New Delhi: Describing himself as an old man, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on July 14 contested the observations made by his Cabinet colleague and Health Minister Sushma Swaraj that old age is a curse.

"Sushma ji ne abhi kaha ki budapa ek bimari hai, main ise nahin manta aur agar aisa hai to hum iska ant kar denge (Sushmaji just said old age is a disease. I don't think so, and even if it is we will end this), Vajpayee said pointing that he himself was passing through old age.

The aged were increasingly perceived as a burden due to economic considerations and hardships, Vajpayee said and added that the launch of insurance-linked pension scheme for senior citizens was aimed at alleviating their plight.

He said such sections of population could attain a certain degree of financial independence through a marginal investment.

This, he said, will help them to have a small saving through capital formation, which will come in handy on a rainy day.

Earlier, Swaraj said old age was now akin to a disease and the Prime Minister was worried about it.

PTI