Rotary, a membership service organization committed to delivering impactful and lasting solutions to the most pressing humanitarian challenges, is globally recognizing Sarita Shukla from Delhi for empowering the lives of transgender people in India.

Shukla is one of six Rotary members from around the world to receive the Rotary People of Action: Champion of Inclusion distinction for working to empower historically marginalized and underrepresented communities. Through Project Astitva, Shukla is uplifting the transgender community in Delhi by providing employment opportunities, healthcare, vocational training, entrepreneurial mentorships, emergency support, and counseling.

India consists of approximately 5-7 lac transgender people. According to National Human Rights Commission study on rights of transgenders, around 99 percent of transgenders have suffered social rejection on more than one occasion and 96 percent are forced to take low paying jobs or beg for their livelihoods. 

Along with getting thousands of trans people immunized against Covid-19, Shukla has been working to train transgender people to earn sustainable livelihoods. To date, Shukla has positively impacted the lives of more than 11,000 transgender people living in Delhi.

“The trans community in India remains underserved in terms of basic rights like  education and health. Project Astitva aims to change the mindsets by creating awareness and collectively rallying for an enabling environment for transgender people. We need to create inclusive educational opportunities for the community to equip them with skills needed for higher paying jobs,” said Sarita Shukla.