Gadchiroli July 25 (District Correspondent) Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, flagged off the first batch of Iron-Ore Pellet Load on nine Volvo FM 420 LNG trucks as part of Lloyds Metals & Energy Ltd. (LMEL) vision of transitioning to low-emission logistics in mineral transportation, and launched the ‘Iron Women’ initiative undertaken by LMEL with Volvo Trucks India.
“I must appreciate that my sisters in Gadchiroli are emerging as faces of positive socio-economic transformation in the district. I felt proud when an ‘Iron Women’ participant told me that she had joined LMEL in housekeeping, then the company trained her in light motor vehicle driving, and now she is trained to drive an LNG-powered truck. This has not only boosted her confidence but also empowered her to have a higher salary from Rs. 12,000/- earlier to Rs. 55,000 now,” said Mr. Fadnavis.
Mr. Fadnavis flagged-off nine LNG-powered trucks driven by ‘Iron Women’. Joint Guardian Minister Adv. Ashish Jaiswal, MLA Dharmaraobaba Atram, MLC Dr. Parinay Fuke, Managing Director of LMEL Mr. Balasubramanian Prabhakaran, Executive Vice President of Volvo Trucks India Mr. Boddapati Dinakar were present prominently on this occasion.
Mr. Prabhakaran said, “At Lloyds Metals, we’ve always believed that business growth must go hand in hand with socio-economic development, women empowerment, and inclusive and gender diverse workforce.” The ‘Iron Women’ programme with Volvo LNG Trucks is about creating accessible, technology-enabled opportunities that drive empowerment and progress both.
“We commend Lloyds Metals for setting a benchmark by driving meaningful change in mining logistics landscape,” said Mr. Dinakar. Their initiative to integrate clean mobility with inclusive workforce development is both bold and necessary. At Volvo, we’re proud to enable such initiatives with our technology and expertise, as India moves toward a more sustainable and equitable future, he added.”
The ‘Iron Women’ initiative is a pioneering driver training programme to empower local women to operate heavy-duty trucks in mining operations. This marks a new chapter in inclusive and gender diverse workforce development in India’s industrial sector. The ‘Iron Women’ programme is adapted from a global concept initiated by Volvo. LMEL has introduced the programme for the first time in India’s mining sector, to empower women from the region to undertake skilled roles in industrial logistics.
The trucks are equipped with advanced safety and automation features, making them ideal for first-time operators and clean mobility transitions in mining logistics, it was told.
