Odisha’s first Lok Sabha speaker Rabi Ray admitted to SCB

Cuttack: Rabi Ray, the first Lok Sabha Speaker from Odisha, has been admitted to SCB Medical College and Hospital here after his health condition deteriorated.

The 91-year-old Ray has been admitted to the medicine ward of the premier tertiary care government-run facility with pulmonary ailments, said sources.

Ray had been ailing due to age-related problems besides suffering from dementia since last four years.

Born on 26 November 1926 in Bhanagarh village in Puri district, Ray joined national politics due to the inspirational leadership of Dr Rammanohar Lohia.

Prime Minister Morarji Desai inducted Ray into his Cabinet as Minister for Health and Family Welfare in January 1979 and the latter continued in that post till January 1980.

The General Elections to the Ninth Lok Sabha were held in 1989 and he returned to the Lok Sabha on the Janata Dal ticket from the Kendrapara constituency. On 19 December 1989, he was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha as the first leader from Odisha to occupy the exalted post.