Padma Shri awardee Prakash Rao dies at 63

Social activist and Padma Shri awardee D Prakash Rao died on Wednesday. He was 63. Rao was admitted at the SCB medical hospital in Cuttack after testing positive for Covid-19 on December 25. He was shifted to the ICU two days ago after he developed complications and his condition deteriorated. He was on ventilator support for the past two days.

Rao had set an example by dedicating his life and earnings for the education of underprivileged children. A tea seller in Cuttack district, Rao had been providing free education and meals to nearly 75 children in a slum. He had been doing so for the last twenty years.

Rao’s philanthropy had gained a lot of attention when PM Narendra Modi praised him in an episode of Mann ki Baat.