ELDERLY POPULATION

ELDERLY POPULATION

Vulnerability among women in the elderly population category may only rise with the male-female longevity gap widening in the State. This clear feminisation of an age group, coupled with the fact that disparities in income and retirement benefits tilt in favour of elderly men rather than women, is among the key points that has cropped up in the study ‘The Status of Elderly in Kerala 2011.’The study is the product of a collaboration between the United Nations Population Fund, the Institute of Social and Economic Change in Bangalore, and Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. The Population Research Centre conducted it in Kerala. Relying on secondary data and collecting primary data through sample surveys, these agencies embarked on a mission ‘Building a Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI).’The survey was conducted in seven States in India selected on the basis of having a large elderly population, and Kerala tops this list in population proportion.

The findings were discussed during a one-day seminar organised by the Population Research Centre here on Monday. The comprehensive survey considered a sample size of 1,280 elderly households in each State, and is split equally between rural and urban areas. The range of factors it covered, from work income and asset holdings to health status and social security, aims at highlighting those challenges in Kerala that require immediate attention.Almost one-third of the men interviewed in the study receive benefits whereas only 8 per cent of the women do. This naturally reflects on the magnitude of their contribution to the sustenance of the household, with 28 per cent of men saying they contribute more than 80 per cent of the household budget and women only 6 per cent. As much as 61 per cent of the women said they did not contribute at all. This also affects the statistic for economic dependence, with 69 per cent of the women being economically dependent against 39 per cent of the men. Over the past few years, nuclearisation of the family and increased migration have caused the living arrangements to shift, which could have serious implication on the provision of care. With women living longer, more women, 5.2 per cent, were reported to be living alone than men, 1.3 per cent.“Although Kerala had an early demographic transition and a significant portion of migrants, the percentage of the elderly living alone appears to be lower compared to the other States in the country. For instance, the percentage of elderly women living alone in Tamil Nadu is around 26 per cent and the seven State average is around 10 per cent,” the report said.

Prof. John Kurakar