Chess players, prize winners, sports lovers and prominent citizens accorded a warm welcome to Torch Rally (flame) at Zero Mile here on Saturday taken out to mark 44th International Chess Olympiad Tournament at Chennai.
The tournament is being held at Chennai from July 28 to August 10 as part of celebrations of Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsava. Such rallies are being welcomed at 75 iconic places in the country and Nagpur is one of them. The rally then started its further journey and reached to G H Raisoni Engineering College after passing through main thoroughfares of the city.
Later, a programme was held in which Madhavi Khode-Chawre, Divisional Commissioner, was the chief guest. R Vimla, District Collector, Sushmita Jyotishi, Regional Director, Girish Vyas, Vice-President of Maharashtra State Chess Association, Shekhar Patil, Deputy Director, Sports & Youth Services, Pallavi Dhatrak, District Sports Officer, Dr Jaiprakash Duble, international player, Bhushan Shrivas, Vivek Kapoor, Director Raisoni Group, Raunak Sadhvani, Divya Deshmukh, Chess players, Nishant Gandhi, Sankalp Gupta and office-bearers of Nehru Yuva Kendra were present.
Addressing the gathering, Khode-Chawre said chess game originated from india many years ago and now it is being played all over the world. The game requires brain. It helps people increase intellectual capacity and draw strategy at various stages in life. She wanted that the elderly persons should encourage students to play chess.
In her speech, Vimla said exercise and game result in developing mental and physical capacity. Students should be encouraged to play some game and create liking about sports, she added.
Prof Mrs Bisen and Maya Duble conducted the function while Pallavi Dhatrak proposed a vote of thanks. Later, the flame was handed over by chess players to the grand master.
