India’s elderly to reach 347 million by 2050 as Keralam moves to certify caregivers
Open in the app — quiz, notes, Mistake Vault हिंदी में पढ़ें
The news
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, 12 October. Keralam is to table the Senior Citizens (Care and Protection) Bill, 2026 on 13 October. It would register and regulate elder-care centres, set up a State Senior Citizen Protection Unit and a protection forum in each district, create a “Keralam Geriatric Care Certification Framework” for caregivers, and moot a “State Register of Caregivers”, on the principle of ageing in place (growing old at home). In The Hindu, former LIC officers T.C. Suseel Kumar and R. Sudhakar call 1.5 lakh trainees a drop in the ocean: by their figures India’s 60-plus population, about 149 million in 2022, will reach 347 million by 2050. NSO data they cite show women spend 299 minutes a day on unpaid domestic and care work, men 97.
Prelims nuggets
- The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 lets parents and senior citizens claim maintenance from children or heirs through Maintenance Tribunals, up to ₹10,000 a month.
- Article 41, a Directive Principle, asks the State to provide public assistance in cases of old age, sickness and disablement.
- The National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE) was launched in 2010-11.