PROMINENT WOMEN IN THE HISTORY OF MODERN INDIA

PROMINENT WOMEN IN THE HISTORY OF MODERN INDIA
The following list showcases the achievements by women in Modern India during marking from the time of British Raj. Their works sprawl across charity, photography, law, etc.Savithribhai Phule (3 January 1831 – 10 March 1897)

• Savithribhai Phule is an Indian social reformer who worked for the upliftment of backwards classes in India along with her husband Jyothirao Phule.
• Her contributions were majorly directed to the education sector and she established in India’s first girls school at Bhide Wadai in Pune in 1848.
• She concentrated mainly on giving education to girls from untouchable communities.
• She is also considered as the first female teacher in India.
• She is one of the pioneer figures in Modern Marathi poetry. Her woks were published posthumously known Kavya Phule(1934) and Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar (1982).

Chandramukhi Basu (1860–1944) and Kadambini Ganguly (18 July 1861 – 3 October 1923)

• These two women occupy a premier place in the history of women in India as they are the first female graduates hailing from India
• They were educated under the British Raj.
• Chandramukhi Basu was from Dehradun and Kadambini Ganguly was from Bhagalpur.
• Kadambini Ganguly went on to pursue medicine and became one of the first two Indian women to practice medicine.
• Chandramukhi Basu faced discrimination based on gender, when the university refused to publish her result as the first rank holder in the entrance exam.
• She completed her studies from Scottish church college and joined Bethune College, Calcutta as a lecturer.
• She later on became the principal of the institution, also the first woman to head an undergraduate academic institution in south Asia.

Annie Besant (1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933)

• Annie Besant was a prominent British philanthropist who came to India as part of her work for the Theosophical Society.
• She has published more than 25 books on various topics ranging from atheism to occult chemistry.
• She was the first woman to become president of the Indian National Congress in 1917.
• All India Home rule movement was established by her along with Lok Manya Tilak in 1916 to achieve the cause of Indian independence.

Pandita Ramabhai (23 April 1858 – 5 April 1922) 

• Pandita Ramabhai was a Brahmin woman who spoke against child marriage and suppression of women in society.
• She delivered lectures all over India on upliftment of women and won the Pandita title from the Brahmin scholars of Calcutta
• Later on she went ahead to establish the Arya Mahila Samaj.
• She was the first Indian woman to be won the honour of Kaisar-I-Hind Medal by the British Raj for her community services in 1919.
• She wrote "Status of Society of United States and a travelogue comparing the status of women in USA and India based on her travelling experiences and another book called The High-Caste Hindu Woman which explained the hardships of woman in a Hindu society.

Sarojini Naidu (13 February 1879 - 2 March 1949)

• Sarojini Naidu known as the nightingale of India was the first Indian born woman to become the President of Indian national congress in 1925.
• She played a major role during the freedom movement and was arrested during the Quit India movement in 1942.
• She has contributed immensely to the poetic heritage of India.
• She became the first woman Governor when she was appointed as Governor of the United Province in 1947.
• Her poems acquired immense publicity, some of her major works include The Golden Threshold (1905), The Bird of Time: Songs of Life, Death & the Spring (1912), The Feather of the Dawn (posthumously published, 1961)

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit (18 August 1900 – 1 December 1990)

• Viajya Lakshmi Pandit was the younger sister of Jawaharlal Nehru.
• She was the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post, at the provincial legislature of United Province in 1937.
• She was also the first Indian woman to become the president of United Nations General Assembly
• She has served as India’s High Commissioner to the Soviet Union (1947- 1949) the United States (1949) and Mexico (1951) Ireland (1955- 1961) and Spain (1958- 1961).
• Between 1946 and 1968, she headed the Indian delegation to the United Nations.
• Her major writings include The Evolution of India (1958) and The Scope of Happiness: A Personal Memoir (1979)

Anna Chandy (May 4, 1905- July 20, 1996)

• Anna Chandy was a Syrian Christian from Trivandrum
• She was the first female judge in the country in 1937 when she was appointed as a munsif at Travancore.
• In 1959, she became the first Indian woman to hold to post of High court justice when she was appointed at Kerala High Court
• She served in the Law commission after her retirement and published an autobiography called Athmakadha (1973)
• She ran a journal called Shreemati which championed the cause of women’s rights

Sucheta Kriplani (25 June 1908 – 1 December 1974)

• Sucheta Kriplani became politically active after her marriage to Acharya Kriplani, who was a socialist leader.
• She then worked with the Indian national Congress during 1936.
• She also served in the sub-committee which drafted the Indian constitution.
• She founded the All India Mahila Congress which in 1940.
• She was the first Indian woman to hold the position of Chief Minister in an Indian state (Uttar Pradesh).

Indira Gandhi (November 19, 1917- October 31, 1984)

• Indira Gandhi widely known as the iron lady of India was born in Allahabad to Jawaharlal Nehru and kamala Nehru.
• She married Feroze Gandhi, who worked with her at Indian National Congress
• In 1959 she became the party president of Indian National Congress.
• After extensive works at various sections of the government, she became the first woman Prime Minster of India in 1966.
• She initiated many progressive steps like nationalization of banks, social reforms like equal pay for equal work etc.
• However, she was widely criticized for the human rights violations that took place under Operation Bluestar in 1984.

Kiran Bedi (9 June 1949 to present)

• Kiran Bedi is the first female recruit to the Indian Police service in 1972
• She was also the first woman to be appointed as the United Nations civilian police adviser in 2003
• As the Inspector General of Tihar Jail, she initiated several reforms which earned her the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award (1994)
• She founded the Navjyothi Delhi Police foundation which actively looks after treatments to the drug and alcohol addicts.

Mother Teresa (26 August 1910 - 5 September 1997)

• Mother Teresa is known for her charitable works in the streets of Calcutta
• She was the first woman under Indian citizen ship to win the Nobel Prize in 1979.
• She was beatified by the Catholic Church as the “Blessed Teresa of Calcutta”.
• The movement started by her, the Missionaries of Charity now sprawls across 133 countries all over the world.
• She received several civilian honours including Padma Shri (1962), Jawaharlal Nehru award for international understanding (1969) and Bharat Ratna (1980)

Bachendri Pal (24 May 1954 to present) 

• Bachendri Pal was born in Uttarakhand district; she was part of many small mountaineering groups in her early life.
• She became the first Indian woman to climb Mount Everest on 23 may 1984.
• She also led an all women team to Everest in 1985.
• She was awarded Padma Shri in 1984.

Fathima Beevi (30 April 1927 - to present)

• M. Fathima Beevi was the first woman to be appointed at the Supreme Court of India in 1989.
• She was also the first Muslim woman to hold a position at any higher judicial offices in India.
• After her retirement she served in both National Human Rights Commission and as the Governor of Tamil Nadu.

Homai Vyarawalla (9 December 1913 – 15 January 2012)

• Homai Vyarawalla was India’s first woman to enter into the field of press photography.
• Her works documented the periods of the end of British Raj and beginning of the independence era.
• She was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan in 2011.

Cornelia Sorabji (15 November 1866 – 6 July 1954)

• Cornelia Sorabji is the first woman advocate from India.
• She was the first Indian national to study at any British university.
• She had the privilege of being the first woman to study law at the Oxford.
• She also authored a couple of books such as Love and Life behind the Purdah (1902), Sun Babies (1904), Between the Twilights (1908), The Purdanashin (1917) and several others.