Kolkata Sex Workers From Asia’s Biggest Red Light Area Sonagachi Train to Become Chefs for Durga Puja 2017

The first batch of 30 people will be sent for the training conducted by the State Fisheries Development Corporation.

The sex workers from Asia’s biggest red light area, Sonagachi city in Kolkata will be training to become chefs during Durga Puja 2017. In a joint effort between Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee (DMSC) and State Fisheries Development Corporation (SFDC), selected sex workers from Kolkata’s Sonagachi area will be training in cooking and fish processing. The DMSC is an NGO that works for the upliftment of se workers and has more than 130000 registered sex workers. Around 30 sex workers will be trained on both cooking as well as fish processing. Kunal Kapoor raises voice against sex slavery and women trafficking with powerful poem #SoldBodies (Watch Video).

Durga Puja is a grand festival of the Bengalis and the demand for cooks was on the rise. The dates of Durga Puja 2017 are based on the Hindu calendar. Durga Puja begins on September 26, 2017, and will be ending on September 30, 2017. During this time the demand for chefs and manpower in general increases in Kolkata and Bangalore. Samarjit Jana, an official of Durbar, told PTI, “The fisheries department had asked us for few women who could help in their kitchens and their fish processing units. We sought the opinion of the sex workers, and many of them and their children expressed their desire to work as cooks.” Feminist Sex worker speaks up about working in porn and adult sex industry! (Watch Video).

The State Fisheries Development Corporation also confirmed this news and said that they would be training people in cooking and fish processing – right from handling a live fish to packaging a finished product. The first batch of 30 people will be sent for the training conducted by the SDFC, and they will be trained in fish processing. These sex workers will be paid on the basis of the amount of fish that they will process, scale, cut fillets out of whole fish or dry every day. This opportunity is a great move in the positive direction for the sex workers who are looking to start fresh as they are getting an opportunity of working in various food pavilions.