236 Transgenders paid ₹4 cr under urban programmes in Odisha

BHUBANESWAR, Odisha: G Mathi Vathanan, Principal Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Government of Odisha, informed that at least 236 transgender persons collaborating with the local authorities in urban programmes have been paid ₹4 crore for the same.

Transgender persons have been paid this amount for actively participating with the authorities in several urban programmes as part of 5T governance framework of the Government of Odisha. At least 43 transgender persons have been working in faecal sludge treatment plants and as sanitation vehicle drivers, while 41 are working in water processing centres, 31 in water treatment plants, 24 in Mukta, an urban wage employment initiative, 18 as parking fee collectors, two as urban professionals and 32 support staff and one each in shelters for urban homeless and Jal Sathi programme.

The Government of Odisha has taken several steps to make the sanitation practices in urban local bodies more inclusive by partnering with the transgender community in faecal sludge and septage management, solid waste management and other services. Vathanan added, “We are transcending barriers and building partnerships with the transgender community.”