KOLKATA: She had scripted history by becoming the first transgender to be appointed as a college principal in Asia. Now, Manobi Bandyopadhyay has been made vice-chairperson of the West Bengal Transgender Development Board.
She became principal of Krishnagarh Women’s College in Nadia district after competing with general category candidates as there was no reservation for the third gender. A post-graduate in Bengali, she had to struggle a lot to climb up the social ladder, facing discrimination all along. And the latest appointment is a different kind of recognition for her. An elated Manobi told Express on Saturday, “I have witnessed the problems of the third gender, as I had struggled for years to establish my identity. It feels good that now I will be able to do something good for the third-gender people.”
“We have to ensure that the light of education reaches the lives of every transgender person. Once educated, society will also change its outlook towards us. I could have gone abroad and earned a lot of money, but I decided to remain in my country and fight for the cause of transgenders,” she said.