WOMEN LOCO PILOTS: HEROES WITH AN INVISIBLE CAPE
Article 14 of the Indian Constitution guarantees women equality. But the protests, candlelit vigil, silent marches, remonstrance on the streets of every city, state otherwise in the contemporary India. Gender disparity in workplaces are enduring even in countries with the most modernistic laws.
The theory of gender discrimination was impelled in the society oodles of centuries ago. Women are insisted to accomplish homely chores assigned to them by men. It was considered disgrace to breach the societal expectations.
Gender equality is linked to prodigious change in the national and international development agenda.
The conventional orthodoxy of gender disparity is impeding fair minded process of recruitment but these women train drivers add confirmation to the argument that we need to look beyond gender to comprehend the capabilities of women. They broke the stereotype by pursuing their passion for tracks.
Women loco pilots are superheroes who strike a perfect balance between work and family.
Though driving a train is considered a spine-chilling job, women pilots have taken it up with assertiveness. They also have extended support from
their families to quench their need for job satisfaction.
Surekha Yadav was the first female loco pilot of Indian railways. She began her journey in 1988. She is admired for driving the first “ladies special” local train when she was introduced in the four metro cities by Mamata Banerjee. She became Asia’s first woman train driver. She was given this esteemed title on 8th march 2011, on international women’s day. She inspired other women who dreamt the same. By 2011, there were 50 women loco drivers who were operating suburban trains and goods trains.
As of 2020, there are 1,280 women loco pilots. Although being a women loco pilot is amusing, it is reckoned as a deplorable venture. This is due to odd working hours.
Women drivers are ridiculed and mocked by judgmental men. A few men refuse to travel by trains driven by women.
Even among young urban Indians, a cohort seen as more progressive, there is a significant minority that holds narrow views about women’s role in households, workplaces and society.
However, this has not stopped these brave women from pursuing their dreams. Women loco pilots claim people are not aware this job exist for women too. This is purely because of ignorance.
They often do not get credit or recognition because driver jobs are dominated by male. Women loco pilots are repairing clichéd gender roles. They are bringing a modification in social norm. They are successfully battling puerile manner of thinking in the society.
It wouldn’t be out of place to mention the initiatives taken by the Government of India to combat gender disparity. The constitution of India has a special provision regarding gender disparity and women empowerment. These legislations encourage women to break the stereotype. If the traditional gender roles are challenged, this form of negative stereotype will
eventually disappear.
Even though women loco pilots are highly disregarded in the country, they have inspired so many youngsters to chase their dream. Young adults are now opening up their career choices irrespective of taboos. Now, they feel no longer restricted after watching women being so successful in male dominated fields.
Besides this, numerous transgender persons are also actively taking part in the recruitment process. After the supreme court’s judgement, Indian railways is welcoming transgenders with open arms for rail jobs and loco pilots.
To conclude, gender disparity is one of the main reasons why India is stagnant in its growth. People need to imbibe the lesson of looking beyond gender for development. These unsung heroes are forgotten because of ignorance. If we throw light on these achievers, they can inspire so many others. The whole knot of gender inequality can be undone by encouraging these unsung heroes to change the norms of the society.
-Aishwarya Narayanan
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