End of Financial Rewards for GM and IM Titles in India?

Such incentives help parents manage the financial burden of their children's chess journey. (India previously awarded 400,000 rupees, approximately 108,000 CZK, for a GM title and 150,000 rupees, about 40,500 CZK, for an IM title.)

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi has expressed criticism of the Indian government's decision to end financial rewards for players achieving Grandmaster (GM) and International Master (IM) titles. According to him, such incentives significantly help parents in making financial decisions regarding their children's future.

As of February 2025, the Ministry of Sports has discontinued financial bonuses, which previously amounted to 400,000 rupees (108,000 CZK) for achieving a GM title and 150,000 rupees (40,500 CZK) for an IM or Women’s IM (IWM) title. From now on, rewards will only be given for winning world competitions.

"If it's true that these rewards have been canceled, then while it may not be demotivating for the children themselves, since they don't care much about money, it could be a problem for the parents," Erigaisi told PTI. "If parents are deciding between chess and studies, such an incentive could help them support their children in chess. Now it will be more difficult."

A Tough Start to 2025

After a phenomenal 2024, where Erigaisi became only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to surpass a 2800 Elo rating and won gold at the Chess Olympiad, 2025 did not start as expected. He finished only tenth at the Tata Steel Chess tournament.

"It was a great year, and I’m happy with how things went. This year hasn't been ideal so far, but I hope things improve in the coming months," Erigaisi said. He admitted that he had been taking too many risks recently: "I should be more cautious. That doesn’t mean I’ll stop taking risks, but I’ll do it more carefully."

Nevertheless, he ended the tournament with a victory over reigning world champion Dommaraju Gukesh. His win helped Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, who eventually won the tournament. Praggnanandhaa then jokingly promised Erigaisi a gift – and indeed brought him his favorite paprika-flavored Pringles, which Erigaisi had mentioned earlier at the airport.

India Supports Chess More Than the Czech Republic

While the Indian government has stopped awarding money for titles, it still provides financial support to players who win major tournaments. This is a huge contrast to the situation in the Czech Republic, where chess players mostly rely on private sponsors or their own resources. For young Czech players, such support would be a dream – while in India, it was once a reality, even though cuts are now happening.

Despite losing 29 Elo points in ten days, Erigaisi is not too concerned about the drop in his rating. "Elo doesn’t matter that much; the main goal is qualifying for the Candidates Tournament."

Now, he is looking forward to the Norway Chess tournament, where he will face Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, and Hikaru Nakamura. "The last time I played Magnus in classical chess was in 2023; I’ve played Nakamura only once and Caruana only once as well. I’m really looking forward to playing them again," Erigaisi added.