DURING the past decade of my stay in Islamabad, I have seen the environment of the city change in many ways. One of the most annoying among these changes is the influx of professional beggars and peddlers in virtually all shopping areas of the capital.

It has become impossible to visit any market, smaller shopping areas or even to stop at a traffic signal without someone knocking at your car window or tugging your shirt to beg for alms or to sell trinkets.

These are not common poor people turned towards begging out of desperation, but are clearly parts of professional begging syndicates which are grouped in fairly organised gangs with a visible distribution of tasks and localities.

Their facial features and manner of dressing identifies them as two main groups of people  —  Afghan refugees and local gypsies. They live in nullahs and overgrown bushes on green belts in shacks.

One such settlement is located in the green area on Margallah Road between sectors F-10 and E-10. It is absolutely impossible for such large-scale begging rings to operate without the support of some powerful people and connivance of a section of law enforcers and city managers.

In addition to being a social nuisance, these people are a security hazard too as they are routinely seen prowling around sensitive installations, abodes of important people and crowded areas.

I request the police, the Capital Development Authority and the district administration to take immediate and concrete steps to cleanse Islamabad of this malady before some ugly incidence further tarnishes the image of the city and the country.

USMAN QAZIIslamabad