NEW DELHI: With the rise in the population of the aged, the government is proposing to include a penalty clause in the revised version of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen (Amendment) Bill, 2019 to ensure minimum standards at seniorcare institutions and provide for action against those that fail the registration norms.
It is learnt that the ministry of social justice and empowerment has proposed the inclusion of a stringent penalty clause that could invite a jail term of one year for those working without registration or providing poor services.
This proposal will require the approval of the law ministry and then will have to be sent to the Cabinet before the revised bill can be tabled in Parliament. Since the bill is listed among others as part of the business to be taken up in the ongoing budget session , it is likely that the revised bill may soon make it to the Cabinet for approval.
The 2019 bill proposed to make not just biological children but adoptive children, step sons and daughters, son-in-law and daughter-in-law and minors through legal guardians, responsible for care of and providing maintenance to parents.