Augustus Appadorai Asirvatham, the eighth of eleven children and third son of Abraham Tahsildar Asirvatham, a revenue officer and of Rachel Ponnammal, was born in Madurai, India, on 29 September 1917. After education at preparatory school and the Church Missionary Society High School at Srivilliputhur he took his BA at the American College, Madurai, before entering Madras University to graduate in 1941. He served with the RAMC in India from 1941 to 1946 before returning to civilian appointments, including that of residential warden at Stanley Medical College. He was later granted a Commonwealth scholarship to England and passed the primary and final examinations for the FRCS in 1958. On returning to India he eventually became Professor of Surgery at Madurai Medical College where he had been a keen undergraduate and postgraduate teacher since 1951. He served as a member of the academic council and board of studies of the medical college and was also a member of the governing council of the American College. He undertook research on madura mycosis and was surgical consultant to the leprosarium at Chingleput, and chief medical officer to the Madurai prison. He was a founder member of the Christian Medical Fellowship in Madurai and also supported medical work in the villages. In his early years he had a great interest in cricket, hockey, tennis and athletics and later became a keen collector of coins from many countries. After retirement from his government hospital appointments in 1973 he continued in private surgical practice. He was married to Vimala Hannah Arthur, only daughter of Dr JY Arthur, on 27 January 1944. They had two daughters and a son, all of whom are medically qualified and each of whom is married to a doctor. When he died on 19 May 1984 he was survived by his wife and three children.