In view of the lockdown conditions prevailing throughout the country, to enthuse and involve students more closely in issues pertaining to the coronavirus outbreak and COVID-19 disease, the CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (CSIR-NISCAIR), New Delhi announced online competitions on the theme “Coronavirus: An Invisible Enemy”. 

The online competitions required students to put their minds to work and depict their thoughts and views on topics such as “Social Distancing & Hygiene to Prevent COVID-19”, “Coronavirus Pandemic: Changing Lives”, “Life During the Lockdown”, “The School Comes Home”, and “Misinformation is a Greater Danger in the Pandemic” through drawings, paintings, cartoons, essays and videos shot on mobiles.

The competitions were announced on the CSIR-NISCAIR website and promoted through social media such as Facebook and Twitter. The last date of the competitions was 15 May 2020. It is heartening that the competitions received an overwhelming response. At closing, almost 7400 students had registered for the competitions and more than 8000 entries had been received.

The entries were received from 6200 schools in 1200 metro cities and remote villages from Imphal, Dispur, Nagaland and Meghalaya to Surat in Gujarat; Panchkula, Manali and Jammu to Pondicherry, Ernakulam and Chennai, and from Bhubaneswar to Goa and Visakhapatnam.