Early Times Report
Jammu, Feb 3: Shivering in the biting winter cold, weaving through speeding vehicles, tiny hands stretched out for alms—such scenes at Jammu’s busy traffic junctions have finally drawn firm intervention from child protection authorities.
The Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Jammu, has ordered immediate action to rescue and protect minor children found being used for begging at traffic signals and other public places across the city.
The Committee has made it clear that such children fall under the category of “Children in Need of Care and Protection” as defined under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, and cannot be left exposed to life-threatening conditions.
Acting on a complaint filed by the Research and Advocacy Group (RAAG), the CWC, through its Chairperson Mrs. Vidhi Dubey, issued a detailed order dated February 3, 2026, expressing serious concern over the grave risks to the lives, health, safety, and dignity of children being used for begging—especially amid harsh winter weather and dangerous traffic environments.
In its directive, the Committee has instructed the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO), Jammu, to immediately launch a comprehensive Children in Street Situation (CISS) Drive across all traffic junctions in Jammu city.
The DCPO has been asked to rescue children found begging, ensure their thorough medical examination, and produce them before the Child Welfare Committee for appropriate legal and rehabilitation proceedings.
The order also underscores the need for accountability and continuity, directing the DCPO to review and follow up on cases of children who were rescued or rehabilitated during previous CISS drives, ensuring that they have not slipped back into vulnerable street situations.
RAAG’s complaint had painted a disturbing picture, alleging that children are being deliberately used as tools for solicitation at busy intersections.
The organisation warned that such practices attract penal action under Sections 76 and 77 of the Juvenile Justice Act, which deal with cruelty to children and the use of children for begging.
The complaint further raised alarm over the possibility of organised exploitation, trafficking networks, and even the suspected intoxication of children to keep them passive and compliant—claims that call for urgent and thorough investigation.
Welcoming the CWC’s order, RAAG expressed hope that the directions would translate into sustained action on the ground. “This is about restoring childhoods, not just rescuing children for a day,” the group said, emphasising that vulnerable minors must be kept away from unsafe public spaces and provided care, dignity, protection, and long-term rehabilitation.
For many children silently enduring the dangers of Jammu’s roads, the order offers a glimmer of hope—an assurance that their plight has been seen, heard, and will no longer be ignored. |
