In Photos: At Hyderabad Metro, Women Are in the Driver's Seat

From being responsible for passenger safety to juggling work and family, these loco pilots are always on the go.

Rishikashree, Shagufta, and Viji are some of the youngest loco pilots at Hyderabad Metro.

(Photo: Meenakshy Sasikumar/The Quint)

Women are flying planes, riding trains, and climbing mountains – but questions of 'can she really do it?', 'does she have what it takes?' follow them around every day – even today. But the women loco pilots at Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) have no time for such questions. From being responsible for the safety of thousands of passengers every day to juggling work and family, they are always on the go. HMR has at least 80 women loco pilots and a higher number of women technical staff. This Women's Day, The Quint spoke to some of them about what it is like to be in a male-dominated profession.

Lakshmi Anusha joined the metro as a loco pilot in 2017. She is now a train crew controller. "My parents were initially very apprehensive about me taking this job – because I'm a woman. But I convinced them that I'm capable of it."

Today, Lakshmi is known in metro circles as the woman who saved a passenger's life. "A passenger fell in between the train and the platform one day and I was able to help out. Usually, this happens when it's so crowded," she says, adding that she has also won an award for the same.

Shagufta Naaz is a 21-year-old loco pilot from Hyderabad. She says that as engineering graduates, "women often feel like it is safer to take up a soft job like software engineering. But I got the opportunity to choose a unique profession. Yes, it is male-dominated, and yes, people still ask us if we can really ride a metro train – but we tell them it's something women can do, just like men." Shagufta says that her family is proud of her, recalling how her parents made sure they were on the metro on her first day at work.

"I have decided that I will never marry because I have to take care of my family," says Souchanya, a system engineer who has been working at HMR for 6 and a half years. Being the sole breadwinner of her family, Souchanya must look after her parents and her sister's children. "My father is retired and my mother doesn't work. I have to do everything – whether they have a health issue or there is any other work. There is a lot of pressure, but I make sure they don't see it. I leave all of my worries outside the house."

But Souchanya says she enjoys her work. "I was a system maintainer for several years before I became a system engineer. I was the only woman in my team of 50-70 men. But I learned the ropes quickly, and I know I can do everything that they can do," she adds.

Lakshmi Kavyashree, a 34-year-old system analyst in the maintenance department of HMR, is the only woman in her seven-member team. "Initially, I faced issues in understanding things, but I got through that," says Kavyashree, who has been working at HMR for seven years.

Her mother is a single parent, and Kavyashree says her childhood wasn't easy. "Society did not accept my mother. And people would keep asking me about my father. At school, I have faced such issues, and I have gone back home crying. And some of my relatives thought I am good for nothing. But all these challenges have only made me stronger."

Shwetha, who has been working at HMR for over a year, says it is no easy task to juggle work and family. "I recently got married, and I did not know how to cook. I stayed at a hostel for 11 years before this. I usually get morning shifts, but it is difficult for me to do all the household chores and come to work. So, I requested my manager for an afternoon shift. After I'm done with my shift, I have to go home and do more chores. I have to manage it all because my parents have taught me it is important for a woman to be financially independent," says Shwetha, who hails from Telangana's Nizamabad. 

Twenty-four-year-old Rishikashree, who hails from Telangana's Warangal, joined HMR as a loco pilot (or train operator) in 2020. "The biggest challenge of being a train operator is not the technical aspect of it, but dealing with passengers. In a crisis situation – say, when the train stops midway – we should ensure that they don't panic," she says.

Rishikashree adds that she wasn't sure she would be able to do the job when she first applied for it. "But I have a good support system. My father is my No. 1 fan. He always told me I could do it."

Twenty-one-year-old Viji, who hails from Hyderabad, joined HMR after her B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering. "My friends and relatives asked me why I took this job, why I am doing a software job. I tell them that I can do more than an IT job," she says.

Rishikashree, Shagufta, and Viji are some of the youngest loco pilots at Hyderabad Metro Rail.

Harika, 24, works as a signaling maintainer – and she is the only woman on her team. She took this job about a year ago, right after college. "I didn't know anything, I had to start from scratch."

Harika travels up to 25-30 km to get to work every day. "I wake up at 4:30 am and prepare food for me and my husband. I get on a bus, which is usually very crowded, and I'm often forced to travel on the footboard because of the rush. We ensure the safety of our passengers in the metro, but we can't say the same for ourselves!"

Women are flying planes, riding trains, and climbing mountains – but questions of 'can she really do it?', 'does she have what it takes?' follow them around every day – even today.

But the women loco pilots at Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) have no time for such questions. From being responsible for the safety of thousands of passengers every day to juggling work and family, they are always on the go.

HMR has at least 80 women loco pilots and a higher number of women technical staff. This Women's Day, The Quint spoke to some of them about what it is like to be in a male-dominated profession.

(This story was originally published on 6 March 2023. It has been republished from The Quint's archives after Surekha Yadav, Asia's first woman loco pilot, became the first woman to operate the newly-introduced Vande Bharat Express.)