HYDERABAD: Many women using the Metro to get to their office were in for a pleasant surprise on Monday morning, for they were welcomed with a separate women-only coach. The last coach on the train had been separated by a small strip of sheet that has been used as a barricade to create the special space.
A security guard is stationed outside the coach area to direct women into the coach while inside the train, the sheet barricade prevents men from entering. Most women who boarded the train on Monday morning were unaware of the separate coach, but it was a happy discovery for them.
"It is a progressive step. On weekends there is a lot of rush and we do not get the space to sit down. This way, it will ease out the rush a bit," said B Keerthi who was travelling from KPHB to Tarnaka along with her three-year-old child. Three other women, natives of Srikakulam said that this makes them feel safe, compared to other places in the country.
"The designated security guard is also helpful and encouraged us to sit in the ladies coach. It was a comfortable ride," said K Kavya Sri, who is in the city for training and originally from Srikakulam. Table Tennis player of international acclaim, Naina Jaiswal who inaugurated the coach said that the Hyderabad Metro Rail is better at several levels when compared to the metros she has travelled in globally. "This initiative to make it women-friendly is definitely a progressive step and we need to appreciate it," said the 18-year-old.
This is an additional step towards making the city safe and metro oriented, said NVS Reddy, managing director, Hyderabad Metro Rail Ltd (HMRL). "Gender equality is our priority and we have been having consultations with women organisations who have given us several suggestions about how we can make this project safer for women. The coach is one of the suggestions and just the beginning," said Reddy.
Several other initiatives are going to be taken up and there will also be a station exclusively for women, where women will find all the things they need. Stalls will be set up by women entrepreneurs, he added. Each station has 64 CCV cameras and every coach also has 360 degree view of the coaches and any miscreants will be caught on camera and She Team will be alerted, he further said. There has been a rise in the number of passengers from 50,000 to around 75,000 per day and they are likely to see an increase in the days to come. 35 per cent of these commuters comprise women.
-- Survey to set up a corridor towards Old City is ongoing
-- The Uppal to Ameerpet Corridor will see an extension till LB Nagar
-- The one which runs through the IT corridor is to be completed in the next two months
-- The plan is to connect to the International Airport from all parts of the city through metro rail