BHUBANESWAR — Dr Hari Babu Kambhampati was sworn in as the new governor of Odisha here on Friday. Chief Justice of Orissa High Court Chakradhari Sharan Singh administered the oath of office to Kambhampati during a special oath-taking ceremony held at the Abhishek Hall in the Raj Bhavan.
He later received the guard of honour at the Raj Bhavan.
Dr Kambhampati succeded Raghubar Das who recently relinquished his post citing personal reasons.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Leader of the Opposition Naveen Patnaik, and other dignitaries were present during the oath-taking ceremony.
Earlier, Dr Kambhampati arrived at the Bhubaneswar Airport on Thursday afternoon and proceeded to Raj Bhavan after receiving a guard of honour at the Airport.
Kambhampati reached the coastal town of Puri on Thursday evening and offered prayers at the Jagannath Temple there.
Notably, the president of India on December 24, 2024, appointed Mizoram Governor Kambhampati as the new Governor of Odisha. Governor Kambhampati holds a B.Tech degree in Electronics & Communications Engineering from Andhra University (AU). He has also completed M.E. in Electrical & Control Systems and done PhD in Control Systems from Andhra University.
He worked as an Associate Professor for 24 years at Andhra University Engineering College.
Dr Kambhampati also participated in Lok Sangharsh Samithi Agitation under Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan during the 1974-1975 emergency and was arrested under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA).
He was appointed as the Andhra Pradesh State Executive Member of the Janata Party in 1977.
Dr Kambhampati served as the Andhra Pradesh BJP State President from 2014 to 2018.
The former governor of Odisha, Raghubar Das, during his tenure was embroiled in several controversies in the state. He was in the line of fire of the opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Congress party over the alleged assault on an Assistant Section Officer by his son in Puri during the Rath Yatra last year.
The opposition also accused Das of turning the Odisha Raj Bhavan into the war room for the Jharkhand Assembly elections.