In a path-breaking initiative, the Kochi City police have joined hands with Kochi Metro Rail Limited to provide gainful employment to members of the transgender community in the urban transport project.
A decision in this regard was taken at a preliminary meeting between the two agencies here on Tuesday.
“We will be holding consultations with representatives of the community as well as with the Kudumbasree Mission, the agency supplying workforce for manning the metro rail stations. Based on its outcome, a detailed report will be prepared and submitted to KMRL,’’ said M.P. Dinesh, Commissioner of Police.
According to him, the programme is intended to provide rehabilitation to the transgender community in Kochi. To initiate the project, Ammose Mammen, an Assistant Commissioner–ranked officer with the Kochi City police, has been appointed as the nodal officer, who will be responsible for organising stakeholder meetings and collating suggestions.
As per estimates, 128 TGs live within the Kochi city limits. Of these, eligible candidates will be selected after verifying their educational qualification and criminal antecedents. The selected candidates will be imparted training in their respective areas of employment .
Elias George, Managing Director, KMRL, said the plan was to form a couple of TG groups under the Kudumbasree umbrella and deploy them at the operation side after due screening. “We will be engaging these transgender groups on a trial basis and if it succeeds, we intend to create spaces for them with the water metro project as well,” Mr. George said.
Welcoming the initiative, transgender activists observed that the initiative would encourage transgenders who were yet to reveal their trans-identity to come upfront. “About 64 per cent of transgenders in Kerala are school dropouts and not qualified for such jobs under the existing standards. While offering to recruit, the authorities should keep such things in mind or else it will be yet another nerve-wracking experience for them,’’ said Sheethal Shyam, secretary, Sexual Minority Forum (SMF), Kerala.
Programme is intended to provide rehabilitation to the transgender community in Kochi
