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Journalism of Courage
It is often said that behind every successful man stands his wife. But for three women, who shattered the glass ceiling and stepped into a male-dominated preserve in the 20th century, there were determined fathers whose ambition for their daughters outweighed the world’s raised eyebrows.
In the late 1930s and early 1940s, three young women – Ayyalasomayajula Lalitha, P K Thressia, and Leelamma George – enrolled in the College of Engineering, Guindy (CEG), Chennai, and made history in 1944 as India’s first women engineering graduates. All three were backed by their forward-thinking fathers.
Thressia and George were Syrian Christians from Kerala, while Lalitha came from a Telugu-speaking family in Chennai. Each carved out her own path, balancing family, struggles, and triumphs, and went on to build significant careers in government service. Yet, despite their trailblazing achievements, their stories were not woven into the larger fabric of public memory. Among them, A Lalitha stood out – a young widow and mother, she gained wider recognition for her advocacy of women’s education, particularly in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), on international platforms.
Women enrolment in technical education
“Lalitha was more well-known outside of her home state. She represented India in the world conferences and professional societies. Plus, her situation was unique in that she was a widow, mother of a girl, boldly embarking on a career that was at the time a solidly male prerogative,” said Dr Shantha Mohan, faculty at Carnegie Mellon University – Integrated Innovation Institute. Mohan authored a book, Roots and Wings: Inspiring Stories of Indian Women in Engineering, where she has written about the pioneer women engineers’ journeys.
In the late 1930s and early 1940s, admission to the reputed and one of the oldest institutes, CEG, was different from today’s JEE-based system. Students got seats primarily on the basis of their Class 12 or Plus Two exams. Lalitha’s father, Pappu Subba Rao, a professor of electrical engineering at CEG, was determined that his academically gifted daughter would not suffer the fate that many widows of that era had to endure.
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Thressia’s father, equally progressive in outlook, wanted his daughter to pursue a technical education. But since women were not admitted to the only engineering college in Kerala, he sent her to Chennai.
George’s father, a strict disciplinarian, initially wished for her to study western medicine – a field where Anandibai Gopalrao Joshi and Kadambini Ganguly had earned degrees in the US as early as 1886.
George first got admitted in 1938 at the Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, and found it tough to dissect the dead bodies. In her second year, she dropped out and returned home. But her determined father got her admitted to the Lady Hardinge Medical College in New Delhi. Here too, George might have felt it hard to deal with the demanding curriculum, and therefore, her father had to approach the CEG principal for the engineering seat.
The then-principal of the college, Dr K C Chacko, supported women’s education, and after getting approvals from the higher authorities, the gates of the institute opened for women students, nearly 60 years after the first batch of men graduated from CEG.
Lalitha got a seat in the four-year electrical engineering programme; George and Thressia took admission in civil engineering in 1940.
Their engineering life, and an essay
However, there was another obstacle. There was no hostel accommodation and separate washrooms for them. Being a local, Lalitha stayed with her family, and George and Thressia lived off-campus in a hostel near Little Mount.
An essay written by Lalitha and George, “Eves in Engineering”, a year after their admission, for the campus publication, tried to bring the spotlight to their basic demands: “We are in the first place, bound to thank the Principal, Dr. Chakko; but for his boldness, may we say in this conservative world… we would not have been here. We must also thank him for his continued interest in us, so much as to write to the Government for a separate women’s block in the hostel. This is the first and foremost necessity for lady students in a residential college with such a strenuous course. May we suggest that even if it takes some time for the buildings to come up, a small portion of the blocks may be reserved for us with all amenities provided in a self-contained manner?”
The essay also highlighted that women deserved a rightful place in technical education: “It is only when women take their due and honoured place along with men in the engineering profession that the country can march with clasped hands towards permanent national reconstruction and regeneration.”
Their degree, and the journey ahead
The engineering course duration was four years; however, due to World War II, the authorities decided to squeeze it into three-and-a-half years to meet the urgent demand for engineers. George graduated with distinction and was among the top three in her batch in 1943.
While Thressia and George returned to Kerala to lead engineering projects in their state, Lalitha had to complete additional requirements before receiving her degree. Since practical training was mandatory, she passed her qualifying examinations in 1943 and went on to do a one-year apprenticeship at the Jamalpur Railway Workshop, one of India’s major repair and overhaul facilities.
In 1944, she took a job as an engineering assistant in the Central Standards Organization of India (CSOI), Shimla. Throughout her career, she took roles keeping her daughter, Syamala, in mind. Her brother’s family supported her in raising her daughter. Later, she took the graduateship exam from the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE), London, UK.
However, Lalitha eventually had to quit her job to assist her father in his research. An accomplished educator and inventor, Pappu Subba Rao held several patents, including the Jelectromonium (an electrical musical instrument), smokeless ovens, and an electric flame producer.
In 1948, financial reasons compelled Lalitha to take up a position with Associated Electrical Industries (AEI) in Calcutta. Fortunately, her second brother’s family was already based in the city, and they became her support system. At AEI, she worked in the engineering department of the sales division as a design engineer, focusing on transmission lines. One of her most recognised projects was her contribution to the electrical generators for the Bhakra Nangal Dam, then the largest dam in India.
Her professional achievements were also acknowledged internationally. In 1953, the Council of the Institution of Electrical Engineers (CIEE), London, elected her as an associate member, and by 1966, she had become a full member.
Global platforms
One of the high points of Lalitha’s career came in June 1964, when she was invited to the first International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists (WES) held in New York. At the time, India did not yet have a national chapter of the organisation, so Lalitha attended the conference privately.
The gathering aimed to increase the participation of women in STEM, and it provided a global platform where pioneering women engineers and scientists shared their experiences, struggles, and achievements. Lalitha’s presence symbolised India’s entry into this international dialogue on women in science and engineering.
Lalitha noted: “The conference resolved to encourage women to increase their participation in the professional societies in their countries and improve their qualifications not only during their student days but throughout their professional life. It also resolved to maintain the central file of Women Engineers and Scientists used for this conference and enlarge it as much as possible.”
Later, in 1965, Lalitha became a full member of the WES, London, and agreed to serve as their representative in India for the Second International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists. It was held in Cambridge, England, in July 1967. She actively promoted the event in India, and due to her efforts, five Indian women engineers were able to participate in the conference.
While Lalitha’s professional achievements are well-documented, the book, Roots and Wings (2017), also highlights her role as a mother and mentor. Author Shantha Mohan notes that Lalitha encouraged her daughter, Syamala, to pursue science and to actively engage in extracurricular activities like tennis and swimming. “Syamala says she never felt her father’s absence because of the strong support she received from her mother,” Mohan writes.
Syamala further revealed that Lalitha was a complex personality: “Yes, she was determined, but widowhood placed upon her the dual responsibility of being both disciplinarian and nurturer. Her profession of engineering gave her little time for relaxation, but whenever she could, she would listen to South Indian Carnatic music. During her childhood and teen years, she played the flute. And this love of music stayed with her throughout her life. Sports was another venue of relaxation for her, as was evident from the unfailing encouragement she gave me when I began playing tennis. Most importantly, whenever I was at a crossroads, she always laid out the pros and cons of the situation – a strategy that immeasurably led to my own personal growth.”
Syamala went on to earn degrees in science and education, married a scientist, and raised children who also became scientists. When the author spoke to her in 2017, 79-year-old Syamala continued to teach mathematics at a school in the United States – a testament to the enduring impact of Lalitha’s guidance and inspiration.
