Google Doodle Celebrates - Kamala Sohonie's 112th Birthday | कमला सोहोनी के 112वें जन्मदिन पर गूगल डूडल मना रहा है
Today's Doodle commemorates the 112th birthday of Dr. Kamala Sohonie, an Indian biochemist. During a time when Indian women were conspicuously underrepresented in scientific disciplines, she was the first Indian woman to earn a Ph.D. in a scientific field. Dr. Sohonie helped pave the way for future Indian women to overcome gender bias and pursue their ambitions by breaking barriers and proving her doubters wrong.
According to family records, Dr. Sohonie was born on this day in 1911 in Indore, Madhya Pradesh to parents who were renowned chemists. Wanting to follow in the footsteps of her father and uncle, she majored in chemistry and physics at Bombay University and graduated first in her class in 1933. She was the first woman admitted to the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), but was subjected to strict conditions during her first year because the institute's director lacked confidence in the scientific abilities of women.
Dr. Sohonie was granted permission to resume her research after demonstrating her competence. In fact, she so impressed the director that the IISc began to admit more women into their program due to her influence. Sohonie concluded after studying the various proteins present in legumes for several years that they improved the nutritional status of children. She earned her master's degree and published her thesis on this topic in 1936.
The following year, she was awarded a research scholarship at Cambridge University. Dr. Sohonie discovered that all plant cells contain Cytochrome C, an enzyme essential to energy production. In only fourteen months, she concluded her dissertation on this discovery and earned her doctorate. When she returned to India, Dr. Sohonie continued her research on the health advantages of various foods and assisted in the creation of an inexpensive palm nectar-based dietary supplement. This vitamin C-rich beverage, known as Neera, has been shown to enhance the health of malnourished children and expectant mothers.
Dr. Sohonie's efforts on Neera earned her the Rashtrapati Award. In addition, she became the first woman to lead the Royal Institute of Science in Bombay.
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