Puri to become beggar-free soon!

Puri: Following the beautification drive, the Puri district administration is now mulling to make the pilgrim town free from beggars.

On Sunday, Puri Collector Balwant Singh chaired an orientation meeting for several NGOs and government staff at Sanskruti Bhawan here to work for rehabilitation of beggars in the district.

In this regard, the administration has launched an initiative 'Niladri Nilaya' under which people begging in the city and its nearby areas will be identified and rehabilitated to shelter homes.

The initiative 'Niladri Nilaya' has derived its name from the shelter homes where after being shifted, they will be provided free food, clothes, medical support and other basic amenities.

As per reports, around eight such shelter homes with a capacity of 50 people will be set up in various places of Puri. The officials concerned will also make efforts to bring the beggars to the mainstream.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government officials would be deployed in identifying beggars and shifting them to the shelter homes. Puri Municipality, local residents and police will also be involved in the task. The project has been started with the joint efforts of the State government's Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD) department.

Speaking to OTV, the Collector said, "Begging is a complex subject and there are various reasons for which one is compelled to do so. And if we remain successful in addressing those issues, the project will seem a success. SSEPD department has sanctioned us funds to rehabilitate 500 beggars initially."

"The families involved in begging will be traced and counselled in the shelter homes by the officials of government and civil societies. We need the support of police personnel, medical fraternity and the society to make the project successful," added Singh.

Worth mentioning, an engineering graduate Girija Shankar Mishra- who happens to be a resident of Niladri Vihar in Bhubaneswar was found begging on Badadanda, the Grand Road, in Puri last month. However, he was later sent back to his home by the district administration.

Another case in point is mentally deranged Srijit Padhi who was rescued by his friends while begging near Badadanda and later admitted to SCB hospital. Srijit is fast recovering, say doctors.

During the budget session of Odisha Assembly in February, Minister of State for Social Security and Empowerment Ashok Panda had informed that the number of beggars in the State has decreased from 6,390 to 5,950. The numbers suggested that Cuttack has the highest 1,060 beggars while Boudh district has the lowest number of 6 beggars.