⏱ 4 min read
“Who was the first President of Nepal?” and “Which was the first newspaper of Nepal?” are classic general knowledge questions. This note groups the most important firsts of Nepal into leaders, women, education and media, and infrastructure, so they are easy to remember and revise.
1. First leaders
| First | Name / fact |
|---|---|
| King of unified Nepal | Prithvi Narayan Shah |
| Rana Prime Minister | Jung Bahadur Rana (1903 BS) |
| Non-Rana Prime Minister after 2007 BS | Matrika Prasad Koirala |
| Elected Prime Minister | Bishweshwar Prasad (B. P.) Koirala (2016 BS) |
| President of Nepal | Dr. Ram Baran Yadav (2065 BS) |
| Vice-President | Parmananda Jha |
| Chairman of the first Constituent Assembly | Subas Chandra Nembang (2065 BS) |
| Martyr of Nepal | Lakhan Thapa Magar |
2. First women
| First woman | Name |
|---|---|
| President | Bidya Devi Bhandari (2072 BS) |
| Speaker of the House of Representatives | Onsari Gharti Magar (2072 BS) |
| Chief Justice | Sushila Karki (2073 BS) |
| Prime Minister | Sushila Karki (2082 BS / 2025, interim government) |
| Minister | Dwarika Devi Thakurani (2016 BS) |
| Nepali woman to climb Sagarmatha | Pasang Lhamu Sherpa (2050 BS / 1993) |
3. First in education, literature and media
| First | Name and year |
|---|---|
| School | Durbar High School (1910 BS), opened by Jung Bahadur Rana |
| College | Tri-Chandra College (1975 BS) |
| University | Tribhuvan University (2016 BS) |
| Newspaper | Gorkhapatra (1958 BS) |
| Poet honoured as Adikavi (first poet) | Bhanubhakta Acharya, who translated the Ramayana into Nepali |
| Radio | Nepal Prajatantra Radio (2007 BS); Radio Nepal (2008 BS) |
| Television | Nepal Television (2041 BS) |
| Written constitution | Government of Nepal Act 2004 |
4. First in infrastructure and economy
| First | Name and year |
|---|---|
| Hospital | Bir Hospital (1947 BS) |
| Hydropower station | Pharping Hydropower (1968 BS), 500 kW |
| Railway | Raxaul–Amlekhganj railway (1984 BS); Janakpur–Jaynagar railway followed in 1994 BS |
| Commercial bank | Nepal Bank Limited (1994 BS) |
| Central bank | Nepal Rastra Bank (2013 BS) |
| Periodic plan | First Five-Year Plan (2013 BS) |
| Census | 1968 BS (1911 AD) |
5. How to remember
- Link each first to its period: Rana era (Durbar High School, Bir Hospital, Pharping, Gorkhapatra, Tri-Chandra) and after 2007 BS (radio, university, NRB, plans).
- Remember women firsts after 2072 BS together: President Bhandari, Speaker Gharti Magar, Chief Justice Karki.
- Practise with the quiz below and revise the tables before the exam.
6. More firsts often asked
| First | Name and year |
|---|---|
| Nepali-born climber on Sagarmatha (with Hillary) | Tenzing Norgay Sherpa (1953) |
| Motorable highway | Tribhuvan Rajpath (Kathmandu–Hetauda), 2013 BS |
| National park | Chitwan National Park, 2030 BS (1973) |
| Industrial district | Balaju Industrial District |
| Special Economic Zone | Bhairahawa SEZ |
| Community FM radio in South Asia | Radio Sagarmatha (2054 BS) |
| University after Tribhuvan University | Mahendra Sanskrit University (2043 BS) |
| Satellite | NepaliSat-1 (2019) |
| World Heritage Sites | Kathmandu Valley and Sagarmatha National Park (1979) |
7. Firsts grouped by period
| Period | Firsts |
|---|---|
| Shah unification | Prithvi Narayan Shah unifies Nepal |
| Rana era (1903–2007 BS) | Durbar High School, Bir Hospital, Gorkhapatra, Tri-Chandra College, Pharping hydropower, census, railway, Nepal Bank |
| After 2007 BS | First elected government (2015/16 BS), Radio Nepal, Tribhuvan University, Nepal Rastra Bank, First Five-Year Plan |
| Panchayat era | Nepal Television (2041 BS), national parks, industrial districts |
| Republic (from 2065 BS) | First President, Vice-President, first woman President, Speaker and Chief Justice |
8. How this topic is asked in the exam
- Direct: “Which was the first newspaper of Nepal?” (Gorkhapatra, 1958 BS).
- Women firsts: President, Speaker, Chief Justice and Prime Minister — revise them together.
- Year matching: match each first with its year; learning them by period (section 7) makes this easier.
📌 Key points to remember
- First President: Ram Baran Yadav; first Vice-President: Parmananda Jha.
- First elected PM: B. P. Koirala (2016 BS); first Rana PM: Jung Bahadur.
- First woman President: Bidya Devi Bhandari; Speaker: Onsari Gharti Magar; Chief Justice: Sushila Karki.
- First woman minister: Dwarika Devi Thakurani.
- Durbar High School (1910 BS), Tri-Chandra College (1975 BS), Tribhuvan University (2016 BS).
- Gorkhapatra (1958 BS) is the first newspaper; Radio Nepal 2008 BS; Nepal Television 2041 BS.
- Bir Hospital (1947 BS), Pharping hydropower (1968 BS), Nepal Bank Ltd (1994 BS).
- First martyr: Lakhan Thapa Magar.
📝 Quiz
Test yourself: Firsts of Nepal
50 questions check what you read about First leaders, First in education, literature and media and How to remember. Each attempt picks 25 at random.
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Reference sources: List of prime ministers of Nepal; President of Nepal; Sushila Karki. Facts checked: 20 October 2026.