BENGALURU: “Elderly citizens are invisible citizens,” observed Indumathi Rao, a Regional Adviser for the Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Network at Bangalore University, speaking at an event organised by the NGO, HelpAge India, to mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
The event took place here on Monday and involved the launch of the national report on climate-resilient ageing. “Despite the small scale of the national report, which surveyed only around 2,000 elderly citizens, the report sheds light on a lot of problems which disproportionately affect the elderly, including health issues, disability impairment, and bad living conditions. The elderly are also the most vulnerable during environmental disasters,” said Rao.
The analysis is based on 2,224 older people across 10 states, including Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. It demonstrated that nearly 46% of respondents report at least one long-term impairment that limits daily activities.
Almost 48% of respondents are financially dependent, while 92% have a monthly income below Rs 10,000. The most common healthcare barriers respondents faced were difficulty travelling to facilities (49%) and high treatment costs (41%). Climate-related hazards are widespread, affecting 78% of respondents in the last three years.
“While the government rolls out various schemes, the question of how much is allocated in its budget to the elderly is an important one,” says Reshma, program officer at ActionAid, an NGO that works with marginalised communities.
Meanwhile, the Elders Helpline, a joint project of the Bengaluru City Police and Nightingales Medical Trust, organised a panel discussion on “Elder Abuse in Families and Community: Understanding the Pain, Pressures and Possible Solutions” on Monday in the office of the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner. The event comes against the backdrop of alarming findings from a three-year impact study of Elders Helpline.
Seemant Kumar Singh, Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru City, Dr Sneha C.V, Director, Department for the Empowerment of Differently Abled, senior citizens, and other IPS officials attended the event.