Santanu Borpatra is the new NE FIDE-rated chess champ

NORTH EAST FIDE RATING CHESS TOURNAMENT CONCLUDES
GANGTOK, 10 Jan: Santanu Borpatra Gohain of Assam emerged the champion of the 5th edition of the North East FIDE Rating Chess Tournament which concluded here at Paljor Stadium indoor gymnasium today. Santanu scored eight and half points in 10 rounds to beat defending champion, Rajkumar Apollosana Mangang, of Manipur, who stood on the second position with eight points, and Nabachandra Th Singh of Manipur came in third, also with eight points.
The concluding day included the prize distribution ceremony which had Political Secretary to the Chief Minister, KN Rai, as the chief guest.
As for the rest of the rankings- Rk Bhogen Singh and Bangkim Singh of Manipur stood on fourth and fifth places, followed by Rahul Soram Singh, Madhab Sharma, Rajib Dhar, Trailokya Nanda and Sanajaoba Irengbam.
Sikkim players could not break into the top-20 position of the main event, but performed impressively in other categories. In U-10 [Boys], Rahul Gurung won gold, while Priya Chettri won a bronze medal in U-10 girls.  Shreya Sharma won a silver medal in U-13 [Girls].
In U-15 [Boys], the top-3 positions were secured by Sikkim with Rakesh Gurung taking the gold followed by Mukul Gurung with a silver and Thendup Tamang snaring the bronze.
Among the girls in this category, the gold was won by Pushpa Gurung who was joined by fellow Sikkimese Supriya Rai who took the bronze.
In U-19 [Girls], Susmita Lama won a bronze medal for the State.
In his address, the chief guest congratulated the organizers on the tournament and remarked that the participation was heartening to see with chess enthusiasts from 7 to 76 years old competing in the tournament.
In his tournament report, the Chief Arbiter, Dharmendra Kumar, informed that a total of 157 players, including 48 FIDE Rated players, participated in the tournament from all the eight north-eastern states. He also highlighted that the tournament was a first of its kind in that no player left the game and played all the rounds.
Sikkim Chess Association [SCA] president, HS Sharma, in turn expressed gratitude towards all north-eastern chess associations for their participations and to the All India Chess Federation for the support and cooperation towards making the tournament a success.
The ceremony started with the welcome address by SCA co-ordinator, PL Sharma and concluded with the vote of thanks by SCA general secretary, Mahendra Dhakal. The week-long championship was organized by the Sikkim Chess Association [SCA] in collaboration with AICF and co-sponsored by SDF Bhawan Trust and Roads and Bridges Department.