The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) has, on Wednesday, issued directions to the authorities concerned to crack down on forced begging by children in the city, and submit a report within a month’s time.
The Commission has asked the Commissioners of Police of Hyderabad and Cyberabad respectively, the GHMC Commissioner, Commissioner of Labour, and the Principal Secretary of Education, to take necessary steps to curb ‘child begging’ and submit the Action Taken Report by October 8.
Responding to a complaint filed by Satyanarayana Gola, secretary of the NGO Jaibharat Organisation, and newspaper reports, the commission has noted that children painted in toxic colours were being used for begging near traffic signals, temples and more recently, Ganesh pandals. The paints may lead to chronic diseases in the long run, and it would be a serious violation of child rights, members of the Commission noted in a press briefing here on Wednesday.
Further, children are being forced to beg at traffic junctions, probably at the behest of child trafficking mafia, Mamatha Raghuveer, one of the members, noted. Needing more attention are the children rented out to beggars, she said, and urged people not to give alms to such persons.
She said the Commission will soon write to both the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh State governments to enact a law against begging.
The Commission has asked both the police commissioners to set up task forces with members drawn from all the departments concerned, for rescue and rehabilitation of the child beggars. If necessary, cases should be filed against the parents too. Traffic Police should be issued orders to take action against forced begging by children, it said. Md. Raheemuddin, and P. Achyuta Rao were other members of the Commission who addressed the press briefing.
