KATHMANDU: President Ramchandra Paudel has said the younger generation should take benefit from knowledge and skills of senior citizens.
During his address to the Senior Citizens International Conference organised by the Manmohan Memorial Pratishthan (Foundation) here today, the President was of the view that new generation could adopt good practices and experiences of senior citizens through curriculum development or interactions.
Likewise, the senior citizens who are physically capable could be engaged in production according to their abilities. There should be a mandatory provision to involve senior citizens in policy deliberations at the national level as well as in local-level affairs, the President said.
He urged the government and all concerned authorities to introduce and implement practical plans with a long-term vision for the recognition of senior citizens and utilization of their skills and knowledge.
“Nepal is gradually becoming home to an ageing population,” the Head of the State said, adding that youths and working-age population face numerous challenges in pursuing their employment careers of their choice within the country. In such a situation, the effective and productive management of the senior citizens could be practiced in a way that could be an example for other nations as well.
Access to hygienic food, clothing, and healthcare services when necessary are the basic rights of the senior citizens, the President said. They should be provided with as many opportunities as possible to interact with the community and stay within the family.
“The heartbreaking stories of senior citizens due to growing urbanization, foreign migration of youth generations, family intolerance and conflict and other reasons are overwhelming, he said.
On the occasion, the President remembered Manmohan Adhikari, the first elected Prime Minister representing the leftist politics in the whole of South Asia, as a leader with simplicity, who was respected well beyond Nepal.
As he said, pioneer of Nepal’s democratic movement, BP Koirala, along with Manmohan Adhikari and other leaders, had significantly participated in India’s independence movement.
Despite ideological differences between the Congress and Communist parties, Manmohan Adhikari was such a leader with liberal thoughts who believed that collaboration between two forces was essential for restoring multi-party democracy in the country by abolishing the autocratic Panchayat system.
The President also recalled the decision to provide senior citizens with an old-age allowance during the government under the leadership of Adhikari in 2051 BS.
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