Building
Climate Resilience for Older Persons
Prelims:
Environment & Ecology, Social Issues
Mains:
GS Paper I-Social empowerment, GS
Paper II-Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections, GS Paper III-Disaster management.
Current
relevance:
A recent study
by HelpAge India highlights that senior citizens are among the most
vulnerable groups to climate change.
Highlights:
1. Elderly
are disproportionately affected by climate change due to age-related health
limitations, financial dependence, and social vulnerabilities.
2.
India's elderly population is projected to
increase from 149 million (2022) to about 347 million by 2050, making
climate resilience increasingly important.
3. Climate Stressors Affecting
Older Persons:
i.
Rising Temperatures: Rising
temperatures increase the risk of heat stress, dehydration, and heat-related
illnesses among older persons due to reduced physiological tolerance.
ii.
Poor Ventilation and Indoor Heat expose
older adults to prolonged heat stress, aggravating chronic illnesses and
reducing overall well-being.
iii.
Environmental degradation
contributes to poor air quality, declining living conditions, and increased
respiratory and physical health problems.
iv.
Some other factors are erratic rainfall, droughts,
floods, coastal Erosion, water Scarcity.
4.
The
report recommends strengthening community resilience through family
support, neighbourhood check-ins, volunteer networks, community
shelters, relocation assistance, age-inclusive early warning systems,
and robust local care networks to protect older persons during climate-related
emergencies.
5. Best
Practice:
Odisha's
cyclone preparedness model, involving early warning systems
and timely evacuation of older persons to community shelters, is cited as a
successful example of age-inclusive disaster management.
Source: THE
HINDU - https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/health/no-country-for-old-people-building-resilience-to-protect-elderly-from-climate-stressors/article71254834.ece