National Inter-college Crossword Expedition (NICE) 2024 Grand Finale Kicks Off in New Delhi

The National Inter-college Crossword Expedition (NICE) 2024 Grand Finale commenced on Tuesday at the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) auditorium, drawing participants from some of the country’s premier institutions. The two-day event began with a rigorous series of preliminaries and Extra-C Rounds, narrowing the field to nine top teams who will compete in the semi-finals on day two.

Nineteen teams representing renowned institutions such as IIT Delhi, IIT Guwahati, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), BITS Pilani (Hyderabad Campus), and others, battled through challenging crossword puzzles. After the written preliminaries and seven grueling Extra-C Rounds, the top nine teams were selected to advance to the quarter-finals. Each quarter-final saw three teams compete, with the top two scorers moving on to the semi-finals.

Quarter Final Round-1 Results:

Winner: Arush Utkarsh and Harshul Sagar (IIT Delhi)

Runner-Up: V Krishna Sai Gayatri (BITS Pilani, Hyderabad Campus)

Second Runner-Up: Tushya Khandelwal and Aarush Ranjan (IIT Delhi)

Quarter Final Round-2 Results:

Winner: Chandrasekharan Ramakrishnan and Madhushree Nagesh (Sanmugha Arts, Science Technology and Research Academy)

Runner-Up: Vijval Ekbote (Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi)

Second Runner-Up: Isha and Mihir Vema (JNU)

Quarter Final Round-3 Results:

Winner: Madhushree and Chandrasekharan (Sanmugha Arts, Science Technology and Research Academy)

Runner-Up: Abhinav M and Sahana A (Sanmugha Arts, Science Technology and Research Academy)

Second Runner-Up: Sahil Grover and Seerat Kaur (IIT Delhi)

Sri TG Sitharam, Chairman of AICTE, attended the event as the Chief Guest, lauding the participants and organizers for their efforts. He highlighted the massive participation this year, with 1.85 lakh registrations from over 1,500 colleges and higher education institutions across India, and expressed a commitment to scaling up the contest in future editions.

Sri Vivek Kumar Singh, Chief Mentor of NICE 2024 and Chairman of RERA, Bihar, emphasized the need for resources to develop crosswords in Hindi and other regional languages, outlining his vision to further promote crosswords in India.

The event also saw the unveiling of NICE 2024 memorabilia, including T-shirts, clocks, and the prestigious trophy, by the Chief Guest and other distinguished guests. Among the notable attendees were Prof. Manoj Tiwari, Director of IIM Mumbai, Sri Sanjay K Thade, President of the West Bengal Crossword Association, and Dr. Abhay Jere, Vice Chairman of AICTE.

Renowned cruciverbalist Mr. Allen Cowell from Patna conducted all the rounds, with Mr. Vinayak Ekbote, Vice President of the Crossword Association of Delhi, and former Indian Crossword League Champion Mr. Ramki Krishnan serving as the Chief Arbiter.

The excitement continues on day two, with two semi-final rounds followed by the much-anticipated final round, where the best crossword solvers from across India will vie for the coveted NICE 2024 trophy.