Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proudly highlighted India's remarkable achievements in sports during the presentation of the interim budget in Parliament on Thursday.
She specifically commended the outstanding performance of chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa, the country's top-ranked player, in his fierce battle against reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen in 2023.
Sitharaman noted the substantial growth in India's chess prowess, stating, "Today, India has over 80 chess grandmasters compared to just over 20 in 2010." She expressed the nation's pride in the youth excelling in sports, emphasizing the confidence reflected in the record-breaking medal tally at the Asian Games and Asian Para Games in 2023.
Highlighting Praggnanandhaa's recent achievements, the Finance Minister mentioned his historic victory over China's Liren at the 2024 Tata Steel Chess Tournament, where the 18-year-old surpassed chess legend Viswanathan Anand to become India's number-one ranked player.
Commencing his chess journey at the age of 5, Praggnanandhaa made history by becoming India's youngest Grandmaster at the age of 12 in 2018. Notably, he is the fifth-youngest person ever to achieve the title, following Abhimanyu Mishra, Sergey Karjakin, Gukesh D, and Javokhir Sindarov. The Finance Minister also acknowledged the unique achievement of Praggnanandhaa and his sister R Vaishali, who together form the world's first-ever brother-sister Grandmaster duo.
