T'gana, Andhra, K'taka, Delhi, Maha have highest concentration of female sex workers: Study

Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi and Telangana have the highest concentration of Female Sex Workers (FSW) in the country, according to a study.

Karnataka is at the top of the list with 15.4 per cent, followed by Andhra Pradesh (12.0 per cent), Maharashtra (9.6 per cent), Delhi (8.9 per cent) and Telangana (7.6 per cent), the programmatic mapping and population size estimation (PMPSE) said.

The five "were States with highest size of FSW contributing around 53.0 per cent of total FSW key population size in the country," it said.

The number of FSW per 1000 adult women was highest in Arunachal Pradesh (17.24), followed by Delhi (15.46), Goa (11.67), Chandigarh (10.10) and Karnataka (8.34).

Observing that India has the world’s second-largest HIV burden, the study said key populations of female sex workers (FSW), men who have sex with men (MSM), hijra/transgender (H/TG) people, and people who inject drugs (PWID), are disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic.

The community-led PMPSE was carried out in 651 districts of 32 states and Union Territories of India. The goal was to identify the hotspots, network operators, and estimate the size of key population groups, said the study, published in PLOS Global Public Health.

The PMPSE estimated a total of 9,95,499 FSWs, 3,51,020 MSM, 2,88,717 PWIDs, and 96,193 H/TG individuals.

PMPSE for FSWs identified 43,579 hotspots and 10,718 network operators. FSWs were further reported in a total of 16,095 villages, it said.

Slightly more than half (55.1 per cent) of the hotspots were home-based, followed by 16.1 per cent street-based locations and 5.9 per cent brothel-based.

Highest number of hotspots in PMPSE were mapped in Karnataka (around 20.0 per cent of the total hotspots), followed by Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra (around 8.0 per cent each), Madhya Pradesh (around 7.0 per cent) and Tamil Nadu (around 6.0 per cent).

In Telangana, there were around 38 FSWs per hotspot, highest in the country followed by 29 FSWs per hotspot in Andhra Pradesh and 26 FSWs per hotspot in Delhi, Meghalaya and West Bengal, it said.

The PMPSE reported presence of FSWs in 642 districts of the country.

With an estimated 2.54 million people living with HIV (PLHIV), India ranks as the country with the second largest population of PLHIV globally, the study said.

The National AIDS and STD Control Programme (NACP) has successfully responded by restricting the epidemic.

Through its comprehensive and pointed initiatives, nearly 44 per cent reduction in new HIV infections and a remarkable 79 per cent decline in AIDS-related deaths from 2010 to 2023 has been estimated in India.

"Despite the significant success achieved so far, there is no place for complacency and the program implementation must continue with equal vigour and energy in the years to come," it said.

HIV prevalence among key populations (KPs) remains significantly higher than the overall adult prevalence, said the study, part of the Surveillance and Epidemiological activities of the National AIDS and STD Control Programme of the central government.

The study further said mapping and population size estimation are pivotal to an evidence-based response to HIV/AIDS in settings with concentrated epidemics.