Bhubaneswar: Mettle Meet 2026 is all set to kick off Saturday, bringing together around 80 teams from across Odisha and different parts of the country for one of the biggest and most prestigious quizzing competitions in eastern India. The opening day will feature the preliminary rounds in both the junior and senior categories. Defending champions AIIMS Bhubaneswar (Senior) and DAV Public School, Unit-VIII, Bhubaneswar (Junior) will aim to retain their titles. Last year’s runners-up — IIT Kharagpur and IIM Calcutta (Senior), and KIIT International School and Loyola School (Junior) — will also be among the strong contenders. Launched in 2016, Mettle Meet is an initiative of Orissa POST, Odisha’s only home-grown English daily, aimed at promoting the culture of quizzing and nurturing intellectual curiosity among students.