BENAGLURU, 19 JAN

Chess prodigy Charvi Anilkumar from Bengaluru has been selected for the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, 2024. She is the youngest and only chess player from Karnataka to receive this highest award. President Droupadi Murmu will confer the award on 22 January. The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar is the highest civilian honour for children in India.

The nine-year-old became the World Champion in the Under-8 category at the 2022 World Cadets Chess Championship held in Georgia. This month, Charvi became the highest-rated girl player globally, born in or after 2013.

The prodigy is the only female player under 11 to surpass the 1,900 ELO mark, a measure to determine chess player ratings.

Charvi, who lives in Bengaluru’s Jakkur, travels to Chennai for training under RB Ramesh, who also mentors R Praggnanandhaa.

Charvi’s mother Akhila told Salar News, “Since it is the highest civilian award for children, we are elated and honoured to receive this award from the President. This award will encourage Charvi to work more and bring laurels to India.”

“She has won over a hundred trophies,” said Akhila, adding, "However, the National Under-8 Girls and Under-10 Championship are dearer to us as she was only eight-year-old when she achieved it. She even won the World Cadets Chess Championship held in 2022, and bagged a silver in Asian New Championship," the mother said.

She has won five gold and one silver medal for India in Asian Championship events. She is also the Commonwealth championship winner that was held in Sri Lanka.

Akhila who previously was a techie, quit her job to ensure that Charvi could follow her passion and achieve more for this country. -Salar News