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NITZ Beauty Lab Salon & Spa Opens In Sec 79 Mohali; Enjoy Couple Body Spa With Jacuzzi & More Firsts

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Founded by experienced beauty professional Neetu Sethi Thakur
Among other world class firsts, the ‘Japanese Water Therapy’ and the latest version of the ‘Hydro-Oxygeno Therapy’
Will also simultaneously run a beauty academy with international affiliations

A bedroom sized ‘Couple Body Spa with Jacuzzi’ is one of the exclusive zones in this sprawling 5000 square feet luxurious unisex salon cum spa across two floors which formally opened to the public in Chandigarh tricity’s emerging salon and spa hub in Sector 79 Mohali on Sunday, offering, among other world class firsts, the ‘Japanese Water Therapy’ and the latest version of the ‘Hydro-Oxygeno Therapy’.

As we enter NITZ Beauty Lab unisex salon and spa, a brainchild of much experienced beauty expert Neetu Sethi Thakur, the first exclamation that escapes our lips is WOW! The interiors exude a luxe culture, and yet are tasteful and artistically inclined, equipped to put a visitor immediately into relaxed mode.

Everywhere we glance on the ground floor and in the basement our eyes light up with admiration of the well-arranged and beautiful furniture, equipment and accessories. The seemingly innumerable staff is immaculately dressed in all black with a warm smile creasing their lips in a gesture of warm welcome.

The hostess herself is picture perfect, with a glowing skin and a stately poise, as she takes us around the various exclusive sections which guarantee complete privacy and comfort. Nothing in the entire premises gives the impression of crammed space.

“What is going to differentiate us from the rest of the trade are the exclusive services we provide and the wholesome experiences our clients will remember us by,” Neetu shares in an exclusive conversation with your own news portal LifeInChandigarh.com.

As if reading a journalist’s mind, she is quick to dispel the general notion that girls and ladies are the more frequent visitors to salons and spas. “In fact, from my more than a decade long experience, I can share that in recent years our earnings from the male clientele have been greater than from females. That’s how conscious males have become about looking good and feeling great!”

Couple Body Spa with Jacuzzi

Japanese Water Therapy

Arpita Das, highly qualified and experienced beauty professional, trainer and educator, who is providing consultancy to NITZ Beauty Lab & Co. in setting up and managing the progression of this business, informed that a beauty training academy will also be run simultaneously in the same premises so that more quality trained professionals are available for expansion of this business as well as in the beauty industry.

Education and training for staff working at Nitz Beauty Lab will be a continuing process so that they remain updated with the latest trends and techniques, she added.

Coming to the services being offered by NITZ, the ‘Japanese Water Therapy’, claimed to be brought to the Chandigarh tricity for the first time, is a body rejuvenation treatment. The latest version of ‘Hydro-Oxygeno Therapy’ is a skin hydration and detoxification therapy.

‘Couple Body Spa with Jacuzzi’ is a relaxing retreat for couples. Also on the menu is ‘Lomi Lomi Massage, a Hawaiian technique using pressure points for rejuvenation; and ‘Praffin Candle Therapy’, known for its anti-ageing benefits and for relieving arthritis pain. The salon and spa also offers ‘Ritual Spas’, which help in hair repair and resolving dry scalp issues.

All in the family: Promoters Neetu Sethi Thakur (second from left) flanked by her son Pranav Thakur (on her right), her daughter Husnoor (extreme right) and Rohan Kapoor (second from right)

With focus on privacy for bridal makeup, there are special bridal makeover rooms with exclusive change rooms. NITZ plans to create its own bridal calendar wherein it will set new trends for every wedding season.

The salon and spa features a well-equipped nail bar, as well as exclusive sections for manicures and pedicures.

An exclusive VIP room has been set aside for clients who wish to feel extra special.

For all the services offered, the large format salon and spa can accommodate up to 50 clients at one time.

Rest, we’ll let the pictures we clicked at the launch speak!

2-Time Winners India Name Squad For Champions Trophy: Shami & Bumrah* In

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar (left) and Indian Captain Rohit Sharma at the press conference where the Indian squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy was announced on Saturday.
Mohd. Siraj loses out to Arshdeep Singh as third specialist pace bowling option
Shubman Gill is Rohit’s deputy; Yashasvi Jaiswal could make ODI debut
Kohli, Shreyas, KL Rahul, Rishab Pant other regular batsmen picked in the 15-member squad
Hardik only pace bowling allrounder, the spin-bowling allrounders being Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel & Washington Sundar
Kuldeep Yadav only specialist spinner in the squad

The suspense over India’s squad, and Jasprit Bumrah’s availability, for the Champions Trophy 2025 to be played simultaneously in Pakistan and Dubai from mid-February is over. Yes, Jasprit Bumrah’s name finds a place in the 15-member squad announced on Saturday afternoon, but his place is conditional to his recovering fully from the back spasms he suffered during the last Test match of the 5-match series in Australia.

Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar stating that the team management will keep an eye on the pacer’s fitness in the lead-up to the tournament. He also said Bumrah will not play India’s first two ODIs in the upcoming three-match series against England, with Harshit Rana coming into that squad as cover.

Mohd. Shami, the leading wicket-taker in India’s 2023 ODI World Cup victory, makes a comeback to the ODI squad after a long layoff from international cricket due to injury. For the third specialist pace bowler slot, Mohammed Siraj has made way for Arshdeep Singh. Allrounder Hardik Pandya is the fourth pace bowling option in the squad.

Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar are the three spin-bowling allrounders in the squad, and specialist left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav has also returned following a groin injury and subsequent surgery.

Yashasvi Jaiswal has joined regular names Rohit Sharma (capt), Virat Kohli, and Shubman Gill (vice-captain) at the top of the order, while experienced KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant comprise the middle order.

India won the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy in 2002 and 2013 and will look to win a third title. In the last edition of the ICC Champions Trophy, India reached the finals before losing to Pakistan.

India are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Bangladesh and New Zealand. They’ll open their campaign against Bangladesh on February 20 at the Dubai International Stadium.

India play three ODIs against England next month, in Nagpur (February 6), Cuttack (February 9) and Ahmedabad (February 12), as tune-up to the marquee ICC event.

105arts Debuts In Solo Exhibition With Jagannath Paul’s ‘Circling Harmony’

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Leading contemporary artist Jagannath Paul poses before one of his artworks at the exclusive preview of his solo exhibition 'Circling Harmony' at 105arts gallery in Chandigarh on Friday (17.01.2025). PHOTOS Credit: LifeInChandigarh.com
Month-long exhibition on at 105arts Gallery, H. No. 105, Sector 11, Chandigarh from January 18 to February 18, 12 noon to 6 pm

For the first time Chandigarh’s famous private art gallery 104arts has curated a month-long solo exhibition of one of the leading contemporary artists of the country. Titled Circling Harmony, the exhibition will have on display art works by Jagannath Paul from January 18 to February 18.

For Jagannath, an artist from a small West Bengal town miles away from Kolkata who has buyers scattered all over the country and world, a solo exhibition in Chandigarh is a first, though he has a sizable client base in Ludhiana.

Centred on Jagannath’s primary subject – man and woman – the collection rendered on circular canvases, varying in sizes from 24 inches to 48 inches in diameter, symbolise eternal nature of love and togetherness.

Curator Mehak Bhan from 105arts explains the concept of the exhibition thus: “A universal motif, the circle evokes completeness, and Jagannath masterfully intertwines this timeless shape with tender narratives of relationships. Each stroke unfolds the layers of relationship, the male-female bond, the rich evocative textures and soulful figures. What binds us is love and with it comes harmony.”

As a kid, it was painting and drawing the goddesses during Durga Puja in West Bengal that instilled the love for art in Jagannath. Later taking formal training, he moved base to Mumbai where he worked as a set designer for Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra. “I did the set design for Rang De Basanti, Aks, Vashu Bhagnani’s Om Jai Jagdish amongst many projects,” he shares.

Later he chanced into the world of connoisseurs of art when his first painting got sold in a curated exhibition, and since then has not looked back, participating in many a prestigious national and international exhibition both within the country and abroad, winning acclaim and a host of awards.

Capturing love and emotion by using charcoal and mixed media technique, for Jagannath man and woman are central to his art – their bonding, their natural expression, their body language, their dreams, their thoughts, and more.

The varied nuances, moods, emotions of male and female relationship are manifested in his paintings through the medium of charcoals and colours on paper and canvas.

Jagannath’s 20-odd artworks on display in the month-long exhibition at 105arts gallery have been variously titled as Bond of Love’, Soul Made, Affection, Together Forever, Eternal Love, Eternal Bonding, The Spring and Entwined Heart.

Welcome to Circling Harmony @105arts!

Mechanical Thrombectomy Can Save Within 24 Hours Of Stroke: Dr Vivek Gupta Of Fortis Mohali

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Dr (Prof) Vivek Gupta, Additional Director of Interventional Neuroradiology, Fortis Hospital Mohali, addressing a press conference to share details of mechanical thrombectomy, minimally invasive treatment for brain stroke, in Chandigarh on Friday (17.01.2025).
Rush patient to stroke-ready hospital
Minimally invasive procedure involves inserting a catheter into the brain and/or neck artery to remove the clot/s
Costs anything between Rs 5-7 lakh

People at large are generally more aware about heart attack and cancer as the most common causes of death worldwide. But brain stroke is also an equally common cause of death and long-term disability, with one in every four individuals at risk of suffering from it, but our awareness about it is much less.

Till recently, its treatment was also only effective if a patient, after suffering a brain stroke, was wheeled into a fully equipped hospital within a 4 to 6 hours treatment window. But with emerging advanced healthcare technologies, one of which is mechanical thrombectomy, it is now possible to save a patient from death and long-term disability even after 24 hours of suffering a stroke.

Sharing details about mechanical thrombectomy, which is available only in select medical centres in the private sector in Northern India, Dr (Prof) Vivek Gupta, Additional Director of Interventional Neuroradiology, Fortis Hospital Mohali, said it is a slightly expensive but minimally invasive procedure that involves inserting a catheter into the brain artery to remove the clot. This allows restoration of blood flow and saves a patient from disability or death by increasing treatment window in brain stroke patients till 24 hours.

He said recently mechanical thrombectomy was conducted on a 80-year-old woman from Chandigarh, who was rushed to Fortis Hospital Mohali 8 hours after suffering a stroke. The patient was unable to speak, had left side paralysis, and her condition was deteriorating.

She was immediately put on ventilation in the emergency and one clot each was removed from her brain and neck arteries with angioplasty and mechanical thrombectomy. The patient had a smooth, post-operative recovery and was discharged seven days after the procedure. She has recovered fully and is leading a normal life, Dr Gupta added.

He said though mechanical thrombectomy is effective in saving patients even 24 hours after suffering a stroke, it is important for the patient to be rushed to a stroke-ready hospital in the shortest possible time to minimise damage to the brain.

Describing a stroke-ready hospital, Dr Gupta said the medical facility must have 24×7 services of emergency, radiology, ICU and a specialist team of a neurologist, neurosurgeon and interventional neuroradiologist all under one roof since mechanical thrombectomy is a highly complex procedure.

Dr Gupta said the complex procedure sure is expensive and can cost a patient anything between Rs 5-7 lakh.

Among the people who are 4-5 times at higher risk of suffering from stroke are diabetics, especially those whose sugar levels are uncontrollable, and people with high blood pressure. Among other high-risk categories are smokers, people with high cholesterol and those with heart disease.

The common symptoms, which occur in 90% of people who suffer from stroke, are sudden loss of body function while performing a routine activity, weakness in the arm, drooping of one side of the face, slurring of speech, etc.

If any of these symptoms occur, immediately arrange to rush the patient to a stroke-ready hospital.

Silver Jubilee CGA Cup Pro-Am Golf Tournament At Chandigarh Golf Club On Jan 16

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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CGA president SK Sharma addressing the press meet at the CGA Club in Chandigarh on Wednesday. He is flanked by CGA general secretary Harpuneet Singh Sandhu (to his left) and vice-president Sanjiv DP Azad & treasurer Monish DP Azad.

Kicking off its silver jubilee celebrations, the Chandigarh Golf Association (CGA) is organising the Silver Jubilee CGA Cup, a pro-am tournament, at Chandigarh Golf Club on Thursday (Jan 16, 2025). As many as 20 four-ball teams with a total of 80 players will participate in the tournament including top professional and amateur golfers of the country. Some of the well-known participating golfers nurtured by CGA are Gaganjit Bhullar, Yuvraj Sandhu, Raghav Bhandari, Karandeep Kochhar, Uttam Singh Mundy, Gurbazz Mann, and Aadil Bedi.

Addressing a press meet at the CGA Club on Wednesday, CGA president S K Sharma, who is also Hon. Secretary, Governing Council of the Indian Golf Union (IGU), said the event will be graced by IGU president Brijinder Singh and renowned golfer and Padma Shri Jeev Milka Singh.

He said CGA will honour Jeev Milkha Singh with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his immense contribution in upholding the Indian flag on the global stage. Other professionals and amateurs, who have brought laurels to the city, will also be felicitated. The honours will be done by Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) Satnam Singh Sandhu.

Jia Diamonds and Hero Group are the lead sponsors. The tournament is also supported by Trident Group, Adani Realty and Indian Oil.

At its all-weather, flood-lit driving range spread over 6 acres, with a 9-hole pitch and putt course and Golf Academy, CGA has been nurturing talent and promoting golf.

Now Have Winter Fun In Breathtaking Sonamarg; PM Opens All Weather Tunnel

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi getting a feel of the Sonamarg tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir after its formal inauguration on Monday (13.01.2025). PHOTOS Credit: https://www.narendramodi.in/
Two-lane, 6.4 km tunnel allows bi-directional traffic and bypasses landslide and avalanche routes from Srinagar to Sonamarg and beyond to Leh and Kargil
Along with under construction Zojila tunnel, which would be Asia’s highest and set for completion in next couple of years, Sonamarg tunnel will cut travel time between Srinagar and Leh by three-and-a-half hours
Much awaited Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway to be completed by the end of 2025, announces Union Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari
Four highway corridors connecting Jammu region with Kashmir, being constructed at a cost of Rs 50,000 crore, to cut travel times by hours
Jammu ring road to be completed by September 2025 and Srinagar ring road by end of the year
PM asserts that Jammu & Kashmir will soon become one of the most connected regions of the country and none will be left deprived of contributing to, and reaping the fruits of mission ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047
The complete harmony and camaraderie witnessed between CM Omar Abdullah and PM Narendra Modi and the positive vibes raise prospects for early restoration of statehood to Jammu & Kashmir

The occasion was the formal inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the Sonamarg tunnel, which has opened an all-weather route from Srinagar to the even more beautiful Sonamarg region and beyond, to Leh and Ladakh, thereby giving a fillip to winter tourism, speedier development of the region and easier movement of defence forces and supplies.

What was most striking at a public meeting held immediately after the event was the sight of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and the Prime Minister in complete sync on issues like India First, and an unwavering resolve to carry forward the development agenda for the Union territory despite the threat of terrorism.

The complete harmony and camaraderie between the two leaders witnessed during the event raised the prospects of early restoration of statehood to Jammu & Kashmir. In his speech Abdullah while thanking the PM for coming good on two of the three promises he had made at the International Yoga Day event held in Srinagar last year, expressed the hope that the third promise of restoring statehood to the territory would also be fulfilled soon, eliciting a faint smile from Modi.

Omar Abdulla mentioned the two fulfilled promises as holding free and fair elections in the state within four months and realising another much-awaited demand of opening a separate Jammu Rail Division just two weeks ago.

In his address to the gathering, Modi, while committing to walk in step with the people of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir to realise their dreams and aspirations, vowed to remove all hurdles which come in the way of speedy development of the state.

Expressing confidence that the pace at which road and rail projects along with other infrastructure projects were being executed in Jammu and Kashmir it would become one of the most connected territories of the country and will contribute and reap the fruits of the push towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047.

CM Omar Abdullah, PM Narendra Modi and Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha in their speeches, prominently mentioned the contribution of the brave hearts who worked on this extremely challenging tunnel project, even at the risk of their safety and security, to make it happen.

Abdullah went to the extent of mentioning by name each of the seven labourers working on the project, who lost their lives in a terrorist attack. Modi highlighted the unshakable resolve shown by all stakeholders to carry on with development works despite all odds.

Sharing memories of his several past visits to these areas, including Sonamarg, Gulmarg, Gandalbal, Baramulla, etc, as a BJP sangathan pracharak, Modi said he along with other party workers used to walk long distances to reach out to people in remote locations. But despite the bitter cold, the warmth of the people of Jammu and Kashmir kept them going.

Arial view of the scenic beauty around the Sonamarg tunnel shared by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. PHOTO Credit: X/@OmarAbdulah

In a lighter vein, he also said that seeing the aerial photographs of the beautiful scenery of snow-capped hills in the area posted by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on his social media a couple of days ago his eagerness to be here for the Sonamarg tunnel inauguration had increased tremendously. (More of these photographs are shared later in the write-up).

Modi asserted that the massive developmental push and other initiatives of the central government had already started showing positive results, with a marked increase in tourists visiting the territory (from 2.11 crore in 2023 to 2.35 core in 2024, according to Lt. Guv. Manoj Sinha) and Jammu and Kashmir Bank’s business growing from Rs 1.60 lakh crore to Rs 2.30 lakh crore in the last four years, which resulted in more people getting loans from the bank.

He claimed that a bright future awaited Jammu & Kashmir, as, apart from the government investing heavily in the state, the private sector had also lined up Rs 13,000 crore of investments in the territory.

The Prime Minister also met the construction workers who worked on the Sonamarg tunnel in harshest of conditions and acknowledged their contribution to this engineering feat.

Details of connectivity projects in J&K

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari shared details of a long list of ongoing and planned road and highway, tunnel, bridge and ropeway projects in the state.

Apart from the Sonamarg and Zojila tunnels, he said his ministry is building four highway corridors connecting Jammu region with Kashmir in the Union Territory at a cost of Rs 50,000 crore, which will prove to be its lifelines.

* Jammu-Udhampur-Srinagar corridor: 250 km long; slated for completion by 2025 end; 15 of the 33 tunnels on this corridor completed; will reduce distance by 70 km and save five hours of journey time.
* Jammu-Chenani-Anantnag corridor: 202 km long; expected completion by 2025 end; 5 tunnels on this corridor to cut distance by 68 km.
* Surankote-Shopian-Baramulla-Uri corridor: 303 km long; completion by 2027.
* Jammu-Akhnoor-Surankote-Poonch corridor: 203 km long; detailed project report (DPR) process started.

Gadkari announced that the DPR process has also been initiated for another important corridor — Kathua-Basohli-Bhaderwah-Doda. The four-lane, 250 km long road will allow people coming from Punjab side to go directly from Kathua to Srinagar without having to enter Jammu.

The 104-km, four-lane Srinagar ring road will be completed by the year-end; people going to Gurez, Baramulla, or Ladakh will not have to enter Srinagar.

The much awaited 670 km long Delhi-Amritsar-Katra greenfield express highway, being constructed at a cost of Rs 41,000 crore, will be completed by the year-end. In another one-and-a-half years’ time the road journey between Delhi and Srinagar will be reduced to 8-8.5 hours.

Work on the Shankaracharya ropeway in Srinagar, Baltal to Amarnath cave shrine ropeway, and Sonamarg-Thajiwas ropeway is also expected to start soon.

PHOTOS Credit: X/@OmarAbdullah

Mohd. Shami Is Back In 15-Member Squad For T20I Series Against Touring England

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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The skidder is back: Mohd. Shami. PHOTO Credit: X/@BCCI
Squad for the 3 ODIs and the ICC Champions Trophy to be announced separately

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming 5-match T20I series against the touring England side starting at Kolkata on January 22.

After more than a year-long injury layoff, Indian star pacer Mohammed Shami is back in the squad led by Suryakumar Yadav. Sanju Samson has been retained as the

first choice wicketkeeper batsman. Despite not so impressive outings in the T20Is, the hard-hitting Abhishek Sharma also finds a place in the squad.

Most players from the Test squad returning from Australia have been rested for the T20I series against England, except for Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Nitish Reddy and Dhruv Jurel (backup wicketkeeper-batsman).

Mohammed Shami has not represented the country ever since playing the ODI World Cup final against Australia on November 19, 2023. He has since recovered and has had noteworthy performances in the 50-over format Vijay Hazare tournament. He turned out for Bengal, which unfortunately was knocked out in the pre-quarters stage of the tournament.

The pace battery in the 15-member squad includes Shami, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana, while Axar Patel (vc) leads the spin department, which also includes the star of the Vijay Hazare tournament Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, and Washington Sundar.

Squad for ODI series & ICC Champions Trophy to be named separately

A separate squad is expected to be announced for the 3 ODIs with the visitors to follow the T20Is in the runup to the ICC Champions Trophy to be played in Pakistan and Dubai in February.

A BCCI media advisory posted on its X account late evening on Saturday said, “The Men’s Selection Committee has picked India’s 15-member squad for the upcoming IDFC First Bank five-match T20I series against England starting from 22nd January in Kolkata.

England’s Tour of India, 2024 (T20Is)

S. No.   Day              Date           Time         Match      Venue
1          Wednesday    22-Jan-25    7:00 PM    1st T20I    Kolkata
2          Saturday       25-Jan-25     7:00 PM    2nd T20I  Chennai
3          Tuesday        28-Jan-25     7:00 PM    3rd T20I   Rajkot
4          Friday           31-Jan-25     7:00 PM    4th T20I   Pune
5          Sunday         02-Feb-25     7:00 PM    5th T20I   Mumbai

Still Wondering What Millets Are! Millet Cookbook By ‘Millet Chef’ Vikas Chawla Has The Answers

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Author & 'Millet Chef' Vikas Chawla (left), Punjab State Food Commission Chairman Bal Mukund Sharma and Wordly Wise Publishers founder Chandni Mathur at the formal launch of the Millets cookbook ‘Millets – The Grain Revolution' in Chandigarh in mid-December 2024
‘Millets – The Grain Revolution’, published by New Delhi-based Worldly Wise Publishers, unravels the goodness of the ‘superfoods’, and provides 40-odd easy-to-cook recipes, with millets as primary ingredients
Vikas Chawla is also the Millet Ambassador at Nutrihub, an arm of the Hyderabad-based ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research
The ‘Millet Chef’ has made it a mission in life to promote millets as a healthy way of life

Just as the overwhelming wheat-paddy crop cycle is bad news for the environment, so is the wheat-rice overdependence in our diet for our health. The awareness that millets, a diverse group of small-grained cereal crops extensively cultivated for thousands of years in semi-arid regions of Asia and Africa, are a probable answer is growing but not translating into action on the ground fast enough.

Here comes a well-researched cookbook on millets by a well-known chef, who, after trying out the superfoods on himself, his family and social circles, for months, has made it a mission in life to promote millets as a healthy way of life.

The cookbook, ‘Millets – The Grain Revolution’, authored by Millet Chef Vikas Chawla, and published by New Delhi-based Worldly Wise Publishers, was officially unveiled in Chandigarh in mid-December 2024 by Bal Mukund Sharma, Chairman of the Punjab State Food Commission. Wordly Wise Publishers founder Chandni Mathur also graced the occasion.

The cookbook, into which Vikas Chawla has encapsulated his 15 years of experience and research on millets, provides 40-odd easy-to-cook recipes, with millets as primary ingredients, that can seamlessly replace everyday grains. The recipes come with detailed set of measured ingredients and instructions for ease of cooking.

Sharing his thoughts about the book in an exclusive interaction with your own news portal LifeInChandigarh.com, Chef Vikas Chawla shared that “Despite years of advocacy, I had identified a significant gap in public awareness about millets. Many people still ask What are millets? How do we cook them? Why are these important?”

He said recognizing this widespread lack of understanding, he crafted the book to bridge the knowledge gap, featuring simple, easy-to-follow recipes that can be made in any kitchen.
“With this book, I have aimed to simplify healthy eating and encourage more people to explore the incredible benefits of millets. It’s about making sustainable, nutritious choices accessible to everyone,” Chef Vikas added.

For a better understanding of the recipes Chef Vikas Chawla, who is the Millet Ambassador at Nutrihub, an arm of the Hyderabad-based ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research, has devoted several pages to familiarise the reader with the various popularly used millets, and the nutritional benefits of each.

The various types of millets (photographs provided at the end of the write-up)

1. Sorghum millet (Jowar)
2. Pearl millet (Bajra)
3. Finger millet (variously called as Ragi, Nacheeni or Mandua)
4. Foxtail millet (Kangni)
5. Little millet (Kutki)
6. Kodo millet (Kodra)
7. Proso millet (Chena)
8. Barnyard millet (called Sanvak, Sanva or Jhangora)
9. Browntop millet (Hari Kangni)

Additionally, there are a couple of pseudo millets as well, which are not true members of the millet family, but share similar characteristics, and are often used as substitutes in various cuisines around the world. These are:

1. Amaranth millet (called Rajgira, Ramdana or Chilai)
2. Buckwheat millet (Kuttu)

Millet recipes

Red cabbage millet rolls

The recipes in Millet Chef Vikas Chawla’s cookbook range from Fermented Millet (a magical food naturally rich in Vitamin B12 and an incredible immunity booster), to Boiled Millet, to Beetroot Millet Curd Rice, Red Cabbage Millet Rolls, Chana Dal & Cranberry Pulao with a cupful of millet, Coconut Millet, to Barnyard Millet Khichdi (a fasting-friendly dish which is a comforting blend of barnyard millet, aromatic spices, and potatoes simmered to perfection).

Barnyard millet ‘khichdi’

Then there is Pongal, a wholesome South Indian delicacy that brings together millets (Little or Barnyard) Moong dal, and a flavoured tempering of spices and cashews.

Autumn millet salad

Autumn Harvest Millet Salad is a refreshing, colourful salad that combines the crunch of lettuce, the sweetness of apples and pears, and the nutty richness of walnuts and Proso millets, all tied together with a tangy vinaigrette.

Ragi millet ‘roti’

Among Indian flatbreads, the cookbook has a recipe for Ragi Millet Roti. For people who can’t do without paranthas, there is the healthy Jowar Pumpkin Parantha and Bajra Mooli Paratha among others.

Little millet ‘kheer’

The book has good number of recipes for the sweets and dessert-loving folks too, among them being Sarvagun Meetha, Alsi Ki Pinni (a super energy ball), Jowar Halwa, Little Millet Kheer, Healthy Millet Hot Chocolate Pudding, Ragi Burfi, and Ragi Dry Fruits Panjeeri.

Jowar ‘halwa’

In bakes, the cookbook gives you recipes for making crispy and delicious Millet Shortbread Cookies, Orange Upside Down Sorghum Millet Cake, and more.

Healthy millet hot chocolate pudding

In a foreword to the book, Nutrihub CEO Dr B Dayakar Rao has written that millets are climate and nutri-smart crops, hailed as superfoods, good for the farmers, good for the planet, good for humans, and good for businesses as well.

Commending Chef Vikas Chawla for carefully crafting this book, which not only creates insights about millets in the culinary world but also kindles a passion for millets in kitchens globally.

“It features a wide range of dishes that not only highlight the distinct tastes and textures of millets but also illustrate how versatile these are in modern cooking,” he shared.

Amaranth millet
Barnyard millet
Browntop millet
Buckwheat millet
Finger millet
Foxtail millet
Kodo millet
Little millet
Pearl millet
Proso millet
Sorghum millet

Delhi Assembly Polls On 5th Feb, Results On 8th, Announces CEC Rajiv Kumar

By
Sanjeev Kochhar
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Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announcing the schedule of the Delhi Assembly Elections 2025 in New Delhi on Tuesday (07.01.2025). He is flanked by election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar (to his right) and Dr SS Sandhu
AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal striving to become CM for 4th time
Main challenger BJP looking to end its more than two-and-a-half decades of ‘sanyas’, banking on its increasing vote share election after election, and cashing in on its anti-corruption narrative
Once the dominant party in the National Capital Territory, having ruled it from 1998 to 2013, Congress trying to resurrect itself from scratch

More than two lakh first-time voters and another 25.89 lakh younger voters are among the total 1.55 crore voters eligible to cast their ballot in the elections to the Delhi state assembly to be held in a single phase on February 5. The votes will be counted on February 8, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced today.

The electoral mix among the 1.55 crore voters is 83.49 lakh male voters and 71.74 lakh female voters.
The CEC sought to counter the allegations of the election process in the country being rigged, and while underscoring its integrity, asserted that not a single discrepancy has been found in votes counted through electronic voting machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips.

“Let me tell the nation today. After the Supreme Court mandated in 2019 that five VVPATs must be counted from each Assembly constituency, over 67,000 VVPATs have been checked.

“This translates to more than 4.5 crore (VVPAT) slips being verified. And let me assure you that not even the difference of one vote has been found with the new machines since 2019,” he said.

The term of the 70-member Assembly ends on February 23, and elections are to be concluded before that to constitute a new House.

AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal is striving to become chief minister for a fourth consecutive time (his first term in 2013 had proved short-lived, as the minority government he was heading in a hung House, supported from outside by the Congress, fell).

The main challenger, the BJP is desperately trying to return to power after over two-and-a-half decades.
The Congress, once the dominant player in the national capital, but blown away by the AAP wave more than a decade ago, is trying to resurrect itself from scratch.

Congress, which was AAP’s ally for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, is going alone in this election as the experiment failed and BJP made a hattrick of clean sweeps of all seven Lok Sabha seats in NCT of Delhi.

With Kejriwal himself and other top leaders of the party, which had rocketed to power largely on the anti-corruption, themselves mired in corruption cases in which they are out on bail, AAP may be facing its strongest challenge in this election, especially from the BJP, which election after election has been substantially increasing its vote share.

Congress too is seeking to resurrect itself in Delhi and seeking revenge on the same anti-corruption plank on which AAP had largely been instrumental in dethroning it from power in 2013.

However, AAP leaders appear to exude confidence that the populist/welfare policies pursued by its successive governments, and their narrative that the Centre, through the office of the Lieutenant Governor (L-G), is blocking many schemes, will help it fend off the BJP’s onslaught.

The outcome will largely be dependent on how much inroads the two rival parties can make into the vote share of the ruling party by continuing to hammer it, and its leader Kejriwal, on issues of corruption and non-performance.

Electoral history of Delhi Assembly since 1993

BJP has tasted power just once in the National Capital Territory, winning the first assembly elections in 1993, when Delhi’s Legislative Assembly was established (till then it was governed by a Metropolitan Council).

The Congress ruled Delhi for three consecutive terms from 1998 to 2013 with Sheila Dikshit leading the government in all three terms.

Born out of the Anna Hazare anti-corruption movement, then one-year-old AAP made a stunning debut in the Delhi assembly elections in 2013, emerging as the second largest party by winning 28 of the 70 seats, just four short of the largest single party, the BJP, and the incumbent party Congress being reduced to less than 10 seats.

Riding on the popularity of the movement, especially among the youth, AAP’s rookie leader Arvind Kejriwal had proved a giant killer, defeating three-time Congress chief minister Sheila Dikshit in her constituency of New Delhi by some 22,000 votes.

Due to a hung assembly, the BJP declined to form the government, and lucky Kejriwal was crowned Chief Minister in a minority government with outside support from the Congress, which was the principal loser of the AAP’s meteoric rise. His chief ministership, however, proved short-lived.

Two years later, when the government fell, and elections were called, AAP won a landslide victory, winning all but 3 of the 70 seats. The remaining 3 seats went to the BJP, and Congress drew a blank.
In 2000, AAP again swept the polls, surrendering just 5 more seats to the BJP, with the Congress maintaining its status quo.

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