a police raid or a fight with a prospective ‘customer’. EDO (CD) Ch Ishtiaq while talking to The News said majority of beggars are trained professionals and exactly know how to influence the human psyche. He said majority of these beggars could earn more than a labourer’s income who works in scorching heat.
He said CDGL had launched a drive against beggars and during the month of March 2015 its teams arrested 447 beggars who were handed over to a welfare organisation for rehabilitation. He said in the first phase a beggar was kept in a welfare home for five days and given counselling. He said if the beggar was caught again, he was kept in welfare home for 10 days and for a third time a criminal case was registered against him.
Presence of an organised mafia behind the beggars could be authenticated by the fact that the CDGL officers receive telephone calls from influential people for the release of beggar(s) from the welfare homes whereas a good number of lawyers also come for their rescue.
A CDGL official said begging was a punishable offence and police were repeatedly requested to take action against beggars, but in vain. He said in 2011, the Lahore High Court had ruled that the government should strictly enforce laws to discourage ‘professional beggary’ and set up homes for the destitute and improve charity disbursements.
He revealed that a welfare home with a capacity of 100 people is under construction at Raiwind area whereas Edhi and Subhani Welfare also keep beggars.
Another problem being faced by CDGL teams while catching beggars is resistance from the general public, especially in the localities with religious buildings and shrines like Data Darbar. Officials said they faced strict reaction from citizens as well as business community around Data Darbar area whenever an operation was launched against the beggars.
DDO (CD) Ashraf Janjua said the CDGL will continue its operation against professional beggars and soon after the completion of CDGL’s welfare home in Raiwind, the beggars will be sent there.
He said technical training will also be given to beggars so that they could get a respectable status in life.