Former Odisha Assembly Speaker Surya Patro passes away at 74

CM Naveen Patnaik expressed grief over the demise of Patro and described him as an able administrator and a good organiser

Former speaker of the Odisha Assembly Surjya Narayan Patro passed away on Saturday evening hours after he was admitted to a private hospital in Bhubabeshwar in a critical condition. He was 74.

Surjya Narayan Patro took over as the Odisha Assembly Speaker on June 1, 2019, until his resignation on June 4, 2022 (HT Photo/Sourced)

Patro, a seven-time Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA, who resigned from the post as the Speaker in June last year due to ill health, had never been defeated since 1990 on a BJD ticket.

Known as Anna (elder brother) in Ganjam district, Patro entered electoral politics by contesting for a councillor’s post in Berhampur Municipality in 1977.

Patro was first elected to the Assembly in 1990 from the Mohana segment of Gajapati district. He moved to Digaphandi after Mohana became an ST-reserved constituency and won on the Biju Janata Dal ticket.

Having served as minister in then-chief minister Biju Patnaik’s cabinet minister in 1990, Patro went on to work as minister in now-chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s cabinet in 2002.

He held different ministerial portfolios including fisheries, animal resources development, energy, science and technology, environment, tourism, information technology, revenue and disaster management, information and public relations, food and civil supplies and consumer welfare.

Since 2009, he had been the MLA of Digapahandi for three consecutive terms.

Patro took over as the Odisha Assembly Speaker on June 1, 2019, until his resignation on June 4, 2022.

CM Naveen Patnaik expressed grief over the demise of Patro and described him as an able administrator and a good organiser.