Sanjeev Kumar Patro

Bhubaneswar: This is no beggar belief! Hard numbers reveal a big drop in the number of beggars residing in Odisha.

But the red alerts to the fore are the counts posted a big jump in State headquarters district Khurda, temple town Puri and Chief Minister's home district Ganjam.

As per the information provided by Minister of State for Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) Ashok Panda in Assembly on Saturday, a total of 5,950 beggars have been identified in the State.

What is significant here is, Minister Panda in July 2019 had put the total beggar count in Odisha at 6,390.

A comparative glance shows a steep fall in total beggars dwelling in the State. However, it cannot be clearly said whether the decline has been observed in the last 1-year period or so. Because, the base year of the beggar count is not provided in the data.

But devil lies in the details. District-wise data tabled in the Assembly shows Khurda district, which included Capital City Bhubaneswar, has posted a steep rise in the total count.  As per the data provided in July 2019, Khurda district had only 53 beggars. But the data provided today puts the count at a whopping 197.

In the temple town of Puri, the number tabled in July 2019 was 120 and the total number tabled today stood at a massive 366.

Similarly, the beggar counts in Ganjam district in July 2019 was 458. However, the number tabled today on the floor of the house stood at a substantial 545.

However, for Cuttack, its status quo. Beggars in Cuttack in July 2019 was 1,060. The number tabled today puts total count at 1,060, which means population of beggars showed a status quo in Cuttack district. Cuttack , however, topped the State with maximum beggar counts.

The high rise in three districts are attributed to two factors: migration or growing destitution in the districts.  

As far as fall in beggar counts are concerned, data tabled today revealed a drop in Sundergarh. The count in July 2019 was 467, which dropped to 423 in February 2020.

Data further revealed that a total of 10 districts in Odisha have a beggar count of more than 200; whereas in six districts the count was below 100. Deogarh district has the least beggar counts in the State.

As per Minister Panda, State government in 2018 had launched a scheme called 'Sahaya' to make the State beggar-free. The schemes main components are: Rehabilitation and providing gainful employment to beggars.

Main features of the scheme are: protection, care and rehabilitation of beggars. It provides assistance to parents of beggars, pre and post matric scholarship, skill development training, self-employment kit, and marriage incentives for their daughters.

However, rights activists differ with Odisha Government's approach of making the State beggar-free via rehabilitation and employment. They say, rehab schemes need to be tailor-made for the destitute taking into account the needs of elderly and mentally/physically challenged persons.

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