Asia’s 1st woman loco pilot who now operates Vande Bharat: Surekha Yadav, Asia’s first female locomotive pilot, is now in command of the Vande Bharat Express. From Solapur to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminal (CSMT) in Maharashtra, Yadav ran the Vande Bharat Express. Surekha Yadav, a Satara, Maharashtra native, became the country’s first female train driver in 1988.
March 2023 Current Affairs Quiz
The Central Railway previously ran the famous Mumbai-Pune Deccan Queen Express and CSMT-Kalyan ladies’ special local train with all-female crews in honour of International Women’s Day (8 March). That day, Yadav was the Deccan Queen’s operator, and Sayali Sawardekar was his assistant loco pilot. As a group of six female travelling ticket examiners, commanded by chief ticket inspector Jiji John and Deepa Vaidya, aided and guided the passengers, Leena Francis handled the duties of the train manager (guard).
You may also know:
Mumtaz Kazi, the first suburban motor lady in Asia, was in charge of the K99 local, a ladies-only train that ran between Kalyan and Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Station (CSMT). On the train, Mayuri Kamble was a guard.