Knight Chess Academy, Singtam Shines in Kalimpong and Darjeeling Chess Tournaments 2025

Singtam, November 3, 2025: Students from Knight Chess Academy, Singtam, performed remarkably well at two major chess events — the Late Hari Pd. Katel and ST Sherpa Memorial Chess Championship 2025 held at Kalimpong, and the Rapid Chess Tournament 2025 held at Darjeeling.

In the Kalimpong Championship, Rajvedi Rai secured the 1st position in the Under-9 Girls category, while Yedhant Agarwal and Evan Moktan claimed the 2nd and 3rd positions respectively in the Under-9 Boys category. Pallak Agarwal won the 1st position in the Under-11 Girls category, Edha Singh secured 3rd position in the same category, and Suyog Shital Pradhan emerged Champion in the Under-13 Boys category. Parichay Subba claimed the 1st position in the Under-15 Boys category, while Manasvi Acharya received the title of Best Girl of the Tournament along with a cash prize. The academy’s coach, Rohit Gurung, won the Open Category.

In the Darjeeling Chess Tournament, Aarav Pradhan secured the 2nd position in the Under-10 category, Yedhant Agarwal stood 8th, and Pallak Agarwal 9th in the same category. Parichay Subba bagged the 2nd position in the Under-14 category, while Coach Rohit Gurung once again won the Open Category. The academy continues to make Singtam proud with its growing chess excellence.

Comments

History on Easter Sunday and Padari Ganga Prasad Pradhan

By Seira Tamang As noted by various scholars, Hinduism, the Nepali language, the monarchy and a rastriya itihas (a chronicle of progress in which the dark era of Rana rule is contrasted with the enlightened, progressive and modern period of Panchayat rule) formed the core of the Panchayat regime’s national culture. The formation and consolidation of this national culture have required the expunging of uncomfortable facts and stories that might raise ambiguities and questions. While the selection of what and who is and is not acknowledged to exist (or at least exist in historically important ways) in official Nepali history is complex, social scientists have begun to provide more comprehensive historical accounts of the past through oral histories and re-readings of historical documents. Such accounts reveal how ordinary people lived in the past, and offer ways to think through how ‘history’ is crafted, shaped and managed in order to reflect ‘the reality’ best suited to the status quo, ...

Pandam Garhi and its surmise

--> RUINS OF PANDAM GARHI BY SHITAL PRADHAN The stories of the legendary ruined walls at Pandam, a 16 km uphill climb from Rangpo, as I had heard from old folks a few seasons back, had ever since excited me to visit this place. Never in the pages of a history book do we come across its talk about when it was built or how it was constructed at the top of the hill? Over the years, many theories have evolved regarding its origin. Some theorists associate the fort with some Lepcha legends, while few disagree with it and have their own adage. They make us believe one of the Chogyals constructed it to stop the approaching Bhutanese army from entering Sikkim. The last theory to add up, already baffling and controversial, says it was one of the Gurkha Generals from Nepal who constructed the fort along with the Kalika Mandir, also called Nishani Mandir, just below it. With each theory making questions over my mind, I decided to have my second trek to the Pandam Garhi. I had ...

Sikkim Mahinda Thero: A national hero of Sri Lanka

Sikkim Mahinda Thero BY SHITAL PRADHAN I first heard about S Mahinda Thero in 2005 while in Kolkata when I was asked by one of the stamp dealers whether I was interested in a 20 paisa stamp of S Mahinda Thero issued by the Sri Lankan Postal Department in the early 1970s. I collected philatelic items on Buddhism, but I never understood who he was talking about. He told me, as I was from Sikkim, I might be interested to know more about the person, and he went on to add it was Sikkim Mahinda Thero, a Buddhist monk who is regarded as a national hero, a famous poet in the Sinhalese language whose poetry promoted patriotism and the revival of Buddhism to this part of the Island. He promised to send me the stamp of S Mahinda Thero from Colombo through the mail, but I have never heard from him since then. However, regarding my limited concern, it was enough to know that such a person keeps the name Sikkim with honor and pride in Sri Lanka. I had the name...

Proud to be a Sikkimese: Sikkim Travel, Culture & Local Heritage

Search This Blog