The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment aims to launch a Poshan Abhiyan for the Elderly. With this Abhiyan, the ministry aims to provide nutrition support to the indigent elders, who are not staying in the Old Age Homes and are victims of severe malnutrition.
Key Points
- The Poshan Abhiyan for the Elderly will focus on procuring locally available healthy food material and serving hot-cooked mid-day meals.
- The implementing agencies of the Scheme will be the Gram Panchayats and Urban Municipalities.
- The funding for the Scheme will be provided by the Senior Citizens Welfare Fund.
- As per the ‘Report of Government of India’s Technical Group on Population Projection for India and States’, the population of senior citizens would reach 22.74 crores (14.9%) till the year 2036. The report was released in July 2020,
- To ensure dignified ageing, the Government of India has been implementing schemes and programmes under ‘National Action Plan for Senior Citizens’, an Umbrella Scheme for Senior Citizens, which inter alia includes financial security, healthcare and nutrition, shelter and welfare, protection of life and property, active and productive ageing and awareness generation.
This information was provided by Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Rattan Lal Kataria in a written reply in Lok Sabha on March 23.
