How Odisha Is Leading The Fight Against Transphobia In Colleges

The state government in Odisha has directed registrars and principals of all the universities and degree colleges in the state to ensure safety of transgenders on campuses.?

The directive comes after an advisory issued by National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in September containing guidelines covering education, healthcare, employment, inclusivity, and grievance redressal for transgender individuals.?

BCCL

Apart from this, the Odisha government had also formulated a policy in 2021 in order to enable transgenders to have equal access to education, called the Odisha State Transgender Person Policy 2021.

What are the Odisha state government directives for welfare of transgenders??

The Odisha state government directives for welfare of transgenders were laid out by the state higher education department in a letter to the registrars and principals of universities and degree colleges in the state.?

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The letter includes the following:?

• Educational institutes have been requested to protect gender non-conforming students from bullying, harassment or other forms of violence in their respective jurisdictions.?
• Educational institutes have been directed to form monitoring committee cells to address prejudices, discrimination, sexual abuse and other violence against transgenders.?
• Educational institutes have been asked to provide gender-neutral facilities at all higher educational institutions, including unisex toilets and restrooms.?

What are the NHRC recommendations for transgender individuals on education??

Regarding education, the NHRC had called upon states and union territories (UTs) to implement measures that would facilitate equality of access to education.?

Reuters

These included recommendations such as:?

• Encouraging authorities to consider developing a policy to address issues such as violence, discrimination, and harassment within educational institutions.?
• The education department of all states/UTs were to advise educational institutions within their respective jurisdictions to protect gender-nonconforming students from bullying, harassment, or other forms of violence.?
• The state governments were urged to establish an anti-discrimination cell at the district level for transgender individuals in every district and to set up a monitoring committee to address issues related to prejudices, discrimination, sexual abuse, and other forms of violence against transgender individuals.?
• The state governments were requested to ensure that transgender students do not face discrimination in higher education, and suitable provisions for providing financial assistance to transgender students pursuing degree, diploma, or postgraduate courses should be ensured. Scholarships and free education schemes should be formulated for transgender students.? ? ??

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