- Bhakti Juikar from Mumbai and Prabha
Rajwade
from Baikunthpur
adjudged as the winners
Pune, January 13, 2009: World Chess Champion and NIIT
MindChampion Viswanathan Anand was in town to felicitate the winners of West
Zone Finals of the NIIT MindChampions Academy- Chess Master 2008. Bhakti Juikar,
a student from I E S V.N Sule School, Mumbai, Maharashtra and Prabha Rajwade, a
student from Govt. Girls Higher Secondary School, Baikunthpur, Chhattisgarh
emerged as the winners for West Zone. NIIT MindChampions Academy is a joint
initiative of NIIT, a leading Global Talent Development Corporation and Asia’s
No. 1 Trainer and World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand to initiate young minds
into the World of Chess.
Ms. Rajalaxmi Bhonsle, Mayor, Pune along with Mr. Sanjay Kumar, IAS-
Principal Secretary Sports, Education and Youth Affairs, Govt. of Maharashtra,
joined World Chess Champion & NIIT MindChampion Viswanathan Anand and Mr. L
Balasubramanian, President, School Learning Solutions, NIIT Ltd. as Chief Guest
and Guest of honour to give away prizes to the winners of West Zone.
The West Zone level contest witnessed widespread participation by nearly
22,606 students from over 1145 Government and Private Schools spread across 4
states. The record participation was made possible due to matches being played
over the internet from district level onwards across the Zone. This allowed
schools even from the remote areas where NIIT has been working with state
government schools as well as private schools to educate and train the kids in
use of ICT, to enroll for Chess Master 2008.
Ms. Rajalaxmi Bhonsle recognized the commendable performance of the young
MindChampions in the game of Chess and encouraged them to continue to exhibit
the same zeal and brilliance. She said that the budding talent needs to be
mentored and guided and NIIT MindChampions Academy is offering the aspiring
young Chess players a perfect platform to learn and grow.
According to Mr. L. Balasubramanian, President-School Learning Solutions,
NIIT, “The response to NIIT MindChampions Academy- Chess Master 2008 has
been overwhelming this year. The Academy is aimed at motivating and encouraging
the young talent as we are committed to the development of these young minds
both in the game of Chess and in academics.”
At the Zonal finals conducted, 4 NIIT Mind Champions’ (state level winners)
from schools vied for the coveted slot for competing in the finals. The winners
from the West Zone got an opportunity to play simultaneous Chess with the Chess
Champion, Viswanathan Anand.
Felicitating the winners of West Zone, Viswanathan Anand said, “It
is a proud feeling to see these young children actively take part in Chess Mater
2008. I congratulate both the winners for wining the NIIT MCA West Zone Final
Championship and wish them a bright future ahead.”
“I am confident that the excellence and determination that these
young children have displayed will help them perform well in academics as well.
It is heartening to see that NIIT MindChampions Academy has reached huge number
of children across the country to initiate them into the game of Chess,” he
added.
Winners of the West Zone Finals of NIIT MindChampions Academy Chess Master
2008 will represent the zone at the National Finals. The National winner will be
awarded by the World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand at a mega event for
National Finals in New Delhi on January 17, 2009.
The NIIT MindChampions
Academy has provided platform to the young Chess players like Karthikeyan Murali
who was sponsored by the academy for the All India Chess Finals at Ahmedabad in
August 2008 and other competitions to improve his FIDE rating. His current
rating is 1780 and he stands 40th out of the 210 participant at the national
level.
Launched in 2002 with an objective of initiating students into the world of
Chess, NIIT Mind Champions Academy has today fostered nearly 6351 chess clubs
with more than 7,45,000 students cumulatively since inception, as its members in
schools where NIIT offers computer education. World Chess Champion Vishwanathan
Anand has personally travelled to Agartala, Guwahati, Raipur, Patna, Hyderabad,
Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai and other cities across India, spreading the message
and motivating the school students to start playing. NIIT MindChampions Academy
conducts an Annual Chess Tournament, known as Chess Master for these school
children across 16 states in the NIIT network. Chess Master 2008 was flagged
off by NIIT Mind Champion Viswanathan Anand in New Delhi and simultaneously in
11 other cities through NIIT Imperia’s Synchronous Learning Technology in May
last year.
About NIIT
NIIT, Asia’s No. 1 IT trainer and
leading Global Talent Development Corporation, offers learning and knowledge
solutions to over 5 million students across 40 countries.
Leading IT
magazine Dataquest has conferred upon NIIT, the Top IT Training Company Award
2007. Rated among India’s Business Superbrands 2008, NIIT’s Individual Learning
Business offerings include industry-endorsed programs for students seeking
careers in IT - GNIIT, Integrated ANIIT for Engineers (IAE), and Advanced
Technology Programs for IT professionals.
NIIT offers turnkey IT integration program for schools. NIIT has provided
computer-based learning to over 9,500 government and private
schools.
For working professionals, NIIT Imperia, Centre for
Advanced Learning, offers Executive Management Education Programmes in
association with Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) at Ahmedabad, Indore and
Kolkata.
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 Uniqua, Centre for Process Excellence, addresses the
increasing demand for skilled workers in the business and technology services
industry by providing training programs in relevant areas. This is a part of
NIIT Institute of Process Excellence, a NIIT-Genpact venture.
NIIT’s Corporate Learning Solutions, offers integrated
learning solutions (including strategic consulting, learning design, content
development, delivery, technology, assessment and learning management) to
Fortune 500 companies, Universities, Technology companies, Training corporations
and Publishing houses.
Element K delivers learning
solutions for customers and partners through a tailored combination of catalog
learning products, technology, and services. The offerings include: vLab®:
hands-on labs, instructor-led courseware, comprehensive e-reference libraries,
technical journals, and KnowledgeHub™: hosted learning management platform.
NIIT together with Element K is now the first and the best choice for
comprehensive learning solutions, worldwide.
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