Senior citizen expo from October 6

“Unlike in foreign countries, retirement in India is not considered an important phase of life. This stems from the fact that awareness of issues surrounding it is abysmal,” said Janaki Raman, CEO of Vision India, addressing the media here on Tuesday to announce the conduct of a two-day exhibition in the city. ‘Celebrating age India Expo 2012’, beginning on October 6, will focus on the various issues surrounding retirement.

Former IIT professor T Ranganathan spoke of the adverse implications for senior citizens due to improper planning. “The joint family system in our country is non-existent. Senior citizens need to focus on financial and medical security. They need to cope with the loss of self esteem arising due to retirement,” he elucidated. He criticised the insurance industry for its seeming lack of transparency, and said the government ought to subsidise the insurance industry as well. In this regard, he said such events are vital to improving awareness over post-retirement lives.