THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health Minister K K Shylaja on Thursday urged the transgender community to make full use of the Literacy Mission’s ‘Samanwaya’ free continuing education scheme.
It will enable them to continue their education which they may have had to abandon half-way due to social ostracisation, Shylaja said, inaugurating the scholarship and shelter home scheme for candidates under the ‘Samanwaya’ scheme. The doors of higher education have been opened up to thousands through the state government decision to make the mission’s higher secondary equivalency course on a par with Plus-Two, she said.
The government has introduced schemes aimed at bringing the transgender community to the mainstream. The literacy and continuing education programmes of the Literacy Mission spur the social progress of the state, the minister said. Vocational training will be provided at the shelter homes to ensure that transgender people can work and live with dignity in society, the minister said. She also presented scholarships to Sreekutty, Ranjini Pillai, both of them students under Samanwaya’s higher secondary equivalency course, and Asma, a student of the Class X equivalency course.
It is the duty of society to extend a helping hand to bring marginalised communities to the mainstream, V S Sivakumar MLA said. The Literacy Mission decided to provide opportunities for education at shelter homes as transgender people were facing humiliation in their own homes, mission director P S Sreekala said. Continuing education under ‘Samanwaya’ will be made available to all candidates in a phased manner who have informed the mission of their readiness to join the project, she said.