BENGALURU: The State Cabinet on Thursday approved a policy to bring transgenders to the mainstream and ensure that they do not face discrimination and persecution. It suggests that all the departments include the transgender community in their policies, programmes and schemes. The policy covering sectors like health, education, employment and housing will benefit all categories of transgenders, including jogappas, jogtas, hijras, kothis, shivashaktis, aravanis, intersex people, male to female and female to male transgenders.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs T B Jayachandra said the policy was in line with the Supreme Court judgment in 2014 which had said that states had to make sure that transgenders had access to fundamental rights as men and women.
The policy calls for framing guidelines for including transgenders in society with proper social, legal and institutional protection, education and health facilities and access to basic amenities like drinking water, sanitation, housing and employment. The policy also suggests curriculum for portraying the transgender community positively, reservation in all formal education systems, scholarships for their children and neutral uniforms for them in schools. It also calls for quick process of changing their name and gender in educational certificates.
The policy also suggests that transgender community be included in Sarva Shiksha Abhiyana and RTE to promote literacy and reduce dropouts. The Department of Women and Child Development will be the nodal agency for implementing the policy.
Nod to release 93 prisoners
The Cabinet has approved the release of 93 prisoners from Bengaluru (41), Mysuru (16), Belagavi (13), Vijayapura (7), Ballari (9), Kalaburagi (4) and Dharwad (3) Central prisons on grounds of good behaviour.
The list will now be forwarded to the Governor who will have to approve it for the prisoners to be released. Out of the 93, three prisoners are aged above 65 years.
Of the 93 prisoners, 86 are men, while seven are women.
‘CM will take final call on new DG&IG of Police’
Asked about the choice for the new DG&IG of Police, Minister Jayachandra said that he and Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy had submitted a list of five DGPs to the Chief Minister. “We have already sent the report. We are not proposing any name. We have looked at their service records and made a mention on all merits and demerits, efficiency and other factors.
The CM will take a call,” he said. The five DGPs are H C Kishore Chandra, Neelamani Raju, M N Reddi, A M Prasad and Prem Shankar Meena. With the CBI filing an FIR against A M Prasad, he may be out of the reckoning. The contest seems to be mostly between Neelamani Raju and Kishore Chandra H C with a strong chance of Kishore Chandra being favoured for the top police post. Neelamani Raju had sought central deputation a while ago after R K Dutta was chosen over her, but changed her mind and threw her hat into the ring again. Dutta will retire by month-end.
