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Who was the first headmistress of the first school for girls in Pune, started by Jyotirao Phule in 1848?

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Answer: Option D — Savitribai Phule

Detailed Solution

Savitribai Phule, the wife of Jyotirao Phule, became the first headmistress of the first school for girls started by the Phules at Bhide Wada in Pune in 1848; she is regarded as the first woman teacher of modern India.

About the school:

  • Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule opened a school for girls at the house of Tatyasaheb Bhide (Bhide Wada) in Pune on 1 January 1848.
  • It was one of the first schools for girls run by Indians.
  • The Phules later opened many more schools for girls and for children of the lower castes.

Difficulties faced by Savitribai:

  • The orthodox people of Pune opposed the education of girls.
  • When Savitribai walked to school, people threw stones, mud and cow dung at her.
  • She carried an extra sari with her, so that she could change after reaching the school.
  • She continued her work bravely, with the support of her husband.

Her other work:

  • She worked for the rights of widows, and opened a home for widows and their children, to prevent infanticide.
  • She opposed the caste system and untouchability; the Phules opened their well to people of the lower castes.
  • She was a poet; her collections include "Kavya Phule" (1854) and "Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar".
  • She was a leader of the Satyashodhak Samaj after her husband's death.

Her death:

  • During a plague epidemic, she ran a clinic for plague patients near Pune.
  • She caught the disease while caring for a sick child, and died on 10 March 1897.

Recognition:

  • Her birthday, 3 January, is celebrated in Maharashtra as "Balika Din" (Girls' Day).
  • The University of Pune was renamed Savitribai Phule Pune University in 2014.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗Pandita Ramabai and Tarabai Shinde were other women reformers of Maharashtra; Fatima Sheikh was her colleague.

Quick tip

Remember: Savitribai Phule = first headmistress of the first girls' school (Bhide Wada, Pune, 1 January 1848); first woman teacher of modern India; died of plague in 1897.

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Socio-Religious Reform Movements — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Socio-Religious Reform Movements, 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.

In the 19th century, reformers worked to remove social evils and revive Indian society. This topic covers organisations such as the Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission, Theosophical Society, Satyashodhak Samaj and the Aligarh Movement, along with their founders and the social reforms they achieved. Questions usually ask who founded an organisation and when, or which reformer is linked to a reform. For example, Raja Ram Mohan Roy founded the Brahmo Samaj and campaigned against sati, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar championed widow remarriage, and Jyotiba Phule founded the Satyashodhak Samaj. A table of organisation, founder, year and place covers most questions. Practise the socio-religious reform movements 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.

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