Bhubaneswar: Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik is set to return to Bhubaneswar on Saturday after fully recovering from his spine surgery for cervical arthritis.
He is scheduled to arrive at Biju Patnaik International Airport at 12.30 pm.
Naveen 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.
These 21 days are the longest time he has stayed away from the state capital since becoming the CM of Odisha. In his absence, the BJD’s 15-member committee led by vice-president Debi Mishra is looking after party affairs in the state.
While hundreds extended their heartfelt wishes for a successful surgery and a speedy recovery before he departed, a heartfelt welcome awaits him, with BJD leaders, party workers, and supporters from diverse backgrounds anticipated to assemble at the airport and along the path to his home, Naveen Niwas, to warmly greet him.