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| Sarojini Naidu: First Female Indian Governor |
The governor is de jure head of the state government; all its executive actions are taken in the governor's name. However, the governor must act on the advice of the popularly elected council of ministers, headed by the chief minister, who thus hold de facto executive authority at the state-level.
The union territories of Andaman and Nicobar, Delhi and Puducherry are headed by lieutenant-governors, whereas union territories of Chandigarh, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Lakshdweep are headed by Administrators.
Sarojini Naidu was the first female to become the governor of an Indian state. She governed Uttar Pradesh from 15 August 1947 to 2 March 1949.
Padmaja Naidu, daughter of Sarojini Naidu, is the longest-serving governor with 11-year tenure in West Bengal
In 2007, Pratibha Patil who was the governor of Rajasthan from 8 November 2004 to 23 June 2007 became first female President of India.
Currently, Mridula Sinha, Draupadi Murmu, Kiran Bedi, Najma Heptulla, Anandiben Patel, and Baby Rani Maurya are working Governors of different Indian states.
| Name | Took Charge | Left Charge | Term | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarojini Naidu | 15-Aug-47 | 2-Mar-49 | 1 year, 199 days | Uttar Pradesh |
| Padmaja Naidu | 3-Nov-56 | 31-May-67 | 10 years, 209 days | West Bengal |
| Vijayalakshmi Pandit | 28-Nov-62 | 18-Oct-64 | 1 year, 325 days | Maharashtra |
| Sharda Mukherjee | 5-May-77 | 14-Aug-78 | 1 year, 101 days | Andhra Pradesh |
| Jyothi Venkatachalam | 14-Oct-77 | 27-Oct-82 | 5 years, 13 days | Kerala |
| Sharda Mukherjee | 14-Aug-78 | 5-Aug-83 | 4 years, 356 days | Gujarat |
| Kumudben Manishankar Joshi | 26-Nov-85 | 2-Feb-90 | 4 years, 68 days | Andhra Pradesh |
| Ram Dulari Sinha | 23-Feb-88 | 12-Feb-90 | 1 year, 354 days | Kerala |
| Sarla Grewal | 31-Mar-89 | 5-Feb-90 | 311 days | Madhya Pradesh |
| Chandrawati | 19-Feb-90 | 18-Dec-90 | 302 days | Puducherry |
| Rajendra Kumari Bajpai | 2-May-95 | 22-Apr-98 | 2 years, 355 days | Puducherry |
| Sheila Kaul | 17-Nov-95 | 23-Apr-96 | 158 days | Himachal Pradesh |
| Fathima Beevi | 25-Jan-97 | 1-Jul-01 | 4 years, 157 days | Tamil Nadu |
| V. S. Ramadevi | 26-Jul-97 | 1-Dec-99 | 2 years, 128 days | Himachal Pradesh |
| Rajani Rai | 23-Apr-98 | 29-Jul-02 | 4 years, 97 days | Puducherry |
| V. S. Ramadevi | 2-Dec-99 | 20-Aug-02 | 2 years, 261 days | Karnataka |
| Pratibha Patil | 8-Nov-04 | 23-Jun-07 | 2 years, 227 days | Rajasthan |
| Prabha Rau | 19-Jul-08 | 24-Jan-10 | 1 year, 189 days | Himachal Pradesh |
| Margaret Alva | 6-Aug-09 | 14-May-12 | 2 years, 262 days | Uttarakhand |
| Kamla Beniwal | 27-Nov-09 | 6-Jul-14 | 4 years, 221 days | Gujarat |
| Prabha Rau | 25-Jan-10 | 26-Apr-10 | 91 days | Rajasthan |
| Urmila Singh | 25-Jan-10 | 27-Jan-15 | 5 years, 2 days | Himachal Pradesh |
| Margaret Alva | 12-May-12 | 7-Aug-14 | 2 years, 87 days | Rajasthan |
| Sheila Dikshit | 11-Mar-14 | 25-Aug-14 | 167 days | Kerala |
| Kamla Beniwal | 6-Jul-14 | 6-Aug-14 | 31 days | Mizoram |
| Mridula Sinha* | 31-Aug-14 | Incumbent | 4 years, 29 days | Goa |
| Draupadi Murmu* | 18-May-15 | Incumbent | 3 years, 134 days | Jharkhand |
| Kiran Bedi* | 29-May-16 | Incumbent | 2 years, 123 days | Puducherry |
| Najma Heptulla* | 21-Aug-16 | Incumbent | 2 years, 39 days | Manipur |
| Anandiben Patel* | 23-Jan-18 | Incumbent | 249 days | Madhya Pradesh |
| Baby Rani Maurya* | 26-Aug-18 | Incumbent | 34 days | Uttarakhand |