Bihar: 98-year-old gets masters in economics from Nalanda varsity

After appearing in three-hour exams for 16 papers, Vaish had scored 51 per cent. The retired government official later said that appearing for the exams with students in their twenties was something he had liked. What embarassed him was people wanting to take his photographs when he went to the exam centre to write the tests.

“There is no age to receive an education. I chose Economics to understand the reasons behind poverty in the country. Though people find it unusual that I wanted to get a masters degree at 98, I do not see it as a matter of surprise,” he said.

Dr S P Sinha, the registrar of Nalanda Open University, said: “We are claiming that Raj Kumar Vaish is the oldest person in the country to receive a masters degree. During my 34 years of service, I have not read and heard about anyone getting a post-graduation degree at 98.”

As the open university runs courses by postal correspondence, Vaish did not need to attend classes. He studied for three to four hours every day for two years to finish the course and appear for the exams.

The registrar said several students wanted to see the answer papers of Vaish. “Vaish has been the talking point of this year’s convocation. He was proud of writing his papers with students young enough to be his grandchildren,” Sinha said.

While recounting their first meeting, Sinha said: “I am his (Vaish’s) neighbour at Rajinder Nagar, Patna. When I had gone to a local park for a morning stroll, I was introduced to Vaish, then 96, by his son Santosh Kumar. When he learnt that I am the registrar of Nalanda Open University, he wanted to know if he could study and write examinations (as a student) of the university. I thought he was joking.”

Three months later, Vaish’s aide came looking for Sinha. “I did not want him to climb the stairs of the university building. We took our staff to Vaish’s home and made him fill up forms in 2015,” Sinha said. He confessed that he had wondered about Vaish’s ability to clear the 16 papers.

Sinha’s doubts have been laid to rest now.

Born in Bareli, Uttar Pradesh, Vaish graduated from Agra University in 1938 and got his bachelor degree in law in 1940 from the same university. He started his career as a law officer and later became a Bihar government employee. He retired in 1981 as general manager from the Department of Mica and Mines.

Vaish said he had been upset about the poor quality of teachers in government schools and colleges these days. “I want the Centre and state to lay special focus on educating girls,” he said.