Home Blog Page 54

An Exclusive Foodie Paradise Aficionados Wont Dare Miss

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
An Exclusive Foodie Paradise Aficionados Wont Dare Miss

one. The country’s first and only travelling food showcase – The Travelling Kitchen – after its first successful stop in Jaipur, is heading straight for the city with the theme Winter Garden. The three day fun food fiesta, with deep focus on exclusive menus churned out specially for you by the head chefs of some of the most popular and trending food and beverage brands from Tier-I cities, opens its tastes, flavours and rich ambience, with lots of complementing music, in the lawns of Chandigarh Golf Association Range & Academy (CGA Range for short) in Sector 6 from January 18.

Its founder and chief curator Bharat Atwal claims in a chat with LifeInChandigarh.com that not many would have experienced any culinary event as personalised and unique as this one. “We have taken personal care to ensure that each of the fabulous line-up of food and beverage brands participating in the event is represented by its head chef before whom it will be a challenge to chu out menus that are imaginative, new and exclusive to us. It’s a ticked event to ensure that all who visit the venue are serious foodies. But the ticket price will be more than compensated by the strictly enforced reasonable pricing of food and beverages with big portions. The idea is that when the event is all about food, then every connoisseur of food should be able to savour every preparation that catches his or her fancy.”

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

The event will have a portfolio of 13 cuisines, including Indo-Persian, Pan Asian, Japanese, Goan and Konkani, with participation from 20 restaurants and 12 retail brands. There will be a great ‘Sushi’ chef. Some others will focus exclusively on desserts, sauces or curries. The trendiest visiting restaurants and F&B retail brands will be seasoned with some of the favourites from Chandigarh, aim being to provide local talent a respectable platform.

To compliment the food, India’s celebrated tea whisperer Namika Singh will serve you a wide variety of her wonderful cupfuls from Anandini Himalaya Tea, which is a rage with international tourists. The live music in the evening will feature some top folk cultural bands, among them ‘Rajasthan Roots’, which will bring Jaisalmer alive with their fusion folk music. There will also be jazz and contemporary music, perfectly complimenting the wonderful array of lip-smacking food.

Having associated with Haryana Tourism, The Travelling Kitchen will have a stall exclusively for five of the chosen best students from as many institutes of hotel management in the state to give them an opportunity to impress the visitors with their own fancy menus.

The stalls at the fun food showcase will not be typically canopy type. Use of bamboo in a striking fashion, and small, big and huge flower decorations using recycled paper will be the hallmark of the chic decor, which will have a profusion of colours and pretty pastels.

On the opening day, the food fiesta will open to food lovers at 4 pm and go on till 10:30 p.m. On the remaining two days it will run from 11 am to 10:30 pm.

https://www.facebook.com/TheTravellingKitchenIndia/

So be there! Enjoy a FunFoodRide!

Haryana CM Claims His Govt Has Turned Around Power Utilities

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Haryana CM Claims His Govt Has Turned Around Power Utilities

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal has claimed that a carrot and stick policy adopted by his government towards realisation of long standing power bill arrears during the four years it has been in power, measures taken to substantially reduce line losses, including power theft, and prudent fiscal management and reforms have turned around the four public sector power utilities in the state from a position of perpetual losses to profits.

Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh on Thursday, Manohar Lal said these companies had together accumulated a debt of Rs 30,000 crore in 2013-14, which had been completely wiped out, leaving all the four utilities in profits for the first time since their inception. This despite the fact that implementation of the recommendations of the 7th pay commission in the state and extending other benefits had put an additional salaries burden of nearly 80% – from Rs 1400-Rs 1500 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 2600 crore. Power tariffs had also been reduced substantially for all categories of less power intensive domestic and MSME sector consumers, on account of which the government’s subsidy component was nearly Rs 100 crore.

Photo By : Life In Chandigarh

With massive upgrade of the transmission and distribution network, and stringent measures to check theft of power, line losses had also been drastically reduced from as high as 30.02% in 2014 to 20.20%. By next year, these are sought to be brought down further to 15%, he asserted.

Adopting a pragmatic approach, power bill arrears of all domestic consumers up to June 2005 had been waived off completely. Additionally, for BPL families, penalties levied on power bill arrears since 2005 had also been waived off, allowing them the liberty to pay their arrears in easy monthly instalments. In doing so the state government has incurred an expenditure of nearly Rs 2,000 crore, he added.

In Annual Integrated Rankings, recently released by the Union Power Ministry, Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (UHBVNL) and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (DHBVNL) have jumped from 22nd and 24th positions respectively in 2015-16 to 10th and 13th positions respectively in 2016-17.  The chief minister expressed confidence that “the way the two discoms are performing, it won’t be a surprise to find them in the top 2-3 rankings in the next one or two years.”

New Power Substations

Regarding strengthening of the power distribution network, Manohar Lal said during the last four years 140 new 33KV power substations had been added to the existing 538 (as in 2014) and the capacity of 382 existing sub stations had been enhanced. In the same period 86,485 new distribution transformers had been added to the existing 4.70 lakh-plus, and 23,615 kms of new transmission lines laid to strength the existing network of more than 2.38 lakh kms.

44,000 Tubewell Connections

As new year gift to farmers, the chief minister announced that all 44,000 applications for tube well connections pending since January 1, 2014, will be disposed of by March 31, 2019 and demand notices issued to the applicants. All these tube wells, with option to install solar powered pumps, will be given connections within the next six months of issuance of demand notice.

50,000 Solar Energy Connections

The chief minister informed that a target had been fixed to issue 50,000 new solar power connections for tube wells, which when installed are expected to reduce power consumption by 30%. Tenders had already been floated for 15,000 connections, he added. 

To encourage use of solar energy in agricultural tube wells, 468 of these falling under Vayama feeder of Karnal block and Saspur feeder of Yamunanagar block would be converted to use of solar power at no cost to the farmers. The state will incur Rs 25 crore on this scheme.

Farmers are also being encouraged to adopt micro irrigation to recharge the groundwater in red zones and cut down on consumption of power.

Following detection of wrongful charging of inter-state transmission fee by Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCI) from Haryana for supplying power from the NTPC plant at Jhajjar in the state, the power utilities had saved Rs 300 crore @ Rs 30 crore monthly. Demand for refund of another Rs 1120 crore towards earlier such payments made to PGCI had also been raised.

Smart Meters

Process for installing 10 lakh smart meters by the power discoms across the state had already commenced in Panipat and Karnal and Gurugram districts will also be covered under the first phase of the programme.

Among those present at the press conference were Additional Chief Secretary (Power) TC Gupta, Additional Chief Secretary (New & Renewal Energy) PK Mahapatra and Power Discoms Chairman & MD Shatrujeet Singh Kapoor.

32Stiches, Sidhu Moose Wala, Gulabiqueen To Perform Live

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
32Stiches, Sidhu Moose Wala, Gulabiqueen To Perform Live

This Chandigarh boy had never learnt to play an instrument during his childhood, and yet this crazy dude, who took to music as a way of expressing his feelings following a terrible heartbreak in college, is today arguably one of India’s finest electro-pop music producers. Better known in the entertainment world as ’32Stitches’ (real name Arpit Gawri) the Chandigarh ‘munda’, who has toured across Europe with well known bands, is going to perform for the first time in front of his home crowd alongside some of the best Punjabi singers and promising indigenous bands, at the Switch NYE Fest 2018, touted as North India’s biggest New Year Festival, Flemingo Resort, Zirakpur on December 31.

The festival, which starts at 3 p.m. and is expected to go on well into the New Year, has in the line-up of performers the current heart throbs of the Punjabi music industry Sidhu Moose Wala and ‘Gulabiqueen’ Jasmine Sandlas. Then we have alternative Hindi rock band Rudra, Alterantive Punjabi rock band Snorting Jatts, Argenil, Shubhank Sharma and Aditya Kulharia.

Photo By : Life In Chandigarh

For a New Year party high on freak-out quotient, tickets are rather reasonably priced : Rs 3500 for a couple in the general category (Rs 2500 for single). Tickets for the VIP unlimited section come at Rs 10,000 per couple (Rs 7,000 for single). The limited ultra exclusive VVIP tables come for Rs 60,000 for a group of 6 people.

The resort has a capacity for accommodating a crowd of 2,000-3,000. Organisers are assuring adequate parking and security.

Sariv and Manu from Magical Society, which has conceptualised the event, told lifeinchandigarh.com that the festival, the first of its kind New Year bash, has been inspired by the highly popular Sunbu Festival of Goa. “We have tried to bring in a breath of fresh air, bringing in some really promising bands to perform along with some of the most trending names from the Punjabi music industry. We are sure people are going to love every bit of it.”

Tracing his journey thus far in the music and entertainment industry, 32Stitches, who is the only Indian to have been signed up by Run The Trap Events, the No. 1 trap, hip-hop, bass and beats events of the Netherlands, and one of the biggest events in Europe, says “whether I am dabbling in future bass, trap/bass, progressive or electro, I am definitely not the one to confine to one single set of rules within a plethora of untapped explorations.” He has played alongside the likes of Fabian Mazur, LUUDE, Holly and Jamal on tours and also opened for San Holo and DROELOE at their debut India show.

Crossing over a million streams across platforms, reaching Beatport and iTunes charts in various countries and being picked by some of the most reputed publications and channels for features, 32Stitches has more than half a dozen hit releases to his credit. Among them are ‘Fallout’ (remixes) with remixes from Beauz, Far & Few, Zeus X Crona released via Music High Court, ‘Remember This’, Fallout (a single, dedicated to his pet dog ‘Astro’) and ‘Between Us’ via Illicit/Strange Fruits.

Having done his early schooling from St Kabir School and 12th from KBDAV School, and his college between Singapore and Dehradun, Arpit Gawri after a heart-shattering breakup of a seven years old relationship, felt the need for an avenue to express his feelings and find balance in life. So, what better than music, which he loved since his childhood. His friend Arjun, who runs a music academy by the name ‘I Love Music’, called him over to Gurugram and imparted him the first formal lessons in music.

“Following this brief stint with Arjun, I was charged up, and there was no looking back. My mother nudged me into joining a music school of my dreams in London, where I learnt sound engineering and networked with the big names in the field,” says Arpit.

32Stitches, who has had successful shows in Delhi, Bangalore and Pune, and is excited about performing before his family and friends on his home turf for the first time, feels that for creating mode day music one doesn’t necessarily need to be an instrumentalist. “I am not,” he asserts. “You can configure your music on a laptop,” he explains.

Party all night, at Switch NYE Fest 2018!

Venue : Flemingo Resort, Zirakpur
Date & Time : 31st December, 3 p.m. onwards 

3 Geographical Areas In Punjab & 2 In Haryana Up For Grabs

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
3 Geographical Areas In Punjab & 2 In Haryana Up For Grabs

Considering that the projected increase in domestic production of natural gas in India is set to decrease the burden of imports to much less than the current 50% of the total demand, the central government appears to have gone into overdrive in extending the facility of piped gas to cities, towns and villages across the country. Under the 10th round of bidding for city gas distribution (CGD), coming back to back with completion of the 9th round, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) estimates that it will be able to cover another 24% of the population in the country taking the total coverage in the next eight odd years to 70%.

The board on Thursday held a road show in Chandigarh to attract potential investors from the region to the 10th round of the nationwide bidding process which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 22. Briefing media persons after an interaction with the invitees to the road show, PNGRB Chairman DK Sarraf said 50 geographical areas (GAs) are being offered in the 10th round of bidding, covering 124 districts (112 in full and 12 in part) spread over 14 states, including Punjab and Haryana.

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

So far PNGRB has given CGD authorisations in 10 GAs of Punjab covering 13 districts, and 3 more GAs, covering 6 other districts, are being offered in the state under the 10th round of bidding. In Haryana, CGD authorisations in 13 GAs covering 16 districts had already been given, and another 2 GAs covering 3 other districts are being offered under the latest round. “On conclusion of the 10th round of bidding expectedly by end February 2019, Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh would be fully authorised for development of CGD networks,” Sarraf informed.

Giving a feel of the pace at which the CGD network was sought to be expanded in the country, he said 50% additional population would be covered within the next 8 years as compared to just 20% coverage under the network in the last few decades. The entire process of issuing Letters of Intent (LoIs) after receiving bids under the 9th round had been wound up within a month and in the 10th round too, the process will be concluded within three weeks of the last date of receiving bids, which is February 5, he added.

Advocating use of natural gas as a suitable alternative to coal and liquid fossil fuels in household use, transport, commercial undertakings and industry, Sarraf asserted that apart from natural gas being 60% cheaper than petrol and 45% cheaper than diesel, it was much more environmentally friendly with lesser carbon emissions. This was also in line with the country’s avowed mission of increasing the share of natural gas in its energy basket from 6.2% (as against 23.4% globally) to 15% by 2030 and reduce crude oil imports 10% by 2022, he added.

 In pushing the accelerator, the government is apparently targeting substantial employment generation as the 9th round of bidding is expected to crystalise investment to the tune of Rs 70,000 crore and the 10th round another Rs 50,000 crore.

Pitching piped gas supply as a more convenient fuel for household use in cities, towns and villages, Sarraf pointed out that natural gas was safer than LPG as it was lighter, dissipating in the air on pipeline leakage, and was 40@ cheaper than market rate of LPG supplied in cylinders and comparable to subsidised LPG.

The Chandigarh Story

The piped gas network is expected to be available across Chandigarh by the end of 2020 and the CNG stations in the city are also likely to increase to 11 from the current 6 by the end of the current financial year, with the ultimate target to raising their strength further to 27 by end of 2020. Representatives of Indian Oil-Adani Gas combine, which has been given the CGD authorisation for the geographical area of Chandigarh and around, said a 400 km long network of gas pipelines had already been laid in 20 sectors in the city south of the Dakshin Marg and 70,000 connections booked. In the next phase another 20 sectors between the Madhya Marg and Dakshin Marg will be covered and the entire city will be under their network by end of 2020.

Regarding the residents being inconvenienced by dug up streets not being restored due to lack of coordination with the municipal corporation, the company representatives said the issue is being sorted out with Chandigarh adopting the Punjab policy on the issue, and both digging and restoration work is now to be done by the Indian Oil-Adani Gas combine.

Efforts were also being made to speed up the process of opening more CNG stations in existing petrol pumps and increasing number of dispensers where these already existed, the company representatives assured, while admitting that serpentine queues at the current CNG stations were a cause for serious concern.

Get Your Biryani Served In The Handi It is Cooked In

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Get Your Biryani Served In The Handi It is Cooked In

So what is it about ‘biryani’ that it is driving the foodies crazy. It was said to have outpaced pizza as the most frequently ordered dish by soccer fans in India watching the FIFA World Cup 2018. Industry insiders believe that moving forward it is expected to be the largest category in the food delivery space in India. Speciality biryani dine-in and take away outlets opening up on the trot in Chandigarh tricity and around are also banking heavily on home delivery as the single largest driver of their business.

Delhi NCR-centred biryani brand Biryani By Kilo on Friday announced launch of its second outlet in the tricity, a 60-seater dine-in on the Airport Road in Sector 82 Mohali,  after opening one in Sector 30 Chandigarh in mid October. Readers would recollect that a local biryani brand Petu Pankaj, promoted by a chartered accountant and a corporate chef brother duo, was launched in mid November this year. Both brands profess to serve authentic traditional biryanis from the biryani capitals of India.

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

This is the 15th outlet of Biryani By Kilo (BBK), third outside of Delhi NCR, and 6-8 more are planned to be opened across Punjab, including Zirakpur, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Amritsar, and a few more in Mumbai, where it has just one outlet.

Co-founders of Biryani By Kilo (BBK) Vishal Jindal and Kaushik Roy, with expertise and experience in hospitality operations, strategy and finance, shared with Lifeinchandigarh.com over delectable tastings at the Chandigarh outlet that biryani category and food delivery have enormous potential and BBK is at a vantage point to expand both. “We want to create a worldwide food services company from India,” they said.

So, why biryani is in focus, and why ‘kilo’ in the brand name? Vishal is quick to respond. “Biryani is a complete meal in itself and it’s not messy even in delivery, just like pizza. The kilo comes in since we have divided our biryani portions into 1 kg and ½ kg.”

The promoters claimed that with the support of a 450-plus team, BBK had clocked average monthly revenue of Rs 3 crore-plus with three years of launch, and their aim is to achieve Rs 1,000 crore-plus in sales in the next two years. Towards this end the brand has ambitious plans to raise the strength of its outlets across India to 20-plus by the end of the current financial year and to 100 outlets in the next three years.

The brand vows by ‘khansama’ style cooking, wherein each meal/biryani is freshly cooked and served in the same earthern clay ‘handi’. The same sealed handi goes in delivery as well to preserve the freshness, aromas, flavours and warmth of the contents. The handi/s can be put to multiple uses like cooking, plant potting, etc.

“Our range of our authentic biryanis come in three different varieties – Hyderabadi, Lucknowi and Kolkata style – and are made using the finest basmati rice from Daawat and herbs and spices sourced from Kerala”, said Vishal, adding that “Murg Hyderabadi, Gosht Lucknowi, Prawns and Kathal Hyderabadi biryanis are a must try. Our special Malamaal biryani is for those who love meat in their every spoon, as rice and meat in equal quantities are used to ensure that you get chicken/mutton in every bite. The Hyderabadi biryani comes with ‘Salan’ (a curry made using green chillies, sesame seeds, dessicated coconut and peanuts) and the Lucknowi and Kolkata biryanis are served with ‘raita’.”

The brand also serves galouti kebabs, kormas and curries, as also beverages and deserts (matka khirni and Daastan-E-Gul are their speciality). On offer are three different veg and non-veg celebration packages for 2-3, 4-5 and 8-10 persons which variously include biryani, kebab, korma, rotis, paranthas and desert.

Loyalty programmes include Rs 100 off on first order, free khirni tohfa on every order and 10-20% loyalty cash back on every order.

 Orders are taken online at www.biryanibykilo.com or on the brand’s app, and offline on call centre number 9555-212-212

Delivery reaches you within 90 minutes.

Let the feasting begin! 

Egyptian & Other First Time Exhibitors Bring Refreshing Change

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Egyptian & Other First Time Exhibitors Bring Refreshing Change

Dozens of exhibitions keep making the rounds of the Chandigarh tricity with monotonous regularity, but Chandigarh Mega Expo 2018, a five-day affair which opened at the Parade Ground-17 on Friday, brings some refreshing first time exhibits worth a good, hard look.

Going around the exhibition, which will remain open till Christmas from 11 am to 8:30 pm each day, lifeinchandigarh.com brings you brief details of first time exhibitors which are a must visit.

Photos By: Life In Chandigarh

Pharo Egypt, in its first ever foray into India, has brought amazing home decor items, including models of famous Egyptian monuments like pyramids and sphinx, paper paintings and exotic framed paintings, wall clocks and many more in reasonable Rs 400-Rs 5,000 range. A separate stall also exhibits a range of traditional long tunics in pure Egyptian cotton for Rs 1200 flat.

Says Pharo Egypt CEO Yehia Eldakak, “We are participating in an exhibition in India for the first time ever, and we want to give the people of this vast and great ancient civilisation a feel of another great and ancient civilisation and its handicrafts. We have priced our exhibits reasonably so that all sections of people can keep something memorable from Egypt in their homes.”

H S Exports from Faridabad has brought to Chandigarh for the first time a wide range of genuine leather furniture and accessories, which it exports to all parts of the globe. Among the products on display are high-quality consoles, trunks, whole live bar & bar accessories, home decor accessories, lighting, lamps, jewellery boxes, photo frames and more in different finishes. The collection is handcrafted and hand-finished.

Young new entrepreneur, Simran from Gurugram has brought an exquisite collection of home decor items in iron and wood base, individual pieces of which she has been painstakingly picking up from across Rajasthan. Her brand ‘Little Extra’ is going to make a foray into Ludhiana soon with a franchise outlet. The range starts from Rs 300-400 going up to Rs 5,000-6,000.

Golden DecHom is another exhibitor which has brought striking home decor items sourced from Rajasthan, South India and from foreign lands. It has also a range of Kashmiri pashmina shawls marketed under the brand ‘Shale’.

For the adventure-loving, there is Upaskara.in from Chennai which has for the first time ever in Chandigarh exhibited folding and adjustable camping furniture, including reclining and rocking chairs and couches. These can also be used as garden furniture.

From closer home, Eye Catchers from Mohali has a range of stunning embroidered dresses and dupattas in velvet, chinnon and organza. The embroidery is Kashmiri, Ari work, Gota patti and Benarsi. The brand has also exhibited a range of comfortable footwear.

Woke.buzz has brought the delicious and nutritious flavoured ‘makhana’ snack in sour cream & onion, jaggery & cinnamon, mint, cheese & herbs and peri peri flavours.

For those who swear by Ayurveda, Vaid Sarjubhai Rajgaundh from Ahmedabad has brought his Vanbandhu Dhanvantry ‘Ayurvedic Deshi Jarhi-booti Upchar’.

Entry fee is Rs 30 per head.

 

 

 

Youth Health Critical To Indias Economic & Political Glory: Prof Vinod Paul

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Youth Health Critical To Indias Economic & Political Glory: Prof Vinod Paul

Niti Aayog member and chairman of board of governors of the reconstituted Medical Council of India Prof (Dr) Vinod K Paul, here to deliver the landmark 50th Colloquium lecture of the Panjab University on the subject ‘Healthy & Smart Youth For A New India’ on Wednesday, was surprised to find that there is no health programme for the students of the university. In the midst of his lecture, during which he emphasised that India’s future glory as a top economic and political power depended on the demographic dividend of having a very young population, he met with silence when he generally inquired whether the university had a health programme running for the students.

Himself an alumnus of the university, he wondered, if schools in the country can have a health programme, why not colleges and universities, because 35% of the health issues develop during adolescence and need to be identified and checked at that stage itself.

Niti Aayog member Prof (Dr) Vinod K Paul (left) at PU on Wednesday

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

With PGI Director Prof (Dr) Jagat Ram seated on the dais as Guest of Honour (both hail from Himachal Pradesh), Prof Paul remarked “With such a prestigious healthcare institution of national importance right next to you, why can’t we make Panjab Univesity a role model health-promoting university in collaboration with the PGI. Can we have a preventive-promotive health action by creating a health and wellness buzzzzzzzz……”

He rubbed it in further saying “the health programme should not be by default, or minimalistic. I would like to see health and wellness become a flagship programme in Panjab University. This can be one of the missions of the university: “Our students enjoy a very high level of health; for them healthy lifestyle and wellness is a way of life!”

Making out a case why the country needs to invest effectively in the youth of the country, and why health was a crucial part of that pursuit, Prof Paul said “we have just about 3 decades to harness our demographic dividend of being a very young nation – with half our population under 25 years of age, two-thirds under 35 years and overall average age being 29 – and maximise our economic growth potential. This generation is going to make a difference, providing we are able to create pathways for their potential to be optimally utilised. One of the imperatives for our nation becoming a top economic and political power is to keep this young population in good physical and mental shape.”

Listing out the key health issues the youth of the nation are facing, which need to be tackled at an individual level and at the level of the society and government, he said though we may not realise this but anaemia is a big issue. A recent survey had pointed to half the adult population in the country being anaemic. A UGC paper has highlighted high level incidence of various psychological issues among the school and college going children, he added.

Among the other lifestyle-related health concerns were large sections of youth being overweight or obese, lack of adequate sleep, addiction to mobiles, hypertension, etc.

Later talking to lifeinchandigarh.com on the phone, Prof Paul addressed concerns over adequate budgetary provisions not being made by successive governments for healthcare, and not enough efforts being made to tackle other factors which impact the health of the nation,  like air and water pollution, sanitation, food adulteration, etc.

Pointing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pronouncement earlier this month to double the health expenditure in the country to 2.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), he said it was reinforcement of the commitment made in the national policy. Even otherwise budgetary constraints were not being allowed to come in the way of making additional expenditure on healthcare as was evident from the Rs 700 crore-plus worth of free treatment provided to the poor within months of the launch of the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme, he asserted.

English Teachers Relive Their Student Days With Master Trainer Illa Vij

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
English Teachers Relive Their Student Days With Master Trainer Illa Vij

It was as if someone had cast a spell over them. More than 100 highly experienced and not so experienced English teachers drawn from the Chandigarh tricity schools affiliated to CBSE and ICSE, gathered at the Shivalkview Hotel on Saturday, were happy revisiting their student days. The occasion was the English Language Training (ELT) workshop ‘Dynamics For The Dynamic!’ organised by Indiannica Learning (formerly Encyclopaedia Britannica (India)) under its ‘Engage & Evolve’ programme to share the best teaching methodologies in English language. Well known author of English courses and English language master trainer Illa Vij, with her extraordinary communication skills and highly engaging style, had them responding to each situation thrown at them with a childlike enthusiasm and zeal.

Indiannica Learning also utilised the occasion to launch its latest CBSE ELT Curriculum Series of books ‘Weavers’. Sister Mary Supreeta AC, Principal, Carmel Convent School Chandigarh, who did the honours, while addressing the teachers said the education fraternity must encourage books which have been compiled with thought and vision. All good books must carry compelling text and pictures which inspire values, creativity and self-reliance among the children. She hoped that the book series with its creative and fun-oriented content will go a long way in enhancing the quality of classroom teaching.

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

In her presentation and interactive dialogue with the teachers, Illa Vij laid stress on encouraging group or collectively learning among students as a means to improve learning outcomes. Self correction within groups of buddies spares children the embarrassment of making mistakes, she added.

Emphasising on teachers not to blindly follow curriculum books in their entirety, she called upon them to exercise their own judgement and leave out or substitute content by adapting to their requirements. “All publishers are passionate about their course books, but it does not mean that they cannot make mistakes in their judgement,” she reasoned.

To stimulate the creativity of teachers, the master trainer also put them through various exercises, one of them being ‘Write A Poem, And Recite It On A Suggested Topic, Or One Of Your Own’. Surprisingly, a lot of teachers turned out to be good poets, too. An overwhelming majority of them indulged in kite-flying, so to say – their poems were on Kite-flying. A couple of others chose Hide & Seek as their topic.

Quoting a few personal examples, and advising English teachers to zealously stick to their language and not turn bi-lingual in their teaching for ease of learning among their students, Illa Vij said by doing so they run the risk of losing the students’ respect for them. 

Advocating that teachers regularly indulge their students in learning activities outside of their text books, she put the teachers through another exercise of visualising activities for students  revolving around photographs taken during vacations. Her own picture, taken during her stay in Rajasthan, of two donkeys named Romeo & Juliet standing face-to-face elicited laughter all around and a host of learning activities connected to it. Same went for pictures of a cute doggy at two different times of its life – when it was small and now as grown up.

The author made an impassioned appeal to teachers to give chance to children to go beyond their course books and see how amazing they can be. “Our’s is a journey of constant learning, and it’s good to learn from children.”

Propounding a formula for setting an examination paper which generates only success stories and not a single failure, she said the progression of the questions should be from simple to complex so that even below average students, by being able to answer the first few questions,  are encouraged to attempt the more complex ones. Her formula was 20% questions – targeted at below average achievers; 30% – average achievers; 30% – above average achievers; and 20% – high achievers. “This way all children will become achievers,” she asserted.

Illa Vij rounded off her presentation with the slogans ‘Let Success Of The Children Begin In the Schools’, ‘Let Your Students Taste Success ….Through YOU !!’ and ‘You CAN Make A Difference!’. A spirited round of applause ended the highly rewarding and fun-filled sessions and the teachers proceeded for a much-deserved lunch and rounds of hearty chitchat.

LifeInChandigarh.com’s Journalistic Input

To add to Illa Vij’s ‘guru mantras’, LifeInChandigarh.com would like to suggest to all the English teachers that along with imparting all other good English language practices, please counsel your students to ensure preciseness and brevity in all their writings and communication for best outcomes. 

Books Couldnt Have Been More Accessible; Its A Steal, Really!

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Books Couldnt Have Been More Accessible; Its A Steal, Really!

The next time you go out to buy a book, consider VR Punjab for your first stop. Mumbai-based publishing house Wilco opened up its much sought after store Bargain Book Hut (BBH), its 13th outlet in the country, in the mall at Mohali on Thursday, promising deals for a steal. With 10,000-plus books and over 3,000 titles, including best sellers, children’s books, non-fiction and fiction, classics and inspirational, the store offers books at astonishingly low prices with round the year crazy discounts of up to 80% across book genres.

“We are running on razor-thin margins with an aim to rekindle a strong reading culture among people of all age groups, especially the young. With the purpose of making reading a less costly affair and a joy, we at Wilco Publishing House, a heritage publishing organisation founded in Mumbai over five decades ago, launched our chain of BBH stores in 2012. This outlet in VR Punjab Mohali is our first in North India and the first large book store in any mall in the tricity. Our previous dozen stores are running in Mumbai (multiple stores), Thane, Pune, Ahmedabad, Surat and Goa. Our target is to go pan-India in the coming years,” says Business Head of the publishing house Eric Williams.

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

Topping up the insane prices of books, BBH is presenting an irresistible inaugural and Christmas offer to book lovers of the region – on a minimum purchase of Rs 1,000 you get  redeemable gift vouchers of an equal amount, effectively making the purchase free!

“It’s a book store for everyone, from children to the elderly. The range of titles is unending, and still more titles are added every week. Books of all genres like art, design, health, cookery, philosophy, management, as well as niche subjects such as astronomy, gardening, fashion, photography are in stock.

“A major attraction is a separate section for children. Books stocked in this section, including educational, informative and fun titles, as also activity and novelty books, have been carefully curated to wean them away from excessive mobile and digital indulgence and towards more serious and enjoyable reading. The books are also geared to fire creativity, and children are bound to fall in love with them,” adds Eric.  

The store also has added attractions like toys, accessories, stationery and gift items for a complete shopping experience for visitors.

Has Kindle made any dent into the business of print publishing? Eric is quick to react: “Our physical book store business is growing at a fair clip – about 10-15% annually. From four stores, we have progressed to 13 and more are planned to be added in the coming months and years to achieve a pan-India presence. Why would we look at further expansion, if print publishing business were getting hit by online and digital publishing? Book lovers still enjoy the feel and smell of paper books, which they can read for long hours, unlike in online and digital form, which puts excessive strain on the eyes,” he asserts. 

On how Wilco Publishing House plans to reach out to readers, Eric says schools and institutions of higher learning are our largest community. “The quality of our books and their pricing is so attractive that schools especially in various cities request us to hold exhibitions on their premises. We also plan to organise events like book signing and public interactions with best-selling authors in our store besides engaging book lovers in various housing societies.”

Steal A Deal, Now !!

Mode City Connoisseurs To Get Look & Feel Of Royalty

Sanjeev Kochhar
-
0
Mode City Connoisseurs To Get Look & Feel Of Royalty

A new age mode city with very little tradition, Chandigarh has had no exposure to anything regal or royal. But here comes something to give you a look and feel of real royalty in the form of a grand exposition being put up for the first time ever in the city by a famed heritage platform, Royal Fables, at the Taj Chandigarh, on Saturday, in association with Kanjimull & Sons, a house of jewels known for crafting masterpieces for Maharajas.

Presenting a preview for media and a select gathering at designer Samerjeet Gurm’s ‘Plumtin’ studio in Sector 7 to give connoisseurs an idea of what is in store for them at the grand exposition at the Taj on Saturday, Royal Fables founder Anshu Khanna informed that 22 erstwhile royal families from Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa, besides Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, will be presenting their exhibits, including bespoke jewellery, art, costumes and objects d’art made in leading palace studios. Apart from these, there will be hand-picked collections by leading designers and labels that keep the rich Indian hand-made tradition alive.

Some of the erstwhile royals gathered at the preview of the expo.

Photos By : Life In Chandigarh

During its 8 years old journey, Royal Fables has held 12 expositions and 15 pop-up shows spanning 10 seasons across the country, including in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, even going overseas to Morocco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Vancouver and Bangkok. “This is a milestone year for us as we take the first step of bringing the regal legacy to smaller cities and towns which are inhabited by luxury seekers and heritage lovers,” said Anshu.

On view at the preview were rare gems from Kanjimull & Sons. “The bond between Kanjimull and princely India dates back to 1870, when my great grandfather Kanjimull Khanna started designing personal jewellery for the royal family of Patiala,” says Gaurav Khanna, adding that “other states of Punjab followed. Gradually our name spread to the shores of Britain and we also started designing for their nobles.”      

There were glimpses of some other royal collections, and Fall-Winter Collection 2018 of Plumtin. “Samerjeet Gurm has been a vital part of Royal Fables for the last five seasons. She tells past tales in her signature, resplendent style. Like our royal designers, she too takes inspiration from the past and her fashion is a perfect idiom of the past celebrating the present,” Anshu remarked.

The Royal Fables exposition is on at Taj Chandigarh till 9 pm. It will close with a talk on the handcraft legacy of princely India, live music by Prabhtoj Singh and regal fashion walk featuring the visiting erstwhile royals in their own creations. A culinary showcase of royal cuisine, led by chefs-at-heart siblings Thakur Shivraj Singh of Limdi and Vijaya Singh Nahan, will add to the magic that is sure to leave you dazed! 

1...535455...101Page 54 of 101

LIfe in chandigarh

About us

Anchored by a senior journalist, LifeInChandigarh.com is a digital endeavour, a news portal with a positive and progressive outlook, to keep you up to date with the latest developments as they happen in the Chandigarh tricity area.

Latest Articles

With Ortech Textiles Unit, India’s Ortho Aids Leader Tynor Goes Completely Indigenous

Industry 0
To compete globally, Mohali, Punjab based Tynor sheds dependence...

Clouds Of Doubt Wither, New Age Indian Batting Stars Shine Bright

Cricket 0
Shubman Gill (127*) becomes fifth Indian batsman to score...

People Developing Type 2 Diabetes At 30 Or Below Highly Concerning: Diabetologist Dr Deepti Arora

Lifestyle 0
Alarming situation needs to be addressed urgently through coordinated...

Most Popular

With Ortech Textiles Unit, India’s Ortho Aids Leader Tynor Goes Completely Indigenous

Industry 0
To compete globally, Mohali, Punjab based Tynor sheds dependence...

Clouds Of Doubt Wither, New Age Indian Batting Stars Shine Bright

Cricket 0
Shubman Gill (127*) becomes fifth Indian batsman to score...

People Developing Type 2 Diabetes At 30 Or Below Highly Concerning: Diabetologist Dr Deepti Arora

Lifestyle 0
Alarming situation needs to be addressed urgently through coordinated...

Subscribe

Copyright 2023 Life In Chandigarh All Right Reserved.