Watch: Akhilesh Yadav flags off Lucknow Metro, run by woman pilot

LUCKNOW: When the Lucknow Metro first chugged down the elevated corridor on Kanpur Road for trials on Thursday, it became a matter of pride for Lucknowites to see two women piloting the train on the priority section.It is a conscious decision by the Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation (LMRC) to give the opportunity to women so that they get a chance to prove their mettle before public in handling high-tech Metro trains.“We have chosen two women operators to drive the Metro train before the CM and public for the first time. Our women train operators are so confident and excited to drive it that they wished to take lead in the trials. They have undergone rigorous training, both at the Centre of Excellence of LMRC and hands-on training at the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation,” LMRC MD Kumar Keshav told TOI.He added that “LMRC is a progressive and coherent organization which believes in giving opportunities to both boys and girls”.With this, Lucknow becomes the first city in the country where women operators commence Metro trials.The two women taking the lead are Pratibha and Prachi Sharma, both from Allahabad. Pratibha has done B Tech in electronics and communication engineering from SRMSCET, Bareilly while Prachi did her diploma in electrical engineering from IERT, Allahabad. Both joined LMRC as station controller-cum-train operators on June 9.The decision is a welcome break from the tradition as train operators’ job is generally considered a male preserve. There were a total of 97 vacancies for train operators’ job in Lucknow Metro, for which 3,827 applications had poured in from women candidates. This is 19% of the total applications LMRC received for the job. LMRC was in for a surprise to get an overwhelming response from the state’s women for heavy-duty technical jobs.LMRC recruited a total of 21 women station controller-cum-train operators as a part of UP government’s 20% horizontal reservation policy for women in government jobs. Except for Chennai, most of the other cities with metro train systems have just 1-2% women operators. Even the Delhi Metro has only three-four women operators driving trains.