Known to provide good luck in religious ceremonies, the 'hijra' -term known in India to men who are castrated but who do not complete the sex change process- transvestites and transgenders also face the inflexibility of a society that condemns them and suffer police abuse, begging and prostitution, often under the control of mafias. They belong to the social group most discriminated in India. A primary reason of the exclusion is the lack of legal recognition of the gender status of the Hijras and other transgender people. It is the major obstacle that often prevent them in exercising their rights. Society denies them of employment which leads them to prostitution and begging. The blessing of a 'hijra' is considered necessary for newborns and newlyweds to succeed. These services are paid well but not as much as sex. Hence, most of them prefer to sell their bodies on the streets. The 'hijras' prostitutes suffer a high prevalence of HIV and syphilis. They are a weak and easy target unbacked by society.
The worlds biggest Tourism Fair 2017 in Berlin, Germany.
Indian government forces fired tear gas and pellet guns to quell a protest by hundreds of rock-throwing Kashmiris shortly after Friday prayers in Indian-controlled Kashmir, according to police.
The protesters had gathered in support of the separatist call for June 24 to be observed as Kashmir day.
Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir.
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Timely rain and favorable weather has proved a boon for the strawberry farmers in Indian Administered Kashmir and they expect bumper production.
The relatively new concept of strawberry farming has become quite popular among traditional paddy farmers in the Kashmir.
Strawberry is the first fruit in Kashmir valley that grows after the six months of harsh winter.
Agriculture and horticulture are the main income source on the region.
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Many, like Raqueeb, start their career in the market at a young age. Learning the skills of their trade means getting stuck in with all parts of the process.
Akram has worked here since he was 20 years old, delivering chickens to the market traders from all over Kolkata.
âThere are many people from my village who come and work here, so thatâs how I learnt about this place.â
Like many others, Akram sleeps in the market, often waking at 4 AM to join the queue for those using the few toilets in the market.
âI have a lot of friends and relatives here, we have a lot of fun. We drink here, we go out, we relax and have fun.â
âI donât go home, this is more of a home to me.â
âIâm looking for a girl to marry now. If a girl proposed to me, I would say yes, immediately, whoever it is.â
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Still photography selection from various assignments and projects.
Dr Amirtha visits Vimala, 75, who has been bed ridden for the last five years and suffers from hypertension. Vimala is classed as being âBPLâ (Below the Poverty Line) by the government and sleeps directly on a hard wooden board on her bed in a house made of breeze blocks and mud. Her husband passed away and she is looked after by her daughter-in-law Syamela, 45, and a neighbour who visits her regularly. When the team visited Vimala, she was very disorientated and largely unable to communicate. When Dr Amirtha asked if she remembered her name, Vimala responded, âYes, I doâ.
Lakshmi Bunker (21) with her 11 month daughter Varsh. She is currently seven months pregnant. Virol village.
Pregnant women and lactating mothers chat after a group counselling session in Sakad village.
In a world where differences and divisions often drive people apart, sport brings people together. Sport overcomes cultural, social, and political barriers, providing an opportunity for dialogue and positive human interaction.
Transterra Media has the world of sports covered, from the fighting Cholitas of Bolivia, to the female boxers of Calcutta, and more.
Locals praying to God at a mosque in Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. The chitmahal claims that the enclave dwellers consists of members from both Hindu and Muslim community where the Muslims are the majority.
A baby girl gets fed by her mother and elder sister at Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Life in the enclaves is really tough as most of the daily resources are to be brought from either India or Bangladesh where they are mostly threatened because of having no nationality.
A room filled with live-stocks goats and lambs inside a house in Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. The cattle's are considered to play a vital role in the enclaves for a living, similar to any other village in India or Bangladesh but here they often get stolen by people from the neighboring mainland villages as the local cops paid no attention to the complains made by the enclave people as they had no nationality, but know as the hope for nationality is no longer a dream to them the locals say that the cops are giving importance to them now.
Joynal Abedin, a local young guy, walks out of his house in Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. In the enclaves houses are mostly built with aluminum sheets as they fear that the neighboring villages might attack them by burning their houses to grasp the land as it has happened many a times in the past.
Three men fishing at the river after which the enclave got its name Mashaldanga, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Fishing in chitmahal remains as one of the major professions of the residents and also serves their daily meal needs.
Children outside their houses in the afternoon playing at Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Health issues and malnutrition are a big problem for the children in the chitmahals as there are no health facilities.
Jihad Hussain, a 5 year old boy with his father Shahjahan Seikh and mother Asma Bibi out side a mosque at Mashaldanga, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Jihad Hussain is one of the most famous personalities in the chitmahals due to extensive local media coverage as his parents faced a lot of problems during his birth because of the lack of identity and nationality.
Jihad Hussain, a 5 year old boy with his father Shahjahan Seikh and mother Asma Bibi out side a mosque at Mashaldanga, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Jihad Hussain is one of the most famous personalities in the chitmahals due to extensive local media coverage as his parents faced a lot of problems during his birth because of the lack of identity and nationality.
A family in Mashaldanga Chitt preparing for their daughters wedding. Marriages are a big problem as because of less number of women in the chitts and no nationality proves led to a lot of rejections of grooms who tried to marry women from across the Indian Mainland.
Rufiya, a 12 year old bride on her wedding day in Mashaldanga Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Child marriages are pretty normal in the Chitmahals.
Children at a stationary shop in Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. The future of the children in the chitmahals remains uncertain because of the lack of schools in chitmahal, there are only a few pathshalas (village moderated schools without any board). As a result of this the parents of the chitmahals often send their children to better schools in the Indian mainland with the help of fake parental documents made in exchange of money in order to admit their children and to provide them a better future.
A woman cutting vegetables for cooking lunch while his son plays beside her at Masaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.
Mina Khatun, a 10 year old girl studying at home with the help of a fire lamp as there is no electricity in the enclaves at Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.
An 8 year old boy drives a farming cart in the rain while two of his friends play in the surroundings at Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.
A group of youngsters fishing beside a road in the rain with traditional methods at Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Farming and laboring in building construction are the major occupation of the young. The scarcity of jobs leads to changing of states and the youngsters often go to the Indian capital New Delhi in search of laboring opportunities mostly in building constructions. Many a times they have had trouble in traveling to the Indian capital as well, because of the identity checking procedures inside the trains by the railway officers.
Cell phone batteries getting recharged at a pumping station due to no electricity at home in Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.
A group of children recharging their cell phones at a pumping station due to no electricity at home in Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.
Two women walk freely with joy and smile at their faces in the rain at Mashaldanga Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal,India. The fear of having no nationality no longer bothers them as they are relieved from the identity crisis which they had for so long due to the initiatives taken by both the countries India and Bangladesh to solve the matter.
A group of women at Korola Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India, standing with their unclear shadows falling on the ground after a heavy rainfall, as for the last four decades they were neither accepted by Bangladesh nor India. Life was tough for them with no identity proves and no nationality.
A group of women who have had miscarriages in the past, at Korola Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India. Women in the enclaves have often had miscarriages due to the lack of health facilities, they usually go to the nearby Indian mainland hospitals/clinics for their health issues but most of the time they used to get rejected by the hospital officials as they had no identity prove, in India for a child birth the parents should have their national identity in order to create a birth certificate of their child which was not possible as a result the success rate in child birth occurred late in in a huge number of families.
Women huddle at Korola Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal,India. With the initiative taken by the government authorities of both the countries India and Bangladesh to physically exchange the chitts has made the people very happy and hopeful, the Bangladeshi enclave people in India have decided to stay at India and become Indian citizens as they think that the Indian land is better for cultivation for them as it might be more fertile and also they say that they have made relatives in India as a result of a long stay.
Women huddle at Korola Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal,India. With the initiative taken by the government authorities of both the countries India and Bangladesh to physically exchange the chitts has made the people very happy and hopeful, the Bangladeshi enclave people in India have decided to stay at India and become Indian citizens as they think that the Indian land is better for cultivation for them as it might be more fertile and also they say that they have made relatives in India as a result of a long stay.
Women huddle at Korola Chitt a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal,India. With the initiative taken by the government authorities of both the countries India and Bangladesh to physically exchange the chitts has made the people very happy and hopeful, the Bangladeshi enclave people in India have decided to stay at India and become Indian citizens as they think that the Indian land is better for cultivation for them as it might be more fertile and also they say that they have made relatives in India as a result of a long stay.
A group of children celebrate by waving the national flag of India at Korola Chitt, a Bangladeshi enclave in the south Coochbihar district of West Bengal, India.