It’s an absolute first under any government in India, and a big brownie point for the Mamata Banerjee administration. The West Bengal government has directed the Kolkata Police to begin recruitment of transgenders into the Civic Police Volunteer Force (CPVC). This move is now being seen as a way to end the existing “stigma” and “discrimination” against the transgender community.
Matters have marginally improved for transgenders in India, with our Supreme Court recognising them as a third gender, which may even be used in their identity cards and passports. With that came transgender voter ID cards, separate welfare boards and liberation of sorts. The Supreme Court has even directed the central government to extend reservation to them in the Backward Classes category in jobs and education and provide them with healthcare. But getting absorbed into the life of mainstream India with jobs, housing and accommodation, is still a problem for them.
This is the first time that any government has offered to recruit transgenders, even if it is the civic police volunteer force.
“The prime issue that we face is that people don’t have respect for the transgender community. But if they are incorporated as volunteers in the civic police force, then it will gradually allow people to imagine them in different roles,” State Minister for Women and Child Development, Shashi Panja told the Indian Express.
West Bengal established a Transgender Welfare Board in the state in July last year after the Supreme Court directive. But even before this latest order by the state administration, Bengal had already created history earlier this year when a local college appointed a transgender as their principal.
In the meantime, the state government is already mulling over several sensitisation, awareness and welfare programs for the third gender including set up of Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS) units in specialised government hospitals for the benefit of this community.
We just hope other state governments and the central government too quickly follow suit. It’s hard to say whether recruitment in a civic volunteer force will help with the stigma, but it is a very positive beginning to mainstreaming this so-far invisible population in India.
Image Courtesy: BCCL
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