BITS Pilani's VKS Gayatri Tops NICE 2025 Round C as Competition Intensifies with Razor-Thin Margins

The third online round of the National Inter-College Crossword Expedition (NICE) 2025 — popularly known as Round ‘C’ — turned out to be a thrilling display of skill, speed, and mental agility. With participation pouring in from colleges across the country, the round saw an intense battle among the top contenders, where the top five scorers were separated by a razor-thin margin points and speed.

Emerging as the national topper in this fiercely contested round was VKS Gayatri, an engineering student from BITS Pilani, Hyderabad campus. Gayatri not only demonstrated exceptional command over crossword-solving techniques but also reaffirmed her standing as one of the most consistent performers in the circuit. She was the first runner-up in the previous edition, NICE 2024, and her latest feat marks a significant milestone in her journey.

Closely following is Bhargav Vinayak from Ludhiana. Bhargav, a name well-known in crossword circles, is a former champion of the National Inter-School Cryptic Crossword Contest (CCCC) 2024, and his transition to the inter-college format has been nothing short of seamless.

Securing the third position with an impressive performance is Adya Singh from Patna, another former CCCC champion from 2023. Her remarkable performance continues to underscore the strength and depth of talent that the CCCC platform has nurtured over the years.

The Zonal Winners of NICE "C" Round are-

East Zonal Winner: Shivani Kumari (GEC, Vaishali)

West Zonal Winner: Ayush Sah (ABVIIITM, Gwalior)

North Zonal Winner: Vijval Ekbote (IIIT, Delhi)

South Zonal Winner: Ashish CT (IIT Madras)

North-East Zonal Winner: Kirhen Bhargavath S (IIT Guwahati)

State Level Winners of NICE "C" Round

Delhi: Isha (JNU, New Delhi)

Telangana: Kuhu Goel (BITS, Hyderabad)

Tamil Nadu: Advaith S (NIT, Tiruchirappalli)

Goa: Samruddhi Sinai Salgaonkar (Goa Devtal College, Goa)

Bihar: Aman Kumar (GEC, Vaishali)

Madhya Pradesh: Harshvardhan Tripathi (Acropolis Institute of Technology, Indore)

Assam: Chinmayi Pillamarapu (IIT, Guwahati)

West Bengal: Harsh Raj (IIT Kharagpur)

Gujarat: Dhara Mittal (Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar)

Tripura: Tanmoy Debnath (Maharaja Bir Bikram College, West Tripura)

Uttar Pradesh: Kushagra Chandra (IIT Kanpur)

Haryana: Aditya Sharma (ACA)

Uttarakhand: Shashank Nautiyal (Govt. Polytechnic, Uttarkashi)

Odisha: Subhranshu S Pany (Dhenkanal Autonomus College, Dhenkanal)

JK: Sheikh Bilal Ahmad (Govt College of Education, Srinagar)

Maharashtra: Swarada Satling Narote (AISSMSIIT, Pune)

Andhra Pradesh: KS Kalyani (Santhiram Engineering College, Nandyal)

Meghalaya: Amit Kumar Jha (NE Institute of Ayurveda and Homeopathy, East Khasi Hills)

Karnataka: PMV Reddy (Christ University, Bangalore)

Chhattisgarh: Sushil Ekka (Swa. Pyarelal Kanwar Govt College, Kotrba)

As the NICE 2025 journey progresses, the leaderboard is already witnessing a mix of emerging talent and seasoned champions. With the stakes rising and competition heating up, all eyes are now set on the upcoming rounds of this prestigious national-level crossword tournament. The fourth and last online round of the contest- Round "E" will be conducted on 8th June 2025 on nice.crypticsingh.com