National Workshop on SMILE-B

• 15 Jul 2025

Why in News?

The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) organized a National Workshop and Orientation Programme in Indore, focusing on the SMILE-B sub-scheme aimed at the comprehensive rehabilitation of persons engaged in begging.

Key Points

About SMILE-B 

• It is a sub-scheme of the SMILE initiative and aims to build a ‘Bhiksha Vritti Mukt Bharat’ by facilitating the reintegration of persons engaged in begging into mainstream society with dignity and sustainable support. 
  • As of December 2024, the scheme has been implemented in 81 cities/towns, including major pilgrimage, historical, and tourist locations. 
    • The next phase aims to expand coverage to 50 additional cities. 
  • As of April 2025, in India, 9,958 individuals have been identified as engaged in begging. 
    • 970 individuals successfully rehabilitated through various scheme interventions. 

 

About National Workshop and Orientation Programme 

• The event focused on rescue operations, primary rehabilitation, and livelihood convergence for persons engaged in begging. 
• The workshop brought together a diverse group of participants, including State nodal officers, urban local body (ULB) representatives, NGOs, and Civil Society Groups. 
  • They engaged in focused discussions on challenges and best practices in implementing the SMILE-B scheme.

About SMILE Scheme 

• Launched in October 2023, the SMILE Scheme (Support for Marginalized Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise) aims to create a ‘Bhiksha Vritti Mukt Bharat’ (Begging-Free India). 
• Rehabilitation Strategy:  
  • It involves coordination with local bodies for identification, outreach, and resettlement, with empathetic engagement and profiling through photo/video documentation.  
  • District administrations, NGOs, SHGs, and Temple Trusts provide services like counselling, education, and reintegration support. 

Begging 

• About: Begging involves soliciting alms through various acts like singing, selling items, or displaying deformities.   
  • Indore, Madhya Pradesh, has been declared India’s first beggar-free city under the Bhiksha Vriti Mukta Bharat (begging-free India) initiative. 
• Status: Census 2011 reports 4.13 lakh beggars in India, with the highest numbers in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh.  
  • SECC 2011 estimates 6.62 lakh rural households depend on begging.   
• Constitutional Basis: Vagrancy (includes beggary) is in the Concurrent List (Entry 15, List III), where both the Centre and the states can legislate.  
• No Central Law: India lacks a uniform central law on begging, and the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959, acts as the main law that criminalizes begging and defines beggars broadly.