The stage is set for the celebration of brilliance.

On Friday, The Telegraph Education Foundation (TTEF) will raise the curtain on the third edition of the IIHM Presents The Telegraph School Awards for Excellence 2025 North Bengal in association with The Bhawanipur Education Society College & PCM Group & co-sponsored by SiP Abacus.

The two-day award ceremony scheduled for Friday and Saturday will be held at the Birla Divya Jyoti School auditorium at Uttarauon in Siliguri, starting from 10.30am on both days.

On the first day, merit, honour certificates, scholarships, and special recognition to students, parents, and teachers will be presented.

The finals will be held on Saturday to celebrate the extraordinary stories of grit, resilience, and victories of students, teachers, and educational institutes of the region.

The coveted The Telegraph School of the Year will be a major highlight of the awards ceremony.

This year, 47 institutions, right from Darjeeling in the north to Malda in the south, covering all eight north Bengal districts, participated in the competition.

"The number does not include schools that have participated in one-time scholarships. Last year, over ₹5 lakh were spent on scholarships for the needy and meritorious students,” said Amitabha Datta, chairman, TTEF.

The selection process, which spanned for days, was conducted by a panel comprising Sukanta Chaudhuri, renowned English professor, Uma Dasgupta, historian and Tagore biographer, Raju Mukherji, former cricketer and selector, Sujata Sen, CEO of Future Hope, Subhash Ranjan Chakraborty, a veteran academic from Darjeeling Government College, Swaraj Kumar Banerjee (Rajah), noted tea connoisseur, Rita Sengupta, head of Prerana — a centre for differently-abled children in Siliguri, and Amitabha Datta, the TTEF chairman.

Applications for the awards started arriving at the TTEF office in Calcutta from July, many accompanied by photographs and videos. Entries were accepted until the second week of October, after which they were reviewed and arranged for the panel’s assessment.

“For us, every application was equal and every applicant important,” said Datta.

While academic excellence remains central to the event, the awards also recognise achievements that extend beyond the classroom — from environmental conservation and biodiversity to sports and social service.

“This is an occasion to honour people who continue their work despite obstacles. Some nominations were truly outstanding — showcasing the determination of young minds and the lifelong dedication of teachers who have nurtured talent in multiple fields,” said former cricketer Raju Mukherji.