CHANDIGARH: There is only one operational old-age home in Haryana as per the status report given to the Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) by the authorities. The commission has raised serious concerns over the sluggish pace of old-age home construction across the state.
In a review conducted in compliance with its earlier order dated January 31 the commission noted that only one old age home in Rewari district is currently operational, nearly two years after its inauguration on January 6, 2023.
As per the status report received on April 1, this year the land has not yet been identified for old age homes in Jhajjar, Palwal, Panipat, Rohtak, and Sirsa districts. Meanwhile, districts like Gurugram, Kaithal, CharkhiDadri, Mahendragarh, and Nuh have earmarked land and have initiated the construction process.
Construction remains pending in Faridabad, Fatehabad, Hisar, Jind, Kurukshetra, Sonipat, and Yamunanagar due to a lack of planning approvals. However, work is ongoing in Karnal under the Smart City Project and in Panchkula under the supervision of the Mata Mansa Devi Shrine Board.
During a virtual inspection of the Rewari old age home, the commission found that only 12 senior citizens (9 men and 3 women) were residing in a facility built to house 170 residents. Several hygiene issues were observed, including unclean washrooms, poor kitchen conditions, and insufficient staff only one safaisewak was deployed, which was deemed inadequate for maintaining cleanliness.
A full commission bench comprising Chairperson Justice (Retd) Lalit Batra, Judicial Member Kuldip Jain, and Member Deep Bhatia, invoked Section 19 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, which mandates at least one Old Age Home in every district. The Commission reaffirmed that ensuring dignity and security for the elderly is a constitutional and moral obligation of the state.
To expedite progress, the commission has directed the following senior officials to personally monitor and accelerate the construction of old age homes:
Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Chief Administrator, HSVP, Panchkula, Director, Development and Panchayats Department and Director, Town and Country Planning Department.
According to Dr Puneet Arora spokesman of the commission and protocol officer, the commission has sought a detailed action taken report from the concerned departments by July 29 this year.