Odisha becomes first Indian state to give pension and food benefits to transgenders

Odisha in the first week of June 2016 became the first Indian state to give transgender people social welfare benefits, such as a pension, housing and food grains.

The state took the step to give the transgender community the same benefits as those living below the poverty line. The step was aimed at improving their overall social and economic status.

Key highlights of the policy

• Members of the transgender community will be given BPL cards.

• The BPL cards will allow them to access benefits under various government welfare programmes.

• This includes schemes that provide free housing, 100 days of paid work annually, pensions and loans to start up their own businesses.

• They will also be entitled to 5 kg of food grains every month under India’s National Food Security Act.

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