healthcare

Senior Citizens’ Health in Chennai: Elderline, Geriatric Care

Where Chennai's older residents can get free geriatric care, what Elderline 14567 does, and how the Senior Citizens Act secures maintenance of up to Rs 10,000 a month.

19 October 2026

Chennai FalconMr. Parthasarathy aka Chennai Falcon is passionate about…

Elder care in Chennai: who to call, where to go

For an older person in Chennai who needs help and does not know where to start, one free call covers a lot of ground: Elderline, 14567. The Union government’s national helpline for senior citizens has run since 1 October 2021 and answers from 8 am to 8 pm, seven days a week (PIB). Callers can ask about hospitals, old age homes, day-care centres and caregivers, get guidance on pensions, maintenance and legal disputes, talk through loneliness or family trouble, and report abuse or neglect for field intervention.

For medical care, Chennai has a government hospital built only for older patients, the National Centre of Ageing at Guindy, and a long-running geriatric medicine department at Madras Medical College. Here is where to go, and what the law offers if family support breaks down.

The National Centre of Ageing, Guindy

The centre stands on the King Institute campus in Guindy and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi via video link on 25 February 2024 (DT Next). It was one of two National Centres of Ageing the Union Health Ministry sanctioned, with AIIMS New Delhi, and Madras Medical College was named as its host institution (MoHFW). The building served as a Covid care centre before repairs; the state put its cost at ₹151 crore.

It is functioning as a geriatric hospital. Departments at launch included cardiology, nephrology, neurology, urology, gastroenterology, psychiatry, physical medicine and rehabilitation, ENT and orthopaedics, along with Ayush and Siddha. A few weeks after opening, its director in-charge told DT Next it was seeing more than 600 outpatients a day, and its rehabilitation unit was handling 130 to 140 patients daily (DT Next). Pay wards with an attached bathroom start at ₹900.

The walk from the Guindy bus stop was a common complaint; the same report said mini buses for elderly patients run from 7 am to 6 pm.

Geriatric OPDs at Madras Medical College and RGGGH

Madras Medical College, attached to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital near Central, set up its Department of Geriatric Medicine in April 1978. The department’s page lists separate outpatient services for men and women from 8 am to 11 am, and an 88-bed inpatient strength that includes an eight-bed geriatric ICU in the RGGGH premises (Madras Medical College). Special clinics run from 10 am to 11 am, Monday to Saturday, each on a fixed day:

Monday: comprehensive geriatric assessment
Tuesday: falls
Wednesday: incontinence
Thursday: pain
Friday: memory
Saturday: geriatric rehabilitation

The page gives the OP location as Tower III, sixth floor, room 31, without naming the campus. Confirm at the hospital enquiry counter which campus the clinic you need is running from. Carry old prescriptions, scan reports and a list of every medicine being taken.

Beyond these two, the National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly sets a pattern for the wider system: a geriatric OPD and a 10-bed ward at district hospitals, a twice-weekly geriatric clinic at community health centres and a weekly clinic at primary health centres (MoHFW). For people over 70, the Union government’s Ayushman Vay Vandana card is covered in our separate explainer. In August 2026 the state Health Minister K.G. Arunraj also announced a Chief Minister’s Elderly Insurance Scheme for about 38 lakh people over 70 with no income ceiling (PTI via Deccan Chronicle); watch for official enrolment details.

The law that protects parents and senior citizens

The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 gives anyone aged 60 or above a quick legal remedy without going to a regular court. The basics:

Who can claim: a parent or grandparent who cannot maintain themselves can claim from adult children; a childless senior citizen can claim from a relative who will inherit their property.
Where: a Maintenance Tribunal set up by the state. Lawyers are not allowed to represent either side (section 17).
How much and how fast: up to ₹10,000 a month (section 9), with interim maintenance possible while the case runs. The tribunal must decide within 90 days of notice, extendable once by 30 days.
If children do not pay: the tribunal can issue a recovery warrant and jail the defaulter for up to a month.
Property: if a parent gifted property on the condition of being looked after and that care stops, the tribunal can declare the transfer void (section 23).
Abandonment: leaving a senior citizen with intent to abandon them is punishable with up to three months in jail, a ₹5,000 fine, or both.
Appeal: within 60 days of the order.

The Act also asks states to reserve hospital beds for older people, run separate queues for them and earmark geriatric facilities in every district hospital (section 20). Elderline can guide you on filing a case. For a dispute involving property, consult a lawyer before signing anything.

Quick answers

What are Elderline’s hours?

8 am to 8 pm every day, on the toll-free number 14567.

Is the National Centre of Ageing in Guindy open?

Yes. It opened in February 2024 and runs outpatient, inpatient and rehabilitation services for older patients.

Can a son be ordered to pay maintenance to his parents?

Yes. A Maintenance Tribunal can order up to ₹10,000 a month and must decide within 90 days, extendable by 30.

Information checked against official sources on 18 October 2026. Fees, dates and rules can change; confirm on the linked official pages before acting.