Udaipur: Arya Samaj Hiran Magri, Udaipur, organised the Inter-School Suresh Chandra Gupta Memorial Veda Mantra Recitation Competition with the objective of creating awareness among students about the Vedas, one of the foundational pillars of Indian culture. Held on Tuesday, the competition witnessed enthusiastic participation by students who presented Vedic mantras in melodious recitation along with their meanings in Hindi. Competition coordinator Sharda Gupta said that a total of 56 students from 15 schools in the junior category and 14 schools in the senior category participated and recited the prescribed Vedic mantras with their meanings. The competition was held under the chairmanship of educationist Prof. Dr Rakesh Kumar Airan. The jury comprised Ashok Arya, President of Shrimad Dayanand Satyarth Prakash Nyas; Dr B.L. Jain, former Head of the Department of Sanskrit, Sukhadia University; and Acharya Satyapriya Arya, Minister of Arya Samaj Udaipur. Addressing the participants, the judges highlighted the significance of the Vedas as divine knowledge, the importance of Sanskrit as a classical language, and the need for linguistic accuracy and correct pronunciation during Vedic recitation. Competition Results Junior Category: First: Dhara Mehta, St. Anthony Senior Secondary School, Goverdhan Vilas Second: Yuvraj Singh Rao, Seedling Modern Public School Third: Jhanvi Katheria, Dayanand Kanya Vidyalaya Senior Category: St. Anthony Senior Secondary School, Goverdhan Vilas, secured all three positions: First: Navya Singh Second: Srishti Sharma Third: Vanshi Badala The Vaijayanti Trophy, awarded on the combined performance of the junior and senior categories, was won by St. Anthony Senior Secondary School, Goverdhan Vilas. All winners were presented with certificates, mementoes and Vedic literature. Certificates were also given to all participants in recognition of their efforts. In addition, every participant received a booklet titled ‘Teachings of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita’, authored by Vijay Laxmi Bansal. In his welcome address, Prof. Dr Amritlal Taparia, Patron of Arya Samaj Hiran Magri, said the competition is organised every year in memory of Late Suresh Chandra Gupta, the founding president of Arya Samaj Hiran Magri. Sharda Gupta, Patron of Arya Samaj Hiran Magri and coordinator of the competition, proposed the vote of thanks. The programme was conducted by Bhupendra Sharma, Deputy Minister of Arya Samaj Hiran Magri. The successful organisation of the competition was supported by Pushpa Sindhi, Honorary Director of Dayanand Kanya Vidyalaya; Krishna Kumar Soni, Minister; Premlata Menaria, Principal; Preeti Chauhan, Treasurer; and Bhanwar Lal Arya, Executive President of Arya Samaj Hiran Magri, among others.