Former prime minister Indira Gandhi and freedom fighter Rajkumari Amrit Kaur are mentioned in TIME magazine’s list of the 100 most powerful women who defined the last century in a new project that aims to feature those women who were “often overshadowed”.
About:
Born into the Kapurthala royal family, she was educated in Oxford and returned to India in 1918.
She was drawn towards the work and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. Later on she became his secretary. She took an active part in Salt Satyagraha and Quit India Movement.
She was also a member of the Indian Constituent Assembly. She was also a member of Sub-Committee on Fundamental Rights and Sub-Committee on Minorities.
She was the first woman in independent India who joined the Cabinet as the Health Minister and remained in that position for 10 years.
During these 10 years, she founded the Indian Council for Child Welfare. She also laid the foundation of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Lady Irwin College in Delhi in the following years.
In 1950, she was elected the president of World Health Assembly, becoming the first woman and the first Asian to hold that post.
She served as the Chairperson of the Indian Red Cross society for fourteen years. She initiated the Tuberculosis Association of India and the Central Leprosy Teaching and Research Institute in Madras (Chennai).
She also worked on social issues such as the purdah system, child marriage, Devadasi system, women’s education and the right to vote. She was the founder member of All India Womens’ Conference. She served as the Chairperson of the All India Women's Education Fund Association.
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