NASA disputes 'Indian test topper' story: "NASA disputes 'Indian test topper' story"

Ah! A typical Indian feel good story. A 15 year old boy from UP claimed that he topped the 'NASA" exam in India. Everyone went gaga over it and he was felicitated and promised lot of scholarship. Rediff an online news paper went to NASA to get more info on this story and the bubble as they say burst.

I am not really sure whether the parents were involved too, but my guess is negative, they were not. This kid must have made this up to score few brownie points with his teachers who must be harassing him over the math homework due a week ago, ala Bart Simpson.

We Indians really thirst for feel good stories lapped it up and even international media carried it. Only in India kind of story. No one checks facts, no one checks its veracity, they print as it comes out of horse's mouth. I have almost a similar tale to tell.

While I was at Andhra Loyola College in Vijayawada, we had this non-discript MA student studying social work. A stream with no future by itself. He was just an other PG student no one noticed him and there bunch of over achievers around him.

One day the Principal of the college got a fax that this student has won the 'State wide Nutritional Quiz'. The whole college was gaga over him. We were told that he vanquished the dieticians and doctors with his knowledge of proteins and vitamins. We all started venerating him. He was supposed to go to the national level quiz. He was staying at our hostel and he was given special permission to go and come as he pleases, we mere mortals were punished if we were 5 minutes late to be back to our room from the washroom.

Then an other fax came that he has won the National Level quiz. He was given a hero's reception all over the college. All the local newspapers carried his interview and social clubs in Vijayawada and around vied over each other to felicitate him. In a month or so an other fax came, that he would be representing India in the International Nutritional quiz. He was moved out from the hostel and was given a furnished apartment in the campus.

I even interviewed him for the campus newspaper. He had an air of celebrity around him, girls would swoon over him. He treated as mere mortals but he somehow liked me. I was in trouble with my ward and he talked to him on my behalf and I was excused.

Then cam the most awaited fax again and believe it or not, this dude was the world champion in nutritional matters. He bet all the MDs from all over the world, from USA, UK, Singapore and France and many more countries. That's it our principal knew no bounds, we had a whole day holiday, there was a big feast in the Hostel. Then the summer vacation came and I left for my home.

As soon as I came back, My warden was so serious that he made the rules so strict that , even Nazis would have sympathized with us and freed us. No one knew the reason, one day the local newspaper carried a front page article on this dude detailing how he fooled each and everyone and there was no such quiz at all in the first place. The paper even speculated whether the college was involved with this! That's it our college which prided on its reputation went on a big publicity blitz , filed a police complaint on this dude and made lot of noises about this whole affair.

No one knows what happened to this guy! I was amazed at the length he went to fake it, the international faxes, the names of the contestants and all other minute details.

This 15 year old kid is keeping the long line of con men in India alive and we gullible folks keep dancing to their tunes!