Question- Explain the status of Transgender Education.

Ans.

Transgender is a new sex in Indian Constitution. This new sex emerges with a major population. They are deprived of social and cultural participation and hence they have restricted access to education, health care and public places which further deprives them of the Constitutional guarantee of equality before law and equal protection of laws.

Educational Status

No formal education for transgender is eee’ in Indian context. They are deprived from family and school environment, transgender discontinue their education and risk their future career opportunities. A close analysis of various reports and discussion with community and stakeholders suggest that transgender are most uneducated or undereducated, become reluctant to continue schooling. The average. qualification is secondary (Matric) or senior secondary level. The enrolment is significantly low and dropout rate at the primary and secondary level is still very high. They are hardly educated as they are nor accepted by the society and therefore do not receive proper schooling. Even if they are enrolled in an educational institute, they face harassment and are bullied every day and are asked to leave the school or they drop out on their own. It is because of this that they take up begging and sex work. It is mandatory for the Government to provide inclusive education for transgender students and provide adult education to them. Beside these some transgender on working reputed place, Manabi Bandyopadhyay working as a principal to a government college in West Bengal and Amruta Alpesh Soni as the advocacy officer for the states of Punjab, Haryana and Chhattisgarh for the National AIDS Control Project. In India, some states work for the betterment of transgender. Tamil Nadu has been the only state which has successfully pioneered transgender inclusion by introducing the transgender (aravani, as they are locally called) welfare policy. According to the policy, transgenders can access free Male-to-Female Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS) in the Government Hospital, a free housing program, various citizenship documents, admission in government colleges with full scholarship for higher studies, and alternative sources of livelihood through formation of self-help groups and initiating income generation programmes (IGP). It was also the first state to form a Transgender Welfare Board in 2008 with representatives from the transgender community. In March 2009, Tamil Nadu government set up a telephone helpline called “Manasu” for transgenders, an initiative which was responsible for the formation of India’s first helpline for the LGBTQIA community in 2011 at Madurai.

The Chhattisgarh government is also making efforts to empower the transgender community by drafting an action plan for the welfare of around 3000 eunuchs in the state. Tripura government which announced in July an allowance of Rupees 500 per month to the transgender people in the state to ensure their financial independence. The West Bengal government is not far behind. On October 1st, 2015 the government has requested the Kolkata Police to recruit transgenders in the Civic Police Volunteer Force (CPVF) to end the stigma and discrimination against the community.

Social Status

The transgender community faces stigma and discrimination and therefore has fewer opportunities as compared to others. They are hardly educated as they are nor accepted by the society and therefore do not receive proper schooling. Even if they are enrolled in an educational institute, they face harassment and are bullied every day and are asked to leave the school or they drop out on their own. It is because of this that they take up begging and sex work. They are forced into sex work which puts them at the highest risk of contracting HIV as they agree to unprotected sexual intercourse because they fear rejection or they want to affirm their gender through sex. They are viewed as ‘vectors’ of HIV in the society. Other sexually transmitted infections such as rectal gonorrhea, syphilis, rectal Chlamydia, etc., add to the risk of HIV.

Challenges of Transgender Education

The nomenclature “third gender” is a problem in itself : it treats sexuality as a ladder-like structure in which the lowest rung is occupied by the queer community. Although it provides them with legal recognition, it does not alleviate them of their adject conditions as they continue to be a part of the marginalized section of society and are not considered equal to the rest of the Indian population. India has finally been able to successfully adopt the inclusion principle which was for a long time hoped for but not acted upon, it is also important to bring to attention the various ways in which it has been a failure. The third gender people will be considered as OBCs. The Supreme Court of India said they will be given educational and employment reservation as OBCs. The apex court also said states and the Centre will devise social welfare schemes for third gender community and run a public awareness campaign to erase social stigma. The Supreme Court said the states must construct special public toilets and departments to look into their special medical issues.

1. Inclusion in school/ college and university : Inclusion of transgender with school and college is a big challenge. It is so challenging to provide equal opportunity of education to transgender because there is a problem of inclusion with male and female gender students.

2. Use of disrespectful names and pronouns : When a transgender youth identifies as a particular gender (irrespective of biological sex), it is respectful to the youth’s human dignity to use the name chosen and the pronouns appropriate to that particular gender. To persevere intentionally in the use of a prior name and other pronouns is to be deliberately disrespectful. Transgender youth can understand and sympathize with some confusion, so long as there is continuous, good faith progress in using the proper name and pronouns.

3. Lack of access to appropriate restroom facilities :Transgender people often lack safe access to public restrooms. They may be assaulted if they use the restroom that conforms to their gender identity or forced to use a restroom that does not conform to their gender Identity. Transgender people often have no safe access to locker room facilities that conform to their gender identity. Wherever dress codes are enforced, they may create problems for transgender youth.

4. Confidentiality : Transgender youth may have unsupportive families and may even face violence and/or ejection from their home if their gender identity or gender expression is disclosed to the family.

5. Lack of ideal personality : Transgender youth often feel alone in the world. Few programs for youth employ transgender people; few libraries offer information about biological sex and gender, gender identity, or being transgender.

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