Empowering transgender persons with improved livelihood options
Visakhapatnam: In a thoughtful initiative aimed at bringing in social transformation, the ‘Jyotirgamaya’ programme, conceived under the visionary leadership of City Police Commissioner Shankhabrata Bagchi is ushering in a new era of dignity and opportunity for transgender persons in Visakhapatnam.
For decades, the transgender community has struggled, often forced into begging at traffic signals and shops due to a lack of proper employment opportunities and social recognition.
In some instances, this marginalisation has even led to unfortunate conflicts with the public.
Responding to growing concerns and complaints from the community, the city police took an empathetic and proactive approach to address the root causes of the issue.
Under the City Commissioner’s guidance, multiple rounds of discussions were held with transgender persons and their community leaders by the police control room team.
These interactions helped the authorities gain deep insights into their challenges, aspirations and untapped potential.
Rather than viewing the issue through a conventional enforcement lens, the police chose to realign it as a social empowerment opportunity.
The result was ‘Jyotirgamaya,’ a programme designed to provide sustainable livelihood and restore dignity for the community. Spearheaded on the ground by Inspector B Bhaskar Rao and his dedicated team, detailed profiling of transgender individuals was carried out, assessing their educational backgrounds and personal interests. Based on this, tailored employment opportunities were created along with facilitation of bank loans to help them establish small businesses aligned with their preferences.
About twenty transgender persons have been successfully employed in the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) in sanitation and other departments.
Several others have commenced small enterprises such as pan shops and grocery stores with financial assistance from banks. Efforts are underway to extend employment opportunities to another group of 20 individuals in the corporation.
Symbolising inclusion, 10 transgender persons have come together to run a tea and tiffin centre at women police station.
Speaking on the initiative, City Police Commissioner Shankhabrata Bagchi emphasised that the core objective of the programme is to ensure that transgender persons can lead lives with dignity and earn respect in the society. ‘Jyotirgamaya’ stands today not just as a programme, but as a beacon of progressive policing and inclusive society.
