Women engineers take the helm at Chennai Metrowater

For the first time since its inception, Chennai Metrowater has women in key leadership posts, including chief engineers and engineering directors. | Photo Credit: V. Umesh Kumar

Women have long been a part of the workforce that keeps Chennai’s water and sewerage systems running. Now, for the first time since its inception, Chennai Metrowater has women in key leadership posts, including chief engineers (CE) and engineering directors.

The milestone comes at a time when women account for 56% of the water agency’s workforce, including 218 women engineers.

O. Parveez, who joined as assistant engineer in 1991, is now an engineering director and has a five-member, all-women chief engineers’ team working with her.

“I chose civil engineering as it is related to human life, and joined Metrowater that directly involves providing civic amenities. Metrowater had its first woman assistant executive engineer in 1987 and since then, the number has steadily grown. Some of my postings involved direct interaction with consumers for long hours,” she said.

Early years

During their early years, many women engineers worked long hours, with commute on multiple modes of transport taking up a large part of their day. For instance, CE (O and M-II) K. Uma’s workday began with a two-hour journey from Nanganallur to Kodungaiyur to inspect works and return to office to brief her superiors.

Their rise reflects a gradual change in an organisation where women were once largely assigned to execution and office work. The transition gained momentum in the mid-1990s, when then managing director Santa Sheela Nair opened up such assignments to women engineers.

Much of their early assignments included attending to urgent complaints and carrying out night rounds for maintenance. While overseeing new water and sewerage applications, most of them had to manage large crowds and their grievances.

Initially, it was challenging, said M. Geetha, CE, Operation and Maintenance, recalling how women engineers learnt to manage public interactions. Over time, their colleagues and the public became more accepting of women in technical and decision-making roles.

The work has changed with technology, while its scale has increased. Now, mobile phones allow engineers to share field updates from early morning. R. Chitra, CE and project director, Ring Main Pipeline, said sometimes, responsibilities from work take up personal time. However, work-life balance cannot follow a single formula; it depends on each person’s capacity and circumstances, she added.

J. Suganthy, CE (Project-III), who had worked in desalination projects from Minjur to Perur, said her work took her to new terrains and introduced her to challenging projects. Technological advancements had introduced desalination as an alternative source of water, and improved data collection through metering, she said.

“Women were not considered suitable for demanding field assignments and leadership roles. But they have proved themselves in every aspect of the job. What matters is our commitment and ability to deliver, not our gender,” said A. Pushpalatha, CE (Project-I). H.S. Kalyani will succeed Ms. Pushpalatha, who has retired.

Published - November 10, 2026 05:00 am IST