🃏 Women in Indian history and science

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Ammu Swaminathan — Constituent Assembly? — Madras (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles: twin pillars of the Constitution

Annie Mascarene — Constituent Assembly? — Travancore and Cochin Union; signed 29 December 1948. Spoke on: Provincial elections; A tribute to Sardar Patel for unifying India without bloodshed

Begum Aizaz Rasul — Constituent Assembly? — United Provinces (Muslim); signed 14 December 1947. Spoke on: Against separate electorates; Fundamental rights and minority rights; Naming the Parliament

Dakshayani Velayudhan — Constituent Assembly? — Madras (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Freedom from forced labour; Against separate electorates or reservations for Harijans; Beyond the Constitution: the need for a campaign against untouchability

G. Durgabai — Constituent Assembly? — Madras (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: The constitutional remedies for fundamental rights; Protection of children and youth from exploitation and abandonment; The Supreme Court: guardian of the Constitution

Hansa Mehta — Constituent Assembly? — Bombay (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Social, economic and political justice for the women of India; Presentation of the National Flag

Kamla Chaudhri — Constituent Assembly? — United Provinces (General); signed 9 December 1946

Leela Ray — Constituent Assembly? — West Bengal (General); signed 9 December 1946

Malati Chowdhury — Constituent Assembly? — Orissa (General); signed 9 December 1946

Purnima Banerji — Constituent Assembly? — United Provinces (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Finances for local bodies; Protecting the rights of individuals under detention; Ultimate sovereignty lies with the people

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur — Constituent Assembly? — Central Provinces and Berar (General); signed 21 December 1946

Renuka Ray — Constituent Assembly? — West Bengal (General); signed 14 July 1947. Spoke on: Equality of status and justice for women; Prevention of trafficking of women and abolition of the devadasi system

Sarojini Naidu — Constituent Assembly? — Bihar (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Seeking an inclusive Constituent Assembly; Resolution regarding the National Flag

Sucheta Kripalani — Constituent Assembly? — United Provinces (General); signed 9 December 1946. Spoke on: Singing of Vande Mataram

Vijayalakshmi Pandit — Constituent Assembly? — United Provinces (General); signed 17 December 1946. Spoke on: The centrality of a new Asia in the post-Raj world order

Who: Daughter of Chandragupta II.? — Prabhavatigupta (regent) (r. 390–410)

Who: One of the few ruling queens; praised by Marco Polo.? — Rudrama Devi (r. 1262–1289)

Who: The only woman to rule the Delhi Sultanate.? — Razia Sultana (r. 1236–1240)

Who: Gond queen of Garha-Katanga who died resisting Akbar's army? — Rani Durgavati (1524–1564)

Who: Defended Ahmadnagar against Akbar.? — Chand Bibi (regent) (r. 1595–1600)

Who: Jahangir's empress and the power behind his throne? — Nur Jahan (1577–1645)

Who: Shah Jahan's eldest daughter and Padshah Begum? — Jahanara Begum (1614–1681)

Who: Babur's daughter who wrote the Humayun-nama? — Gulbadan Begum (1523–1603)

Who: Mother and mentor of Shivaji? — Jijabai (1598–1674)

Who: Led resistance against Aurangzeb.? — Tarabai (regent) (r. 1700–1707)

Who: Temple builder and administrator.? — Ahilyabai Holkar (r. 1767–1795)

Who: Queen of Sivaganga who fought the East India Company? — Velu Nachiyar (1730–1796)

Who: Queen of Kittur who led an armed revolt against the Company in 1824? — Kittur Chennamma (1778–1829)

Who: Rani of Jhansi and heroine of the 1857 revolt? — Rani Lakshmibai (1828–1858)

Who: Led the 1857 revolt in Lucknow? — Begum Hazrat Mahal (1820–1879)

Who: Brought a sapling of the Bodhi tree to Sri Lanka? — Sanghamitta

Who: The only woman among the twelve Alvars; composed the Tiruppavai? — Andal

Who: Kashmiri mystic poet of the vakhs? — Lal Ded (Lalleshwari) (1320–1392)

Who: Rajput princess and Bhakti poet devoted to Krishna? — Mirabai (1498–1547)

Who: Pioneer of modern Indian painting? — Amrita Sher-Gil (1913–1941)

Who: Carnatic vocalist, the first musician awarded the Bharat Ratna? — M. S. Subbulakshmi (1916–2004)

Who: Legendary playback singer awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2001? — Lata Mangeshkar (1929–2022)

Who: Pioneer of women's education who opened a girls' school in Pune? — Savitribai Phule (1831–1897)

Who: Scholar who founded the Mukti Mission for women? — Pandita Ramabai (1858–1922)

Who: Theosophist who launched a Home Rule League in 1916? — Annie Besant (1847–1933)

Who: Satyagrahi and wife of Mahatma Gandhi? — Kasturba Gandhi (1869–1944)

Who: The 'Nightingale of India' and first woman governor of an Indian state? — Sarojini Naidu (1879–1949)

Who: 'Gandhi Buri', shot while leading a Quit India procession? — Matangini Hazra (1869–1942)

Who: Freedom fighter who revived Indian handicrafts? — Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (1903–1988)

Who: Hoisted the Congress flag at Gowalia Tank on 9 August 1942? — Aruna Asaf Ali (1909–1996)

Who: Naga spiritual and political leader who resisted British rule? — Rani Gaidinliu (1915–1993)

Who: Teenage martyr of the Quit India Movement in Assam? — Kanaklata Barua (1924–1942)

Who: Nobel Peace laureate who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata? — Mother Teresa (1910–1997)

Who: Botanist who, as head of the Botanical Survey of India, began programmes to document India’s plant diversity, and played a key role in the ‘Save Silent Valley’ movement.? — Janaki Ammal (1897–1984)

Who: Earned a Ph.D. at Cambridge for work on respiration in plants, later directed the Royal Institute of Science, Bombay, and worked to improve the nutritive value of plant foods — including neera from coconut-palm sap.? — Kamala Sohonie (1911–1998)

Who: The ‘Weather Woman of India’ invented and built many weather instruments, reducing India’s reliance on imports, and explored wind and solar energy.? — Anna Mani (1918–2001)

Who: Developed anti-epileptic and anti-malarial drugs from medicinal plants; the second Indian woman to earn a Doctorate of Science and the first woman to receive the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in chemical science.? — Asima Chatterjee

Who: First woman of Indian origin in space? — Kalpana Chawla (1962–2003)