BENGALURU: “I wear a burqa to work every day,” says 31-year-old Nasira Bano, an operations executive in the flights departure management section of the Kempegowda International Airport, who has overcome social and religious barriers to do what she does best, calculatethe delay accuracy of flights landing at KIA.
Being a mother of three too makes it hard for her to pursue her career, but she is clearly not someone who is defeated easily. “My eldest is five-and-a-half years old and youngest is only one year- and- four months old. But I have an understanding family and my husband and I take turns to care for the children,” she explains.
But it’s also, obviously, her determination that is helping her balance her nine hour shift with her family responsibilities. “The job is challenging and extremely critical as we have to constantly coordinate with Air Traffic Control and pilots, and assess delays and on-time performance of all the flights. It has been 10 years since I have been with BIAL and I believe that whatever skills a woman has she must introduce them to the world. That’s how we can make it a better place,” she smiles.
Also proving that it’s not a man’s world anymore is Neha Singh, manager, terminal operations at KIA , who is the only woman among its five terminal managers. “As a terminal operations manager I have to ensure that the entire operation is seamless be it of VVIP or CIP movement or any other contingency.
Also, we take care of bomb threats and hoax calls,” she reveals. In fact, she dealt with a hoax call just a few months ago. Recalling the incident, she says, “We are under pressure when it comes to bomb threats and need to be extra alert. I remember I received a hoax bomb threat at night three months ago and had to inform the Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC). Later the BTAC and CSF took a call on whether it was real or hoax. Luckily, it wasn't real.”
However taxing the job, Neha has no regrets doing it and in fact she enjoys the little rewards that go with it like passenger satisfaction and the smiles that prove it.
