Start joint day care centres for senior citizens, pre-schoolers

Many nations observed June 15 as the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. This year, the United Nations came up with the theme, “Understand and end financial abuse of older people: a human rights issue.” The aim is to prevent financial exploitation of elders as a human rights issue and device a Plan of Action to ensure that, “Older people have the right to a life of dignity in old age, free of all forms of abuse, including financial and material exploitation, which could lead to poverty, hunger, homelessness, compromised health and well-being, and even premature mortality.” 

As usual, on June 15, there were several seminars and conferences organised on elders abuse. Helpage India, a leading NGO, came out with an elaborate report on the statistics of elder abuse in India. Over 75 per cent of youth admitted that there was elder abuse. The reasons were many, but the most important among them was financial issues such as partition of assets. 

The UN says that, “Virtually all countries are expected to see substantial growth in the number of older persons between 2015 and 2030, and that growth will be faster in developing regions. Because the numbers of older persons are growing, the amount of elder abuse can be expected to grow with it. While the taboo topic of elder abuse has started to gain visibility across the world, it remains one of the least investigated types of violence in national surveys, and one of the least addressed in national action plans”. 

There is a mushrooming of homes for senior citizens in various forms such as the ones in gated communities or just homes for the elderly. Some are of five-star quality, and beyond the reach of the average man. There are others that cater to the not-so-affluent and even run on charity. One such initiative is ‘Anbagam’ of Manonmani Trust run at Thirukandalam in Tiruvallur, about 30 km from Chennai. This is an experiment to bring the elders and the needy under a roof with voluntary contributions from the young and old. It is a fact that when anything is offered for free, it is seen with suspicion and patronage is marginal, despite the world-class facilities offered. 

Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 is a legislation to provide for more effective provisions for the maintenance and welfare of parents and senior citizens guaranteed and recognised under the Constitution and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. We thus have a good legislation, but effective administration is possible only with sensitisation and change of heart of the youth. 

We can do away with institutional care for the infants if we bring the old of every locality together and channelise their skills to rear the children in the neighbourhood. Let there be more day care centres for elders and pre-school children together. These could be stepping stones to create a healthy bond of the old and the young, minus the abuses.