IMPHAL, Nov 28 - A 12-year-old boy in Manipur will be allowed to appear in the ensuing High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) examination, considering his �mental age and superior IQ level�, for the first time in the history of the Board of Secondary Education Manipur (BoSEM). The boy, Isaac Paulallungmuan Vaiphei, is the son of Genkholian Vaiphei (66), a resident of Kangvai Bazar in Churachandpur district.
Confirming this, BoSEM Secretary Dr Chithung Mary Thomas said that the examination committee of the BoSEM approved of the boy�s application after studying the psychology test report on the young student given by the Clinical Psychology Department of the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS).
The BoSEM Secretary said the student�s mental age was found to be 17 years and five months, while his IQ was 141 according to the RIMS report. Consequently, the Board has allowed Isaac to appear in the HSLC examination next year as a child prodigy, she added.
Isaac is the eldest among four brothers and a sister. On hearing the news about the board�s permission, he said over phone: �So now I have to study�.
Table tennis player Naina Jaiswal of Hyderabad had appeared in the matriculation examination at the age of eight years. Isaac, who will complete 12 years and three months in February next year, has been dreaming of sitting in the HSLC examination as the youngest candidate in Manipur and becoming an IAS officer later.
Earlier, Isaac�s application seeking permission to appear in the HSLC examination put the BoSEM in a quandary as a student needs to complete 15 years of age on April 1 of the year in which he or she appears in the matriculation examination.
