Now, job fair for citizens over 60

At a time of economic slowdown, jobs are at a premium. And while we often think of job seekers as young - there is a growing community out there of people above the age of 60 who are desperately keen to put their experience to work for financial and emotional reasons.

At a unique job fair in Bangalore, the applicants come with a wealth of experience that would be the envy of many, many job seekers. It is a job fair for people over the age of 60."

After a full career the people who turned here still want to earn, and continue to use their hard-won knowledge.

Job seeker V S Murthy says: "I don't want to waste my time. I have precious time. I want to use it in the best way for the remaining part of my life. This is the right age, we have learnt something so that we can give something back to society."

M N Krishnamurthy, a retired railway officer, is 77 years old.

"Age may be to the body - but not to the mind. An idle mind is the devil's workshop, especially for the senior citizen. Unfortunately I lost my wife about 9 years back. I am all alone -- children are going for their duties, they are going in the morning and coming in the night. My son is mentally challenged and I have accommodated him comfortable. What about my fate? I am alone - and I am feeling that I am feeling very lonely in the world. Why can't I put my flesh and blood in this way so that my experience will be of some use to the nation?"

Dr Radha S Murthy of Nightingales Medical Trust says: "I got a few calls from senior citizens aged about 75 or 80 asking for a job as an accountant. I was quite surprised -- why this thing of wanting a job at this stage. I was focussing on health care as a major issue for the elderly -- but now I notice it was a financial problem which was cropping up."

The Federation of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry has signed an MoU with Nightingales to promote job opportunities for senior citizens. One step towards what could be a win-win situation both for companies - and for these eager and experienced job seekers.