By Express News Service HYDERABAD: “My NRI friend boarded the Hyderabad Metro Rail train last week because she wanted to experience the joy of riding a mass carrier driven by mana Hyderabadi girl who ferries over 1,000 people confidently in each ride every day. After the ride, she hugged me for busting the stereotype that women can’t drive,” says an excited Sonali Dayal, 26, who has been working as the Loco Pilot (engine driver, colloquially) for the Hyderabad Metro Rail for the last two years, two months. She feels that Hyderabadis are lucky to be able to escape the summer and the monsoon travails by commuting in the metro train. The young techie turned Loco Pilot said that on public holidays like the Independence Day, there are many more footfalls. “More families like to give their bikes and cars a skip and take an eco-friendly ride in the Metro and spend quality time with their family. It gives me immense joy to be part of this ecosystem,” she says. Incidentally, Sonali also drove her dad back home on one rainy day recently. “That is certainly a high point of my career here,” she says with a big smile. Her colleague Bhavya Siripuram joins her in sharing the joy. “Although cities like Hyderabad have a large workforce comprising women, most citizens are still pleasantly surprised to see us girls in the driving seat,” she adds.

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