Veterans will tell you that Mapusa and Margao have had their share of the odd
female fuel pump attendant. That Margao even had a trio of sisters running a
pump in Gogol in the past. And that scattered through the state you will find a
woman or two sporting the pant-shirt dress code of the petroleum company she's
working for.
But the port town's fuelling a pink revolution of sorts. Every gas station in
Vasco, from the sprawling pump at the base of the Chicalim slope to the two
near the main bus stand and the set-up nestled between the vegetable market and
the tank terminal depot in the heart of the city, have women pumping fuel.
"Women are trustworthy, loyal and punctual," Nisha Vaz, co-proprietor of Karma
Auto Park, Chicalim, justifies the IOC pump's two shifts with only women
attendants. The third shift, an all-nighter, is all male.
Further into town, her views are echoed by Rajendra Arlekar, proprietor of the
HP outlet near the Vasco police station. "Women are certainly better workers,"
says the former Vasco legislator who has four women working the pumps since
several years now. "Leakages and spillages are common in petrol pumps, but I've
noticed that when women work the pumps the spills are far less. Moreover,
unlike their male counterparts they don't hold grudges against customers and
are more polite. This helps me to bring more business to the pump," says
Arlekar.
Vaz talks of the time when the pump started operations almost four years ago,
when the outlet had men and women attendants running the first two shifts. "The
guys would simply not turn up for work, and one or two even stole. We've had no
problems with the women. They run this place the way they run their homes. Many
are married and have children and they show the same loyalty to their job as
they do to their families. Not a rupee is ever out of place," Vaz gushes her
fondness for her team. In fact, there's an ad pasted on the pillars asking for
an 'experienced female pump attendant'.
The women attendants themselves have no hang-ups about what they do, or the
domain they've broken into. "It's time-pass," Noorjahan Sayyed, 19, and Lucy
Pereira, 31, shrug off the long hours of constant standing and the money
matters that if not handled properly will mean a cut out of their salaries.
"Most times the customers are friendly and decent and we don't feel conscious
about what we're doing," says Sharmila Mandrekar, 28, whose been a pump
attendant for five years.
Common among the women are their economic and educational backgrounds which are
both low-most have not completed their matriculation. Also common is the
support they enjoy from their families.
"I wouldn't be here if my family didn't support me," says 24-year-old Fatima
Catherine Fernandes. Colleague Sushila Pal, who works the noon to 7pm shift at
the Chicalim pump so that she can "pack the tiffins" of children Rahul, 8, and
Priyanka, 10, says her earnings help support the income brought home by driver
husband Ramesh. "I enjoy serving people and this job lets me do that," smiles
42-year-old Veena Bhutki, a widow and mother-of-two, who starts her day at 4am
since her fixed eight-hour shift at the Vasco pump starts at 6am.
And do these women know about Women's Day? A vague look clouds their otherwise
sharp, albeit tired, faces. "Send us the photos," They call out, heading back
to fill yet another vehicle's tank.
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