Tech startup Alser, focused on non-real-estate-based assisted living services for the elderly, has announced its foray into Coimbatore and Kochi.
The eldercare startup, founded in January 2020, was primarily offering its services in Chennai and this is the first phase of expansion, a release said.
India is witnessing a critical need for home-based elder care services now. According to the Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (2020), India’s elderly population accounted for 8.6% of the total population, with 103 million people over the age of 65.
The study says that the senior population is growing at a 3% annual rate, with the population 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 over time. 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.
Currently, in Chennai over 750 families are benefitting the home care services provided by Alserv.
Some of the key services Alserv offers are Safety & Security, Housekeeping & Maintenance, Food & Catering, Healthcare & Medical and Concierge. Alserv will be offering all their key services in Coimbatore and Kochi. The startup has collaborated with over 50 verified, trusted vendors in both the cities.
During COVID-19, Alserv’s subscribers increased by 500%. Amidst the pandemic, Alserv launched various COVID relief initiatives for its customers. These initiatives helped over 300 subscribers.
The company launched ‘Alserv Prime’, a full-service at-home solution for everything a modern family requires. This was followed by the launch of ‘COVID Care’ and ‘Alserv Safe-At-Home’. ‘COVID Care’ was launched for COVID-19 positive elderly individuals. This entails delivery of meals, grocery and medicine, facilitating services of nurses and caretakers, providing oxygen support and other medical equipment to the elderly (upon request).
‘Alserv Safe-At-Home’ was launched recently during the second wave. This covers professional deep-cleaning, disinfection and sanitization services for houses post COVID isolation period, the release added.
Alserv Co-founder & Director Jagadish Ramamoorthy said, “According to a recent study by NSO (National Statistics Office), Kerala (16.5%) has the highest population of elderly followed by Tamil Nadu (13.6%). Also, there are about 15,000 to 20,000 retirement homes in India today indicating a wide chasm between the aging population and the number of available homes.”
“Seniors feel they don’t have a viable alternative to these distant, investment-heavy communities. With Alserv, everything can be availed at home, at a more affordable cost. In fact, we even provide services that are not available in these communities. Our mission is to ensure that seniors are not displaced from their familiar lifestyle and able to enjoy a full life,” he added.
Alserv will foray into Hyderabad and Bengaluru by December 2021. It aims to secure over 2000 families in these cities by 2022.
