Stop begging by children: Uttarakhand CRPC to govt

Dehradun: Uttarakhand Child Rights Protection Commission on Thursday asked the state government to look into the problem of increased begging by children on Chardham route and take immediate steps to stop it.

Drawing the state government's attention to the problem in a letter to the chief secretary, Commission Chairman Yogendra Khanduri said begging children can be seen from Haridwar to Badrinath-Kedarnath as well as Gangotri-Yamunotri routes.

At many places women are seen begging along with toddlers and children, he said adding the matter needs to be investigated intensively.

"It must be investigated from where these women seen begging with children and toddlers have come. It should be found out whether the children and toddlers with whom they beg are their own kids or stolen and brought here for begging purposes," Khanduri said.

Asking the state government to investigate under what circumstances the children took to begging, the commission chairman said they should be sent home or handed over to their parents as the case may be.

In case of children from Uttarakhand found begging, the state government should make arrangements for their security, health and education, he said.

"If these children along with wandering women are found to be begging at the behest of some mafia, they should be freed from their captivity and the guilty punished," he said.

Noting that childhood ruined by begging was a serious problem from the point of view of child rights protection, Khanduri asked the state government to investigate the issue along suggested lines and submit an action taken report to the commission as early as possible.