John Berry White

[1][2][3] In 1857, White was commissioned as an assistant surgeon under the East India Company and was posted in Upper Assam, where he arrived in 1858 at the age of 24.

He served the Upper Assam areas in various capacities for 24 years and rose to the position of Civil Surgeon of the then Lakhimpur district.

[4] He donated his personal savings of Rs50,000 to set up a medical institution in Dibrugarh, but it was only after his retirement and death in 1896 that his admirers took up his dream.

[5][6] White was the member of the medical board for tea garden communities at that time.

[7] He also held a 25% interest in the newspaper publication company The Times of Assam.