Glimpse of a ‘Women only’ coach in Delhi Metro

Day 7. Letter 'G'.

Back in October 2010, in the backdrop of the Commonwealth Games, Delhi Metro started the concept of ‘women’ coach with the first coach reserved for women. During one of the early days of this new idea, I was traveling in metro, obviously in woman’s coach, and the coach was getting crowded by every passing station. In that commotion, we heard two women shouting at each other in a fight to grab a seat. And then, one aunty sitting close by commented, “With the fights we know we are in a woman’s coach. Do you expect women to be in a coach together and not have a fight?”

Traveling in the women’s coach is nothing short of an experience. 

A peek-a-boo into a ladies coach of Delhi Metro shall be like: 

• There are college-going girls, office-going ladies, and women going back home after doing wedding shopping from Chandni Chowk…

• Women of all shapes, sizes, colors, languages, faiths, age groups can be seen squabbling for the seat  

• Usually, they all are broadly involved in either of the 6 things while travelling – listening to music, reading a book/newspaper, loudly chatting in a group, holding a kid, alone and looking at others or sleeping

• The books they read are usually a chick-lit, a classic Jane Austen and some are seen reading religious books

• They all believe that they will fit in whatever little space there is on a seat (butt size no bar!). As soon as gates open and the crowd barges in, you can hear ‘please shift a little’ or ‘please adjust a little’ in many voices, baritones. They will sit uncomfortably, and so will those who ‘shifted’. But that never deters anyone from asking for a ‘shift’

• Women, who don’t get a seat even after the ‘adjusting and shifting’ bit, keep staring at those sitting, with eyes that spell ‘revenge’! Really!

• There is always some woman who opens her tiffin to have her breakfast (despite the ‘no eating in the metro’ sign)

• You may find a pregnant woman or an old lady standing and looking at others to offer them seats, because the seats meant for them have been occupied by some other young girl who has her ear-plugs on and pretends she is sleeping. That way, she won’t be woken up from the slumber to vacate the seat, you know.Smart move

And when you see men standing on the boundary of second coach and looking at the coach full of women, the look on their faces reminds me of the guys who roam around a girls college to catch a glimpse of  girls or their girlfriends!