Great Women Scientists of India

  Kamala Sohoni was  the first woman in India to get a Ph.D. in Science . At a time when there was a general opinion that women could not work in the field of research, she was a brave woman who even went on a satyagraha to gain admission to higher education against the negative decision of India's first Nobel laureate, CV Raman. She  gave importance to the research to provide nutrition to the poorest of the poor at low cost. The recognition she  gained led to the opening of higher education and research fields to women. Her field of study was biochemistry Kamala Bhagwat (later Sohoni) was born in 1911 in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Her father Narayana Rao and uncle Madhav Rao were chemists. Both of them were full time students of Tata Institute (later Indian Institute of Science). According to family tradition, Kamala also graduated from Bombay University in 1933 with a B.Sc., majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Physics. Then she applied for a research fellowship ...

  Kadambini Ganguly was the first doctor of modern medicine   not only in India but also in South Asia. She had to overcome many obstacles and had to endure great hardships to work independently in the field of medicine. She   also did a lot in the freedom struggle of India. Satyagraha movement was also organized in the Gandhian style by organizing women's associations. At the same time, many efforts were made to protect the health of women coal workers. She was born on July 18, 1862 in Bhagalpur, Bihar, British India as the daughter of Braja Kishore Basu, a Brahmo Samaj worker. Their family hailed from Chandsi in Barisal, now Bangladesh. Kadambini's father was the headmaster of Bhagalpur School. Kadambini's father and Abhay Charan Malik also formed an organization to save the women of Bhagalpur from slave labour. Bhagalpur Mahila Samiti was formed by them in 1863. It was perhaps the first such organization in India. Kadambini was educated at Banga Mahila Vidyalaya ...

  Anna Mani was another woman scientist who was born and brought up in Kerala. She contributed many of her own inventions in weather observation and forecasting. She worked for a long time at the Indian Meteorological Organization, Pune. A graduate in Physics, she revolutionized weather observation and forecasting in India. A series of instruments were built for meteorological observation and for measuring radiation from the sun. About 100 meteorological instruments were designed and workshops were set up to manufacture them. She  also directed the development and manufacture of instruments to measure wind speed and solar energy availability. Early life Anna Modail Mani was born in 1918 in Peerumedu , Kerala in a Syrian Christian family. Her  father was a civil engineer, and he was a man who did not place much value on religious rituals. Anna was the seventh of their eight children. Anna was very much interested in reading in her youth. She had a lot of love for Gandhi wh...

    Janaki Ammal, who was born in Thalassery in   Kerala and received her doctorate from the University of Michigan in America in 1931, was a distinguished person (Founder Fellow) of the Indian Science Academy, the first Padma Shri awardee and a famous botanist. Her field of research was cytology, the study of plant cells. She has   made significant contributions to the study of plant genetics in India and abroad. Biographical summary Janaki was born in 1987 to Dewan Bahadur Edavalat Kakkad Krushnan, a judge in Thalassery, and Kuruvai Devi. Janaki's mother was born to an Indian woman to John Child Hannington, the British colonial ruler of Travancore. Janaki's primary education was at Sacred Heart Convent, Thalassery. She   then studied at Queen Mary's College, Madras. After graduating with honours in botany from the Presidency College, Madras, she joined the University of Michigan in the United States on a scholarship in 1924. In 1931 she completed her P...

For a long time in India and abroad, women were not granted equal rights to men. They were more neglected among scientists. But recently, this situation has started to change. They showed that women can do almost any job that men do. Kalpana Chawla who flew in outer space and Dr.Tessy Thomas who is known as Missile Woman are all women of new generation of talent and skill. This booklet introduces some of India's earliest women scientists who have not received the recognition they deserve. Often, we have been   introduced to some women who have developed their own identity by working as assistants to their famous husbands or brothers. It is an attempt to   introduce India's early women scientists and pathologists. There may be some who are not included, especially those from India. Recently, under the supervision of the Department of Women and Child Welfare of the Central Government, chairs have been established in various institutions in the name of 11 early scientists of In...