LAHORE, Aug 16: The government has decided to train 100 child beggars for running a campaign against the menace.

Punjab Chief Minister’s Adviser Dr Faiza Asghar stated this at the monthly meeting of the District Commission for Child Welfare held at the Jinnah Hall here on Saturday with district Naib Nazim Farooq Amjad Mir in the chair.

She said the child beggars had been selected from those being taken into custody from different parts of the city. An average 30 children were being caught daily from Data Darbar alone, she added.

Dr Faiza said the government was making all possible efforts for the eradication of the menace from society. The children found begging in different parts of the city were being taken into custody and lodged at the Nigehban, Saiban and Nasheman centres for education and training.

She said the child beggars being brought to the centres would be kept there for six months and released after providing training in different vocations to enable them to earn a livelihood instead of resorting to begging again.

The capcaity of these centres was being raised from 600 to 1,000 in view of increase in the number of child beggar.

She said 674 child beggars had been caught from different parts of the city recently and lodged at the Nigehban centres. The Idara Khidmat-i-Insaniyat had brought 510 children to its centres while the Idara Khidmat-i-Akhlaq had brought 12 and the Data Darbar Nigehban centre 60.

A ward was being set up at the Mayo Hospital where the child beggars with physical disabilities would be admitted and treated on government expense.

The district Naib Nazim directed the EDO (community development) to submit a detailed report on welfare plans for the children with 10 days. He said a commission member should be available on telephone helpline 111-224-455 for receiving information about child beggars for an hour daily.

Perveen Omar was nominated helpline committee chairperson, former minister Shaheen Attiqur Rehman was asked to make arrangements for observing the Literacy Day and Shagufta Sarwar was nominated the Child Beggary Eradication Committee chairperson.

The Naib Nazim also directed the EDO (health) to devolve the birth and death record to the union council level and submit details about the incidence of polio and anti-polio campaigns in the next meeting of the commission.