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Be the change you want
to see in this world. - Mahatma Gandhi
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Muthulakshmi
Reddy (30 July 1886 in the princely state
of Pudukottai of Tamilnadu - 22 July 1968
Madras) was an eminent medical practitioner,
social reformer and Padma Bhushan awardee
in India. In spite of various constraints
faced by girls in India of her time, she could
complete her higher education, and was admitted
into medical profession. In 1907, she joined
the Madras Medical College, where she achieved
a brilliant academic record. With several
gold medals and prizes to her credit, Muthulakshmi
graduated in 1912 to become one of the first
woman doctors in India. Soon thereafter, she
came under the influence of Annie Besant,
and then of Mahatma Gandhi. |
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She was
nominated to the Madras Legislature as a member
of legislative council in 1926, and became the first
woman to be a member of any legislature in India.
When she was elected as the Deputy Chairperson of
the legislative council, she became the first woman
in the world to become the Vice-President of a Legislature.
She was the prime mover behind the legislation that
abolished the devadasi system in 1929 and played
a keen role in raising the minimum marriage age
for women in India. In 1930, she resigned from the
Madras Legislature as a protest following the imprisonment
of Mahatma Gandhi.
She was the founder-president of the Women's Indian
Association (WIA) and became the first alderwoman
of the Madras Corporation. Dr Reddy was actively
involved with several orphanage homes and women's
welfare organisations, and initiated measures to
improve the medical facilities given to slum dwellers.
In 1930, she founded Avvai Home, a home for destitute
women and orphans at Besant Avenue, Adyar. As an
MLC, she introduced a scheme of free education for
girls up to class eight. |
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Adyar
Cancer Institute
During her address at the Golden Jubilee celebration
of the Madras Medical College in 1935, Dr Muthulakshmi
Reddy first expressed her desire to start a hospital
for cancer patients. With the overwhelming support
of like-minded people, the foundation stone for
Adyar Cancer Institute was laid by Jawaharlal Nehru
in 1952. The hospital which started functioning
on June 18, 1954, was only the second of its kind
in India and the first in south India. It is today
a world-renowned institution offering treatment
to nearly 80,000 cancer patients every year.
Awards and books
Her book named My Experience as a Legislature
recounts her initiates in respect of social reforms
taken by her in the Madras Legislature.
Government of India conferred on her Padma Bhushan
in 1956 in recognition of her meritorious services
to the nation.
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