By Sandhya Iyer

ONE of the greatest challenges faced by the technologically-driven societies of the world today is bridging the gap between the generations.

The differences in attitude, motivation and behaviour between the old and the young tend to cause conflict in the family, community and at work.

In the quest to overcome this and strengthen inter-generational solidarity, the International Consortium for Intergenerational Programmes (ICIP) and the Council for Third Age (C3A), along with the National University of Singapore, recently brought together delegates from across the world at the 4th ICIP conference here in Singapore.

tabla! met Professor Dr Narender Chadha, head and director of the department of adult, continuing education & extension at Delhi University and an expert in the areas of gerontology and inter-generational relationships, on the sidelines of the conference to find out how India is dealing with this issue.

According to Dr Chadha, government intervention, concessions and health subsidies can ease the financial burden of the aged, but what India really needs is a long-term strengthening of social values and family ties. Pointing to the Maintenance Bill passed by the Indian government in 2007, he says it offered seniors the right to enforce financial maintenance from their kin. So while it strengthens the elderly's financial stability, and induced mutual out-of-court settlement in some cases, it did not win favour in society due to its business-like approach.

Seniors prefer to suffer silently than allow family affairs to be publicised. Policies and initiatives should aim at bonding the generations, not weaken their structure, he stresses. More than 31 studies conducted in this regard reveal that the physical and mental health of senior citizens involved actively in society is much stronger than those secluded from it. Here are some innovative ideas, from Dr Chadha and several like-minded social scientists in India, to enhance the social inclusion of elders:

- Adopt A Granny, started in 2002 and taken up by several schools in Delhi, makes it mandatory for every pupil to spend 50 hours during the academic session with the adopted elderly.

- Slow Learners where students weak in specific subjects are voluntarily tutored by expert seniors during school hours.

- Social Station, to be implemented soon, lets needy college students volunteer as temporary caretaker for a few hours in return for pocket money.

This gives members of households with bed-ridden elders time to have a social life.

tabla@sph.com.sg