A family away from home for the senior citizens of National Capital

One of the most important parts of society, the elderly citizen are most of the times left alone as busy city life leaves little time for their children to tend to them. However, the Senior Citizen Council of Delhi has been giving a family away from home to these elderly citizens who need security and an interactive atmosphere.

To help senior citizens get a respectable life, the Senior Citizen Council of Delhi headed by JR Gupta has been working towards creating an environment where they can sit, play and enjoy together. The council was provided with a community centre by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation at Green Park extension in November 2016. Since then the family has grown many folds with over 2,000 members and counting.

The recreation centre at the community hall allows its members to watch television, play indoor games, visit the library and also provides free medical checkup along with free of cost homeopathic medicines. The centre which remains open from 12 pm to 5 pm also celebrates birthdays and anniversaries of the members along with other festivals and has now turned into a home away from home for the senior citizens.

However, the council has been working to save senior citizens from abuses and humiliation at the hands of their own children and has also successfully saved scores of them in the national Capital from their children and others. "We have been serving senior citizens of the national Capital with a homely atmosphere and when needed to try to bridge between children and these citizens. In many cases, we have successfully managed to counsel children and improve their behaviour towards their parents," JR Gupta, president of the centre said.

RS 20,000 GRANT FROM DELHI GOVT

• The council has been operating with Rs 20,000 which they get as a grant from the Delhi government per month. However, the donations from various social groups also help to keep the recreation centre going.