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Women loco pilots will drive Pune Metro’s Line 3, connecting the Central business district of Shivajinagar with the IT hub of Hinjewadi, according to Keolis, the French company that has bagged the contract for running the services for 10 years.
This was confirmed on Thursday by the Pune IT City Metro Rail Limited (PITCMRL) – a Tata-Siemens consortium that has entered into an agreement with Keolis.
“A particularly unprecedented initiative in India, the trains on Line 3 will be driven exclusively by women. About 100 female train pilots are being planned to be recruited and trained and will receive ongoing support to ensure their successful and lasting integration,” Kelolis has stated.
In all, 1,000 people will work for the operation and maintenance of Line 3, which is expected to start operations by March 2026.
As per the agreement with PITCMRL, Keolis will maintain the 22 trains, 23 stations, and the ticketing system for 10 years. PITCMRL is the concessionaire for the PPP-based Pune Metro project for 35 years.
The 23-km Line 3, which is under construction, has 23 stations from Shivajinagar to Mann, and the trial runs are currently underway. It is among the select Metro projects in the country being developed through the PPP model, and is being developed by the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA).
“The French company, having expertise in the field, is providing the same service for the Hyderabad Metro,” Anil Kumar Saini, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PITCMRL, told The Indian Express.
In 2017, Keolis began commercial operations of the Hyderabad Metro — the third busiest network in the country, carrying around five lakh passengers a day.
There are two Metro lines in Pune which are currently operational — from Vanaz to Ramwadi and Pimpri Chinchwad to Swargate. They are built and operated by Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (Maha-Metro), a government body. The construction for the extension of the route for the two Lines has been undertaken, while a plan for Line 4 from Khadakwasla to Kharadi via Hadapsar has been proposed.
Once operational, Line 3 will drastically reduce travel time between Shivajinagar and the IT hub in Hinjewadi, as the corridor witnesses congestion on roads and connectivity bottlenecks. It is also expected to boost economic activities along the alignment.
