At least 82 per cent of persons in the 25-45 age group here said that they would readily confront and speak to those abusing the elderly, revealed a survey carried out by HelpAge India.
The survey, titled ‘Nation Abuse - The Indian Youth Speaks Out’, was released by Rohini Ramdas, Additional Collector (Development) and Project Director, District Rural Development Agency, on account of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day 2015.
Speaking about the survey, K.V. Vijayaprakash, Manager, HelpAge India, Madurai, said that the survey had been carried out among youths from 10 Indian cities, including Madurai, to ascertain their views on abuse of the elderly. A sample of 200 households from 20 middle and upper class areas in Madurai had been selected, he said.
“Their perception of the causes of abuse, experience and willingness to intervene in preventing such instances were noted,” Mr. Vijayaprakash said.
The respondents in Madurai said that they were less than satisfied with the way the elderly were being treated in the district, and rated their condition 5.8 on a scale of 10.
When asked why they thought that the senior citizens were unhappy, only 31 per cent of the respondents said ‘elder abuse’. Many others said that the elderly were unhappy because they were not able to spend money like before, were not having an active outdoor life and were not being able to take important family decisions.
While at least 57 per cent of the respondents in Madurai said that they were aware of the existence of senior citizens being abused, only 24 per cent said that they had personal knowledge of instances happening among their family.
The survey also revealed that 52.9 per cent of elders who faced abuse were between 60 to 70 years of age and 47.1 per cent of the elders facing abuse were between 70 to 80 years of age. Among them widowed persons were identified as the most vulnerable.
Need of helpline
Representatives of HelpAge India and various senior citizen associations in the city said that they had been lobbying for the last two years for a mechanism to handle grievances of senior citizens.
“The city does not have a helpline or any body which will take up the grievances of the elderly. It is the need of the hour to have a centralised helpline, preferably operated by the district administration, where they can call in times of need,” Mr. Vijayaprakash said.
