Former professor and the founder Head of the Department of Anthropology and former vice-principal of the Dibrugarh Hanumanbax Surajmall Kanoi College Prof. Arun Kumar Dutta departed for his heavenly abode on August 19. Prof Dutta was born in Tezpur on November 15, 1937. The Anthropology Department of DHSK College was established in 1962, under the diligent initiative of the then vice-principal of the college Dr. L.P. Dutt and Prof Arun Kumar Dutta. The DHSK college family and the people associated with the department will always remember him for his superlative contribution to the institution and society as a whole.
He was highly meticulous and a gentleman having great dignity, punctuality and dutifulness towards the institution. Prof. Dutta did his masters degree in Anthropology from Gauhati University in the year 1962. His area of specialization was in Advanced Social and Cultural Anthropology. He was not only an admirable teacher but also a fine administrator.
During his tenure as the Head of the department he enriched the department by collecting lots of valuable artifacts, tools and museum specimens from the Department of Anthropology, Gauhati University, National Museum, New Delhi, Dr. S.D. Sankalia of Deccan College to name a few. In his endeavour he was greatly helped by his teacher Prof. M.C. Goswami and Prof. B.M. Das of Gauhati University. His contribution to this department is immense and countless. To make the department fully fledged Prof. Dutta also arranged a human skeleton for the department laboratory with help from his father Dr. Chitta Ranjan Dutta who was then the District Medical Officer of Health of Dibrugarh. Prof. Dutta was also instrumental in preparing a proposal for opening post graduate classes in Anthropology at Dibrugarh University at the instance of Dr. L.P. Dutt. Numerous fieldworks among the tribal populations of North-East India were carried under his direct supervision. He had also served the college as Vice–Principal before his retirement from job in 1998. Prof Dutta was also attached to various organizations. He was the founder Vice-president of Senior Citizen Manch Dibrugarh, Treasurer of Dibrugarh Club, Member of Dibrugarh Nagarik Mancha among others.
On his sad demise the Anthropology fraternity has lost a great scholar. The Department of Anthropology of DHSK College expresses sincere condolences to the bereaved family and prays that his soul may rest in eternal peace.
— Dr. Anup Jyoti Bharali and Dr. Bhaskar Das