Peshawar district administration has recently placed a ban on begging in its jurisdiction
FAISALABAD: The Peshawar district administration has recently placed a ban on begging in its jurisdiction. There might be over a dozens of ways to control begging, but a blanket ban is certainly not one of them. While some people may be pushed to begging, others have made begging more of an organised activity and thus a ban is likely to result in other similar activities, perhaps more unlawful. Hence, there has to be a well thought-out plan to curb begging, which would give result over a period of time, that is, fewer beggars on the streets or none at all.
On the other hand, it is important to keep in mind that economic disparity, lack of education and massive population increase have a correlation with begging. Considering all this, eliminating the scourge of begging needs a holistic approach.
Without reducing the income gap between various sections of society the ban might result in an increase in street crimes and other forms of organised criminal activities. This makes the case for a holistic approach to the problem much stronger.
Zoha Mahmood
Published in The Express Tribune, November 25th, 2017.
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