Elderly have no income source

By Rashme Sehgal

New Delhi

June 3: India’s 81 million elders have no independent source of income. Over 48 million elders remain dependent on remittances from children as their prime source of income. Only 26 million men and women are getting some form of pension to see them through their daily needs.

A recent Helpage survey across eight cities — Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Lucknow, Vijaywada, Bhubaneshwar and Ahmedabad — interviewed 2,019 men and women over 60 years of age. It presents a distressing picture of India’s ageing population many of whom complain of feeling isolated, lonely and with little support.

Their problems are further heightened by the fact that 62 per cent of this aged population (48 million) suffer from chronic diseases including diabetes, hypertension and arthritis but the majority do not consult doctors on a regular basis.

Unable to meet the rising cost of medicine, this older population is being forced to largely depend on their children to meet their medical expenses. The report highlights that Delhi comes across as the metro whose children show greater responsibility towards their parents.

Eighty-six per cent of those interviewed in Delhi claimed their children cared for them during their period of illness. Chennai came across as being the most uncaring city with only 57 per cent of elders getting support from children during an illness.

In Chennai, almost 30 per cent of those interviewed pointed out that with families going nuclear, children no longer wanted to look after their parents during their old age.