Kolkata, Sep 1 (PTI) About two lakh students from across India and neighbouring Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan are expected to take part in the Asian School Indoor Rowing Championship at the Calcutta Rowing Club from September 4.

"Apart from 75,000 students from 100 schools of West Bengal, more than one lakh and fifty thousand students from other states of the country including Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab will compete," veteran oarsman and founder of Bengal Water Sports Shakeel Ahmed, said.

A separate competition would also be held for the specially-abled children, he added.

"Our aim is to reach the grass roots level by conducting the preliminary rounds in different districts."

Indoor rowing is simulated actions of rowing through Argometer on land.

"Indoor rowing is now quite popular and regularly practiced in the western countries though it is comparatively a new entrant in India," said chairman of the event and Associate Vice President of Rowing Federation of India Chandan Roy Chowdhury.

The meet would be held in three age groups -- under-12, 15 and 18 years for both boys and girls first at district and then at state level.

All the state level winners along with competitors from other countries will join the grand finale on December 2.

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