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The Print
21-07-2025
- The Print
21 child beggars rescued from Punjab's Ludhiana, SBS Nagar: Minister
The district child protection teams of the department conducted special raids at the bus stands, railway stations, and other locations in Ludhiana, rescuing 18 children, while three more children were rescued from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, she added. She said the state government is carrying out a vigorous campaign to make Punjab free from begging. Chandigarh, Jul 20 (PTI) A total of 21 child beggars have been rescued from Ludhiana and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar districts, Punjab Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister Baljit Kaur said on Sunday. Kaur said all rescued children have been presented before the child welfare committees and are currently kept safely in children's homes, according to a statement. If investigations reveal that any person forced these children into begging, strict legal action will be taken against them, she said. The minister further said that if there is any suspicion regarding the identity of the child's parents, the child welfare committees may also initiate DNA testing on the orders of the deputy commissioner to ascertain the true parentage of the children. She emphasised that the primary objective of the state government is to ensure a safe and secure future for every child, adding that continuous raids are being conducted at various locations by district teams under the Jeevanjyot-2 project. No cases of child begging have been reported from districts other than Ludhiana and SBS Nagar, the statement said. She said in order to completely root out the serious issue of child begging from Punjab, the social security department's district welfare teams will continue such raids and checks regularly across all districts, ensuring that no child is ever forced into begging. Kaur appealed to the public to not give alms to any child beggar and urged if any child is seen begging anywhere, people should immediately report the case by calling child helpline 1098. A few days ago, the government issued directions to all deputy commissioners in the state to conduct DNA tests of children found begging along with adults on the streets to find out their relationship and check child begging. The move was aimed to check child trafficking and their exploitation for begging on the streets. PTI CHS OZ OZ This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- New Indian Express
41 children found begging rescued in raids across 18 locations in Punjab
CHANDIGARH: In a significant move to eradicate child begging, 41 children were rescued in the last two days during 18 raids conducted across various locations in Punjab under the state's intensified child protection initiative, Project Jeevan Jyot 2.0 – Save the Childhood. Authorities have ordered DNA testing in suspicious cases to verify whether the accompanying adults are the children's biological parents. Punjab Social Security, Women and Child Development Minister Dr Baljit Kaur said, 'When we see small children forced to beg on our streets, it is not just their dignity that suffers, it raises serious questions on our society's collective conscience and on the honour of Punjab itself.' The minister explained that the earlier version of the programme, Project Jeevan Jyot 1.0, launched in September last year, led to the rescue of 367 children across 753 raids. Of these, 350 children were reunited with their families. Seventeen children whose parents could not be identified were placed in Child Care Homes (Bal Ghar), while 150 rescued children from other states were repatriated to their families under the same initiative. Dr Kaur noted that the project also focused on reintegration through education and financial support. 'A total of 183 children were admitted to schools, and 13 children under the age of six were enrolled in Anganwadi centres for early childhood care. Additionally, 30 children from extremely poor families were enrolled in the Sponsorship Scheme, receiving ₹4,000 per month to ensure their education continues uninterrupted. Another 16 children were brought under the state's pension scheme, receiving ₹1,500 per month,' she said.
