In what is probably a first in the country, the Social Justice Department is set to open a home for transmen in the city this month.
The Thanal Short Stay and Safety Home will come up at Kunnukuzhy here as part of the department’s Mazhavillu umbrella project for the transgender community.
The ₹28-crore project will be implemented by the Queerythm community-based organisation. The home will accommodate a maximum of 25 persons simultaneously. Transmen who have undergone sex reassignment surgery or those in crisis or situations of emergency will be able to put up at the home for a maximum of three months.
Accommodation, food, and medical care will be free. Medical support from the Government Medical College Community Medicine Department will be available. Crisis management and legal aid teams will work with Queerythm to provide support. An exclusive queer library will also be set up at the home for LGBTQI community members and researchers, Queerythm president Prijith P.K. said.
The home will be managed by staff members such as manager, caretakers, cleaners, security guard, cook, and part-time counsellor. All of them will belong to the transgender community.
Queerythm will also provide training in personality development, communicative English, yoga, and vocational training.
Interview
The department will also open two homes for transwomen — in Ernakulam and Kozhikode. Homes for transwomen in the city and in Kottayam are also slated to come up. Interview to select the staff for the home will be held at 10 a.m. on May 22 at the Social Justice Department’s office at Poojappura. Non-trans people will be considered if those from the eligible community are not available.
