By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Several programmes was organised to pay tribute to former state chief minister and legendary leader Biju Patnaik on his 96th birth anniversary in Odisha, an official said Monday.
While thousands of men and women participated in a mini-marathon in state capital Bhubaneswar, leaders of different political parties, including his son, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, paid tribute by offering flowers at the statue of the legendary leader here.
“It was my father who set up the first port in the state at Paradip in early sixties,” said Naveen Patnaik while addressing a party function at the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) office here.
He said it was ‘Biju babu’ who thought for the welfare of the poor, tribals, dalits and empowerment of women.
Patnaik said his government is making efforts to fulfill the dreams of the legendary leader.
The state government has organized a state-level function to be held here in the evening which will be inaugurated by chief minister Naveen Patnaik, a senior official of the state information and public relation department told IANS.
A two-day photo exhibition on the life and time of the legendary leader will also be inaugurated on this occasion, he said.
Born in Odisha’s Cuttack city March 5, 1916 in a family of freedom fighters, Biju Patnaik has been often described as the maker of modern Odisha. He died 7th April 1997 at New Delhi after prolonged illness.
Patnaik who remained a major political figure in the country during his life time, has also been credited for several industrial success in the state.