Stand against Ageism

Vikram Gour
1st October, the International Day of Older Persons is an opportunity to highlight the important contributions that older people make to society and raise awareness of the issues and challenges of ageing in today’s world.
The theme for 2016, ‘Take a Stand against Ageism’, challenges everyone to consider ageism – the negative attitudes and discrimination based on age – and the detrimental impact it has on older people.
The World Health Assembly resolution related to the WHO Global Strategy and Action Plan on Ageing and Health, adopted in May 2016, calls on the Director-General to develop, in cooperation with other partners, a Global campaign to combat ageism and achieve the ultimate goal of enhancing the day-to-day experience of older people and to optimize policy responses.
Ageism is stereotyping and discrimination on the basis of a person’s age. Ageism is widespread and an insidious practice which has harmful effects on the health of older adults. This year, we challenge everyone to identify and question these internalized ageist attitudes, and to understand the serious impact that these attitudes have.
For older people, ageism is an everyday challenge. Overlooked for employment, restricted from social services and stereotyped in the media, ageism marginalizes and excludes older people in their communities.
Ageism is everywhere, yet it is the most socially “normalized” of any prejudice, and is not widely countered – like racism or sexism. It exists when the media portrays all old people as “frail” and “dependent”. It influences (subconsciously or actively) the policy maker to opt for cost containment in preference to making appropriate adaptations and investment in infrastructure and services for ageing societies. These attitudes, pervasive yet invisible, lead to the marginalization of older people within our communities and have negative impacts on their health and well-being.
Older people who feel they are a burden may also perceive their lives to be less valuable, putting them at risk of depression and social isolation. Research shows that older adults with negative attitudes about ageing may live 7.5 years less than those with positive attitudes.
With rising life expectancy and changing socio-economic dimensions with its implications nation-wise and internationally Aging has suddenly become a matter of concern the world over.  The member countries of the United Nations agreed in 1990 to observe ‘International Day of Older Persons’ on 1st of Oct. every year to draw attention to special needs and concerns of Senior Citizens.
A community is known by the way it treats its vulnerable sections of the society such as Elders. Traditionally, in India, it has been a part of our culture for society and family to take care of older persons. Senior citizens (SC) were held in high esteem and given priority and respect in all matters.
A demographic revolution is under way throughout the world. Today world-wide there are over 600-million aged persons above 60-years and over. This figure is going to double by 2025 and will reach virtually 2-billion; vast majority of them in developing countries.
Today, rapid urbanization and compulsions of modern working conditions have lead to a breakdown of the traditional joint-family system resulting in the growth of nuclear families. Better medical facilities have lead to increase in longevity. Like overall population of the country, the population of Senior Citizens (SC) is also growing at a fast rate. As on today, we the senior citizens constitute about 9% of the total population i.e. over 11-crores. In percentage terms our population is projected to rise to about 12.4% by 2026.
What exactly is the situation in our state of J&K we do not know for sure? The SC/Elders can generally be categorized into two groups.  Educated and Retired older persons from service or business or any such organization that takes care of their financial needs. This class of Elders can spend for all their requirements and would only need physical assistance to manage their day to day affairs. For this purpose Corporate/ Business Houses, NGOs or even the Government can come forward to build and organize ‘Pay and Stay Homes’ with all the required facilities by initially financing such projects. The inmates can subsequently make the payment on regular basis. The other class is uneducated and totally dependent on their progeny/heirs/society for their upkeep both physically and financially. Majority of elders of the second kind are in the rural areas. This class of SCs is totally dependent upon Social Welfare Department of the Government, the NGOs that may be working in the field with funding from the various Government agencies or even the Civil Society that may be running old age homes with donations from public for providing relief to the older persons. Here in our state of J&K Government agencies under the Social Welfare deptt have made no noticeable effort to take part in any such programs for the welfare of the Elders and to improve their lot (at least for those of our members who are financially week and cannot manage their daily living both within or outside their family circle), although there are several centrally sponsored schemes available for taking care of medical and socio-economic conditions of older persons under various schemes both with Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, GOI and the state Social Welfare Deptt.
Since the J&K State has not so far even adopted ‘National Policy on Older persons’ (NPOP) of 1999 and ‘Senior Citizen Act 2007’ none of these facilities are being provided by the J&K Government to its Elders! It is, therefore, obvious that it is not only the young ones in families that are neglecting (some of them under compulsions) their Elders, the Directorate of Social Welfare that is supposed to be dealing with problems of Elders in the state under the Ministry of Social Welfare inspite of lot of funding from the GOI is itself Abusing/ignoring the Elders with contempt.
Proposals/projects for the welfare of Senior Citizens forwarded by the NGOs working for Senior Citizens are ignored with disdain. The apathy, neglect and callousness with which State Government is treating the Elders is apparent from the fact that the ‘State Level Council for Rederssal of the grievances of the senior citizens’ constituted in Nov. 2008 under a Government Order, by Governor, never met even once till date to exclusively discuss the problems of Senior Citizens. A proposal submitted to the Government for allotment of land for construction of ‘Old Age Home’ and for ‘Pay and Stay’ institution by Association for Welfare of Senior Citizens (AWSC) an NGO more than 8-years back is still being tossed around by Director, Social Welfare Department inspite of formal allotment order in favor of the said NGO. It is here that WEAAD will be found useful to wake up the J&K state to look after its Elders.
This may be the ways of the Government in dealing with common man’s (Elder in this case) problems but ultimately we the Senior Citizens have to face the problems ourselves and SC/Elders must organize themselves into NGOs and small bodies and jointly fight for the common cause. Such groups, when formed, can easily force the official agencies to help them in need.
(The author is Patron, Association for Welfare of Senior Citizens, J&K,              Jammu)
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