A Study on Elderly Women in Minjur & Sholavaram Blocks of Tiruvallur District, Tamilnadu.

Abstract

The boundary between middle and old age is not clearly marked by and physical or intellectual transformation. In Eastern Europe, by contrast women usually retire at 55 years and men at the age of 60 years. In the agrarian societies of developing Asian countries, retirement of ‘old age’ is gradual process marked by subtle change in physical appearance and the timing varies. Ageing is the universal phenomenon and no society can escape from it. Old age is considered as the age of retirement. In India, the age of retirement varies from 50-60 years.

Age sixty is considered as the dividing line between middle and old age. According to 2001 Indian census, 7.0 percent of the total populations are above the age of 60 years. So this study has covered the elderly women profile, psychosocial and health problems of elderly women. The universe of the study constitutes of the elderly women in Minjur and Sholavaram Blocks in Tiruvallur District. The researcher has administered the respondents by using an interview schedule to assess the psychosocial profile and health problems of elderly women. The study reveals that majority (72 %) of the respondents were not receiving either old age pension nor widow allowance from the state government, and 26% have received old age pension or widow allowance. The study shows that around 40% of them have diabetics and hyper-tension problems, in which 40% have only diabetic’s and heart problems. Researcher finds that more than half of the respondents (55%) lives alone without their family and have psychosocial problems.