Day 29 – Q 3.The old population will pose serious socio-economic challenges in the future. Discuss. What measures can be taken to manage those? Suggest.

3. The old population will pose serious socio-economic challenges in the future. Discuss. What measures can be taken to manage those? Suggest. 

बूढी आबादी भविष्य में गंभीर सामाजिक-आर्थिक चुनौतियों उत्पन्न करेगी। चर्चा करें। उन के प्रबंधन के लिए क्या उपाय किए जा सकते हैं? सुझाव दें।

Introduction:

The global population of elderly(60 years and over) has constantly been increasing during the second half of the last century due to easy availability of life saving drugs, control of famines and various communicable diseases, better awareness and supply of nutrition and health facilities and comparatively better overall standard of living. During the last thirty years, this has been emerging as a significant socio-economic challenge in developing countries.

Body:           

Socio-Economic Challenges as a result of the old population:

It is projected that approximately 20% of Indians (324M) will be elderly by 2050, marking a dramatic jump from the current 8%. Thus it may pose serious socio-economic challenges in future:

• Health care expenditure: As a result of nuclear families and disintegration of traditional systems, there is increasing number of elderly left on their own or to the care of the State. Old age also implies increasing physical, mental and psychological disabilities, imposing a high cost of healthcare on them to meet the shift in the disease patterns from communicable to non-communicable, which itself calls for re-gearing the health-care system toward “preventive, promotive, curative and rehabilitative aspects of health”.
• Need for support institutions and Social Security net: There is also need for various types of institutions to accommodate the increasing number of elderly parents whose children have abandoned them or are unable to take care of them. Rehabilitation, community or home based disability support and end-of-life care will have to be economically funded by the State. Also, Increase in the fiscal allocation to social security schemes may impose a burden on the State.
• Fiscal and macroeconomic stability: Increased government spending on pension, healthcare, and social benefits programs for the elderly may hurt economic growth and overall quality of life if governments need to divert public spending from education and infrastructure investment to finance programs for the elderly.
• Increasing vulnerability of elderly: Indian society is undergoing rapid transformation under the impact of industrialization, urbanization, technical and technological change, education and globalization, disintegration of joint families and ever increasing influence of modernization and new life styles, the care of elderly is being neglected.
• Feeling of loss of status, worthlessness and loneliness: In modern society, in which improved education, rapid technical change and new forms of organization have often rendered obsolete the knowledge, experience and wisdom of older persons.  This realization of neither having authority in the family, nor being needed, leaves them frustrated and depressed resulting in a deteriorated overall mind-set looming across the elderly.
• Ethical dilemma: Conflict between ethical obligations and affordability to support the old-age population has already caved into the young population resulting in reduced productivity, harming of personal relationships and thus disturbance in mental peace.

However, there are very enriching contributions the elderly population comes with:

• Older people have a wealth of skills and experiences and can contribute on a macro level to the workplace and financially and at a local level to their communities.
• They provide a psychological strength and behave as an emotional support system to the ever-changing, easily disturbed youthful minds.
• Help in retaining various traditional systems of living, medical home remedies and valuable wisdom to enhance our lives.

What can be done?

1. Phased-in retirement: Phased-in retirement entails a scheme whereby older workers could choose to work fewer hours yet remain longer in the labour force, including after they retire. This allows continuity in tax revenues and reduced expenditure on pensions and older workers can be valuable to organizations and younger colleagues due to their knowledge and experience;
2. Comprehensive healthcare infrastructure: It is of prime importance that good quality health care be made available and accessible to the elderly in an age-sensitive manner. Health services should address preventive measures, in addition, effective care and support is required for those elderly suffering from various diseases through primary, secondary and tertiary health care systems.
3. Strengthen the family care: The preferred source of support for the aged is still the family – informal system where the notion of care is embedded within a tradition of social obligations that are understood and reciprocated. The reciprocal care and support within multi-generational families of parents, grandparents and children should be encouraged. Traditional values of filial obligations can also be reinforced in school curricula and through the media.
4. Efficient welfare policy for the old-age population: Schemes like Varishta Pension Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana, and IGNOAPS etc have to be strengthened and made aware to reach the right beneficiaries.
5. Promoting and rewarding volunteering: Governments could promote and reward volunteering and care work among citizens and NGOs. Such unpaid activities improve the quality of the social fabric, help the well-being of those engaging in them, contribute to the economy, and reduce healthcare and welfare costs.

Conclusion:

In the future, the success of a nation will critically depend upon its ability to address such sweeping demographic changes effectively though policies and programmes. This underutilized resource available to humanity should be integrated into the lives of communities and where they can make a substantial contribution to improving social conditions.