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President Kovind writes to Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash for winning ‘World’s Fastest Human Calculator’ title
The President of India Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday congratulated Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash of Hyderabad for winning a gold medal for India by becoming the fastest human calculator in the world.
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President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday congratulated Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash of Hyderabad for winning a gold medal for India by becoming the fastest human calculator in the world.
“I wish you all success in your future endeavour and hope you will bring in more laurels for the country,” the president wrote in a letter.
The 20-year-old Neelakanta Bhanu Prakash bagged the first-ever gold for India in Mental Calculation World Championship at Mind Sports Olympiad (MSO) 2020 held in London recently. The event, held annually in London, saw virtual participation from 30 geniuses across 13 countries.
Bhanu, a student of Mathematics (Hons) at Delhi University’s St Stephen College, has four world records and 50 Limca records to his name.
“Breaking these records, once held by Math maestros like Scott Flansburg and Shakuntala Devi, is a matter of national pride. I have done my bit to place India on the global level of mathematics,” Bhanu told ANI.
Bhanu was five years old when his tryst with maths began after an accident. Doctors had said that he would be cognitively impaired if he did not continue to work on his skills. “So my mom brought me puzzles and that’s how I knew my inclination was there. I realised that calculations are something that I loved doing,” he had told Hindustan Times in an interview.
While growing up, Bhanu would practice for about 4-6 hours a day. He later diverted his focus on other skills too.
“If I was just a mathematics calculator and didn’t know how business worked or how policy worked, I wouldn’t be able to contribute anything at all,” he said.
Bhanu wants to spread the love of maths to millions of kids and his ‘VISION Math’ labs is an initiative towards fulfilling that dream.
“Three out of every four students who study in the government schools of India have trouble in understanding basic Mathematics,” Bhanu told ANI. “Under the government’s listed goals, there are a lot of programs which emphasize on increasing the literacy, but as of now, there is no significant program or vision in increasing the mathematical abilities and numeracy which can put us ahead in the global race.”
“Our visionary Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take the lead as I want to initiate and take ‘VISION MATH’ of India ahead. A robust plan like this will put India on the global map of excellence and bring back the old Indian Math Glory,” he adds.
