Goa's first woman CM Shashikala Kakodkar dies at 81

Shashikala Kakodkar, the first woman Chief Minister of Goa, held the post from 1973 to 1979.

Panaji: Goa’s first woman Chief Minister Shashikala Kakodar passed away on Friday morning, after a brief illness. She was 81. 

A prominent leader of the Maharashtrwadi Gomantak Party, Kakodkar was the daughter of Goa’s first Chief Minister Dayanand Bandodkar.

Following her father’s death in 1973, Kakodkar was sworn in as the chief minister, and held charge till April 1979, following a split in the party.

During her tenure as an Education Minister in the early 90s, Kakodar, was instrumental in implementing Marathi as the regional language in primary education and sidelining the use of English, an issue that continues to be a hot topic in state politics.