From the day I joined Cotton College I always encountered with a new young face who finally takes up the “begging profession”. This “profession” seems to be quite a common activity among those below the poverty-line here in Guwahati. Earlier, I used to find only old women or men begging. But nowadays young children are being pushed forward for begging because they can earn much more than the elders.
Few months back I was walking down from my college towards the Panbazar area when a young girl, not more than five years old, followed me until I reached a bookshop. I was so overwhelmed by my emotions when I saw her tiny little foot without a footwear of any kind. I offered her ten rupees even though I am very much against the concept of offering money to beggars.
The very next day on my way to college I found the same tiny little girl approaching me for the second consecutive day for alms. I was irritated for she followed me all the way to my classroom. Finally, I landed up giving her another ten bucks. She continued to do that every day since then.
One fine day when I was walking back home from my college I screamed at that tiny little creature because she kept following me. People who were walking across the road began to stare at me with surprise. The girl’s mother rushed towards me and shouted at me for scolding her. I was shocked. Then I told her mother not to encourage her daughter at begging, instead advised her to put her in a free education school. But her mother was not interested to listen to what I was telling her. She rather preferred to argue. So I walked away.
The next day I found the same girl following a friend of mine with another girl of her age. Since then I see her everyday near my college. The only change I found now is that the numbers of young beggars have increased near my college area because the students generally offer them a good amount of money for they (the beggars) are so young.