Tamil Nadu: Transgenders to be inducted as Home Guards

In a path-breaking initiative, the Madurai district police have decided to induct transgenders into the service of Tamil Nadu Home Guards. Six educated transgenders will soon wear khaki uniform and undergo training for aiding police in the maintenance of security, traffic regulation and disaster management. The move comes months after a woman who joined the Police department was found to be a transgender and dismissed from service in Villuppuram district.

Six transgenders who have passed SSLC and Plus Two have been identified to join the Home Guards. The transgenders are expected to appear before the Madurai police for physical assessment. Referring to the instance where a transgender was given the status of a woman and allowed to appear in the Group-II Service examination conducted by the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission recently, the transgender says that they should be recognised as a third gender and not as women.