Sandip Banerjee,
Harish Mukherjee Road

Old-age bonds are important and a must in this age. Youngsters forget their parents as soon as they get a job. But I feel parents have a right to love and care. After all, they spend their lives bringing up their kids.

Prahlad Agarwala,
Majdia, Nadia

There are many sons and daughters who take care of their parents; just a handful are selfish and greedy. I think parents should not make teenaged children sign bonds guaranteeing old-age care. This would bitter the relationship even further. Children and parents should understand and compromise with each other.

Nishita Mitra,
South 24-Parganas

Signing a bond is like buying household goods 30 years in advance to avoid high prices in future. The only bond between parents and children is of love and loyalty. Signing a bond will be a foolish thing to do.

Manasi Chakroborty,
Behala

Parents look after their children and think about the welfare. It is the duty of the children to look after their aged parents in turn. A signed bond is not necessary; the feeling should come from within. The bond should be of love, not on paper.

P. Pramanik,
Santoshpur Avenue

The future is very unpredictable. Such a bond could be futile but could turn out to be beneficial too. Every day, we read reports of sons and daughters-in-law abandoning their parents. When we can go for life insurance, why not security bonds with children?

Kaberi Mukherjee,
Santosh Roy Road

It is sad that people have started weighing parent-child relationship in terms of money and security bonds. It is unthinkable where I stand. If parents teach such a thing to their children, what will they learn? They will learn that relationships are all about security and duty. There will be no love.

P. Pal,
Karaya Road

The idea is bogus. The bond should be about love and commitment. Parents have some expectation from their children, but they cannot force the relation on them.

Chandralekha Sarkar,
Kasba

If people are forced to abide by rules, they tend to break them very easily. Children should be taught that it is their responsibility to take care of parents when they are old. Love, understanding and devotion are the only means to solve this social problem.

Govinda Bakshi,
Budge Budge

The young generation has been influenced by the West and has become very selfish. Youngsters now will invariably neglect their parents when they become old. Having said that, it is not Indian to get your children to sign a bond to guarantee your upkeep in old age. The courts should come to the rescue of aged parents neglected by their offspring.

Diptimoy Ghosh,
Salt Lake

The bond is an absurd idea and cannot be supported. Instead, compassion should be inculcated in children. They would then automatically look after parents when the need arises. And they would not do it out of pity but respect. A bond, on the other hand, can strain the relationship.

Manashi Chakraborty,
Golf Green

If the relationship between parents and their children is good then each will look after the other. The psychology of the individuals concerned, obviously, matter as well. Nuclear or joint families have nothing to do with it.

Paramananda Pal,
Karaya Road

It is ridiculous for parents to ask their children to sign a bond. It is the moral duty of children to look after parents. Education cultivates such values in their minds. However, with the demands of career eating up time and energy, the youth often find it difficult to look after their parents as they would want to. The socio-economic condition is as much to blame for this as the generation’s self-centredness. It is also the responsibility of parents to not spend their entire savings on children and end up completely dependent on them.

Suranjan Bonnerjee,
Parnasree Pally

A legal agreement between children and parents is best avoided. Children are born without any sense. They pick up things. Parents should teach them the right values and lead their life in such a way that they emulate their example. Understanding between children and parents is important. If there is good bonding, there will be a proper emotional attachment. No bonds will be necessary.

Mihir Kanungo,
Rajbari

A bond guaranteeing old-age care is foolish. Care, love and respect are not born out of bonds. Similarly, discord cannot be barred by a bond. I don’t blame children for being heartless. We have not set an example before them.

T.R. Anand,
Budge Budge

Making teenaged children sign bonds will not relieve parents from their worries. Love and affection should come from within. Today’s teenaged children do not have that much affection for their parents and are more alert about how best to squeeze out what they want from the elders. After marriage, their objectives get skewed further. It is high time every parent started saving something for their old age without expecting their wards to take care of them.

Ashis Kr Bhowmick,
Kaikhali

In my opinion, parents should not go for any such bond.Whatever they do for their children is out of natural love and affection. They try to inculcate these values in their children through life. So children should reciprocate in the same fashion. Otherwise, it will be the death of all emotions which make our family system sweet and sound.

Lalita Agarwal,
Bagmari Lane

The question may seem a bit odd but considering the number of cases that have come up recently of children neglecting their parents,the signing of a bond between parents and children may not seem so far-fetched after all. However, I still believe that if a child is able to imbibe the right values from his family, he will definitely not shirk his responsibilities.