New Delhi, Jul 19 (IANS): The Supreme Court Tuesday set up a panel to conduct a survey of sex workers and rehabilitate them.

An apex court bench of Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra said the panel will be headed by senior counsel Pradeep Ghosh and Jayant Bhushan. It will also include three NGOs engaged in helping sex workers.

The court directed the central and the state governments as well as the union territories' administrations to carry out a survey of sex workers in their jurisdiction and submit that report to the panel.

The court asked the governments to extend full cooperation and assistance to the panel.

The panel would make suggestions for prevention of human trafficking, for rehabilitation of sex workers who want to leave their trade, and for improving the conditions of those who want to continue with it.

The panel's appointment came in the wake of the court taking a suo moto notice of the these workers' rehabilitation problems. The issue cropped up from the case of a man who was convicted of killing a sex worker in West Bengal.