Anand flags off Mind Champions Academy in Tripura

Agartala, June 4 (UNI) Indian chess grandmaster and former FIDE world champion Viswanathan Anand has flagged off NIIT's Mind Champions Academy in 28 government schools here today.

Speaking on the occasion, NIIT Brand Ambassador Anand said, ''India today is a reckoning economic force that has already made mark with it's presence being felt in the global IT business.

However, we still have to create the same kind of magic in sports.'' He hoped that the academy in schools across the state would encourage young talents to embrace the mind game and the students to use computer tutorials during and after the school as a virtual play field to hone their skills in the game of chess.

Addressing the gathering, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar exhorted that the young learners in the remote part of the state should imbibe computer skills and participate in the emerging knowledge era.

He has also assured that the state government is in the process of spreading IT education across the state and distant learning through Edusat has already been operational in 50 schools.

NIIT has launched Mind Champions Academy in nearly 4,000 schools in India for 70, 000 students to be trained in chess.

UNI