KOCHI: With Kerala having a high percentage of elderly individuals above 60 years of age, there is a pressing need for infrastructure that caters to their welfare. Over the past 60 years, the percentage of people aged 60 and above in Kerala has risen significantly from 5.1% to 16.5%.
While the government plays a crucial role, experts emphasise that private individuals should also contribute to developing initiatives for elderly care.
A heartwarming example of this is an 85-year-old former Fact employee, Josy Gomez, who generously donated 12 cents of his land, valued at `70 to 80 lakh, in Vallarpadam to build an old age home. Josy said the land had remained unused for many years. “Since the land was located away from my house, it was not possible to look after it. The menace of people throwing waste on the land increased,” he said.
Seeing the land go to waste, Josy was deeply saddened, and he decided to put it to good use. “One day, my father called all three of his children and discussed the idea of donating the land for a social cause. He wanted it to be used to construct an old age home,” said Dixon Gomez, the son of Josy Gomez. After the children agreed, the family approached the Latin Church and put forth the proposal.
“During this time the Carmelite Sisters of St Teresa (CSST) were looking for a plot of land to construct an old age home. So, the Archbishop notified the sisters, who also run a home for elderly mothers called Mercy Home at Kacheripady,” said Dominic.
However, the family placed a condition when releasing the 12 cents. “They wanted the sisters to also buy the 10 cents of land owned by the daughter. The sisters agreed,” said U T Paul, who takes care of the land acquired by the sisters for the old age home. The construction of the old age home has already begun, as the foundation stone was laid on a Friday.