Indian Punjab worst offender among four states in abuse of elderly, finds study

[CricketCartoons]

Punjabi families don’t look after their elders nor does the Punjab government.

These are findings of a HelpAge India study released on Monday. The study was conducted in eight districts of Punjab, Haryana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which were selected due to the large number of cases filed under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, a pioneering law meant for the welfare of the elderly.

“We wanted to get a 360-degree view on this law, its working at the ground level, and understand how it was being implemented in the states,” said Mathew Cherian, chief executive officer of HelpAge India.

The study, which selected the districts of Ludhiana and Amritsar due to the large number of cases filed there, found Punjab had the highest number of petitioners in the age group of 80-plus compared to only 9% in Haryana.

Most cases of physical abuse were also reported from Punjab.

Almost 70% of the cases in Punjab and Kerala were filed against sons, while in Tamil Nadu, Haryana and Kerala, 21% of the cases were against daughters. Most of the cases were filed at the office of the sub-divisional magistrate. The maintenance-related petitions were the highest in Punjab, while property-related petitions were high in both Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Half of the elderly surveyed reported experiencing abuse. The perpetrators were none other than their own offspring. 83% of the petitioners had already transferred their immovable property in favour of their children.

Almost 57% of the elderly attributed the reason for filing the petition to neglect by children (in Punjab, Haryana and Kerala), while 36% said they were propelled by physical abuse and mental torture (in Kerala and Tamil Nadu).

Also read | Chandigarh worst in India in crime against elderly

Punjab’s poor record

Bhavneshwar Sharma, the state head for Punjab, Haryana and J&K, said Punjab has one of the lowest old age pensions in the country — it’s been recently revised to Rs 750 a month. Himachal Pradesh and Haryana provide old age pension of Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,600 a month, respectively.

Both Punjab and Haryana lack an old age policy, which entails a home for the aged in every district. As of now, Punjab has only one state-sponsored home for the elderly in Hoshairpur.

HelpAge has two homes in Patiala and Gurdaspur with 37 residents, who are housed free of cost.

The study found how Satwanti Kapoor (name changed), a 70-year-old widow living in a posh locality of Delhi with her only son, was forced to leave home for an ashram in Haridwar following constant verbal abuse by her daughter-in-law. She left in a huff, hoping that her son would try to trace her. But when he failed to do that, she got in touch with her brother-in-law. He too had been thrown out by his sons, who labelled him mentally unstable. Both filed a petition in the tribunal in Amritsar. Her son came for the first hearing from Delhi and agreed to pay her Rs 10,000 a month. Her eyes brimming with tears, she has made peace with life in an old age ashram in Amritsar. “I have a family and grandchildren, but I have been banished,” she says.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/punja...derly-study/story-A16J2bpUCqAbzHDGojfYFP.html

Such cases are on the rise, as parents are seen as financial burden.. but didn't expect Punjab, a prosperous state, to lead in this shameful statistic.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Panjab is a mess socially - whether it’s drug abuse, alcoholism, female foeticide/infanticide, dowry deaths etc so the above study doesn’t surprise me.

Too many people also have their heads in the sand and instead of tackling such social ills head on they will just blame it all on some Congress/BJP/RSS/evangelical Christian conspiracy.

 

[CricketCartoons]

Panjab is a mess socially - whether it’s drug abuse, alcoholism, female foeticide/infanticide, dowry deaths etc so the above study doesn’t surprise me.

Too many people also have their heads in the sand and instead of tackling such social ills head on they will just blame it all on some Congress/BJP/RSS/evangelical Christian conspiracy.

What went wrong for Punjab, when it was and is, one of the most wealthiest states?

 

[ex-q-zit]

"Youth Will Be Finished": Supreme Court On Punjab Liquor Trade, Drugs Menace

New Delhi:

"The youth will be finished," an anguished Supreme Court said on Monday voicing concern over the burgeoning illicit liquor trade and drug menace in Punjab, and asked the state government to fix responsibility on the local police for failing to keep vigil.

A bench of Justices MR Shah and CT Ravikumar asked the Punjab government to spell out specific steps taken to curb the production and sale of illegal liquor.

Senior advocate Ajit Kumar Sinha, appearing for the Punjab government, assured the court that the state is taking action and has already destroyed over 13,000 illegal liquor 'bhattis' (distilleries).

"We are not concerned with A government or B government. So far as Punjab is concerned, the drugs problem is increasing. The youth will be finished. It is very unfortunate that this is happening. Who is the sufferer? The poor people. Illegal manufacture and transportation has to stop because it ultimately affects the health and the society.

"If somebody wants to finish the country and more particularly from the border state, they will start with the borders. Every extra caution should be taken to save the country. Tell your government to be very serious. They have to take every effort to save the country, it is very easy to ruin the youth," the bench said.

The top court was hearing a plea arising out of a September 2020 order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that had disposed of a petition seeking transfer of some FIRs registered in Punjab in relation to distillation of spurious liquor, its sale and inter-state smuggling to the CBI.

The high court had disposed of the plea following an assurance by the state's counsel that concerns raised by the petitioners will be duly dealt with and suitable action initiated.

Sinha told the Supreme court that over 36,000 FIRs have been registered in the last two years.

The bench shot back, saying: "You (government) are only filing FIRs, but according to you in every gali and mohalla there is a 'bhatti'." When one of the lawyers sought compensation for the families of those who died due to consumption of spurious liquor, the bench said it has to be a policy decision.

"Its is very unfortunate. But who asked you to consume the (spurious) liquor? Why should a common man who is paying taxes suffer?" the bench said.

The apex court asked the Punjab government to file a reply stating what concrete steps have been taken to stop domestic and commercial production of spurious liquor and how penalty seized could be utilised for an awareness campaign or increasing the manpower to tackle the problem.

"The state may also come out with a circular on effective investigation and enquiry....that if any illegal bhatti is found, the concerned local police will be held responsible for not keeping a vigil," the bench said and posted the matter for resumed hearing on December 12. The top court had earlier expressed dissatisfaction over the progress in investigating some cases of illicit liquor trade in Punjab and said the state is treating the issue with "kid gloves".

The apex court, which observed the poor were the worst sufferers of hooch tragedies, had directed the Punjab excise department to apprise it about the particulars of certain FIRs that have been lodged.

The petitioners had claimed in the high court that illegal distilleries and bottling plants mushroomed in the state where the liquor mafia continues to thrive.

They also referred to the August 2020 hooch tragedy in Punjab where over 100 people had died owing to consumption of spurious liquor.

NDTV