SRINAGAR: A scene never seen before. A few days before, predominately religious Kashmir woke up to the horror after an elderly ailing man was abandoned by his family at Chadoora hospital.
Suffering from COPD and other ailments, the senior citizen waited for 15 days but none turned up. After the news spread in the area, some Good Samaritans shifted him to SKIMS before getting him admitted to an old age home.
This is not an isolated case. Once boasting of being a `Pir Vaer,’ Kashmir is now witnessing a sea change in social behaviors. Subjects that were considered taboo are becoming acceptable in society.
Seemingly sensing the crisis, Jammu and Kashmir government has started establishing old age and daycare homes in all 10 districts of Kashmir.
“We will be setting up these homes in every district. There are two types of homes — daycare and residential. Daycare homes have been set up in some districts including Bandipora, Srinagar, and Ganderbal. Old-age homes have also been set up in five to six districts. All old age homes will be ready in a month,” Mohammad Ashraf Akhoon, deputy director, Social Welfare department, told The Kashmir Monitor.
Each old age home will be having the capacity to accommodate 24 to 50 people. “It will depend on the facility. There are guidelines from the ministry. In some districts, there will be old-age homes with a boarding capacity of 25. In some districts, there will be homes with 50 member capacity. Mostly it will accommodate 50 people,” he said.
Official records show that there are few admissions in Ganderbal and Bandipora districts already. “Admissions are very few. Basically old age homes are meant to shelter those who have no one to take care of them or who have been abandoned. We do not have a grave situation in Kashmir. It is not that people are coming in large numbers. Most of the persons who are coming stay for the day,” said Akhoon.
The government is providing every facility free to senior citizens. “Everything is free. Boarding, lodging, healthcare, et al. Anybody who needs shelter will be admitted to these homes. We are following the guidelines set by the Ministry of Social Justice,” he said.
