Eldercare start-up Alserv expands to Kochi.

Alserv, a tech start-up focussed on non-real-estate-based assisted living services for the elderly has announced its foray into Kochi. Founded in January 2020, the eldercare start-up was primarily offering its services in Chennai and this is the first phase of expansion.

Jagadish Ramamoorthy, Co-founder & Director, Alserv, quoting a recent NSO study said Kerala has the highest population of elderly in India. There are about 15,000-20,000 retirement homes in the country, indicating a wide chasm between the ageing population and the number of available homes.

“We are aiming to secure 500 plus families in Kochi by 2022,” he said adding that the services will be launched in other States soon. Currently over 750 plus families are benefitting from the homecare services provided by Alserv.

According to him, India is witnessing a critical need for home-based elder care services. The Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (2020) said that the country’s elderly population accounted for 8.6 per cent of the total population, with 103 million people over the age of 65. The senior population is growing at a 3 per cent annual rate and is expected to reach 319 million by 2050. This statistic shows that the proportion of the population that is over the age of 65 is increasing exponentially. An increase in the older population will lead to an urgent need for elder care and support, at a time, in India particularly where traditional family-based care is becoming less the norm than in the past.

During Covid-19, Alserv’s subscribers increased by 500 per cent, he added.

HBL