The 24th North East FIDE Rating Chess Championship 2026 takes place from December 15 to 19, 2026, in Dimapur, Nagaland, India. The Nagaland Chess Association organizes the regional championship, bringing competitive chess to the state’s largest urban center. The published venue is The Covenant Hall, the auditorium of Christian Higher Secondary School in the N.S.T. Colony neighborhood.

The championship appears on the All India Chess Federation (AICF) tournament calendar and in Chess-Results as a FIDE-rated classical event. It offers an opportunity for players from northeastern India to compete in a formally registered competition. The federation identifies the championship under FIDE Event ID 503517.

Organizers have provided an official tournament prospectus in PDF form. As the available accessible announcements do not reliably establish the total cash prizes, specific clock settings, or round-by-round starting times, players should check the current regulations before paying fees or finalizing travel.

📌 Event Details

⏱️ Time Control & Pairings

The AICF’s calendar classifies the 24th North East Championship as a FIDE-rated classical tournament. Its Chess-Results listing identifies it as the December 2026 regional event. Players should use the current competition record for the official player list, updates, pairings and results.

The accessible public summaries do not establish a reliable exact time control or confirmed number of rounds for this edition. Therefore, the published prospectus and organizer instructions remain authoritative for clock settings, pairings, walkover/default rules, tie-break criteria and electronic-device restrictions. Do not import the seven-round format of Nagaland’s separate October preseason event into this December championship.

Participants who require rating eligibility confirmation should share their FIDE identification with the organizer. In addition, Indian players should check that their relevant national and state player registration is current for the 2026–27 season. Eligibility and documentation requirements may differ between state and regional competitions.

📅 Schedule

The officially announced competition period is Tuesday, December 15, through Saturday, December 19, 2026. The tournament information available in readable text does not provide a sufficiently confirmed daily round schedule, so the table below shows only the announced event dates. All local times, once issued, will follow India Standard Time (IST).

Competitors should confirm check-in, the first-round reporting time and the final-day ceremony with the organizers. Travelers should also allow time for any official opening or prize distribution that falls outside the playing hours. No unverified round start times are represented as confirmed on this page.

📝 Registration

Registration is administered by the Nagaland Chess Association. The official championship prospectus contains the applicable participation conditions, entry procedure, fees and schedules. The organizer’s notices indicate that the standard-fee period runs through December 10, 2026; this should not be confused with a verified absolute last date for entries.

Read the official championship regulations (AICF PDF) before sending an entry or making a payment. Players can ask the association’s honorary secretary for the latest instructions. AICF registration requirements and any regional association conditions should also be clarified with the organizer.

For entry and administrative assistance, the published tournament contacts include Vekukho Soho for general organization and Jetilo Apon for payment confirmations. Players should use the current official announcement to confirm the correct payment recipient and whether additional documents are required.

🏛️ Organizer

Nagaland Chess Association (NCA) is the state governing association for organized chess in Nagaland. Established in 1989 and affiliated with the All India Chess Federation, it coordinates a network of 13 district chess associations. The organization is headquartered in Kohima and works across districts including Dimapur, Phek, Wokha and other areas of Nagaland.

The AICF lists S. Keoshu Yimkhiung as president and Vekukho Soho as honorary secretary. The association has organized state-level FIDE-rated tournaments and regional preparation events. Notably, its October 2026 Open Pre-Season tournament helped players prepare for this December championship in Dimapur.

For broader information on the organization and its activities, visit the Nagaland Chess Association’s official website. Participants should distinguish association headquarters in Kohima from the championship playing venue in Dimapur.

📍 Venue

The playing venue is The Covenant Hall, an auditorium within Christian Higher Secondary School at Nyamo Lotha Road, N.S.T. Colony, Dimapur, Nagaland 797112, India. The school’s published contact address confirms its N.S.T. Colony campus, while school event materials identify Covenant Hall as the institution’s large auditorium.

The hall is part of the school, not a separate church or a similarly named meeting room elsewhere in Dimapur. Its institutional history dates to an auditorium inauguration in 2000, and the school has used it for educational programs and large public events. The listing’s GPS marker refers to the school campus; the precise tournament entrance inside the campus must be confirmed locally.

Drivers can verify the postal address using the school’s official location and contact page. When arranging local transport, give both the names The Covenant Hall and Christian Higher Secondary School to avoid confusion with other halls.

Nearby Cafés & Dining

The N.S.T. Colony neighborhood includes cafés and restaurants that may be useful during a break. The following establishments have identifiable addresses in the surrounding area. Players should check current trading hours and travel time themselves rather than assume that every option is within a short walk of the auditorium.

🏨 Accommodation

Visitors can consider hotels in central Dimapur and arrange daily road transport to the school. The options below are independently listed local properties, but the tournament has not been shown to have a negotiated hotel rate with any of them. Check room availability for December 14–20 if you plan to arrive before reporting and depart after the event.

The organizer has named separate contacts for accommodation coordination in its tournament communication. Visitors requiring an organizer-managed stay should request current details rather than assume that any of these independent hotels is included in the competition’s registration fee.

🚆 How to Get There

Dimapur is an important transport gateway for Nagaland, with rail, air and regional road connections. The final destination for this event is The Covenant Hall at Christian Higher Secondary School on Nyamo Lotha Road. Provide the school’s name and N.S.T. Colony address to your driver, especially if arriving from outside Nagaland.

Because first-round check-in times have not been verified in the accessible tournament announcements, traveling to Dimapur the day before the event may provide a buffer. Families and participants should confirm the current route and traffic conditions before leaving their accommodation.

ℹ️ Other Information

The 24th North East Championship is distinct from Nagaland’s October 2026 preseason event, which used its own dates, rounds and prizes. Do not use the earlier event’s seven-round format, prize figures or venue as a substitute for the December championship’s official regulations.

For the December event, the published prospectus remains the source for entry deadlines, FIDE player requirements, age/category awards, cash prizes, clock settings and the final schedule. Since a reliable verified cash total is not currently available in readable tournament materials, this page does not invent a prize fund or present an approximate USD conversion as an established award.

The school’s auditorium is within an active educational institution, and visitors should follow the organizer’s venue access instructions. Players should carry the identification and competition documentation requested by the association and keep the official tournament contacts available in case of schedule or travel changes.