State transgender welfare boards in India are government bodies that plan and run welfare schemes for transgender people in one state. The central law, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, does not order states to create them. A state decides to set one up by its own government order. This guide explains what such a board is, what the 2019 Act really says about councils, and how Tamil Nadu and Bihar built theirs.
The question matters now because Bihar's board has been in the news. In July 2026 it approved a proposal for a temple for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. To judge that story, it helps to know what a welfare board is meant to do.
Key takeaways
- A state welfare board is created by a state government order. The 2019 Act does not require it.
- The 2019 Act does create a National Council for Transgender Persons (Section 16). It gives that council an advice and monitoring role (Section 17).
- Section 10 of the Act is about duties of workplaces and institutions. It is not about welfare boards.
- Tamil Nadu formed its Aravanigal Welfare Board in April 2008, according to a UNDP case study. Bihar notified its board in August 2025.
- A board can suggest and run schemes, but the state government still controls the money and the final decisions.
What is a state transgender welfare board?
A welfare board is a group set up inside a state government. It usually sits under the Social Welfare Department. Its job is to bring officials and community members together so that schemes for transgender people are planned with the community, not only for it.
Think of it like a school committee. Teachers, officials and parents sit in one room. They talk about what is needed, suggest a plan and ask the authorities to fund it. The committee itself usually cannot spend public money without approval from the department.
The word "transgender" has a legal meaning in India. Section 2(k) of the 2019 Act says a transgender person is someone whose gender does not match the gender assigned at birth. It also names socio-cultural identities such as kinner, hijra, aravani and jogta. Bihar's board uses the Hindi word Kinnar in its name.
What does the 2019 Act say about councils and boards?
This is where many online articles get it wrong. We checked the text of the Act as reproduced on Wikisource. Here is what it contains.
- Section 16 tells the Central Government to set up a National Council for Transgender Persons by notification.
- Section 17 lists the Council's five functions.
- Section 19 says the Centre will give the Council money that Parliament approves.
- Section 8 says the "appropriate Government" must take steps to include transgender people in society and must make welfare schemes that are sensitive and non-stigmatising. For a state, the appropriate Government is the state government.
The Act has no section that creates or regulates state welfare boards. It also has no state-level council. States that have boards created them under their own powers, and the Act's Section 8 duty is a general reason for them to act.
Common mix-up. Some websites say "Section 10" of the 2019 Act is the legal basis for state welfare boards. The text says otherwise. Section 10 reads that every establishment must follow the Act and provide the facilities that rules require. An establishment means a workplace or institution, such as a company, office or school.
What does the National Council do?
The National Council for Transgender Persons was constituted by a Central Government notification in August 2020, as reported by SCC Online. The Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment chairs it, and the Minister of State is vice-chair.
Section 17 gives it these jobs:
- Advise the Central Government on policies, laws and projects for transgender persons.
- Check how well government programmes work for equality and full participation.
- Review and coordinate the work of government departments and other organisations.
- Hear and try to settle the grievances of transgender persons.
- Do other tasks that the Central Government sets.
Section 16 also says who sits on it. Besides ministers and officials, there are five transgender community representatives and five experts from non-government groups, all chosen by the Centre. Members who are not there by office serve three years. State and Union Territory representatives join by rotation from the North, South, East, West and North-East regions.
How is a national council different from a state board?
| Point | National Council | State welfare board |
|---|---|---|
| Where it comes from | Section 16 of the 2019 Act | A state government order or notification |
| Who chairs it | Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment | Usually the state's Social Welfare Minister (true in Tamil Nadu and Bihar) |
| Main role | Advise the Centre, monitor, coordinate, hear grievances | Plan and run state schemes, as the order sets out |
| Money | Section 19: sums credited by the Centre after Parliament approves | Whatever the state government gives it |
| Reach | Whole country | One state |
How did the Tamil Nadu board begin?
A 2012 case study by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) says the Tamil Nadu government formed the Aravanigal (Transgender) Welfare Board in April 2008. Aravani is a word used for some transgender people in Tamil Nadu.
According to that study, the board has 22 members. They are a president (the Minister of Social Welfare), a vice-president, a member secretary, 11 official members from government departments and 8 non-official members. Seven of the non-official members must be from the transgender community. One must come from a non-government group working on transgender rights.
The study says the board designed schemes for income help, housing, education, jobs and health care. It also helped people reach existing government schemes. The same study notes limits. The board funded only a few schemes, picking community members was hard, and transgender members had few chances to take part in decisions.
The study is from 2012, so it does not describe how the board works today. We have not found a recent official review, and we do not make claims about the present.
How did the Bihar board begin?
ETV Bharat reported on 8 August 2025 that the Bihar government had set up the Bihar Rajya Kinnar Kalyan Board (Bihar State Transgender Welfare Board). The Social Welfare Department issued the notification. The report says Social Welfare Minister Madan Sahni chairs it, it has 28 members, and seven of them are transgender, according to the department's secretary. The stated aims are to protect rights, support social development, and offer education and vocational training.
Drishti IAS reported on 31 July 2026 that the board held its first meeting at the Social Welfare Department's office in the Old Secretariat, Patna. Drishti says the board approved a proposal from member Rajan Singh to build a temple for Narendra Modi. PTI, via ThePrint, reported that Singh said he proposed it because Modi "gave us respect and rights".
The temple idea is covered in other pages of this site. Our guide to recent developments about the Bihar board follows the story, and why the community and the temple idea are linked looks at the reasons given.
What a board approval does and does not mean
A board resolution is a decision by the board. It is not a government sanction. For the money to be spent, the state government would have to approve it through its own process. Reports say the board asked the government for land and funds, but those figures come from Singh's own statements. We know of no report that land has been given or money released. Our fact-check of the 112 crore figure explains where the number comes from.
Why did states create boards at all?
The big push came from the Supreme Court. On 15 April 2014, in National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India, the Court said hijras and eunuchs, as well as transgender people, should be treated as a "third gender". LiveLaw's report of the judgment says the Court upheld the right to choose one's gender, asked governments to treat transgender people as socially and educationally backward classes for reservations, and told them to frame welfare schemes.
Parliament passed the 2019 Act five years later. It received presidential assent on 5 December 2019. It came into force on a date the Centre set by notification, which was in January 2020. Many in the community have criticised it, partly because it does not give job reservations. For more on that history, see our article on the long road to equality and our guide to the 2019 Act.
What can a welfare board realistically do?
This section is our own plain summary of the usual work of such a board, based on the Tamil Nadu study and the Bihar report. It is not a legal list.
- Bring officials and community members together to discuss needs.
- Suggest schemes on housing, education, skills and health.
- Help people apply for existing schemes, such as getting identity papers in order.
- Track whether promised schemes reach people.
What it cannot normally do is override the state budget, change a national law, or give a private project legal status. A board's resolution is a recommendation unless the government accepts it.
Myth and fact
| Claim you may read online | What we found |
|---|---|
| The 2019 Act orders every state to set up a board. | No section says so. The Act mentions only a National Council. |
| Section 10 is the law for welfare boards. | Section 10 is about duties of establishments. |
| A board decision means the government has sanctioned a project. | A board resolution is not a government sanction. |
| Every state has a board. | We did not find a verified list, so we do not make this claim. |
What we do not know yet
- How many states have working boards today. We found no official, up-to-date list, so we give no number.
- How well Tamil Nadu's board works now. The UNDP study dates from 2012.
- The exact powers and budget of the Bihar board. The 2025 report names its aims but gives no budget.
- Whether the Bihar government will take up the temple proposal. We have found no government statement on it.
For other open questions about the proposal, read our community and rights topic page and our frequently asked questions.
The Supreme Court asked governments to set up welfare schemes in 2014. Read the NALSA judgment of 2014, explained.
Common questions
Does the 2019 Act force states to create transgender welfare boards?
No. The Act creates only a National Council. States that have boards made them through their own orders. Section 8 does require state governments to take steps for inclusion and welfare.
Is Section 10 of the Transgender Persons Act about welfare boards?
No. Section 10 says every establishment must follow the Act and provide facilities that the rules set out. Establishments mean workplaces and institutions.
Which state had the first transgender welfare board?
A 2012 UNDP case study says Tamil Nadu formed its Aravanigal Welfare Board in April 2008. We have not checked every other state, so we cannot say for sure that it was the first.
Can the Bihar board build a temple by itself?
The board has approved a proposal, according to reports. Building anything would need land and funds from the government or donors. We found no report that either has been arranged. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, full text, as reproduced on Wikisource.
- Central Government constitutes National Council for Transgender Persons, SCC Online, 25 August 2020.
- Tamil Nadu Aravanigal (Transgender) Welfare Board: case study (UNDP, 2012), summary in the South Asian Translaw Database.
- Bihar govt sets up board to protect transgender community rights, ETV Bharat, 8 August 2025.
- Bihar Transgender Welfare Board clears proposal for PM Modi temple, Drishti IAS, 31 July 2026.
- Supreme Court directions on transgenders, NALSA judgment, LiveLaw, 15 April 2014.
Last checked on 24 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us through our contact page.