News34th edition of Oliphant Memorial Inter-School English Debates at Welham Boys' School 23-08-2024
Welham Boys' School hosted the 34th edition of The Oliphant Memorial Inter- School English Debates on August 23 and 24, 2024. This esteemed annual debate, which began in April 1990 as a tribute to the Founder, Ms. Hersillia Susie Oliphant, serves as a commemoration of her legacy.
Over the past thirty-three years, the debate has been conducted in various formats, with this year's edition following the modified British Parliamentary format. The criteria for judging were based on Matter, Manner, and Method.
The tournament saw the participation of 12 school teams from all over India, engaging in meaningful discussions on socio-economic and political issues. After three intense debating rounds on subjects such as social movements and education, eight teams qualified for the semi-finals. All teams delivered articulate and well-researched speeches on the motion, given the nuanced subject matter.
The Motion for the semi-final read, “This House Will Grant Megacities Autonomous Control Over their Economic and Social Policy.”
The best speaker in the first Semi-final round was awarded to Atharv Agarwal from Welham Boys’ School, Dehradun while Shenaya Bhattacharjee from Neev Academy, Bangalore was the Most Promising Speaker. The best speaker in the second Semi-final round was Gayatri Bhatia from Welham Girls’ School while Prarthana Goenka from Welham Girls was the Most Promising Speaker.
After the highly competitive semi-finals Welham Girls School, Vasant Valley School, Welham Boys’ School and St. Joseph Academy qualified for the Finals with the topic debating the extent to which violence should be deemed acceptable.
The Motion for the Final read, “World A has a strict moral code where people are taught that violence is bad no matter who uses it. World B has a normalised system of belief that violence is sometimes acceptable depending on the user and cause. This House Prefers World A over World B.”
The concluding debate was presided over by, Mr Sharanbir Brijnath, the Chairperson of the debate, Former CEO of Interactive One, an experienced finance and technology professional with a strong background in proprietary trading, quantitative investment management, and web development. Co-founder of Buchanan Partners Limited and Managed Information Services (now IRIS Resourcing India Ltd.), with notable achievements including the development of a unique bank reconciliation algorithm.
In an incredibly well-contested and close final Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun was awarded the coveted trophy, while Vasant Valley, New Delhi was placed second. Both, the Best Speaker, Gayatri Bhatia and the Most Promising Speaker, Prathana Goenka of the Final Round were participants of the Welham Girls’ School.
The 34th edition of the Oliphant Memorial English Debates concluded with resounding success, encapsulating intellectual fervour and ardent, articulate debates.