C’garh to recruit transgenders in police force to take on Maoists

RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh police will hire transgender constables in the next couple of months as part of the recruitment policy and deploy them to combat Maoist extremists whenever required.

The state government has asked police to hire transgender people in accordance with a Supreme Court judgment.

“We are set to recruit them if they pass a mandatory written exam and physical test,” said Pawan Deo, the state’s additional director general of police (recruitment), on Thursday.

In 2014, the SC declared transgender people as “third gender” and ruled they have equal privilege over the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.

Chhattisgarh police proposes to recruit about 35,000 constables from each of the state’s 27 districts, of which 17 are reeling from Maoist insurgency.

“Since constables are districtlevel cadre, it is possible a transgender recruit will have to fight Maoists if that person is hired from a Maoist-affected area,” a senior police officer said.

The department is working out the physical parameters that will be applicable for applicants.

According to an IPS officer, experts were being consulted to fix the physical standards such as height and chest measurement. The age limit is 28 years.

Chhattisgarh’s transgender community falls under the other backward class (OBC) category, a status that guarantees 14% reservation in education and government jobs. The applicants can avail of the reservation.

The state’s move is viewed as a watershed to mainstream the transgender people, who are often forced to live on the fringes of society and face discrimination in jobs and services.

We are set to recruit them if they pass a mandatory written exam and physical test