Miss Easther, a social worker, and I visited Sonagachi, one of the largest and oldest red light areas in Calcutta, in June '98.

Violence is generally interpreted as physical, sexual and mental abuse of individuals.

In 1994, ICPD stressed gender equity as a precondition for health and development while affirming the need to address women's subordination in reproductive health programs. However, those responsible for implementing these broad goals still struggle with how to operationalise gender-aware approac