KARACHI, Aug 17: Since Ramazanul Mubarak is still months away, this should be an off-season for beggars. But it seems that the recent unusual wet spell in the city has doubled their miseries with the result that roundabouts, streets, buses and wagons appear to have been swarmed by beggars of all ages and categories.

Just take a bus to anywhere in the city or spend an hour or so at a traffic signal to see it by yourself. You will observe that as the bus or wagon reaches a stop to pick or drop commuters, a beggar also boards the vehicle. While some of these mendicants, many of them physically handicapped, straight away beg alms in the name of God, there are others who do not bracket themselves with beggars. They say they are collecting donations in cash or kind for an under-construction mosque or madressah; yet, there are some who tell a tale of misfortune that has recently befallen them and left them in need of money.

The type who used to seek money by claiming that they had come to Karachi from some other town but were rendered helpless to go back as they had been deprived of their money by some pickpocket, is on the decline. The number of young women, who drop into passengers’ lap a card on which a heart-rending tale is written, is also fast decreasing. It seems these women come from the same tribe or community, for they have a notable similarity in their complexions, features and voices. These women rarely open their mouth to ask for money, they just extend their hand — it is up to you to dole out a coin to them along with their card.

Some beggars do it masterfully. They say they need a certain amount of money and that they will accept nothing short of that. If someone gives such a beggar a 10 rupee note instead of the 20 rupees he has actually demanded, he will not accept it. A blind beggar of this category has developed the ability to recognize currency notes of different denominations. He holds the note and rubs it on his palm. Unable to see who has given that note to him and thus unaware whom he should return it, the beggar lets it drift away, repeating his call in an even louder voice for 20 rupees.

If you pass through a certain route daily on your way to the workplace, you must have noticed that certain points on a road or a roundabout have been occupied by certain beggars for years. No other beggar comes to sit there, leaving you guessing about a covert understanding between them.

There is a group that heralds its arrival with drumbeats in various localities every seventh or eighth day. These are four or five men and they collect contributions to be used for the Urs celebrations of some shrine. Also, eunuchs constitute a marked component of this community.