Surekha Yadav, Asia's first woman loco pilot, has made history again by becoming the first female to operate the newly-introduced semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express train. A video of the same has been released. On March 13, 2023, she piloted the train between Solapur station and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai, covering a distance of over 450 km. The train arrived five minutes before the scheduled arrival time, and Ms. Yadav was felicitated at platform number 8 at CSMT. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw praised Ms. Yadav in a tweet, saying, "Vande Bharat - powered by Nari Shakti. Smt. Surekha Yadav, the first woman loco pilot of Vande Bharat Express." In response, Ms. Yadav expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to pilot the new age, state-of-the-art Vande Bharat Train.
