This Man Was A Hero To A Group Of Homeless Children In India And Here's Why

It's easy for many of us to pass by homeless people begging for food on the street: Either we're in a rush to get where we are going, or we simply can't bother. In a city like Delhi, where the homeless population swells to 2,46,800, including many children, the destitute are harder to ignore. One man was caught on camera last week buying a meal for a group of homeless children in a McDonald's in the Janpath area of Delhi, India.

Asit Ranjan Mishra was a customer at the McDonald's who witnessed the entire heartwarming incident. He took a photo of four small, hungry companions with the man, who was later identified as Dr. PC Alexander from Cochin, a city in Southwest India, and shared it on Facebook. The post has since gone viral.

"Four kids in soiled clothes walked in with a well-dressed man, almost jumping in excitement," the post read. "It was clear from the visuals that a good-hearted Samaritan has [sic] brought these street kids for some good food and a few minutes of happiness, which was a rarity....So after some admiration for this man and some internal struggle, I walked up to him congratulating him for the yeoman's job that he was doing. He told me he is a pediatrician by profession and doesn't distinguish between a poor kid or a rich kid, either while treating or meeting them outside. They asked him for some pennies and he decided to give them some experience to cherish."

In larger cities in India, according to the India Times, it is not uncommon for homeless parents to rely on their children to beg as a source of income or food.