Amrit Kaur

Amrit Kaur Biography

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur was an Indian politician belonging to Indian National Congress. She became part of Jawaharlal Nehru’s first Cabinet and was the first woman to hold the Cabinet rank in Parliament of free India. She was India’s first health minister, and was in that position for 10 long years. She was also a strong moving force behind the establishment of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi and became its first president. She also served as the first President of ICCW, from 1952 to 1958. Kaur was also a member of the Constituent Assembly. She was also known as a Gandhian, a freedom fighter, and a social activist.

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur was born on 2 February 1889 in Lucknow, present-day Uttar Pradesh. She belonged to a royal family of Kapurthala State in the Punjab region. She was the only daughter of Raja Harnam Singh, a member of the royal family, and she had 7 brothers. Her schooling was done in England and college education at Oxford University, after which she returned to India. After that she participated in freedom struggle movement and earned the confidence of prominent nationalist leaders like Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Jawaharlal Nehru etc.

She joined the INC soon after Jalianwala Bagh Massacre in 1919, and was fully active in politics till her final years. She co-founded the All India Women's Conference in 1927, became its secretary in 1930, and president in 1933. After India's independence, Amrit Kaur became part of Jawaharlal Nehru's first Cabinet. She was given the portfolio – health. Kaur served as the Chairperson of the Indian Red Cross society for fourteen years, and remained a member of Rajya Sabha from 1957 till her death in 1964.

Published: November 25, 2018

Updated: November 25, 2018