'I Was Fully Prepared': How a 7-YO from Ranchi Became the Youngest to Swim Across the Palk Strait

The clock read 4 am when a seven-year-old boy slipped into the dark waters off Talaimannar, Sri Lanka. No fanfare, just the sea, stars, and a child who had decided with certainty that he was ready to take on one of South Asia's most treacherous open-water routes. Nearly ten hours later, Ishank Singh touched the shores of Dhanushkodi in Tamil Nadu — having swum 29 kilometres across the Palk Strait, one of the most demanding open-water routes in the world.  It was 30 April, 2026 and Ishank, a Class 3 student from Dhurwa in Ranchi, Jharkhand, had just become the youngest and fastest person to ...