Elderly and their social security

HelpAge India

Elderly and Their Social Security Giving respect to elders is an important parts our culture. Providing loving care in any form to elders is considered as a sacred/ service to God. However, this type of thinking continued till we had a system of joint family.

Because of the urbanization, the joint family system has been broken down. The senior citizens are finding it hard to sustain themselves in old age, because of growing of the nuclear families, relocation of their children to the big cities/overseas for work and increasing longevity.

In the current prevailing situation, the state of senior citizens has turned out to be very serious as young people now see elderly as a liability. And therefore, elderly are facing several problems like societal, health as well as financial insecurity. This has compelled majority of the elderly to rely on their savings or their PF and gratuity, whose value is decreasing day-by-day. This is even getting worse in absence of effective security place for elders. So, it has become essential that the senior citizens should be given social security.

Social Security Social security, in a general sense, means complete security for a person within the family, place of work as well as society. It may be understood as measures designed to make sure that people meet their basic requirements (for example sufficient food, shelter,

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HelpAge India education, health care, uncontaminated water and food supplies), and are safe from eventualities (for example any disease, disability, accidents, death, joblessness, medical care, child birth, child care, widowhood, as well as old age) to empower them to sustain a satisfactory standard of living, as per social standards. It should also by implication consist of protection of livelihoods and security of work and sufficient earnings, as without this, other eventuality benefits have no significance. Social security deals with both complete deprivation and risk and helplessness.

Social Security for elderly The decline of joint family system in India has made it necessary for the provision of social security for elderly. This can be in several ways, for example providing financial independence, senior citizen healthcare facilities etc. Social security deals not merely with social hazards (illness, joblessness and social exclusion) however with programs that secure earnings for senior citizens, as well. Presence of social security programs can maintain social unity and can stop permanent losses of human capital. The poverty in rural areas for older people is increasing and calls for attention. Therefore, rural unfortunate require social security in great measure.

https://www.helpageindia.org Toll Free No Elder Help Line 1800-180-1253

HelpAge India C-14, Qutab Institutional Area New Delhi - 110016

HelpAge India Any effort made in this direction would help in meeting the Constitutional duty i.e., Article 41 of Directive Principles of State Policy having specific relevance of Old Age Social Security.

According to it, “the state shall, inside the limits of its financial capacity and development, make effective facility for securing the right to work, to learning and to public support in case of joblessness, old age, illness and disablement and in other circumstances of undeserved neediness.� It makes the Government to fulfill the mandates of global agreements linked to the social security of which India is signatory, as well.

Though, Government has taken initiative by implementing several elder laws in India, however it’s not sufficient. Therefore, there are many NGOs in India that have come up to provide all the destitute elderly social security they are deprived of, all by providing home support for the elderly, a place to live in, food as well as other facilities to make their life worth living in the company of like-minded people.

https://www.helpageindia.org Toll Free No Elder Help Line 1800-180-1253

HelpAge India C-14, Qutab Institutional Area New Delhi - 110016