Now, the third gender can pursue higher education in the state
The department of higher education (DHE) has included the third gender in its registration form for online admission in undergraduate courses of private and government colleges under the department.
Good news for transgenders who wish to pursue higher education in the state: The department of higher education (DHE) has included the third gender in its registration form for online admission in undergraduate courses of private and government colleges under the department.
The admission process in more than 750 government and private colleges across the state is going on. Joint director(Indore division),department of higher education, Narendra Dhakkar said with the addition of the third category, the transgenders can now express their status officially and can pursue higher education.
About the number of transgenders who applied online till date, Dhakkar said the online registration process for admission is however in the preliminary stage. It was earlier scheduled to start from May 21, but postponed by two days and restarted on May 23. It will continue till June 18 and the department will get a clear picture only after that.
Dhakkar added that the members of the transgender community will be categorized in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and there will be no special quota available for them. The transgender persons will only be eligible to get admission in co-ed colleges.
The Supreme Court acknowledged the transgender persons as the ‘third gender’ in a landmark ruling on April 15, 2014. The University Grants Commission (UGC) had notified them as the third gender to enable them to avail benefits of all scholarship schemes and fellowship programmes in higher educational institutions.
On February 12, the UGC asked all the universities to create a transgender-friendly atmosphere at educational institutions in the country. Later in the month of May, the commission has asked all universities to include a column for the transgender category in all application forms.
