E-Paper
Sex workers in Pune appeals to CM for financial support
Pune: A total of 1,715 sex workers in Pune’s Budhwar peth claim that they have not seen a single rupee from a relief fund of the government of Maharashtra, the funds of which were dispatched to the account of the deputy collector of Pune now at least nine months ago
Pune: A total of 1,715 sex workers in Pune’s Budhwar peth claim that they have not seen a single rupee from a relief fund of the government of Maharashtra, the funds of which were dispatched to the account of the deputy collector of Pune now at least nine months ago.
As per a Supreme Court ruling dated September 21, 2020, ₹15,000 was to be given to sex workers in the city as a relief measure given the Covid impact on their lives. An amount of ₹11,26,65,000 was then transferred from the chief minister’s relief fund to the deputy collector’s account.
“We conducted a survey to find out how many women were yet to benefit from this state scheme and found a number of sex workers are totally deprived of the government aid,” said Tejaswi Sevekari, executive director, Saheli Sangh, an NGO working with sex workers in Pune.
“We did not get any reply to appeals made by Saheli Sangh and the National Network of Sex Workers. We have appealed to the collector and if there is no reply, we will start an agitation in front of the collector’s office,” she added.
In the phase of the distribution plan, done through the district Aids prevention and control department, Rs2,46,75,000/ (Rs15,000 per woman) reached 1,765 women out of a total of from 7,011 eligible for the scheme.
As per the Child Development Department, in the second phase, 3,531 women received ₹5,29,65,000, which means ₹7,95,00,000 has been distributed in two phases.
It was on April 29, that HT reported on the misappropriation of funds meant for sex workers.
Sevekari said, “211 women had already submitted their documents and 247 women have been able to submit their documents, even after the misappropriations of funds was established.”
