Parliament Question: Welfare of Senior Citizens

GOYERNMENT OT'INDIA MINISTRY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE AIID EMPOWERMENT LOKSABIIA I]NSTARRED QIJESTION NO.356 TO BE AI\SWERED ON 02.12.2025 WELFARE OF SEMOR CITIZENS 356. SHRI PARSHOTTAMBIIAI RUPALA: Will the Minister of SOCIAL JUSTICE AI\D EMPOWERMENT be pleased to state: (a) whether the Govemment is aware that the number of senior citizens in the country is rising sharply, leading to growing concems regarding their welfare and healthcare, if so, the details thereof; (b) whether the central Govemment, in coordination with state Governments and other stakeholders, intends to implement effective policies for the welfare of Senior Citizens, if so, the details thereof; (c) whether the Govemment proposes to undertake any detailed study to assess the challenges faced by Senior Citizens, if so, the details thereof, and if no! the reasons therefor; and (d) the details of the specific measures taken by the Govemment to provide special Healthcare facilities for Senior Citizens, if so, the details thereof? AI\SWER EMPowEt#'*II.r.nr**o, MINISTER oF srArE FoR socIAL JUSTICE AND (a): As pei the report of Technical Group on Population Projections constituted by the National commission on Populatiorl between 201I and 2036, the proportion ofpopulation of the older ages (60 years and above) is projected to increase from l0 crores in 20ll to 23 crores in 2036 - an increase in their share to the total population from 8.4 to 14.9 percent. (b): Recognizing the growing needs of the elderly population and to mitigate the hardships being faced by them, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is implementing an umbrella scheme, namely Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana (AVYAY) w.e.f. 01.04.2021 for the Welfare of Senior Citizens across the country. The details of components of the scheme are as follows- i. IPSC(ntegrated Programme for Senior Citizens)- Under IPSC, gant-in-aid is provided to the organisations for maintenance of senior citizen homes (Sr.CH)' continuous care homes (ccH), mobile medicare units (MMU) and physiotherapy clinics. The objective of the scheme is to improve the qualrty of life of the Senior Citizens, especially indigent senior citizens by providing basic amenities like shelter, food, medical care and entertainment opportunities and by encouraging productive and active ageing.ii. SAPSTC (State Action Plan for Senior Citizens)- The Govemment of India perceives a major and critical role of aU State/ UT Govemments in welfare of senior citizens. Each State/UT is expected to plan taking into account their local considerations and frame their own State Action Plans for the welfare of their senior citizens. Under SAPSTC, the Ministry releases funds to StateVUTs for implementation of their action plans. SAPS€ is being implemented since FY 2019-20. iii. RVY (Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana)- The scheme aims for providing Physical Aids and Assisted Living Devices for Senior Citizens below poverty line and with the family income not exceed to Rs. 15,000/-per month. The scheme is being implemented since 2017. iv. Elderline- The National Helpline for Sr Citizens (14567) is to generate awareness about the Act; schemes & programmes being executed by different Central & State Govemments and to provide platform to redress grievances of Sr Citizens across the county. v. Training of Geriatric Care Givers- The main objective is to bridge the gap in supply and increasing demand in the field of geriatic caregivers so as to provide more professional services to the senior citizens and also to qeate a cadre of professional care givers in the field of geriatrics. Considering the acute shortage of Geriatric Caregivers and the increasing demand in the market, the Departnent has decided to hain 1,00,000 trainees in the field of Geriatric Care givers in order to meet the demand. vi. Other Initiatives for Senior Citizens- ln order to solve the problems of healthy and productive ageing several initiatives are taken across the country. The proposed initiatives are aimed at involving the elders in building up knowledge which can be usefut for the society as a whole. vii. Seniorcare Ageing Growth Engine (SAGE)- The main objective is to promote out-of- the-box and innovative solutions for the commonly faced problems, innovative start- ups would be identified and encouraged for developing products, processes and services for the welfare of the elderly. The Govemment has also constituted National Council of Senior Citizens under the Chairpersonship of the Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment comprising of various stakeholders, including representatives of StateVUTs to oversee implementation ofthe Policy and advise the Govemment in the formulation and implementation of policy and programmes for the aged. The mandate of the National Council of Senior Citizens is to advise the Central and State Govemments on the entire gamut of issues related to the welfare of senior citizens and enhancement of their quality of life. (c): A committee has been setup by NITI Aayog comprising representatives from the Stakeholders Minishies, StateVUTs, academic institutions, senior care organizations and industry to recommend a strategic framework for holistic care and welfare of the senior citizens. Further MTI Aayog has also published a position paper on Senior Care Reforms in India - Reimagining the Senior Care Paradip in February,2l24.(d): The Govemment has extended the health covenge of flagship scheme Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) to all the senior citizens aged 70 years and above irrespective of income. Further, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare implements National Programme for Healthcare of the Elderly (NPHCE) Scheme to ensure health of the senior citizens. Salient features of this program are: (i) Community based primary Healthcare approach, (ii) Dedicated service at PHC/CHC level, (iii) dedicated facilities at district hospitals with l0 bedded wards,(iv) Strengthening of Regional Geriatic Centres to provide dedicated tertiary level medical facilities for the elderly , (v) InformatiorL Education and Communication(IEC) using mass media" folk media and other communication channels and (vi) Continuous Monitoring and independent evaluation of the Programme and research in Geriatrics and implementation of NPHCE (vii) The Tertiary Component of National Health Mission has been renamed as Rashtriya Varishth Jan Swasthya Yojana in 2016-17 under which 17 Regional Geriatric Centres and 2 National Centres of Ageing have been established. ***{.*