Indian city rounds up beggars before Ivanka Trump's visit

NEW DELHI -- Police in Hyderabad, the Indian city of some 9 million inhabitants that has become a global tech hub, have launched a massive drive to remove beggars from the streets before White House adviser Ivanka Trump’s visit to for an entrepreneurship summit at the end of this month.

Calling begging "an act dangerous to traffic and public in general," police removed nearly 400 beggars from Hyderabad's city center and lodged them at a rehabilitation center at the city's Chanchalguda Jail. Before the summit, city officials aimed to move 6,000 beggars from the city to rehabilitation centers and shelters for the homeless.

While begging is a criminal act in India, the prohibition is rarely enforced and, in this case, the ban will only be in place for two months.

Ivanka Trump, a White House adviser and President Donald Trump's daughter, is due to attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Hyderabad later this month.

Officials said Ivanka Trump may do some sightseeing and it is clear city officials want her to see the city in the best light possible - and not the "slum dog millionaire" stereotype that Americans often associate with India.

Hyderabad police conducted a similar operation when President Bill Clinton visited in 2000.

Local police tweeted pictures of alleged beggars that had been rounded up. Some residents welcomed the move on social media and said it should be enforced permanently. A Hyderabad-based Twitter user sent a request to Ivanka Trump asking her to extend her stay so the city would remain clean.