BHUBANESWAR: Senior leader and former vice-president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Sabitri Chowdhury passed away at her residence in Tulasipur of Cuttack on Thursday night. She was 85 and suffered from a prolonged illness.
A former chairperson of the State Social Welfare Board, Chowdhury was among the few Congress leaders of the last generation who had grassroots connect. She was known for her organisational skills and social work which endeared her to common people.
Chowdhury had served the Congress from 1977 in different capacities. She was party observer for several districts in the past. She was Congress candidate from the Choudwar-Cuttack Assembly constituency in 2009 election. She was also the president of Cuttack District Mahila Congress for 10 years from 1993 to 2003.
Chowdury championed the causes of women throughout her career in politics as well as social service. She was the general secretary of Odisha Nari Seva Sangha, a state-level women’s organisation, and served it with distinction. Besides being the chairperson of the Social Welfare Board twice from 1989 to 1990 and 1995 to 2001, she was also the member of regional committee of CAPART and member of Rajiv Gandhi Forum, Odisha.
Several senior Congress leaders including former minister Bijayalaxmi Sahu and Mohammed Moquim visited her residence at Tulasipur in Cuttack to pay their last respect. Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das expressed deep grief over her demise. Describing her as a capable organiser, Das said she always tried to take the message of the party to the grassroots-level worker. She was a very simple and lovable person, he added.