Old-age homes reel under virus pangs

PARADIP: Several old-age homes in the district are staring at acute shortage of provisions and supplies as donors are unable to reach them due to the lockdown.The shortage of grocery items and other essential commodities has made life difficult for the inmates who are forced to manage with little food as the homes were unprepared for the 21-day lockdown period.

There are four old-age homes in Jagatsinghpur of which the one at Naugaon and the other in Kosala village under Raghunathpur block are being run by the Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) department. The remaining two at Paradip and Taratang under Jagatsinghpur block are being managed by by NGOs. There are 40 inmates each at the homes in Naugaon and Raghunathpur. Similarly, the old-age homes at Paradip and Taratang have 33 and 12 inmates respectively.

The homes at Paradip and Taratang depend on contribution of donors who are now unable to send grocery items like rice, dal, oil and vegetables due to restriction on public mobility. Besides, with the lockdown entering its second week, the inmates are faced with shortage of medicines and adult diapers.

Suki Parida, an inmate of Maa Santoshi old-age home at Paradip, said neither the district administration nor any elected representative has come forward with assistance. “No one has come to our aid so far. Without the basic needs, we are living in a pitiable condition,” she said.

Secretary of the old-age home Santosh Behera said the authorities of Paradip Municipality provided cooked food in lunch to the inmates for the first three days of the lockdown and stopped.

Now, nearly 33 inmates are struggling for food and medicines as donors are unable to provide it. “On many occasions, the inmates are forced to go to bed on empty stomach. We don’t have enough to manage during the lockdown,” he added.

Similarly, secretary of the two Government-run homes Ajaya Khuntia said the SSEPD department has fixed the price per meal at only `12. It is difficult to feed the inmates at such a minimal cost as prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed during the lockdown.

“However, the district administration has provided us pass to purchase essential commodities from the local market,” he added.