Schemes & Facilities for the Senior Citizens

A demographic revolution is taking place throughout the world indicating a phenomenal rise in the population of the elderly. According to a UN estimate, the population of the people aged 60 years and above is expected to grow to 1.2 billion by 2025 and to 2 billion by 2050. Today, about two thirds of all the older people are living in the developing world. As per the Census 2001, in India, there were 77 million persons above 60 years constituting 7.5% of the total population of the country. This number is projected to go up to 12.4% of the population in 2026. Such an increase obviously will throw up numerous challenges in designing old age specific programmes and schemes and addressing their issues in a comprehensive manner.  

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment announced a National Policy for Older Persons in January, 1999. This policy reaffirmed the commitment of the Government to ensure the well-being of the older persons in a holistic manner. The National Policy for Older Persons essentially envisages support from the State to the older persons to ensure their financial and food security, health care, the need for shelter as well as other needs of the older persons, providing them an equitable share in development, giving them protection against abuse and exploitation, and ensuring the availability of services to improve the quality of lives of the older persons.

Thirteen years have elapsed since this policy was announced. Keeping in view the changing demographic pattern, the socio-economic conditions and the technological development in the country, the Government is in the process of bringing out a new National Policy. The draft of the new policy is ready. The new Policy is expected to cover a wider spectrum of the issues and challenges facing the elderly.

An institutional mechanism has been put in place to monitor the implementation of the existing national Policy for older persons and to advise the Government regarding the formulation and implementation of the policy and programmes for the aged through a National Council for Older Persons, under the Chairmanship of the Minister of Social Justice & Empowerment. The Council was first constituted in the year 1999 for a period of five years. It was reconstituted for another period of five years in the year 2005. However, the composition of this Council was not comprehensive enough as it did not contain sufficient non-official members to maintain regional balance. Besides, it also did not include the representatives of some of the Ministries/Departments dealing with issues related to the senior citizens.  With a view to address these issues, the Council has been re-constituted and has now been renamed as the National Council of Senior Citizens. A Resolution to this effect has been issued in the Gazette of India (Extraordinary) on 22^nd February 2011.

The Parliament enacted the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act in December 2007, a landmark development. This Act has made the maintenance of parents and senior citizens by children, and where there are no children, then by the relatives, obligatory and justiciable through Tribunals. The Act has to be brought into force by the individual State Governments. It is not applicable to the State of Jammu & Kashmir, while Himachal Pradesh has its own Act, with the concerted efforts made by the Ministry, all the States and UTs have been persuaded to bring the Act into force in the respective States.

For the effective implementation of the various provision of the Act, the States and UTs are required to take further steps, such as framing Rules, appointing Maintenance Officers, and constituting the Maintenance and Appellate Tribunals. As per information available in the Ministry, 14 States and 5 UTs have taken all these necessary steps.

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment is also implementing the “Integrated Programme of Older Persons" since 1992 with a view to improve the quality of life of older persons by providing basic amenities like shelter, food, medical care, entertainment opportunities, etc. Under this Scheme, financial assistance up to 90% is provided to Governments/Non-Governmental Organizations/ Panchayati Raj Institutions/ local bodies etc. for running and maintaining old age homes, day care centres, mobile medicare units, day care centres for Alzheimer's disease/Dementia patients, physiotherapy clinics for older persons, sensitization programmes for children, particularly in schools and colleges, Regional Resource and Training Centres, etc. About 350 NGOs are being supported every year for running and maintaining around 550 projects.

In order to address the increasing demand for care givers, the National Institute of Social Defense (NISD), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, has been conducting One-Year, Six-Month and One-Month Courses on Geriatric Care. Besides, the Institute also collaborates with reputed institutions for organising short term training programmes for the caregivers.

To ensure effective implementation of the policies and programmes of the Ministry and also to augment the activities of the NISD, the Ministry presently supports 3 Regional Resource Centres (RRTCs) namely, (i) Anugraha, New Delhi, which caters to the requirements of the northern States, (ii) Nightingale Medical Trust, Bangalore, which caters to the requirements of the southern States, and (iii) Integrated Rural Development and Educational Organization (IRDEO) which caters to the requirement of the north eastern States. These RRTCs undertake (i) Training of functionaries of grantee organizations under IPOP and monitor their work; (ii) Advocacy and awareness generation; (iii) Liasion with the concerned State Governments in the field of old age care, with specific reference to the implementation of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents & Senior Citizens Act, 2007, and the National Policy for Older Persons, 1999 and the other programmes and interventions for the senior citizens; (iv) Maintain a data-base of the institutions working in the field of old age care; and (v) Research and such other functions as the Ministry may assign from time to time.

The need of the hour is to create a caring society, especially for the ageing population with the help of representatives from the Central Ministries and Departments, the State Governments, experts, academicians and many other stakeholders.                       

 (PIB Features.)

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Revision of PPOs of pre-2006 Pensioners/family pensioners use of e-scroll for retrieving information from Banks - reg.

No.1/20/2011-P&PW (E) (Vol. IV)

Government of India

MinIstry of Personnel, P.G. & Pensions

Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare

3rd Floor, Lok Nayak Bhavan,

Khan Market, New Delhi

Dated: 14th November, 2012

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Sub: Revision of PPOs of pre-2006 pensioners/family pensioners use of e-scroll for retrieving information from Banks - reg.

The undersigned is directed to state that Annexure III has been used to obtain in formation from Banks for revision of PPOs of pre-2006 pensioners/family pensioners. It is seen that getting information from Banks is fraught with difficulties. Secondly, the Annexure III sent by the banks are in many cases incomplete to the extent that the calculation details are not available for evaluation by the PAOs and as such the Annexure is being used largely to confirm the existence of the pensioner/family pensioner and to link him/her with the current paying branch.

2. The Central Pension Accounting Office (CPAO) has suggested that e-scroll data, which is being received in CPAO from most of the banks may be used and the problems indicated above may be solved. The e-scroll contains 13 fields of information such as Name of the pensioner, PPO number (New) / PPO number (old), name of the Ministry, PAO code, bank name, BSR code, Account number, pension category, basic pension, DR, Additional Pension, Month of Pay and date of transaction. These fields may be useful for the purpose of revision of PPOs of pre-2006 pensioners/family pensioners. Another utility of e-scroll is that it may be used to eliminate invalid pensioners/family pensioners. 

3. It is seen that the e-scroll is a factual and useful source of information of the pensioners/family pensioners. Therefore, it is recommended that e-scroll may be accepted for retrieving information for revision of PPO, in addition to Annexure III. Ministry of Railways, M/o Defence and Departments of Posts and Telecommunications (for pensioners receiving their pension through banks) are also requested to use e-scroll 

sent by the Banks in addition to Annexure III (Annexure IV in case of Defence pensioners) for the purpose of retrieving relevant information of such pensioners/family pensioners in case of whom Annexure III/IV are not made available by the Banks.

sd/-

(Sujasha Choudhury)

Deputy Secretary

Source: www.pensionersportal.gov.in

[http://ccis.nic.in/WriteReadData/CircularPortal/D3/D03ppw/ppo_141112.pdf]

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You may soon get to switch your Gas Agency

The government plans to allow consumers to switch cooking gas agencies like cell phone users change their service provider, and make sure that households are not refused cylinders on procedural grounds, as it seeks to address a barrage of consumer complaints on the politically sensitive issue.

State-run oil firms and the ministry are urgently discussing the new proposal after a public outcry against alleged malpractice and instances of dealers refusing to deliver cylinders even at market rates, government and industry officials said. Political leaders, including senior members of the ruling Congress party, have raised concerns that consumer anger on the issue can have serious implications on crucial elections.

The issue has been simmering since September when the government capped the supply of subsidised LPG cylinders to six per household per year to stop large-scale diversion of cheap domestic fuel for commercial use and to cut subsidies. But in the two months since the decision, customers have complained that their kitchens became dysfunctional as dealers refused to supply even non-subsidised cylinders.

Consumers were asked to submit KYC (know your customer) documents, or proof of identity and residence, by November 15 to be eligible for subsidised LPG. This has magnified fears of harassment and malpractices by gas agencies, but the oil ministry has intervened to help consumers and give them the option to switch their dealer. "With this objective, marketing firms have already introduced ratings of distributors and over 1 lakh consumers have rated their dealers. This feature will provide wider choice to consumers and force distributors to provide better service," a senior oil ministry official said. Currently, consumers are usually tied to one particular dealer unless they change residences.

Inter-company transfer of gas connections is nearly impossible.

The oil ministry also wants to make sure that supply of non-subsidised cooking gas is not stopped.

Source: The Economic Times

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