A programme has been taken to beggars free Khulna division by December next, sources said.
Aiming to a beggars’ free society, Khulna Divisional Administration has already completed a survey at 10 districts in Khulna division on September last.
At least 15 acres of land will be acquired at Batiaghata upazila in Khulna to set up a rehabilitation center ‘Ananda Niketon’ very soon to rehabilitate physically challenged and old age beggars.
The rest beggars will be brought under different kinds of training programmes including sewing and making handicraft goods.
According to the survey report, a total of 21, 889 beggars have been found at 10 districts in Khulna Division.
Of them, 3,286 in Khulna,3,195 in Bagerhat, 3,615 in Satkhira, 3,103 in Jessore, 742 in Narail, 2,327 in Jhenaidah, 1,326 in Magura, 1,726 in Kushtia, 1,654 in Chuadanga and 915 in Meherpur.
Talking to BSS, Khulna Divisional Commissioner Md. Abdus Samad said, “We will provide the beggars mostly physically challenged and old aged at the ‘Ananda Niketon’ rehabilitation center. The rest will be provided through sewing machine, cooking, handicraft goods, agriculture, technical, poultry and dairy firms training, VGF cards, Ekti Bari Ekti Khamar and others government schemes.”
“We will open a bank account after taking permission from the ministry concerned to form a beggar’s rehabilitation fund,” he said.
The beggars will livelihood like a common people of the country at the ‘Ananda Niketon’, health service, playing and other recreation facilities also would provide there, he said.
Terming beggars free society is a challenging task, he said the government has taken different rehabilitation schemes to ensure better livelihood for poor people aiming to build Bangladesh a middle income country by 2021.
He also urged different social organizations like Rotary and Lions Club and financial sound people to cooperate for making beggars free society, reports BSS from Khulna.
