India, Sept. 16 -- In a strange twist to the government's push for a "Digital India," the country's beggars too have decided to go cashless. Some now sport QR code placards around their necks or carry a tablet, offering passers-by the option to pay alms with a scan. Those without personal digital access rely on trusted neighbourhood shopkeepers-sharing their QR codes or UPI IDs-who accept the donations on their behalf and return the equivalent in cash.

What was once an act rooted in folded hands and spare coins has now entered the age of e-wallets and UPI transfers, where the language of alms is increasingly spoken in digital code.

It may sound unbelievable to some, but across India, beggars have embraced digital payments, reshaping the...