George Watt 
Biography of George Watt
George Watt
George Watt graduated from the University MB CM in 1873 and LLD in 1907. He was born in Old Meldrum, Aberdeenshire, on April 24th, 1851. His father was John Watt, a merchant.
After graduating from the University, Watt was selected by the India Office for service under the Government of Bengal in 1873. He taught Botany for ten years at a college in Hughli. In addition to his teaching, Watt also studied the flora of Lower Bengal and other parts of India, leading him to write two papers on Indian Botany for the Journal of the Linnean Society.
In 1881 he was posted as surgeon to the Burma-Manipur Delimitation Commission with special permission to conduct botanical studies during the expedition. Upon his return he was selected to lead the Calcutta International Exhibition for 1883-1884, where he developed a 1700 page catalogue listing the economic products of India. He later expanded this catalogue by request of the government, and brought it to the Colonial and India Exhibition of London in 1886. The final volume of his catalogue, The Dictionary of Economic Products of India was published in 1893. He held various notable positions in whilst in India, such as the President, Pharmacological Section of the Indian Medical Congress, 1894 and the Honorary Secretary, Indigenous Drug Committee of India, 1901. In 1907 he received an LLD from the University.
Summary
George Watt
GU Degrees: MB CM, 1873; LLD, 1907;
University Link: Graduate
Record last updated: 11th Apr 2017
