From God’s own country: This Catholic nun is a blessing for Assam’s transgender community

Sister Prema once saw a lady seated alone on a bus which she was travelling in Assam. She dared to sit next to the woman because nobody else did. They began to converse and she realised that the other was a Transgender person. She went on to listen as the Transgender woman narrated her story about how she was left out of her family and how she ended up in a slum. 

Sister Prema Chowallur SCC, belonging to the Congregation of Sisters of the Cross, assessed that this is a wrong attitude that our society has towards gender minorities. The devoted Catholic nun dedicated her life to serving the Transgender community of Assam since then. After the incident on the bus, Sister Prema joined the Global Network Rainbow Catholics (GNRC) and Indian Network Rainbow Catholics (INRC), to delve deeper into understanding the challenges faced by people from LGBTQ communities.

Who is Sister Prema?

Sister Prema, although bound to follow the footsteps of her Catholic parents to become a teacher, chose to become a social worker too and give voice to the voiceless. She joined the Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod (SCC) at the age of 18. Sister Prema found her purpose when a superior assigned her to a social work centre. She was dedicated to the ministry of education for over a decade and a half.