FIRST IN INDIA

First American President to visit India: Dwight David Eisenhower

First Asian to be elected president of Britain's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP): Lord Navnit Dholakia

First Asian to head a British university: Lord Swaraj Paul (when he was elected Chancellor of the Wolverhampton University on May 9, 2000)

First British Prime Minister to visit India: Harold Macmillan

First Chairman of the University Grants Commission: S.S.Bhatnagar

First Chief Election Commissioner of India: Sukumar Sen (21.3.1950 to 19.12.1958)

First Chief Justice of India: Harilal J.Kania (26.1.1950-6.11.1951)

First Chief Minister of the tri-lingual Bombay Presidency: B.G.Kher

First Chief of Air Staff: Air Marshall Sir Thomas Elmherst (1947-1950)

First Chief of Army Staff: Gen. Maharaj Rajendra Sinhji (1.4.1955 to 14.5.1955)

First Commander-in-Chief: Gen.Sir Roy Bucher (1.1.1948 - 14.1.1949)

First Dalit Lok Sabha Speaker: G M C Balayogi

First Defence Minister of Independent India: Sardar Baldev Singh

First Deputy Prime Minister of India: Sardar Vallabhai Patel

First Director General of ICAR: B.P.Pal

First Eunuch to be elected as a Mayor of an Indian city: Kamla Jaan, who elected Mayor of Katni city in Madhya Pradesh in January 2000.

First Eunuch to get elected to a state legislature: Shabnam Mausi, won the Sohagpur Assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh in the February 2000 elections.

First European to invade India: Alexander

First Field Marshal: Gen. S.H.F.J. Manekshaw

First fighter pilot to win the Param Vir Chakra: Flying Officer Nirmaljeet Singh Sekhon (posthumous) for IAF in 1971 Indo-Pak conflict.

First Foreign Secretary of Free India: K.P.S.Menon

First Governor-General of Independent India: Lord Mountbatten

First Indian bowler to get a hattrick in Test cricket: Harbhajan Singh

First Indian Chief of Air Staff: Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee (April 1, 1954).

First Indian Chief of Naval Staff: Vice Admiral R.D.Katari (1958-1962).

First Indian Governor-General of India: C.Rajagopalachari

First Indian to be awarded with the 'Victoria Cross': Khuda Dad Khan (for Gallantry in Belgium during the first World War)

First Indian to be elected a member of British Parliament: Dadabhoi Naoroji

First Indian to be elected to the US House of Representatives: Dilip Singh Saund

First Indian to go in space: Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma. He went in the Soyuz 7-II Spacecraft on April 3, 1984 and returned on April 11, 1984.

First Indian to hoist the National Flag over the North Pole: Squadron Leader Sanjay Thapar.

First Indian to record a song on a gramophone disc: Sashi Mukhi of Classic Theatres, Calcutta (1902)

First Indian to swim across the English Channel: Mihir Sen

First Indian to win an Olympic Bronze: Khashaba Jadhav (wresting; 1952, Helsinki Olympics)

First Indian to win the All England Open Badminton Tournament: Pullela Gopi Chand (March 11,2001)

First Indian to win the World Billiards Championship: Wison Jones

First Jnanpith Award Winner: G.Sankara Kurup (1965), for his work ‘Ottakkuzhal’ in Malyalam.

First Minister without Portfolio: N.Gopalswami Ayengar in Jawaharlal Nehru's Cabinet. He, however, went on to become the Minister of Defence.

First Photographer in India: Raja Deendayal

First President of India: Dr Rajendra Prasad (1950-1962)

First President of the Indian Union of Civil Liberties: Rabindranath Tagore (1930s).

First Prime Minister of India: Jawaharlal Nehru (1947-1964)

First Prime Minister to win a popular entertainment award: Atal Behari Vajpayee (when he won the Screen-Videocon "Best Lyricist" prize in the non-film music category for his collection of poems titled "Nayi Disha" in February 2000).

First Secretary-General of South-South Commission: Dr Manmohan Singh

First Surveyor General of India: Sir George Everest

First Vice-President of India: Dr S.Radhakrishnan (1952-1962)

First Winner of Param Vir Chakra: Maj.Somnath Sharma (posthumously) in November, 1947

India's first Test-tube baby: Harsha (born on August 6, 1986).

Indian Johann Sebastian Bach: Ustad Ali Akbar Khan

India's longest serving Chief Minister : Jyoti Basu

Only Army Chief to be awarded with Maha Vir Chakra twice: Late Gen. A.S.Vaidya