Press Release

2012

World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand launches NIIT MindChampions’ Academy at National High School for Boys in KolkataNIIT strengthens alliance with National High School by introducing NIIT MindChampions’ Academy in its schools To nurture & develop young minds by introducing them to Chess
Kolkata, December 17, 2012: NIIT Limited, leading Global Talent Development Corporation and Asia’s largest IT trainer, today announced the launch of NIIT MindChampions’ Academy at National High School for Boys, Hazra Road and National High School for Girls, Deshopriya Park in Kolkata.

The program was unveiled by World Chess Champion & NIIT MindChampion Viswanathan Anand. A joint initiative by NIIT & Grand Master Viswanathan Anand, MindChampions’ Academy aims to popularize Chess in schools across India. Since its inception MCA has touched 1.5 million children in over 16,600 schools in India.

NIIT MindChampion & World Chess Champion, Viswanathan Anand inaugurated the revolutionary concept in presence of Mr. S.Radhakrishnan, President, N.R.Iyer Memorial Education Society; Mr. K.R.Sriram-Secretary, N.R.Iyer Memorial Education Society; Mr. R.Jagannathan-Assistant Secretary, N.R.Iyer Memorial Education Society; Anurag Dixit, National Sales Head, School Learning Solutions, NIIT Ltd. and Debdash Bannerjee, Associate Vice President, School Learning Solutions, NIIT Limited.

World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand & NIIT MindChampion said, “Over the years, NIIT MindChampions’ Academy has been popularizing Chess in schools across India, to enable development of young minds and encourage them to take up the sport. It has been established that the game of chess makes significant contribution to the field of education. We are pleased to partner with National High School, Kolkata to bring to students the advantages of technology training combined with the benefits of Chess that NIIT MindChampions’ Academy delivers.”

Studies have established that there is a strong correlation between the game of chess and academic excellence. It has been proved conclusively that Chess improves concentration and diligence, thus building concentration levels and helping students perform better academically.

Mr.S.Radhakrishnan-President, N.R.Iyer Memorial Education Society, said, “We are extremely honoured to welcome our very own Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand to National High School, Kolkata. Anand is an inspiration to millions of children across India.”

“We are excited about introducing NIIT MindChampions’ Academy in our school. We are confident that this unique initiative will impact analytical and logical thinking in children by introducing them to chess, thus helping them excel in academics,” added S.Radhakrishnan.

Hemant Sethi, President, School Learning Solutions, NIIT Ltd commented, “We are pleased to further strengthen our alliance with National High School that will enable us to reach out to more young minds. NIIT believes in providing impactful learning solutions to students. To this end we have innovatively integrated Chess in the curriculum and used technology to enhance learning experience.”

NIIT MindChampions’ Academy encourages students to take up the game of Chess, enabling development of young minds. The phenomenal success of MindChampions’ Academy has reiterated the fact that Chess has been a rewarding experience for students, helping them approach the academic problems in a more tactical and logical manner and improve their analytical skills.

About NIIT MindChampions' Academy
The NIIT MindChampions’ Academy (MCA) has been set up as a joint initiative by Grand Master Viswanathan Anand and NIIT Limited, leading Global Talent Development Organisation and Asia’s largest IT Trainer, with the objective of promoting Chess in schools to enable development of young minds. Studies have shown that Chess improves concentration and diligence, thus helping students performs better academically. Established in 2002, MCA has touched 1.5 million children in over 16,600 schools in India.

World Chess Champion and NIIT Mind Champion Viswanathan Anand has personally travelled to various parts across India - Agartala, Guwahati, Hyderbad, Mumbai, New Delhi, Jaipur, Patna, Raipur, Chennai, Hyderbad, Kolkata, Pune,Ahmedabad and has visited countries like Africa & China, spreading the message and motivating the school students to start playing Chess.

NIIT Mind Champions’ Academy conducts the hugely popular Annual Event, known as Chess Master for school children across India within the NIIT network of schools where it provides IT education. It is also the first institution in India to launch a certificate program in Chess under a Central Government University umbrella- Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

About NIIT NGuru

NIIT Nguru is a holistic education solution which helps teachers to incorporate ICT into school pedagogy and make teaching-learning a better experience. NGuru solutions utilize appropriate technology as the backbone and encompass all the possible components required to service the present and future learning needs of a school.

NIIT NGuru suite consists of:
Interactive Classrooms- an end to end Teaching- Learning solution for classrooms that uses elements of interactivity, automation and web links libraryInteractive Classrooms @ Home – It is a first of a kind solution which uses the Cloud technology to make learning possible at home and make it a 24 x 7 processMath lab- State-of-the-art Mathematics Laboratory for schools which comes with Geometer’s Sketchpad Software, Multiple Teaching and Learning Aids like Technology Applications, Videos, Manipulative, Measuring Instruments and Theme Based AmbienceIT Wizard- equips the students with core computer knowledge and IT skillsQuick School- an Education Resource Planning solution for effective school managementMobile Science Lab- the first of its kind portable computerized Science Laboratory which enables st udents to correlate scientific concepts taught in the class to real life.NIIT MindChampions’ Academy (MCA)- a joint initiative between Grand Master Viswanathan Anand and NIIT, MCA was set up with the objective of promoting Chess in schools to enable development of young minds.IPICT -The International Pedagogical ICT License is a comprehensive, flexible and effective training programme for the continued professional development of teachers.
About National High School for Boys, Kolkata

National High School for Boys (NHS), Kolkata, provides quality education for boys, from Kindergarten to Higher Secondary. Conveniently located on Hazra Road in South Kolkata, the school is affiliated with West Bengal Board of Secondary Education and West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education. The school provides spacious well ventilated class rooms, well-equipped computer centre, laboratories and a good library to its students. This school is managed by N R Iyer Memorial Education Society members, comprising successful professionals and businessmen from various fields. The primary goal of the school is to focus on the overall development of an individual from toddler to youth at a very affordable cost.

Apart from imparting quality education, NHS encourages students to regularly participate in various sports activities, Science Fairs, Science Quiz and Science Show at Birla Industrial & Technological Museum. The school cricket team participates in various renowned tournaments including the ones organised by Cricket Association of Bengal, South Kolkata District School Sports Association. The school is the National Level Champion in inter-school Regatta organised by Bengal Rowing Club.

Students actively participate in various Quiz programs, Drama competitions and debates organised by various schools and organisation in Kolkata. The school has a well-equipped science club with facilities for latest experiments on Physical Science.

NHS facilitates a perfect combination of academic brilliance and extra-curricular activities to bring out the best in the students in all walks of life.

About NIIT

NIIT Limited, a leading Global Talent Development Corporation and Asia’s premier IT trainer, offers learning and knowledge solutions across 38 countries. Leading IT journal Dataquest has conferred upon NIIT the ‘Top IT Training Company’ award successively for the past 20 years, since the inception of this category.

NIIT’s Individual Learning Business offerings include industry-endorsed programs for students seeking careers in IT – GNIIT and Edgeineers, and Global Net Plus for IT professionals. The company has introduced “India’s first cloud campus”, through its new-age GNIIT program. This offers students a higher mobility as they can access courseware using Netbooks to connect seamlessly to NIIT’s Cloud Campus network.

NIIT’s Corporate Learning Solutions offers Managed Training Services including integrated learning solutions (strategic consulting, learning design, content development, delivery, technology, assessment and learning management) to Fortune 500 companies, Universities, Technology companies, Training corporations and Publishing houses.

NIIT Yuva Jyoti, a joint venture between NIIT and NSDC, offers vocational skills training programs to enhance employability of youth across India.

NIIT has provided computer-based learning to over 15,000 government and private schools. The futuristic NIIT NGuru range of learning solutions for schools comprises Interactive Classrooms, Math Lab, IT Wizard programs and Quick School (Education Resource Planning software).

NIIT Imperia - Centre for Advanced Learning, offers Executive Learning Programs in association with leading Business schools in India, KPMG, Google India and Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), using the synchronous learning platform.

NIIT Institute of Finance Banking & Insurance (IFBI), formed by NIIT with equity participation from ICICI Bank, offers programs for individuals and corporates in Banking, Financial Services and Insurance.

NIIT Institute of Process Excellence Limited, a NIIT-GENPACT venture (NIIT Uniqua), offers complete training outsourcing services to the Business Process, Knowledge and Technology Services industry to create business models that enhance productivity and lower costs.

NIIT has been ranked among the ‘Top 10 India’s Best Companies to Work for- 2012’ by Great Places to Work Institute and ‘Top 25 Best Employers in India- 2011’ by Aon Hewitt. The company has also been voted the second most trusted education brand in India by Brand Equity- Nielsen Survey 2011.

For media queries, please contact:
Prateek Chatterjee
Vice President, Corporate Communications & Marketing, NIIT Limited
Ph: (Cell) +91 9910201085, (Dir) +91 124 4293041
Email:prateek.chatterjee@niit.com
OR
Reema Bardhan
Corporate Communications & Marketing, NIIT Limited
Ph: +91 9891267470
Email:reema.bardhan@niit.com