New Delhi, The National level winners of the NIIT MindChampions Academy (MCA) were felicitated by World Chess Champion and NIIT MindChampion Viswanathan Anand at the Grand finale of Chess Master 2009 at Gandhinagar today. Shri Ashok Chandulal Bhatt, Honble Speaker of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly graced the occasion as the Chief Guest.

Aditya Chakraborty from Delhi Public School, Ruby Park, Kolkata, West Bengal and Bappi Deb from Teliamura Higher Secondary School, West Tripura, Tripura, were adjudged as the National level winners of the NIIT MindChampions Academy - Chess Master 2009.

At the National Finals of the NIIT MindChampions Academy Chess Master 2009, the winners of each Zone - South, East, North and West, vied for the coveted Chess Master 2009 title. Priya Soni from Government Higher Secondary School, Kawardha and Manan Shah from SVDD School, Mumbai represented the West Zone; Aditya Chakraborty from Delhi Public School, Ruby Park, Kolkata and Bappi Deb from Teliamura Higher Secondary School, Tripura represented the East Zone, the South Zone was represented by Goutham S from Geetanjali Vidyalaya , Bangalore and Jagu Rajesh from ZPH School, Chebrolu, East Godavari District of Andhra Pradesh; while Pawan Jeet from Govt. Junior High School, Sadarpur, Noida and Tejas Arora from Springdales Senior School Amritsar represented the North Zone. The zonal winners also got an opportunity to play Chess with the Chess Champion, Viswanathan Anand.

NIIT MindChampions Academy is a joint initiative by NIIT, a leading Global Talent Development Corporation and Asia largest IT Trainer, and World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand to initiate young minds into the World of Chess.

This year NIIT MindChampions Academy has witnessed participation of over 4.5 Lakh students from across the country in the Chess Master 2009. There have been 6282 clubs actively playing chess since April 2009 to compete for the Chess Master 2009 title. The aim has been to go green this year and the complete implementation, monitoring, playing has been done electronically under the supervision of faculties from NIIT.

In response to an online survey conducted by MCA this year, over 8000 children have mentioned that Chess has helped them perform better in academics, especially in Science and Mathematics. The game developed their patience and understanding, motivating children to take up chess before school hours or during the breaks.

Commenting on the success of NIIT MindChampions Academy, Viswanathan Anand remarked, "It is heartening to note that young children are taking up chess enthusiastically and mastering the strategies of the game. I heartily congratulate both the winners and wish them a bright future ahead."

"I am confident that the grit and determination that these young children have displayed will help them excel in academics as well. I am delighted to see that NIIT MindChampions Academy has touched a huge number of children across the country and initiated them into the game of Chess. Technology has also played a key role in reaching out to children in every corner of the country for introducing them to Chess".

Shri Ashok Chandulal Bhatt, Honble Speaker of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly 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. He said that the budding talents need to be mentored and guided and that NIIT MindChampions Academy is offering the aspiring young Chess players an ideal platform to learn and grow.

According to L Balasubramanian, President, School Learning Solutions, NIIT Ltd., "Children with active mind and body excel in academics and do well in their lives. It has been found that the game of Chess is a great mental stimulant that improves concentration, develops patience and understanding, and thus helps children perform better in academics as well."

"The NIIT MindChampions Academy that was launched in 2002 to initiate young children to Chess has commenced a movement that now touches more than 8.5 Lakhs students from over 7000 schools across India. I am overjoyed by the fact that young children have immensely benefited from this movement and are now taking up chess enthusiastically in their free time. I am sure that India will produce many more Chess Masters in the years to come," added Mr. Balasubramanian.

World Chess Champion Viswanathan 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 chess. NIIT MindChampions Academy conducts an Annual Chess event, known as Chess Master for these school children across 16 states in the NIIT network.

Notes to Editor

About NIIT

NIIT Limited, leading Global Talent Development Corporation and Asia largest IT trainer, 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 successively for the past 17 years, since the inception of this category. Rated among India Business Superbrands 2008, NIIT Individual Learning Business offerings include industry-endorsed programs for students seeking careers in IT - GNIIT, Edgeineers and Global Net Plus for IT professionals.

NIIT has provided computer-based learning to over 12,000 government and private schools. The futuristic NIIT eGURU range for schools is a holistic education package that comprises of Interactive Classrooms (an embedded Teaching Learning Material, that uses elements of interactivity, automation and web links library); Math lab (technology tools that enable school students to learn and explore

mathematical concepts); IT Wizard (equips the students with core computer knowledge and IT skills); and Quick School (an Education Resource Planning solution for school management).

For working professionals, NIIT Imperia, Centre for Advanced Learning, offers Executive Management Education Programs in association with Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) at Ahmedabad, Indore, Kolkata, Lucknow, IMT Ghaziabad and IIFT Delhi.

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 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.

NIIT delivers a tailored combination of catalog learning products, technology and services through Element K offerings. These include: vLab®: hands-on labs, instructor-led courseware, comprehensive e-reference libraries, technical journals, and KnowledgeHub™: hosted learning management platform. This makes NIIT the first and the best choice for comprehensive learning solutions, worldwide.