Nalanda Open University awards MA degree to 98-year-old man

A 98-year-old man on Tuesday became the recipient of a masters degree at the 12th annual convocation of Nalanda Open University.

Raj Kumar Vaish was awarded the MA degree in economics by Meghalaya Governor Ganga Prasad at the convocation function of NOU, Patna.

He had enrolled in MA (Economics) in 2015.

"I am happy today. I had worked hard. For long, I had cherished the dream of completing my masters... the young should concentrate on their education and not on career alone," Vaish told reporters here after receiving the degree.

The university's Registrar S P Sinha told PTI that a total of 22,100 students were awarded various degrees this year. Vaish was among the 2780, including 29 gold medalists, who were invited to the convocation ceremony.

"It is really a big achievement for NOU. Hats off to Vaish and his sheer determination to pursue studies at this age.... we wonder from where he draws so much energy," Sinha said.

Vaish is probably the oldest person to get a post graduate (PG) degree from this university, he said.

The varsity will preserve his notebooks, which will serve as a source of inspiration to the youth, Sinha added.

"We are glad that my father fulfilled his dream. At the convocation ceremony, my father was offered a wheelchair since he had difficulty in climbing stairs, but he chose to move with the help of a walker and received his degree,"

Vaish's son, Santosh Kumar, a retired professor of National Institute of Technology (NIT), Patna, said.

"The Meghalaya Governor told my father - you are a source of inspiration," Kumar said.

Vaish completed his graduation from Agra University in 1938, did his LLB in 1940, but could not complete his PG as he got a job as 'law officer' with Christian Mica Industry at

Koderma (now in Jharkhand), and retired as GM from the company in the early 1980s, the nonagenarian's son said.