Under the Punjab Vagrancy (Amendment) Act 2025, begging was made a non-bailable offence in the province last year, with 'ringleaders' facing three years in prison alongside a Rs300,000 fine. This initiative is now running parallel to a much more humanitarian approach by the Lahore Traffic Police, which aims to offer rehabilitation, skills development and soft loans to 'deserving' beggars to dissuade them from this full-fledged profession.

As is true for every social issue,........

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