First in India: Administration & Govt. Service
- First President of India – Dr Rajendra Prasad
- First Prime Minister of India – Jawaharlal Nehru
- First Governor of Bengal – Lord Clive
- First Vice President of India – Dr S Radhakrishnan
- First Muslim President of Indian Republic – Dr Zakir Hussain
- First Governor General of Bengal – Warren Hastings
- First Governor General of India – Lord William Bentic
- First Viceroy of India – Lord Caning
- First President of Indian National Congress – W C Banerjee
- First Governor General of Independent India – C Rajgopalachari
- First Indian to pass ICS – Surendra Nath Banerjee
- First Indian ICS Officer – Satyendra Nath Tagore
- First Governor General of India (after Independence) – Lord Louis Mountbatten
- First temporary President of Constituent Assembly – Dr Sachchida Nand Sinha
- First Indian Judge to International court of Justice – Dr Nagendra Singh
- First speaker of Lok Sabha – G V Mavlankar
- India’s first Lok Sabha member to win from record no. of votes – PV Narsimha Rao
- India’s first minister to resign from Union Cabinet – Shyama Prasad Mukherjee
- India’s first Election commissioner – Sukumar Sen
- First Muslim president of Indian National Congress – Badruddin Tayab ji
- First Chief Justice of India – Justice Hiralal J Kania
- First Deputy Prime Minister of India – Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel
- First Indian Prime Minister to resign from office – Morarji Desai
- First Indian Prime Minister to loose an election – Indira Gandhi
- First President of India to die in office – Dr Zakir Hussain
- First Education Minister – Abul Kalam Azad
- First Home Minister of India – Sardar Vallabha Bhai Patel
- First Woman Speaker of Lok Sabha – Meira Kumar (2009)
- First Indian Woman President of INC – Sarojini Naidu
- India’s First Woman President – Pratiba Patil
- India’s First Woman Prime Minister – Indira Gandhi
- India’s First Woman Governor – Sarojini Naidu
- India’s First Woman IPS Officer – Kiran Bedi
- First Woman Chief Minister of State – Sucheta Kripalani
- First Woman Union Minister – Rajkumari Amrita Kaur
- First Woman President of INC – Annie Besant
- First Woman Judge of Supreme Court – Meera Sahib Fatima Bibi
- First Indian Woman Ambassador at UN – Vijalakshmi Pandit
First in India: Defence
- First Commander in Chief of Free India – General K M Cariappa
- First Chief of Air Staff – Sir Thomas Almhirst
- First Indian Chief of Air Staff – Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee
- First Chief of Army Staff – Gen M Rajendra Singh
- First Chief of Naval Staff – Vice Admiral R D Katari
- First Field Marshal – Gen S F J Manekshaw
- First female jawan in the Army – Sapper Shanti Tigga
- First Atomic Submarine of India – INS Chakra
- First Indian Submarine – INS Kalvari
- First Aircraft carrier Indian Warship – INS Vikrant
- First Indian missile – Prithvi
- First medium range missile – Agni
- First Army Institute of Information technology founded at – Hyderabad
- First Chief of Defence Staff of India – Bipin Rawat
First in India: Science & Technology
- First Indian Cosmonaut to go in space – Sqn. Ldr. Rakesh Sharma
- First Large scale Atomic Reactor of India – Apsara
- First person to make Printing Press popular in India – James Hicky
- India’s First Nuclear centre – Tarapur
- First test tube baby of India – Indira (Baby Harsha)
- First Indian Pilot – JRD Tata (in 1929)
- First Indian space Tourist – Santosh George
- First Indian Woman to climb Mt Everest – Bachendri Pal
- First Indian Woman Airline Pilot – Durga Banerjee
- First Indian Woman to go to space – Kalpana Chawla
- First Indian Woman to climb Mt Everest twice – Santhosh Yadhav
First in India: Cabinet Ministers
- First Health Minister of free India – Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
- First woman Cabinet minister of India – Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
- First Defence Minister of free India – Baldev Singh
- First Education minister of free India – Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
- First Home minister of free India – Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel
- First Finance Minister of free India – R K Shanmukhan Chetty
- First Law minister of free India – B R Ambedkar
- First Commerce minister of free India – C H Bhabha
First in India:
Prestigious Awards
- First in India to get Bharat Ratna – Dr S. RadhaKrishnan, C Rajgopalachari, C V Raman
- First in India to nominate himself for Bharat Ratna Award – Jawaharlal Nehru
- First in India to win Stalin award – Saifffudin Kichlu
- First in India to win Magsaysay award – Acharya Vinoba Bhave
- First foreigner recipient of Bharat Ratna – Khan Abdul Gaffer Khan
- First in India to get Jnanpeeth Award – G Shankar Kurup
- First in India to get Paramvir Chakra – Major Somnath Sharma
- First Indian author to get Anderson Award – Ruskin Bond
- First Recipient of Dadasaheb Phalke Award – Devika Rani in 1969
- First and only Indian to win Nishan-e-Pakistan (highest civilian award of Pakistan) – Morarji Desai in 1990
- First Woman to get Ashok Chakra – Nirja Bhanot
- First Indian Woman to get Nobel Prize – Mother Teresa
- First Indian Woman to get Bharat Ratna – Indira Gandhi
- First Indian Woman to get Jnanpith Award – Ashapurna Devi
- First Woman Musician to get Bharat Ratna – MS Subbalakshmi
Noble Awards
- First in India (was first Asian also) to get Nobel Prize – Rabindra Nath Tagore in year 1913 for literature.
- First Indian Scientist to get Noble Prize- C V Raman
- First scientist of Indian origin to win Noble prize in Physics – S. Chandrashekhar
- First Scientist of Indian origin to get Noble prize in field of Medical Science – Dr Hargovind Khurana
- First Indian to win Noble Peace Prize – Mother Teresa in 1979 (Indian citizen but of Albanian origin)
- First Indian born to win Noble Peace Prize – Kailash Satyarthi in 2014
- First and only Indian to win Noble in Economics – Amartya Sen
First in India: Movies
- First Indian movie – Raja Harischandra by Dadasaheb Falke in 1913 (This was silent movie)
- First Indian movie with sound – Alam Ara by Ardshir Irani in year 1931
- First color movie – Kisan Kanya by Ardshir Irani in year 1937
First in India: Oscar Awards
- First in India ever to be nominated at Oscars – Mehboob Khan for film Mother India in 1958.
- First Indian recipient of Oscar Awards – Bhanu Athaiya (Best Costume design for Film Gandhi in 1983)
- First Indian to win Oscar for lifetime achievement – Satyajit Ray
- First in India to win Oscar for Sound Mixing – Resul Pookutty for film Slumdog Millionaire in year 2009
- First in India to win Oscar for Best original music score – A R Rahman for Slumdog Millionaire
- First in India to win Oscar for Best original Song – A R Rahman and Gulzar shared for Slumdog Millionaire
First in India: Beauty Contests
- First Mr. Universe of India – Manohar Aich in year 1952
- First Mr. International – Aryan Vaid in year 2000
- First Indian Woman to become Miss World – Miss Reita Faria
- First Indian Woman to become Miss Universe – Susmita Sen
First in India: Sports
India at Olympics
- First in India to win individual Olympic medal – K D Jadhav (won bronze medal in 1952 at Helsinki Olympics)
- First India athlete (British Origin) to participate and win Olympic medal – Norman Pritchard (represented India and Asia for first time in 1900 Paris Olympics and won 2 silver medals)
- First in India to win medal in shooting at Olympics – Rajyawardhan Singh Rathod, at 2004 Athens Olympic
- First in India to win individual Gold medal at Olympics – Abhinav Bindra, in shooting in 2008 Beijing Olympics
- First in India to win medal in Tennis at Olympics – Leander Paes, Bronze in 1996 at Atlanta Olympics
- First Indian woman to win Olympic medal – Karnam Malleswari, Bronze in Weightlifting in 2000 Sydney Olympic
- First Indian to win medal in Boxing – Vijender Singh, Bronze in 2008 Beijing Olympic
- First Indian to win medal in wrestling at Olympics – Sushil Kumar, in 2008 Beijing Olympics
India at Cricket
- First Captain in Tests – K. Nayudu for the 1932 tour of England.
- First Batsman to complete 10,000 runs in ODIs – Sachin Tendulkar (he was the first in the World to achieve this feat)
- First Batsman to complete 10,000 runs in Tests – Sunil Gavaskar (he was the first in the World to achieve this feat)
- First batsman to score 50 centuries in Test Cricket – Sachin Tendulkar
- First bowler to take all 10 wickets in an innings – Anil Kumble (against Pakistan)
- First Cricket Club in India – Kolkata (1792) Calcutta cricket club
- First Cricket Stadium – Eden Gardens in Kolkata
- First Cricket tournament – The Bombay Triangular (1905–1911) which later became the Bombay Quadrangular (1912–1936)
- First Cricketer to score 100 centuries in Test and ODIs combined – Sachin Tendulkar (he was the first in the World to achieve this feat)
- First Cricketer to score a century in a Test match – Lala Amarnath, 118 against England in December 1933 at Bombay Gymkhana grounds.
- First Cricketer to score a double century in a Test match – Polly Umrigar, 223 against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1955-56
- First Cricketer to score a triple century in a Test match – Virender Sehwag, 309 against Pakistan in Multan in 2004.
- First Fastest Fifty in a T20 – 50 runs of 12 balls by Yuvraj Singh (vs England in the Inaugural World T20 Championship held in South Africa, 2007)
- First Hat-trick in an ODI – Chetan Sharma against New Zealand in 1987.
- First Indian Captain and the third in history to have led his team to victory after being enforced to follow on – Sourav Ganguly
- First Indian Captain to win more than 21 test matches as a captain – Mahendra Singh Dhoni
- First Indian to score a T20 century – Suresh Raina vs South Africa.
- First Indian to score an ODI century – Kapil Dev, 175* against Zimbabwe in the 1983 Cricket World Cup.
- First Indian to score an ODI double century – Sachin Tendulkar, 200* against South Africa at Gwalior, 24 February 2010 (he was the first in the World to achieve this feat).
- First Indian to score the highest runs in a World Cup – Sourav Ganguly 183 runs V/S Sri Lanka in 1999 World Cup Cricket.
- First Indian to score two ODI double centuries and the highest individual runs in ODI – Rohit sharma, 264 against Sri Lanka in 2014.
- First Nation to win a World Cup Finale on its home ground – India (ICC 2011 Cricket World Cup) Final held at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
- First ODI captain – Ajit Wadekar
- First Six sixes in an Over – Yuvraj Singh in a T20 match vs England
- First Test match – Against England at Lord’s, 25 June 1932
- First test match played in India – India v/s England in Eden Gardens,(Calcutta) (result draw) (5-8 Jan 1934)
- First Test Victory – Against England At Madras
- First Winner of the first T20 World Cup – India (in 2007) against Pakistan.
- First woman to score a double hundred in Test cricket – Mithali Raj [214* against New Zealand at Wellington, 2004]
- First World Cup – At the 1983 World Cup when India beat West Indies in the Finals Under the captaincy of Kapil Dev
- First World Cup Runners up captain – Sourav Ganguly (2003)
India at Chess
- First Grandmaster of India and also the winner of FIDE world Chess championship – Vishwanathan Anand
- Youngest Indian to become Grandmaster – Parimarjan Negi
- India’s first woman to become Grandmaster – Koneru Humpy
- India’s youngest woman to become Grandmaster – Koenru Humpy (at age 15 years of Age)
India at Tennis
- First Indian to win Grand Slam Title – Mahesh Bhupati (in mixed doubles partnering with Rika Hiraki) in 1997 French Open
- First Indian woman to win Grand Slam – Sania Mirza (in Mixed Doubles partnering Mahesh Bhupati) in 2009 Australian Open
- First Indian to win Junior Grand Slam Title – Ramanathan Krishnan, won Wimbledon in year 1954
- First Indian to win Junior French Open – Ramesh Krishnan, won both French and Wimbledon in 1979
- First Indian to win Junior Australian Open – Yuki Bhambri in year 2009
- First Indian woman to win Junior Grand Slam Title – Sania Mirza (in doubles partnering Alisa Kleybanova) in 2003 Wimbledon
- First Indian to win Palk Strait Ocean swimming contest – Baidyanath Nath
- First Indian to swim across English Channel – Mihir Sen
- First Indian to climb Mount Everest without oxygen cylinder – Sherpa Phu Dorji
- First Asian games organised at – Delhi (in 1951)
- First Indian to reach Antarctica – Lt Ram Charan (in 1960)
- First man to climb Mount Everest twice – Nawang Gombu
- First in India to reach North Pole – Sq Ldr Sanjay Thapar
- First Indian to reach South Pole – Col. J K Bajaj
- First Indian to win World Billiards Trophy – Wilson Jones
- First Indian Woman to win WTA Title – Sania Mirza
- First Indian woman who reached Antarctica – Mahel Musa
- First Indian Woman to swim across English Channel – Arati Saha
First in India: Visitors & Travelers
- First foreign visitor to India – Megasthenses (Greek who visited Chandragupta Maurya Court in 305 BC)
- First Chinese pilgrim to visit India – Fa-hein in year 399 AD
- First Muslim visitor/traveler to India – Al Beruni in year 1000 AD
- First European to visit India – Morcopolo (Italian) in 1288 AD
- First Moroccan to visit India – Ibn Batuta in 1333 AD
- First Russian to visit India – Afanasy Nikitin in 1469 AD
- First Portuguese to visit India – Domingo Paes in 1520 AD
- First British to visit India – William Hawkins in 1609 AD
- First American President to visit India – Dwight David Eisenhower
- First British Prime Minister to visit India – Harold McMillan
First in India: Places
- First district with 100 % literacy – Ernakulam district in Kerala, in 1990
- First city with 100 % literacy – Kottayam, Kerala in 1989
- First district to be Polio free – Pathanamthitta, Kerala
- First district to become “total electrified” – Palakkad, Kerala in 2011
First in India: Others
- First e-business newspaper of India – Financial Express
- India’s first open University Andhra Pradesh Open University
- India’s first University – Nalanda University
- First post office in India – Kolkata (in 1727)
- First central PSU to be privatized – Modern Food Industries in year 2000
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