CHENNAI: The State government has released and credited the long-pending funds for the Anbucholai senior citizens' day-care centres, providing relief to organisations that had been struggling to run the facilities for the past six months.
However, for centres functioning in the city, there is still no clarity on the meal funds pending from the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) through the Social Welfare department.
The centres, operating across 13 districts, had reportedly not received their monthly financial assistance since March. The delay had forced several NGOs to manage the facilities with their own resources for multiple expenses, including food, rent, electricity, water and staff salaries.
The monthly allocation for the centres includes a recurring assistance of Rs 43,500. The funding delay had raised concerns over the continuation of essential services, particularly meals and recreational activities for elderly beneficiaries.
Hence, the release of the funds has finally eased the financial burden on the NGOs and helped ensure uninterrupted functioning of the centres.
The Anbucholai initiative was introduced as a day-care and engagement programme for senior citizens, offering meals, recreation, social interaction and support for those facing loneliness and isolation by the previous DMK government.
Now, the TVK government has renamed the scheme as "Senior Citizens Recreation Centres" and allocated Rs 10 crore for establishing 25 such centres in municipal corporations.