Kerala announces Department for the Elderly to enhance geriatric care

Exam-focused facts from the 1 June 2026 current affairs briefing.

Key facts

The Kerala government announced the formation of a dedicated department for elderly people, the first such initiative in India.
In 2025, Kerala established the State Elderly Commission, a quasi-judicial forum for protecting the rights and welfare of senior citizens.
The state has launched community initiatives including Vayomithram for mobile medical care and Samayaprabha for daycare.
The Kerala Care Palliative Grid, formed with Digital University Kerala, comprises 1,387 government institutions and 1,227 Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to serve 1.5 lakh bedridden and 4 lakh ailing people.
According to the Elderly in India Report 2021, 16.5% of Kerala's population is aged above 60, compared to the all-India figure of 13.1%.