A total of 970 persons have been rehabilitated under the SMILE sub-scheme, which focuses on the comprehensive rehabilitation of individuals, including children, engaged in begging, the Rajya Sabha was told on Wednesday. The scheme is being implemented across 81 cities and towns in 26 States and UTs, particularly those of religious, historical, and tourist importance, where the issue of begging is more prominent.
The goal is not only to rehabilitate these individuals but also to provide them with long-term opportunities for reintegration into society, said Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Dr Virendra Kumar, in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha.
This rehabilitation includes a diverse range of interventions to address their immediate and long-term needs, said the Minister adding that among the 352 children rehabilitated, 169 children were reunited with their parents while 79 children were sent to Anganwadis (early childhood care and education centers).
In reply to a written question, he further said that 33 children were handed over to Child Welfare Committees for further support and care. 71 children were enrolled in schools, ensuring access to education.
In Andhra Pradesh ( Tirupati, Visakhapatnam, Guntur and Vijayawada), Assam ( Hojai/Doboka, Golaghat, Guwahati and Tezpur), Arunachal Pradesh (Itanagar, Namsai), Bihar (Bodh Gaya, Dharbanga, Muzaffarpur, Nalanda, Patna and Purnia), Chandigarh (Chandigarh), Delhi NCT (New Delhi), Haryana (Sonipat, Panchkula), Himachal Pradesh (Dharamshala, Shimla), Jammu & Kashmir (Jammu, Srinagar), Jharkhand (Deoghar, Ranchi, Girdih, Jamshedpur), Kerala (Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode), Karnataka (Dharwad/Hubblli, Vijayapura, Mysuru), Gujarat (Vadodara, Pavagarh Mahakali, Somanath, Kevadia), Manipur (Bishnupur), Maharashtra (Trimbakeshwar, Shirdi, Nagpur, Pune (PMPRI_MC), Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Jalgaon).
The other States are Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry , Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal.
