FORMER CDMO DR. RAGHUNANDAN MAHARANA PASSES AWAY AT 87; MEDICAL FRATERNITY AND CITIZENS MOURN THE LOSS OF A LEGENDARY SURGEON
Dr.Badal Tah,Odishabarta
Rayagada, October 13: Former Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO) Dr. Raghu Nandan Maharana (M.B.B.S., M.S.), one of Southern Odisha’s most revered surgeons and medical administrators, passed away recently at the age of 87. His demise has plunged the medical fraternity, intellectual community, and civil society across the region into deep mourning. He is remembered as an emblem of dedication, professional integrity, and lifelong service to the underprivileged.
Born under the shadow of the Mahendra Tanaya river in Paralakhemundi, Dr. Maharana’s early life was marked by severe adversity. His ambition was initially sparked by watching the routine journeys of Maharaja Sri Krushna Chandra Gajapati. However, following the untimely demise of both his parents, he and his siblings were left in extreme poverty. Raised by his aunt and elder brothers—Krishna Chandra, Purna Chandra, and Gopal Krishna—he held fast to a singular goal: to become a doctor.
In 1960, carrying only a broken iron trunk and a single pair of clothes, he traveled alone to Cuttack for an interview at S.C.B. Medical College. Directed to Burla Medical College, he completed his studies supported by his brother, Capt. K.C. Maharana. He earned his M.B.B.S. in 1965 and completed his Master of Surgery (M.S.) in 1970 under the tutelage of Dr. Girija Sankar Dash Mohapatra.
Joining government healthcare service in 1966 as an Assistant Surgeon in Koraput, Dr. Maharana dedicated his surgical skills to interior and underserved regions of Odisha, serving across Balangir, Bhawanipatna, Rayagada, and Gajapati. Over a career spanning more than three decades, he performed over 30,000 surgical procedures—including complex thyroidectomies and splenectomies—often in facilities with very limited resources. Known for treating rich and poor patients with equal devotion, he was recognized as the Best Family Planning Officer before superannuating in 1998 as the CDMO of Rayagada.
For Dr. Maharana, retirement was merely a transition. He continued providing clinical care well past superannuation, serving at the Swami Sivananda Centenary Charitable Hospital in Pattamadai, Tamil Nadu, Mission hospitals in Veeraghatam and Narasannapeta, Andhra Pradesh, Mobile Health Service (108) at Narasannapeta, District Jail Hospital, Rayagada, his private clinic on Kapilas Hotel Road, Rayagada.
Beyond medicine, he took an active interest in community and spiritual welfare, leading the Viswakarma Samiti in Rayagada and overseeing the construction of a local temple. Dr. Maharana married Smt. Bhagyabati Maharana in 1966 and is survived by his four children—including noted engineer, entrepreneur, and proprietor of Aditya Graphics, Satyabrata Maharana, as well as a gynecologist and two engineers.
As news of his passing spread, a wide cross-section of society—including senior scribes, administrative officers, social workers, and prominent citizens—visited the bereaved family residence to pay their last respects. Delegations from several socio-cultural and civil bodies, including the Rayagada Nagarika Manch, Media Cares, Rayagada Society for Fast Justice, Odisha Adivasi Manch, and the Dakhin Odisha Unnayan O Surakhya Parishad, offered rich tributes. They recalled his simplicity, warmth, and lifelong commitment to providing healthcare to the most marginalized sections of society, praying for eternal peace for the departed soul.
