Bengal e-rickshaw driver gives free rides to passengers who nail GK quiz

The driver who had to discontinue his formal education due to financially difficulty, kept gaining knowledge and interacting with passengers in an unique way.

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As the post is going viral, locals have identified the driver as Suranjan Karmakar.

An e-rickshaw driver in West Bengal forgoes fares for those who answer a general knowledge quiz. In a Facebook post, Sankalan Sarkar, who took an e-rickshaw popularly known as toto in Bengal, says that he was surprised when the driver suddenly proposed the idea. While initially he misunderstood and that the driver in Howrah district’s Liluah was probably trying to make double money, he nonetheless went along.

“My wife was amused. Frankly, my first thought was that he was not too happy with the fare he had quoted and would try to double it if we goofed up on even one question,” Sarkar wrote. Then the quizzing began with a much cliched question of who wrote the National Anthem. “I was now sure he was a crack-pot. He accepted his mistake, though,” the post read.

His questions started to get trickier and Sarkar even failed to answer his next question – ‘Who was the first CM of West Bengal?’ He answered Dr BC Roy but was embarrassed to know it wasn’t the correct answer.

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“This Vikram-Betaal thing went on for some more time. From Sridevi’s birth date to the world’s first test-tube baby, we covered a wide range of topics. I asked him one or two, and he answered them all. I was impressed,” he added.

“Financial constraints made me drop out of school in Class 6, but I keep reading these things up till 2 AM at night, everyday. I am a member of the Liluah Book Fair Foundation as well,” the post said about the driver.

As the passenger loved their interaction when they reached their destination, he noticed an A4 sized laminated picture of Tipu Sultan on the Toto windshield explaining he keeps celebrating birthday’s of eminent personalities. From Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein, Manohar Aich, Kalpana Chawla and many more have found space on his vehicle, according to the driver.

In a bid to also promote religious harmony, the driver said even though he is a Hindu, from time-to-time, he also wears a skull cap to embrace India’s diverse culture, pulling out one from his pocket to prove so.

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