https://sputniknews.in/20230715/child-beggars-on-delhi-streets-trying-to-spare-their-families-the-blushes-2979915.html
Child Beggars on Delhi Streets Trying to Spare Their Families the Blushes
Child Beggars on Delhi Streets Trying to Spare Their Families the Blushes
Sputnik India
Be it any traffic signal or religious place in Indian cities, you may come across various bare-footed kids begging for a coin or two or pleading commuters to at least to buy something from them.
2023-07-15T10:00+0530
2023-07-15T10:00+0530
2023-07-15T11:34+0530
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At religious sites and traffic signals in India's cities, you may come across various bare-footed children begging for a coin or two or pleading commuters to at least buy something from them.They dance to drum beats or perform acrobatic tricks in order to elicit pity.To many city-dwellers, they are a big nuisance. But for some, they are simply helpless, trying to eke out a living through different means.Sputnik talked to various beggar children and their parents to explore their underpriviledged world.The city's famous Marghat Hanuman Temple near Kashmere Gate area is dotted with hundreds of homeless people. But on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the place comes alive due to various playful and chirpy tiny-tots or teenage beggars.They come here to beg since tens of thousands of devotees throng the temple on these two important religious days."So, when I return from school in the afternoon, I come here to be with my mummy," the seven-year-old added.Being a Beggar Child Amid ThreatsTwenty two-year-old Rukssar is the mother of a four-year-old girl. Every day the little girl fetches her 200-300 rupees, which she begs for near Delhi's historic Jama Masjid.Until she got married to a rag picker, Ruksaar herself lived as a beggar. It was the only way to earn money since her parents didn't bother to admit her to any school. Now Ruksaar's daughter helps her make a living in the same way.She explained that people in cars pay children generously and overlook the adults.Delhi-born Shaima of Bhajanpura area admits it was her young friend in childhood who drew her into begging to buy candies or snacks whenever she desired. Her parents were against it.Today, living surrounded by so many inebriated men or drug-addicts sitting or sleeping on the same pavement or under an overpass remains her biggest fear.Is Every Child on the Road a Beggar?Standing barely three-and-a-half feet high, carrying big poly bags with colorful georgette sarees in them, every day Jameel Khan from Bihar state awaits visitors on a usually busy road of Old Delhi near the iconic Red Fort.The moment any gullible white-skinned tourist or regional visitor gets near, he starts luring them to buy his packet -- a pack of three sarees -- being sold literally for a song.For him, it's routine to be on the roadside and wave to the tourists to come and buy the sarees as mementos. Each sale earns him INR 300 as a commission. If luck smiles, he sells off two packets, but if it doesn’t, it leaves him feeling desolate.Back at home, the siblings are under their grandma's wings.With a dream to set up a grocery shop back in Bihar, the little boy explains that he wakes up early to do more and earn more. Each week, he transfers the daily earnings to grandma's account. She actually made him realize the big responsibility -- educating sisters while saving to marry them off one day.Let Kids be in Schools, Not at Traffic Signals, says the Kailash Satyarthi FoundationBelieving many such kids could become victims of child labor trafficking, Sputnik talked to the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, founded by Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi.When asked what could be done to help out the children who could be victims of trafficking in the wake of decriminalization, he said: "There are very stringent laws and policies that can ensure that children are not forced to beg. But what we need to focus now on is the implementation of these laws."Note: All of the children's real names have been changed to hide their identity
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Child Beggars on Delhi Streets Trying to Spare Their Families the Blushes
10:00 15.07.2023 (Updated: 11:34 15.07.2023) In 2021, a Supreme Court bench observed begging as a socio-economic problem. In 2018, the Delhi High Court nullified a law that made begging a crime in the city, saying that criminalizing begging violated the fundamental rights of some of the most vulnerable people.
At religious sites and traffic signals in India's cities, you may come across various bare-footed children begging for a coin or two or pleading commuters to at least buy something from them.
They dance to drum beats or perform acrobatic tricks in order to elicit pity.
To many city-dwellers, they are
a big nuisance. But for some, they are simply helpless,
trying to eke out a living through different means.
Sputnik talked to various beggar children and their parents to explore their underpriviledged world.
The city's famous Marghat Hanuman Temple near Kashmere Gate area is dotted with hundreds of homeless people. But on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the place comes alive due to various playful and chirpy tiny-tots or teenage beggars.
They come here to beg since tens of thousands of devotees throng the temple on these two important religious days.
Playing dice with her little friends in her free time was Sonia. When asked if she enjoyed chasing people for alms, she said: "I love to play but I do it for my mummy. She is begging near the temple's exit point. She says she needs to run the home, as papa no longer makes anything."
"So, when I return from school in the afternoon, I come here to be with my mummy," the seven-year-old added.
Being a Beggar Child Amid Threats
Twenty two-year-old Rukssar is the mother of a four-year-old girl. Every day the little girl fetches her 200-300 rupees, which she begs for near Delhi's historic Jama Masjid.
Until she got married to a rag picker, Ruksaar herself lived as a beggar. It was the only way to earn money since her parents didn't bother to admit her to any school. Now Ruksaar's daughter helps her make a living in the same way.
She explained that people in cars pay children generously and overlook the adults.
Be it the heat of summer or frigid morning, our kids work every day. For them, every person is a new hope of mercy, Ruksaar told Sputnik. "There are reasons why they are on the road and not in schools. They actually help us run families with their extra money."
Asked why she made her child beg, she said: "Remember, no parent enjoys watching their child beg rather than being in school to become a big person."
Delhi-born Shaima of Bhajanpura area admits it was her young friend in childhood who drew her into begging to buy candies or snacks whenever she desired. Her parents were against it.
"My mother would thrash me often for
returning home so late in the evening. But I had become accustomed to having my own money."
One day, Shaima, aged 11, eloped with a boy at the behest of the same friend and left her parents. "My husband drives a battery-run rickshaw. But now I have to beg to somehow run the family," the now 17-year-old shared.
Today, living surrounded by so many inebriated men or drug-addicts sitting or sleeping on the same pavement or under an overpass remains her biggest fear.
Is Every Child on the Road a Beggar?
Standing barely three-and-a-half feet high, carrying big poly bags with colorful georgette sarees in them, every day Jameel Khan from Bihar state awaits visitors on a usually busy road of Old Delhi near the iconic Red Fort.
The moment any gullible white-skinned tourist or regional visitor gets near, he starts luring them to buy his packet -- a pack of three sarees -- being sold literally for a song.
For him, it's routine to be on the roadside and wave to the tourists to come and buy the sarees as mementos. Each sale earns him INR 300 as a commission. If luck smiles, he sells off two packets, but if it doesn’t, it leaves him feeling desolate.
“What I manage to sell is what matters, not my time. So, like today the downpour has ruined the day. Thus, I won’t be paid despite the day-long effort.”
Asked what brought him to Delhi from Bihar, he avoided answering the question, saying: “Kuch to majboori raha hoga, aur kya (Certainly, there must have been some compulsion or what else).”
But what was that exactly? “Meri Maa mar gayi thi (My mother had died),” he whispered. “Father is always drunk. But I've got two younger sisters, aged 4 and 8, at home. I earn and pay for their studies.”
Back at home, the siblings are under their grandma's wings.
With a dream to set up a grocery shop back in Bihar, the little boy explains that he wakes up early to do more and earn more. Each week, he transfers the daily earnings to grandma's account. She actually made him realize the big responsibility -- educating sisters while saving to marry them off one day.
Asked what he would do with a lot of money -- buy a car or enjoy life with friends? “No... I will not until I get my sisters married. If I won’t think of them, who else will? Can’t leave things upon my drunkard father who doesn't even bother to call me,” he remarked.
Let Kids be in Schools, Not at Traffic Signals, says the Kailash Satyarthi Foundation
Believing many such kids could become victims of child labor trafficking, Sputnik talked to the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, founded by Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi.
Speaking about the child beggars’ situation in India, Rakesh Senger, Executive Director of the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, told Sputnik: "A child beggar is the mirror to everything that lacks in our society. A child needs to be in schools and in safe spaces, not on traffic lights and on streets begging."
When asked what could be done to help out the children who could be victims of trafficking in the wake of decriminalization, he said: "There are very stringent laws and policies that can ensure that children are not forced to beg. But what we need to focus now on is the implementation of these laws."
"And more than that, we need to stir compassion in our society. We need to always remember that a family is not a child’s responsibility, it is the child who must be everyone’s responsibility," Senger added.
Note: All of the children's real names have been changed to hide their identity
