LUCKNOW, Feb. 1 -- The city now has seven task force teams that will monitor 19 major intersections as part of the "beggar-free" Lucknow campaign. The teams were constituted by the district administration in collaboration with the women's welfare department, social welfare department, the municipal corporation and DUDA (District Urban Development Agency). They counsel individuals (men, women, and children) found begging, discouraging them from this practice and connecting them with various government schemes to promote self-reliance. As part of the ongoing effort, a team from the women's welfare department, Gudamba police station and civic officials removed individuals who had temporarily settled under the Tedhi Pulia bridge on Saturday. The area under the bridge was cleared to prevent them from engaging in begging in the surrounding areas. District magistrate Vishak G said, "We are doing our bit to make Lucknow a beggary free city. We have readied a dedicated team to carry on with the task to see that there's no forced beggar cases." Also, the district administration has decided to adopt a multi-pronged approach as part of the crackdown against child beggary. The focus will be to send children to schools and help their parents with alternative sources of income through various welfare schemes of the government. The administration had in October announced that it will make a concerted effort to free all flyovers in the city from encroachments. "There are several flyovers in the district that have come up over the years in a bid to decongest traffic. Unfortunately, the space under the flyovers has been encroached and, in some cases, settlements have come up. We want to reclaim those big chunks of land and use them for other purposes," an official said....