A Madhya Pradesh municipality, which runs a daycare centre for senior citizens, an NGO in Kerala that has sensitised thousands to the need for taking care of elders and the State of Tamil Nadu, which has established maintenance tribunals in each sub-division, are among those to be honoured on Thursday for their service to senior citizens, government sources said.
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Vayoshreshtha Samman , the annual national award of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, will be given away to 15 individuals and organisations by President Ram Nath Kovind. The award distribution is one of the Ministry’s events to mark the International Day of Older Persons, which fell on Tuesday.
Tamil Nadu is expected to be given the award for the best State in implementing the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, and providing services to senior citizens. According to the citation, the State has set up maintenance tribunals under the Act in each sub-division, but half of the cases are resolved through conciliation.
The municipal council of Unhel, in Ujjain district of Madhya Pradesh, will receive the award for the best urban local body. It provides medical services, income generation schemes and pension to seniors. It has also opened a daycare centre, Anand Ghar, fitted with recreation facilities.
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Gandhibhavan International Trust, a non-profit in Kollam, Kerala, is set to be honoured for providing care to 1,400 needy people, including 350 senior citizens, and for conducting awareness programmes for the youth. So far, 60,000 people have attended the programme.
Among the individuals are Hardev Singh, a senior citizen sportsperson, Ishwarchandra Chintamani, a 93-year-old Kannada writer, freedom fighter Chhaju Ram Sharma, 87, and Padma Shri awardee Eli Ahmed.