Jaya Varma Sinha recently assumed charge as the Chairman and CEO of the Railway Board, becoming the first woman to hold this position. Her appointment is a turning point in the 166-year history of Indian Railways and the Railway Board.
With over 35 years of service in the railways, Jaya is from the 1986 batch of the Indian Railway Management Service. Jaya will hold the position of the Railway Chief In Charge till December 31, 2024, added news reports.
Railways, a male bastion
Reports say that the Indian Railways has been taking steps to improve the women’s workforce participation sector in recent times. However, a news report pointed out that in the last five years, Railways has hired more men than women. While 1,64, 281 men were hired in 2018-2023, just 12,409 women got jobs in the same period. As per a news report in Metro Rail News, there are only 100,000 female employees out of a total workforce of 1.3 million (nearly 8%) of the entire workforce. However, for a managerial position, the ratio is 13% — a more encouraging figure.
What can change?
A 2022 study called, ‘Modeling of career entry barriers for women in male-dominated occupations: A case of Indian railways’, has identified that ‘social norms’, ‘organizational policies and procedures’, and ‘job description’ play a crucial role in increasing the women ratio in Indian Railways. The study suggested modifying recruitment policies for the positive influx of women in the workplace.
Another report titled ‘Women Participation in Rail Transport in India: Relevance and Need in Present Scenario’ addressed the challenges women staff face. The report said, ‘very few stations have separate toilet blocks for female staff, and if they are posted at level crossing gates, for instance, then chances are that there is no toilet block available in the vicinity. When the lower-level staff doesn’t get basic amenities at the workplace, very few would stick to the job or try to learn their work; most would prefer to opt for a desk job in a closed environment where challenges are fewer and conditions are better. It also results in less vertical gradation of women employees to reach the decision-making positions as fewer females choose to work in the field, and there is less investment in the basic amenities.’
The number of women taking up roles like loco pilots, technicians, and junior engineers has risen in the past few years. For a sector that is one of the largest transport and logistics networks in the world, the Indian Railways has the potential to accommodate more women, which will also resolve infrastructural issues.
