Kamathipura

Kamathipura (also spelled Kamthipura) (Marathi: कामाठीपुरा) is Mumbai's oldest and Asia's 2nd largest red-light district . It was first settled after 1795 with the construction of various causeways that connected the erstwhile seven islands of Bombay, initially known as Lal Bazaar, it got its name from the Kamathis (workers) of Andhra Pradesh state, who as labourers on construction sites. Then in 1880s it turned into a "comfort zone" for British troops, during British Raj. However due to tough police crackdown, in late 1990s with the rise of AIDS, and government's redevelopment policy that helped sex workers to move out of the profession and subsequently out of Kamathipura, the number of sex workers in the area have dwindled, in 1992, as Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC) records there were 50,000 sex workers her which reduced to 1,600 in 2009, with many sex worker migrating to other areas in Maharashtra and real estate developer taking over the high priced real estate.