SENIOR CITIZENS’ NATIONAL PROTEST DAY OBSERVED AT CHANDIGARHSENIOR CITIZENS’ NATIONAL PROTEST DAY OBSERVED AT CHANDIGARH

THE SILENT MARCH – Our Concern for Suffering Fellow Senior Citizens

By Harchandan Singh, Secretary General CCCGPA & RSCWS

It is rare that the people jointly raise a voice for a cause that does not directly affect to them. It is even more rare that the “Haves” jointly but selflessly raise their voice for the “Have Nots”. It is rather rare of the rarest to see the sexagenarians, septuagenarians, octogenarians and nonagenarians all march together in hundreds - on issues of National importance.

It was exactly all like that what happened on that historic day of 16^th August, 2010 – when over 500 Senior Citizens belonging to nearly 30 different organisations of the tri-city of Chandigarh, Panchkula & Mohali marched together through the main city centre in Sector 17 – carrying Banners and chest patches bearing slogans in support of their demands with a message to the Nation and younger generation to “RESPECT AGE” & “CARE FOR THE ELDERS”.

The march was a part of the Senior Citizens National Protest Day. It was followed by a delegation meeting the UT Administrator & Governor Punjab Shri Shiv Raj Patil and presenting to him as well to the Deputy Commissioner Chandigarh - a Memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister of India – on the major issues relating to the Senior Citizens.

who all participated

The Silent March was led by some seniors in their 80s & 90s on the wheel chairs & crutches followed by the Banner bearing members of Chandigarh Senior Citizens Association (CSCA) and Members of various Chapters of CSCA, Coordination Committees of Central Government Pensioners Associations (CCCGPA), P & T Pensioners Welfare Association, Railway Senior Citizens Welfare Society (RSCWS), Association of Retired Officers of Indian Audit & Account Deptt., Central Government Pensioners Association, Association of Retired Officers of Labour Bureau, ESIC Retired Officers Association, SBI Pensioners Association, Federation of Senior Citizens (FEDSEN) – North and some other groups of Human Right Association and Women & Youth Organisations.

WHAT WERE THE MAIN ISSUES

For several decades, Governments at the Centre and in the states have been neglecting the problems of senior citizens. Out of 10 crores of older persons, 66% go hungry every day; 90% have no social or health security; 37% are lonely and neglected.

National Policy on Older Persons – announced in 1999 – has not been fully implemented by a single state. The Policy visualizes that the state will extend support for financial security, healthcare, shelter, welfare and other needs of older persons, provide protection against abuse and exploitation. The policy aims at well - being of older persons, so that they will not live unprotected, ignored or marginalized. Its objective is to help older persons to live their last phase of their life with purpose, dignity and peace. But it has yet to be implemented anywhere.

Only 3 states out of 35 have effectively implemented the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act – though three years have passed. Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme had been implemented by only a few States. There is no comprehensive medical or health care for old people after 60 years of age.

Several sincere and serious attempts to get Governments involved and to listen to problems and demands failed. It was therefore decided to observe a Protest Day, on an all India basis, on August 16 to press for the following demands:

Health Insurance for all Senior Citizens with modest premium and without restrictions of “entry and exit age” and “pre-existing health conditions”, early implementation of the “Maintenance & Welfare of Parents & Senior Citizens Act” in all States and Union Territories, implementation the existing NPOP (National Policy for Older Persons) with adequate budgetary support, Uniform age of 60 years for Exemption under Income Tax Act and Old Age Pension for all Senior Citizens and Additional Pension to Pensioners / Family Pensioners who are 65 years & above for meeting health related requirements – as done in case of those of 80 years and above.

Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007 –Tardy Status of Implementation in States

The Act was passed towards the end of 2007. The Central Government recommended that it be adopted and implemented by every state and Union teritory. Out of 35 States / UTs, as Himachal Pradesh has its own act (better than the Central Act), HP is not taken into account. It is not applicable to J&K. Out of the rest of 33 States / UTs four states have not bothered even notify it as acceptable for action. These are: Bihar,Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim and Uttar Pradesh. After notification in the State Gazette, there are four important steps to be taken. These are: a) Framing Rules under the act b) Notifying / Appointing Maintenance Officers c)Notifying / Appointing Maintenance Tribunal and d) Setting up Appelatte Tribunal. Without these crucial steps in place the act is toothless in any state.
Let us look at the Table taken from MOSJE Annual Report for 2009-10. There are some funny things about this table. Four States that are totally blind to Center's plea about this act have not been included. While the data about status as of Feb 2010 is given for 29 states, the Serial Number shows 30 as the numbering is faulty. And the data does not depict true picture.
While the Table says that thirteen states have fully complied with the requirements, we read news items as late as June 2010 that Gujarat and Tamilnadu are yet to appoint Maintenance officers, appellate tribunal etc. Ground reality is different. 15 out of 33 States have not even notified rules – it is as good as doing nothing about the act. It is only around June 2010, on account of Elder Abuse Awareness Day and media pressure, that some states sporadically try to do something. Pressure from Senior Citizens Associations and Sttate and National level federations count nothing with the rulers. One example is Maharashtra where AISCCON, FESCOM and local NGOs like Silver Innings, Dignity & Harmony have been shouting from roof tops – the government is silent as rock.
In Andhra Pradesh draft rules have remained in file, never notified, despite consistent pressure and follow up by FAPSCO and APSCCON. One redeeming factor about AP is that despite absence of rules , the Collector of West Godhavari District has treated the Act as self contained wholesome act ( with rules) and has gone ahead listening to and passing orders under this act – helping senior citizens all the way. As many as 15 cases have been settled which only goes to bust the myth the senior citizens won't go to court against their own children. Hundreds are waiting for leagal avenues to redress their sufferings. Similarly, In Tamilnadu, the police, though they can not directly intefere in cases of Elder abuse under this act, have opted to be sympathetic to senior citizens in tackling offenders out of the way. Not all states are lucky.
Therefore it is impretive that all states and UTs take necessary steps imediately to implement theAct in right spirit, not just on paper. This requires pressure from center, that is MOSJE should do its part. As they are not doing, Senior citizens are showing their dissatisfaction by observing Senior Citizens National Protest Day on 16th August 2010. Joins us in full strength for your own benefit.

Posted By Dr P Vyasamoorthy, 30 Gruhalakshmi Colony Secunderabad 500015 Ph 040-27846631 / 9490804278. My blog: http://vyasa-kaaranam-ketkadey.blogspot.com/

Old Age Pension: Several States need to wake up

The Government of India instituted Old age pension to destitute older persons several years ago. The pension amount was raised from Rs 75 per month to Rs 200 couple of years ago. Under the latest scheme called India Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOPS) any senior citizens above 65 in BPL category is eligible for a pension of Rs 200 pm from GOI contribution. The center has recommended that each state may supplement this with a minimum of Rs 200 per month from its own resources.
The scheme envisages the payment to be made through post offices or banks to filter out middlemen. It also stipulates that both husband and wife are eligible if they are above 65. Earlier clause that the recipient must be a destitute was withdrawn. With Rs 400 a month, at the present inflationary rates of food items, a senior citizen can just afford to buy half a liter of milk per day and nothing else. It is a pity that in as many as 17 states and UTs even this minimum recommendation of Rs 400 is not complied with. Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Daman & Diu pay nothing more than center's contribution of Rs 200. Supplementary payment, out of State resources, ranging from Rs 50 to 150, is made by 11 states: Himachal Pradesh, J&K, Chattisgarh, Nagaland, Lakshdweep, Kerala, Assam, Megalaya, Mizoram, Madya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
As many as 9 states – Gujarat, Jharkand, Karnataka,Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Tripura, Tamilnadu and West Bengal are contented with meeting the bare recommended minimum of Rs4oo, thus contributing Rs 200 from their own resources. Older persons in rest of the 9 states are lucky in getting more than 400 – luckiest being Goa and Delhi where OAP is Rs 1000 per month.
What it all boils down to is that nearly 50% of states are paying far less than 400 for older persons 65+. In terms of number persons denied even this barest minimum of Rs 400 works out to 2.1 crores. As I know of the situation in AP let me give some startling facts: When old couple, both are above 65, the husband is give; the wife is denied. The amount is given through political local leaders who pick and choose who should be given (registered) for OAP. A sample survey conducted in two villages showed many anomalies such as: ineligible persons being included; recipients had to pay a bribe to get registered and a commission even on monthly payments on a regular basis; non existing names were included for OAP etc.
The Andhra Pradesh Government justifies its stand by claiming to pay Rs 200 to about 46 lakhs of elders. While the national average of BPL category is around 38% of the population, AP says about 80% are under BPL. Indiscriminate issue (sale of, would be more appropriate) of White Ration Cards for BPL to curry the favors of public and voters has landed the state into an irrecoverable mess. Our repeated pleas to rectify the situation and to ensure that all truly eligible senior citizens get Rs 400 per month have fallen on deaf ears.
This is one of the main reasons triggering senior citizens from all over India joining together to observe a protest day at national level on 16th August 2010. Let us hope that our rulers wake up and listen.

Posted By Dr P Vyasamoorthy, 30 Gruhalakshmi Colony Secunderabad 500015 Ph 040-27846631 / 9490804278. My blog: http://vyasa-kaaranam-ketkadey.blogspot.com/

REPORT ON ELDER ABUSE IN INDIA ( HELPAGE INDIA)

As a result of the current ageing scenario, there is need for all aspects of care for the older persons namely, social, economic, health and shelter. In line with the living arrangements and the needs of elderly, security and abuse of older persons are also emerging as issues of greater concern in India. With this background, HelpAge India felt the need to understand the issue of elder abuse, its nature and extent of prevalence across cities, perceptions of the elderly and other stakeholders. The present study having both quantitative and qualitative components was carried out by HelpAge India and Sigma, based on which the report has been prepared. The fieldwork for the quantitative component of the study was carried out by HelpAge India, while Sigma was engaged by HelpAge India to design the study and carry out
the In Depth Interviews.

The present study aims at identifying the symptoms of elder abuse and finding out its
existence and reasons for the same. The quantitative study covered the elderly in the age group of 60+ years across 8 cities viz. Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Bhopal, Chennai, Patna and Hyderabad with a sample size of 100 per city.

For the qualitative part, In Depth Interviews (IDI) among legal experts, members of Senior Citizen’s Association, Police Officers, medical experts, Social Welfare Officer, Community Based Organizations (CBOs), Corporate and Individual Donors, and Psychologists were carried out by Sigma. In all, 57 IDIs with various target groups were carried out.

The SALIENT FINDINGS of the study are presented below:

1. The mean age of the elderly across the cities is 68 years. More than half of the elderly in Kolkata (54%) are of 70+ years.
2. Three fourth (74%) of the elderly are currently married, while one fifth (23%) are
divorced.
3. The mean number of children the elderly have is 3, with 2 sons and 1 daughter in all cities except Hyderabad, Kolkata and Patna where it is 4.
4. Half of the elderly stay with son, while one fourth (27%) stay with spouse. One tenth (10%) of the elderly are living alone and their children come to visit them.
5. Four fifth (82%) of the elderly are literates with one fifth (19%) and one tenth (13%) being Graduates and Post Graduates respectively. Close to one fifth (18%) of the elderly are illiterate.
6. Proportion of illiterate is highest in Kolkata (42%) and lowest in Patna (3%).
7. As regards the last main occupation, 26% of the elderly were homemakers, while 19% were working as unskilled workers.
8. One fifth of the elderly are currently engaged in economic activity.
9. More than two fifth (45%) of the elderly currently economically active are self
employed/ professionals. Nearly one fifth of the elderly are shop owners.
10. The average monthly household income of the elderly is Rs. 12045. About three fifth (59%) of the elderly have a monthly household income of less than Rs 10,000.
11. More than two fifth (45%) of the elderly have pension as the main source of income and one fifth get income from interest on savings and fixed deposits.
12. Half (51%) of the elderly own property and this is highest in Delhi (68%) and Patna (68%) and lowest in Hyderabad (28%) and Kolkata (36%).
13. Close to three fourth (73%) of the elderly are living in their own house while 18% are living in a rented place.
14. More than two fifth (46%) of the elderly are financially dependent on others, with
highest being reported in Chennai (63%) and Kolkata (61%).
15. More than half (57%) of the elderly are financially dependent on their son and around one fourth are dependent on their spouse.
16. More than two fifth (44%) of the elderly consider negligence as elder abuse.
17. More than one third each of the elderly feel that elder abuse constitutes emotional
abuse (39%), verbal abuse (37%), economic abuse (35%), showing disrespect (34%)
and physical abuse (34%).
18. About one third (35%) of the elderly feel neglected with 21% of the elderly in the age group of 60-69 years feeling so.
19. Half (51%) of the elderly feel neglected sometimes while 40% feel neglected
everyday.
20. Feeling of being neglected stems from the family related factors such as family
members not spending time and not interacting.
21. More than two fifth (46%) of the elderly reported that the family members are busy with their own work/lives and thus neglect them.
22. More than one third (36%) of the elderly have experienced any type of abuse with this being reported highest in Bhopal (79%) followed by Chennai (59%) and Kolkata
(44%).
23. The elderly faced various types of abuse with showing disrespect being the most
common form of abuse followed by verbal abuse, neglect, economic abuse and
emotional abuse.
24. Abuse in terms of showing disrespect was reported more in Chennai (71%) and
Kolkata (54%).
25. Verbal abuse was reported more in Mumbai (79%), Ahmedabad (57%) and Kolkata (53%).
26. Emotional abuse was reported more in Delhi (62%) and Kolkata (54%).
27. Physical abuse was reported more in Kolkata (23%), Hyderabad (22%), Mumbai
(21%) and Ahmedabad (20%).
28. Abuse is reported more from the family members, with son and daughter in law
emerging as the major abusers.
29. Abuse by son was reported most in Bhopal (70%) followed by Patna (57%), and
Kolkata (54%).
30. Abuse by domestic help was reported more in Delhi (19%) and Ahmedabad (13%).
31. One third (35%) of the elderly faced abuse due to property issues.
32. Nearly one third each of the elderly reported facing abuse because of lack of
emotional support (30%) and lack of basic necessities (29%).
33. Half (53%) of the elderly did not take any action when they faced abuse. This is
reported highest in Chennai (80%), Bhopal (69%) and Ahmedabad (62%).
34. Most (92%) of the elderly did not register any complaint against the abuser.
35. Among the elderly who registered complaint, 33% reported that nothing concrete
came out of it, while 27% reported about the police carried out home visit, as a result
of the complaint.
36. Nearly half of the elderly (48%) are willing to take concrete action against abuse in
future.
37. Unwillingness to take any action against abuse stems from the perception among the elderly that - ‘nothing concrete will happen’ if any action is taken, followed by a
sense of shame in the community and fear of further abuse.
38. Awareness about laws, policies and programmes against elder abuse is low among the elderly.
39. One third (33%) of the elderly are aware of existing laws and programmes against
elder abuse.
40. Among the Elderly who are aware of the laws, policies and programmes, majority
(88%) are aware of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen’s Act,
(56%) of the elderly are aware of the National Policy on Older Persons, (67%) are
aware of the Protection for Women against Domestic Violence Act.
41. Awareness of the law enforcing agencies is low as only one fifth of the elderly (18%) are aware of these.
42. Close to two fifth (38%) of the elderly perceive the role of police and lawyers as non supportive in tackling abuse.
43. One fourth of the elderly (26%) did not know about the role of the law enforcing
agencies in controlling elder abuse.
44. More than one fourth (27%) of the elderly are of the view that the Police is not
equipped to handle cases of elder abuse.
45. The major measures to be taken up by the law enforcing agencies suggested by the elderly include ‘giving protection’ and ‘carrying out home visits’.
46. It was also suggested that the Police should assist the elderly in getting maintenance from the children under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen’s Act.
47. ‘Having steady cash flow’, ‘making adjustments within family’ and ‘having own
property to reduce economic dependency’ are the major measures suggested by the
elderly to control elder abuse.

Aid policy for elderly

CITHARA PAUL

New Delhi, Jan. 27: The Centre is enriching a 10-year-old policy for the elderly that has so far remained on paper, offering financial support, healthcare, shelter, protection from abuse and exploitation as well as a battle against dementia.

The National Policy for Older Persons (NPOP) of 1999 is being upgraded with special focus on Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia as part of a National Dementia Strategy. (See chart)

The existing policy has virtually seen no implementation on the ground with most states failing to show interest, a Union social justice and empowerment ministry official admitted.

He said a “determined” Centre would this time tighten its monitoring and withhold NPOP funds to the states if they did not carry the policy out. “We want the NPOP implemented in letter and spirit,’’ the official said.

The highlight of the new NPOP would be the measures against all forms of dementia.

“India is said to have millions of people with dementia and it is imperative that we prepare to deal with the socio-economic repercussions of this,’’ the official said.

A report by the Alzheimer’s Disease International says there are 36 million people with dementia in the world, of whom three million live in India. The number may rise to 10 million by 2030, the report says.

“We want to create awareness about the disease because it can be prevented if we take the right precautions,’’ the official said.

Scientists say people who engage in intellectually stimulating activities, such as social interaction and the playing of a musical instrument, significantly lower their risk of developing dementia or, at least, delay its onset.

The revised policy will ask the states to ensure quick disposal of cases relating to property transfer and property tax involving the aged. It will also require the states to provide special identity cards to everyone above 65 to make it easier for them to claim benefits such as fare concessions and priority in the allocation of gas and phone connections.

Health professionals and activists working with the elderly and dementia patients said they were happy with the government’s plans.

“The social and economic consequences of dementia are extraordinary,” said Dr Jacob Roy, who heads the Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Society of India.

“This is not only because of the increase in the number of dementia patients, but also because the condition is one of the most disabling ones, leading to personality changes and behavioural problems. It is good news that the government is giving special attention to Alzheimer’s.”

Source:http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100128/jsp/frontpage/story_12037191.jsp