Wipro mulls legal action to recover payments from ESIC project

MUMBAI: Wipro said it would take ‘all legal steps’ to recover withheld payments from its Rs 1182 crore seven-year contract with the Employees State Insurance Corporation.

In March 2009, Wipro had won the contract from the ESIC to set up a system to streamline registration filings and payouts at its hospitals and regional centres. In 2011, the platform faced some technical issues, which Wipro had fixed.

In its statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange, Wipro said the ESIC had withheld payments in an ‘ad-hoc and arbitrary’ manner.

“Wipro has disputed this non-payment and is engaged with the ESIC to recover the amounts due. If we are not able to solve this amicably in a reasonable time, Wipro will take all necessary legal steps available to it,” Wipro said in the statement.

The contract ended on June 8, 2016, thought Wipro continued to administer the platform at the request of the ESIC. The Bengaluru-headquartered company said it was handing over the project at the close of business hours on Thursday.