On July 31, 2025, the Government of Tamil Nadu released the State Policy for Transgender Persons 2025. The policy outlines a comprehensive set of provisions aimed at supporting transgender and intersex persons across areas such as education, employment, healthcare, housing, legal rights, and social inclusion. It follows years of community engagement, court interventions, and drafting efforts.
The policy affirms the right to gender self-identification without requiring medical certificates and proposes steps to amend inheritance laws to include transgender and intersex individuals. It also calls for inclusive admission procedures in educational institutions, access to gender-affirming care in government hospitals, housing support, legal aid, and dedicated grievance redressal officers across departments. A system of state and district-level oversight committees is proposed to monitor implementation.
While the policy has been welcomed for acknowledging the rights of transgender and intersex persons, several community members and legal experts have noted areas where greater clarity may be required.
A key issue raised is the absence of horizontal reservation. This form of affirmative action would allow transgender and intersex persons to access reserved opportunities within existing categories such as Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and the General category. Earlier versions of the policy had referenced a 1% reservation, but the final version does not include it. Some advocates have expressed concern that this may limit the reach of the policy’s intended outcomes in education and employment.
Another area of feedback relates to representation. The Tamil title of the policy, Thirunangaiyar Kolgai, translates to “Policy for Trans Women.” However, the English version refers to transgender persons more broadly. Some stakeholders have suggested renaming the policy in Tamil to reflect inclusion of trans men and intersex persons more explicitly. Questions have also been raised about implementation mechanisms. While the policy mentions review meetings and monitoring bodies, it does not include specific timelines, budget allocations, or departmental responsibilities. Some community members and observers have pointed out that further detail in this area could help translate commitments into practice.
There are also legal reform elements within the policy. These include a proposal to amend the Hindu Succession Act and Indian Succession Act to ensure that transgender and intersex persons are not excluded from inheritance rights. This step aligns with ongoing efforts at both state and national levels to remove gender-based exclusions in personal laws.
The Tamil Nadu government submitted the policy to the Madras High Court on August 4, 2025. The court responded with several observations, encouraging the government to clarify its stance on horizontal reservation and ensure inclusive representation on monitoring committees.
The state has a longstanding history of introducing welfare measures for transgender persons, including being the first state to establish a Transgender Welfare Board. The 2025 policy builds on this foundation and signals continued engagement with inclusion. At the same time, ongoing discussions on key provisions may help address community concerns and strengthen the policy’s impact in the years ahead.
