Dubai: Fancy an all-expense paid, 15-day trip to India post the COVID-19 pandemic? The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is organising the third edition of a popular international quiz competition to help 15 winners fulfil that dream.
The quiz titled Bharat Ko Janiye (Know India), was a big hit in its past two editions that included both online and on-site rounds. The last edition saw around 40,000 registrations from 212 countries.
The Indian missions in the UAE are promoting the third edition, which will be held online and is open for overseas Indian youth and foreign nationals between the ages of 18 and 35. Both the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Indian Consulate in Dubai have urged Indians and others in the UAE to participate in the quiz.
In an audio message posted on Twitter, the Indian Ambassador to the UAE Pavan Kapoor said: “This year, the competition is even bigger and comprises of four rounds and everyone in the age bracket of 18 to 35 can participate in it. So, whether you are [an] Indian or [an] Emirati, please join in and try and participate and win some exciting prizes which include a fully-paid trip to India.”
The quiz will be held for three distinct categories of participants — Non Resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), and foreign nationals. The participants must fall in the specified age category as on January 1, 2020. Those born before January 1, 1985 and after January 1, 2002 are not eligible.
Registration and format
Those interested should register on the website of Bharat Ko Janiye. The registration and mock quiz will close on November 30. The first and welcome round is going on from November 1 to 30. Three winners are selected from each category from each country’s Indian mission, depending on the number of participants. Top three winners from each category of the first round will receive gold, silver and bronze medals.
All winners of the welcome round will move to the second and qualifying round, which will be held from December 7 to 13. Ten winners will be selected from each participating country.
They will then move to the third round, which is the semi-final. It will be held from December 14 to 20 and seven winners will be selected from each category in this round.
In the fourth and final round, which will be held from December 21 to 27, top five winners from each category will be selected. There will be one gold, one bronze and one silver medal winners as well as two consulate prize winners in each category.
“The final 15 winners of the quiz will be invited to a tour of India after COVID-19. This provides a unique experience for participants to visit the country,” the website of the quiz stated.
In the previous episodes of the quiz, top three winners of the final round were awarded medals at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (NRI Day) Convention after the 15-day tour.