New Delhi: Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest aluminium producer, has announced plans to double the strength of its pioneering all-women locomotive crew at the Jharsuguda smelter by year-end. The expansion will add six new women professionals to the existing seven-member team, and a second all-women crew will be formed to meet rising logistical demands at one of the world’s largest aluminium plants.
Deployed in mid-2025, the original team operates and maintains the dedicated locomotive engine responsible for internal raw material movement across Vedanta’s 3,000-acre facility, which includes a 1.8 MTPA smelter and 3615 MW of power generation capacity. This high-responsibility role marks a breakthrough in gender inclusivity within core industrial operations.
“Our first all-women locomotive team broke new ground by proving that skill, precision, and leadership know no gender,” said Rajiv Kumar, CEO, Vedanta Aluminium. “This expansion is about shaping the culture of tomorrow’s industrial workplaces.”
Coinciding with the announcement, Vedanta launched a digital film titled “On the Right Track”, showcasing the journey of India’s first all-women locomotive crew. The film captures powerful visuals of engine start-ups, shift coordination, and camaraderie, reinforcing how inclusion drives innovation and operational excellence. One crew member reflects, “I wasn’t just driving a locomotive, I was driving change.”
The initiative builds on Vedanta’s broader gender diversity strategy, which includes projects like Shree Shakti for night-shift roles, India’s first all-women-managed smelter potline, and a gender-agnostic hiring policy targeting 50% women recruitment at entry level and 30% overall representation by 2030.
Vedanta Aluminium continues to lead the metals and manufacturing sector in embedding inclusion as a core operational value, proving that belief in diversity can power industrial transformation.
