After more than 10,000 locomotive pilots petitioned the national carrier to offer the facility as soon as possible, the Indian Railways has finally decided to construct urinals in engines. The feature is now only present in 97 of Indian Railways’ 14,000 locomotives. In a recent internal study by the Railways, it was discovered that all locomotive pilots desired the facility because in an emergency, they would otherwise have to exit their vehicles and go outside to see to their needs. It is much worse for female drivers who found loco duty to be quite stressful because they frequently had to leave their stations in the event of an emergency and board passenger coaches.
The lack of a restroom in the locomotive had led to pilots complaining that they had to relieve themselves in unclean circumstances. The Railways requested input on urinals from its running employees in August. Earlier, the Railway Board stated that it will decide on the urinal model once it had received poll responses. Because there are no bathrooms in the locomotives, female members of the All India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA) said that they would rather work at a desk than as a pilot. Over 1,000 women work as loco pilots for Indian Railways.
The Indian Railway Loco Running Men Organization bemoaned the fact that a urinal would not be adequate and urged the Railway Board to build full-fledged, functional restrooms in locomotives. The Railway Board complied with a 2016 ruling from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) requiring the installation of air conditioners and bathrooms in every locomotive. Out of 14,000 diesel-electric locomotives, only 97 have been equipped with urinals since then.
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