Chess tournament for visually impaired children begins

Around 54 children from different Visually Impaired Schools are participating in the two-day State level chess tournament for visually impaired children, which started in Mysuru on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Special editing

A two-day State-level tournament for visually impaired children began at Nanjaraj Bahadur Choultry in Mysuru on Saturday.

Bhaskar Nayak, deputy director of Youth Empowerment and Sports Department, State Differently Handicapped and Senior Citizens Empowerment Department, inaugurated the tournament organized by the Karnataka State Blind and Equality Foundation Association.

A total of 54 visually impaired students from various Schools for the Visually Impaired in Karnataka are participating in the event. The tournament will end on Sunday.

In a statement made by the organizers, it was stated that the participants competed using specially designed adaptive chessboards that contain tactile cues that allow players to feel the positions of the pieces. Referees from the Karnataka State Visually Impaired Chess Association supervise the matches to ensure fairness and accuracy.

Ananthalakashmi V., CEO of EquiBeing Foundation, emphasized the importance of empowering children with disabilities. “Visually impaired children often face exclusion from sports and recreational activities due to social barriers. “By organizing events like this, we provide these children with the opportunity to participate, succeed and overcome existing barriers in the world of sports,” he said, adding that the initiative is in line with the Disability Rights Act 2016, which guarantees the rights of every child to participate in sports, physical activity and recreation.