Cash relief will be given to 8,493 transgender persons without ration cards, says Govt.
The Hindu
The State government on Monday told the Madras High Court that it has decided to distribute first instalment of COVID-19 cash relief of ₹2,000 even to the transgender persons who do not possess ration
The State government on Monday told the Madras High Court that it has decided to distribute first instalment of COVID-19 cash relief of ₹2,000 even to the transgender persons who do not possess ration cards though the relief is given only to rice ration card holders. Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy were informed by Advocate General R Shunmugasundaram that a Government Order was issued on June 3 for distributing ₹2,000 each to 8,493 transgender persons who did not possess ration cards but had registered with the welfare board for third gender. The submission was made during the hearing of a writ petition filed by transgender rights activist Grace Banu seeking a direction to the government to pay the cash relief without insisting upon ration cards. During the last hearing of the case, the A-G had assured the court that the plea would be considered sympathetically.Several principals of government and private schools in Delhi on Tuesday said the Directorate of Education (DoE) circular from a day earlier, directing schools to conduct classes in ‘hybrid’ mode, had caused confusion regarding day-to-day operations as they did not know how many students would return to school from Wednesday and how would teachers instruct in two modes — online and in person — at once. The DoE circular on Monday had also stated that the option to “exercise online mode of education, wherever available, shall vest with the students and their guardians”. Several schoolteachers also expressed confusion regarding the DoE order. A government schoolteacher said he was unsure of how to cope with the resumption of physical classes, given that the order directing government offices to ensure that 50% of the employees work from home is still in place. On Monday, the Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) had, on the orders of the Supreme Court, directed schools in Delhi-NCR to shift classes to the hybrid mode, following which the DoE had issued the circular. The court had urged the Centre’s pollution watchdog to consider restarting physical classes due to many students missing out on the mid-day meals and lacking the necessary means to attend classes online. The CAQM had, on November 20, asked schools in Delhi-NCR to shift to the online mode of teaching.