Jashn’ – India’s largest senior citizen sports, cultural festival

Jashn’ – India’s largest senior citizen sports, cultural festivalIndia’s Largest Senior Citizen Sports and Cultural festival – JASHN 2016, will kick off on Saturday 15th – October in Lavasa with an underline theme of “High on Life”.

The two day event will witness participation of seniors from Ashiana’s five senior living communities namely Utsav Bhiwadi, Nirmay Bhiwadi, Utsav Jaipur, Shubham Chennai and Utsav Lavasa. One of its kind events in India, Jashn will act as a dais for a whooping over 600 senior citizens’ aged 55-85 participating this year.

The sports competitions, cultural and creative activities will take place at the activity centre of Utsav Lavasa. The sports competition will include Table Tennis, Badminton, Carom, chess and walking competition.

And the cultural competitions will include singing, dancing and much more. Besides creative competitions such as Salad making and Rangoli making will also be there. To keep up with the fun momentum, a glittering ramp show will also be organized where senior citizen will walk the ramp. The panel of judges would comprise of teachers/principals from nearby schools. The event will close on Sunday, October 16 with an awards ceremony.

“The zeal and enthusiasm witnessed in last two Jashn 2014 was one of its kinds and in Jashn 2015 it got even better. It’s so much fun to watch senior citizens performing; participating having fun and creating so much energy that it could put many college fests to shame. It’s the energy and participation of the senior’s which as a group keeps us motivated and organizes it every year.” says Ankur Gupta, Managing Director, Ashiana Housing Ltd.

“For those where everything is black and white, adrenaline rush at any age is exciting! Now is the time to do the things you love. I am very excited and looking forward for the two day event as I am certain the third edition like the last two will take excitement fervor to the hilt,” said Amita Shaw, Resident, Ashiana Utsav Bhiwadi and one of the participants.

Elders week: Chennai Metro falls flat on Accessibility

Chennai Metro falls flat on AccessibilityThe first week of October is marked as Elders week and a lot of programs are conducted around the country to highlight the fact that there is an elderly segment of population still living in India.

Pensioners Associations, senior citizens bureaus, Probus clubs, and several private organizations working in the senior citizens sector have been announcing various cultural and informative programs for the said elders.

While these organizations and their programs do bring elders and their issues to the fore, however transiently, whether any permanent improvements are happening is yet to be determined.

One telling article in Hindu illustrates the general apathy of Indians and the Indian Government when it comes to elders and accessibility issues.  This article documents the study conducted by the Disability Rights Alliance on the Airport Metro rail station in Chennai, a building that has just been completed.  Here are some of the results:

Entry issues

For Smitha Sadasivan, getting into the station itself was a challenge as the ramp was not level with the ground. Also, the ramp from the parking lot was steep and had no handrails, activists said.

Gaps in staircases

Gopi Krishnan and M. Veerappan, who have low vision, noted that there were gaps between the stairs, where their canes slipped in. “It makes us nervous when climbing up,” said Mr. Krishnan.

Incomplete signage

Signage was unclear and in many places, incomplete, the tactile paths were patchy and in the bathroom for the disabled, the flush behind the toilet could not be easily reached. Also, there was a difference in the level of the flooring at the entrance, making it hard to get in and out, said B. Meenakshi, an activist.

Levels of difference

On the platform, the tactile path did not extend towards the train, and wheelchair users had difficulty getting in due to the difference in the levels of the train and the platform. The warning strip on the platform near the train was inadequate for visually impaired persons using canes, the members said.

Lost in the lift

At Nanganallur, the team had problems due to lack of signage, inaccessible drinking water facilities and nobody answering the help button at the lift, said Sudha Ramamoorthy, a DRA member, “Also, there was no announcement of the doors opening and closing in the lift and the music is quite loud, making it difficult to hear anything when the help button is pressed,” she said.

A mixed bag

There was some progress though, said Vaishnavi Jayakumar, a DRA member. “The floor is not as slippery as it was at Alandur, making it easier for those on crutches, and it is of a different colour. The ticket counters are lower and more easily reachable and the ticket vending machines are also somewhat accessible. However, persons with visual impairment cannot use them,” she said.

To read the full article, go here.( https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/Chennai-Metro-Rail-flunks-accessibility-test/article15422243.ece)

Elders week – Accessibility still out of reach

Accessibility still out of reachIndia’s first accessibility audit failed to find a single public building or place that was completely accessible to people with disability!

That the first accessibility audit has been conducted decades after Independence is in itself a telling fact.  However, even this would not have happened except for PM Narendra Modi’s push for an accessible India.

The first phase of audit, launched across 31 cities as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet initiative Accessible India, threw up shocking results, revealing appalling state of toilets and other facilities for persons with disabilities in public buildings, hospitals, railway stations and educational institutions, and half-hearted attempts at building ramps in the name of accessibility.

The department of empowerment of persons with disabilities (Divyangjan) had entrusted the task of auditing public buildings across 31 cities to 11 empanelled auditors.

You can read more about it here.( http://globalaccessibilitynews.com/2016/08/24/indias-first-accessibility-audit-fails-to-find-a-single-accessible-building/ )

Employment Opportunities for seniors

A new company and website had come up focusing on job opportunities for the retired.  Aptly named NotRetired.in,  it aims to connect persons retired from formal employment with prospective employers to address the problem of finding a job/ activity.

Services Offered by NotRetired.in

Employers can search for candidates and directly contact them. They can also post their job requirements and view applicant’s information

Job seekers can search and apply for active jobs by simple registration process

Users can read articles on various topics related to them

Key benefits NotRetired.in offers to Job Seekers?

• Multiple job opportunities as we have tied up with big and small organizations who are looking for experienced resources from different sectors

We are also scouting through various websites/platforms for relevant job opportunities to present everything at one place. This will reduce the burden of job seekers to search at multiple places

Unlike other job portals, we are focused on the retired community. Thus, job opportunities on our portal are clear and rightly targeted, making a hassle free search for you

In order to help our Users who face difficulty in using technology, NotRetired.in has a dedicated team of professionals to facilitate them In signing up and finding jobs.

Key benefits NotRetired.in offers to Employers?

• NotRetired.in provides a variant database of the candidates starting from the age of 37 to 70 years with varied skillset from a wide range of sectors like Defense, Government, Banking, and Teaching etc.

• Since our portal only caters to the retired community, the database is more focused and highly sorted, if knowledge and experience at an affordable price is your requirement

Address:
#304, NotRetired Online LLP, V.V.Vintage Boulevard, Somajiguda, Hyderabad-82.
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 9000 766 066

website:  www.notretired.in

 

Never too old to play

Never too old to playAs you may know the week of Aug 22nd to August 28th is Madras Week. As part of the celebrations, a lot of activities will take place around Chennai during the week.

Old is Gold Store, along with Kreeda Games is arranging an event called “Never too old to play”, an evening of traditional Indian games such as pallanguzhi andAadu puli aatam with the aim to help senior citizens in our beautiful city to relive their childhood.

Kindly convey this to your members and friends so they can register for the event at a location convenient to them.  Entry is free.

Schedule:

Semmenchery OMR:

Date : Aug 22nd Monday.

Time: 3PM – 7 PM.

Venue: Old is Gold Store, Opposite Kohinoor Asiana, Semmenchery OMR, chennai.

Indira Nagar, Adyar

Date : Aug 24th Wednesday.

Time: 3PM – 7 PM.

Venue: Old is Gold Store, No. 53, 1st Main Road, Indira Nagar, Adyar, Chennai 20.

Anna Nagar

Date : Aug 26th Friday.

Time: 3PM – 7 PM.

Venue: Old is Gold Store, AH-247, 1st Street, Anna Nagar, Chennai 600040.

To register please call 96770 03424.

 

Senior citizen community is golden generation: Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin TendulkarCricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, who has always attributed his success on the field to his late father by raising his bat to the sky, urged the Gen X to join the campaign to safeguard senior citizens against abuse, at the launch of Kartavya… Culture of Care, an age-sensitive community campaign in Thane on Monday.

Read the full article here.

(https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Senior-citizen-community-is-golden-generation-Sachin/articleshow/53713761.cms)

 

Small savings interest rates: Seniors Spared

Small savings interest rates: The Narendra Modi government has apparently decided to play safe and not risk a politically sensitive decision by reducing interest rates on small savings.

On Monday, the government left the rates unchanged for the July to September 2016 quarter from what they were for the previous quarter. This marks a stark contrast to March quarter when the government slashed the rates on all small savings schemes, such as public provident fund, Kisan Vikas Patra and time deposits of various maturities.

“Given the furore over the rate cut in March, the government may not want to alienate the middle class before the assembly elections in 2017,” the Economic Times had quoted a mutual fund manager as saying.

You can read the entire story here. (https://www.ibtimes.co.in/govt-leaves-interest-rates-small-savings-unchanged-683565 )

 

HeWee Go: the device that could stop you from visiting the toilet ever again

bladder weaknessFor elders with bladder weakness, a simpler, cleaner, easier-to-use urine system is on the way.

Here are some of the details

A jockstrap-cum-colostomy-bag, the HeWee allows you to urinate on the go and is formed of an adjustable support belt, rubber sheath and leg-mounted collection bag. Unsurprisingly, it looks just as ridiculous as it sounds.

Which is where the HeWee Go Active comes in.

Senior citizen welfare fund

Senior citizen welfare fundThe ministry released the notification dated March 18 about the fund, which will be utilised for schemes for the promotion of the welfare of senior citizens in line with the National Policy on Older Persons and the National Policy on Senior Citizens.

The Ministry of Finance released the rules for creation of Senior Citizens Welfare Fund, which will have funds from unclaimed deposits in small savings schemes including Post Office Savings Accounts, Public Provident Fund and Employees’ Provident Fund within one year.

The ministry released the notification dated March 18 about the fund, which will be utilised for schemes for the promotion of the welfare of senior citizens in line with the National Policy on Older Persons and the National Policy on Senior Citizens.

To read the entire article, go here.

(https://indianexpress.com/article/business/business-others/senior-citizen-welfare-fund-norms-out-9-member-panel-to-administer-2807832/#sthash.7GrMFVzg.dpuf)

Don’t give away all to your children, doctor advises parents

A new book called the Generation Gap has been released by Dr. V S Natarajan and Ms. Hema Narasimhan to delve into various aspects of elder abuse.
Here is an excerpt from the Hindu article.

Dr. Natarajan

Make a will to protect your children but keep enough for yourself so you don’t have to depend on them in your old age. Take an active part in their day-to-day routine but never interfere in your children’s issues unless asked for. These are some of the solutions in geriatric expert Dr VS Natarajan’s new book ‘Generation Gap’ that was released on Wednesday .

The two-part English book, by Natarajan and Hema Narasimhan, delves deep into the issue of elder abuse and its various forms rampant in Indian society .

The senior geriatrician, who says he drew inspiration from his many of his patients opening up to him about their children, includes several real stories.

One of them is about a rich elderly woman in Purasaiwalkam, Natarajan’s patient for many years. She sought his advice after her only son threatened to poison her if she did not transfer properties to his name. “The reasons could be that children look at their personal happiness above the welfare of their parents .With real estate boom, children want to sell off their parents’ properties and make money . These are only my hypothesis,” he said.

Dr Natarajan, the author of 30 medical books, had penned a book with the same title in 2015, analysing the abuse of elderly at home.

Natarajan advises senior citizens to lead independent lives and be aware of laws protecting them from mistreatment, while urging at the same time children to spend quality time with their parents. “It not just food and shelter that old people need. They need love and care too,” he said.

“They have to remember that what they do to their parents will be repeated in their old age,” he added.

To read the entire article, go here.

(https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/relationships/parenting/Dont-give-away-all-to-your-children-doctor-advises-parents/articleshow/52338625.cms? )