Sachindra Ghosh was born in Calcutta, India, on 20 June 1928, the son of a marine official in the British India Steam Navigation Company. He received his early schooling in Calcutta, attended Calcutta Science College where he obtained a BSc, and graduated MB BS from the National Medical College in 1

Heather Margaret Dukes was a general surgeon, paediatrician and general practitioner. She was born Heather Margaret Starkie in Hyde, Cheshire on 4 September 1942. Her father, Colin Starkie, was medical officer of health for Kidderminster; her mother was Margaret Joyce Starkie née Wrigley. She was ed