AVYAY Supports 764 Senior Citizen Homes Under IPSrC Component

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has detailed how the Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana (AVYAY) works for the elderly. Under its Integrated Programme for Senior Citizens (IPSrC), money reaches eligible bodies as grant-in-aid: non-governmental organisations, state governments, Panchayati Raj institutions and local bodies, which then set up and run facilities for older people.

What is being supported

At present the IPSrC supports 764 senior citizen homes, 13 continuous care homes, 17 mobile medicare units and 3 physiotherapy clinics. These provide residential care and support services, with the stress on shelter and care for indigent senior citizens, along with mobile healthcare and physiotherapy.

The three components

Besides the IPSrC, the scheme runs the State Action Plan for Senior Citizens (SAPSrC) and the Regional Resource and Training Centres (RRTCs). Each RRTC receives annual financial support of Rs 19.58 lakh under the scheme guidelines, and the ministry also funds designated NGOs and institutions that act as RRTCs. These centres work as regional nodal agencies for training, research, documentation, awareness and advocacy on ageing, and they support planning through database development, monitoring, evaluation, project inspections and coordination with states and Union Territories.

Room for state-specific work

The State Action Plan component gives financial help to state and Union Territory governments for building a pool of trained geriatric caregivers, holding special cataract surgery drives and carrying out other approved welfare steps. States and Union Territories may use up to 20 per cent of their allotted funds on programmes of their own design, provided the components are approved under AVYAY, and they are expected to add their own resources as well. Taken together, the three components combine institutional care, state-level planning and regional capacity building for an ageing population, with the emphasis on dignity and easier access to welfare services.