(Article By Amrutha Chandini Balla)
Women can accomplish any task that they put their mind to. However, in our patriarchal society, women have been exploited. Then again we have seen examples of a few brave women who have risen up the ranks of our society. We've had a female Prime Minister and President. All of us are aware of Mrs Indira Gandhi, Mrs Pratibha Patil and Madam Sarojini Naidu. There are however, a few Indian women firsts, who are relatively unknown. This is an attempt to bring the achievements of these extraordinary women to light.
1. Surekha Yadav is a female locopilot (train driver) of the Indian Railways (Largest Network). She was the first woman in India to drive a train in 1988.
2. Vasanthakumari has been driving buses from 1993 till now. She is not only first female bus driver in India, but also first female bus driver in Asia.
3. Sarla Thakral was the first Indian woman to fly an aircraft at the age of 21 years. She got her aviation pilot license at the age of 21 (1936)and flew a Gypsy Moth independently.
4. Yogita Raghuvanshi, India's first female truck driver with national permit. She is India's most academically qualified woman truck driver. She holds a degree in LLB, in spite of this she choose to become a truck driver. She belongs to Uttar Pradesh.
5. Durba Banerjee, was the first woman commercial pilot in India. And she was also the first pilot to fly an Indian Airlines flight in 1956.
6. Bhawana Kanth, Avani Chatuvedi and Mohana Singh have taken charge in the Indian Air Force on June 18, 2016. All three ladies have completed their first level of training which is about 150 hours of flying. Now they are ranked as flying officers and will undergo another six months of training on Advanced Jet Fighters. Then they will be assigned to their respective squadrons.
7. Radhika Menon, is the first lady to become the Captain of Indian Merchant Navy in 2011. She is the first lady who was nominated for the Award. This award is given for Exceptional Bravery at Sea by the International Maritime Organisation, for showing extraordinary courage in saving the lives of seven fishermen.
8. Puneeta Arora, is the first woman who has achieved the second highest rank of Lt. General in the Indian Armed Forces. She was also the first lady to become Vice Admiral of Indian Navy in 2005. Also, she is the first woman officer to control AFMC (Armed Force Medical College) in 2004.
9. Meenakshi Vijayakumar is the first lady to join in Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services (TNFRS) as a divisional fire officer. She is the first woman in India to become a fire safety officer.
10. Kalpana Chawla was Indian woman to travel in space, who was born in India. She was an Indo-American astronaut. Chawla was robotic arm operator of the space shuttle. She was one of the crew with 7 members, who were killed in the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster.
11. Kiran Bedi is the country's first female IPS officer. Her achievement stood as an inspiration for several women in the country. She is currently in politics, representing the BJP.
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