Indian history is full of great Indian women who broke the gender barrier and proved themselves as winners. They all worked hard and made great progress in the fields of arts, science, law, politics, etc. In this article, we will learn about some of these extraordinary Indian women who have glorified our history with their presence.
Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi
She was the first female doctor in India and the first Indian woman to receive education abroad to obtain a medical degree in the United States.
Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi was the first and only woman to become the Prime Minister of India. She was also known as Iron lady. Daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru Indira Gandhi was the first prime minister of India.
Justice Anna Chandy
She was the first female judge in India. In fact, she was one of the first female judges in the British Empire.
Kalpana Chawla
She was the first Indian woman in space and died tragically in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
Mother Teresa
She dedicated her life to helping the poor and was the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.
Kiran Bedi
She is the first female Indian Police Service (IPS) officer and currently, she is Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
Anna Rajam Malhotra
Anna Rajam Malhotra became the first woman Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of India. In the year 1989, She was awarded the Padma Bhushan award.
Priya Jhingan
Priya Jhingan was the first Indian woman who joined the Indian Army in 1993.
Harita Kaur Deol
Flight Lt Harita Kaur Deol was a pilot in the Indian Air Force. She was the first woman pilot in the Indian Air Force to fly solo in 1994. She died in an air crash in Andhra Pradesh.
Bachendri Pal
Bachendri Pal is the first Indian woman mountaineer who reached the summit of Mount Everest. She was awarded the fourth highest civilian award Padma Shri by the Indian Government in 1984. She was awarded the third-highest civilian award Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 2019.
Saina Nehwal became the first Indian to win a medal in Badminton at Olympics in 2012. She became the first Indian woman to become number 1 in the world ranking in 2015. Nehwal is the first Indian badminton player to have won an Olympic medal and the first Indian to win two singles gold medals (2010 and 2018) in Commonwealth Games.
Arunima Sinha
She is an Indian mountain climber and sportswoman. She is a seven-time Indian volleyball player. She is the world’s first female amputee who climb Mount Everest in the year 2013. She is the first female amputee to climb Mount Vinson, the highest peak of Antarctica. In 2015 the govt. of India honored her the fourth highest civilian award, the Padma Shri award.
Arati Saha
Arati Saha was an Indian long-distance swimmer. She was the first Indian and Asian woman who swim across the English Channel in the year 1959. Arati Saha was the first female sportsperson who received the Padma Shri award- the fourth highest civilian award in India in 1960.
Asima Chatterjee
She is the first female scientist in India, who conduct research in organic chemistry and medicinal plant.
Captain Prem Mathur
First female commercial pilot in India. She won the National Air Race in 1949. She was the first British-Indian woman pilot license holder.
Cornelia Sorabji
She is the great woman advocate in India and the first woman advocate. She is the first female who studies law at Oxford University in 1892. She was practicing low in India and Britain.
Mary Kom
The first Indian woman boxer, Mary Kom has won a medal in each of the six World Championships. In 2014, She became the first Indian female boxer who win a gold medal in the Asian Games.
Sania Mirza is the first-ever Indian woman to win a Women’s Tennis Association title in 2005. She became the first Indian woman to be ranked no.1 in WAT’s doubles rankings.
Mithali Raj
Mithali Raj is the first Indian woman cricketer. The first woman to complete 20 years in International cricket, Mithali Raj becomes the first player from India to score 2000 runs in T20-s. She is the highest run-scorer in women’s international cricket. She was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2003 and the Padma Shri in 2005.
Sushmita Sen
Sushmita Sen is the first Indian woman to win Miss Universe in 1994 at the age of 18. She is an Indian actress and model.
Santosh Yadav
She is an Indian mountaineer and the first woman to climb Mount Everest twice in 1992,1993.
Arundhati Roy
She is the first Indian author to win the Booker Prize for her book The God of Small Things.
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw is an Indian billionaire entrepreneur. Popularly known as an Indian biotech queen, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw is listed as the 65th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.
Karnam Malleshwari
Malleswari is the first Indian woman weightlifter to win an Olympic medal. She was a two-time weightlifting world champion with 29 international medals, including 11 gold medals. She received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and in 1999 she received the Padma Shri award.
General Knowledge Worksheet on Great Women’s of Indian History
Q1. Choose the answer to the following questions.
1.Who is the first Woman Prime Minister of India? a. Sarojini Naidu b. Mrs. Indira Gandhi c. Rekha Sain
Who is the first woman governor of a state? a. Sarojini Naidu b. Rajia Sultana c. Lakshmi Devi
Who is the first woman to swim across the English channel? a. Sushmita Sen b. Leila Seth c. Arti Shah
Who is the first woman to climb Mount Everest? a. Kiran Bedi b. Anna Chandi c. Bachenndri Pal
Who is the first woman IAS officer? a. Anna Chandi b. Anna Malhotra c. Ujwala Rai
Who is the first woman IPS officer? a. Anna Chandi b. Kiran Bedi c. Leila Seth
Who is the first woman Advocate? a. Cornelia Sarabjit b. Fatima Beevi c. Kadambini Ganguli
Who is the first woman weightlifter? a. Saina Nehwal b. Karnam Malleswari c. Sania Mirza
