CHENNAI : She’s got twice the IQ of the average human, certifications from IT majors that techies battle with and is the youngest ninth-grader this side of the country. And yet, 11-year-old Visalini feels there’s something missing. “I want recognition for all these,” says the perky pre-teen, pointing at four folders worth of IT and networking certificates. “Even Arfa Karim Randhawa in Pakistan, who was the youngest to pass the CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) exam before me, was heralded as the ‘pride of Pakistan’,” she adds. The hurt is evident in her voice.Hailing from Palayamkottai, the child’s brilliance was apparently spotted by their paediatrician when she was three. Her mother Ragamalika says, “She has taken six IQ tests since then, her highest be ing 225. It was only when she cracked the networking tests from Cisco and Microsoft did people at a cloud computing convention at Bangalore look at her like she’s a celebrity.” However, all the networking exams haven’t come easy, or cheap, “The next certificate she’s aiming for - CCIE - is an eight hour long exam that will cost `1 lakh just to write,” says her mother, a former AIR announcer. Recognition aside, some financial aid from the state would be welcome. “There is so much spent on mentally underdeveloped children. Perhaps a little can be spent on an extraordinarily developed one?” she asked hopefully.Carrying the mantle of prodigy isn’t all rosy though. “Being someone who keeps asking questions and correcting people, she isn’t the most popular person,” adds Ragamalika. Visalini constantly corrects teachers and her considerably older classmates (she has been double-promoted in school twice) and has earned the reputation of a know-it-all. She even stopped a scribe mid-question to correct him, saying, “There’s a difference between networking and software. Don’t confuse them.” Her frankness and forthright answers took most other scribes by surprise. “What will I do for India or for society? Let me first become CEO of my networking firm, let’s see then,” she said. Though some people have considered it arrogance, Visalini’s brilliance is what has propelled her to excel, said her father, “She wants to enter IIT soon,” he concluded.
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