Innocence with a flaw

By this, most of us would be encouraging these kids to beg throughout their lives. “In due course of time these kids get used to getting easy money. Even if they can take out time to study and the ones in their late teens, who can find time to work prefer begging because that is easy money and we by encouraging this are surely committing a crime,” says Nupur Nanal, SYB, Fergusson College who is volunteering for the Anti Child Begging Campaign jointly organised by the NGOs Dream India 2020 and Samidha.

The campaingn is scheduled to be on November 15 and 16.

The campaign that aims at driving home the message that giving alms to child beggars is dragging the kids towards the world of gambling, pick pocketting and other petty thefts will have counters put up at various pockets in the city where the volunteeres will interact with people. “We are putting up couters at MG Road, Sauras Bagh, Sambhaji Park, Inox and E- Square. We are having this campaign on a weekend when MG Road will have ‘Walking Plaza, which will give us a better opportunity to interact with people. We are also having a street play staged by college sudents in those two days,” says 24 – year – old Amit Subhash Gawade, software engineer who too is volunteering for the event.

With an attempt to pull off the mask that misleads one’s vision into committing this crime the campaign will also have fliers stating the reasons why one should not give alms to child beggars. “Unknowingly, common people like us promote child begging by giving alms to children at traffic-signals, road sides and in public places. Child beggars involved in criminal activities pose a serious threat to social security, not to mention the very moral fabric of society. The easy money lure them into tobacco chewing, gambling and other such activities,” shares Saurabh Pethekar, IT professional and a volunteer for the campaign.

Through the campaign they make an appeal to the Puneites to stop giving alms to child beggars. “We humbly request the people to contact and support government agencies, welfare committees, NGOs and institutions working for such children i this regard if found any child begger. When you give them alms these organisations’ efforts to rehabilitate child beggars is getting affected,” says Nanal.

The campaign also aims to support NGOs in giving these children a chance to get off the streets, to get a decent education, and to live a life with dignity and self-respect.