Transgenders, who are striving hard to find a place in mainstream society, will soon turn entrepreneurs in Kerala with the launch of a taxi service which will be owned and operated by them, a first in the State.
After unveiling the first Transgender Policy in the country with a view to ending societal stigma towards the transgender community, the State government is now getting ready to launch ‘Gender Taxi,’ owned and operated by transgenders.
Objective
The objective of ‘G Taxi’ programme is to provide a better means for livelihood for the minority group and to ensure them non-discriminatory treatment in society.
The State-run Gender Park, under the Department of Social Justice, has drawn up a programme to roll out ‘G Taxi’ on the model of its successful all-women cab network ‘She Taxi.’
If ‘She Taxi’ has targeted mainly women commuters, the ’G Taxi’ is envisaged as an ‘equality taxi,’ in which all travellers, irrespective of their gender, can avail of the service. If everything goes as planned, the first fleet of ‘G Taxi’ cabs will be rolled out in the State this March.
Minister for Social Justice M.K. Muneer said the ‘G Taxi’ is part of the government’s first step towards the practical implementation of the transgender policy, unveiled here last November.
Transgender policy
“We have unveiled the transgender policy with a view to improving the life and living conditions of transgender community. The ‘G Taxi’ is the first major step as part of the implementation of the transgender policy,” Mr. Muneer said.
Gender Park CEO P.T. M. Sunish said that the project was expected to promote entrepreneurship among transgenders and provide them with a better means for livelihood.
“We are hopeful that the project will help them fetch not only a better income but also a good opportunity to mingle with the mainstream society. People who avail themselves of the service of ‘G Taxi’ can interact with them which will help change their mindset towards transgenders,” Mr. Sunish said.
He said a number of transgenders, on the sidelines of the recent International Gender Conference held here last year, had requested the Minister to launch an entrepreneurial programme for them on the model of ‘She Taxi.’
They had also requested to entrust it with the Gender Park as it has successfully implemented the ‘She Taxi’ network, envisaged for the empowerment of women.
Like the ‘She Taxi,’ ‘G Taxi’ cabs will also have advanced security features, including GPS.
