2022-12-16 Fri

On March 5, 1916, Biju Patnaik was born in Anand Bhavan in the Cuttack neighbourhood of Tulasipur. He attended Ravenshaw College in Odisha to complete his education but left early to pursue his love of flying. When the Second World War began, Patnaik flew for commercial airlines before enlisting in the Royal Indian Air Force. He later took over as the air transport command's commander.

He became interested in nationalist politics while serving his country and sent what Indian troops perceived as subversive material to them through air force cargo. In addition to flying covert flights to transport Congress Party officials from hideouts around India to secret meetings that mapped the independence movement, he was imprisoned by the British for dropping political flyers to Indian soldiers fighting in Burma under British command. Patnaik, though, remained dedicated to battling the Axis Powers.

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