The panel of seniors assesses 33 complaints

The Kerala State Senior Citizens’ Commission reviewed 33 complaints during a grievance redressal hearing held at the Collector’s Conference Hall here on Monday (November 9). The session was chaired by committee chairman K. Somaprasad and member Amaravila Ramakrishnan.

Addressing the media, the chairman said that most of the complaints were related to family disputes, which mainly involved children not providing proper care and nourishment to their elderly parents. Other key issues raised during the meeting included delay in collection of pensions, non-return of advances made in cooperative banks, non-completion of works by contractors after receipt of payments and refusal of tenants to vacate houses even after expiry of leases.

The Commission highlighted the urgent need to set up voluntary committees across all police station boundaries as mandated by the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007. While Maintenance Courts headed by Revenue Department Officers (RDOs) are currently functional under the Act, the Commission noted that there has been considerable delay in processing the pending petitions.

Mr. Somaprasad said that the Commission had recently convened a meeting of tax division officials to look into the issue. The commission subsequently recommended that the state government depute specialized staff to the revenue divisional offices to speed up disposal of cases in the tribunals.

Assuring that senior citizens can approach the Commission with any grievance, the Chairman said the panel also registers suo motu cases based on media reports and other reports brought to its notice. He expressed the hope that the newly established Department for Senior Citizens will enable more effective interventions in matters concerning senior citizens.

Published – 09 Nov 2026 19:14 IST