AICF and CCA plea for inclusion of chess for gradation

chandigarhsportsnews.blogspot.in

All India Chess Federation secretary Bharat Singh Chauhan called Governor of Punjab and Administrator, U.T. Chandigarh Shivraj V Patil in Punjab Raj Bhawan, to highlight the issue of inclusion of chess in the Sports Gradation List of the Chandigarh Sports Department.  Prof. Anil Raina, Chairperson and Dr. Vipnesh Bhardwaj, Secretary, Chandigarh Chess Association accompanied Mr Chauhan.

During his interaction with the Administrator, Mr Bharat Singh informed him that perhaps Chandigarh was the only UT/state in the country where chess, which was in the ‘Priority A’ category of the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, was not a graded sport in Chandigarh. He also informed Mr Patil of the various problems being faced by the chess players in the absence of gradation to chess.

Mr Bharat Singh informed Mr Patil that country’s chess icon Vishwananthan Anand has recently regained the World championship title for the fifth time and other Indian players were also consistently bagging international medals in this game, which is now played in over 160 countries of the world.

He urged the UT Administrator that gradation of chess in Chandigarh would go a long way in promoting this game in the city and help mitigate the problems being faced by budding chess players of Chandigarh, some of whom were already performing well in international forums.