Daycare centre for senior citizens faces closure

Balkrishan Prashar

Chamba, June 11

The daycare centre for senior citizens at the district headquarter town of Chamba, which was opened in February, 2017, is on the verge of closure due to financial constrains. No funds have been released during the past two years and activities for senior citizens in the district have come to a standstill.

The daycare centre was approved in 2016. It started functioning in February 2017 with the enrollment of 107 senior citizens.

PC Oberoi, president, District Senior Citizens’ Welfare Society, said funds were allotted to the daycare centre by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment for two years in 2017 and 2018, thereby enabling the centre to function smoothly.

In the initial stage, the furniture and other essential items were purchased with meager amount of Rs 1 lakh available to run the centre as per the guidelines of the government. However, the centre did not receive funds for the past two years.

Despite repeated requests to the authorities concerned, no action was taken, Oberoi said. The centre was being run with scanty funds contributed by some senior citizens.

A government official of the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, however, said they responded to every mail of the District Senior Citizens’ Welfare Society. The inspection of the daycare centre was carried out, and accordingly, the society was asked to follow the guidelines so that funds could be released on time for providing facilities to senior citizens, he said.