Guwahati: Assam’s first woman doctoral graduate in English literature and noted feminist, Aparna Dutta Mahanta has died at a state-run hospital, said doctor on Thursday.

She was 75 years old and leaves behind a son and a daughter, as well as her husband, noted scientist Dr. Paramananda Mahanta.

Doctors claimed the renowned writer, a retired professor of English and former director of Dibrugarh University’s Women’s Study Centre, died on Wednesday night.

She did her schooling from Shillong’s St Mary’s and graduated from St Mary’s College.

Mahanta did her masters in English Literature from Gauhati University as well as the University of Leeds under a British Council scholarship programme.

In 1982, the noted activist received her PhD from Dibrugarh University, making her the first woman in Assam to hold a doctorate in English.

She was a professor in Dibrugarh University’s English Department and the founding director of the varsity’s Women’s Study Centre during her professional life.

She was the author of several books and the founder of the Assamese magazine ‘Aideur Jonaki Baat,’ which focused on women’s concerns.

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