Magazine 2013
International Peer-Reviewed Journal
RH, VOL. 3 JULY 2013
Population Ageing In India
And Care for The Elderly
Shashi Mishra
ABSTRACT
In India increased in aged population is going to be inevitable in near future because of falling
birth rate and increased in life expectancy, which is an outcome of further decline in death rate.
Culturally and traditionally, family and its member used to take care of the elderly persons during their
old age, since joint family in its existence in many societies. But due to modernization and westernization
the younger generation has become more materialistic and in that process more and more have
started to live apart from their parents. Added to this phenomenon, due to ongoing fertility transition,
the number of children born to couple has become very less, which attained the replacement level of
fertility. Because of this, many elderly people have very small informal networks and that some have no
informal care available at all.
Keywords - Aged Population, Life Expectancy, Old Age, Fertility Transition, Informal Networks,
No Informal Care
Introduction
India is one of the oldest societies in the world. Ageing is one of the important stages of human life and
is a biological, psychological and essentially a social process. It is in them, (the aged people) we find the blend
of knowledge and wisdom. In the traditional Indian society, the elderly people were held high and were bestowed
with responsible leadership and powerful decision making positions because of their vast experience and
knowledge of the world. But today due to modernization ,urbanization ,changes in family system and other
major social changes, elderly people are neglected and are not given their due respect and roles to play in the
society. Accumulation of wealth and individualistic values of the west have started ruling the minds of the youth
and thus ignoring the contributions of the aged.
Ageing Worldwide and Demographic Transition
Ageing, an intricate part of life cycle, can generally be described as the process of growing old. Basically
it is a multidimensional process and affects almost every aspect of the human life. The study of human ageing
have typically emphasized changes in demography focusing on the ageing of the population –a trend, which
has characterized industrial societies throughout the twentieth century and in recent decades , has assumed a
world –wide phenomenon. The problems of the elderly population are growing alarmingly. Weakening of the
family bonds, migrations of the young’s to town and cities, the acceptance of the small family norms, fertility
control, and increased entry of into employment are some of the major reasons responsible for this phenomena.
One of the most important consequences of fertility control and of improvements in the expectation of
life at birth of the populations all over the world is the ageing of the population characterized by the relatively
rapid increase of the aged population, that is, the population aged 60 years and above. The size of elderly
population in India increased from 20 million in 1951 to 57 million in 1991 and is expected to be about 198
million in 2030 and 326 million in 2050 (United Nations 1995). A majority of this population will be living in rural
areas. In the Indian society, the cultural values and the traditional practices emphasize that the elderly members
of the family be treated with honor and respect. The families of the aged persons are expected to ensure the
needed care and support for the aged. However, recent changes in the size and structure of the families have
caused the rearrangement of the roles and functions of the members in the families. As a result, social support
and respect or the elderly is in constant decay. All this factors are challenging the future of this population and
posing a question to everyone in society as to who has to shoulder the responsibility of the elderly.
Health Concerns of the Aged population
The problems that the aged face are on many fronts. On the physical front it may be linked to basic
needs like food, shelter and physical support and protection. On the psychological front it often means coping
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with loneliness, feelings of low self worth and general insecurity. Another distressing aspect is the need for
healthcare, especially with second-generation diseases such as dementia, alzheimer and cancer spreading
fast. With shrinking families, long term care of the elderly , and meeting their needs on the physical, psychological
and health fronts is becoming very difficult. Elderly in India is mostly suffering from different forms of hearing,
visual, speaking and locomotive disability. In general aged in India is in a condition of vulnerability and living
long in midst of various type and dimensions of insecurity. This detracting condition of the aged in the extended
years of life makes them more uncomfortable in the life.
Alternatives like old age homes and shelter for elders are coming up no doubt , but the good ,privately
run centers can often be beyond the means of many, while the more reasonable ones-for example those run by
the government are usually plagued by problems of fund shortage., poor infrastructure and poor and untrained
manpower. The forces of rapid industrialization, urbanization, and globalization are bringing about significant
changes in the norms, values and attitudes towards the aged people in India. The disorganization of Indian
joint family system is leading to an erosion of the support system which they used to get.
Care for the Elderly
Under the traditional joint family structure in India, the rights and care of the elderly were largely taken
care of. However, with the disintegration of joint families, large scale migration that forces members of families
away from their ancestral places and other such reasons the elderly are very often left to their own devices
.
They have to depend on persons and services available outside the family for their various needs. In a sense,
it can be said that the care of the elderly has been taken over by the market, and has become commoditized
for many; this can be expensive or even unaffordable. The government has tried to intervene through the Act for
the protection of and assistance to the aged, but the young naturally have to do their share.
Various studies indicate that there have been significant changes within the family of retired persons after
the incidence of retirement. They have to often face neglect, disrespect and apathy from their own family
members to whom they had very sincerely cared, fed, socialized, and educated. Sons and daughter-in –law no
longer consult them on important family matters. The behavior of daughters found to be more respectful and
helpful. Most of them feel loss of social status, honor, and respect within their own family.
As the number of aged people in the country rises, the state and society alike need to pay more
attention to their care and guaranteeing their rights to dignified living. The rights of aged can be categorized
into three-Protection, Participation, and Image. Protection refers to the physical psychological and emotional
safety of the aged. Participation refers to the need to establish a more active role for older persons and Image
refers to the need to create a healthy and respectful attitude.
Care giving for the aged is an arduous task that demands understanding, cooperation, adjustment,
reciprocity and intense feeling of obligation. The government and NGO’s interventions in recent years in terms
of old age pension, maintenance of parents act, priority in public services and help line ensures a ray of hope.
Notwithstanding success of these measures which is yet to become a reality, there is urgent need for family
education to sensitize members and community about ageing obligations and provide training in doing various
services to the aged.
Security and Respect for the Aged
The silent demographic transition over the past few decades has witnessed broadening of the age
pyramid. At the top Indian society has also undergone tremendous transformation in almost all its aspect;
social, economic, cultural and political under the developmental forces. Amidst the fast changing social structure,
particularly the institution of family, it is being increasingly perceived and accepted that care giving to the aged
is an important responsibility lies with society.Care giving requires economic resources as well as considerable
time and sacrifice of personal comforts. This is especially true in case of partially or wholly dependent aged
people. Caring of such aged persons restricts freedom, recreation, disturbs routine life, reduces social interaction,
and curtails participation in social and cultural functions. Some of the caregivers had expressed that it affected
their job performance and culminated into conflicting relations with their spouse to the extent of nearly breaking
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the relationship ties. Tension, irritating behavior and frustration were also indicated. At physical level, some
talked off tiredness, fatigue and burnout as its effects.
For providing long term, sustainable care to elderly we need to tap all three sources of care –the family,
the state and the community. As the care market is largely informal and is integrated with in the social sector,it
is difficult to obtain he reliable data pertaining to elderly care. Moreover, difficult labour markets co-exist within
the long term care sector. It is however, an industry marked by low wages and rickety working conditions.
Coordination and regulation by the state could probably help matters .In providing health care; we need to
focus not only on in –patient care but also on palliative and rehabilitation care. Health insurance is another area
where state intervention is required. Further, the government needs to provide health coverage for the Below
Poverty Line Elderly and the destitute. Rather than just focusing on construction of old age homes, day- care
centers and the like, it would be more advisable to put in place mechanisms to ensure availability, accessibility
and affordability of a decent life and good health among the aged. However, this requires a sizeable allocation
in the social sector and more importantly, responsive and responsible senior citizens associations. NGOs can
also play a decisive role in this regard.
Whatever the state and market may do, we must remember that care for the elderly can best be ensured in the
family structure. The government’s intervention in bringing in an Act to ensure that children take care of the
aged parents is a very welcome step in this direction. As people approach as the evening of their lives, their
physical and mental conditions naturally deteriorate, resulting in dependency on their communities and families.
Let families and the community view this as a payback occasion for the contributions and services rendered by
them in the past.
Summary
The process of ageing is the result of demographic events of decline in the mortality and fertility is having
implications in the social and demographic spectrum. The socio- economic health conditions of the aged in
India have shown a grim picture as they are acquainted with economic, health and social deprivation that result
in vulnerability among the elderly.
A society as large and complex in India needs to explore the contemporary society to work out an
expensive plan for the care and wellbeing of the elderly, which would vary from those in the more developed
countries due to the different stages of urbanization the and differences in the cultural and familial systems. The
diversity that has emerged in the ageing process necessitates our efforts to focus on different ageing issues in
Indian society. This in turn is expected to promote a development of effective age related policies and programs.
The heterogeneity among the elderly population cannot and should not be ignored, while framing various
models of care for the elderly in our society. Variations in models for care for elderly range from urban to rural
,
social class differences and gender specific to name a few. It is desirable to test each of these models at field,
before finalizing for its replication.
References
•
•
S.Siva Raju, Voices of the Elderly in India B.R.Publishing Corporation, Delhi 2011. Print.
S.N.Tripathy, Om Prakash Shukla,Socio- Economic Issues on Vulnerable People in India Abhijeet
Publication , New Delhi,2012. Print.
•
N.Audinarayana, Urban Elderly in India;Care and Support,B.R. Publishing Corporation,Delhi 2012. Print.
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