Category Archives: Education

WBBSE Madhyamik 10th Result 2020 Live Updates: West Bengal 10th result declared, Aritra Pal tops state with 99.14%

WBBSE Madhyamik Results 2020 Live Updates:West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) has declared the WBBSE class 10th result at wbbse.org. Check latest updates of results, pass percent, direct link, steps to check results and other details he…

WBBSE Madhyamik Results 2020 Live Updates: 

West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) has declared the WBBSE class 10th result, at 10 am today. Students can check their results online at wbbse.org and wbresults.nic.in. This year, WBBSE has recorded the highest ever pass percent at 86.34%.

Out of the 10.03 lakh students who took the exam,8.43 lakh passed.

Aritra pal has bagged first rank in state in his class 10th exam. He got 694 out of 700 i.e 99.14%. He is from Memari Vidyasagar Memorial School.

Sayantan Garai and Avik Das scored 693 out of 700 to bag second position while Soumya Pathak, Debosmita Mahapatra and Aritra Maity scored 690/700 to bag 3rd rank.

The WBBSE conducted the class 10th exam from February 18 to 27.

Over 10.15 lakh students have taken the class 10 West Bengal Madhyamik exam this year. Over 5.7 lakh students are girls. Due to the coronavirus outbreak students do not have to come to school and collect their West Bengalu 10th mark-sheets , this year. Instead, their parents would have to come to school with the student’s admit cards and registration certificate to collect the mark-sheets.

Here in the liveblog we will provide you information about the exam, results, pass percent, direct link, steps to check results and other latest updates:

(with inputs from Joydeep Thakur in Kolkata)

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Live Blog / by Hindustan Times / posted by Nandini / July 15th, 2020

Kolkata Boy Forms A Part Of Research Team Featured In Prestigious ‘Nature’ Journal

Proud to state that Alumnus of Heritage Institute of Technology, Swapnadeep Poddar had been a part of the great Research team on ‘Super Human Biometrical Eye with a Hemispherical pervoskite nanowire array retina’, at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology under the leadership of Professor FAN Zhiyong.

Recently the research team and their research was being featured in prestigious science journal ‘Nature’. 

The article link https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2285-x

The article link https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2285-x

Swapnadeep completed his B. tech in Electonics and Communication engineering from Heritage in 2016 and now pursuing his PhD at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology…. 

Now this biometric human eye will give a pathbreaking development in science and technology. India shines with Swapnadeep now.

source: http://www.youthkiawaaz.com / Youth Ki Awaaz / Home / by Partha Sarathi Bhowal / June 29th, 2020

St Xavier’s alumni help for 500 families

Camp held near Kakdwip

Relief materials being distributed at Kharimutha village, around 7km from Kakdwip, on Wednesday Telegraph picture

Five hundred families in the interiors of South 24-Parganas, reeling under the double blows of Covid-19 curbs and Cyclone Amphan, on Wednesday got food and other relief material that would keep them going for the next few days.

The distribution camp was organised at Kharimutha village, around 7km from Kakdwip town, by St Xavier’s College (Calcutta) Alumni Association. A group of Jesuit priests, led by Father Dominic Savio, the principal of the college, went to the village to distribute the materials along with volunteers of the former students’ association.

The recipients were residents of Kharimutha and two nearby villages, Mollar Chowk and Pukurberia. Five hundred people had turned up, each representing a family. The camp was organised with the help of local police.

“We, the Jesuits, believe in sharing,” Father Savio said.

Each family got a kit that included rice, potato, dal, soyabean, edible oil, puffed rice and biscuit. Each kit also included sanitary napkins, hand sanitisers and tarpaulin sheets.

The residents of these villages were already robbed of their livelihood by the lockdown and the storm could not have hit them at a worse time.

“Most of them depend on fishing and farming of betel leaves. The storm not only damaged their homes but also ravaged the farm lands,” said Sudip Singh, the officer-in-charge of Kakdwip police station who coordinated with the association to organise to camp.

The former students of the Park Street college have come up with a series of campaigns in the aftermath of the lockdown and the storm to help the people. “It is our duty to stand by them at this trying time,” Father Savio said on Wednesday.

“We will do our best to help people in need,” said Sanjib Koner, secretary of the former students’ association.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, online edition / Home> Calcutta / by Special Correspondent in Calcutta / June 26th, 2020

In a digital world, Kolkata’s standalone only-books store spreads joy

Mayura Misra

Mayura Misra, who had books delivered even during lockdown, says booksellers are the ones with a heart and soul

Back in the early 1990s, when the term ‘online’ still belonged to the future, renowned Kolkata cardiologist Professor Sital Ghosh was sitting with a patient at the Kothari Heart Research Centre. The doctor was pretty much sure that the patient needed a surgery, but he wanted to reconfirm his diagnosis and for that he needed the latest issue of the British Medical Journal.

So while the patient waited, the doctor too impatiently waited, for his copy, which had just arrived from London and was now on its way, being carried to him by the subscription agent. The agent — a young woman barely into her twenties — was still catching her breath when the doctor grabbed the copy from her, went through the relevant portion, and ordered the patient to be wheeled into the operation theatre.

“Now when I recall the incident, it feels straight out of a movie,” says Mayura Misra, now 50, who is today better known as the owner of a standalone bookstore called Storyteller, located on the city’s EM Bypass. It’s possibly the only old-fashioned standalone bookstore in Kolkata, certainly one that doesn’t also sell toys and games, and certainly one that’s run by a proprietor who’s passionate about the printed word.

Another age

Ms. Mishra grew up in the tea gardens of north Bengal; her father was employed there and she went to school in Kurseong. Her mother, she says, was one of the few to be hand-picked by Jawaharlal Nehru himself as air-hostesses for Air India. After school, Ms. Mishra joined college in what was then Calcutta, where she settled once she got married.

“My father-in-law didn’t want me to sit at home. My uncle, at the time, ran the Oxford Subscription Agency on Park Street. So I joined his firm on a salary of ₹3,000 and took over his Calcutta operations,” she says.

About a year later, having learnt the ropes, she became an independent subscription agent, renting a godown on Theatre Road to stock new arrivals. Back then, when the concepts of online subscription and online edition were still in the realm of imagination, one had to rely solely on subscription agents to import and hand-deliver journals published abroad. Ms. Mishra would personally carry copies — of The British Medical JournalThe Journal of American Medical AssociationChemical AbstractsBiological AbstractsGolf DigestArchitectural DigestNational Geographic, among others — to institutions and individuals.

Soon she was reaching out to libraries of schools, importing books for children. “No one was specialising in children’s books at the time. Kids had to wait for an aunt to come from the U.K. or the U.S. to bring them books,” she says. By now she had purchased a dupleix apartment on Theatre Road, and a portion of the house served as the godown.

Working in lockdown

Today, she lives on EM Bypass, and the ground floor of her house serves as Storyteller, the bookshop she opened in 2012. “During the lockdown, we did a lot of online sessions with authors, especially children’s authors. We also started delivering across Kolkata in April — we were probably the first to resume delivery of books in India. Our staff stayed in the store — we provided them boarding and lodging — and the books were sanitised before they were dispatched through Swiggy. Now we are open for browsing,” says Ms. Mishra.

She sums up: “The temptation has always been there to stock toys and games, but if I do that I won’t be able to concentrate on good books. Mine is not a profession you can take lightly. A lot of hard work goes in selling printed matter in this digital world. Booksellers are the ones with a heart and soul.”

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kolkata / by Bishwanath Ghosh / Kolkata – June 24th, 2020

Historian Hari Vasudevan dies at 68

Vasudevan is survived by his wife, historian Tapati Guha Thakurta, and daughter Mrinalini Vasudevan.

Historian Hari Sankar Vasudevan (Photo: Twitter @IFPStudies)

Historian Hari Sankar Vasudevan, who had tested positive for coronavirus , died at a private hospital in Kolkata early Sunday. He was 68.

Vasudevan tested positive two days after being admitted to AMRI Hospital in Salt Lake on May 4. Soon after, he was put on a ventilator after developing respiratory distress. The state government is, however, yet to identify whether he died of Covid-19 or due to comorbid conditions. Vasudevan was an expert on European and Russian history and the India-Russia relationship. A graduate of Cambridge University, where he also completed his post-graduation and PhD, Vasudevan was the director of the China Centre at Calcutta University.

Earlier, he served as director of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, Kolkata, of the Ministry of Culture. Between 2003 and 2005, Vasudevan was a professor at Central Asian Studies and acting director at the Academy of Third World Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi. Between 2011 and 2014, he was member the Indian Council of Historical Research.

Vasudevan is survived by his wife, historian Tapati Guha Thakurta, and daughter Mrinalini Vasudevan.

Mrinalini told The Indian Express , “My father had tested positive for coronavirus and his condition was critical since Friday. He was on a ventilator. We learnt from the hospital that he died of multi-organ failure. His body is at AMRI, and the cremation will be as per protocol for Covid-related deaths.”

After the historian tested positive, his family members were asked to go into home isolation.

“Only one of my father’s friends will be allowed to see the body. The cremation will be at Dhapa,” Mrinalini added.

Expressing his condolences, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar said in a statement, “A multifaceted person, he made his mark while being involved in a formal consultative capacity with projects/institutions of the Ministry of Culture, MHRD, the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of External Affairs of the GoI… His contributions to society will be ever recalled. May his soul rest in peace.”

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> India / by Express News Service / Kolkata / May 11th, 2020

A model, an emcee, and a school principal

Yes, that’s Jessica Gomes Surana

Jessica Gomes Surana with the students of Loreto Convent Entally, in her “favourite picture”!Rashbehari Das

A regular face on the Calcutta ramp for almost 15 years, Jessica Gomes Surana has transitioned beautifully into an academician in the role of the principal of Loreto Convent Entally. Teaching has always had a special place in her heart, be it as the tuition teacher during her college days to a fashion choreographer later on. A celebrated emcee, Jessica who studied at St. Teresa’s Secondary School, Loreto House, Loreto College (BSc), Ballygunge Science College (MSc in geography) and is a BEd from St. Xavier’s College, has juggled her career and academics deftly. As she enters her fifth year as the Loreto Convent Entally principal, she chats with us on the milestone and more.

How did you celebrate this feat during the lockdown?

Thank you for coming on board to celebrate the most wonderful journey of my life. May 2 is truly a life-changing date — a day when I stepped into a whole new world. I was all excited to be in school this year as I would be entering my fifth year as principal, but then came the lockdown. I began the day by thanking the almighty God and asked him to give me the strength to continue to contribute to the empowerment of children. I sent gratitude messages to my mentors, my staff members and my husband. We had a special lunch with the family.

Can you take us through the journey? How has life changed? What have been the learnings?

It all began with a phone call on November 23, 2015, while I was shopping in New Delhi for the party month that lay ahead. I heard the voice of my favourite English teacher (Plus-II level) on the other side. I was not too sure whether the voice was inaudible or rather the surprise question had numbed my being. ‘Jessica, I was wondering if you would be interested in taking up the position of a principal in one of the branches of our Loreto schools?’ I stared into space and it took me a few minutes to reply, rather sheepishly, ‘Miss can I call you back tomorrow as I am in the market and it is a little noisy here?’

At this point of time, I was teaching at South City International School and had had a one-year stint at La Martiniere For Boys prior to this and then this HUGE opportunity coming my way made me pinch myself to believe that it was actually true and not a dream. It then took a few months to roll through a series of interviews, which were rather unnerving not because the questions were tough but only because the interviewers were my principal of my schooldays and other senior sisters and members of the institution. And then came the big question — when would you like to take up the responsibility of being a principal of one of our schools ? This was simply unbelievable — miracles do happen and one had just happened to me.

I took over as the principal of Loreto Convent Entally on May 2, 2016 and life has never been the same since then. In the first year, it was more about observing and finding ground for myself in this 175-year-old institution. In the second year, it was more about planning and in the next two years execution of my ideas and innovations began. Educating myself was of paramount importance. I was very fortunate to have two wonderful mentors, Sister Antoinette Rodrigues and Sister Tina Farias (secretary of the managing committee of Loreto Convent Entally), who handheld me along this journey and strengthened me every single day.

This four-year journey has brought about a positive change in my life. Being a model, you tend to be self-centred… but being a principal makes you selfless.

I have become more sensitive and do not judge people at the drop of a hat. I have learnt how to respond rather than react to situations. I have been blessed with the gifts of wisdom, discernment, understanding and knowledge to do what is right. I have come to believe that respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others our manners. Every relationship today holds more value than what it did earlier.

I have become a woman of prayer with a higher understanding of the presence of God in our lives.

Did you always want to be a part of education?

Yes, as a little girl I draped my mum’s dupatta as a sari and imagined myself as a teacher amongst my cousins. I began giving tuitions from my first year in college and continued throughout my modelling career. I was always passionate about teaching. I still continue to take classes in geography for Class X and XII.

How did you juggle your academics and a full-fledged modelling career and later on the role of an emcee?

I began modelling towards the end of my first year in college. It was challenging as I wanted to excel in academics (which I did) as well as pursue my modelling career. I have always been disciplined and dedicated and that has helped me. I have been a multitasker from the very beginning. Be it college, tuition and modelling together or university, tuition, modelling and emceeing, or even teaching, tuitions, modelling, emceeing and choreography… I have always converted my day into 48 hours.

How?! Some time-management tips please!

Plan your day well in advance. While planning, do remember to keep small key holes in case of sudden changes, so you will not have to scrap the whole plan. Flexibility is a must to create a little movement whenever necessary.

Try and schedule your work in such a way that it does not take a toll on you. After a heavy day of meetings and classes, you can relax with some physical activity… a swim or a yoga session.

Your daily timetable should develop into a weekly one where you are able to even catch a movie or meet up with friends or even dance away.

What has been the easiest part of the transition and the most difficult?

The easiest part was my connection with the children. Initially, they were more in awe and glamour-struck but with the passage of time they looked at me as a role model and someone they could trust. The most difficult part was to make people believe that a model could be positioned at the helm of an educational institution by pure merit. But I guess that is quite understandable as no other model has ever merged the two parallel lines.

It’s only been four years and I have been able to somewhat change that perception. Today, people take me seriously and wait to hear my opinion and that has made me believe that nothing is impossible, your hard work and dedication is what brings you success.

How do you choose assignments now?

Today, my first priority is my school and my children. I choose assignments based on my availability and also my long- standing relationships with the brands that I have worked with over the years, ABP being one of them. I am very selective today. The event needs to be worth my time.

What is a typical day in your life like?

My day begins at 5am with a little bit of yoga, followed by preparation of breakfast and tiffin boxes. The car rolls out of the building at 6.45am, dropping off my little girl and then my boy and finally me. Believe me, half my energy has already been expended by then! School is done by 4.30pm and we are off for swimming to de-stress. Then comes study time followed by me whipping up some tasty dinner for the family. By 10pm, it’s time to relax and get ready for the next day. On an event day, post-school I race off to the venue. While driving there, all kids’ activities are coordinated. I usually use my travel time in visiting my social media pages to keep myself updated. Sundays are most hectic as the household chores seem never-ending and the kids’ extracurricular activities interweave themselves, adding to the load.

What do you do to keep fit ?

Having a fitness expert as your husband (Neeraj Surana) at least helps you believe that you are fit if nothing else! On a serious note, a little yoga for keeping my mind stable coupled with a half-hour swim five days a week in summer, which converts to walks during the rest of the year, keeps me going. Lately, I have been trying out intermittent fasting, which seems to be doing good as my overeating is in check. But, by and large I am constantly on the move.

What would be your tips for models about having a back-up plan in place?

A back-up plan is something I strongly advise. There is no substitute to education, so please go ahead and pursue higher education. I do not buy that lame excuse that modelling does not give you time, you have all the time in the world. Work towards an alternative career as modelling is a temporary profession and very few can successfully diversify from there into acting, emceeing, choreography…. This will keep you disciplined, grounded and most importantly, mentally stable. It helps to keep your dignity intact and gives you the power to choose your own assignments and also demand your worthy professional fee. Most importantly, it empowers you in more ways than you can imagine. I really find it strange and immature to see some of my seniors and contemporaries still behave like as if they are in their 20s. I guess they would have fared better in life if they had a back-up plan.

A special word for your support system…

I truly believe, “Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results”. I consider myself blessed to have a husband who has been beside me for almost 20 years as a friend, critic, well-wisher and a wonderful human being. He has given me the space to grow and spread my wings. My two little kids who adjust to all my erratic timings and my mum-in-law who fills in for me on the home front. My siblings who take pride in all my achievements and never hesitate in telling me to slow down and get some ‘me time’.

On the work front, a very supportive Loreto Education Board and the Loreto sisters whom I am ever grateful to. A special note of gratitude to Sister Anita Braganza (president of Loreto, South Asia) who saw potential in me and gifted me this most enriching experience.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, online edition / Home> People / by Saionee Chakraborty / May 12th, 2020

Calcutta University’s digital collection goes online

Books at the University of Calcutta library are not accessible at the moment.

Now anybody, anywhere in the world, can access countless articles, journals and dissertations

In what can be seen as a sign of the times to come, when social distancing may just become the new normal, the University of Calcutta has placed the entire digital collection of its library online so that physical visits are no longer necessitated and the world at large benefits from it.

The decision of the University, set up in 1857, has placed in public domain countless articles, journals and dissertations, including issues of The Calcutta Review dating back to 1844 and Tagore Law Lectures dating back to 1870. Now anybody, anywhere in the world, can access them any time.

“We are living through a time of great uncertainty, owing to the global coronavirus pandemic. To cope with regulations of social distancing and lockdown, our teachers have initiated online teaching. They have also been regularly uploading study materials on the university website. In this spirit of online education, the university has also decided to open up free access to its digital collections. These would be accessible through the university website, www.culibrary.ac.in,” Vice-Chancellor Sonali Chakravarti Banerjee said in a circular.

Two major reasons

“There are two major reasons underlying our decision. The first is our responsibility to our students and our faculty, whose education and research have been obstructed by the prohibition on physical access to the library collections.

“The second is our responsibility, as a public institution, to the citizenry as well as the world at large,” Ms. Chakravarti Banerjee said.

“Education is a public good; and the necessity and value of academic research increases, more than ever, if our society is to recover from the crisis.

“As a public university, we feel that it is our responsibility to make our digital collections part of a global academic commons, to facilitate the pursuit of knowledge beyond borders,” she said.

Till now, the library facilities and resources, including digital collections, were primarily accessible to users within the university campus.

Now, the digitised collection of full-text materials has been made accessible for free reading — from any part of the world.

“The University of Calcutta feels honoured to contribute to the communing of cultural-educational resources; and thus to strengthen the global networks of cooperation and solidarity through which alone we shall be able to recover as a planetary community,” the Vice-Chancellor said.

According to a senior university official, this decision to make the library’s digital content public, even though prompted by the pandemic and subsequent lockdown, would, in all probability, continue to hold good even after the lockdown is lifted.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style / by Bishwanath Ghosh / Kolkata – May 06th, 2020

Bengal insititute develops robotic device that can collect samples of COVID-19 suspects

The device will help the frontline healthcare workers in delivering services while maintaining social distancing, reducing the chance of them getting infected.

A health worker screens a labourer working at a brick kiln as his family members look on during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of corona
rus in Nadia district Tuesday April 28 2020. (Photo | PTI)

Kolkata :

The CSIR-CMERI in Durgapur has developed a low-cost robotic device that can be used for collecting samples of people having symptoms of coronavirus, besides treating COVID-19 patients.

The ”Hospital Care Assistive Robotic Device” will be very helpful for the frontline healthcare workers who are treating COVID-19 patients, said professor Harish Hirani, director of CSIR-CMERI (Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute).

It will help them in delivering services while maintaining social distancing, reducing the chance of them getting infected, he said.

The cost of the device is less than Rs 5 lakh and the weight is not more than 80 kg, making it easy to use and affordable for healthcare facilities, Hirani said.

The device, which has a video call facility, can also be used in providing food to the patients.

The device can be navigated through automatic and manual modes and needs to be monitored by a nursing booth with a control station.

“It will be able to transport food items, medicines, testing equipment, files, personal protective equipment in a comprehensive sterilised environment,” Hirani said.

A spokesperson of the institute said the device can function in a range of 0.5 km and has a battery life of four hours.

“The clinical trial of the device has been successful. We will be ready if healthcare facilities and governments show interest,” he said.

source : http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kolkat a/ by PTI / April 29th, 2020

IIT Kharagpur builds disinfection tunnel for campus visitors in coronavirus time

While passing through the tunnel, a visitor is sprayed with a disinfectant solution coming out of a high-pressure air compressor.

IIT Kharagpur. (Mint file)
IIT Kharagpur. (Mint file)

The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur has set up a disinfection tunnel for sanitizing visitors to the campus during the ongoing lockdown triggered by the coronavirus outbreak, an official said on Saturday.

The tunnel has been installed at the sole entry point of the campus for essential services staff such those involved in cleaning operations and once the lockdown is lifted, it can be of use to screen visitors until the threat of COVID-19 is gone, he said.

While passing through the tunnel, a visitor is sprayed with a disinfectant solution coming out of a high-pressure air compressor.

The system to automate the process of disinfecting visitors was developed by Prof Mihir Sarangi, Associate Professor Mechanical Engineering, along with faculty and staff members from various departments.

“The output material is like mist and highly effective as it covers a larger surface area unlike liquid disinfectant.

Also, it does not need any drainage,” Sarangi said, This mechanism is, however, a supplement for hand washing or the need to wear face masks in public. Hand wash stations have been placed just outside the disinfection tunnel, he said.

The product prototype has been built indigenously at the IIT Kharagpur in less than a week while the campus is under lockdown.

The prototype is now fully operational at IIT Kharagpur and is used for all people entering the campus.

The commercial model for the product has been estimated to be available for Rs 4 Lakh.

IIT KGP Director Prof Virendra K Tewari said such technologies can be quickly built and employed at any location which has a daily influx of essential service providers.

“Our campus is like a mini township which, in the current situation, requires automation of hygiene and safety protocols for essential service providers who are coming out of their homes every day to serve at the campus and also the campus community who are interacting with these visitors,” he said.

Tewari said more such innovations to assist Indias fight against COVID-19 are underway. PTI SUS NN NN

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Education / by Press Trust of India, Kolkata / April 18th, 2020

Anandibai Joshi: All about the first Indian female doctor with a degree in western medicine

Anandibai Joshi, who was the first female physician in India, was the first Indian women to complete her studies in western medicine from United States.

Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi, Gopalrao, the first Indian female physician, medicine in India, anandibai joshi biography, anandibai joshi life journey, women in medicine
Anandibai Joshi was the first female physician in India

Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi was the first female Indian physician. She was also the first woman in India to complete her studies in western medicine from the United States. Anandibai has a rich legacy and inspired many women to pursue the field of of medicine in India and in the United States.

Anandibai also became the first woman from Bombay presidency of India to study and graduate with a two-year degree in western medicine from a foreign country.

Anandibai’s inspiration to pursue medicine

Anandibai was born with the name ‘Yamuna’ but was later given the name anandi by her husband Gopalrao Joshi. She was born in a family of landlords and due to parental pressure, she got married at the young age of nine.

Anandibai bore her first child at the age of 14 but due to lack of medical care, the child passed away after ten days. This incident was a turning point in Anandibai’s life and she chose to pursue medicine, with the support of her husband.

Gopalrao, who was a progressive thinker and supported education for women, enrolled her in a missionary school, and later moved to Calcutta with her, where she learnt how to speak Sanskrit and English.

Gopalrao’s support for Anandibai’s education

In the 1800’s, it was very unusual for husbands to focus on their wives’ education. Gopalrao was obsessed with the idea of Anandibai’s education and wanted her to learn medicine and create her own identity in the world.

One day, Gopalrao walked into the kitchen and threw a fit of rage when he saw Anandibai cooking instead of studying. This made her even more focussed on her education.

Gopalrao took the decision of sending Anandibai to America to study medicine in utmost detail with a missionary from Philadelphia named Mrs. Carpenter.

(Source: Wikipedia)

I volunteer myself a women doctor: Anandibai Joshi

Before she went to United States, Anandibai addressed a public hall in 1883, where she expressed her dissapointment for the lack of women doctors in India. She said,”I volunteer myself as one”, in the gathering.

She had also expressed her views on how midwifery was not sufficient in any case of medical emergency and how the instructors who taught women had conservative views.

Anandibai’s journey in America

After her motivating speech in the public gathering, she expressed her views on studying medicine in America. She also stressed the need of female doctors in India and stated that Hindu women can be better doctors for other Hindu women.

Anandibai’s health had started to decline but Gopalrao had urged her to go to America so that she can set an example for other women in the country.

Anandibai was urged to apply to the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania but learning about her plan to pursue higher education, the Hindu society of India decided to censure her very strongly.

Anandibai was enrolled in the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania and completed her two-year course in medicine at the age of 19. She graduated with an MD in 1886 with the topic of her thesis being ‘Obstetrics among the Aryan Hindoos’.

In her thesis, she covered information form Ayurvedic texts and American textbooks. On her graduation, Queen Victoria sent her a message, expressing her delight.

Confusion between Anandibai Joshi and Kadambini Ganguly

There is a major confusion between Anandibai Joshi and Kadambini Ganguly, with regards to who was the first female doctor of India. Anandibai got her degree in western medicine from Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania while Kadambini completed her education in India.

Kadambini Ganguly

Tragically, Anandibai passed away due to tubercolosis at the age of 22, before she got a chance to practice medicine.

Thus, Kadambini Ganguly was the first female doctor to practice medicine while Anandibai Joshi was the first female doctor who got her degree in western medicine from the United States.

Anandibai Joshi’s legacy in the world of medicine

Anandibai passed away due to tubercolosis at the age of 21, on February 26, 1887. Even after her death, several writers and researchers continued to write about her to raise awareness about the importance of educating women in India.

Doordarshan also based a television series on her life and American feminist writer Caroline Wells Healey Dall penned down her biography in 1888.

The Institute of Research and Documentation in Social Sciences (IRDS), Lucknow has been awarding the Anandibai Joshi Award in Medicine in honour of her contributions towards the advancements of medical sciences in India.

Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi has been an inspiration to millions of Indian women who found the motivation of stepping into the field of medicine. She created history by making huge strides so ealry in her life, in a field which required precision and extensive education.

source: http://www.indiatoday.in / India Today / Home> News> Education Today> GK & Current Affairs> Personalities / by India Today Web Desk / New Delhi / March 04th, 2020