He is of an age few people reach and when there are no more goals to be achieved, but 95-year-old Raj Kumar Vaishya is still keen to fulfil his dream of acquiring a post-graduation degree and is working for it with the help of his retired son and daughter-in-law.

He has enrolled for a master of arts in economics from the Nalanda Open University (NOU).

“I am nearer to fulfilling my long cherished dream of a postgraduate degree in economics. My aim is not to get a degree; the thrust is to study and gain knowledge of economics so as to understand the problems faced by the people and the country and to contribute something, if possible,” says Vaishya, who retired in 1980 as a general manager in a private firm in Koderma (now in Jharkhand).

He says he wished to study economics also to understand why the country had failed to solve problems like poverty, illiteracy and joblessness.

Living with his second son and daughter-in-law in the posh Rajendra Nagar colony for the last 10 years after his wife’s death, Vaishya said the academic atmosphere in the house helped him make up his mind to study further.

His son Santosh Kumar, now in his early 70s, retired from the National Institute of Technology, Patna, whereas daughter-in-law Bharti S Kumar, in her early 60s, retired as a professor from Patna University.

“Initially, they told me studying is not an easy task at this age, but later agreed to support me in view of my commitment. My son will teach me mathematics and statistics and the daughter-in-law will pitch in with other help,” Vaishya said.

“I have decided to devote two hours daily in the morning and night hours to studies. After post-graduation, I will not pursue a Ph.D,” said Vaishya.

A court in Delhi on Monday issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against Aam Aadmi Party MLA Somnath Bharti in an alleged domestic violence and attempt to murder case.

The warrant has been issued by the apex court while dismissing Bharti’s anticipatory bail plea in the domestic violence case filed against him by his wife.

Reacting over the development, Lipika Mitra, the wife of former Delhi law minister Somnath Bharti, asked him to co-operate with the probe in the said case.

“Bharti should prove that he is a good human being and that he should co-operate with the probe. He claims himself to be a good father, good politician, but first he should try and prove himself as good human being,” ANI quoted Lipika as saying.

“If he (Bharti) has something, then he should bring it up before the police,” she added.

Lipika had filed a complaint with the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) in June, accusing him of domestic violence and mental torture since 2010.

Bharti was earlier named in an FIR filed under several Sections of the Indian Penal code (IPC), including domestic violence and attempt to murder.

Yet another case of sexual assault has come to the fore from the national capital. A Class XI student was abducted and gang-raped by two youths in Delhi’s Aman Vihar area on Sunday.

The incident happened, when the school girl was out for a morning walk, when two men kidnapped and took the girl to their house and gang-raped her.

After sexually assaulting the school girl, the duo – Naushad and Mohammad – kept her confined in the house.

They duo gagged the Class XI student and tied her legs and hands so that she couldn’t raise an alarm.

When the girl didn’t return home, the victim’s parents and people from neighbourhood started searching for her.

According to a neighbour, when they were looking out for the girl, some people found something suspicious in a house. The house was taken on rent by Naushad.

The house was found to be locked from outside, but the light was switched on. Sensing something suspicious, the neighbours broke open the door and found the girl.

The angry mob apprehended the duo and brutally thrashed and tonsured them. Later they were handed over to the police.

Delhi Police have arrested both and filed a rape case against them.

President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday described Hindi as a link between the country’s ancient civilisation and modern progress and hoped that it will soon get recognition as the official language of the United Nations.

Addressing a function organised on the occasion of ‘Hindi Divas’, the President said Hindi has achieved a number of milestones since Independence and it is credited to be the vehicle of Indian thought and culture. “The language is also a link between our traditional knowledge, ancient civilisation and modern progress. Our efforts should be to increase the use of Hindi in science and technology, so that participation of all, including the rural population, can be ensured in the progress of the country,” he said after conferring awards to individuals and government organisations for taking special efforts for promotion of Hindi.

Mukherjee said Hindi has its own imprint on the fast changing global economic scenario as millions of Indian diaspora around the world are using Hindi as a link language and this has given a new identification to Hindi at the international level. “I am sure that with our joint effort, Hindi will soon get the recognition of the official language of the United Nations,” he said.

The President said it was essential that simple translation of literature pertaining to technical knowledge is made available in Hindi and other Indian languages. He said he was happy to note that in offices, the use of Hindi in Information Technology is increasing.

The President congratulated the award winners for their commendable work in Hindi and urged everyone to come together to propagate the use of Hindi.