SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, April 21: Umesh Saw emerged as the champion of the 14th Padma Bai Rungta Memorial West Singhbhum District Chess Championship, which concluded at the Sitaram Rungta Recreation Hall in Chaibasa on Sunday evening.
Saw secured 7 points in eight rounds to clinch the title. Although rated player Kamal Kishore Devnath also scored 7 points, he had to settle for second place due to lower progressive scores.
Top 10 Performers and State Qualification
Manish Sharma claimed the third position with 6.5 points, while Rajesh Kumar secured fourth place with 6 points. Other players who scored 6 points and secured the 5th to 10th positions, respectively, were Shatrughan Singh, Narendra Nath Pandey, Tanisk Kumar, Kush Mudra, Aditya Shah, and Lalit Kishore Bandra.
General Secretary of the West Singhbhum District Chess Association, Basant Khandelwal, announced that the top four players would represent the district in the upcoming Jharkhand State Chess Championship.
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Winners Across Age Categories
In the boys’ Under-7 category, Writwik Shah and Anand Mahto bagged the first and second positions, respectively. In the girls’ section, Hitika Kujur emerged as the champion.
In the Under-9 boys’ category, G. Arav and Ved Ahuja finished first and second, while in the girls’ division, Mayara Shah and Idrija Dey took the top two spots.
Under-11 boys’ winners were Ankur Rathore and Wrishav Kumar, while Aditya and Ahuti Dey secured first and second places, respectively, in the girls’ section.
In the boys’ Under-13 category, Aditya Bardhan Sharma and Ekans Shah were crowned champion and runner-up. Priya and Perish Munda claimed the top two positions in the girls’ section.
Under-15 boys’ winners were Rajmohan and Anwesh Mahatn, while Kanishk Mukhi and Soumya Prabha Soi stood first and second among the girls.
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Closing Ceremony and Guests
The closing ceremony was graced by Superintendent of Police Ashutosh Shekhar, who presented trophies to the winners as the chief guest. Nitin Prakash, patron of the association, served as the guest of honour. Other dignitaries present included President Mukund Rungta and Vijay Mudra.
The tournament was officiated by international arbiter Jayant Kumar Bhuyan of Jharkhand. Notable attendees included Jaydeo Chandra Tripathi, Balram Sultaniya, Sohan Lal Mundra, Arpit Khirwal, Purushottam Saraf, Hursh Sharma, Sushil Choumal, Juel Gagrai, Nirmal Chandra Tripathi, and Anant Lal Vishwakarma.
