Bethune School
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Bethune College is a women's college located on
Bidhan Sarani Bidhan Sarani (formerly known as Cornwallis Street) is a principal north–south thoroughfare in north part of Kolkata, the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. It was named after the first Chief Minister of West Bengal, Bidhan Chandra R ...
in
Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
, India, and affiliated to the
University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta, informally known as Calcutta University (), is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Kolkata, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal, India. It has 151 affiliated undergraduate c ...
. It is the oldest women's college in India. It was established as a girls' school in 1849, and as a college in 1879.


History

The college was founded as the Calcutta Female School in 1849 by
John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune (1801–1851) was an English educator, mathematician and polyglot known for promoting women's education in India. He was the founder of Calcutta Female School (now known as Bethune College) in Calcutta, which is ...
, with the financial support of Dakshinaranjan Mukherjee. The school started in Mukherjee's home in Baitakkhana, with 21 girls enrolled. The following year, enrolment rose to 80. In November, on a plot on the west side of Cornwallis Square, the cornerstone for a permanent school building was laid. The name "Hindu Female School" was inscribed on the copper-plate placed in the stone and on the ceremonial silver trowel made for the occasion. Support for the school waned after Bethune's death in August 1851. The government took it over in 1856, renaming it Bethune School after its founder in 1862–63. In 1879 it was developed into Bethune College, the first women's college in India and Bethune school was Second (First being in Bhidewada Pune, by Jyotirao Phule) women's school in whole Asia.


Rankings

The college is ranked 91st among colleges in India by the
National Institutional Ranking Framework National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) is a ranking methodology released annually by the Ministry of Education, Government of India, to rank institutions of higher education in India. The framework was approved by the former Ministr ...
(NIRF) in 2024.


Notable alumni

*
Kadambini Ganguly Dr. Kadambini Bose Ganguly (18 July 1861 – 3 October 1923) was the first Indian female doctor of western medicine. She and Anandibai Joshi both got their degree in Western medicine in 1886. However, she was India's first practicing lady doc ...
(1861–1923), one of the first two female graduates of the British Empire *
Chandramukhi Basu Chandramukhi Basu (1860 – 3 February 1944), a Bengali from Dehradun, which was located in the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh), was one of the first two female graduates of the British India. In 1882, along with Kadambini Ganguly, she pass ...
(1860–1944), one of the first two female graduates of the British Empire *
Abala Bose Abala Bose (8 August 1864 – 25 April 1951) was an Indian social worker and feminist. She was known for her efforts in women's education and her contribution towards helping widows.Sengupta, Subodh Chandra and Bose, Anjali (editors), 1976/1998 ...
(1864–1951), social worker *Meenakshi Chatterjee (1957–2022), Applied Mathematician, and the 5th Indian Woman in Antarctica (as part of the Xth Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica, 1990–91); also the first scientist to represent the University of Calcutta *
Sarala Devi Chaudhurani Sarala Devi Chaudhurani (born Sarala Ghosal; 9 September 1872 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian educationist and political activist, who founded Bharat Stree Mahamandal in Allahabad in 1910. This was the first national-level women's organiza ...
(1872–1945), promoter of female education *
Anwara Bahar Chowdhury Anwara Bahar Chowdhury (13 February 1919 – 27 October 1987) was a Bangladeshi social activist and writer. Background and education Chowdhury was born on 13 February 1919 in the town of Azizganj in the Murshidabad district, and she was raised ...
(1919–1987), social activist and writer *
Kamala Das Gupta Kamala Das Gupta (11 March 1907 – 19 July 2000) was an Indian freedom fighter from Bengal region. Early life Das Gupta was born in 1907, to a Bengali Baidya family of Bikrampur in Greater Dhaka, now in Bangladesh; the family later moved to Ca ...
(1907–2000), freedom fighter nationalist *
Amalprava Das Amalprava Das, also known as Amal Prabha Das, (1911–1994) was an Indian social worker, Gandhian and the founder of ''Kasturba Ashram'' at Sarania Hills, Assam, a self help group for women and their economic upliftment and ''Guwahati Yubak Seva ...
, social worker *
Bina Das Bina Das (24 August 1911 – 1986) was an Indian revolutionary and nationalist from West Bengal. Biography Participation in India's freedom struggle Das was a member of '' Chhatri Sangha'', a semi-revolutionary organisation for women in Ko ...
(1911–1986), revolutionary and nationalist *
Tista Das Tista Das () or Teesta Das (born 9 May 1978) is an Indian transgender rights activist, actress and writer from the Indian state of West Bengal. She has acted in several Hindi and Bengali films. Personal life From a very early age, Das felt mo ...
(born 1978), transsexual actress *
Kalpana Datta Kalpana Datta (27 July 1913 – 8 February 1995), also Kalpana Joshi, was an Indian independence movement activist and a member of the armed independence movement led by Surya Sen, which carried out the Chittagong armoury raid in 1930. Later s ...
(1913–1995), independence activist *
Mira Datta Gupta Mira Datta Gupta (; 5 October 1907 – 18 January 1983) was an Indian freedom fighter, social worker, educationist, politician and activist on women's issues in Calcutta, India. She was a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in Bengal and ...
(1907–1983), freedom fighter and activist *
Swarnakumari Devi Swarnakumari Devi (1855 or 1856 – 1932), also known as Swarnakumari Tagore, Swarnakumari Ghosal, Svarṇakumārī Debī and Srimati Svarna Kumari Devi, was an Indian Bengali writer, editor, essayist, poet, novelist, playwright, composer, an ...
(1855–1932), poet, novelist and social worker *
Begum Khaleda Zia Begum Khaleda Zia (born August–September 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the prime minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and the second fema ...
, first female
Prime Minister of Bangladesh The prime minister of Bangladesh (, : Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), officially prime minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (, : Gôṇôprôjātôntrī Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), is the head of government of the Ba ...
*
Ashoka Gupta Ashoka Gupta (November 1912 – 8 July 2008) was an Indian freedom fighter and social worker. She was the founder of Mahila Seva Samity, member of the All India Women's Conference and president of Indian Society for Sponsorship and Adoption. Sh ...
(1912–2008), freedom fighter and social worker *
Neena Gupta Neena Gupta (born 4 June 1959) is an Indian actress and television director who works in Hindi films and television along with few Malayalam films. She has received several awards including three National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award and two ...
, (b. 1984) mathematician, who has provided a solution to the Zariski Cancellation Problem * Narmada Kar (1893–1980), completed her graduation in 1914 and became the first women graduate of Odisha. *
Aditi Lahiri Aditi Lahiri (born 1952 in Calcutta, India) is an Indian-born British linguist and Professor emerita of Linguistics at the University of Oxford. She held the Chair of Linguistics at the University of Oxford from 2007 until her retirement in 2022 ...
(born 1952), academic linguist *
Abha Maiti Abha Maiti (22 April 1925 – 3 July 1994) was a former Indian politician. She was the minister of state for industry in the Morarji Desai government from 1977 to 1979. Early life Abha Maiti was born in Purba Midnapore in a Mahishya family. ...
(born 1925), politician *
Kanak Mukherjee Kanak Mukherjee (''Birth name#Maiden and married names, née'' Dasgupta; 1921 – 2005) was a communist and is regarded as a pioneer of the women's movement in West Bengal. She was a Central Committee member of Communist Party of India (Mar ...
(1921–1995), political activist * Khanto Bala Rai (born 1897), teacher, school head in Midnapore *
Shukhalata Rao Shukhalata Rao (1886–1969) was an Indian social worker, artist and children's book author. Born in Calcutta in the Bengal province of British India, she was the daughter of Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, and sister of Sukumar Ray. She studi ...
(1886–1969), social worker and children's author * Kamini Roy (1864–1933), poet, social worker and feminist * Leela Roy (1900–1970), politician and reformer *
Shobha Sen Shobha Sen (17 September 1923 – 13 August 2017; also known as Sova Sen) was an Indian theatre and film actress in Bengali theatre and Bengali cinema.Anit Mukerjea (28 June 2004)"A Woman of Grit"Asia Africa Intelligence Wire (From The Statesm ...
, actress *
Amiya Tagore Amiya Tagore ( (12 February 1908 – 13 November 1986) was a Bengali Rabindra Sangeet singer. She was amongst the few singers to learn directly from Rabindranath Tagore. She played the role of Pramada in Tagore's dance drama ''Mayar Khela'' whi ...
(1901–1988), singer *
Pritilata Waddedar Pritilata Waddedar (5 May 1911 – 24 September 1932) was a Bengalis, Bengali Revolutionary nationalism, revolutionary nationalist who was influential in the Indian independence movement, independence movement. After completing her education in ...
(1911–1932), revolutionary nationalist


See also


References


Further reading

* * *


External links


Official website
{{authority control Academic institutions associated with the Bengal Renaissance Universities and colleges in Kolkata Schools in Colonial India Women's universities and colleges in West Bengal University of Calcutta affiliates Universities and colleges established in 1849 1849 establishments in British India