Mr. Wasantha Athukorala, Senior Professor of the Department of Economics and Statistical Studies of the University of Peradeniya, said that there are nearly 32 lakh people over the age of 60 in this country, and 34% of them live by depositing their money as fixed deposits in banks and earning interest from it. (Sri Lanka Latest News)
Over the past period, the elderly population in Sri Lanka has grown rapidly, and the number of people over 55 years has now exceeded 39 lakhs.
Also, the population over 65 years has exceeded 25 lakhs.
It is said that these people do not have specific sources of income, and a significant number of them survive on the interest income they get from depositing their money in banks.
But now the rate of interest paid on fixed deposits has been reduced to 9%. Due to this, their incomes have decreased significantly.
On average, a person who maintains a deposit of 10 lakhs will receive an amount of Rs. 7,500 as interest every month.
But this poverty line presented by the Population and Statistics Department is reported as 16,619 rupees by March 2024.
According to Professor Wasantha Athukorala, they do not get even the minimum income required for a person to live, and as a result, the elderly people are in dire straits.
