Meet Surekha Yadav, Asia's First Woman Loco Pilot

Breaking stereotypes is common these days. However, it wasn’t in the 1980s. One woman who dared to do so was Surekha Yadav. She became India’s first female passenger train driver in 1988. She was an inspiration for women all over the country when she joined the Indian Railways, a traditionally male-dominated industry. A few months ago, Surekha was in the news once again as she operated the newly-introduced semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express train. She piloted the train between Solapur station and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai on 13 March 2023. The train reached the station five minutes before the scheduled arrival time after completing an arduous 450-km long journey. Mrs. Yadav was felicitated as Asia’s first woman loco pilot.

Here's her Inspiring Story

Surekha was born in a farmer family in the Satara district of Maharashtra. After completing her school education, she went on to pursue a diploma course in Electrical Engineering. Being an all-rounder in academics, she also wanted to study further, and therefore had dreams of becoming a teacher. However, destiny had something else in store for her. When she completed her diploma, she was looking out for a full-time job opportunity. During that period, the Indian Railways had a vacant position for an assistant driver. Since there were no specific criteria to apply, she decided to give it a shot. Surekha gave the written exam in 1987. Contrary to her expectations, the acceptance letter arrived at her doorstep. She joined the Central Railway as a trainee assistant driver in 1986, and ever since then, there has been no looking back.

When her stint at the Railways began, she was in charge of checking the engine, the signals and other operational tasks. It was only then she became a regular assistant driver. In 1996, she was given the task to pilot a goods train. In 1998, she became a full-fledged goods train driver. Throughout her career, she has worn many awards on the state and national level for her achievements.

Being Asia’s first woman train driver, Surekha has been an inspiration for many. Among her many achievements, she was also the first person to drive the “ladies special” local train in Mumbai for the Central Railways. The train was introduced in the year 2000 in four metro cities by Mamata Banerjee. She has also driven the Deccan Queen from Pune to CST Mumbai on March 8, 2011.

In one of her interviews, she was asked about her most challenging role as a train driver. To which she said that the biggest challenge she faced was when she had to drive a train through the rugged topography of the Western Ghats in 2010. When she was chosen as a ghat-loco driver, several officers protested saying that such a job has never been given to a lady driver before. However, Surekha decided to fight back. She too underwent the same training that is given to the male officers. After receiving rigorous training to run twin engine passenger trains, she did it with much ease. Everybody applauded her for her bravery. Later, she was given the opportunity to drive many types of trains.

Surekha works for 10 hours a day. Till date, she has a zero-track record of any rail accidents. She is known to run trains safely with a complete presence of mind. As Surekha continues to pursue her career as a train driver in Mumbai, she has never experienced any discrimination from her family, friends or colleagues. In fact, she has inspired several women. In the year 2019-20, more than 1250 women were hired as loco pilots.

Milestones

• On March 8^th, 2021, she drove a special train from Mumbai to Lucknow with an all-women crew to celebrate International Women’s Day.
• On March 13^th, 2023, she was the first woman to drive the semi high-speed Vande Bharat train from Solapur to CSMT.
• On March 26^th, 2023, Prime Minister Narenda Modi mentioned Surekha in his 99^th episode of Mann Ki Baat appreciating her for being the first woman to drive the Make in India Vande Bharat Train. He also applauded her for being the First in several other categories during her long service.
• The Railway Minister of India, Ashwini Vaishnaw, also congratulated Surekha on her big achievement and publicly tweeted “Vande Bharat is powered by Nari Shakti. Smt. Surekha Yadav makes India proud by becoming the first woman loco pilot of Vande Bharat Express”.

Kudos to Mrs. Surekha for making her mark in a male-dominated field. Her story will continue to inspire a lot of women. We must appreciate the Indian Railways too for taking noteworthy steps to empower women employees. Today, a lot of railway stations across the country are managed and maintained by an all-women staff.

Here’s an excerpt from one of her interviews: “Once you choose your career path, it does not matter whether it is male-dominated or not. You just show up and do your job diligently. What society talks about behind your back really should not matter. In fact, I believe, if people around you see your grit and passion for your job, they won't object to your choice of career”.