Beijing to clear out beggars for Games

BEIJING, Mar 1 (Reuters) - Beijing wants to eliminate beggars, peddlars and illegal advertising from the centre of the city by the end of the year to improve the environment for the 2008 Olympics, local media reported on Monday.

Begging has been on the rise in many Chinese cities in recent years as the country's social security system buckles and its economic boom bypasses many of the 800 million rural population.

The 2008 Environmental Construction Headquarters Office will work with the police and the provinces which surround the Chinese capital to ensure itinerant beggars, especially the aged, teenagers and the disabled, are returned to their home towns, Beijing News reported.

In January, the national government conceded that begging could not be eradicated and said it would crack down on aggressive begging, and do more to help the genuinely destitute.

The Environmental Construction Office is spending 12 billion yuan this year on a facelift for the Chinese capital ahead of the Games in August next year.

REUTERS SSC RAI1121