3 minor girls saved from begging, one was chained to tree

NEW DELHI : The Delhi Commission for Women, during an inspection at the Anand Vihar Metro Station, rescued three minor girls, two of whom were found begging while their eightyear-old sister was found chained to a tree.

The commission on Wednesday night found that the family had 11 members, including the parents, who lived on the pavement. The parents claimed the eight-year-old had got addicted to drugs, so they had chained her to the tree.

The sisters were housed in a shelter home for the night and were produced before the Child Welfare Committee on Thursday with the request to rehabilitate them.

DCW chief Swati Jaihind sought suggestion on Twitter on Thursday for good shelter homes and hostels for the girls as well as appealed to people to come forward and help them.

“The commission has initiated an inquiry into the matter of begging by children,” an official from DCW said.

The official said that the commission interacted with the girls and found that they earn around ₹300 a day and slept on the pavement with their family. The DCW chief said the girls’ parents, who were living on the pavement, had nine children while the mother was pregnant with another baby.

“The father was heavily drunk. The commission was shocked to find a young girl of eight years chained by them to a tree. The parents of the girl claimed that she had gotten addicted to drugs and that was why she had been chained to the tree. However the girl was unable to say anything,” a statement from the DCW said.

Jaihind said, “While there are rackets operating that force minors to beg, there are also several social and economical factors. Everyone has to come together to help in this issue.”