Panchkula: The Haryana State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has stepped up its drive against child begging and exploitation in Panchkula, with joint teams set to identify vulnerable locations, rescue children and bring them into the education system.The action is being taken under the commission’s ‘Bheekh Nahi, Shiksha’ (Not Begging, Education) initiative.On the first day of the drive, children found begging or living in vulnerable circumstances were rescued. They underwent medical examinations before being produced before the Panchkula child welfare committee for necessary legal proceedings.Commission chairperson Tripti Haripal Sheoran reviewed the campaign at a coordination meeting at the HSVP office in Sector 6 and directed departments to work jointly to ensure children were not pushed into begging, child labour, exploitation or unsafe living conditions.Officials discussed identifying hotspots where children are engaged in begging or face the risk of exploitation. Separate field teams will carry out rescue operations at multiple locations with police assistance.The meeting also focused on rehabilitation of rescued children, medical care, completion of legal procedures and their enrolment in schools.Officials from the district administration, police, special juvenile police unit, anti-human trafficking unit, district legal services authority, municipal corporation and the health, education, labour and child welfare departments were among those involved in the exercise.Sheoran stressed coordinated action to ensure rescued children did not return to vulnerable conditions.“The aim is to ensure that children hold books in their hands instead of begging bowls,” she said, adding that every child deserved an opportunity to live with safety and dignity and build a better future.
