Child Beggars - Adult Givers

Some months ago I read an article in the TOI by Santosh Desai where is he said,  "begging is a form of work". How right he is. Despite all the drives and all the legislations there are beggars all over the country.

There are beggars at all major crossing in Delhi and Noida, cannot say for Gurgaon. Most of them at the crossings are from Rajasthan. Rajasthan as one knows is a drought prone state and so livelihood options are few in any case and if the crop fails they are none! Begging is thus a lucrative profession, though it is hard work, to stand out in the sun, rain and cold from morning to night could not be the easiest of tasks. That it is not a matter of life and death is clear, if one recalls there  were no beggars in sight during the CWG. Did they go hungry? I am sure they didn't! So then how and why is beggary ubiquitous in India? The giver needs them.

Little children weaving their way through cars to the 'tune' of traffic signals they would do that only if there was something to gain. Stop to think who gives them? For us adults its an act of penance but we are destroying the lives of generations. It is a clear relationship of  SUPPLY and DEMAND.

However, begging is the tip of the iceberg, behind it lies a sordid saga of kidnapping, trafficking and maiming of children. There are no simple answers on how to put an end to beggary.

These little ones are the symbols of the  greatest failure of  every policy that touches the lives of children.  How can we live with this failure?