Known as “a princess in her nation’s service”, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur of Kapurthala wore many hats  – a freedom fighter, philanthropist, Parliamentarian, and a far-sighted Union Health Minister–the first woman to hold a Cabinet rank in Nehru’s Cabinet post-Independence. She was also one of the 15 founding members of the 299-member Constituent Assembly that came together to debate and draft the Constitution in December 1946.

Like many women in the Constituent Assembly, she did not believe in reservations for women. “In the matter of representation it was felt that if practical equality were secured for women in the domain of franchise, they would be able to find their way into the legislative and administrative institutions of the country through the open door or ordinary election, and no special expedients such as reservation of seats, nomination, co-option or separate electorates would then be necessary,” she wrote.

Amrit Kaur was born on 2 February 1889 in the royal family of Kapurthala in Punjab to Raja Sir Harnam Singh Ahluwalia and Priscilla Golaknath- whose father had mentored Harnam Singh and guided him during his conversion to Christianity. Amrit Kaur was raised as a Christian and shared her father’s political inclinations, introducing her to freedom fighters like Gopal Krishna Gokhale. She said, “The flames of my passionate desire to see India free from foreign domination were fanned by him [Gokhale].” 

Amrit Kaur received her education in England and, upon her return, took up the cause of the Indian independence movement.

Deeply inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s commitment to the nation’s freedom and development, she joined Gandhi’s Sewagram Ashram and worked as his secretary for 16 years. Her close association with Gandhi’s views and ideals made her determined and committed to India’s independence. She said, “There was a quiet strength, an earnestness and deep humility about him that went straight to my young heart …. I feel I have owed allegiance to him and to his cause from that time on.”

Despite her privileged background, she led a simple life at the Ashram, wearing Khadi and doing regular chores like cleaning, sweeping, and washing. She actively participated in the Salt Satyagraha and was arrested in Bombay. Later, she was detained for leading many processions during the Quit India movement for 20 months.

Amrit Kaur was one of the founder members of the All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) in 1927 and worked as AIWC’s secretary in 1930 and as its President from 1931-33. The organisation was dedicated to improving education for women and children and other women’s rights issues, like the right to divorce, vote and inherit. She was a strong advocate of women’s education and believed that primary education uplifts the social status of women. She said, “In the realm of educational reform, we have urged ever since our inception that there should be free and compulsory education. Again as far as proper facilities for female education are concerned until such time as universal, free and compulsory primary education as well as an adequate supply of infant and girl’s schools equipped with trained women teachers are introduced, we must continue to do our utmost to have the system of education in our existing institutions changed.”

She vehemently opposed child marriages and the dowry system. She supported women’s right to inheritance of property in the Hindu Code Bill. She believed in women’s political participation for better representation and even criticised Jawaharlal Nehru for not having enough women members in the 1936 Congress Working Committee.

Her accomplishments as a Union Health Minister (1947-1957) were exemplary. She introduced the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Bill in Lok Sabha in 1956, establishing the AIIMS as one of the premier medical education institutions in South East Asia. She said, “It has been one of my cherished dreams that for postgraduate study and for the maintenance of high standards of medical education in our country, we should have an institute of this nature which would enable our young men and women to have their postgraduate education in their own country.” She collected donations and medical equipment for AIIMS from countries like New Zealand and Australia and international organisations like Rockefeller Foundation and Ford Foundation.

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur protected the autonomous nature of the Institute. She maintained that the Institute became autonomous from 15th November 1956, and all posts with a minimum pay of Rs. 600/- per month or more would be created with the approval of the Government, while no prior permission was necessary for posts carrying a minimum pay of less than Rs. 600/- per month.  This decision allowed the Governing Body to fill 35 Assistant Professors’ posts without waiting for the Government’s prior approval.

She considered increasing the number of trained nurses as a more practical solution to rural health care than increasing the number of doctors. She set up a committee to study various aspects of nursing service and nursing education in 1954. Kaur emphasised the need to maintain high standards of nursing and promote nursing as a profession in her speeches during the Indian Nursing Council Amendment Bill 1957. 

Amrit Kaur represented India at World Health Organization (WHO) meetings (years). Elected as the President of WHO in 1950, she noted in her presidential address, “I am sure history will record that in spite of wars and rumours of war which every country witnessed throughout and also continues to witness, the most significant human development has been in the field of social welfare. The world has been so narrowed down by the discoveries of science which have eliminated the obstacles of  both time and distance that it is impossible any longer for any one nation to live unto itself.”

She was a realist and looked at the healthcare infrastructure of India through a practical lens. In one of her speeches about health amenities in rural areas, she noted, “So long as we do not pay our doctors adequately we cannot have both good men and women and good work. You have to pay the doctors a living wage, a wage that will not only attract them, but will make it possible for them to serve. We should not make conditions of service impossible for anyone.”

She was the President of the Indian Leprosy Association and the Tuberculosis Association. She campaigned to eradicate Tuberculosis and promoted BCG vaccination amidst mass scepticism about its efficacy. Kaur also was Chairperson of the Indian Red Cross Society for 14 years. In 1957, she was awarded the Court Bernadotte Gold Medal by the League of Red Cross Societies of 14 countries–Europe, Asia and Africa for her outstanding contribution and dedicated service.

She was a member of the Lok Sabha from 1952-57 and the Rajya Sabha from 1957-62 and contributed to the legislation and Parliamentary debates on health and other issues like the Prevention of Food Adulteration Bill 1954, Delhi Municipal Corporation Bill 1957, Dowry Prohibition Bill 1959, and Geneva Conventions Bill 1960.

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur thus carved a special place for herself in Indian history. As India’s first female Health Minister, she became an architect of public healthcare infrastructure in India’s nascent years as an independent Republic. She paved the way for forthcoming health welfare schemes.

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur was a pioneer who inspired many women to aspire to and follow their true calling.

References

Eminent Parliamentarians Monograph Series: Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Lok Sabha Secretariat (New Delhi, 1993).

V Srinivas, AIIMS Diamond Jubilee Celebrations, AIIMS New Delhi (New Delhi, 2016).

Adrija Roychowdhury, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur: The princess who built AIIMS, Indian Express (New Delhi, 2020).

Learn About Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Google Arts & Culture.

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