As part of the event, Mody felicitated the team of women civil engineers. She also inaugurated the place and handed over of the apartments to the homeowners. They have used the hashtag #womenbuild to represent the idea.
Women civil engineers today
Women have had little representation in the construction and civil sectors. Although the numbers have gone up slightly in the last few years, it is not comparable to the divide that we see. According to a 2017 study, about 12% of engineers were women. This number has moved up only a few notches in the last year.
The project
Gera’s all-women team has been working on all aspects of the project. Globally, a need has been identified to create equal employment opportunities for women. India has also seen a divide among gender roles, especially in the space of civil engineering. With this all-women civil engineers project, a team of seven women civil engineers was recruited. Not only will this scale up the real estate sector, it will also motivate and inspire young women to choose civil engineering as a career. The team was led by Ann Mary Alex, and included Mugdha Rasal, Shrutika Ware, Priya Kohad, Supriya Survase, Alisha Mascarenhas and Divya Jain. This team of young women civil engineers were just starting their careers in the field of when they were recruited for these roles. Instead of desk jobs, they chose to get out in the field. The women in the team were identified for roles at the store, for safety, as junior engineers, senior engineers and project leads. Job roles ranged from contractor management and labour management to project planning and store keeping. Generally, these are considered male-dominated roles within the construction industry as well. Talking about the idea, Gera Developments MD Rohit Gera said, “An all-women team was a dream then when we conceptualised Misty Waters. #WomenBuild is a reality now.”
Helping build a better workplace
Such efforts will help India create more gender diversity in diverse roles. real estate is a particularly challenging sector because of the presumptions around civil engineering as a male choice of career. The company feels that such an effort will build a culture of open communication, trust, and inclusiveness. It will also create better, more competitive and equal employment opportunities for both men and women. Ms. Zia Mody, prominent corporate lawyer and businesswoman said, “This is an important milestone not only for Gera Developments or Pune but for all women aspiring to join a male dominated workforce. They have set a precedent by hiring an all-women team to lead the construction of a project.” Set up to 10 storeys, Gera’s Misty Waters comprises 2 BHK and 2.5 BHK modern apartments. There are 118 apartments that have been delivered as part of this project. Amenities such as a clubhouse, extensive infrastructure and landscaping have been provided. The location and soil conditions made the project more challenging. The all-women project team took all of these challenges in their stride and successfully completed this landmark project.
