Assam: Zonal awareness program on rights and privilege of transgender community held in Guwahati

Guwahati (Assam) [India], November 10 (ANI): A one-day zonal awareness programme with stakeholders on the rights and privileges of the transgender community was held on Friday at Administrative Staff College in Guwahati.
The programme was initiated by the Directorate of Social Justice and Empowerment, Assam, in an effort to create an inclusive society for all, including transgender persons.
"The main objective of the awareness program was to educate the wider community about transgender and gender non-conforming people, along with the issues associated with their transition and identity, the awareness and perception in the field, directorates, various departments, districts and aligned departments, which have very little knowledge about the transgender community," an official statement said.
During the meeting, Kishore Thakuria, Director of Social Justice and Empowerment, focused on raising public awareness and sensitization of transgender rights and developing the capacity of relevant stakeholders to enforce rights.
"Large-scale sensitization needs to happen starting from the school level to see transgender not as an aberration but as an integral and productive component of social life," he said.
The awareness programme consisted of multiple sessions, with each session covering a specific aspect of the transgender community.
The sessions comprised discussions on the mental health and emotional well-being of transgender people, understanding the transgender community and discussions on challenges faced by transgender people related to voter ID, Epic, etc, Transgender Person (Protection of Rights) Act 2019 and the Assam State Policy for Transgender 2020, and the SMILE scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, New Delhi.
During the open session, people from the transgender community shared their personal experiences and the social stigma they face in their daily lives.
The programme was attended by KJ Hilaly, Secretary to the Dept of Social Justice and Empowerment; Anurag Goel, Chief Electoral Officer, Govt of Assam, Bhaskar Das, Joint Secretary to the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Rituparna Neog, Associate Vice Chairperson, Transgender Welfare Board and other officials. (ANI)