Begging Racket Suspected: DNA Tests for Children, Raids Across Punjab
Chandigarh (The Uttam Hindu): Children begging in Punjab will have DNA test… Punjab government has taken a historic decision. Under this decision, DNA test of children begging in all districts of the state will now be done. These children beg at public places, red light points, bus stands, railway stations, multiplexes, markets and other places. The name of this project is Jeevanjyot. Police has taken action in many cities under this project.
In Amritsar, the police have recovered many women and children. The police officer said that some women beg on the streets with four or five children and it is not even known whether these children belong to these women or someone else. In fact, the Punjab government has ordered the DCs of all the districts to get the DNA tests of such children done.
Recently, an RTI revealed that some of the children who had gone missing in different districts of Punjab were found but some were not. The idea of conducting a DNA test came when, in a meeting of the Social Security, Women and Child Development Department, the Additional Chief Secretary of the department, Raji P. Shrivastava and other officials told Minister Dr. Baljit Kaur that in many cases, we have seen that when we see children begging in their mothers' laps, we warn the mothers that if they make them beg again, a case will be registered. But the mothers start making the same children do the same work in some other square or other town. Due to this, the game of begging continues with the children.