I found this information on begging laws and facts shared by Rashtrotthan Sankalp team very educating - wasn't aware of many of these facts! I am sure each of one faces the dilemma when approached by a beggar - to give or not to give. Hopefully this will help make a more informed decision. Please see the mail chain below:

From: Santosh P. Nargund <spnargund@yahoo. com>
Subject: [RASTR] Beggary Series: 1
To: friends_of_RASTR@ yahoogroups. com
Date: Saturday, 10 October, 2009, 7:19 PM

Friends,
 
Our Team has been working on the issue of Beggary for over 2 years now. Our journey on this has taken us to the crowded places in different cities to the 'relief centres', from typical government offices to months of RTI battles with the Babus (females not excluded).
 
We are now working on a report that captures all our findings and our opinion. As we do this in the nextfew weeks, we'll bring pieces of info to you through this 'Beggary Series'. Here's the first one:
 
SOME FACTS ABOUT BEGGARY: 

Beggary is   B A N N E D !!
Karnataka raises nearly Rs.10 Crores as Beggary Cess.
You pay 3% of your Property Tax as Beggary Cess.

There are 14 Relief Centres for Beggars in the state
Anybody begging is liable to be detained or imprisoned for upto 3 years
 
Begging has been banned by the Government of Karnataka way back in 1975 vide the Karnataka Prohibition of Beggary Act. Various other states like Maharashtra & Andhra Pradesh also have laws prohibiting beggary. Even the Indian Railways have banned begging in railway premises & trains. These laws date back to pre-independence era in the 1940s & 1950s!

More Facts.......
 
Under the Karnataka Prohibition of Beggary Act, 1975, a ‘beggar’ is defined as any person other than a child (< 16 yrs) who,

having no visible means of subsistence, wanders about or remains in any public place in such condition or manner as makes it likely that he exists by soliciting or receiving alms;

allows himself to be used as an exhibit for the purpose of soliciting alms:
solicits or receives alms in a public place whether or not under any pretence such as singing, dancing, fortune telling, performing tricks, etc.;
exposes or exhibits with the object of obtaining or extorting alms, any sore, wound, deformity or disease whether of a human being or of an animal;
enters any private premises for the purpose of soliciting or receiving alms;  

Beggary is a cognizable offence. Which means a police official is expected to apprehend a Beggar as soon as he comes across one!!
Whoever employs any person to beg or abets such employment is also punishable with imprisonment for a term upto three months or with fine. 
 

The State Government has set up over 14 Relief Centres (Niraashritara Parihara Kendra) in different parts of the state for receiving, detention and rehabilitation of the beggars. These are commonly refered to as 'Beggars Colonies'! The following details are not publicised well  by the Government. These were obtained through RTI applications.
 
Relief Centres / Nirashritara Parihara Kendras in Karnataka

Sl. No.

Place / District

Contact Information of
Relief Centres / Nirashritara Parihara Kendras

1. Bangalore

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Magadi Main Road, Bengalooru-560091
Ph.: 23481580

2. Bijapur

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Afsalpur Road, Vijapur
Ph.: 958352-271665

3. Bellary

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Baddihatti, Aaladahalli Road, Kaubjar, Bellary
Ph.: 9886612469

4. Belgaum

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Mukkam post, Machche Taluk, Belagavi
Ph.: 95831-2930217

5. Chitradurga

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Near Railway Station, Sadanandayya Layout, Chitradurga
Ph.: 958194-220258

6. Davanagere

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Turuchigatta Gomal, Belavanur Post, Davanagere
Ph.: 958192-260271

7. Gulbarga

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Biddapur Colony, Gabbur Road, Gulburga
Ph.: 958472-251369

8. Hubli-Dharwad

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Rayapur, Hubballi-Dharawad
Ph.: 95836-2224028

9. Kolar

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Tamak Post, National Highway Bypass, Kolar
Ph.: 958152-210167

10. Mysore

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Jyoti nagar, Mysooru
Ph.: 95821-2473767

11. Mangalore

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Pachchanadi Grama, Vaamanjur Post,
Mangalooru, Dakshin Kannada
Ph.: 95824-2482469

12. Raichur

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Aashapur Road, Near Doordarshan Kendra, Raichur
Ph.: 958532-231568

13. Shimoga

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Tyavarekoppa, Sagar Road, Koteganangur Post, Shivamogga
Ph.: 958182-233713

14. Tumkur

Superindent, Nirashritara Parihara Kendra
Basavaraj Building, Heggere, Siddharth Nagar, Tumkur
Ph.: 95816-2298286

Central Relief Committee based in Bangalore is the nodal agency for the administration of all centres in the state. At the Relief Centres, the beggars kept under detention are to be trained in various trades to begin a new life of dignity.
Beggars suffering from leprosy or mental problems are to be sent to Leper Asylums or Mental Hospitals for treatment.

On-site Survey on Beggary:
To ascertain the facts of begging and understand the Beggars' point of view, Associates of RASTR carried out a on-site survey of beggars at busy places in Bengalooru (Pictures: http://picasaweb. google.co.uk/info.rastr/BeggarsRehabilit ation#). The main areas covered were Majestic, BMTC bus-stand, Majestic pedestrain flyover and subways, Gandhinagar area, Avenue Road, City Railway Station, etc. Here are the top 10 observations made after the survey:

Beggars move freely.

People complain about beggary but many continue to give money to the beggars.

Vast majority of the citizens are not aware of the prohibition on beggary and the law for the relief of beggars or the tax they pay for management of beggars' relief

Police ignore the beggars and do not arrest as required by the Act. (Beggary is a cognisable offence and every police official is required to arrest a beggar the moment he comes across one and tranfer him to a receiving center)

Very few beggars may be forced to beg due to adversities in life. Many have made it their profession. And will not quit it even when given an opportunity.

Many beggars speak of their 'rights'. They have Voters I-Cards and Ration Cards! (one such I-card attached) Some made covert threats to us invoking their 'contacts' with goonda elements and political bosses.

Many earn as much as Rs. 500 a day!

Entire families are into begging, with each making Rs 200 – 500 a day.

Beggars hardly care the Relief centre. Have a good network. They escape as soon as the Relief Centres' officials are on rounds to arrest them. On being arrested, they are also confident of coming out soon and restarting to beg.

Beggars roam freely in the railway stations and trains. As per railway laws beggars are required to be fined and arrested by the Railway authorities and handed over to the State police.
 

What prompted us?
There are two major points which prompted us to take up the issue of beggary:

Injustice meted out to Citizens / Tax-payers:

Karnataka Prohibition of Beggary Act 1975, which is : "An Act to prohibit persons from resorting to begging and to provide for the detention, training and employment of beggars, for the custody, trial and punishment of beggar offenders and for the relief and rehabilitation of such persons in the State of Karnataka.". According to this Act passed, 14 rehabilitation centers across Karnataka have been instituted. A 3% of cess is levied on the Property tax collected which is to be used to enfoce the Prohibition of Beggary Act and to rehabilitate beggars.
In spite of the cess being collected we find people begging in most areas of the state. This is a severe betrayal to the citizens by the authorities and the governments who represent us. Citizens are being forced to pay cess, without showing any signs of positive results. The taxpayer is not at all satisfied by this injustice meted out to him.

Inhumane living conditions of economically downtrodden:
Usually people who are severely hit in life with respect to socio-economic conditions resort to the act of begging. The living conditions of many such people is inhumane and it is a fact that most of these people are not getting even a meal a day or a job to earn that meal for themselves.