One in three elders had no income in past one year, only 29% had access to pension, provident fund

NEW DELHI: One in every three elders reported not having any income in the past one year, 32% elderly or their spouses had an annual income of less than Rs 50,000 and only 29% elderly reported having access to social security schemes like old-age pension, contributory pension or provident fund. Nearly, 65% of elders reported that they were financially not secure with their current income and access to savings and investments.
These findings are part of a report released by voluntary organisation ‘HelpAge India’ on the eve of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day observed on June 15.
On the health front, more than half the elderly (52%) reported facing at least one challenge related to activities of daily living and 54% suffered from two or more non-communicable diseases.
As many as 5,169 elders and 1,333 caregivers’ primary family members were surveyed across 20 Tier I and Tier II cities, in 10 states. The study captured the experiences of elderly from cities like Jaipur, Bikaner, Faridabad, Panipat, Kanpur, Bareilly, Indore, Ujjain, Kolkata, Siliguri, Bhubaneswar, Rourkela, Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Greater Mumbai, Solapur, Chennai, Salem, Bengaluru and Hubli-Dharwad.

These findings are important in the backdrop of the significant demographic shift in India with the population above 60 to double from 10.5% in 2022 to 20.8% by 2050.
The report, ‘Ageing in India: Exploring Preparedness & Response to Care Challenges’, showed that only 31% elderly reported access to health insurance. Coverage was largely under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, along with ESI and CGHS. A very small proportion of respondents (3%) reported purchase of commercial health insurance. The reasons for not having

health insurance were mainly focused on lack of awareness (32%), affordability (24%) and lack of need for it (12%).
Elder abuse continues to be a major concern, with 7% elderly admitting to being a victim of abuse with sons (42%) and daughters-in-law (28%) being the primary perpetrators. “A higher percentage of elderly who faced abuse in the past one year were illiterate, and the abuse increased with decrease in income of the elderly, as the majority of the respondents (73%) who faced abuse reported an annual income of less than Rs 100,000,” the report said.
Also, most elderly who faced abuse were suffering from NCDs. Almost all elderly (94%) who faced abuse reported at least one chronic disease. This increased the dependency levels of elders on family members, the report said.
Regarding types of action taken to resist elder abuse, most elders who experienced abuse revealed that they have scolded or requested the abusers to not do so in the future, others have either reported to their friends or other trusted members in the family or they didn’t do anything at all. A negligible portion reported that they have lodged a police complaint regarding the abuse.
Sadly, awareness about the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen Act, which is an important enabling legal resource for the distressed elderly, is still quite low at 9%.
The study shows that the family played the role of primary caregivers, when the elderly were bedridden and highly dependent. Almost all elders reported that their spouses or children took care of them in this situation. “The demands placed on caregivers are significant, with a majority (68%) of caregivers reporting they provide support to their elderly every day. On an average, a caregiver has spent around 20 hours in the past week that is close to three hours every day,” it is highlighted.
Infact, the caregivers in the family faced their own challenges with around 29% of the caregivers reporting physical challenges in providing care to the elderly person, while 32% also reported facing financial challenges in providing care to the elderly.
On the digital empowerment front, while 41% of elders reported having access to a digital device, 59% did not have access to a digital device. The most common device being used was a smart phone, with 39% elders having access to it. The gender digital divide was quite prominent, with 48% male elderly having access to a digital device, as against 33% women elderly. It comes through in the analysis that access to digital devices dropped significantly with increasing age, with only 26% of those above 80 years reporting having access to any digital device.
HelpAge India CEO Rohit Prasad asserted that aAs people live longer and elderly population grows, some segments like the 80 plus, those living alone and older women face high vulnerability and require a special response. “There is an urgent need to collectively develop a comprehensive long term care framework on provision and financing, together with all stakeholders,” Prasad said.