NITI Aayog calls for prioritising tech, AI for senior care in India

NEW DELHI — It is important to prioritise technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for senior care, the NITI Aayog said on Monday, in a report on senior care reforms in India.

The NITI Aayog released a position paper titled “Senior Care Reforms in India: Reimagining the Senior Care Paradigm,” on Friday.

 “The release of this report is one of the stepping stones toward India’s commitment to achieve the goal of Viksit Bharat @2047,” said NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Suman Bery at the occasion.

 “It is important to extensively prioritise the application of technology and Artificial Intelligence for senior care. It is time to start thinking about the special dimensions of senior care in addition to the medical and social dimensions,” he added.

The recommendations in the position paper categorise the specific interventions needed in terms of empowerment, service delivery, and their inclusions under four core areas: Health, Social, Economic/ Financial, and Digital.

 “This is the time when serious discussions should emerge on making ageing dignity driven, safe, and productive. We need to ensure the social security of the elderly and add more emphasis to wellbeing and care,” said Member (Health) NITI Aayog Dr. V.K. Paul in his address.

The report strives to push the frontiers of senior care by recognising the evolving medical and non-medical needs of seniors, thus envisioning a multi-pronged strategy for designing an effective and synergised senior care policy.

 “The report is a call for action on what needs to be done to bring a greater focus on senior care,” said Saurabh Garg, Secretary, Department of Social Justice and Empowerment (DoSJE), Ministry of Social Justice

He added that the broad focus of DoSJE is on ageing with dignity, ageing at home, and productive ageing, which will encompass social, economic, and health aspects.