However, now that the government has given a thumbs up for businesses to resume their work, sex workers too will resume work. But things will change for the sex workers in the red light district of Pune. 

While condoms were already mandatory in the brothels of Pune, now masks and gloves are also a must. Clients have been asked to use hand sanitizers and disinfectants.   

Some of the sex workers have bought thermal scanners and foot-operated sanitiser dispensers and placed them outside their premises. And women have been adviced to ask clients to take a shower before any sexual activity and not to entertain any client having a cough or fever.

Pune’s brothels which are at the Budhwar Peth area in the city supports over 3,000 sex workers. But due to the pandemic, the demand for these workers had gone down as the locality was declared a restricted area as soon as the lockdown took place. 

Not just that, since the beginning of March, authorities blocked every road leading to the red-light area and a team of police was stationed there 24/7.  

Budhwar Peth is India’s third-largest red-light area which nearly has 700 brothels. 

Feature Credits: Pune Mirror