71-year-old retired man from Jaipur clears CA final, proves age is no barrier for learning: Report
Jaipur: In a remarkable feat, 71-year-old Tarachand Agarwal from Jaipur has successfully cleared the Chartered Accountancy (CA) final examination, proving that age is no obstacle to academic achievement.
Agarwal cracked one of India’s most challenging professional exams after retiring from the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur (now SBI), where he served for 38 years before retiring as an Assistant General Manager in 2014, as reported by The New Indian Express on Sunday.
His name stood out on July 6, when the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) declared the results of the CA final exam. Among thousands of young aspirants, Agarwal’s accomplishment as a septuagenarian quickly gained attention and admiration.
Hailing from Sangaria in Hanumangarh district, Agarwal faced a personal setback in 2020 when he lost his wife, Darshana, during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We used to spend almost 21 hours a day together. When she left, I was completely shattered,” he expressed.
Struggling with grief and depression, he turned to spiritual reading to cope with the loss. It was during this period of introspection that a new idea emerged. Encouraged by his sons — Lalit, a chartered accountant, and Amit, a tax consultant — along with his granddaughter Ankika, Agarwal set his sights on the CA course.
He enrolled in the CA program in July 2021 and followed a strict daily routine that included early mornings, yoga, and 10 to 12 hours of study — four of which were dedicated to writing practice. Notably, he did not enrol in any paid coaching course. “The study material from ICAI is enough,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
He cleared the foundation exam in May 2022, the intermediate in January 2023, and sat for the final in May 2024. However, the last leg of his journey came with physical challenges: both of his shoulders developed a frozen condition, making it difficult to write. “My body was failing, but my spirit stayed strong,” he recalled.
In May 2025, he achieved what many thought impossible — passing the CA final at the age of 71. Photos of him holding his result sheet, beaming with pride, soon went viral on social media with the caption: “71-year-old uncle becomes a CA.”
Agarwal credits his success to the support of his family. His granddaughter Ankika, also preparing for the CA exams, shared study sessions with him. “We prepared together for the intermediate. Studying with him felt like learning with a friend,” TNIE quoted her as saying.
For Agarwal, this milestone is more than personal triumph — it’s a message of hope. “Most people believe life ends at retirement, especially after losing a partner. But I want to tell them that it’s never too late. You can still dream, learn and grow,” he shared.
As for what’s next, he’s leaving the door open. “If the younger ones in my family say, ‘Dada, try this,’ I will,” he said.
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Dense fog disrupts operations at Delhi airport; 228 flights cancelled, 5 diverted
New Delhi (PTI): Dense fog disrupted flight operations at Delhi Airport on Monday, with various airlines cancelling 228 flights and diverting five to nearby airports due to low visibility, an official said.
However, except for Air India, which had in an X post in the morning announced the cancellation of some 40 flights, no other airlines, including crisis-hit IndiGo, shared the numbers of their cancelled or delayed flights.
"As many as 228 flights -- 131 departures and 97 arrivals-- have been cancelled due to low visibility, so far," the airport official said.
In addition to this, five flights have been diverted so far, he said.
Earlier, the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), in a statement, said, "Our on-ground officials are working closely with all stakeholders to assist passengers and provide necessary support across Terminals.
"Low visibility (below minima), due to dense fog, has severely impacted operations at Delhi and other airports across northern India, which is unfortunately beyond our control," IndiGo said in a statement.
As operations are adjusted to prevailing weather conditions, some flights may experience delays, while a few others may be proactively cancelled during the day to prioritise safety and minimise extended waiting at the airport, the airline said in a statement.
IndiGo, however, did not say how many of its flights were cancelled or delayed.
The airline said its teams are "closely monitoring" the situation and coordinating with Delhi airport.
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IndiGo also said it issued advisories to its customers and "proactively" informing them, to minimise inconvenience.
“Poor visibility due to dense fog in Delhi this morning has impacted flight operations for all airlines. We are closely monitoring conditions and will resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so,” Air India said in a post on X in the morning.
It also said that some flights have been cancelled In the interest of safety, and to avoid prolonged uncertainty for the guests, while listing out some 40 arrivals and departures that it had cancelled for the day.
Delhi airport is the country's busiest, handling around 1,300 flight movements daily.
