Nuclear scientist-turned-social worker Parameswara Rao no more

Acclaimed social worker and Gandhian B.V. Parameswara Rao, who sacrificed what could have been a lucrative life in the US for the development of his native village in Andhra Pradesh, is no more. Rao passed away at a a private hospital in Vishakhapatnam in the early hours of Sunday. In recognition of his efforts and social work, Rao was THE WEEK's Man of the Year in 1987.

Parameswara Rao has had an unusual life and journey. At a time when migrating to the US was a coveted dream for thousands, here was a man who, despite securing a Ph.D in nuclear science from America, returned to his village Dimili to work towards the upliftment of the illiterate and the down-trodden. Associate professorship in Pennsylvania State University, job offers from two American companies, top job at India's Atomic Energy establishment—the priceless offers that he sacrificed to pursue his deep calling from within were numerous.

Back in his village, he focused on community mobilisation, and set up the Bhagavatula Charitable Trust (BCT) in 1976, which came about to be a catalyst of change in the region. Rao was also the man behind the idea of setting up a school, which is still running. Rao's efforts soon saw results. Within two decades, the vast acres of barren land on the rocky hill slopes of Panchadharla Hills transformed into lush green farmlands. Vakapadu, once ravaged by tidal waves from Bay of Bengal became a famous prawn-breeding and salt-producing hub and the once-impoverished 50-odd villages in Visakhapatnam's Elamanchili soon looked forward to better conditions of living.

At a time when women empowerment was still considered a western idea, BCT mobilised hundreds of women who were trained as health workers to attend to primary problems in the region. They also trained women in basic financial literacy, thus improving the living standards of families. The trust, under Rao's guidance undertook, more than 1,000 projects aimed at the betterment of lives, including adult literacy, model education methods, training women in livelihoods and rehabilitation to differently-abled, in the subsequent years.

Though Rao always maintained a low-profile, his works received wide recognition, including from the World Bank and the government of India. Interestingly, Rao was once air-lifted from a remote village in Vishakhapatnam to Delhi as he was invited for lunch with the then prime minister Indira Gandhi.

Rao lived a life of utter commitment, true to Gandhian principles, quite rare in the current times. In his condolence message, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy remembered the nuclear scientist as someone who worked relentlessly for the upliftment of the rural community.