People In the Indian city of Varanasi use more than 600,000 condoms everyday but this isn't for birth control purposes.
Sari weavers use condoms to lubricate the shuttle in the weaving looms. They rub the condoms onto the sides of the shuttle to soften it and enable it to move more smoothly. Each loom uses about 5 condoms per day. The lubricant doesn't leave any kind of stain on the silk that these expensive saris are woven from.
There are almost 200,000 of these looms in the city and they all use this method of lubrication.
When the Indian government was handing out free condoms during its attempts at population control, many weavers stored them away for future use.
Weavers claim that there is no better lubricant available for their looms but they are concerned that if the public found out about these very expensive saris being made in this way, sales would fall.
There are however, other strange uses for condoms.
Sewing thread rubbed with the same lubricant travel faster and more smoothly through sewing machines.
Villagers use them to carry water out into the fields where they are working.
In some third world countries condoms have been used to spread out under roofs to provide waterproofing.
Soldiers fighting in the desert sometimes put them over the ends of their guns to keep the sand out.
Drug smugglers use them to bring drugs across borders. They fill the condoms with the drugs and swallow them.
Good article. Take care.