Age is wisdom: Symposium highlights need to honour elderly

Families and society must actively listen to the elderly, whose emotional needs grow with age, said Prof Sat Prakash Bansal, Vice-Chancellor of the Central University of Himachal Pradesh. He was speaking at the inaugural session of the national symposium, “Care of the Elderly in the 21st Century: Current Challenges, Innovations and Best Practices,” organised by the university’s Departments of Social Work and Economics.

Prof Bansal emphasised that listening to the elderly not only honours their experiences but can also guide effective policymaking. “Documenting their voices will help shape more practical and inclusive policies,” he noted. He credited his mother, Parmeshwari Devi (92), for her enduring guidance, highlighting the emotional role elders play in families.

The symposium also saw addresses from Registrar Prof Narendra Kumar Sankhyan, who urged youth to respect aging and guest speaker Onkar Singh Pathania, who praised educational progress in Himachal. Books, including Artificial Intelligence and Social Transformation and Time is Short, were released during the event.