New Delhi, Dec. 2: Parents of transgender children could look forward to child support and study allowances before two other schemes covering the adult years take over, according to a welfare bouquet the government plans to roll out next year for the community.
The proposal for the socio-economic schemes, the first such for the community, comes months after the Supreme Court ruled that transgenders — commonly known as hijras — must be treated as a third gender and accorded all the fundamental rights as well as reservation benefits.
The draft plan — a copy is with The Telegraph — also provides for skill-development aid and pension for transgender persons from the age of 40 till they reach 60.
Once the draft is finalised, it will be sent to other ministries concerned for consultations.
In an affidavit submitted in the Supreme Court this July, the government had defined transgenders as “all persons whose own sense of gender does not match with the gender assigned to them at birth”.
This, the affidavit said, includes “trans-men and trans-women”, “gender queers” and a number of “socio cultural identities, such as kinnars (and) hijras”.
In its April ruling, the court had dwelt on both biological characteristics and gender attributes, including one’s self-image, the deep psychological or emotional sense of sexual identity and character.
What the draft plan seeks to do is address these issues through these five schemes. The first of these schemes proposes a financial support plan for parents of transgender kids, making them eligible for Rs 1,000 a month as child support.
The parents have to submit an affidavit declaring that they have a child showing “gender non-conforming behaviour” and who is below 18.
One eligibility criterion for getting the benefit is that the yearly family income cannot exceed Rs 2.5 lakh.
“It was very important to include parents under the scheme as they have to face and fight against violence, social intolerance, discrimination and stigma for their transgender child. They should be given incentives and counselling to prevent them from abandoning their children. This is just the beginning and I am very happy with the proposals,” said Priya Babu, a documentary filmmaker, writer and activist.
The ministry has also taken into cognisance the high dropout rate among such children. To help those who study in Classes VII to X, it has proposed a monthly scholarship of Rs 150 for day scholars and Rs 350 for those who stay in hostels. The scholarship will be reviewed every 10 months.
“There is a high rate of dropouts especially during the shift from the elementary to the secondary stage and it has to be minimised. It is only through education that they can fight the stigma attached to them,” said a ministry official.
To address the problem of dropouts during higher education, the ministry has proposed a monthly assistance of Rs 550 for day scholars to pursue higher studies in India in any stream. Those who stay in hostels would get Rs 1,200. The 2.5-lakh eligibility ceiling applies to this scheme, too.
The ministry has also proposed a scheme to help state governments train transgenders in developing skills. The states, according to the proposal, would get assistance to the tune of Rs 15,000 per transgender trainee per 200-hour course with a maximum of 30 trainees in a course. There is no limit on the number of courses.
“Through the scheme we have tried to encourage the community to learn skills that will help them get jobs. We are also offering a stipend of Rs 1,000 for each trainee who chooses to enrol in these courses,” said a ministry official.
The last scheme in the bouquet involves a monthly pension of Rs 1,000 for such persons after the age of 40 and till they reached 60. While the Centre would pay 75 per cent of the amount, states have to contribute the rest. The Centre is yet to suggest a scheme for above-60 transgenders.
