GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 23rd Jan. Sanjay Kumar, the Secretary of the Department of School Education and Literacy, attended the grand finale of the National School Band Competition 2023-24 as part of the Republic Day Celebrations in 2024.
The event took place at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi and was organized by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence.
Other officials from the Ministries of Education and Defence, as well as dignitaries and students, were also present at the event.
During his speech, Sanjay Kumar praised the impressive performance, confidence, and discipline of the participating students. He expressed his hope that the event would continue to grow and attract more participants in future editions.
The competition consisted of four categories: Boys Brass Band, Girls Brass Band, Boys Pipe Band, and Girls Pipe Band.
The winners were Droupadi Girls High School from Odisha in the Pipe Band Girls category, St. Teresas Higher Secondary School from Kannur, Kerala in the Brass Band Girls category, Govt. Sr. Secondary School from West Point, Gangtok, Sikkim in the Brass Band Boys category, and PM SHRI School JawaharNavodayaVidyalaya from Rajasthan in the Pipe Band Boys category.
The top three teams in each category received a cash prize (1st – Rs. 21,000; 2nd – Rs. 16,000; 3rd – Rs. 11,000), a trophy, and certificates. The remaining teams in each category received a consolation cash prize of Rs. 3,000 each.
A total of 16 bands, four from each zone (East, West, South, and North), representing 15 States/UTs, were shortlisted for the final through state and zonal-level competitions.
The state-level competition saw the participation of 486 teams comprising 12,857 children, while the zonal level had 73 teams with 2,002 children. This initiative aims to foster patriotism and unity among school children nationwide and inspire them in their holistic education.
In addition to the competing teams, there was a special band performance by the school band team from Government Sardar Patel Senior Secondary School in Kalpeni, Lakshadweep.
