Senior citizens in India mostly receive lip service when it comes to welfare, but if the Union government is serious about making things easier for them, it should consider BJP MP Sumitra Balmik’s proposal for senior care leave seriously. The member has suggested that employees in government and the private sector be provided 45 days of paid leave annually to care for parents who are over 60. Such leave would be the bare minimum that a government relying primarily on for-profit, market-based services can provide.
The Union government and business leaders alike point to the ‘most populous nation’ status that the country now has, with over 1.45 billion people, speaking in the same breath about a demographic dividend from a young population and the seniors’ silver economy potential. Official data from 2024 say 7 per cent of the population is 65 or older, while 26 per cent are between 10 and 24 years old, the latter waiting to acquire useful skills and enter the workforce.
The burden on families
It should be clear that without deeper social security systems in place, the task of caring for ageing parents and kin will continue to be performed by family members, who would welcome paid leave. The MP who proposed the elder care leave pointed, correctly, to the dilemma of the sandwich generation, which must pursue a career while also caring for aged parents. What makes this all the more challenging is the precariousness of employment and benefits and rising costs in the present era.
Limits of existing policy
Policy approaches to the care of the elderly have thus far confined themselves mainly to the duties of children and legatees. This was codified by the UPA government nearly two decades ago through the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, which was amended subsequently. In several cases, the law has been invoked to enforce the duty of care upon recalcitrant children.
The onus of providing for the elderly is seen here as primarily that of the individual, although the state, as the beneficiary of a lifetime of taxation, has not pulled its weight or felt sufficiently duty-bound to take the lead in helping seniors.
Beyond leave entitlements
A leave component may indeed help many, but governments must go beyond that to create a social welfare administration that trains and deploys adequate manpower for older adults. This is the hallmark of mature economies, with a duty cast on the state and legal frameworks created at various levels to provide well-funded welfare.
Even within a market or public-private partnership framework, much more can be done. The US National Institute of Aging offers information services for beneficiaries, explaining in clear language the local arrangements available and how to utilise them. In India, 14567 is listed as an elder helpline offering advice and resources 12 hours a day. This is welcome, but services and delivery need to scale up.
