An extract of the circular given here below:
An instance came to the notice of Hqrs. Office where in one accident case, where relevant records were not submitted by the employer, the case was temporarily closed by the concerned Branch Manager without initiating any legal action against the employer and further without intimating to the respective SRO about temporary closure of the case. This resulted in inordinate delay in disposal of the case and caused undue inconvenience to the dependents. It has been viewed seriously by the Competent Authority.
It is, therefore, advised that necessary instructions may be issued to all the Branch Managers under your jurisdiction to review all pending Accident Reports and take necessary action to dispose of such pending cases at the earliest. No case should be temporarily closed by the Branch Manager of the respective Branch office.
In case of non-production of records by the employer, necessary legal action may be taken against the wilful defaulting employers in accordance with the provisions under the ESI Act,1948, ESI (Central) Rules, 1950 & ESI (General) Regulations, 1950, if required, after completing all necessary formalities. It may be noted that prosecution action against the employers may be taken only in exceptional cases and not as a routine matter.