ROURKELA: The Rourkela Municipal Corporation is set to engage transgenders in Covid-19 management activities in the city.
Additional District Magistrate Aboli Sunila Naravane on Thursday invited a delegation of the Sundargarh District Transgenders’ Association (SDTA) for discussions on the issue.
On Friday, some community members were taken to the BPUT Covid Care Centre for a firsthand understanding of the job at hand.
Naravane said seven jobs have been identified with a plan to engage educated transgenders for data entry work, while illiterate ones would be put in service at the centre.
She said after assessment of their conduct and performance, the administration would explore ways to hire them for implementation of other Government schemes.
Sundargarh has 70-80 transpeople including around 40 at Rourkela who reside in groups at city’s slums of Gapabandhupali, Timber Colony, Bondamund and Vedvyas.
They usually sustain on begging in trains and streets besides being invited by families to bless newborn babies or newly-wed couples.
But, these earning options are closed now due the prevailing coronavirus pandemic. Many of them have returned to their families to evade starvation.
SDTA President Joya Tripathy lauded the administration’s initiative and added they need dignified living which is possible with livelihood and transgender inclusive workplace.
She said they are getting covered under food security act and promised inclusion under Madhubabu Pension Scheme, but regular employment remains most important.