Many women in
India, have excelled in fields that are traditionally considered to be
‘male-dominated.’ These women have not only mastered their respective
roles, but have also set a benchmark for others to follow their dreams,
and battle through circumstances.
On Saturday, 112 such women will be felicitated by President Ram Nath
Kovind, as “First Ladies” for being the first in their respective
fields.
The Government has made a teaser video of the event, highlighting the achievements of some of the awardees. Watch it here.
Here’s a look at some of the changemakers:
Manju Yadav:-
Hailing from Sundarpura village, in Jaipur, Rajasthan, Manju, and her
three children fell on hard times, after the death of her husband, who
was a porter and the family’s primary breadwinner.
However, Manju stepped up and decided to become a porter as well. While
this decision came as a shock to her family members and others, Manju
soldiered on. Five years later, her earnings fluctuate, but her
determination is constant, and she has become a role model for women
fighting patriarchy and poverty. Read the rest of Manju’s amazing story here.
Dr Bharati Lavekar:-
Moved by the plight of women who were unable to afford or get access
to sanitary napkins, Dr Bharati Lavekar set up India’s first
digital sanitary pad bank.The one-of-its-kind bank was inaugurated on 28
May 2017, which is celebrated as World Menstruation Hygiene Day. She
has also been instrumental in getting sanitary napkin vending and
disposable machines in schools and public toilets. Learn about Dr
Lavekar’s inspiring story here.
Chhavi Rajawat:-
Hailing from Soda, a village in Rajasthan, Chhavi quit her lucrative
corporate job in 2010 and decided to get into development work. She went
back to her village and has been working hard to bring clean water,
solar power, paved roads, toilets and a bank to the village. Chavvi
Rajawat’s life story is truly inspiring, read this for further details.
First women fighter pilots, in the Indian Air Force:-
Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh, officers in the
Indian Air Force, were commissioned as flying officers in July 2016,
less than a year after the government decided to open the fighter pilot
stream for women on an experimental basis. Learn about the amazing
journey of these pilots, here.
First differently-abled woman to top the civil services:-
Ira Singhal topped the UPSC examination in 2014 and had to fight
various obstacles. She cleared the UPSC in her fourth attempt, a
commendable feat, considering that she had to fight a case against the
authorities who debarred her from progressing after she sat and cleared
the exam in 2010. Read more incredible facts about Ira Singhal here.
First Indian woman who manages a crematorium:-
Praveena Solomon is an English literature graduate from the
University of Chennai, and a mother of two. She is also the crematorium
manager of Chennai’s oldest and busiest cremation ground and has
dispelled all myths about women not being able to work in a position
that might traumatise them. Praveena’s story is truly inspiring. Read
more here.
First woman to become lieutenant general:-
Punita Arora is the first woman in India to don the second highest
rank, i.e., Lieutenant General of Indian Armed Forces, and is also the
first female Vice-admiral of the Indian Navy. In 2004, she was appointed
as the Commandant of the Armed Forces Medical College in Pune, becoming
the first woman officer to command the medical college. Read the full
story of this Lieutenant General here.
First woman cadet to join the Indian Army:-
Priya Jhingan was the daughter of a police officer and always wanted
to serve the country. In 1992, her dream came true when she became the
first woman cadet to join the Indian Army alongside a batch of 25 other
feisty women. Priya got commissioned into the Judge Advocate General in
1993. After a glorious career, spanning ten years, Priya retired in 2002
as Major Priya Jhingan.In 2013, she decided to join Lawrence School in
Sanawar as an English teacher and a House Mistress. Read about Priya
Jhingan’s journey here.
First female merchant navy captain:
A resident of Kodungallur in Kerala, Radhika Menon became the first
woman to captain a ship of the Indian Merchant Navy. She was also the
first woman to be awarded by the International Maritime Organisation
(IMO) for her exceptional bravery in the dramatic rescue of seven
fishermen from a sinking fishing boat in the Bay of Bengal, in 2015.
Read the rest of this incredible story here.
First Woman Firefighter:-
A graduate of the National Fire Service College (NFSC) in Nagpur,
Harshini Kanhekar, is India’s first woman firefighter. Taking a path
never traversed by women before, she has become a role-model for other
aspiring firefighters. Learn interesting facts about her journey here.
First female professional poker player:-
Muskan Sethi is the first professional female poker player from India
and has been recognized as a rising star by the Global Poker League
(GPL).She is India’s 28th-ranked player on PocketFives, and has racked
up $114,589 in cash online as “musku89,” and has another $44,310 in live
tournament cashes to her credit.
India’s first female bartender:-
Shatbhi Basu is considered to be the pioneer of bartending in India.
She is regarded as an inspiration by many, and her illustrious career is
the perfect example of how much a person in the industry can
achieve.Shatbhi runs her own professional bartending academy called STIR
and has also hosted a television show on mixology. Read about how
Shatbhi broke stereotypes here.
First woman from India to reach Antarctica:-
Aditi Pant, a well-known oceanographer, was part of the Third Indian
Expedition to Antarctica that ran from Dec 3, 1983, to March 25, 1984.
Braving the cold and extreme weather wasn’t an easy feat. Read more
about her incredible journey here.
First woman commando trainer:-
A 7th-degree black belt holder in military martial arts, Seema Rao is
India’s only female commando trainer. A prominent expert in close
quarter battle (CQB), Seema has been providing commando training to the
armed forces in India for 20 years, without taking any monetary
compensation in return. Learn interesting facts about Seema’s
action-packed life here.
India’s first woman coffee taster:-
Sunalini Menon is Asia’s first woman professional in the field of
coffee tasting. She joined the Coffee Board of India in 1972.She worked
with the board for 24 years before she opted for voluntary retirement, and later launched her consultancy, Coffeelab limited, in Bangalore, India. (Via thebetterindia)
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