By Anshul Tewari :. Consider this, out of every 10 elderly couples in India, more than 6 are forced by their children to leave their homes. With no place to go and all hopes lost, the elderly have to resort to old age homes, which do not guarantee first class treatment. In India, unlike USA, parents do not leave their children on their own after they turn 18 of course there are exceptions , but children find it hard to accept the fact that there are times when parents want to feel the love that they once shared with them.
There are times when parents just want to relax and want their children to reciprocate their care. Every other day, we see news of parents being beaten up by their children, parents and in-laws being forced to do the household chores, being made to live in small dungeon-like rooms, their property being forcefully taken over by over ambitious children.
There are 81million older people in India lakh in Delhi itself. Although the President has given her assent to the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act which punishes children who abandon parents with a prison term of three months or a fine, situation is grim for elderly people in India. According to NGOs incidences of elderly couples being forced to sell their houses are very high.
Some elderly people have also complained that in case of a property dispute they feel more helpless when their wives side with their children. Many of them suffer in silence as they fear humiliation or are too scared to speak up. It is then children began to see their parents as burden.
It is these parents who at times wander out of their homes or are thrown out. The facilities are lacking in government run homes. Forget the rights that the elderly enjoy in India. Just forget about the action that they can take.
