While various drives for women empowerment make the news quite often, not many people know about 350 self-sufficient and strong women working at Varanasi’s Banaras Rail Engine Factory and toiling hard to make rail engines. Engines made by women working at the facility run on tracks in nearly 11 countries of the world.
In 1964, the Banaras Rail Engine Factory was established to manufacture rail engines. At that time, diesel engines were under production and hence the name Diesel Engine Factory. From the time of inception, men dominated here, but in the last few years, the number of women has increased and now 350 of them are working here and involved in every step of production.
News18 interacted with some of the women working here. Gayatri, who works here, said that she has been instrumental in the production of the wires in the rail engine here for several years. Apart from this, Jayshree does the work of lighting and testing on top of the engine.
These women, who work at the Banaras Rail Engine, are not only independent but also paint a different picture of contemporary India. Each woman takes pride in the fact that she not only thinks outside the box but also has a distinct identity in the nation.
In addition to the Indian Railways, BLW regularly exports locomotives to nations like Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Mali, Senegal, Tanzania, Angola, Mozambique, and Vietnam. A small number of Indian users, like ports, sizable power and steel plants, and private railways, are also recipients of these exports.
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