Trafficking group carry out beggars’ racket in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: It is quite impossible now not to see beggars on the traffic signals, the miserable sight of children begging and forced into begging is a heartrending scene to many of us.

However, the city police have noticed that a trafficking group is organising the beggars’ racket in the city. A letter was written by Mr Vinoy Kumar Singh, director-general of prisons, he pointed out that anti-social elements have entered the beggars’ racket, reports Deccan Chronicle.

He further wrote that terrorists also utilise the beggars to carry out crime. “Even hardcore criminals, extremists and terrorists may masquerade as beggars to indulge in anti-social activities without being detected,” the letter added.

In his letter on October 6, he noted that beggars, who are tapping motorists at major traffic junctions in the city, are tarnishing city’s image. “The image of Hyderabad takes a beating in the eyes of tourists,” the letter mentioned.

Singh in his five-page letter suggested that two unused structures at Cherlapally and Chanchalguda central prisons could be used for accommodating these beggars, citing the government orders issued in the welfare of beggars.

He mentioned in his letter, “The prisons department will treat them as it is running a nature cure hospital.” Mr Singh urged municipal administration department for their co-operation to curtail begging menace in Hyderabad.

A 2016 survey, mentioned in The Indian Express, conducted by a voluntary organisation has seen over 14,000 beggars residing in the city, of which over Rs 2,000 were identified to be fake. The survey also claimed that there could be several who have an average income of over Rs 50,000.