This is the brainchild of the Active Retirees' Association (ARA), a group set up in 2003 for those aged 50 and above, which organises voluntary activities for more than 100 members.

It is the first project funded by the Goh Keng Swee Foundation, a private charitable foundation set up in the name of the former deputy prime minister by his wife Phua Swee Liang last November(08).

ARA president Jackson Chia Sze Soon said its volunteers had noticed that many seniors were burning joss sticks at home when they were doing house visits for the elderly, as part of a home safety programme where they replace old stoves and piping.

He said, 'Some of the flats are full of smoke and soot. These people are facing a risk but they are not aware of it.'

Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times.