The 41st Inter District Chess Championship 2017 got underway at Mangaldai in Assam’s Darrang district from Tuesday with a three-day long programme.

The championship organized by Darrang District Chess Association is divided into three different age categories for both boys and girls – Under-9, Under-13 and Under-17.

The tournament has reportedly witnessed a total of 180 young participants across the district.

In the inaugural first round matches Mayank Chakraborty and Afsheena Afsha Zaman (U-9); Monthon Kashyap Dutta and Taneesha Som (U-13) and Arunav Gohain and Cherusmita Saharia (U-17) have won their respective first round matches.

Besides these matches all the first round matches have been played till late evening of the inaugural day, said Madhab Saram, general secretary of the organizing committee.

Earlier the championship was formally inaugurated by Gurujyoti Das , MLA, Mangaldai.

International level chess master Sahil Dey and World Rubik Cube Champion Kabyanil Talukdar were also felicitated by the organizers in the inaugural function.