The annual awards have been instituted by the Surya Foundation to recognise and honour merit among students of Class X and XII. The students who excelled in the national IQ test held by the foundation in December 2008 participated in Saturday’s function along with their families.

“In today’s world of cut-throat competition, there is an increased trend of memorising the subject matter without going for in-depth knowledge of the same. I appreciate the endeavor undertaken by Surya Foundation to inculcate the habit of making an extra effort to sharpen their general knowledge and subject skills in students, through these awards,” said Dr Sobti.

Appreciating the efforts of the institute, Dr Sohi said such platforms help children not only recognise but also hone there full potential.

In all, 120 children from twelve participating schools won awards which included gift vouchers worth Rs 2500, Rs 2000 and Rs 1000 for first, second and third prize winners respectively.

The Surya Champ 2008 school trophy was lifted by Bhavan Vidyalaya, Chandigarh. The first runner-up trophy was awarded to Army Public School, Chandimandir while the second runner-up honour was shared by Moti Ram Arya Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh and DC Model Senior Secondary School, Panchkula.

“The awards are based on the results of the national IQ test, a multiple-choice computer test, which has been initiated by us to stress on the importance of acquiring and applying knowledge along with reasoning by students. These tests help students gauge their true intellect,” said Rajiv Goyal.