LGBTQIA+ groups endorse open letter to retain NCERT manual on inclusion of transgender students in schools

NEW DELHI: 43 LGBTQIA+ groups from the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in Delhi, Bombay, Kanpur, and Kharagpur and 700 other people have written an open letter to the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), Union Ministries of Social Justice and Empowerment, Education, Women and child development, and National Council for Transgender Persons (NCPT) demanding back the teacher training manual on inclusion of transgender students in schools.

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“In the twenty-first century, the right of transgender and gender non-conforming persons to personal development and to physical and moral security in the full sense enjoyed by others in society cannot be regarded as a matter of controversy. Recognition of one’s gender identity lies at the heart of the fundamental right to life with dignity and is guaranteed under the Constitution of India,” the letter said.

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The letter has condemned the NCPCR for being transmisic and transphobic and demanded it to redact its notice to NCERT and tender a public apology for actively participating in transmisia.

Asserting that NCERT's gender-neutral teacher training manual will deny equal rights to children of diverse biological needs, NCPCR had sought rectification of "anomalies" in the document.

In a letter to the NCERT director, the commission said it has received a complaint regarding the content of the teacher training manual titled 'Inclusion of Transgender Children in School Education: Concerns and Road Map' published by the Department of Gender Studies at NCERT.

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The complainant said that the text of the manual suggests gender-neutral infrastructure for children that does not commensurate with their gender realities and basic needs. "Also, the idea of creating and removing binaries shall deny them equal rights of children of diverse biological needs.

Later, the manual which ran into controversy over its content was removed from the NCERT website.

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Soon after that, over 7,000 parents signed an online petition filed by the parent to retain the NCERT’s gender-neutral teacher training manual.

In addition to this, more than 50 academics from India and abroad have signed a petition asking to retain the manual.