Sri Meenakshi Government College for Women came into existence in the year 1965 in the city of Madurai. The college is situated on the north bank of the river Vaigai. Being situated right in the middle of the city, the approach is easy. Thus it caters to the needs of the women students in the city.
The college was started by the government of TamilNadu with the exclusive aim of the upliftment of the women of Madurai. In 1965 the college had only pre-university courses with 320 students. There were 13 teachings and 13 non-teaching staff. In the very next academic year, that is, 1966-67 undergraduate course in Tamil literature, Economics and Mathematics were started.
In 1968, Undergraduate courses in Chemistry and Geography were started. In 1969 Undergraduate courses in English literature and History were introduced. The year 1970 saw the introduction of B.Sc Physics course. The year 1971 was marked by the introduction of the first Post Graduate course in the college namely M.A, geography. In the same year B.A. (Special economics) and B.Sc (Special Zoology) courses were also introduced.