Indore: Beggar claims Rs 75,000 found in her possession during rescue earned in a month

Bhopal v Madhya Pradesh’s Women and Child Development Department on Thursday claimed to have rescued a woman beggar near a temple in Indore with cash amount more than Rs 75, 000. The administration claimed, that the woman, who has been shifted to a rescue centre run by the Women and Child Development Department, has confessed to earning the money within one month from begging in the area. Project Officer of the Child Development Department in Indore city, Dinesh Mishra said, "During the interrogation woman said she had earned this money in the past month. She has been involved in begging for the last several years."

The state government has revived the beggar-free campaign which was initially planned in September 2023 by the then Indore District Collector Ilayaraja T. Ilayaraja T is now serving as Additional Secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Department while new Indore District Collector Ashish Singh has taken forward the implementation of the scheme. The district administration has said that the campaign has been launched so that the children and women engaged in begging at crossroads could be rescued.

An official said that a committee under the supervision of the Indore District administration, along with the concerned departments must identify sectors (hotspots) where there are cases of disguised begging. The rescued child labourers cum beggars are being given proper counselling followed by education and training so that they are properly rehabilitated and do not go back on the streets. "Rescued persons are counselled in three phases and if they are still found on the streets, then there is also a procedure for legal action against them," Dinesh Mishra said. Indore district administration has deployed a dedicated team that looks after the issue along with the other departments to introduce a grassroots campaign for this purpose.