Aging Without Support

The Neglect of Punjab's Elderly

- Pushpinder Singh Gill

The words carry timeless wisdom, yet in Punjab today this "crown" often feels more like a burden borne in silence.

Aging here is rarely about honor or celebration; it is about endurance. In a land once celebrated for its joint families, fertile fields, and intergenerational bonds, the elderly now face an uncertain twilight. India already has over 104 million people above the age of sixty, and this number will swell to 319 million by 2050. Punjab, with its unique social and migratory patterns, stands at the forefront of this challenge. Waves of younger Punjabis have settled in Canada, the UK, and Australia, leaving behind parents and grandparents who must navigate frailty with little support, pensions that fall short, and institutions unprepared to fill the gap. The structural inadequacies are stark. By law, every district is meant to have at least one old-age home for 150 residents, but across India fewer than 500 districts meet this requirement. Punjab is no better. In rural areas-home to nearly sixty percent of its people-the absence of facilities is glaring. Health infrastructure is equally stretched: Sub-centers, Primary Health Centers, and Community Health Centers number far below what is required, and those that exist often lack basic features such as wheelchair access, nonslip flooring, or age-friendly toilets. For an elder with failing joints or poor eyesight, the walk across a corridor can be as dangerous as crossing a highway.