BHUBANESWAR: Eminent ornithologist, former MLA and Sanakhemundi royal scion Uday Narayan Dev passed away following a heart attack on Wednesday. He was 86 and is survived by his wife and son. Dev complained of heart ache on Wednesday night and was rushed to SUM Hospital. He passed away 30 minutes after being admitted to the hospital.
On January 21, Dev had released his most exhaustive book on birds 'Vihanga Samhita' in the Capital city of Bhubaneswar. The book was the result of his 45 years of extensive research as a part of his project that he called 'Orientalisation of Oriental Ornithology'.
Presented in six volumes, the book is not just a dictionary of more than 2,085 birds as per their order, family, sub-family and genera, but also provides a Sanskrit taxonomy of birds in the sub-continent, names of the birds in all Indian languages and explains 127 colour plates on birds.
A three-time MLA from Mohana constituency, he found peace in studying birds, an interest that he inherited from his father late Nandakishor Anangabhima Dev Keshari Gajapati Maharaj of Sanakhemundi.
Dev was also the founding member of Project Tiger of Government of India and had authoured 12 books including 'Vihanga Samhita' on wildlife and avian heritage of South Asian subcontinent. He was honoured with Biju Patnaik Award for lifetime contribution to wildlife conservation.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condoled his death. "I am saddened to learn of the death of Uday Narayan Dev, a former MLA from Mohana constituency. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and wish them well," he tweeted.