Strong Family System still Exists

By Nazia Akhtar, Greater Kashmir

India

March 29, 2008

Kashmir doesn’t need old age homes as family system is still intact here and no one would prefer to send his/her parents to subsist in such homes, experts say.

Where almost all the major states of the country like New Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, etc. have a large number of old age homes, no such home exists in Kashmir and many believe that there will be no such need in coming years too. 

“The situation is not so chronic here, so we don’t require old age homes. I believe that the problem is still in its infancy and is not an acute one. I consider that the family system is still unharmed in Kashmir,” says, Prof Bashir Ahmad Dabla, a renowned sociologist of Kashmir. 

Holding the western pattern of modernizations responsible for such problems, Prof Dabla said, “More the urbanization, more social problems. Conventionally we are not so much developed and don’t face such an immense problem here.
The problem is still in its infancy in Kashmir, however, in future such situation may arise where old age homes would be needed.”

“At present, in some individual cases, the problem may be acute, but if we consider it cumulatively it is not so huge.”

“The parents should understand that the time has changed and they should not expect the same treatment from their children as they have given to their parents. There has been a lot of change in the education and employment sector. So the children have to move out to different places for the educational and employment purposes,” he added.

Such homes are established to provide boarding and lodging for old age people who are destitute, handicapped or persons with chronic diseases and are left unattended by their kith and kin in old age. However, it is felt that in Kashmir the social thinking of masses is quite different from the people of other states.

“Old age homes are meant for the people who are thrown out of their homes and need a place to live in where they will be taken care of for mental, sociological and psychological problems. The people in Kashmir are socio- economically bound so they will never prefer to send their parents to such places,” said Mr. Latief, project coordinator in Kashmir for Helpage India. 

According to Latief, Helpage had a proposal of setting up of an old age home in Kashmir, but had to drop the idea because of the feedback they received from certain quarters.

“We celebrated old age day on October 10 last year at SKICC where around 200 to 300 people came to discuss and debate old age experiences. We also discussed the need of old age home in the valley and all the participants unanimously came up with the view that old age home is not needed here.
However, they suggested the creation of a recreation home in the valley, where the old age people will be able to play some games, read newspapers and magazines, work on computers so that they will feel at home.”

According to Latief, they had also consulted the Social Welfare department for the suggestions about setting up of an old age home in the valley and got the similar feed back from there as well.

He added, “As it is the only department which deals with old age people in the valley, so we consulted them. We talked to Dilshada Ji the then Director Social Welfare and after a proper discussion she too suggested that such home won’t work here and instead we shall establish a recreation home for such parents who are kept inside the home for the whole time as they need recreation and mental exercise. We prepared a proposal for the creation of recreation home in the valley.”

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