Tamil Nadu to set up 25 Anbucholai centres for elderly

Tamil Nadu plans day care centres for elderly called Anbucholai.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu Photo Library

The Tamil Nadu government will set up 25 Anbucholai centres (day care centres for elderly) to ensure the overall well-being of senior citizens.

“Old age is an inevitable stage of human life, and is often accompanied by challenges of loneliness, medical care, and financial dependency,” Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu, who presented the budget for 2025 said.

The ‘Anbucholai’ centres will be established in Municipal Corporations, including Madurai, Coimbatore, Trichy, Salem, Tiruppur, Erode, Thoothukudi, Vellore, Thanjavur, and Dindigul, with a financial allocation of ₹10 crore. In these day care centres, the elderly can engage in companionship and meaningful activities. Each ‘Anbucholai’ centre will provide various services, including day-care assistance, arrangements for essential medical care, and recreational activities, with the support of voluntary organisations.

Chief Minister’s Breakfast scheme in govt. aided schools too

Pointing out studies that have shown that the attendance levels of students and their nutrition and learning abilities have improved significantly following the implementation of the Chief Minister’s Breakfast scheme, the Minister said the scheme, first initiative of its kind in the country, would be further expanded in the next academic year to include Government aided schools in urban areas also.

“It will benefit an additional 3.14 lakh students enrolled from class I to class V and a sum of Rs.600 crore has been allocated for its implementation in the coming financial year,” he said.

The Minister said to ensure essential facilities in Anganwadi Centres, new buildings would be constructed for 500 centres currently operating in rented premises. The allocation is ₹83 crore.

He said ₹3,676 crore would be allocated for the Integrated Child Development Scheme in the Budget Estimates 2025-26. In the Budget Estimates, a sum of ₹8,597 crore has been allocated for the Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Department.