The apex court in India, the Supreme Court of India has asked the state governments and central governments to provide food to sex workers. The Supreme Court has gave a week’s time to the states to respond on providing them free ration and asked Centre if something could be immediately provided to them in the exercise of its powers under the National Disaster Management Act.
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A Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices LN Rao and Hemant Gupta has said this while considering a petition filed by Darbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee, an association of sex workers.
“This is a human problem. People are not getting ration for want of ration cards. They are under severe distress”, the court said.
In the petition filed, the association has said that after the lockdown was imposed there is no income and work for sex workers.
While posting the matter for hearing on September 29, the Court asked the Centre to consider some immediate arrangement of food and basic needs for sex workers under the Disaster Management Act.
As per the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are over 8.68 lakh female sex workers in the country and 62,137 Hijra/transgender persons in 17 states, of which, 62 percent are engaged in sex work.
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