A few days ago, an 82-year-old gentleman walked into Moul Mouj Health Centre accompanied by his daughter. He complained of breathlessness, poor sleep, weakness, knee pain, occasional forgetfulness, and loss of appetite. As I reviewed his records, I realized he was living with hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and early kidney impairment. He was taking nine different medicines every day. Before leaving, he asked a simple but profound question: “Doctor Sahib, yeh sab bimariyan mere budape ki wajah se hai kiya?”That question stayed with me. As a geriatrician, I often remind families that ageing itself is not a disease. However, ageing significantly increases vulnerability to multiple health conditions occurring simultaneously. The reality of ageing in India deserves greater attention, not only from doctors and policymakers but also from families and society at large.

Ageing in IndiaIndia today has more than 12% senior citizens aged 60 years and above. In simple terms, nearly 12 in every 100 Indians are senior citizens. Women outnumber men am

Burden of Chronic DiseasesThe most common health challenge among seniors is hypertension. Between 35% and 42% of........

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