SMILE 75-Initiative: UPSC Daily Important Topic | 16 August 2022

SMILE 75-Initiative

✓Aim:-

∆Municipal Corporations, in collaboration with NGOs and other stakeholders will cover several comprehensive welfare measures for persons who are engaged in the act of begging, with focus extensively on rehabilitation, provision of medical facilities, counselling, awareness, education, skill development, economic linkages and convergence with other Government welfare programmes etc.

∆The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has also allocated a total budget of Rs.100 crore for the SMILE project for coming years till 2025-26.

∆It seeks to develop a support mechanism for holistic rehabilitation of those engaged in the act of begging.

Implementing Ministry:

✓The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Components:

✓It includes the sub-scheme of:

✓Comprehensive Rehabilitation of persons engaged in the act of Begging

Objectives:

✓To make cities/town and municipal areas begging-free.

✓To make a strategy for comprehensive rehabilitation of the persons engaged in the act of begging through the coordinated action of various stakeholders.