Hyderabad: Eminent child rights activist and the honorary president of Balala Hakkula Sangham, P. Achyuta Rao succumbed to COVID-19 on Wednesday. He was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Malakpet for the past eight days. He was 58.
The entire family, including his elder brother, a noted cartoonist Sridhar, has tested positive for COVID-19. Sridhar was discharged on Wednesday while the other family members are said to be recovering.
Rao formed Balala Hakkula Sangham, an organization for child rights in Telangana, in 1985. He had previously worked as a member of the State Child Rights Commission and spearheaded campaigns against child marriage and incidents of ill-treatment against children.
Recently, Rao had filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking direction to the State government to provide mid-day meals to all students of government and aided schools that are currently locked down.