The number of child beggars and alms seekers has increased manifold, especially in shopping centres and cattle markets within the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, right before the advent of Eidul Azha.
The people of the two cities have demanded strict actions against those who are involved in the child begging and alms seeking racket. A citizen named Muhammad Ashfaq said that alms seekers sometimes became a constant nuisance especially in shopping centres and at traffic signals.
Similarly, another citizen, Muhammad Imran said that professional child begging was a serious problem in society as minors were involved in beseeching and imploring the citizens especially in markets.
He said that when people tried to ignore them, they cursed or abused the people.
When contacted, the ICT spokesperson said that the ICT administration is continuously conducting raids against the child begging. In recent action, the Assistant Commissioner has initiated an operation to curb professional beggars in the federal capital.
During the operation, 27 beggars were apprehended and identified as professional beggars. All of them were promptly transferred to police custody, while minors among them were directed to the Edhi Centre for appropriate care.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 11th, 2024.
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