In a major breakthrough, Western Railway has introduced an all-female crew in a goods train. The crew has piloted a goods train from Vasai Road to Vadodara on 5th January 2021 and has set a glaring example that no job is beyond the capacity of women to perform as well as to excel.
Alok Kansal – General Manager of Western Railway (WR) expressed his joy and stated it to be a memorable day. He applauded the determination & firm willpower of the women staff and said that they are indeed a role model for other women to emulate.
According to a press release issued by Sumit Thakur – Chief Public Relations Officer of WR, the goods train that departed from Vasai Road to Vadodara on 5th January 2021 was helmed by Loco Pilot – Kumkum Suraj Dongre, Assistant Loco Pilot – Udita Verma, and Goods Guard – Akansha Rai. This was a first of its kind for WR which ran its first all-female crew Goods train. He further informed that due to the grueling nature of the job of Guards & Loco pilots which also involves traveling long distances, very few women come forward to join these posts. This will be a game-changer and an inspiration for other women to take up such challenging jobs in Indian Railways.
Thakur further stated that WR is always encouraging the participation of women in each and every department, even in heavy-duty jobs which were earlier considered as men’s domain. There are female porters across various stations of the Bhavnagar Division. Preeti Kumari is the first Motorwoman in WR to run Mumbai suburban local trains.
