UNCHAIN - response towards global supply chain of organized commercial sexual exploitation in 2 Red Light Areas of Kolkata through sustainable alternative options.

The red-light areas have their own norms and practices. It is cut off from the mainstream. Children growing up too are cut off from the mainstream. They exist in a society which works on its own rules. One such rule is acceptance of violence.

Violence in its many forms is the chief mechanism through which a girl/woman is kept confined by a trafficker/pimp/landlady. Children are born out of this cycle of trauma – right from birth. It is not rare for a child to carry marks – visible or otherwise- of abuse and neglect by the time they reach puberty. In process of recovering from this violence, adolescents and children encounter mental, emotional and/or social challenges both internal and external that deter them from being invested in their surroundings, studies and in their lives, to the best of their abilities.

Children remain the worst affected. They are unseen and unheard of and remain far from the basic entitlements needed for thriving such as security, stability, consistency, emotional support, love, education, positive role model, and structure that help in becoming healthy adults. The children as they grow get trapped within the vicious cycle of violence irrespective of their gender and their transforming social roles.

"UNCHAIN" intervention will work on 3 axes:

Axis 1: UNCHAIN will work with children living inside the red-light area on CARE, protection and well-being to facilitate pathways for them to break the chain of violence and sexual exploitation through education and psychosocial support.

Axis 2: UNCHAIN will work with women by facilitating alternative pathways for them through alternative job options, training and education, access to finance (stipend and seed grant) and collectivization as support mechanisms for each other to address issues of gendered violence, inequality and sexual exploitation.

Axis 3: UNCHAIN will mobilize the community to participate and support Axis 1 and Axis 2 of the project. 

Through Axis 3, the project will ensure that the families, community, and local club are strategically kept within the loop and through dialogue, community partnership is fostered.

Key activities would include outreach, home visits, community meetings, meetings with local clubs etc.

UNCHAIN aims to continue the movement towards social change within Bowbazar and Sonagachi red-light areas; in which care and protection of children and women are prioritized by every member of the red-light communities, and the community participates in breaking the CHAIN of organized commercial sexual exploitation.

The goal of the proposed project "UNCHAIN - is to respond towards the global supply chain of organized commercial sexual exploitation", inside 2 red-light areas of Kolkata (Sonagachi and Bowbazar) by creating opportunities for alternative options that are sustainable

The Intended Impact of the project "UNCHAIN" is to break the chain of commercial sexual exploitation by

1. Gatekeeping, girls, and women from entering prostitution by creating alternative pathways through education, and psychosocial support to have independent and sustainable livelihood options.

2. Facilitating exit through socio-professional reintegration of the people supported through access to education, vocational training, the implementation of income-generating activities, helping them with access to finance and assistance in returning to work;

As a result, the project will build the resilience of communities vulnerable to sexual exploitation, in particular by providing rebuilding and reintegration alternatives for victims, thus empowering them to become agents of positive change in their communities.