Organised beggary taking new shape in Islamabad

Islamabad : The organised beggary is taking a new shape in Islamabad where motor vehicles are used to provide pick-and-drop facilities to gangs of beggars also consisting of women and children.

According to the details provided by eyewitnesses, the groups of beggars are brought to the markets, commercial areas, and traffic signals in the morning on vans and pick-ups after which each of them rushes towards his/her specific location for beggary.

Yusuf Khan, a resident of Islamabad, said “When I go for a morning walk I often see a Shahzor vehicle that carries beggars from ‘Katchi Abadi (slum)’ near sector E-11 and drops them one by one on traffic signals.”

“It is really unfortunate that the beggary is still so organized in the federal capital. All relevant authorities should join hands and stop this illegal activity with iron hands,” he said.

Waqar Ahmad, a shopkeeper, said the beggars including women and children gather at the main entrance of Centaurus Mall, a prominent shopping centre, where a Suzuki pick-up arrives at 11pm daily and bring them back to their locations.

“I often see this scene while returning home from the shopping mall. It is necessary to get to know who are handling these gangs of beggars,” he said.

On the other hand, the local administration has been continuously taking measures to get rid of this illegal practice.

The details showed that the Islamabad administration had broken a network of contractors and handlers of beggars that were running this illegal business in the city.