Meet Surekha Yadav, Asia's first woman loco-pilot, now first female pilot of Vande Bharat Express

On Monday, Asia welcomed its first loco pilot, making history. The newly launched semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express train is presently being driven for the first time by a woman, Surekha Yadav, according to Central Railways. She accomplished the milestone on Monday while driving the semi-high-speed train between Solapur station and Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminal (CSMT).

Ashwini Vaishnaw, the minister of railways, wrote on Twitter, "Vande Bharat - powered by Nari Shakti. Smt. Surekha Yadav, the Vande Bharat Express's first female loco pilot.

Who is Surekha Yadav?

Surekha Yadav, who is from Satara in western Maharashtra, has so far received numerous honours for her accomplishments at the national and state level. In 1988, Surekha Yadav became the nation's first female train operator. Before beginning her position with Central Railway, Surekha completed a diploma in electrical engineering.

Before being assigned as a driver on the Vande Bharat train in February 2023, she finished training at the railway institute in Vadodara. She expressed her gratitute for the opportunity to run the Vande Bharat Train. She expressed her gratitude for being given the chance to drive the cutting-edge Vande Bharat Train. According to Central Railways, the train left Solapur at the appointed hour and arrived at CSMT five minutes early.

The railways claimed that Yadav was honoured at platform number 8 at CSMT after finishing a more than 450 km trip. The famous Mumbai-Pune Deccan Queen Express and the CSMT-Kalyan ladies' special local train were both run by the Central Railways previously on International Women's Day (8 March) with all-female crews. 

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