WIM Prishita Gupta of Delhi and FM Adhiraj Mitra of Jharkhand are the 36th Under-17 National Girls and Open Champions. In the Girls section, Prishita scored 9/11 points to clinch the championship; Shivamshika G of Telangana and Saranya Devi Narahari of Andhra Pradesh secured 2nd and 3rd places. In the Open section, Adhiraj Mitra and Haridev S of Tamil Nadu scored 9/11 points to finish in the top 2 places according to tiebreak scores. Vedant Garg of Chandigarh secured 3rd place with 8.5/11 points. Photo: Mr. Atul Kumar Gupta

Arpan Das from West Bengal scored 8/9 points to win the 2nd Rungta Cement International Open FIDE Rating Classical Chess Tournament 2026. IM Aradhya Garg remained unbeaten throughout the tournament and scored 8/9 points to finish 2nd on tiebreak scores. FM Harshit Ranjan Sahu finished 3rd. The total prize fund was ₹6,00,000, with top 3 prizes of ₹1,00,000, ₹60,000, and ₹40,000, along with trophies. Photos: Basant Khandelwal

Candidate Master Saurabh Choubey of Madhya Pradesh scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 points to win the 26th Mizoram Open Rapid Chess Tournament. Johnson Zoremthara Chhangte of Mizoram scored 8/9 points to secure 2nd place. Mizoram Chess Association organised this tournament on the occasion of its Golden Jubilee and 50 years in chess. We interviewed Saurabh after his win; check out this report. Photos: Mr.Lalchhauna

Grandmaster Abhimanyu Puranik scored an unbeaten 8/9 points to win the 1st Saakar Foundation All India Open Rapid Rating Chess Tournament 2026. Four players, including IM Akshay Borgaonkar, FM Kaivalya Sandip Nagare, IM Kushagra Mohan, and FM Jaiveer Mahendru, scored 7.5/9 to finish in 2nd to 4th place. Saakar Foundation organised the tournament on 4th October with a ₹4,00,000 prize fund. The top 3 prizes were ₹1,00,000, ₹65,000, and ₹41,000 along with trophies. Photos: Mr.Rajendra Shidore

Premier Chess Academy’s Chess for Everyone 3.0 combined four days of FIDE-rated Classical chess with outstanding performances by Kerala’s young talents and a memorable special appearance and simultaneous exhibition by Super Grandmaster and Arjuna Awardee Vidit Gujrathi. Sahoo Utkal Ranjan of Odisha scored a perfect 8/8 to win the tournament, while this edition gave young players an unforgettable opportunity to meet, interact with, and play with Vidit Gujrathi. Photos: Premier Chess Academy

IM Harsh Suresh scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 to win the 1st Vijay Anand Chess Academy Rapid Rating 2026 in dominating fashion. CM Sarveshwaran V., Vignesh B., and M.S. Midilesh scored 8/9 points to finish in 2nd to 4th place according to tiebreak scores. The tournament was organised by Vijay Anand Chess Academy at the Hall of Chess, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Chennai. The total prize fund was ₹4,00,000, with top 3 prizes of ₹30,000, ₹25,000, and ₹20,000 along with trophies. Photo: Guna

The Western Asian Youth & Junior Chess Championships 2026 are set to take place in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, from October 22 to 31, 2026. Organized by the Gujarat State Chess Association, the prestigious regional championship offers ambitious young talents a great platform to earn direct FIDE titles and norms. All the players who took part in the age-category national championships last year are eligible to take part in this. Read more details.

Kanishkaraj V of Chennai scored an unbeaten 8/9 points to win the 6th KCA International FIDE Classical Rating 2026. Kanishkaraj and Kolla Bhavan were both unbeaten throughout the tournament and scored 8/9 points to finish in the top 2 spots according to tiebreak scores. The tournament was organised in Melapalayam, Panruti, Tamil Nadu. The total prize fund was ₹4,00,000, with the top 3 prizes of ₹40,000, ₹30,000, and ₹20,000, along with trophies. Photos: R.Pandian

A unique All India Open Freestyle Chess Tournament took place on 27 September 2026 at Chennai Citi Centre, Chennai, under the All India Freestyle Chess Association, with support from 64 Squares Chess Academy. GM Ilamparthi A.R. and GM Srihari L.R. scored 5.5/6 points to secure the top 2 spots. The tournament had a total cash prize pool of Rs 2,00,000. The top 3 prizes were ₹50,000, ₹30,000, and ₹20,000, along with trophies. The tournament was sponsored by Mr Kailasanathan of Microsense, who has supported Indian chess for a long time. Photo: Mr. S.C. Subramaniam

The October 2026 FIDE rating list is out. Savitha Shri Baskar gained 23 rating points after a dominant performance at the 46th FIDE Olympiad. Savitha was 2400 in July 2023, and after 3 years, she is back in the 2400 club. R. Praggnanandhaa climbed a spot, and he is now World No.7. India has 14 players in the Open Top 100 and 12 players in the Women’s Top 100. Check out the updated October rating list.

WCM Aaradhya Das scored an unbeaten 9.5/11 to become the 2026 National Under-13 Girls Champion. Aaradhya is from Tripura, and after learning that she had won the national title, she was greeted with a grand welcome at Agartala Airport. We caught up with Aaradhya after the tournament, where she shared her experience, games, and much more.