HYDRAA’s ‘Eagle’ gives transgenders a uniform, a salary and a new identity

Hyderabad: For a community long pushed to the margins, a job offer from a government agency has meant far more than employment. Sixteen transgender individuals recruited by the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) say the opportunity has given them a new sense of identity and purpose, one they now carry into the field every day as members of the agency’s Eagle Team.

Of the 16 inducted, 11 are trans women, and five are trans men. They work alongside regular HYDRAA staff in protecting public assets, participating in the removal of encroachments from ponds and canals, and helping secure parks and other government properties.

Their on-ground role has already seen results. The Eagle Team played an active part in protecting 862 acres of government land in Ailapur in Ameenpur Mandal, Sangareddy district. They were also involved in the protection of Eidula Kunta in Madhapur, where their ability to engage with residents, particularly women, proved valuable in easing tensions and bridging communication between officials and affected communities.

HYDRAA officials say the team’s temperament makes them effective in the field. Their patience and emotional intelligence have helped achieve results in situations that require persuasion as much as enforcement.

For many team members, the change has been transformative in ways that go beyond the monthly salary. Gayatri, one of the Eagle Team members, said wearing the HYDRAA uniform in public has brought her respect she had not previously experienced. “Transgenders can excel in any field if given the opportunity,” she said, describing her duties at HYDRAA as a direct example of that. She thanked Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath for the initiative.

Ruchita, another team member, said the work had given her a sense of belonging she had not felt before. “Everyone is a part of nature. We have become a partner in protecting that nature,” she said, adding that public trust in HYDRAA had made being part of it all the more meaningful.

Tanshi recalled what life was like before the job. “We used to beg and make a living. Transgenders used to be ridiculed wherever they went,” she said. The uniform, she added, had changed how people spoke to them.

Several members of the team said they are now financially supporting their families, and that the belief that they are useful members of society has grown stronger in them since joining the agency.