Mystery man survives without food and water for 65 years

AHMEDABAD: An 83-year-old Indian holy man who says he has spent 65 years without food or water has astounded a team of military doctors who studied him during a two-week observation.

Prahlad Jani spent a fortnight in a hospital in the western India state of Gujarat under constant surveillance from a team of 30 medics equipped with cameras and closed-circuit television. He neither ate nor drank and did not go to the toilet.

India's Defence Research and Development Organisation hopes that through the observation, they could help soldiers survive without food and drink, assist astronauts or even save the lives of people trapped in natural disasters.

Doctors took scans of Janis's organs, brain and blood vessels, as well as doing tests on his heart, lungs and memory capacity. The tests and scans turn out to be normal.

Medical practitioners assumed that since Jani does not depend on food or water for his survival, he could have derived it from the sunlight as it is a source of energy.

Jani has since returned to his village near Ambaji in northern Gujarat, where he will resume his routine of yoga and meditation. He says that he was blessed by a goddess at a young age, who gave him special powers.

jm