On his 76th birthday last year, Ramesh Kumar Vij decided to give a unique gift to other senior citizens. Along with Kritarth Malhotra, he launched HUM Communities, an online community-based job platform dedicated to finding and creating job opportunities for elderly people.
“As an electrical engineer, I worked in various government departments and public sector companies, but once I retired in 2000, I found myself with a lot of time on my hands and began having negative thoughts,” he says.
“I realised there are many seniors like me who are physically fit and can be gainfully employed for another decade or so but have nothing to do after retirement.”
In the one year since its launch, the social enterprise has extended its reach to other cities. There are now three HUM chapters in Delhi, one in Chennai, and one in Bengaluru. “People can contact our community helpline and we add their profile and resume to our database. We also introduce them to the HUM ambassadors in each place, who then add them to the local WhatsApp group,” says Malhotra.
Read more of this unique effort to bring in 'enjoyment with work with help in economy' for elders in a report by Priya Menon published in The Times of India...
