BHUBANESWAR: In a bid to provide a life of dignity to the transgender population, the State government has come up with a draft policy that proposes equal education, employment, healthcare opportunities besides, their inclusion in government schemes.
The draft was released by the department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD), the nodal department for transgenders in the State, on Monday.
While transgender persons will be included in the health insurance scheme, the policy proposes that a dedicated fund should be established for sex reassignment surgery (SRS) in government hospitals including separate HIV surveillance centres. It also states that a dedicated three month paid leave should be provisioned for the transgender persons who are undergoing SRS or hormonal therapy.
The government has proposed to create a transgender helpline with trained counsellors for responding and managing incidents of violence, abuse and other inhuman treatments. The draft policy also states that action would be taken against parents who desert or abuse their gender non-conforming children and doctors who undertake unethical conversion therapy.
The Juvenile Justice Act would be suitably amended to address the concerns of such children. It further states that no child shall be separated from parents or immediate family on the ground of being a transgender, except on an order of a competent court, in the interest of such child.
As far as making education inclusive for this population, the government will ask educational institutions to form a committee which shall be accessible for transgender persons in case of any harassment or discrimination, with powers to ensure that transgender students do not have to be affected by the presence of the persons bullying them, including teachers.
According to the Socio Economic and Caste Census (2011) in Odisha, there are 20,332 transgender persons in Odisha which includes 2,124 children (0 to 6 years), 3,236 SC and 4,553 ST persons. Their literacy rate stands at just 54.3 per cent.
However, their present numbers would be much higher as they now have the courage to express their transgender identity with the Supreme Court of India granting legal recognition to a person‘s self-identified gender as either male, female or the third gender.
The SSEPD department has conducted a State-wide survey on transgender persons, results of which are yet to come. It has sought feedback on the draft policy from higher officials of all departments within a month.