESI) Act. As reported by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the scheme provides temporary financial assistance to insured employees who lose their jobs while they look for new employment. The scheme is available to eligible employees covered under the ESI scheme who become unemployed and fulfil the prescribed conditions under the Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana. With the latest decision, eligible beneficiaries can continue to avail of the unemployment allowance under the scheme until June 30, 2027, helping them meet expenses while searching for fresh employment. According to Mint, the renewed scheme will remain in force from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027.
According to the Ministry of Labour and Employment, employees often confuse ESIC with the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), but the two serve different purposes. ESIC provides healthcare and social security benefits, including medical care, sickness, maternity, disability and unemployment benefits to eligible insured employees under the ESI Act. EPFO, on the other hand, administers provident fund, pension and insurance benefits for eligible organised sector employees. The unemployment allowance announced by ESIC under the Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana is an ESIC benefit and should not be confused with EPFO benefits. As noted by Mint, the unemployment allowance under ABVKY is an ESIC benefit and is separate from EPFO benefits.
Beyond extending the unemployment allowance scheme, the ESIC approved several measures aimed at strengthening healthcare services and social security delivery. As reported by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, these include direct management of all upcoming and newly commissioned ESIC hospitals, integration of AYUSH services through a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Ayush, establishment of five new sub-regional offices, expansion of medical education infrastructure, including a new medical college in Haridwar and a dental college in New Delhi, and framing of the Employees' State Insurance (General) Regulations, 2026 under the Code on Social Security, 2020. According to Mint, along with extending ABVKY, ESIC approved these comprehensive measures to strengthen healthcare services and social security delivery.
