Calling all talkaholic school students to participate & win...

What is Verbattle?
Verbattle is the largest, most exciting and a unique debate and dialogue platform, with the fundamental purpose for thought and opinion exchange.
What is Verbattle Junior?
The biggest state level debate tournament for school children in the age group of 12 to 16 years, conducted annually. Verbattle Junior 2008 is being organized for the fourth consecutive year this August.
Who is organizing Verbattle Junior?
The main organizer is T V House, a media company, experienced in producing T V shows & entertainment events.
When exactly are the Verbattle Junior tournament competitions?
Verbattle Junior 2008 will start with the Zonal event in Hubli on the 7th of August, and culminate with the finals on the 14th of August, 2008.
How many teams are expected to participate in Verbattle Junior?
Invitations are sent to more than 3000 institutions. A minimum of about 800 teams are expected to participate from all over Karnataka. Including the number of teams participating in the selection rounds at the institution level, not less than 5000 students would have participated in the overall process of the event.
Where are the different stages of the event going to be held?
All the state level competitions will be held in Bangalore and the zonal rounds will be held in the respective zone centres.
How many members should a team consist of?
A team should consist of two students.
Is there any entry fee? If yes, how much?
Yes, an entry fee of Rs. 500/- is charged per team.
When will the registration begin?
Registration will begin on 18th July,2008.
Will individual teams be allowed to participate on their own?
Entry through institutions is desired, but independent teams with authorization letter from the institution will be allowed. But the team will be recognized by the name of the institution. Both the team members should be from the same institution (that is, in case the institute has many units/ branches the members of the team shall belong to the same unit or branch, though they may study in different classes or disciplines in the unit).
Is there an age limit for the participants?
They should be in the age group of 12 to 16 years as on 1st August 2008. Age criterion is strictly adhered to based on the declaration in the application.
What are the prizes offered?
A cash prize of Rs.1,00,000/- plus a lot of other useful prizes are offered to the winning team. The other two finalist teams will receive a cash prize of Rs.10,000/- each and other prizes. (Till Verbattle Junior 2007, the two finalist prizes were Rs. 30,000/- each).
Are there any other prizes?
Yes, there will be a zonal winning team prize of Rs. 5000/- per zone and the best team of State Prelims carrying a cash prize of Rs. 5000/-
Is there a special prize?
Yes. For the first time, there will be a Mentor Award carrying a cash prize of Rs. 10,000/- and a citation.
What about Certificates?
This time onwards, Certificate will be issued to all participating students eliminated at each level.
Will the event be telecast on T V?
Verbattle for three years was telecast at prime time on Udaya News Channel. This year too the show will be capsuled in a highly viewer friendly manner and will be shown on Saturday nights at 8.30 p.m. on Udaya News (Varthegalu) Channel for half to one hour over the period of conduct of the tournament.
Who is the target audience, and what numbers of young people does Verbattle Junior hope to reach?
People in the age group of 10 to 35 years are the target audience and anyone interested in knowing the views of the youth of today too could be interested in the event. Even with a minimum of 1000 youth attracted to each team by way of school-association and cheering interest, a minimum of ten lakh youth could be viewing the show on ground, on TV or informing themselves about the contest over the course of the event.
Who conducts the debates?
Deepak Thimaya, eminent T V personality in Karnataka, is the founder of Verbattle. Mr Thimaya, with his unparalleled and distinct knowledge and experience in various fields, monitors, supervises and conducts the debates. (more information about him may be found on www.deepakthimaya.com )
On what basis would the debates be judged?
The judges would award marks for logic, arguments, language, presentation, correctness, accent, body language, presence of mind and time management. Conduct of the debaters on stage, their ability to think on their feet, wide exposure to knowledge, comprehension and listening skills and appealing talents also will attract winning marks.
What are the desired qualities in a debater?
The debaters should be confident, self assured, well informed, open minded, sensitive, sensible, affable, accommodative, intelligent, quick thinking and a very good listener. A good debater would win without fighting.
How is the selection done when there are different sets of judges?
Each complete phase of the event is divided by the number of sessions of judges. The contests/teams per session are proportionally considered for the number of teams to be selected for the whole phase.
What is the aim of Verbattle?
Verbattle encourages young minds to think freely, process thoughts aptly, convert thought strains into simple language and present arguments logically; with clarity in speech, acceptable accent, audible voice and corresponding gestures, by appealing to the audience with his or her knowledge, communication abilities and great virtues of human tolerance and understanding. The broader aim of Verbattle is to encourage children to develop into right thinking citizens of a healthy society. The dream is to create leaders for our nation of tomorrow.
Who are the people / departments associated with Verbattle?
Eminent personalities and well-known organizations have been associated with Verbattle and have continued their support. Verbattle has witnessed a galaxy of luminaries from different fields who have graced its various events in the past years.
Any special attraction this year?
This year we see more audience participation, and more audience engagement with the debaters. A unique platform called Open House will be held at all venues where the audience will get to interact with special guests who will share their knowledge and experience from their respective fields. For instance, in Bangalore, during State Prelims, the following Open House sessions will be held:
1. meet a politician
2. meet a writer
3. meet a journalist
4. meet an IAS officer
5. meet an IPS officer
Who is sponsoring the event this year?
Verbattle Junior over the years has been sponsored by companies like Britannia, Wockhardt Hospitals, HDFC Home Loans, MSIL, BMTC, Karnataka Bank, and institutions and organisations like Amber Valley Residential School, Youth Services Department, Education Department. Many other individuals and organisations have stood by Verbattle and have been responsible for its success.
What are the stages of the event?
The First Stage is the internal selection at the school level, based on the various criteria put forth by Verbattle.

The Second Stage is the Zonal Selection Round to select the total 81 teams for the state level contest.

The Third Stage is the State Prelims in Bangalore, the contest between 81 teams.

The Fourth Stage is the Thirds / Quarters, contest between 27 teams.

The Fifth Stage is the Semis, contest between 9 teams.
Finals, is three full course debates between the final 3 teams.
Where can one have all the details of Verbattle?
You can have most details by carefully looking at the web portal www.verbattle.com You could also watch relevant videos in www.youtube.com/verbattle
Where should one contact for registration details?
You may contact the helpline number 988 64 64 64 1, or visit the official website www.verbattle.com, or email to verbattle@gmail.com