• Anyone with a knack for programming and access to the Internet.

• To take part in the contest, you must have a CodeChef account. If you don't have one, create your CodeChef account here.
• You need to have a completed profile (fill up all the mandatory fields if you have not done so already). To complete your profile, you can go to your My accounts page on CodeChef.
• You need to register your team for the contest before you can participate. You can register only one team for the contest. Details about team formation:
  • A team can have one or two members.
  • There is no institution-wise restriction. That is, participants from different organisations/institutes will be allowed to form teams.
  • A participant can be part of only one team.
• Note for Directi Employees/Interns:
  • Employees of Directi or any of its business verticals will be considered for separate prizes. They will not be eligible for the main prize category.
  • Students interning with Directi this year will be considered as University going students and will be eligible for the main prize category.
  • Employees of Directi forming a team with any non-Directi member will not be eligible for any prize nor would they be invited for the onsite finals.
  • Participants (non-Directi members) forming a team with Directi Employees will not be eligible for any prize. Nor would they be invited for the onsite finals.

Note : The registration for SnackDown 2017 will close at end of the qualifier round. We suggest you to register your team well in advance to avoid any last minute hassles.

The contest will consist of multiple rounds, with teams progressing in every round as stated below.

• Qualifier: All registered teams can take part in the online qualifier round. This will be a 4 days contest having problems of varying difficulty levels. Teams solving at least one problem advance to the next round.
• Pre - Elimination Round A: All teams that solve at least one problem in the qualifier round move to this online pre-elimination round. This round will be a 24 hours contest with around 6 problems. Teams in the top 1000 ranks move to the Elimination Round.
• Pre - Elimination Round B:All teams that solve one problem in qualifier round but could not advance to the next round through the pre-elimination round A, get another opportunity to go to the next Elimination round by taking part in this online round. This round will be a 24 hours contest with around 6 problems. Teams in the top 1000 ranks move to the Elimination Round.
• Elimination Round: Teams having top 1000 ranks from either pre-elimination round A or pre-elimination round B get to participate in this online round. This will be a 5 hour ACM ICPC styled contest having around 9 problems.
  • Note: Pre-elimination rounds uses a score based ranking system, which implies that ties will not be broken. Hence, any team whose rank ≤ 1000 will qualify to appear for this round. The number of teams qualifying for this round can easily be more than 2000.
• Onsite Finale, Mumbai: This will be a 5 hours ACM ICPC styled onsite contest having around 10 problems.
  • Top 25 teams from the Elimination Round will be invited for the onsite finale. Note: In case top 25 slots don't get filled, the next best teams will be given a chance, up to rank 100 in the Elimination Round.
  • There will be additional slots for teams that will be invited for the onsite finale. They include:
    • One Top School Team (should be among the top 200 overall ranks in the Elimination Round to be eligible for the onsite finale.)
    • One Top Female Team (should be among the top 200 overall ranks in the Elimination Round to be eligible for the onsite finale.)
    • 30 Indian Teams
      • Top 25 Indian Teams
        • Top 10 Indian teams from the Elimination Round get an assured invite to the Onsite finale.
        • The next 15 Indian teams from the Elimination Round get an invite provided that they come in top 100 overall ranks.
      • 3 Top Indian School Teams (They should be among the top 200 overall ranks in the Elimination Round to be eligible for the onsite finale.)
      • 2 Top Indian Female Teams (They should be among the top 200 overall ranks in the Elimination Round to be eligible for the onsite finale.)

    Note: If a team gets selected in a more general category, then the next best team in this category gets this slot. For example, if a school team from India is already present in the top 25 teams from India and chooses to use that slot, then the next best school team gets this slot (this is unlike what happened last year).

• Indian Teams:
  • To be eligible to fall under Indian category teams, the team members must be Indian nationals. Additionally, both the members must be full-time employees of an organization or pursuing education in an institution in India. In case of home schooling or unemployment, they must be residing in India.
  • Should be present in India at the time of onsite finals to be flown down to the Finale at Directiplex, Mumbai.
• School Teams:
  • Both the team members should be enrolled in a school at the time of registration. Recent pass outs of academic year 2016-17 will also be considered as school students provided that they haven't taken up any new academic career or employment. In case of home schooled students, the participants must be under 18 years as on 1st January, 2017.
• Females Teams:
  • Both the team members should be females to be eligible to fall into this category.

• Teams will be ranked as per the number of problems solved
• The qualification & pre-elimination rounds will use score based ranking system.
• The elimination & final round will use ACM styled ranking system.

• The problem statements will be available in four different languages:
  • English
  • Mandarin
  • Russian
  • Vietnamese

• Travel expenses of the top 25 teams:
  • Top 15 teams will be entitled for an all expense paid trip to Mumbai.
  • The rest of the 10 teams will have to meet their own travel expenses.
• Travel expenses of 32 additional slots:
  • 25 Indian Teams
    • The top 15 Indian teams that arrive at the finale will be entitled for an all expense paid trip to Mumbai. (Provided that they do qualify for the onsite finale. The top 10 teams are guaranteed an entry. The next 5 Indian teams have to be in top 100 of the Elimination round to be eligible for onsite finale. See rule 4 above under Onsite Finale).
    • The remaining 10 teams will have to meet their own travel.
  • 4 Schools Teams + 3 Female Teams: These teams will be entitled for an all expense paid trip to Mumbai

Accommodation, food, and local transport for every onsite finalist will be arranged by CodeChef.

All the above mentioned rules and terms are applicable to all our participants. However, if you are participating in the global category, there are few more things that you need to make a note of.

• You will need a valid Passport and all the documents required for an Indian Visa.
• Your local travel and accommodation during the days covered in the itinerary will be arranged by CodeChef. However, should you choose to extend your stay, you will have make your accommodation arrangements for your extended stay.

As a participant you are expected to adhere to these terms, failing which, you will be disqualified from the contest at any stage and will not be eligible for any prizes. Your submission into the contest shall be taken as your agreement to the terms below.

• Prizes/Certificates:
  • Cash Prizes: All the cash prizes will be awarded in US dollars and will be given in the form of cash, cheque, or any other mode of payment.
  • Taxes: Participants will be solely responsible for complying with the pertinent tax laws. All the cash prizes will be given after proper deduction of taxes as required by the law.
  • The goodies for the onsite participants will be handed over at the onsite event, while for the other participants it will be delivered at the address provided.
  • If any Indian team comes in top 3 at the SnackDown 2017 finals then the Best Indian Team category prize will lapse.
  • All the teams qualifying for the pre-elimination round will get a "Certificate of Participation".
• Disqualification

  CodeChef can disqualify and forfeit the prizes of any team if they attempt to undermine the contest decorum by:

  • Violating CodeChef's Code of Conduct at any stage of the tournament.
  • Not complying with any of the terms listed here.
  • Providing false information to become eligible for the prizes.
  • Misbehaving with other participants or contest administrators at any stage of the tournament.
  • Using content that is lewd, racist, pornographic, sexist, or otherwise unfitting for the Contest.
  • Getting involved in any malicious activity during any stage of the tournament.
• Verifying Eligibility:
  • CodeChef holds all rights to adjudicate on any dispute and verify your eligibility at any stage of the contest.
  • By entering the contest, you agree to produce any proof of eligibility requested by CodeChef for verification purposes.
  • If you fail to do so, it will result in your immediate disqualification from the contest and forfeiture of the prizes
• Disclaimer:

  The "Rules" listed herein are applicable to "CodeChef SnackDown" and every aspect of it. We urge you to go through these Terms with awareness as they form a legal agreement between you and CodeChef. There can be some alterations in the contest, which when they happen may require changes in the existing terms or require inclusion of completely new terms. The changes will become part of the existing terms and your agreement with CodeChef with respect to the Contest.