November 06 2009
"Most youngsters consider their old parents a burden," Surendra Prasad Joshi, a retired university professor, says.
Traditional care of the elderly within the extended family is breaking down in Nepal, according to Joshi, who now volunteers as secretary to the MC Sisters in Nepal.
He said that economic pressures add to the problem as most youngsters head overseas to find work. Furthermore, with the trend toward nuclear families these days, fewer young people are looking after their parents. "Many parents are literally thrown out of homes; they are either dropped off at old age homes or in temples," he added.
At one government-run facility for the elderly at least, located on the premises of the Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, they get loving care from the MC nuns who work there.
"I am happy here," says 80-year-old Bir Bahadur Gurung, whose sons left him to fend for himself as he grew older and weaker. "I get to eat and I have friends with whom I can talk with, and the sisters always take good care of us."
The MC sisters first started their Nepal mission in 1980 following a visit to Kathmandu by Blessed Teresa of Kolkata.
"During her visit, 'Mother' cleaned the toilets at the home and later convinced the late Queen Aishwarya Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah to give the sisters a part of the home" to work in, said Sister Rose Therese, head of the MC sisters in Nepal.
They now have 32 elderly people in their care. The nuns bathe, feed and wash the clothes of residents who cannot perform daily chores.
According to HelpAge International, a global network working for the elderly, six percent of the 28.5 million people in Nepal are aged over 60.
There are currently nine MC sisters stationed in three centers in Nepal.
There are currently nine MC sisters stationed in three centers in Nepal.
Abridged
SOURCE: Indian Catholic News
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