Mumbai boy breaks world record, becomes youngest PADI-certified scuba diver

Mumbai: A day after his 10th birthday, a class 4 student in Mumbai has become the world’s youngest Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI)-certified Junior Open Water Diver (12 metres).

The Australia-based PADI, working in 186 countries, regulates Scuba Diving and issues certification to divers which makes them qualified to dive around the world. As per PADI rules, the minimum age for a certified diver is 10 years.

The boy, Dwit A. Nandu, studying at St. Francis D'Assisi High School, celebrated his 10th birthday on Thursday and the new laurel was proclaimed on Friday at Temple Adventures, Pondicherry, said his father Dr Amit Nandu

The first level of PADI certification called 'Junior Open Water Diver’ is followed by 'Open Water Diver', then 'Advanced Open Water Diver' (30 metres), 'Deep Diver' (40 metres), and then the professional ‘tech-diver’ categories for greater depths.

“At 10 years one can begin the course and then get certified. Dwit had started preparing for the course well in advance and he completed it today, creating a world record,” Dr Nandu said.

He explained that the rigorous course involved learning advanced swimming, the ability to swim 200 meters without any aid or support, studying five modules, cracking a written exam based on them, finishing confined water training in a swimming pool, and then completing four open water dives.

For the past year, Dwit was immersed deep in the preparations for his global record, undergoing swimming coaching at a club in Borivali, then for the PADI-certified Temple Adventures diving centre in Pondicherry, he added.

In a certificate issued by the instructor Riyas Jalal, the East Coast Watersports Pvt Ltd said, “Dwit has completed his Scuba Diver Course on his 10th birthday on 24 August 2023, diving to the depth of 40 feet and finished his PADI Junior Open Water Diver Course on 25 August 2023 around 08.00 hrs. Thus, he attained the position of youngest Junior Open Water Diver in the world by completing the course at the age of 10 years and 18 hours.”

Incidentally, scuba diving practically runs in the family for years with Dr. Nandu himself a Certified Deep Diver, his elder son Jinay is an Advanced Open Water Diver, and now Dwit has become a world record-holder in Junior Open Water Diver.

With inputs from IANS