Patna: When the first metro train glided through Patna’s elevated tracks earlier this week, the city cheered at joining India’s expanding list of metro cities. But at the heart of that historic moment sat Swati Maurya, the first woman to pilot a Patna Metro train — a calm figure behind the console, symbolising how far Bihar’s daughters have come.
“People used to say, if she’s a girl, how will she drive the train? She won’t be able to brake,” Swati recalls with a smile. “The first day I drove the metro, I was scared, but my courage drove that fear away.”
At 36, Swati’s story is one of grit and quiet defiance. Born and raised in Patna, she once dreamt of a secure government job, perhaps in a bank — a path considered ideal for most young women in Bihar. But one afternoon at a bank counter changed everything.
“I saw people filling out Delhi Metro forms,” she says. “It just felt different — modern, challenging. I applied, even though I was preparing for banking exams.”
When the exam dates for the Delhi Metro and the bank job clashed, Swati made a bold choice. “I didn’t think much,” she says. “I just knew I wanted to do something that wasn’t expected of me.”
She joined the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) in 2011 as a Customer Relations Assistant (CRA). By 2016, she had become station controller on the Violet Line. But her curiosity about the trains themselves never faded.
“Every time I saw the loco pilots, I thought — I can do this too. So, during the lockdown, I applied for the train operator exam,” she recalls.
After months of rigorous theoretical and practical training in signaling systems, punctuality, and rolling stock management, she was certified to operate Delhi Metro trains — one of the few women in India to achieve this feat.
The road to Patna
When DMRC partnered with the Patna Metro Rail Corporation (PMRC) for operations, Swati volunteered to return home. She arrived in September 2025, ready to bring her experience back to where her journey began.
She drove the first trial run of the Patna Metro and was at the helm when Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inaugurated the city’s first phase on October 6. “It was emotional,” she says. “To bring Bihar into the metro map and be the one driving that train — it’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
Battling bias on and off the tracks
Swati’s rise hasn’t been without hurdles. She recalls being ridiculed and doubted when she started driving. “People would ask if the train would stop safely or if I’d manage the brakes,” she says. “Some even said women shouldn’t take evening shifts. I ignored it all.”
Her response was simple — hard work and excellence. After nearly five years of driving metro trains, she’s learned to let her performance speak for itself. “Now, when people see me in uniform, they nod with respect,” she says softly.
Family, faith, and fearlessness
A graduate of Patna Science College with a degree in Zoology, Swati later completed a distance course in Personnel Management. Her family, she says, has always been her biggest support. “They are proud. My father says, ‘You didn’t just drive a metro — you drove Bihar’s name forward.’”
Today, as more than 20,000 passengers ride the Patna Metro within its first three days, Swati hopes her journey will inspire other young women.
“Every girl should chase her dream, no matter how unusual it sounds,” she says. “If I can drive a metro, you can drive your life wherever you want.”
