All-women staff takes over Kherki Daula toll

It was an unusual sight at the Kherki Daula Toll Plaza on Thursday, when 41 female staffers took charge of collecting toll at all the 26 lanes of the plaza to mark International Women's Day. The all-female staff also got roses and gifts from the toll plaza authorities. The ground staff and toll managers gave roses to all the women travellers who crossed the toll plaza throughout the day.
The staff gave roses to all women travellers who crossed the toll plaza

'The gesture makes us feel special'
Jageshwari, a 22-year-old toll collector, said, "The gesture makes us feel like we are valued here. We have never celebrated Women's Day before, it is not a usual practice, but it sure feels special. We usually have both male and female staff, but today, all the tolls were managed by only women."



Ibrana, a 21-year-old toll collector who hails from Varanasi, told us, "We were given roses and gifts in the morning, and were also invited for a treat in the evening. It is nice to see people celebrating Women's Day. I am a young woman who works at a toll plaza, which most people think is not an appropriate job for a woman, but I don't pay heed to such notions, and I am very confident about doing my job. I think more women should work and be independent, irrespective of what society thinks about their job."

A ground staff member of the toll plaza hands a rose to a female driver

'We have been trained well to deal with hooligans'
The young girls at the plaza live in a guest house nearby provided by the toll authorities. They say that they have settled well in their jobs and it makes them confident to be employed in a big city. "Toll collection is simple work, but days like this make us feel valued. Also, we have got self-defence training, and the fact that a police chowki is nearby, makes me feel safe. Initially, I had my apprehensions about the job, but now I am settled," said Akanksha, a toll collector.



Ibrana added, "I have been working here for more than a year and I never faced any problem. Sometimes, people take too long to pay or honk too much when they see a woman operator, but we have been trained to deal with such situations. Also, with seniors and police officials present, we feel safe."

Taking charge!

Rajneesh Yadav, Assistant Manager, Toll Plaza, said, "Today, the plaza is managed by only women, but even on usual days we have at least 30 female staffers working at the plaza. The authorities have given self-defence training to all the female staffers. They have also taught them how to deal with difficult situations. They have the right to report if someone misbehaves with them. We also have a police station nearby and female police officers present on the spot all the time. Since the seniors are also always present here, we intervene if we feel something is not right."

-- Aurushi.Goswami@timesgroup.com