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Senior Citizen Schemes: The Central Government is implementing various welfare schemes to ensure the health, dignity, and social security of senior citizens across the country. As part of this initiative, the *Atal Vayo Abhyudaya Yojana* (AVYAY) provides the elderly with shelter, healthcare, assistive devices, and support services.

B.L. Verma, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, shared the status and success report of this scheme in the Lok Sabha in response to a question raised by MP Ganesh Singh. According to official data, more than 7.68 lakh senior citizens have benefited from the *Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana* since the 2021-22 financial year. Additionally, timely assistance has been provided to over 8.41 lakh elderly individuals through the national helpline, 'Elderline'.

Shelter and Free Healthcare Services for the Elderly (IPSrC)

Integrated Programmes for Senior Citizens (IPSrC) are being implemented under the *Atal Vayo Abhyudaya Yojana*. Through this initiative, financial assistance is provided to eligible organizations to operate senior citizen homes, continuous care homes, mobile medicare units, and physiotherapy clinics. The primary objective is to provide food, shelter, healthcare, and recreational facilities to destitute senior citizens.

The government has established minimum standards for elderly care and accessible infrastructure. More than 6.98 lakh senior citizens have benefited from this programme since the 2021-22 financial year. Furthermore, the State Action Plan for Senior Citizens (SAPSrC) has been implemented since 2019-20 to execute schemes tailored to the local needs of various states and union territories.

Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana: Free Physical Assistive Devices

The *Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana* (RVY) is being implemented for elderly individuals suffering from age-related physical impairments or disabilities who have a monthly income of up to ₹15,000. Under this scheme, free physical assistive devices are provided to the elderly to make their lives easier. This scheme is being implemented by ALIMCO (Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India). Since the 2021-22 financial year, 768,749 senior citizens across the country have benefited from this scheme.

Elderline (14567): Assistance available via this helpline

The national helpline 'Elderline' (14567) operates daily from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM to provide immediate solutions to the problems faced by senior citizens. This helpline offers the elderly free information, guidance, and emotional support, as well as field intervention or rescue services in cases of abuse or distress. Since its launch on October 1, 2021, 841,734 senior citizens across 34 states and Union Territories have received assistance through this helpline.

Training for Caregivers and Promotion of Tech Startups

The government has undertaken special initiatives to meet the demand for skilled professionals to care for the elderly as they age:

PM-SPECIAL Scheme: Launched in the 2023-24 financial year, this scheme has facilitated the training of 38,893 geriatric caregivers so far. This has strengthened the elderly care infrastructure in the country.

SAGE Initiative (Seniorcare Ageing Growth Engine): Startups developing technology-based solutions for the elderly are being promoted. Under this initiative, eligible startups receive equity support of up to ₹1 crore. To date, nine startups specializing in healthcare and assistive technology have received support under this initiative.

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