March 16, 2023: Continue reading to know more about Surekha Yadav, Asia's first woman loco pilot who now operates Vande Bharat!
Last Monday, according to the Central Railways, Surekha Yadav, who was also Asia's first woman loco pilot, became the first female to operate the newly-introduced semi-high speed Vande Bharat Express train. She achieved this status after piloting the semi-high speed train between Solapur station and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai.
“She was thankful for giving her the opportunity to pilot the new age, state-of-the-art technology Vande Bharat Train. The train departed Solapur at the right time and reached CSMT 5 minutes before time,” stated the Central Railways.
She was felicitated at platform number 8 at CSMT after completing a more than 450-km long journey.
Hailing from Satara in the western Maharashtra region, Surekha Yadav also became India's first female train driver in 1988. She has also been awarded several times by the Central and the State Government for her most revered achievements, that she has been collecting throughout her career.
Earlier on International Women's Day (8 March), on the occasion of International Women’s Day, i.e. on March 8, Yadav operated the iconic Deccan Queen Express with Sayali Sawardekar as an assistant loco pilot. The prestigious Mumbai-Pune Deccan Queen Express and CSMT-Kalyan ladies' special local train was operated with an all-women crew by the Central Railways.
Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnav has also congratulated Surekha Yadav on her achievement. “Vande Bharat - powered by Nari Shakti. Smt. Surekha Yadav, the first woman loco pilot of Vande Bharat Express,” she wrote.
The Vande Bharat Express is a high-performance, semi-high speed, electric multiple-unit train, operated by the Indian Railways. It was designed by RDSO (Research Design and Standards Organisation) and manufactured by the government-owned Integral Coach Factory, located in Chennai.