Bhubaneswar: Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik returned to Bhubaneswar on Saturday after fully recovering from his spine surgery for cervical arthritis.
Soon after his arrival at the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA), Naveen was accorded a grand welcome by Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leaders and workers.
A large number of party members had gathered at the airport to receive the BJD president in the afternoon. They accompanied Naveen in a grand procession from the airport to his residence, Naveen Niwas.
Naveen had left for Mumbai on June 20. Two days later he underwent a successful spine surgery for cervical arthritis at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai. He was shifted to a private room from the ICU after being kept under observation for two days and was discharged from the hospital on July 7.
The surgery was conducted by Dr S Rajasekaran, a globally recognised orthopaedic surgeon and chairman of Ganga Medical Center and Hospitals in Coimbatore, along with doctors of Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital.
In his absence, the BJD’s 15-member committee led by vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra looked after party affairs in the state.