COVID-19: Transgender Community Demands Special Package

About 2,000 + members from transgender community and few allies across India wrote to the Union Home, Finance & Social Justice Ministries seeking Special Package for Covid Lockdown.

Demanding subsistence allowance, rationkits, health support & protection from eviction. Assert rights as per NALSA.

Letter welcomes NISD support but points out that interim relief of Rs. 1,500 / – covered only 4,500 trans persons from different states, which is less than 1% of the overall national transgender population, going by the conservative estimates of Census 2011. (4.88 lakh)

Specific #Demands include:

1. Provide subsistence income of at least Rs. 3,000/- pm to every transgender person across India, until the Covid situation returns to normalcy, since more transgender persons don’t have ration cards & live in rented homes.

2.    Universalize Public Distribution System (PDS) to ensure food security to all needy citizens including transgender persons, with monthly rations kits  (15 kgs rice / atta, 3 kgs dal, 1 ltr cooking oil, 1 kg salt, 1 kg sugar, masala powder, eggs, immunity building foods etc.)

3.    Issue an order mandating that no transgender person shall be forced to pay rent or face eviction by their house owners for non-payment of rent during the period of lockdown.

4.    Ensure proper supply of all essential medication including ART medicines, tuberculosis care, hormone therapy & other gender-affirming procedures.

5. Ensure rights as per verdict of the Supreme Court in NALSA vs UoI (14th April, 2014) & Articles 14, 15 & 21 of the Constitution.

OPEN APPEAL FROM THE TRANSGENDER COMMUNITY TO THE HOME, FINANCE & SOCIAL JUSTICE MINISTRY FOR SPECIAL PACKAGE DURING CORONA LOCKDOWN

25^th April, 2020

Sub:    Request for Immediate Announcement of Special Package for All Members of the Transgender Community across India, in the context of Covid-19 & Lockdown – Reg

Dear Madam and Sirs,

We, the undersigned members of the transgender community from across the country are writing to you amidst the very precarious situation of the 40-day national lockdown due to corona virus. While, as citizens, we fully appreciate the gravity of the health pandemic and are co-operating in public interest, we would like you to take appropriate and urgent measures to mitigate the serious impact of the lockdown on the livelihoods, food security and health of lakhs of transgender people across the country.

1. A majority of transgender persons live in conditions of abject poverty, social exclusion and eke out our livelihood primarily through begging and sex work, both of which are avenues of work that entail public presence and physical contact. With physical distancing having been mandated (and rightly so to prevent furthering of virus) transgender persons have been weaned away from our only source of work. With no permanent sources of income, our condition is as vulnerable as daily wage earners.
2. Transgender persons are further vulnerable because of lack of food & nutritional security, housing, steady income, access to healthcare, sanitation facilities etc. Often driven away from homes early in life, the practise of community living in poor hygienic conditions exposes many to greater health risk, at such times. A recent death of a transgender person from Indore due to Coronavirus, has also alarmed the community greatly.
3. A very large number of transgender persons do not have basic documentation such as Aadhar card, ration card, election card, bank accounts etc in our self-identified name and gender, to seek any services from government. Thus, most of us remain outside the coverage of government social security schemes like rations and pensions; making it impossible to survive in such times of lockdown. The non-availability of suitable ID cards is a systemic gap as pointed out even by the Hon’ble Supreme Court and cannot be used against us to deny welfare benefits.

It is notable that in response to a previous letter by some transgender activists dated 25th March, 2020, explaining in detail the urgency and serious impact of lockdown on the community, the National Institute of Social Defense (NISD) of the MoSJE made an interim arrangement of provision of Rs. 1,500 / – to around 4,500 trans persons from different states.

However, even going by the conservative estimates of Census, 2011, the all-India population of the transgender community was at least 4.88 lakhs. In the past decade and especially after the landmark judgment of the Supreme Court in NALSA vs Union of India, the number of self-identified transgender persons has significantly increased and the same is nowhere reflected in official records. Thus, as per Census 2011 figures, the financial assistance through NISD has reached less than 1% of the overall transgender population of the country, and the majority still remains to be reached out and continues to face the impact of the lockdown.

While the Central Government and state governments have declared certain notifications / packages with regard to some sections during this crisis situation, no such measures have been taken for securing the well-being of all transgender persons, throughout the country (except provision of ration kits by Kerala Govt and the limited support by NISD). This is infact an invisiblization of us, even amidst a lockdown !

The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) announced by the Hon’ble Finance Minister did not make any reference to the transgender community in the country, the manner in which the lockdown would affect us and the need to provide a safety net through DBT and food grain support. In a welcome move, based on representations and subsequent to the declaration of finance package under PMGKY, the Govt. of India announced that it might also extend the package to fish workers[1], affected by the lockdown.

We earnestly appeal that a similar announcement of Special Package must be made immediately for the transgender community. In a welfare state, it is important that vulnerable populations are not seen from the prism of being a ‘numerically influential vote constituency’, but supported by virtue of we being citizens and tax payers of this country, entitled to equal rights and share in the schemes. We thus seek our rightful share in the Special Financial Package declared due to the lockdown (announced under the National Disaster Management Act, 2005).

Considering the acute hardships being faced by the transgender community, we request you to:

1. Provide an assured subsistence income of at least Rs. 3,000/- per month to every transgender person across the country, until the pandemic is in full control and situation returns to normalcy. This is much necessary considering the fact that most trans persons do not have ration cards, no pension is provided in most states and many transgender persons live in rented accommodations.
2. Universalize the Public Distribution System to ensure food security to all needy citizens including transgender persons and ensure monthly rations kits (with 15 kgs rice / atta, 3 kgs dal, 1 ltr cooking oil, 1 kg salt, 1 kg sugar, masala powder, eggs, immunity building foods etc.)
3. Issue an order mandating that no transgender person shall be forced to pay rent or face eviction by their house owners for non-payment of rent during the period of lockdown.
4. Ensure uninterrupted supply of all essential medication to trans persons including ART medicines, tuberculosis care and treatment, hormone therapy and other gender-affirming procedures.

We sincerely, hope you will appreciate that the State that has a primary responsibility as well as capacity and to safeguard the rights of the community, across the country especially in times of such a grave medico-health pandemic.

This would also be in keeping with the spirit of the judgement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in NALSA vs UoI (14th April, 2014) and obligations of the state, thereunder as well as under Article 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Yours truly,

Grace Banu [E-mail: gracebanug@gmail.com]

Meera Sanghamitra [E-mail: gracebanug@gmail.com]

Bittu Karthik Kondaiah [E-mail: bittu.kondaiah@gmail.com]

Rachana Mudraboyina [E-mail: rachanamudraboyina@gmail.com]

The full list of 2182 signatories is below.

Copy to:

1. The Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Govt. of India, New Delhi

2. The Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Govt. of India, New Delhi.

3. The Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India, New Delhi

[1]https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/centre-plans-to-extend-financial-aid-to-fisherflk/article31230549.ece