So, how much poverty is there in Bangalore? A hard quastion, because there are different ways to describe poverty. Say, we take German standards. Then most people here in Bangalore probably are very poor and could by far not survive in Germany with their income.
On the other hand, the same income is rather medium in India, and they can in fact live here (and do so :)). There are few people who live on the street as such. Many people live in small huts, three walls built onto an exisiting wall, and plastic as a roof. This is very common on building sites, as these are the places where the workers sleep. I think this are mainly workers from outside Bangalore, who are here for a job.
The part of Bangalore marked as „Slum“ on the official map is different. The houses are small and mostly only one floor, but have a fixed roof. Of course, the area is quite dirty, and the roads and the sidewalks are in a bad condition. but this is the same in other areas of Bangalore as well.
However, at night you can see people lying beside the street, sleeping.
Then there are the beggars. 99% of all beggars are either women with a baby or young girls, aged about 10 – 15 years. The only men you can see begging are invalids, and I have never seen a boy begging. I suppose they are working on one of the many construction sites in Bangalore.
Beggars are usually found on junctions, where they approach cars and ricksaws, or on busy streets, such as Brigade Road. If you want to give them some money, I recommend that you have some coins handy in a pocket so that you don’t have to fumble with your wallet everytime.