Building dreams: Free from clutches of beggary, children rewrite future in classrooms

They once used to roam the streets of Ludhiana, begging for money. Today, they are role models for street children across the city.

- Tarsem Singh Deogan

The turning point in their lives came when they were rescued from the streets and put in schools by the Nobel Foundation.

Under the project, which started in 2009, the foundation rescued child beggars and gave them an opportunity to rewrite their future in the classrooms. The efforts bore fruit as many of them are on the cusp of completing their bachelor’s degrees or finishing various trade schools and are dreaming of a life they never thought was possible.

Take the case of Vipin, who used to spend his days pleading for alms outside a temple. Currently, he is studying a Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Technology (BMLT) and dreams of landing a job at a reputed lab. “I want to help children who are still begging on the streets. I know what they go through,” he said.

The story of these children is resonating more amid the Punjab government's ongoing drive to rescue child beggars.