Start-ups should come up with innovative and out-of-box solutions to the problems faced by the elderly- Naidu

New Delhi, 1 October (H.S): The Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu Friday urged India?s young start-ups to come up with innovative and out-of-box solutions to the everyday problems faced by the elderly. He said that taking care of the elderly should not be the responsibility of the government alone and each one of us should come forward and join this noble cause.

Addressing the gathering after presenting the National Award-Vayoshreshtha Samman-2021 in Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi today, the Vice President said that he would prefer to call our senior citizens as ?elders? rather than ?older persons?.

At the event, the Vice President launched the SACRED (Senior Able Citizens for Re-Employment in Dignity) portal to connect the senior citizens with job providers in the private sector. Referring to the LASI report-2020, he said that more than 50% of senior citizens are active and therefore, it is very important to provide gainful employment opportunities to them for a happy, healthy, empowered and self-reliant life. Highlighting that our elders are the vast repository of experience and expertise, he urged the private sector to join the new portal and get benefitted from the skills and experience of our senior citizens.

Naidu also launched a National Helpline (Elder Line) during the award function. Noting that senior citizens are a highly vulnerable group, the Vice President lauded the helpline in bringing in an easy and efficient grievance redress mechanism to protect them. The helpline set up by the Government in collaboration with Tata trust will function 12 hours a day to resolve the grievances of senior citizens from across the country.

Naidu praised the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on the initiatives for the welfare of elderly. ?Your consistent efforts to ensure a dignified and comfortable life for the elders are indeed laudable,? he told the officials present. He also appreciated SAGE (Seniorcare Aging Growth Engine) portal designed by the Ministry to encourage entrepreneurs in the area of elderly care as a timely initiative.