Transgender is an umbrella term to describe people whose gender identity or gender expression differs from that usually associated with their birth sex. Many transgender people live part –time or full-time as members of the other gender.

1. Critical Review of Literature
Presented By: Sameer Kumar Jena
Guided By: Prof. K.C Das
Evaluation Committee:
Prof. D.A. Nagdeve
Dr. Abhishek Singh
Dr. Kaushalendra Kumar

2. INTRODUCTION:
In India, total population of transgender is around 4.88 Lakh as per 2011 census. Transgender or well
known as Hijra in India is a term used to describe cross dressers, intersex people and transgender
women across south Asia. Their communities date back more than 4,000 and they appear in ancient
text as bearers of luck and fertility.
Transgender is an umbrella term to describe people whose gender identity or gender expression differs
from that usually associated with their birth sex. Many transgender people live part –time or full-time
as members of the other gender.
Definition of Transgender by the Transgender Persons (protection of rights) bill, 2016 “transgender
person" means a person who is neither wholly female nor wholly male; or A combination of female or
male; or Neither female nor male; and Whose sense of gender does not match with the gender
assigned to that person at the time of birth, and includes trans-men and trans-women, persons with
intersex variations and gender-queers.
Transgender community comprises of Hijras, eunuchs, Kothis, Aravanis, Jogappas, Shiv-Shakthis etc.

3. NEED FOR CRITICAL REVIEW:
 In India, people with a wide range of transgender-related identities, cultures, or experiences exist.
 Often these people have been part of the broader culture and treated with great respect, at least in
the past, although some are still accorded particular respect even in the present.
 With passing of time this community have lost their importance in the society.
 Now they are Discriminated in every steps of their life from birth to till death, they are struggling
to get back their identity and importance which was prevailing in the past.
 Now, India holding around 4.88 Lakh of transgender people which is considered as a marginalized
population. Recently many scholar have shown their interest to find out the status of transgender in
India.
 This critical review will be helping in find out both strength and weakness of the existing studies
specially done for Transgender.

4. OBJECTIVE:
In this paper, we present a critical review of literature on the status of Transgender in India.
To get a better understanding of relevant studies are classified in the following sequence:
 Psychosocial problems of transgender
 Attitude towards transgender in the family and society
 Quality Of Life in transgender
 Health and HIV Risk in Transgender
 Citizenship Rights

5. METHODOLOGY:
 We performed a literature search with Science Direct, JSTOR ,Research Gate and Google Scholar
using combinations of the following key words: transgender, transgender in India, Transgender
discrimination, Transgender and health, Transgender and society etc.
 This screening led to the selection of 26 articles and a secondary literature search was performed using
the references cited in these selected papers.
 Then, a total of 93 papers was identified, whose full length versions were obtained for this review.
 Finally 16 article got reviewed thoroughly, each of these studies was examined for information on
psychosocial problems of transgender, attitude towards transgender in the family and society, Quality
Of Life of transgender, Health and HIV risk in transgender and citizenship rights of Transgender.

6. CRITERIA INCLUSION EXCLUSION
Time period 1995 onward Prior 1995
Study Population Transgender Only LGB
Study area National Only International Article
Language English Other than English
Type of papers Abstract with full paper Without abstract
Table 1: Inclusion and exclusion criteria for the selection of studies

7. ABSTRACT FROM SCOPUS, GOOGLE SCHOLAR,
JSTOR, SCIENCE DIRECT & PUBMED (N=93)
Articles Excluded In The
Initial Screening For Not
Meeting The Inclusion
Criteria (N=52)
Articles retrieved for
detailed evaluation (N=41)
Articles reviewed
and excluded
(N=25)
Final articles
included in the
review (N=16)
Figure 1: Flow chart of literature search

8. Critical Review of Literature:
PSYCHOSOCIAL PROBLEMS OF TRANSGENDERS
• Psychosocial problem of transgender is a major phenomenon attached with Transgender community.
• Majority of transgender (87.5%) suffered harassment at the hands of the police (both railway and traffic)
particularly for begging and soliciting clients for sex work. There have also been cases when hijra respondents
have been raped and even gang raped by the police especially in the first class compartments of the local trains
in Mumbai (A. Chettiar, 2015).
• About one-fourth i.e. 26.7 percent of the respondents had thinking that the people hate them. A vast majority i.e.
81.7 & 84.2 percent of the respondents reported that they earn money by dancing and singing and was involved
in sexual abuse. (T. Abbas et al., 2014).
• In a study done in Srinagar District shows Forty-five percent of the respondents faced harassment at school
level. Twelve percent of respondents were physically harassed. Thirteen percent were sexually harassed. Sixty
percent were verbally abused. Fifteen percent says that they were physically and sexually harassed. Twelve
percent of respondents said that they were harassed by their teachers. Sixty percent respondents were harassed
by the students or the classmates. Fifteen percent were harassed by the students as well as teachers. Thirteen
percent respondents were harassed by the non-teaching staff of the school, which is resulting in low education
among transgender (A. Bund, 2013).
• According to a UNDP study in the year 2007 on MSM and hijras (n=75) 46 per cent reported forced sex, 44 per
cent physical abuse, 56 per cent verbal abuse, 31 per cent blackmail for money and 24 per cent threat to life
(UNDP 2010).

9. PSYCHOSOCIAL PROBLEMS OF TRANSGENDERS
They face several issues such as: shame, fear, and internalized transphobia; disclosure and coming out; adjusting,
adapting, or not adapting to social pressure to conform; fear of relationships or loss of relationships; and self-
imposed limitations on expression or aspirations (UNDP 2010).
Research Gap:
o Though all article focused on psychosocial problems but it fails to put light on some emerging problems like
Intimate Partner Violence as they keep them self-committed with different partner there is a chance of facing
violence from their intimate partner.
o Exploitation within the community as we know from literature there is a prevailing of Guru Chela system within
the community there is a high chance of exploitation from the guru towards chela.
o With respect to psychosocial problems it can be look that though all transgender didn’t want to push themselves
into prostitute their might be some extreme condition under which they prefer to push themselves into Sex
Work.

10. ATTITUDE TOWARDS TRANSGENDER IN THE FAMILY AND
SOCIETY
• Human rights violations against sexual minority including the transgender communities in India have been
widely documented. They prefer to run away from the family due to in tolerate discrimination or not wanting to
bring shame to one’s family.
• Study shows that about 64% of third gender are facing mistreatment from their family members for which they
don’t choose to live with their family in Odisha (I. Pattnaik, 2014).
• About one-fifth i.e. 21.7 percent of the respondents reported that their parents were tried to kill them and 41.7
percent of the respondents reported that their parents physical punish them (T. Abbas et al., 2014).
• Hundred percent of the respondents claim that they face discrimination on social grounds and Fifty percent
respondents acknowledged to have excluded themselves form social participations. The main reason for
exclusion can be attributed to the fear of ridicule and harassment. Whereas, all the respondents claim that when
the family and the community came to know about their gender identity their approach was not supportive. The
family and community were never supportive or favorable for them in Srinagar district (A. Bund, 2013).
• According to a NACO (2011) survey, 41.2 per cent transgender/ hijra were not accepted by their family
members due to their gender status, 75.2 per cent of the respondent’s family mentioned that the transgender/
hijras status was not accepted and as a result they were forced to leave their parents’ house, because of this 48.8
per cent were drop-outs between 6th-12th standard, and 18.4 per cent remained illiterate

11. ATTITUDE TOWARDS TRANSGENDER IN THE FAMILY AND
SOCIETY
Research Gap:
o All articles tried to explain maximum number stigma and form of discrimination faced by their family and
society. But there is a need of more qualitative study to find out the root cause of those discriminant attitude.
o All studies have focused the attitude that showed by family and society but to understand the reason behind
those attitude a study should also involve those family perception.
o Researcher should ask their family the reason behind their attitude, why they can’t accept the truth etc.
o which can be considered as a research gap and can be taken as a scope of further studies.

12. QUALITY OF LIFE OF TRANSGENDER
Transgender individuals experience many difficulties in their life time that affect their quality of life. Starting with
the denial from their families of origin in their childhood, the rejection experienced by the transgender individuals
progress in every walks of life in the society, as they grow up.
• The quality of life of transgender older adults have a significant correlation with their monthly income. About
42% of the participants‟ monthly income is less than 10,000 rupees (Venkatesan Chakrapani, Priya Babu, and
Timothy Ebenezer, 2004).
• overall perception of their quality of life shows that majority of the participants (45%) perceived that they have a
good quality of life, 35% of the participants perceived their quality of life as neither poor nor good, about 13.3%
of the participants perceived a very good quality of life and about 3.3% of the participants perceived their quality
of life as poor and very poor, each (A .George et al. , 2015).
• However study also revealed that for the item that measured the participants‟ overall perception of their health,
61.7% of the participants said that they are satisfied with their health, 16.7% said that they are neither satisfied
nor dissatisfied with their health, 10% told that they are very satisfied with their health, 8.3% said that they are
dissatisfied and, 3.3% were very dissatisfied with their health (Muralidhar D. et al., 2015).

13. QUALITY OF LIFE OF TRANSGENDER
Research Gap
o Though each studies able to give a changing scenario of quality of life among transgender but there is a need of
more accurate measure of quality of life that could help the readers understand the pathway of change in the
quality of life of the transgender individuals as they grow older can be identified.
o There are six dimensions of Quality of Life but review articles have focused only on very few dimensions only.
o Here it can be consider as a research gap which can be developed by the researcher in future and all dimensions
should be included to get a clear picture of Quality of Life of Transgender, who intend to work with transgender
individuals.

14. HEALTH AND HIV RISK IN TRANSGENDERS
Apart from these socio-economic and political issues, hijras also face health problems such as STI/ HIV/ AIDS,
sexual health, mental health, alcohol, and substance abuse UNDP (2010).
• The HIV prevalence rate among transgender (hijra) sex worker in Mumbai (in the year 2005) was 40 per cent
and in Chennai was 45 per cent (NACO 2011).
• The assessment findings showed HIV prevalence did not change and is still a major concern. Continued
strengthening of core programmatic strategies are needed to effectively improve condom use with all partner
types and to help bring sustained reductions in HIV risk in transgender and its onward transmission
(Ramanathan et al, 2014).
• Only 13 percent respondents have some knowledge of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Condom. No
respondent has ever gone for screening of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Srinagar (A. Bund, 2013).
• Because of unsafe and unhygienic non-surgical procedures hijras develop post-operative urological
complications. Pisal (2006) mentions that because of the urological complications there is blockage of the
urination path and reproductive tract infection and hijras go for a second operation to rectify problems
associated with mutilated genitals.
• Integrated Biological and Behavioural Assessment (IBBA) survey 2007 conducted in select districts of
Tamil Nadu, reported that, among Hijras/TG, the condom use during last anal sex with commercial male
partners and 81% with non-commercial male partners is 85% and 81% respectively. Also, the survey
documented low level of consistent condom use among Hijras/TG women: 6% with commercial male partners
and 20% with non-commercial male partners.

15. HEALTH AND HIV RISK IN TRANSGENDERS
Research Gap:
o The mental health issues of hijras are largely ignored.
o Some of the mental health issues faced by hijras include coming out (about their sexual identity) and dealing
with family pressures. There is very little research done on the mental health of hijras.
o There is lack of knowledge on the prevalence of mental illness, help seeking behaviors, pathways to mental
health care, coping mechanisms and methods of dealing with stress and anxiety.
o Researcher are also have very less focus on the Health policies dedicated to transgender community.
o Which is an emerging issues and should be tracked by research.

16. CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS
• Not only socio-economic problems, hijras also face problems in exercising their citizenship rights.
• Though hijras have contested and had won local, state and national elections (Mukherjee 2004)
and were Mayors and MLAs, in the absence of a national policy, they do not enjoy basic
fundamental rights. Moreover those contested in elections in the woman category were turned down
on the basis that they were not biological females (UNDP 2010).
• Kamla Jaan was elected as the first eunuch mayor of Katni, Madhya Pradesh (Chakravorty 2007).
She resumed her position in the year 2000 but gave up in the year 2003. The reason was that the
political opposition filed a petition at a lower court, and then later at the Jabalpur High Court stating
that Kamla Jaan had lied about her gender. The opposition won the case stating that the election had
been illegal
• Findings have demonstrated that transgender persons are afforded no support from the government
in accessing employment, causing them to be unwillingly trapped in occupations such as begging
and sex work. They also receive no assistance with accessing proper housing and are not included
in any other welfare schemes. No separate, transgender-specific services have been provided since
the judgment. As such, the Government of India has failed on all accounts to implement the
Supreme Court’s judgement in NALSA. In its treatment of transgender persons, the Government of
India is failing to protect their constitutional rights, as well as violating a number of international
human rights instruments (HRLN, 2015).

17. CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS
Research Gap:
o Here the binary position of the body was brought into question and it was set as a parameter for
eligibility to contest and take part in election.
o The body became problematic because of its gender non-conformity, and it was excluded from a
political process which is one of the political rights of an Indian citizen.
o Not only Right to vote, transgender people unable to enjoy their fundamental rights also.
o Such as though they have classified as third gender by government after 2011 census but many
times they are seen to be merge with women.
o They have to mark themselves as women as they have to choose one among.
o Reviewed article failed to give picture of what is the status of transgender people in special
reference to Fundamental rights.
o As well as each reviewed articles are unable to capture the land right of Transgender, how they
acquire land how they own their house etc. There is a scope of research to understand the lag
between rights provided to transgender and rest gender.

18. STRENGTH OF THE CRITICAL REVIEW
 In this critical review, we tried to understand status of Transgender in India with special focus on selected
objectives.
 To understand the topic I have reviewed 16 papers thoroughly.
 All articles are found to have a very strong base for doing further research on such a sensitive topic of research.
From existence literature the status of Transgender can be seen from “Ramayana” to till recent years. Reviewed
articles also claimed that Transgender is a more than 4,000 years existence community.
 Rather than this reviewed article also able to provide an idea about ups and downs of transgender in our
society. As well as it able to give a dense knowledge about transgender and it also able to provide lots of
information to my decided objectives. Which can be used further research in the field of Transgender study.
 This review of literature also helped to gather knowledge about different types of discrimination that faced by
transgender in their day to day life. With these information reviewed literature also describe about other
important aspects of transgender life such as Health condition, quality of life, social exclusion and citizenship
rights. More importantly it gave a clear picture about the HIV prevalence among transgender as they are more
expose to sex work. It also talked about the regional variance among the transgender, as it described that
Quality of life is different for Tamilnadu transgender as compared to Mumbai and Odisha.
 Above mentioned information or findings can be very helpful for future research.

19. GAPS AND SCOPE FOR FURTHER RESEARCH
o Through this review, we are able to identify areas where further research is needed.
o There is a dearth of literature on transgender within an Indian context.
o This critical review also sought that most of the information is "anecdotal evidence."
o There are not many studies done with transgender individuals, and because many are not publicly forthcoming it
will be hard to do research.
o There are also not many transgender-related articles found in mainstream journals, which is obviously not helping
with public awareness.
o Another gap can be remarked here is that transgender studies are very limited to some states only, it should be
done in all part of India to get a real picture of Transgender community.
o Researcher should move beyond focusing on individual-level HIV prevention activities to address the structural
determinants of risks and mitigate the impact of risks. For example, mental health counselling, crisis intervention
(crisis in relation to suicidal tendencies), addressing alcohol and drug abuse, and connecting to livelihood
programs all need to be part of the HIV interventions study.

20. CONCLUSION
 Living with the identity of Transgender is very difficult in India as they are facing discriminate in every step in
their life starting from their own family to the society.
 They are suffering from their birth to till and after death also. Multiple problems are faced by Hijras/TG, which
necessitate a variety of solutions and actions.
 While some actions require immediate implementation such as introducing Hijra/TG-specific social welfare
schemes, some actions need to be taken on a long-term basis changing the negative attitude of the general public
and increasing accurate knowledge about Hijra/TG communities.
 The required changes need to be reflected in policies and laws; attitude of the government, general public and
health care providers; and health care systems and practice.
 Review of research shows that while public awareness and acceptance of transgender individuals has been
gradually improving in the recent decade, there is still a long way to go in ensuring that adequate services are
available to this population and in fighting the discrimination, harassment and social stigmatization that they face.

21. CONCLUSION
 They experience unique barriers when accessing public or private health services starting with a lack of
understanding of their needs and problems.
 Many of them have a low self-esteem and self-worth because of their difficult childhood. Psychosocial factors
contribute to HIV risk in this group.
 Victimization in school makes them fear of negative evaluation and causes social anxiety.
So, finally we can consider all above gap for further research in the field of Transgender, which is becoming an
emerging issues of the society.
 Though many well-known personalities from Bollywood and many established NGOs and Organization have
come together to create awareness about Transgender community, still there is a long way to go, to involve them
into the mainstream.

22. REFERENCE
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