Nearly 52% of the elderly persons in the state feel ill-treated at home and outside because of their age, but have to put up with the humiliation, says a survey by Helpage India. The national figure for senior citizens who feel ill-treated is much lower at 31%. The survey also says 56% of the senior citizens keep mum about their plight to protect the family name.

These facts came to the fore at a programme that HelpAge India organised at the Sangeet Natak Akademi's Valmiki auditorium here on Monday.

Justice SC Varma, who was the chief guest, said, “In India, it is a legal obligation for children to provide support to elderly parents under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act. But, still cases of mistreating the parents emerge.”

He also said it was the duty of the young people to ensure that senior citizens lived with dignity, security, enjoying access to essential health, social services and a minimum income.

AK Singh, director, Help Age India UP and Uttarkhand, said India's population of 100 million senior citizens was the second largest in the world. Atrocities on them often went unreported, he added.

Nearly 90% of them have to work for a livelihood and a majority of them are illiterate. Plus, 12 million of them are blind. The number of the elderly is expected to increase to 315 million by 2050.