Beggary—a curse on cosmopolitan life of Delhi
As Delhi prepares for the Commonwealth Games 2010, widely expected to draw a large number of international sportspersons and sports lovers to the national capital, the existence of child beggars (read slaves) across the city is all set expose the darker side of ‘a prospering economy’ like India.
Frayed children begging by knocking at the windowpanes of tourist vehicles, irritating any white-skin visitor to buy petty articles or glossy magazines, or at times, abusing or gesturing anyone turning them off, would be an experience which may find wide mention in the visitors’ blogs and journalists’ columns.
A look at the existing state of affairs with regard to beggars in Delhi and authorities’ casual approach flummoxes the mind.
Child Helpline—Dial 1098…..The government’s Child Helpline meant to rescue beggars by preventing victimization of children in the city with citizens’ help find its criticism from the people who understand the problem by its pulse.
“Once you make a call, the information given and caller’s identity is duly recorded. But nothing is recorded to explain what action was taken on that call. What happened to that child after information was passed on to the authorities is a question nobody explains. People should not be surprised to learn that not a single child has been rescued by any child helpline till date,” said Rakesh Senger, National Secretary of Bachpan Bachao Andolan exclusively to Sopan.
Traffic signals and traffic sergeants and Delhi Police…
Rakesh says that every traffic signal has traffic cops and Delhi Police personnel to ward off any untoward incident. But if they also show a sincere willingness and determination at these traffic signals about keeping off beggars, the problem of child beggary can be affected quite convincingly.
Sources of child beggars…..
There is a need to stop prospective child beggars or labourers in their source areas so that child-trafficking cannot take place, says Rakesh while giving insight of the begging world.
Rajasthan and Bihar have been observed as the key states playing a dominant role being sources of child beggars. Rajasthan, in particular, has various areas including Jodhpur, where children of the Banjara community, Jaipur, where some of the hamlets have denotified tribes, Churu, the place with maximum areas of denotified tribes, Seekar, Mahasamund, Jaisalmer, and Udaipur (are full of denotified tribes).
Local agents approach poor parents in villages to befool them with a pittance (Rs.500) in lieu of sending their children for six months or a year to study and also work in Delhi and grow up being a help for the family. In reality, it is these children who are pushed into beggary in the daytime and many of them in prostitution by night at times.
Besides Rajasthan, in Bihar, the areas being source of child beggars include Chapra, Dumka, East and West Champaran. In Uttar Pradesh, such areas are Agra, Saharanpur, Bagpur, and Kanpur. In West Bengal, the areas include 24 Pargana, Midnapore, and Howrah.
Last year floods in Bihar led to child-trafficking at a large scale. The list of missing children keeps increasing side by side. In 2008, about 12,000 children were allegedly trafficked to metropolitan cities between October-December from areas hit by the Kosi floods last August, according to a media report.
Sex and Drug-peddling
While there is no direct evidence of children being pushed directly into prostitution, their sexual exploitation cannot be brushed aside as a product of public’s prejudiced imagination.
“In one case of Delhi’s Hauz Khas and Moti Bagh areas, there are two children aged between 12 to14 whose legs were broken. Today, the crawl as they beg,” said Rakesh Senger of the Bachpan Bachao Andolan.
About sexual exploitation, the girl children cannot explain or point out when it happens. They find it hard to differentiate and explain between a friendly touch and an objectionable touch. They usually live with the belief that just because someone belongs to their village is a reason enough to not doubt or object him for such things. But the prevailing conditions are not too difficult to understand either.
“If five to six children of both the genders aged 8 to 12 share a common place to sleep, there are obvious chances of sexual incidents at any given time, especially at night. Particularly, the Leaders, assigned to supervise the children during day, are usually into taking drugs or alcohol. At Nehru Place, one can find teenaged girls and boys quarreling or teasing each other in the day time. By night their chances of physical exploitation gains strength with such people,” says Rakesh.
Many of these children are at work till 11.00 at night and also become targets of paedophiles. For instance, at Hazrat Nizammudin the beggars include Bengali-speaking children who have been found selling things along with narcotic drugs.
“I have personally noticed an incident in which the child was trying to sell off a packet but the car driver was repeatedly inviting him to get inside the car. It was winter. But the child kept insisting on selling his packet comprising pen, pencil, a torch and drugs! Interestingly, Police are aware of the racket being run through children and which involves selling of drugs here,” says Rakesh.
“Moti Bagh is a VIP area for beggary. It fetches Kali, a child beggars’ group leader in this area, a whopping Rs.90,000 to 150,000 a month. The earnings were admitted by Kali as well as children working under his custody. This gang leader used to operate with a person named Menia, who used to maintain four cellular phones. Despite best efforts, we failed to have a personal meet with him during one of traps, as he turned suspicious about our intentions.
“At Lakshmi Nagar near Kakarduma, there is a cluster of Jhuggis where there are maximum number of child beggars who are brought to different parts of the capital with their bandaged legs or hands or pretending to walk as any lame person at a traffic signal. They are dropped at different places on RTV bus. They are dropped at Paras cinema near Nehru Place, as there are several Dhabas or, the roadside eateries where beside food liquor consumption is also quite high,” says Rakesh.
“These children usually stand outside to collect empty bottles. But most of the time these children would be found requesting visiting customers to leave some quantity in the bottle for them. So, they not just enjoy collecting these bottles to sell off but also get drawn to drinking habit at an innocent age,” Rakesh adds.
Delhi Government’s over ambitious approach…..
Delhi Govt. wants to declare city as ‘Child friendly city’. But a political will power is required which should be sincere to ensure no children should be sighted on traffic signals. Before declaring the entire city ‘Child friendly’, there should be an attempt that first at least one district be made ‘Child friendly district’ and be projected as model district.
“Delhi Govt. wants to declare North West District as Child Friendly District without caring about the fact the problem in that district is almost the worst of all other districts of the city. The pilot project has been prepared for that area which many not be controlled even after five years of efforts. The area involves the dangerous Lal Quarters in Rohini area, where children are trained for begging and other crimes. We want easy areas be declared with minimum effort and be made model for others,” says Rakesh.
Social Welfare Department’s role should be identification, knowing child beggars’ whereabouts, and imparting vocational training or education to such kids. They can be given some financial reward or package during the number of years they take to learn things and stand on their feet at these homes.
Enforcement by police, social welfare department should act and rehabilitate these children, and the society must stop giving alms to begging children. We must stop giving alms to begging children. Once we stop giving them, their demand will stop or decline dramatically.
The public can make a difference in children’s lives if it stops buying things from these children at traffic signals. A real change is possible by just remembering that our every penny given to any begging child ensures supply of five more beggars on that very traffic signal or street.
Wouldn’t it be major help if after completion of their training at Homes, the children are given the entire collected amount along with some extra monetary reward which could lay foundation of their first venture in a respectable society?
Public awareness is important as well as boycott of such kids by people is also crucial to solve the menace of beggary.
“We collected data base of the city and found that in South Delhi’s Moti Bagh area there was widespread child beggary taking place. We established contacts with some of the children who worked under Moti Bagh flyover. During personal interaction, the children revealed that they actually belonged to their parents who lived elsewhere. And, here they work under a woman caretaker,” said Rakesh.
“We jotted down their details about their original native place and parents whoever remembered it. But there were four of them who were orphans and didn’t know about their actual native place,” Rakesh added.
“We approached Govt’s Child Welfare Committee which further ordered for their help. But soon it was learned that not much was being done. We approached police and a rescue plan was prepared. The compliant also mentioned about the children’s middleman or so called ‘caretaker’. Fearing that revelation about the place may cause danger to children’s lives, we contacted the kids again this time at night and asked them to show up when we would arrive the next day with a rescue team. They said if their ‘caretaker’ named Kali could be kept away somehow , they would not hesitate or fear showing up when required,” said Rakesh.
“Kali, the woman caretaker of beggar children, was arrested. And, children were rescued the following day. But both sides were taken away together in the same vehicle. She kept abusing and threatening them in the meantime. At police station, the rescued kids requested that she be put inside the lock up so that they could feel less threatened. But the request was not complied with. The moment they were to be taken for medical check-up, suddenly, some of the kids rushed towards Kali and hugged her. The looked confused as some of them would rush towards her as well as me and would hug both of us,” he said.
“A senior lady police official arrived and Kali shouted at her saying: “Everyday you come to me. Today, instead of coming yourself, you sent this team.” For publicly revealing the secret collusion, the officer beat her black and blue in front of all of us,” Rakesh informed.
Rakesh says that there is a general misconception that these children are runaway kids, which is not the case. These beggar children are those who are borrowed from villages on false promises of being trained for work and be given education in cities like Delhi. Poor parents get tantalized to such malicious traps of agents, especially when a sum of Rs.500 to 1,000 is given to them in advance. --
According to Indian Penal Code’s Article 363 A. (Kidnapping or maiming a minor for purposes of begging): Whoever kidnaps any minor or , not being the lawful guardian of a minor, obtains the custody of the minor, in order that such minor may be employed or used for the purpose of begging shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Whoever maims any minor in order that such minor may be employed or used for the purposes of begging shall be punishable with imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine.
Begging means soliciting or receiving alms in a public place, whether under the pretence of singing, dancing, fortune-telling, performing tricks or selling articles or otherwise. It also includes anyone exposing or exhibiting, with the object of obtaining or extorting alms, any sore, wound, injury, deformity or disease, whether of himself or of any other person or of an animal besides using any minor as an exhibit for the purpose of soliciting or receiving alms.
Posts
