Chhattisgarh 1st in country to make policy for third gender community: CM

Raipur, Sept 18: Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel honoured 13 newly-appointed police constables of third gender community in a programme organized at the Chief Minister’s residence office today and congratulated them. The Chief Minister said that all of them gave a new direction to their life by taking advantage of programmes run by the state government for the welfare of third gender community.
Baghel said on the occasion that his government was working in the interests of the people of all castes, class, community and gender in the state. State government is working with the policy of promoting social harmony and solidarity; he said adding that Chhattisgarh is the first state in the country, which has formulated a policy for the welfare of the third gender community of the state to bring them into the mainstream.
Chhattisgarh has also constituted a welfare board for the rehabilitation and protection of rights of third gender persons; he said and added that a provision of Rs 76 lakh had been made in this year’s budget for setting up ashram-cum-rehabilitation centers for the rehabilitation of third gender persons. This will be the first center of its kind in the country, he said. Online software has been developed for data storage of third gender community, he informed. He said that 2 thousand 919 third gender persons were identified in the survey and 1,025 of them were issued identity cards, which would be valid for ration cards, passports, Aadhar cards, etc.
Director of Social Welfare P Dayanand informed that 97 people of third gender community appeared examination for recruitment of police constables and 23 of them were selected for physical test. He said that 13 participants who qualified the test were selected for the post of constable and were currently posted in various districts of the state. The participants of the post of constable were prepared for written and physical test for 5 months in Administration Academy and State Resource and Rehabilitation Center by subject-experts.
Free food and accommodation were arranged for the participants, he said. Health Minister TS Singhdeo, Agriculture and Water Resources Minister Ravindra Choubey, Forest Minister Mohammad Akbar, School Education Minister Dr Premsai Singh Tekam, Secretary to Chief Minister Siddharth Komal Pardeshi and other officers were present.