Kodela Siva Prasada Rao was a top surgeon in 1980s
Rao ran a successful nursing home at Narasaraopeta, but gave up the medical profession when the TD was founded.
Vijayawada: A famous surgeon in the 1980s in the Palnadu region, Dr Kodela Siva Prasada Rao responded to the call of Telugu Desam founder N.T. Rama Rao in 1983 and entered politics. He ran a successful nursing home at Narasaraopeta, but gave up the medical profession when the TD was founded.
He was elected MLA from Narasaraopeta in 1983, and retained the seat till 2004. After bifurcation of the state, he won from Sattenapalli and became the first Speaker of the Assem-bly after bifurcation.
Rao was born in Kan-dlagunta, Nakarekallu mandal in Guntur district, on May 2, 1947 into a lower middle-class family. His parents Lakshmi Narasamma and Sanjeevaiah worked on farms in the village. His younger sisters died due to illness and he decided to become a doctor. He obtained his MBBS from Kurnool, and completed his MS in Varanasi. He started his practice in Narasarao-peta by starting the Lakshmi Nursing Home.
Rao became well known as a surgeon with lucky hands in Palnadu. He performed surgeries even when he was a minister in the NTR cabinet.