Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Tuesday tabled in the Assembly the Keralam Senior Citizens' (Care and Protection of Rights) Bill, 2026. The Bill has been referred to the Assembly Subject Committee for further discussions.

The Bill, which attempts to balance care and protection of senior citizens with the need to carve opportunities for them to contribute to the state's economy, proposes the formation of a state-level and district-level Senior Citizen Protection Units and also the development of a care economy around senior citizens. The Bill also has mechanisms for voluntary donations and Living Will.

The Bill is governed by six guiding principles. One, Principle of right to dignity and respect. Two, Principle of best interest; all decisions to be made prioritising their best interests. Three, Principle of ‘ageing in place’ and home-based care; "The senior citizen shall reside at their home as far as possible and sufficient care should be given to them by the family members or relatives or legal heirs.

Four, Principle of safety, security and social care ecosystem. Five, Principle of independence; "Senior citizens should have the opportunity to work or to have access to other income generating activities". Six,  Principle of participation; "Participation of the senior citizen in the policy making shall be encouraged".

The Bill has also laid down seven rights that the State Government, Local Self Government Institutions, other government agencies and private organisations engaged in elderly care should respect.

One, Priority protection for senior citizen women; women senior citizens will have the right to priority shelter and placement in a senior citizen care centre established, owned, controlled by, or receiving aid from, the Government or a local authority.

Two, Right to access care; senior citizens, regardless of gender and sexual orientation, will have the right to access affordable home care services. Three, Right to safe public spaces; all public buildings, facilities and services, and public spaces too, should provide senior citizen-friendly access as per universal design principles.

Four, Right to digital inclusion and safety; senior citizens, even those with nil digital literacy, will have the right to access government services, banking and financial services, telemedicine, right to information, education, income opportunities and other digital services.

Five, Right to legal aid; senior citizens will be entitled to free legal aid. Six, Right to access dignity-preserving products; senior citizens will be entitled to essential eldercare products including mobility aids, hearing aids, spectacles, continence-management products and  similar assistive devices at accessible and reasonable rates.

In addition to these rights, the proposed law will also make it mandatory for registered medical practitioners and senior citizen care centres to report abuse, neglect or exploitation of senior citizens to the District Level Senior Citizen Protection Unit. The report, with evidence, has to be furnished within 48 hours of the doctor or care centre examining the elder.

The Bill also proposes a training mechanism for caregivers. The Chief Minister said that a syllabus would be evolved after studying the best care practices in various parts of the world like Japan and Germany.

The government will prescribe a unified curriculum for geriatric care. The training centres will have to adopt training modules based on this unified curriculum in senior citizen care. Satheesan said that those trained could either be employed as paid caregivers in rich homes or could be deployed by the government for unpaid care in low-income houses.

Voluntary donations
When a resident of a senior citizen care centre voluntarily decides to donate his property, bank funds, or any other income to whoever or whatever entity she chooses, family members or care centre authorities should inform this to the District Level Senior Citizen Protection Unit. The Unit will then conduct an inquiry and make arrangements for executing an agreement in the presence of the District Magistrate.

Living Will
If any senior citizen at home or in any senior citizen care centre voluntarily wishes to execute a Living Will, a family member or the authority in charge of the senior citizen care centre should make the arrangement to execute the declaration in the presence of the Chairperson of the District Level Senior Citizen Protection Forum or the concerned District Level Senior Citizen Protection Unit.

Living Will is the declaration in writing expressing the wish of a senior citizen at home or in any senior citizen care centre, that states his/her preferred 'end of life' priorities such as avoidance of life-extending surgery, IV fluids, chemotherapy, oxygen, admission in intensive care unit, use of invasive tubes and other medical aids.

Cruelty
Under the proposed law, cruelty towards senior citizens will be punished with a jail sentence of up to three years. The Bill defines 'cruelty' as any "wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to compel a senior citizen to leave the house where he is residing or to cause grave injury or danger to his life or limb, or any act which is likely to affect the mental or physical health of a senior citizen or harassment of a senior citizen with a view to coerce him to meet any unlawful demand for any movable or immovable property or valuable security of that senior citizen aimed at keeping the senior citizen alive towards their end of life".