Mr PALLAS (Tarneit)  — As  the member for Tarneit, with  one of  the largest growing  Indian  communities  represented  in that area, I rise to  pass  on  my condolences on the sad passing of Dr Subhakanta Behera, Indian Consul General to Melbourne, on 9 November. Dr  Behera  had  a  distinguished career in the Indian public service, as well as being an academic historian  and  creative writer. He was urbane,  intellectual  and  a very  welcoming  individual  to meet.  He  was certainly a friend of the Indian community in my electorate.

Dr Behera joined the Indian Foreign Service  in  1987,  serving first in Moscow, then  in  Tashkent,  Sofia and Washington, DC. Throughout that time  he  held  a number  of  senior positions,  including  director  and joint  secretary  of the Ministry of External  Affairs  and head of  the ministry’s policy  planning  and research division.

He was a man who loved Melbourne and who could demonstrate his understanding and appreciation of the Indian  community  in  this  place. He found Melbourne to be both friendly and generous. Not only was he a man who could balance his academic work and love of history with his love of poetry, he was a man who left behind a great gap in terms of  appreciation from  the Indian community. He will be sadly missed. He was married to Rajashree and had two children, Ananya and Amruta.

See Tim’s speech in Hansard here.