Umer bin Mohammad Kashmir Dispatch

In the early dawn of Friday a beggar wakes me up by knocking the window of my room. To my surprise a robust and fair lad was begging. It perturbed me when I saw a young lad, whom Almighty had bestowed with best of health and body, is begging in front of humans. 

Now if you have a cursory look on your concerned streets, they reveal an agitating phenomenon-an engulfing rise in the population of beggars. Has my land become beggar’s paradise. So visible and commonly sighted are they. Whenever we move outside, on the streets, in the markets to buy goods, beggars are seen everywhere. Gone are the days when begging was reserved for persons who where unable to do any other work. Today young and able-bodied are seen begging.

Today begging has become an organized mafia. Beggars catch you in streets, buses, trains, bazaars, and mostly in worship places. Unfortunately, in our Valley giving money to beggars is believed to be a part of religion. This so called charity leads to many vices. The fact is that street begging is gradually becoming a menace to our society. Muslim men are not supposed to beg unless driven to extreme.

We are also responsible for this overwhelming rise of beggars by giving money to able-bodied persons. Robust and able-bodied beggars should be made to work. Disabled, crippled and the blind beggars who have no other option but to beg; however, should be maintained at the state expense. Not only should begging be declared illegal but public must be made aware of this menace.