Jaipur, India: Shiv Charan Yadav, a 77-year-old Rajasthani villager, is getting ready to take his class 10 board exam, for the 47th time.

Shiv Charan, from Khohari village in Alwae, first took the exam in 1968.

This year, on 10 March, Yadav hopes to put behind him 46 years of having failed the Class 10 exam. He had vowed long ago not to marry until he matriculated and the Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education's exam has been a tough taskmaster.

Yadav has been living alone in his ancestral home for 30 years now. His mother died when he was only two months old and he lost his father when he was 10. His uncle and extended family brought him up.

‘Each time it so happens that I pass in some subjects, but fail in others. For example, if I get enough marks in mathematics and science, I fail in Hindi and English. This time, I hope to pass all,’ a confident sounding Yadav told Times of India.

Yadav almost passed the exam, 21 years ago in 1995, but mathematics proved to be his undoing.

Last year, he managed to pass in one subject: social sciences. The year before that he failed in all the subjects.

‘This time, I have taken classes from some school teachers,’ he said.

‘The old-age pension from the government and the prasaad (religious offering) at a nearby temple help me get by,’ he said.

Some villagers make fun of Yadav's persistence, but some also admire his grit and help him with gifts of pens and books.