Dr. V. N. Rao (1973-2003)

Former Director of Health Services, Maharashtra State, and Senior Deputy Director General of ICMR, Dr. Rao brought a wealth of leadership experience when he took over as Director of KEMHRC in 1973. A visionary, he was well known for his ability to initiate activities and projects that were far ahead of the times. His meticulous monitoring helped make socially sensitive programmes acceptable and successful in the community. Dr. Rao’s efforts to attract international funding helped put the Vadu and Pabal centres on the global map.

A Master of Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health in USA, Dr. Rao held a number of high-level posts in the World Health Organization (WHO), and served as a consultant at United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Ford Foundation. He was a member of various high level government committees related to family planning, and improvement of health services. Several of his papers were published in national and international journals in the field of malaria and other communicable diseases.