Kathmandu:

An open art competition for children, from 3-10 years of age, was organised by the Chelsea International Academy on January 24. The competition was organised in association with Rio Punte, a product of Chaudhary Group, and was supported by Bhrikuti Academic publication and Radio City FM 98.8. Renowned artist Ragini Upadhya was the guest of honour, while former education minister Ram Hari Joshi had also graced the programme.

A total of 338 children from different schools in Kathmandu had participated in the event. They were categorised into four groups according to age. The first (3-4 years) and second group (5-6 years) were not given any theme to draw on, while the participants of the other two groups were given a particular theme.

The group of age 7-8 years was to draw something on ‘My School’, while the theme for the group of 9-10 years was ‘My country Nepal’.

Robin Koirala, Shova Wagle, Surendra Pradhan and Puran Khadka were the judges and each judged one particular age group.

Sudhir Kumar Jha, Principal of Chelsea International Academy, said, “The programme was focused to reduce the gap between imagination and reality. This kind of programme exposes the hidden talents of children and develops their socialisation skills.’’

The judges based their decisions on colour coordination, the child’s creativity and how s/he grasped the environment.

Trophy and cash prizes were awarded to the winners and runner-ups, while all participants were given certificates.