Referred to as the ‘Tall Man’, Biju Patnaik or Bijoynanda Patnaik was born in Cuttack on 5th March 1916 to an aristocratic family. Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s freedom struggle during Khadi Tour, Biju Patnaik always had an inclination towards working for people. Due to his fearless and straightforward approach in life, he played many roles and excelled in each of it. ACE PILOT During his college days in Ravenshaw, he got an opportunity to work as Indian National Airways Pilot. During World War II, he served the Air Transport Command for Royal Indian Air Force; he even helped the British Forces fight the Japanese in present-day Myanmar. Biju Patnaik also helped Indian Freedom struggle’s underground operations as a pilot. After Independence, Biju Patnaik used his aviation skills to ferry Indian Soldiers to Kashmir during India-Pakistan Conflict. He also founded Kalinga Airlines, that later merged with Indian Airlines in 1953. A DARING FRIEND IN NEED In July 1947, Patnaik was given the responsibility by his friend Jawaharlal Nehru to bring Indonesian revolutionary leaders to Delhi. This was during the period when Indonesia was under Dutch Colonial Rule and the leaders wanted to broadcast the horrific conditions from India. Despite receiving warnings, Biju Patnaik flew to Indonesia via Singapore in his Dakota aircraft on 21 July 1947 and brought the leaders to India. As a reward for his bravery, Biju Patnaik was given honorary citizenship in Indonesia with the title of ‘Bhumiputra.’ THE BUILDING HAND OF ODISHA Biju Patnaik started to build his industrial empire in the economically backward state of Odisha. After becoming the chief minister again in 1990, he turned out to be one of the most successful politicians of Odisha. He laid the foundation stones for Choudwar and Barbil Industrial Belts, Cuttack-Jagatpur Mahanadi Highway Bridge, Bhubaneswar Airport, Paradeep Port, MIG factory at Sunabeda, Thermal Power Plant at Talcher, Hydro-Electric Project at Balimela and Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology. As a statesman, a learned person, matured political, social worker, champion of education and particularly women education, promoter of cottage, small scale industries, economic reformer, he was in every sense the pride of Odisha.