‘Age can not wither, nor custom stale..’, who is the oldest living man in the world ?

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, October 1, 2024

Oriental fascination for gerontocracy is a well known phenomenon-so much so that even in the present world of space science and super technology senior citizens above sixty generally command respect across oriental societies in Asia and Africa. The senior citizens capped by grey and white hair are usually considered repositories of knowledge based on long experience even in tribal societies that still dot the orient.

Given this sociological context , the question that arouses natural human curiosity is who is the oldest living man on earth as opinions and informations on this vary widely. In the bygone year-that is , the year 2023-entire India was flummoxed by the fact that a 127 yearold man Swami Sivananda of Benares or holy Kashi was conferred the ‘Padmasri’ award in a function by the president of India Draupadi Murmu with the prime minister Narendra Modi and his cabinet colleagues in attendance as part of audience. Swami Sivananda who is widely known to be a ‘Yoga Guru’ and a highly spiritual man bemused all in the official function by touching the feet of all the dignitaries in his inherent humility. The universally respected man had been born on August 8 1896 and was 127 yearold when he received the state honour. He was then thought to be the most ancient living man on lap of mother earth.

But today information has come that a 119 yearold man still survives strong and healthy in the Maulvi Bazar district of Bangladesh. The man identified as Ram Singh Gour had been born in the year 1905 in Jabbalpur of India’s Madhya Pradesh and had arrived in the bordering areas of Srimangal subdivision with his late father Buguram Gour in the year 1923 to work as a tea garden worker. The tea cultivation and industry in present Bangladesh (erstwhile Eastern Bengal and East Pakistan) had actually commenced in the hands of such migrant workers in late 19th century.

But Ram Singh’s ancestors had never gone back home and settled down in Srimangal and Maulvi Bazar districts . Sources in Bangladesh claim that Ram Singh Gour (119) is the oldest living man in the world but according to Guiness Book of World Records the man who holds the record of being the longest living is John Alfred Tiniswood (111) of England. The predominant consensus here, however, is that Swami Sivananda is the oldest living man on earth but very few people have the gall to engage in a verbal slugfest over the issue.