Did you know that senior citizens are entitled to certain benefits and provisions under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007? In fact the Act also provides for childless senior citizens who can claim maintenance from their relatives if needed. There are also provisions and procedure for cancellation of documents under which property has been transferred by senior citizens to children.
Unfortunately, awareness of the Act and other rights and benefits accorded to senior citizens under the Indian law remains extremely low according to a survey done by HelpAge India. One in five elders is unaware of any available redressal mechanisms; According to data of the 2014 Helpage survey, only 14% of elder abuse victims even knew the law exists.
Silver Talkies’ upcoming talk of Elder’s Rights & Maintenance Law aims to spread awareness about this not just for senior citizens but also for their families and loved ones.
This interactive talk and awareness session will be held by Senior Advocate and mediator Shiv Kumar, who has been one of the key people behind the Elder’s Helpline, set up by Bangalore City Police and Nightingale’s Medical Trust. He has established the Legal and Counselling Centre at the Helpline and has been actively working towards empowering and educating elders on their rights under the law.
The talk is being organised by Silver Talkies (www.silvertalkies.com), an online magazine & engagement portal for the 60+.
About Silver Talkies
Started in 2013, Silver Talkies has grown into a social enterprise for the 60+ age group. Our website highlights content focused on health and nutrition, finances, social trends and other key areas of interest for senior citizens. There’s a special spotlight on services for senior citizens and second career options, including a section on entrepreneurs and achievers over 60 years of age.
We also believe that a close-knit community of active senior citizens can make a huge difference to the post retirement years. With that in mind, Silver Talkies also organises events, talks and workshops for the 60+ age group. This initiative tries to give senior citizens the chance to experience something different or learn something new. The team has organized Art Gallery Visits, Birding Tours, Heritage Walks, Talks on Making A Will & Tax Planning, Zentangle Workshops and Second Career Workshops for seniors, among other activities.
About Shiv Kumar
Shiv Kumar is a Senior Advocate with 40 years of active practice at the Karnataka High Court. He has been actively involved with the Elders Help Line (1090) in Bangalore since its inception over 10 years ago. He has established the Legal and Counseling Centre at the Helpline and a dispute resolution process in the form of mediation, which attempts conflict resolution through the alternative process of Mediation without recourse to courts. He is a trained and certified Mediator and a Trainer of trainers at the Bangalore Mediation Centre.
He has been the author of a draft legislation exclusively for Elders that was presented for public discussion. The existing Law has drawn from such legislation. He currently organises several programmes on empowering Senior citizens and conducts workshops on educating elders on their rights under Law. He is actively involved in the Disability Sector and does work in the areas of visual impairment and mental health.
DETAILS OF THE TALK
FREE TALK ON ELDER’S RIGHTS & MAINTENANCE ACT FOR SENIOR CITIZENS & FAMILIES
DATE: JAN 31, 2016
Time: 4-6 pm
Venue: Vatsalya Dental Centre, 3RD Floor, Krishna Arcade, Above HDFC Bank, Bannerghatta Road (Google location)
To register: Call 9980508000 & 9900025525 or email us on mail@silvertalkies.com
To know more contact:
Nidhi Chawla: 9980508000
Reshmi Chakraborty: 9900025525
Email: mail@silvertalkies.com
Visit us: www.silvertalkies.com
Find us on FB:
https://www.facebook.com/silvertalkies
Note: This press note was shared by Reshmi C Chakraborthy, founder of Silver Talkies, and shared with minimal edits under the press note section meant for nonprofits and public interest messages.
Full disclosure: The author, Reshmi Chakraborthy was a columnist and writer for Citizen Matters.
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Hi I need some advice regarding senior citizen rights as now my father expired and my elder brother is harassing us.