Catholic Nun in India Founds Organization to Support Transgender People

Catholic nun Amitha Polimetla, a member of the Salvatorian Sisters congregation, has founded the Nee Thodu Society (“Your Companion” in Telugu), a non-governmental organization in southeastern India dedicated to helping transgender people. The center is based in the city of Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. This was reported by the Catholic LGBTQ publication New Ways Ministry.

Polimetla decided to begin working with the transgender community after a personal encounter with a trans woman facing social rejection. The nun later completed her doctoral dissertation at Andhra University, researching the socioeconomic challenges of transgender individuals in the coastal districts of the state.

Registered in 2022, the Nee Thodu Society assists transgender Indians in obtaining identity documents, accessing government welfare programs and scholarships, and provides vocational training at its own center. Since its inception, the organization has helped around 800 people. Additionally, the society establishes anti-discrimination cells in schools to support teenagers.

As part of her mission, Amitha Polimetla draws the attention of Catholic leadership to the situation of transgender people. In 2024, she addressed over 600 superiors at a national conference in Bengaluru, urging them to start similar initiatives in their regions. Previously, during a visit by her order’s general superior, Polimetla organized a meeting between her and the society’s beneficiaries.

Despite the active growth of Nee Thodu, the founder herself states that her ultimate dream is the closure of the organization: “I hope for the day when transgender persons will no longer need an organization like ours because they are fully accepted by their families and society.”