Use of walkie-talkie to request 'washroom break' shameful, women train drivers protest

Women train drivers have protested against the embarrassing and unsafe practice of using walkie-talkies to request washroom breaks while on duty. A woman loco pilot said that if we have a request to go to the toilet, we have to tell the male loco pilot, who informs the station master. Then the station master forwards it to the control department.

He said that all these conversations also reach dozens of other officers of the range through walkie-talkies. The message is broadcast everywhere at the station that a lady loco pilot wants to go to the toilet.

The current, unofficially adopted system, according to female drivers, is shameful. It is equivalent to putting their security at risk. He claims that ninety percent of the more than 1700 female train drivers employed by Indian Railways are assistant loco pilots. They serve as the male loco pilots' assistants on passenger or freight trains.

I had to go through this experience once I was working on a goods train with a male driver, according to another female loco pilot. When operating a passenger train, the driver is free to use any compartment for loo breaks; however, when operating a goods train, you have to disembark at the station.