India's first female IAS officer after independence, Anna Rajam Malhotra died on Monday at the age of 91. Born in Ernakulam, Kerala, she pursued higher education in Chennai and later married RN Malhotra, who served as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India from 1985 to 1990. Anna joined the civil services in 1951 and opted for the Madras cadre. Despite being coaxed to join the Foreign Services back then, it was her insistence and perseverance that helped her join the civil forces.
She went above and beyond to convince the then chief minister of Chennai, C Rajagopalachari, who was in principle against women entering public service, and argued with him to give her a chance to prove herself. Malhotra was trained in horse riding and shooting, and was first posted in Hosur as a Sub Collector. In her tenure she worked under seven chief ministers and also former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, when as an MP in 1982, he was in charge of the Asian Games project in Delhi. Malhotra had also accompanied former prime minister Indira Gandhi on an eight-nation tour and, served in the personnel section of the Union Home Ministry. Anna was responsible for the successful construction of India's first computerised port Nhava Sheva in Mumbai.
