Centre Sets Up Expert Committee to Address Health Needs of Transgender Persons

The Central Government has constituted an expert committee to focus on the health-related needs of transgender persons, acknowledging that their medical requirements differ from those of men and women. The committee has been formed under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

The decision follows observations made by the Supreme Court in the Jane Kaushik vs Union of India case, which highlighted discrimination faced by a transgender woman at her workplace and stressed the need for institutional reforms to protect transgender rights, including healthcare access.

According to the government, transgender persons have distinct physical, hormonal, and mental health needs, which require a sensitive and specialized approach. The expert committee is expected to examine medical, technical, and policy-related issues and recommend measures to improve healthcare services for the transgender community.

The committee recently held a meeting to discuss these matters, though it was reported that a representative from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare was absent during the discussion held on January 24.

Activists and former members of the National Council for Transgender Persons, including intersex activist Gopi Shankar Madurai, have welcomed the move. They have urged the government to support long-term scientific research on gender-affirming surgeries and hormone replacement therapy (HRT), ensure genetic counseling, and provide separate facilities for transgender persons in prisons.

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