A turning point for transgender group

[Guest guest]

Biswajit Padhi

Kolkata

Women and children at Dhapa, in the eastern fringes of Kolkata, are learning to

read and write thanks to the persistence of Ganesh, a transgender or hijra. What

started as a small initiative of Kolkata Rista, an NGO, to encourage the

transgender community to use condoms, has ended up transforming the lives of

around 3,000 villagers by helping them become literate.

Dhapa is where Kolkata's garbage goes. It is sifted here and the organic waste

is used to grow vegetables. It is a unique recycling zone where waste from the

city is used to produce food. The place, however, lacks basic amenities like

electricity and water. There are no schools or health centres.

The bus drops you off at least two kilometres away. From there you find your way

on foot through all the debris. Livelihood options are limited and unrewarding.

People either work as agricultural labour on small plots earning Rs 10 for five

hours. Or they pick through the garbage to separate plastics from the recyclable

stuff.

Dhapa is also home to a small community of a dozen transgender people who do sex

work to supplement their income. Ganesh is one of them. He was detested by

villagers, till this little effort began.

“Dhapa came on to our radar because we wanted to sensitise transgenders living

here into using condoms,” says Dr Santosh Kumar Giri, a gay activist and chief

of Kolkata Rista, a rights based group for transgenders. A doctor, Santosh

initially sent Bhanu, a hijra working with his group to sensitise the

transgenders of Dhapa about the importance of safe sex.

Bhanu began to educate his ‘community' on sexual behavior, particularly the use

of condoms. The hijras laughed at him. They pointed out they did not require

condoms since their sexual behavior was unconventional – including as it did

oral and anal sex. Seeing Bhanu very upset, Santosh had to step in and handle

the transgenders with great patience. The NGO kept on persisting though the

hijras were a little slow to catch on.

Things began to look up for Kolkata Rista when Ganesh, a transgender in his late

thirties turned up in their office with a peculiar problem. He was not able to

identify his bus number 12C which ferried him to work every day since he was

illiterate. What irritated and upset Ganesh was that people at the bus stand

were reluctant to talk to him, leave alone help him identify his bus every day.

Santosh saw an opportunity in Ganesh's problem and grabbed it. He started

teaching Ganesh every evening after he'd come back from work.

Language lessons helped Ganesh overcome his biggest handicap – identifying his

bus number. Once he could read it, Ganesh began encouraging the other hijras to

get a bit of education. Since Kolkata Rista wanted to begin a literacy drive, it

trained Ganesh who then enthusiastically started classes in his home. But the

initial response to Ganesh's efforts at enrolling villagers was very

disheartening. “People were not willing to take lessons from a transgender,”

admits Santosh. Still, Ganesh continued his classes. A few hijras attended and

that too irregularly.

If the first turning point for Kolkata Rista was Ganesh himself, the second

turning point came in the form of a government scheme. The government's decision

to electrify the village came as a boon to Ganesh. Out of 500 applications that

the villagers filed, only Ganesh's application for a connection was approved by

the engineer of the electricity department since it was the only one signed by

the applicant. All the others bore thumb impressions.

The form mandated that the applicant had understood its contents and agreed with

the terms and conditions laid down. But the thumb impressions were a giveaway.

They proved the applicants were illiterate and could not have read the terms and

conditions. The official clarification given by the electricity department

further enhanced Ganesh's status. After their applications were rejected, people

had to approach the local ward member to recommend their applications resulting

in delays and harassment.

Ganesh now became a hero in the village. Women who till recently detested hijras

and refused to talk to them now approached Ganesh saying: “Arre Ganesh tui to

aamake bi sikhabe ki?” (Ganesh won't you teach us to read and write?)

Ganesh, who works as a cook, takes time off in the evening to give literacy

classes to villagers as a volunteer. His classes are a hit. And Ganesh has

proved to the villagers that hijras can be good human beings.

“The acceptance of a not very educated hijra as a teacher by the community gives

us tremendous satisfaction,” says Santosh.

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_____________________________

Biswajit Padhi

Secretary, SRUSTI

At/Po: Khariar - 766107, Nuapada ,Orissa , INDIA

phone: 91 6671 232110 , 232433( fax)

Cell: 9437072910 Web: srusti.org