Tags:
Journalism of Courage
They are teen-agers getting ready to sail the seven seas! Sharvani Mishra and Archana Saxena are just 18 years old and study at the Tolani Maritime Institute. After passing the course, they will join the rare breed of lady merchant naval officers on ship.
8220;I never really knew what marine engineering was all about. When I came here for an interview, I liked the place and the prospectus and decided to enroll. I had completed my B.Sc first year, but this is more interesting,8221; discloses Mishra, who hails from Orissa. Nobody in her family had a clue either. But there was no opposition, merely surprise, at her decision.
The girls enrolled in September last year, and these six months have been interesting and hectic. The course material includes Applied Mechanics, Applied Electricity, Seamanship, Geometrical Drawing, Workshop Practicals, English and Mathematics 8211; subjects one would associate more with the hard-core sea-faring kinds. Do they feel a trifle out-of-place, one wonders?
No, not at all, say the two emphatically. 8220;We enjoy the courses. Yes, the workshop practicals are a bit strenuous, with us having to saw big metal pieces, but they are not something we cannot handle.8221; At this juncture, they are taught survival-at-sea skills, all about knots and navigation, reading a compass, loading and unloading of cargo, bridge mechanism. And over the four years, the course gets more demanding.
A normal day for the duo starts at 5.30 a.m. After tea, it is physical training and jogging. And after breakfast, classes last till 4 p.m., followed by an hour of sports. Dinner is followed by study hours till 11 p.m. A full day, indeed! But the two intrepid ladies have only one dream they are focussing on. 8220;After we finish the course, we can get ground jobs, but we want to sail. We will probably join as fifth engineers on a ship,8221; they smile in anticipation.
According to the duo, their classmates are very supportive and encouraging. Sometimes, they pull their leg, especially when they get better marks, saying they were favoured because they were girls. 8220;The instructors don8217;t give us any concessions either. They are very compassionate8217; because we are girls, but they make us work just as hard. Which is a good thing, otherwise we wouldn8217;t learn anything,8221; says Saxena prudently.
The girls stay at the boys8217; hostel in Kothrud, where they share a room. 8220;We don8217;t feel uncomfortable or anything. Besides, we have a glass door fitted in, so that we can see who has come, but usually, nobody disturbs us,8221; says Mishra.
In the meantime, the girls in whites shall continue with the hard work, setting a precedent for other women to follow.
