GUWAHATI, Oct 3 - Residents of Hatigarh Chariali, SN Phukan and Deepika Phukan, have instituted the �Deepika Phukan Oncology Research Grant Award� of Dr B Borooah Cancer Institute (BBCI) to promote research on cancer.
The Phukans donated a sum of Rs 25 lakh to BBCI on Wednesday coinciding with the breast cancer awareness month and 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
A grant of Rs 1 lakh each year for three consecutive years will be awarded to young meritorious and promising scholars for research in the field of cancer.
Researchers will be selected every three years for the grant by a high powered committee constituted by the management of BBCI.
Deepika Phukan is a long-term cancer survivor and she is a former professor at St Mary�s College in Shillong. She underwent complete treatment for breast cancer at BBCI in 2006.
SN Phukan played a significant role in the development of power sector in the North East as former chairman and managing director of North-Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO).
According to Dr Amal Chandra Kataki, Director of BBCI, cancer researchers are the front-line foot soldiers in the battle against cancer and research is the only way to defeat the menace.
