Dharamshala: A record 155 participants took part this year in the Himachal Pradesh Under-17 (Boys & Girls) State Chess Championship organized by Kangra Chess Club under the aegis of Himachal Pradesh State Chess Association. This is the first time in the history of the state that such a huge participation was seen in a chess competition. In the boys category, players played 7 rounds in which 107 players participated. Atiksh Thakur of Hamirpur secured the first position by scoring 7 points. Dushyant of Hamirpur secured the second position by scoring 6 points, while Achyut Sharma of Sirmaur secured the third position by scoring 6 points.
In the two-day competition held in the premises of DY Patil School, Keshav Sood of Kangra secured the fourth position by scoring 6 points, while Ritesh remained at the fifth position. In the girls category, 48 players participated and 6 rounds were played. Suryanshi Sharma of Sirmaur district secured first position by scoring 6 points, while Palak Thakur of Hamirpur secured second position by scoring 5 points. Saanvi Parihar of Kangra secured third position by scoring 5 points, while Shruti of Chamba secured fourth position by scoring 5 points. Shreya Guleria secured fifth position by scoring 5 points. The chief guest of the program, Amit Verma, presented trophies to all the winning players.
