Beggary is an age old social phenomenon in India. In the medieval and earlier times begging was considered to be an acceptable occupation which was embraced within the traditional social structure.[4] This system of begging and alms-giving to mendicants and the poor is still widely practiced in India with over 400,000 beggars in 2015.[5] In contemporary India, beggars are often stigmatized as undeserving. People often believe that beggars are not destitute and instead call them professional beggars.[6] There is a wide perception of begging scams.[7] This view is refuted by grass root research organizations such as Aashray Adhikar Abhiyan, which claim that beggars and other homeless are overwhelmingly destitute and vulnerable. Their studies indicate that 99 percent men and 97 percent women resort to beggary due to abject poverty, distress migration from rural villages and the unavailability of employment.[8]