Prostitution

"I am woman, living in my own dark world
The one far cry from the other,
The one you all have probably heard.
I come with a tag,
Some call me a slut and some as whore,
Yes, I am a prostitute , go and shame me more.
I am a victim of poverty
And men treat me like their property.
No one hears my cries and screams
My soul lies on the bed of shattered dreams.
Neither of my actions make me feel ashamed
As It is only through this my survival is ascertained."

From the ancient 'Devadasis system' to modern 'sex trade', prostitution prevails in the roots of the country. Prostitution - Often known as the 'oldest profession of the world' is a practice or business of having sex with many people or the trade of sexual services for the sake of money . It is practiced from time immemorial. In ancient India prostitutes have been referred as to 'devadasis'. Originally, devadasi were celibate dancing girls used in temple ceremonies and they entertained members of the ruling class. Even in the Mughal Era (medieval period) the terms like 'tawaif' and 'mujra' became popular as Mughals patronized prostitution. Even during the British rule, prostitution flourished and special arrangements were made for British troops and later, those places were occupied by the Indian sex workers. India is one of the biggest market for prostitution in Asia . It is home today to Asia's largest red-light district, located in Mumbai's infamous Kamathipur.

In Indiaprostitution is legal but the other related activities such as soliciting, pimping and brothels are illegal.The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act or PITA, a 1986 amendment of legislation passed in 1956 provides for the rehabilitation for thesex workers. It is not something that just exists in India but all over the world. In ancient Greece, prostitution was a part of daily life. ProstitutioninTurkeyislegaland regulated. The secularization ofTurkishsociety allowedprostitutionto achievelegalstatus during the early 20th century.

Once into prostitution, there is no way out of it and Child prostitution adds insult to injury. The root cause of prostitution is poverty as many poor families consider their daughters as a burden and they sell them to the brothels or sex trafficers for the sake of money. As a result of which they are sexually exploited and there is no way to get them back from that dark world because society tags them as 'bawd', 'whore', 'harlot' and slur them. And this social pressure effects them both physically and emotionally.

Prostitution information centre (PIC), is an organisation involved in educating the people about the realities of prostitution. Also there is a debate regarding, whether prostitution should be legalized in India or not ? Proponents of legalizing prostitution believe it would reduce crime, improve public health, increase tax revenue, help people out of poverty. While others believe that legalizing prostitution would lead to higher chances of sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS, global human trafficking, and violent crime including rape and homicide. It's still a controversy. It's the time to break the ice over such exploitation so that no innocent is pushed into prostitution against their will.