SHALLU
JINDAL discusses and highlight her views on the various glaring issues that
impact the modern-day workplace
From aviation
to masonry and from engineering to driving locomotives, the woman of today is
successfully carving a niche for herself in a man’s world At the graduation
ceremony of the OP Jindal Community College, I gave away a certificate to Indu
Kumari, a 20-year-old village girl who had finished training in masonry. This
was the first time in my life that I had ever heard of a girl who had taken up
masonry as a profession. Women have today got into hitherto male-dominated
professions like defence, engineering, small and medium enterprises,
agriculture, fishery, mining and even real estate. Even at steel, power, oil
and gas plants located in the hinterland, now you see girls working shoulder to
shoulder with men. It is really heartening to note that the forays that women
are making today in India are not restricted to only the educated urban middle
class alone. Consider this: there is a whole fleet of private cabs in Delhi
driven by women, for women, called ‘Sakha’. Most petrol pumps across the city
too now have girls manning the filling stations. Delhi Transport Corporation
(DTC) has also started hiring women as bus conductors. Surekha Yadav from
Mumbai deserves a special mention here. The middleaged lady stands out from the
crowd at the city’s crowded suburban railway platforms when she steps out in
her uniform as a driver. The first female passenger train driver in India,
Yadav has successfully forayed into a traditional male-dominated profession.
All those who have made a mark in a man’s world must have had to face quite a
few challenges. The reasons behind the success are various – ranging from
education to rise in awareness to change in parental mindset.
By Shallu Jindal: The author is a Kuchipudi danseuse and
social contributor
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