New Delhi: An initiative to introduce structured chess curriculum termed 'CHESS+' (Championing Excellence in Sport Skills) was launched on Saturday to build school chess ecosystem across the country.

The CHESS+ was launched by Jayant Chaudhary, the Minister of State (independent charge) for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education.

The initiative, which is being implemented in partnership with the All India Chess Federation (AICF) and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NCS), will start with a pilot program across 30 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs), 13 in Haryana, 15 in Uttar Pradesh, and 2 in Delhi.

"Designed to harness the educational value of chess, CHESS+ aims to nurture critical thinking, problem-solving, concentration, decision-making and resilience among students," a release said.

"The pilot will offer a structured curriculum developed by the All India Chess Federation (AICF), delivered through trained coaches and teacher-mentors, alongside regular competitions and a robust evaluation framework," it added.

The learnings from the pilot program will be imbibed in the phased expansion across Kendriya Vidyalayas and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.