Rescued from ‘unhygienic' old age home, senior citizens land at govt shelter housing 106 residents in 13 rooms

Indian Express

4 days ago

Two old-age homes. Two worlds.
One housing eight to 10 senior citizens in a crammed room, and another home to members of the upper middle class, who can pay a 'donation' of Rs 2.5 lakh upfront to find a seat at the shelter.
Both old age homes have recently come to the limelight due to a viral video – showing an elderly woman tied up inside a room – that led to a surprise inspection by officials of the Uttar Pradesh State Commission for Women and the state's Social Welfare department at Anand Niketan Vridha Ashram in Noida's Sector 55 last Thursday.
The inspection led to three residents – allegedly found in 'unhygienic conditions' – of the privately-run home being shifted to a government-run shelter at Dankaur village. The same day, two of the rescued residents were taken away by their families from the Dankaur shelter, where 106 elderly men and women stay in 13 rooms.
The two shelters, both set up with an aim to aid abandoned senior citizens, are worlds apart when it comes to the facilities they offer.
An hour away from Noida's high-rises and past the Yamuna Expressway toll booth, the landscape shifts dramatically in Dankaur village. Here, the old age home operates out of a rented building that, locals said, once served as a school.
A single glance is enough to sense the neglect. The walls are unplastered, the main entrance door and adjacent window panes are missing — the shattered glass is patched over with plywood.
Inside, the common toilet reeks, with its metal doors half-broken and urine pooling on the floor. Brick urinals stand in the open.
In the dining hall, soiled red plywood tables attract bees. Rainwater has seeped in through parts of the unfinished roof, with moss creeping into corners where dampness has taken root.
About a year ago, a monitoring committee set up the Gautam Buddha Nagar district magistrate to look into the shelter had put forward a proposal for its renovation, stating that it is in 'dire need' of a revamp.
Here, most residents have no ties left. Some were abandoned, some said they have no family, and some claimed they left their families by choice.
A man from Meerut, around 70, said: 'I used to sell vegetables. My sons were alcoholics. We kept fighting. One day, I left. A neighbour and friend were already living here, so I came here. I did not inform anyone about my decision to leave. It has been two-and-a-half years, and my family still doesn't know where I am.'
The facility at Noida's Sector 55, meanwhile, sits tucked inside a gated colony. The shelter blends in like any other private care facility – a modest white-coloured building, a dining area, a marble temple, a patch of green lawn with benches and a decorative waterfall, as well as an ambulance parked at the gate.
Inside, residents are allocated single rooms, with beds, wardrobes, coolers, and attached washrooms. There is a washing area and a library as well.
On paper, the shelter is a privately-run home for Delhi-NCR's retired professionals – teachers, lawyers, and doctors. Families, unable to offer them full-time care, pay a 'donation' of Rs 2.5 lakh upfront and Rs 6,000 monthly for lodging, food, laundry, and caregiving. Those whose relatives need support hire caretakers of their own.
When The Indian Express visited the facility a day after the inspection, the amenities seemed adequate. However, following Thursday's inspection, Social Welfare Officer Nitya Dwivedi had said the conditions were far from acceptable. 'We found the elderly persons in distressing and unhygienic conditions. They were tied and locked up in basement-like rooms. There was hardly any support staff.'
Sub-Inspector Maan Singh, who was part of the inspection team, had said, 'A woman was lying naked. A man had soiled himself. Another woman's hands and feet were tied.'
While a notice was issued stating that Anand Niketan would be sealed and its remaining 39 residents 'rescued' within a week, the three residents mentioned by Maan Singh were shifted to the Dankaur shelter last Thursday itself.
Two of them left the government-run facility on the same day. Speaking to The Indian Express, while a guardian said one of the rescued residents is back home and living with family, another guardian said the other had been moved to a mental health facility.
'I told them not to take her anywhere else. The old shelter won't take her back until the inquiry ends. We all work. We can't give 24/7 care. But that doesn't mean we don't care or that our relatives can be moved to a faraway place without our permission,' one of the guardians said.
The third is still at the Dankaur Shelter. He is 80, a former lawyer. His clothes are stained. He no longer reacts when spoken to.
'His hearing is gone, keeps asking us to connect him to his brother, but cannot hear anything when we speak to him,' said Ajay Kumar, the caretaker of the government-run shelter.
Amarvir Singh, the secretary of Anand Niketan, added: 'He had been living in our shelter for the last 20 years… He had no immediate family. Over time, he started losing his hearing, and his mind began to fade. It had become difficult to handle him, but still, this was his home. How could we have asked someone who has been staying with us so long to leave?'