Tamil Nadu Government May Increase The Higher Old Age Pension

The 80+ age group may receive the highest pension under the new Senior Citizen Policy, which is scheduled to be enacted this year. Widowed, poor, or disabled elderly women may also be eligible for a higher pension.

A monthly pension of Rs 1,000 is currently available in the State to all those over the age of 60 who meet the government's economic requirements. Irai Anbu, the Chief Secretary, reviewed the draught policy on Friday. It also includes a specific "Vigilance and Crimes Department for Senior Citizens" wing reporting to the Director General of Police.

Age-based pension was advocated for, according to V Sivakumar, director of Helpage India and a member of the policy-drafting group. People over 80 need more since they are more susceptible to health problems.

According to a survey, 24% of senior adults in Tamil Nadu live in extreme poverty, and metropolitan areas have greater rates of senior citizens living in poverty than rural ones. The survey also shows that women are more likely than males to live below the poverty line and that just 30% of elderly persons in Tamil Nadu have applied for and are getting old-age pensions.

In the proposed policy, universal elderly cards are also suggested for senior residents to let them access advantages like as social entitlements, insurance, and access to recreational facilities.

In order to enable its older citizens live a healthy and respectable life, Tamil Nadu, which has the second-largest aged population in India after Kerala, has devised a programme to provide timely accessible to food and nutrition, healthcare services, safety, protection, and housing.

All medical colleges and district government hospitals are required to provide comprehensive geriatric care under the policy. It emphasises the need for specialised facilities for the elderly, including mental health facilities, palliative care facilities, dementia care facilities, rehabilitation facilities for senior people with disabilities, and centres for naturopathy and yoga in both rural and urban locations.

Meanwhile, in order to prevent elderly parents from being mistreated or abandoned, the strategy also asks for the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, to be implemented through tribunals. In a similar vein, the government must work to establish transit shelters for older adults who are homeless in all urban local governments in collaboration with the private sector.