Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (Help senior citizens) that was published in Newsband

Help senior citizens

Ageing is inevitable. While ageing, a man faces many challenges. The plight of most of the elderly people in rural areas is pathetic. They have to bear the brunt of poverty, illiteracy, income insecurity and inadequate health care. The economic burden incurred by the elderly to make provision for health care is compounded by the fact that most of them have to work to make ends meet and enjoy no social protection to speak of.

The number of elderly people shows signs of growing considerably by 2050. A rapid rise in the numbers of the elderly would impose additional responsibilities on an ever-shrinking population in the working age and raise fresh social challenges in the context of the ongoing nuclearisation of India’s traditional joint family. In western countries, economic development and accompanying socio-political advancement preceded population ageing, enabling better planning. That is not the case in India.

It is sad that the Central Government has ignored the seniors who in their earlier part of life have more or less remained free from corrupt practices that are omnipresent in the country. Government-sponsored hospitals should be initiated and subsidized drugs should be made available to the senior citizens.

As a society we have created infrastructure and support systems to help us look after our children. No such system exists for the elderly. India is far behind many other countries and societies in looking after the elderly. Among the many changes in India is the gradual shift from the joint family to the nuclear family, and it is transforming our relationship with the elders in our families.

Today a person working and living in a large city has many demands on him. What happens to our elders in this changing scenario? We need to plan better for our elders, and in fact, for ourselves because sooner or later all of us (no matter how much we resist it) will eventually get there.

Today the average life span is around 65 years, and the number of people living beyond 60 years is dramatically higher. It is now fairly common to see people living up to the age of 75 or 80 years. That is 20 years of life after retirement. Remember the last two decades of our lives will be the time when our expenditure on health would be highest. So perhaps one of the things that each of us really need to look at, after retiring at the age of 60 from a government or a corporate job, is a way to continue to earn a living and remain productive for as long as possible.

Government can help by constructing more professional organizations that bring the elderly together so that they can be productive in how they spend their time, and have a good time even after they are past retirement age. It should give grants or some financial aid and assistance to senior citizens. It should provide facilities and come up with policies designed for the elderly. What we should never forget is that where our elders are today we will be tomorrow.