Interesting facts about Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman that you should know

After serving as the Defence Minister in the 2014 BJP government, Nirmala Sitharaman has now taken responsibility in the 2019 Lok Sabha as the Finance Minister. A special honor as the Cabinet Minister conferred upon a lady twice by Shri Narendra Modi’s government, she has deserved such high postings due to her sharp acumen, dedication and talents. While the whole country is eagerly waiting to see her performance as the Finance Minister this time, here are a few interesting facts about Nirmala Sitharaman worth knowing.

Second Woman Finance Minister

Nirmala Sitharaman was the second woman in India to become the defense Minister after Indira Gandhi and the first one to hold this office full time. She is the 33rd defense minister of the Indian Republic and the 26th person to assume this office.

First full-time Woman Finance Mininster

She will be now the first woman in India to hold the office as the full-time finance minister. Earlier when Indira Gandhi held this position for a brief time between 1970 and 71, she managed this department as the additional charge while serving the country as the Prime Minister.

Worked with PWC in London

Born and brought up in Tamil Nadu, she completed her graduation from Seethalakshmi Ramaswami College, Tiruchirapalli and did her masters in Economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. After marrying Parakala Prabhakar in 1986, she moved to London with her husband. She worked as the Senior Manager (Research and Analysis) with Price Waterhouse and was also associated with the BBC for some time.

Joined BJP in 1991

In 1991, Nirmala Sitharaman returned to India and became BJP’s spokesperson under Ravi Shankar Prasad. In 2006, she joined the BJP and rose in popularity in the party when Nitin Gadkari was the BJP President.

Got Married to Parakala Prabhakar in 1986

For the first time, she met Parakala Prabhakar at the JNU and later married him in 1986. Parakala Prabhakar hailed from a pro-Congress family. While his mother was a Congress MLA in Andhra Pradesh, his father was a minister in the Congress government in Andhra Pradesh.

Worked as a sales girl in London

Before joining the Price Waterhouse in London, she worked as a sales girl for a brief period with Habitat, a Home Décor Store at London’s Regent Street. She recorded the highest sales in Christmas which won her the appreciation of the store management.

She decided to come back to India along with her husband only for the birth of their daughter as the couple was keen to raise their daughter only in India.

When their family settled in Hyderabad, she established a school for underprivileged children in the city clubbed with a policy research centre.

Served as a member of National Commission for Women

An active representative of the woman community, she has been taking a lot of interest in the subject of women empowerment. She served as the member of the National Commission for Women from 2003 to 2005.

She is fond of Music

Nirmala Sitharaman likes classical music so much and has a good collection of classical songs with her to listen to them from time to time. She is an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna.

She spends three hours a day reading Newspapers. She is not so fluent in Hindi though her command over the English language is exceptional.