We all are affected by what we learn at a young age. HelpAge’s SAVE – Student Action for Value Education programme’s main focus is to sensitize school children on ageing issues early in life, so they treat their elderly with love and care and understand their issues in depth.

HelpAge India voices the concerns of India’s elderly. Currently there are estimated to be 90 million elderly in the nation. It protects their rights, focusing on issues such as pensions, social inclusion, and health care, and enables them to live with self-fulfillment and dignity. Mathew Cherian, Chief Executive of Helpage India who had graduated from Birla Institute of Technology and Science – BITS Pilani says “The elderly need food; they need pensions; they need healthcare and we are completely at a loss, and this problem is only going to grow. Its high a time the government of India addresses this issue without any further delay.”

A demographic revolution is underway throughout the world. Today, world-wide, there are around 600 million persons aged 60 years and over; this total will double by 2025 and will reach virtually two billion by 2050 – the vast majority of them in the developing world. Starting from the year 1991, the United Nations’ – UN International Day of Older Persons is celebrated annually on October 1 to recognize the contributions of older persons and to examine issues that affect their lives.

The grandparents may have silvery hair but their hearts always have been golden. One can say that a little bit of parent, a little bit of teacher, a little bit of best friend all rolled into one is the grandparent. It is essential that this generation of children in India today realize that Grandparents are indeed our heritage as well as essential members of our families and communities.
Every child has fond memories forever of their grandparents holding on their tiny hands with affection and telling fairy tales as well as narrating interesting episodes from great epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata. Most children in India today indeed proudly claim their knowledge of these epics from “kahani” sessions by grandparents. Dadi Maa ki Khaniyan has always been an integral component of Indian civilization.

Indian values have long been tied to a particularly high degree of respect for the elderly. A common tradition in India has been the young touching the feet of the elderly as a sign of love and respect. The changing value system in Indian society has pushed the elderly to old age homes or isolated them to care for themselves.

It is known that Information is just bits of data while Knowledge is putting them together and Wisdom is transcending them and it is indisputable that our grandparents have indeed played a very crucial role in transmitting the wisdom to successive generations.

Under this SAVE programme, students of member schools form SAVE committees within their own schools. Students of the school can select their own office bearers (Student from Class V to Class XII can be members). Headed by the school Principal and guided by a school teacher, these committees chalk out plans and programmes for implementation within the school and the community outside. The aim of these committees is to spread awareness of the 3 core values of SAVE (i) inculcating values of care & respect for the elderly in school going children, (ii) Preparing today’s children & youth for their old age, and (iii) Creating an age friendly society.

On this occasion, over a dozen top ranking schools in Shekhawati Rajasthan carried forward with passion the message of Helpage India SAVE mission. The schools at Pilani include Birla Balika Vidyapeeth (BBVP), Birla Public School (BPS), Birla School, Birla Shishu Vihar, Jamuna Mishra Academy (JMA), Goenka Vidya Mandir, Hari Devi Jhutharam Shishu Sadan, Udairamji Padia Vidya Mandir, CEERI Vidya mandir and Smt. Janaki Devi Mandelia Senior Secondary School. The schools at Chirawa include the Dalmia Boys School, Dalmia Girls School, Sekhsaria School and Chirawa Sr Secondary School and at Bagar the Piramal School. Way to Transform Shridhar University Pilani coordinated with Mr Subhankar Biswas Sr Manager HelpAge India at Kolkata for spreading the SAVE mission in and around Pilani.

If each school declares a date every year in their calendar to be observed as Grand Parents Day, then beyond doubt it will strengthen the child – grandparent bond to the best.

For More Details about HelpAge SAVE see Contact:  Helpage India, Head Office, C-14 Qutab Institutioanl Area, New Delhi 110016   Phone 011- 41688955 /56 Email headoffice(at)helpageindia.org