Bihar introduces third gender category in school exams

For the first time since the Supreme Court recognised transgender people as a third gender in 2014, as many as 18 students in Bihar have been allowed to appear for the Board exams conducted by the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) under the third-gender category. The exams for Class 12 begin on February 14 and for Class 10 from March 1. According to board officials, 10 third-gender students will be taking the Class 12 exams and eight would be writing the Class 10 exams.

So far, the BSEB did not allow students to take Board exams under the ‘third gender’ category because the exam form specified two categories, male and female.

“From this year, we have an online examination form with provision for the third gender, and we have had students marking themselves under this category. My office is calling them up individually to find out if they’ve exercised the third-gender option knowingly or inadvertently,” said BSEB chairman Anand Kishore.

“We want to provide equal opportunity to all students,” he added.

“The total number of students appearing for both the Board exams this year will be over 30 lakh (compared with 27.58 last year). Schools can download e-admit cards of candidates from Friday evening,” Rajeev Dwivedi, public relations officer of BSEB, told The Hindu . The transgender community has welcomed the move.

“Now more and more students of my gender can appear in the Board exams under their own identity,” Monika Das, a transgender bank employee in Patna, told

The Hindu .

Monika Das had to appear in the Board examination under the male category with the name of Gopal Kumar. She is a law graduate from Patna University and proudly claims to be the first third gender banker of the country.

“Such a decision was urgently required and I am happy that a beginning has been made From next year, more and more third gender students should be able to take the exams,” said Kajal Kumari, a transgender who makes a living by dancing and singing on social occasions.

In March 2016, the Bihar government had said it would positively consider the demand for giving financial assistance to those wanting to change their sex by medical intervention. Last year in December, the district administration of Buxar had announced to use the services of the transgender community to stop open defecation in the area. “Since third gender members have been visiting homes on many social occasions, we think they can play an important role in making the masses aware about the benefits of sanitation,” Raman Kumar, young district magistrate of Buxar, had said.