GERIATRIC CARE LANDSCAPE IN INDIA

Abstract

India’s elderly population (aged 60 and above) is projected to touch 194 million in 2031 from 138 million in 2021, a 41 per cent increase over a decade, according to the National Statistical Office (NSO)’s Elderly in India 2021. The rapidly changing demographics has resulted in a sharp rise in the demand for senior care services. The fast-growing elderly population, for a developing country like India, may pose mounting pressures on various socio-economic fronts including pension outlays, health care expenditures, fiscal discipline, saving levels. This segment of the population faces multiple medical and psychological problems and therefore has become a major concern for policy makers over the last two decades. Various sources such as UN Population Division, WHO, ILO discovered that the population across the world is getting older. By the year 2050 there will be more than 20 percent of world population age 65 and over. This negative demographic transition that is population aging has been showing four very distinctive features: unprecedented, pervasiveness, endurance and profound implications on human life. This transition of population aging has been showing four very distinctive features: unprecedented, pervasiveness, endurance and profound implications on human life. The four demographic megatrends of population growth, population ageing, migration and urbanization, accompanying this transition, will impact both economic and social development across the globe. The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment launched the SACRED ((Senior Able Citizens Reemployment in Dignity) portal for Employment Exchange on 1 st October 2021. The portal was by the Hon’ble Vice President of India. It is an initiative based on the well-proven premise that all elders are not infirm and many can handsomely contribute to the Nation Building provided right opportunity is provided to the elderly. The website site is open from 23rd September 2021. The project aims to understand the relevance of the launch of employment exchange portal for Senior citizens by the government and generate awareness among the masses about the same.