Old is not always gold. In 2010, 3,339 persons above the age of 50 were murdered in India, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The figure increased to 3,489 by 2011. In Delhi, not the safest place for old people to live, 35 of this age group were done to death during the same period.
In 2011, the Delhi Police launched a scheme under which thousands of old residents were registered with their senior citizen cell. They were in turn provided with identity cards bearing close personal details.
But clearly the problem is too big to be tackled easily. On August, 2012, RK Bararu, 75, former official of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and his wife Durga Devi, 74, were killed at their residence in East Delhi’s Shakarpur. As the police investigation showed, the entry was friendly and the motive was robbery. The victims’ throats were slit and the rooms ransacked.
Mathew Cherian, Chief Executive Officer of Helpage India, an NGO working for senior citizens says 50 per cent of the perpetrators of violence against senior citizens are close family members.
According to a Helpage India report released in 2012, primary abusers against senior citizens were their sons in 56 per cent cases, followed by the daughter-in-law with 23 per cent.
Mathew says the police-public trust deficit here is critical. “A big reason for citizens’ insecurities is the trust deficit between them and the lower level of police. They believe the cops will pass on critical information to criminals. This trust deficit has to be reduced.”
In March, 2012, a 66-year-old man died after he was allegedly pushed and kicked by two police constables at the Dhaula Kuan police station. The deceased Anil Kumar was returning from a party with his son when his car broke down near the police station.
When his son Mohit Arora asked a constable for help, the policeman who was busy on the phone, did not respond. A brawl ensued and cop pushed the deceased who died on the spot.
Clearly a balance has to be sought. “The best way to improve security of senior citizens is to enroll them either in Senior Citizen Associations or Resident Welfare Associations. It is important that they keep in constant touch with their neighbours because they will be the first responders ,” says Mathew.
The story repeats itself. In Delhi, many old couples live alone, their children either abroad with no intentions of returning to India or nearly abandoned by their kith who live in the same city but do not stay in touch. Such people become easy prey. Often inside information is provided by people who visit homes like daily helps.
Though the Delhi Police has taken several steps, insecurity remains. Says a Delhi Police spokesman, “We would request more and more people to register.” That could help.
