PATNA, Dec. 14 -- Bihar police on Saturday got 1,218 sub-inspectors (SIs), including three transgenders and 436 women. Chief minister Nitish Kumar along with his cabinet colleagues Samrat Choudhary, Bijay Choudhary and Shrawan Kumar initiated them into service at the passing out parade (POP) at the Bihar Police Academy (BPA), Rajgir, in Nalanda. The entry of transgender policemen along with fresh batch of women keep Bihar as the top Indian state in terms of gender equality in the police force. According to the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) data, around 23.66% of the state's police force in 2024 consisted of women -- the highest in India. In 2021, among 1,582 SIs who joined Bihar police, 596 were women. Overall, out of 110,000 police personnel in Bihar, 31,882 are women. However, it is still below 38% posts reserved for women in the state. Three transgender trainees, Bunty Kumar, Madhu Kashyap and Ronit Jha, who also graduated to join the state's police service, scripted history by participating in the POP. Kashyap, who hails from Bhagalpur, told HT that it was a great moment for her as it would grant her an opportunity to be treated as an equal in society. "Usually, society is not fair to us. We are made to feel inferior, but we know that we are just different, and not less than others. I am very happy today and thank my teacher for guiding me all through," said Kashyap. BPA's Director R Malar Vizhi who supervised the training of the new batch said that new personnel have been groomed to combat the changing nature of the crime and their rigorous training was conducted both indoor and outdoor. P3...