Transgender child made eligible for family pension in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today gave its approval to a proposal to amend the OCS (Pensions) Rules, 1992 to enable a transgender child of a government employee to get the family pension.

The state government will amend the OCS (Pension) Rules,1992 and incorporate the required provisions in the said rules so that a transgender child of a government servant/pensioner, who died on or after January 10,2020 shall be treated as an unmarried daughter and made eligible for family pension, said an official.

“The transgender child must be fully dependant on the government servant/pensioner for consideration of family pension. Besides, the government employee or pensioner must not have any other unmarried daughter or differently-abled daughter to claim the family pension,” added the official.

Earlier, the word ‘transgender’ has not been included in the definition of ‘child’ in the OCS (Pension) Rules, 1992. Similarly, there was no provision in the said rules for payment of family pension to a transgender child in case of death of the government employee or pensioner, said the official.

Besides, the Cabinet has given its approval to a proposal to enhance the monthly income limit from Rs 4,440 to Rs 10,000 from all other sources to be eligible for family pension.