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Who was India's first woman President?
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Answer: Option C — Pratibha Patil
Detailed Solution
Pratibha Devisingh Patil was the 12th President of India and the first woman to hold the office. She served from 25 July 2007 to 25 July 2012. In the 2007 presidential election, she defeated Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the then Vice-President.
About Pratibha Patil:
- She was born on 19 December 1934 in Nadgaon, Jalgaon district, Maharashtra.
- She studied law and practised as a lawyer before entering politics.
- She was first elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 1962 and held several ministerial posts in the Maharashtra government.
- She served as Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha (1986-1988) and as a Member of the Lok Sabha from Amravati (1991-1996).
- She was the first woman Governor of Rajasthan (2004-2007).
As President, she became the first woman Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. In 2009, at the age of 74, she flew in a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet, becoming the first woman head of state in the world to fly in a fighter aircraft.
Other famous women "firsts" in Indian politics:
- Indira Gandhi: first woman Prime Minister (1966).
- Sarojini Naidu: first woman Governor of an Indian state (Uttar Pradesh, 1947).
- Sucheta Kripalani: first woman Chief Minister of an Indian state (Uttar Pradesh, 1963).
- Meira Kumar: first woman Speaker of the Lok Sabha (2009).
- Droupadi Murmu: second woman President and first tribal President (2022).
- Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit: first woman President of the UN General Assembly (1953).
Why not the other options?
- ✗Indira Gandhi was the first woman Prime Minister.
- ✗Sarojini Naidu was the first woman Governor.
- ✗Sucheta Kripalani was the first woman Chief Minister.
Quick tip
Remember: First woman President = Pratibha Patil (12th President, 2007-12; first woman Governor of Rajasthan); second = Droupadi Murmu (2022); first woman PM = Indira Gandhi; first woman CM = Sucheta Kripalani.
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Firsts in India & World — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Firsts in India & World, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the first persons and events in India and the world: the first Indian to win a Nobel Prize, the first woman to hold major offices, the first to climb Everest or reach space, and India's first institutions, newspapers, railways and satellites. It also covers the largest, longest, highest and smallest records in India and the world. These are pure memory questions, so revise them as short lists by theme: first women, first in sports, first in science and space, and first in governance. Be careful with the exact wording, such as 'first Indian' versus 'first person of Indian origin', or 'first woman President' versus 'first woman Prime Minister', since options are often designed to exploit this. Practise the firsts in India and the world questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.