NEW DELHI: Last Sunday was International Women’s Day. Unless you’ve been on a total digital detox, your feed was likely buried under a mountain of Instagram stories and WhatsApp statuses celebrating the day. You probably liked a few, reciprocated a few wishes, and projected the vision of your values perfectly aligned with the cause.
In keeping with the occasion, the FIDE Women in Chess Commission (WOM) and the University of Queensland published the 2026 Gender Equality in Chess Index (GECI) on Sunday. In this index, India has slipped one place to 25th in the global rankings since the inaugural 2023 edition.
In isolation, a one-place drop might not appear alarming. But in a country currently hailed as the fastest-growing chess powerhouse on the planet, this ranking points towards a deeper structural imbalance.
While there are certainly worse-performing countries on the list, questions may arise as to why India isn’t near the top.
What is the Gender Equality in Chess Index (GECI)?
The Gender Equality in Chess Index is essentially an attempt by FIDE, the global chess body, to quantify gender balance across federations worldwide. The idea behind it is to measure where countries stand so they can improve.
“When we created the GECI in 2023, we wanted to give federations a clear, evidence-based picture of where they stand on gender equality.
You can’t improve what you don’t measure,” said Grandmaster (GM) David Smerdon, associate professor at the University of Queensland and the report’s lead author.
The report uses FIDE’s global ratings database and youth championship participation records to build a composite score that reflects female participation, performance, and development pathways. According to the report, there are 1,446,605 active chess players worldwide, but only 238,716 are women, meaning female participation overall stands at just 16.5%.
How the rankings are measured
The GECI score is calculated using three key pillars:
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Participation – the share of women among active rated players in a federation. (The closer the figure is to 50%, the more balanced the ratio between male and female players)
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Performance – the strength gap between men and women based on average Elo ratings.
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Progress – the proportion of girls representing a country in international youth championships.
In the 2026 release, India’s overall GECI score stands at 71.04, resulting in that single-place drop to 25th globally. However, when you look under the hood, the numbers tell a story of two different Indias.
In Performance, India holds a staggering 97.49 (up from 88.31 in 2023), which proves that our elite women are world-class. Nevertheless, Participation lags at a meagre 18.72, and Progress, the metric for the next generation, saw a slight decline to 49.09.
The metrics suggest that while India is phenomenal at producing top-rated female players, the broader ecosystem is still struggling to get girls to the board and keep them there.
Where is India lacking?
From Viswanathan Anand inspiring a generation to teenage prodigies dominating global tournaments, the country now boasts more than 90 Grandmasters. Yet, in a nation of more than a billion people, only four women have reached chess’s highest title and become a GM.
As GM Harika Dronavalli explained, the issue begins long before players reach the elite level. “Girls are not pushed to pursue ambitious goals in the same way boys are. The talent is certainly there, but societal expectations often clip those wings early,” she told TimesofIndia.com.
The drop-off is particularly visible during adolescence. Coach GM Srinath Narayanan, who has worked with several of India’s top female players, says many promising girls leave the game between 13 and 15 years of age.
“Girls in India often face more pressure to prioritise academics or domestic responsibilities over sports. Chess demands sustained investment, time, travel and coaching, and families may hesitate to support girls long-term in such a career,” he explained.
Even those who remain in the system face structural challenges. International Master (IM) Vantika Agrawal reiterates that competing internationally, a crucial step toward earning Grandmaster norms, is far harder for female players.
“It is financially challenging to play a lot of tournaments abroad,” she said. “Female players don’t get much opportunity to play with stronger players, which hampers their growth. And our society is still male-dominated. Women don’t get equal opportunities and support.”
Young girls often compete in women-only events rather than stronger open sections, limiting exposure to tougher opposition during crucial development years.
What can India do to improve and close the gap?
While recently speaking to this website, India’s veteran Grandmaster Pravin Thipsay broke down the reality of ‘individualism’ within the Indian chess ecosystem.
“There is no system in Indian chess which will produce champions. It is basically the efforts of the parents and the players that are in place. Players have spent a lot of time and energy, and parents have sacrificed their careers; only then have some emerged as champions,” he elaborated.
“Just because three players are doing well, it doesn’t mean that after five years we will have another three or five players who will do the same. We cannot say it is like the Soviet school where one champion goes and another comes. Even in China, they have a continuous chain of players, particularly among the women. Whenever one generation is no longer strong, a different generation has already been coming through. These are things which do not happen here; what we have is the individual effort of a person.”
While some notable individuals have helped sow the seeds of chess culture in India, this growth has remained limited to certain pockets of the nation rather than expanding pan-India. And the movement may not reach its full potential without direct intervention from the All India Chess Federation (AICF). But how do they achieve this?
There is no system in Indian chess which will produce champions. It is basically the efforts of the parents and the players that are in place.
GM Pravin Thipsay
The GECI framework itself offers clues about the solution.
First, female participation must increase at the grassroots level. Even a modest rise in the percentage of girls playing chess would significantly strengthen the talent pipeline.
Second, exposure to stronger competition is essential. Coaches argue that talented girls should be encouraged to play in open events early in their careers.
Third, the ecosystem needs financial backing, from travel grants and sponsorships to structured training programmes designed specifically for promising female players.
In all, the UAE blueprint mentioned in the 2026 GECI report could prove highly effective.
The UAE climbed 73 places in the rankings, from 77th in the last edition to 4th now, largely by dramatically increasing the number of girls sent to youth championships. The country boosted female participation in youth delegations from 12.5% to 43.75% in the “progress” indicator, demonstrating how targeted policy decisions can rapidly transform representation.
Backed by their sports ministry and national councils, the UAE has institutionalised female chess through a specialised network of seven chess clubs with dedicated girls-only sections and two girls-only clubs. They have also made female representation mandatory in their governing body.
By providing logistical support for families and embedding women in leadership roles, such as Secretary-General Dr. Maliha Mahmoud Al Mazmi, the federation has created a sustainable professional pipeline.
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Furthermore, the system is anchored by a year-round competitive calendar for girls, ranging from school-level events to national championships of all age categories. Away from the board, the federation has also invested in the inclusion of female international and national arbiters.
For India, the lesson is simple. As the data shows, the country already has the talent. What it needs now is a system that keeps girls in the game long enough to create a sustainable model of development.
