Transgender quota in BU unlikely to be filled this year

PG seats will go abegging for lack of graduates

 According to sources in the university, filling the 52 seats would be a 'huge' task at least in the upcoming academic year.

The University receives applications for its PG programmes from August 12 to 23 without penalty. August 25 is the last date for submitting admission forms with penalty.

Although transgenders have expressed happiness over the quota, they seem cynical about its feasibility. Basudeva Somani is among the very few transgenders who made it to the UG level but couldn't get through because of “severe harassment.”

“I couldn’t concentrate on my studies because my college mates and teachers would spurn no opportunity to harass me,” she told Deccan Herald. Having failed in BCom Final Year, she dropped out.

“Unlike me, most transgenders give up studies at the high school and pre-university levels. So, the quota is unlikely to find many takers,” she added.

B L Muralidhara, Coordinator, Centralised PG Admissions, echoes Somani’s view. “Although we are hopeful that a few transgender students will take admission in some hardcore disciplines, in reality, we know nothing. I am yet to come across any potential student,” he said.

Muralidhara, who had proposed the quota at BU’s Academic Council meeting last month, hoped that some transgender candidates might evince interest after the notification for PG admissions is published on Tuesday.  

According to Akayiamma, Coordinator (Information Communication Technology) with transgender NGO Sangama, they are yet to come across any prospective student. "Let alone likely students, we are yet to find any graduate in our community," she said.

Moreover, their enthusiasm about the quota has not gone beyond thanking Vice Chancellor N Prabhudev. “We are yet to meet and discuss with him the steps for implementing the quota,” she said.

Sangama plans to request the  State Government for fixing a quota for transgenders at the high school, the PU and UG levels so that the “pyramid of educational empowerment is set straight”.

On his part, Dev acknowledged that the quota would be difficult to execute. “As of now, we cannot say anything about the number of students taking admission. We’ll know about it only after going through the applications,” he told this reporter.
The quota is non-transferable, that means, if no one takes up the seat, it will remain vacant.