Bhubaneswar: Social worker and academic Achyuta Samanta addressed British parliamentarians at the House of Lords in London on Tuesday. Samanta was invited for a discourse attended by members of British parliament and special invitees.

Samanta is the first Odia to address the House of Lords, the upper house of parliament in the United Kingdom.

Samanta said: "It's indeed a great honour to be addressing the parliamentarians at the House of Lords. The story of mega revolution through KIIT and KISS and its trajectory for the last 26 years stands as a standalone example for countries to emulate."

House of Lords member Baroness Prashar introduced Samanta, while another British parliamentarian Alam Gamen also spoke on the occasion.

Samanta also addressed parliamentarians and other dignitaries in Birmingham. Deputy high commissioner Dinesh Patnaik and consul general of India, Birmingham, Aman Puri were present.

The Odia Association felicitated Samanta, following which a 10-member committee under the chairmanship of Uttam Tripathy discussed the construction of a Jagannath temple. Samanta, who is a BJD Rajya Sabha member, assured to patronise construction of the temple.

The Odias residing in the UK appreciated the state government's Ama Vidyalaya initiative and 20 of them pledged to develop schools in their native villages.

Samanta, the founder of KIIT and KISS, recounted his past and experiences at creating a revolution through the two institutions. He also gave a talk on poverty eradication through quality education and connected it with sustainable development goals of 2030.