Kerala's first transgender students' hostel opened

Kottayam (Kerala), Aug 26 (PTI) For the first time in the state, a hostel exclusively to accommodate transgender students has been opened on the Mahatma Gandhi University campus in Kerala's Kottayam district.

State Social Justice Minister R Bindhu on Monday inaugurated the hostel building, a long-standing demand of the students belonging to the marginalised community.

University sources here said the TG hostel can accommodate at least six students.

They also said the new hostel facility on the university campus is expected to woo more students from the transgender community to higher education.

Minister Bindhu said there is a remarkable increase in the number of trangender students who clear the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) in the state.

"In this circumstance, I appreciate the hostel project initiated by the MG University. The marginalised community are fighting various odds in life.We should ensure social support for them," she told reporters here.

Even families used to reject transgender people, and so society has a big role to play in their lives, the minister added.

A transgender student said the hostel facility in the university is a boon, as the community students are finding it difficult to get accommodation and also to meet the soaring rental amount. PTI LGK KH