A national survey done by the non-governmental organisation HelpAge India has shown that 49% of the elderly people from middle income families in Chennai are fully dependent on their families for their finances.
The survey report titled ‘Bridge the gap : understanding elder needs’, released here on Tuesday ahead of the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (June 15), highlighted the need for improving financial independence of the elderly. It showed that a significant percentage of the elders and their caregivers wanted the former to work.
The survey was done in 22 cities across the country with the involvement of 4,399 senior citizens and 2,200 caregivers from middle income families. A total of 200 elders and 100 caregivers in Chennai were interviewed for the survey. Chennai was the only city in Tamil Nadu included in the survey.
The percentage of elderly people economically dependent on their families in Chennai (49%) is marginally higher than the national figure of 47% shown in the survey. Around 67% of the elderly surveyed in Chennai were not working. However, 27% of the surveyed said that they were willing to work, with majority of them highlighting the need for conducive work environment and work from home options.
“Elders today are aspiring to work. They do not want to be viewed as only dependents, but as contributing members of the society,” said Rohit Prasad, chief executive officer, HelpAge India, in the report. “Today, employers should take off their ageist glasses and give elderly a chance to prove their mettle,” said Anupama Datta, head - policy and research, HelpAge India.
Elder abuse
The survey showed that 10.3 % of the respondents nationally said that they were victims of abuse. The same was, however, marginally higher in Chennai with 14% of those surveyed reporting that they faced abuse. The forms of abuse reported by the respondents included disrespect, neglect, verbal abuse and physical abuse.
Releasing the report, D. Rathna, Director of Social Welfare and Women Empowerment, Tamil Nadu, said 14% of the population were senior citizens in the State and the percentage would steadily rise in the coming years.
She said the State had understood the challenges with respect to caring for the elderly. The exclusive policy for senior citizens, which would be finalised soon, would have measures to tackle the challenges.
A few associations of the elderly people and volunteers, who worked for the elderly, were felicitated during the release of the report by E. Theranirajan, Dean, Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.
R. Tamil Selvi, Senior Civil Judge and Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, Chennai, highlighted the need for legal awareness among the elderly. C. Shyamala Devi, Deputy Commissioner of Policy, Crimes Against Women and Children, Chennai, spoke on the need for the elderly to be guarded while transferring all their property to children as many cases reported to the police were about children abandoning their parents after such transfers of properties.
