Iftikar Alom Mazumdar dominates 1st Meghalaya Invitation Rating Tournament 2023
Sixth seeded Iftikar Alom Mazumdar scored an unbeaten 8.5/9 to win 1st Meghalaya Invitation Rating Tournament 2023. He finished a half point ahead of the competition. Top seed of the event, Soram Rahul Singh scored sole 8/9 to finish third. He remained a full point ahead of the second runner-up. Meghalaya's very own, Silkam Sangma edged past Talin Nimpu to finish third on tie-breaks. They both scored 7/9 each. Soram's both draws were against the remaining podium finishers. The total prize fund of the tournament was ₹150000. The top three prizes were ₹20000, ₹17000 and ₹15000 along with a trophy each respectively. Only North Eastern players were eligible to take part in this event. Photo: Khrawkupar Pajat/Meghalaya Chess Association
Iftikar's first rating tournament triumph
Top seed Soram Rahul Singh and Iftikar Alom Mazumdar, both players were on 7.5/8 each, heading into the final round. Soram drew with the second seeded, Silkam Sangma, and Iftikar defeated Jerry N Pajat to win the tournament. This is the first Iftikar became a champion in a rated event. He has secured a few podium finishes in a rated events before.
In the Opening Ceremony, A L Hek, Cabinet Minister, Govt. of Meghalaya, was the Chief Guest and Gunanka D B, Indian Forest Service was the Guest of Honour. They inaugurated the tournament in presence of the MCA President, K M Warjri and General Secretary MCA, K Pajat along with other members. In the Closing Ceremony, Brightstarwell Marbaniang, MLA, Mawlai Constituency, Meghalaya was the Chief Guest, Swapnil Tembe, IAS was the Guest of Honour, Khalid Khan, Advocate General, High Court of Meghalaya and Gunanka D B, IFS were the special invitees along with members of the MCA.
A special thanks to Khrawkupar Pajat, General Secretary of Meghalaya Chess Association, for sharing the photographs and information.
A total 99 players participated from various north-eastern states of the country. The invitational Swiss league Rating tournament was organized by Meghalaya Chess Association, sponsored by Directorate of Sports and Youth Affairs, at Sri Aurobindo Institute of Indian Culture in Shillong, Meghalaya from 3rd to 8th April 2023. Rest day was on 7th April on account of Good Friday. The time control for the event was 90 minutes + 30 seconds increment from move no.1.
Final standings
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Club/City | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | |
| 1 | 6 | Iftikar, Alom Mazumdar | IND | 1632 | Assam | 8,5 | 50 | 53,5 | 46,50 | |
| 2 | 1 | Singh, Soram Rahul | IND | 1831 | Assam | 8 | 50,5 | 52 | 44,75 | |
| 3 | 2 | Silkam, Sangma | IND | 1727 | Megh | 7 | 53,5 | 58,5 | 42,75 | |
| 4 | 8 | Talin, Nimpu | IND | 1504 | Arunachal | 7 | 42,5 | 47 | 32,50 | |
| 5 | 7 | Elangbam, Shashikanta Singh | IND | 1578 | Manipur | 6,5 | 50 | 54 | 35,75 | |
| 6 | 4 | Rijied, Katrai | IND | 1670 | Megh | 6,5 | 50 | 54 | 34,00 | |
| 7 | 10 | Jerry, N Pajat | IND | 1455 | Megh | 6,5 | 49,5 | 54,5 | 35,50 | |
| 8 | 5 | Barbith, M Sangma | IND | 1656 | Megh | 6,5 | 47,5 | 51,5 | 30,25 | |
| 9 | 21 | Khwairakpam, Rocky Singh | IND | 1301 | Manipur | 6,5 | 47 | 51 | 33,25 | |
| 10 | 28 | Himanish, Kumar Sarma | IND | 1188 | Assam | 6,5 | 44,5 | 47,5 | 32,25 |
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