Bhuabneswar, October 17 ( Odisha.in ) Thousands of birth day wishes praying for healthy and long life to Orissa’s bachelor Chief Minister and BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik poured in on Tuesday as he entered 51 years of age.
Thousands of party workers, leaders, bureaucrats, media persons, artists etc. greeted Patnaik, who smilingly reciprocated.A number of ministers and top executives of various companies also greeted him.
A huge cake in the shape of a conch shell, BJD’s election symbol was presented to Patnaik at his residence Naveen Nivas, by an youth organisation of Mayurbhanj district.
,Naveen Patnaik was born on October 16, 1946 at Cuttack, Orissa to Biju Patnaik and Smt. Gyan Patnaik. He went to Welham Boys’ School in Dehradun when he was seven years old. After that he studied at the The Doon School, Dehradun until he passed out with a Senior Cambridge Certificate at 17 years.
He excelled in History, Oil Painting and athletics in this school. He went on to Delhi University when he got his Bachelor’s Degree in Arts at the age of 20 years.
Patnaik returned from the U.S. upon the death of his father Biju Patnaik and was elected as Member of the 11th Lok Sabha in by-election from Aska Parliamentary Constituency.
He was a member of the Consultative Committee of Ministry of Steel & Mines, Member of Standing Committee on Commerce, and Member Library Committee of Parliament. In 1998 he formed the Biju Janata Dal Party in Orissa and was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha from the Aska Parliamentary constituency. Subsequently he became the Chief Minister of the state in 2000 with the support of the Bharatiya Janata Paerty and has been ruling since.
He has done significant work in international recognition of Indian designs and worked with handloom weavers to enlarge home market for Indian textiles.
His work has always in one way or the other been connected with Art,Ecology and Culture . He has traveled extensively in India and abroad. Naveen Patnaik is a founder member of the Indian National Trust for Art & Cultural Heritage (INTACH). Author of three books: A Second Paradise: Indian Country Life 1590-1947, A Desert Kingdom: The people of Bikaner and the Garden of Life: An introduction to the Healing Plants of India , each one published in India, England and United States of America, Naveen has regularly written articles for cultural and environmental publications.
Odisha.in