Aravani Day celebration

Transgenders at the Aravani Day celebration held at Collectorate in the city.“Five to six of us do not have a place to stay. We have been living in our friends’ houses for the last few months,” says Palaniamma. Clad in a blue shirt and a white dhothi with her head covered in a white veil, Palaniamma is one of the oldest among the aravani (transgender) community in Coimbatore.Ever since they were rendered homeless by the housing unit collapse at Ukkadam in October, they have been unable to find a place to live. “Most people hesitate to rent us houses,” she adds.

Though the attitude of the Government and the public towards the transgender community has changed, land, housing and employment still posed a challenge to them.Problems such as these were discussed at the Aravani Day celebration organised by Native Medicare Charitable Trust (NMCT) at the Collectorate on Monday. About 100 transgenders attended it. The week-long celebration in connection with ‘Aravani Pengal Dinam,’ observed on January 18, also includes an exhibition of food products, handicrafts and paintings done by aravanis.“Transgenders have always been marginalised and looked down upon by society,” says N.S.Murali, Honorary Secretary, Voluntary Health Services, Chennai. “The first step towards mainstreaming them is observing a day as Aravanis Day,” he adds.

The Tamil Nadu AIDS Initiative (TAI), an agency of Voluntary Health Services, decided to include the transgender community in its AIDS prevention programme as most of them indulged in sex work as a source of income.TAI along with non-Governmental organisations have started skill development programmes for the members of the community in 13 districts in Tamil Nadu. About 13,000 aravanis are part of the project. TAI’s estimate of the total population of aravanis is about 20,000 in the State.“Bringing down the incidence of HIV/AIDS among them is possible only through providing them with alternative income generation programmes,” Mr. Murali says.

In Coimbatore, NMCT along with TAI, has identified 2,150 transgenders and is running skill development programmes for them, Mr.Sankaranarayanan, Director of NMCT, says.“Now, most of us are undergoing training in cookery, beautician courses, computers, tailoring, photography and videography,” says Silpa, a transgender. “A lot of roadside eateries are run by us,” she adds. “By forming self-help groups amongst ourselves, we are able to earn at least Rs.4,000 a month,” Silpa says.Inaugurating the exhibition, Rural Industries Minister Pongalur N. Palanisamy assured the transgenders that the Government would protect their rights.

TAI, along with Integrated Child Development Programme, recently conducted an orientation programme for about 500 anganwadi teachers. They, along with a trained group of aravanis, will interact with the general community with messages on hygiene and health problems such as tuberculosis and cancer.It will be carried out in Periyanayakanpalayam, Karamadai, Thondamuthur, Pollachi South and Pollachi North blocks and is expected to cover about 48,000 people.

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