New Delhi: Renowned cardiologist Dr P Venugopal, who performed India's first heart transplant, died on Tuesday. Dr Venugopal was the former director of AIIMS Delhi and performed over 50,000 heart surgeries in his career.

Dr. Venugopal was born in 1942, when the Quit India Movement was going on in the country. He joined AIIMS Delhi as a student in 1958 at the age of just 16. In 1964, when he secured first position in the AIIMS examination, the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru awarded him a gold medal. In 1967, he became a professor in the cardiology department of AIIMS and in 1970 he implanted the country's first pacemaker. Dr. Venugopal's most important contribution came in 1994, when he successfully performed the first heart transplant in India. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1998 for his extraordinary work. After this, in 2014, he was also awarded the Life Time Achievement Award by the Central Government.

In 2023, he published his memoir 'Heartfelt', in which he described his life journey and various notable events. In this, he also mentioned the surgery of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984, which was an important moment in his life. This surgery lasted for about four hours after the bullet injury. Dr. Venugopal's last rites will be performed on Wednesday at 3:00 pm at Lodhi Road crematorium.

Amit Shah and Naidu Talk About Development Initiatives in Andhra Pradesh

Amit Shah Urges Haryana to Vote for a Corruption-Free Future Amid High-Stakes Election

Amit Shah Hints at Passing Waqf Bill in Winter Session; Criticizes Congress in Haryana Rally