In the Midnapore district of West Bengal, on 2 March 1953, a boy named Manoranjan Sahu was born. He chose the path of Ayurveda and graduated from the State Ayurvedic College in 1977. Postgraduate studies and a doctorate followed at Banaras Hindu University, where he would spend the greater part of his working life.

He joined the Department of Shalya Tantra—the surgical wing of Ayurveda—at BHU and rose steadily. For thirty-four years he taught, operated and researched, eventually becoming Professor, Head of the Department and Dean of the Faculty of Ayurveda. His special focus was the ancient technique of Kshar Sutra, the medicated alkaline thread used to treat fistula-in-ano and other ano-rectal disorders. He refined the method, developed the IFTAK technique, and helped establish India’s first dedicated Kshar Sutra Centre at BHU in 2013.

In an age when many looked only to modern surgery, Manoranjan showed that the old procedures, carefully updated, could still offer gentle, effective and affordable relief. Patients who had suffered for years found healing without large incisions or long hospital stays.

One young surgeon once asked him, “Sir, why spend so much effort on a technique from the ancient texts?”

Manoranjan answered with quiet conviction, “Because the texts still speak to the body. When we validate them with today’s understanding, we give patients another path—often a kinder one.”

He retired from BHU in 2018 yet continued to teach, write and promote Ayurvedic surgery. In 2023 the Government of India awarded him the Padma Shri—the first such honour given specifically for work in Ayurvedic surgery—for his pioneering role in bringing these ancient practices into contemporary medical care.

From the classrooms and operating theatres of Banaras Hindu University to the wider world of Ayurveda, Professor Manoranjan Sahu has spent a lifetime proving that the wisdom of the past, when handled with skill and respect, can still heal the present.