KOCHI: Some time ago, Ravi Kalra from Delhi shocked the TV show host Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) Amitabh Bachchan as well as the audience by narrating how the “civilised”, younger, urban population abuses and abandons their senior members in the family.
Abuse of elderly people – at times even unknowingly – is widespread, varying only in degree. They are exposed to abuse by immediate family members or by external hands hired as caregivers.
The abuse ranges from locking up and starving to drugging and playing loud karaoke late into the night. Sometimes it is done under the pretence of “care and protection” too. More often than not, the able-bodied section of society forgets that the elder members of the family have been reduced to an extremely vulnerable lot.
One incident comes to mind: A family signed up their mother in an elderly home, perhaps with the right intentions. Soon they found she was losing weight. When this was brought to the notice of the home administrators, what followed was unthinkable. Each meal time, the old lady would be tied to the bedpost and force-fed by the caregivers, often accompanied by body blows. The torture ended after someone made a video clip and circulated it.
Elder abuse can be physical, mental, sexual, financial or neglect. Though all these are punishable offences, the sad truth is much of it goes unreported. India had close to 10% of the population qualifying as elders in the 2011 census. It is expected to double to 20% by 2030. This is approximately 30 crore people — a sizable number that might be exposed to abuse. Going by the records, such crimes are reported more in urban areas than in rural areas.
HelpAge India, jointly with Kolkata Police, had started an Elder Helpline some years back in the city. And they were shocked by the sheer number of distress calls they received. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and Tata Trust had jointly initiated a nationwide helpline “Elder Line” to track and help elderly people in distress.
More such initiatives might be on the way. Yet, things will be far from perfect unless society reverses its current thinking. India’s ancient culture gave enormous weightage to age and wisdom. It may be true that with changes in lifestyle, the “matured wisdom” is of little help to the younger members.
One of the reasons behind the abuse of the elderly is the perceived “non-productive” character associated with advanced age. However, with some customised activities, this will change. One of the promising ways is to extract the social capital of the elderly for monetization.
A professor in a distinguished university, who has been long retired and is now wheelchair-bound after a stroke, was persuaded to offer Mandarin classes to a group of people online! In a similar vein, a life coach was connected with some corporations where the skills of the person were gainfully used for people’s development. Such activities dramatically elevate the mood and attitude of people on both sides.
Old age happens to people naturally. However, it is for each person and his immediate family to plan and structure old age so that there will be little room for abuse.