The other day, I was going to Gulshan-1 from Mohammadpur. I boarded a tempo. When it reached Mohakhali, some passengers got down at the stoppage. Suddenly, a minor boy approached our tempo. Surprisingly enough, the boy had no piece of clothes on his body. He was completely naked! Moreover, his body was smeared with dirt.
The boy begged for alms and began lamenting excessively. The passengers were a little surprised. A woman sitting in the tempo gave the boy a paltry sum of money. Then he left the tempo and approached another vehicle.
Beggars nowadays are a menace in Dhaka and other big cities. Syndicates are innovating newer techniques to lure people into giving money to child beggars.
Children forcibly drawn to begging in large numbers is a cause for serious concern. It is learnt that children's limbs are made inoperative or their movement impaired at a tender age to push them into begging. A few days ago, a TV channel report has made an extensive coverage of the subject. The reason behind the rise in child begging is, children can easily arouse sympathy in many people's minds and they can fetch more money than the adult or older beggars can.
The authorities concerned should take the matter seriously and bring the persons behind child beggars' syndicates to book. There should be no leniency to child begging.
Md Zonaed Emran
Farmers Bank Ltd.
zonaed.emran@gmail.com
Urban malady of child beggars
FE Team | Published: August 27, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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