Kolkata, Oct 16 (PTI) Renowned physician Dr Dilip Mahalanabis, credited with pioneering the oral rehydration therapy, died at a private hospital here on Sunday, sources said.

Mahalanabis, 87, was suffering from lung infection and other old-age ailments, they said.

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He had hit the headlines during the Liberation War in Bangladesh in 1971, when the doctor saved thousands of lives with the oral rehydration solution during an outbreak of cholera, while serving in a refugee camp at Bangaon in West Bengal.

Oral rehydration therapy is a solution used to prevent and treat dehydration.

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Expressing grief at his passing away, Director of Institute of Child Health, Dr Apurba Ghosh said Mahalanabis was a pioneer in the treatment of cholera and enteric diseases through low-cost methods.

"His contributions will forever be remembered," Ghosh said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)