Odisha Police Open The Door For Transgender Community, Invite Applications For Vacant Posts
Odisha Police Recruitment: Before Odisha, states like Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan have taken the progressive step to recruit transgender people in their police forces.
Bhubaneswar: In a progressive and inclusive move, the Odisha Police on Saturday invited applications from the transgender community for the posts of constables and sub-inspectors.
The Odisha Police Recruitment Board opened up the online application process from men, women, and transgender people for the appointment of 477 sub-inspectors and 244 constables (communication). The application portal will remain open from June 22 to July 15.
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"I invite qualified women and men to join the Odisha Police as constables (communication) and SIs to serve the people of the state. Also, for the first time, people belonging to the transgender category can apply for both the posts," Director General of Police Abhay told reporters in Cuttack.
Differently-abled people, however, have not been made eligible to apply. "Transgender candidates are eligible to apply, PWD (Persons with Disabilities) are not eligible to apply," the notification states.
DGP Abhay informed that the recruitment for the SI post will be done to the main police cadre, while the constable (communications) is a technical cadre.
The minimum qualification for the sub-inspector's post is graduation, while that of the constable (communication) post is Class 12 with a diploma in computer application.
A computer-based recruitment examination will be conducted besides physical and efficiency tests.
Earlier, the Odisha government announced the decision to recruit transgender people as jail warders but a notification in this regard is yet to be issued.
The Odisha Kinner and Third Gender Mahasangh, a transgender body, lauded the decision of the Odisha Police and thanked Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
"For the first time, a public advertisement has been issued seeking application from transgender people in government jobs in the state. Including the transgender people in the force will not only boost the confidence of the community, but also change the society's perception towards transgender people," Mahasangh founder president Pratap Kumar Sahu said.
The Mahasangh has urged the chief minister to provide some relaxation to transgender candidates in physical tests as many of them may not be able to perform on par with men and women in terms ofrunning and other physical activities.
Pratap Sahu recalled how states like Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan have taken the progressive step to recruit transgender people in their police forces.
In 2014, the Supreme Court recognised the transgender community as the third gender and ruled that they have equal privileges over the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.
The Parliament has also enacted the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 to provide the community equal rights as granted to binary genders.
The step to open the door for transgender candidates in the police force can increase their representation, eradicate stereotypes/stigma and also bring more focus to tackling cases of violence against the community.
(With Agency Inputs)
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