Times of Oman - August 3, 2015

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MONDAY, August 3, 2015 / 17 Shawwal 1436 AH

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TOP THREE INSIDE STORIES

Shura’s call for check on fuel smuggling

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OMAN

ROHM invites local ‘extras’ for play

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The Royal Opera House Muscat is offering local residents an exciting opportunity to participate on stage as ‘extras’, or amateurs in non-singing roles, for its magnificent encore production of Turandot, the opera that was staged for the venue’s inauguration in 2011. >A4

MARKET

Oman’s exports plunge by 32.9%

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Oman’s total exports for the first four months of 2015 declined by 32.9 per cent to OMR4.53 billion from OMR6.76 billion for the same period last year. The fall in export revenue was mainly on account of a plunge in oil and gas prices in international markets and re-exports. >B1

Grand plans for golf in Oman

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Call to employ more drivers on Haj buses FAHAD AL GHADANI

fahadnews@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Members of the public have called for stricter road regulations for the organisers of Haj and Umrah campaigns following a collision between a bus and a truck that killed nine Omanis and left 39 injured.

Discussion on social media focused mainly on the condition of buses and drivers.

While many suggested that the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs should appoint drivers specifically for such campaigns, others felt that a campaign should have one main driver and two other assistant drivers to help him.

“The government has to set stricter regulations for such companies and focus more on the

condition of buses and drivers,” said Abdullah Al Abdaly, who works in the private sector.

He added that similar accidents have resulted in the loss of lives in the past too.

Regulations “The government must impose more regulations, forcing each campaign to assign more than one driver for the bus,” said Abdullah.

He added that the investigation into a previous accident had indicated that the bus driver had taken a short cut that was used by trucks. “The government should even specify the roads that each Haj and Umrah campaign bus and driver should take. Those who take other any other road should face legal action,” said Abdullah. >A6

‘Record-breaking’ heat continues to torment people in Middle East

POOR VISIBILITY: Dust laden winds reduce the visibility in Muscat on Sunday. – Puruoshothaman

SARAH MACDONALD

MUSCAT: All summer the Middle East has had extreme temperatures, but none quite like the Iranian city of Bandar Mahshahr on Friday, which hit 46 degree Celsius but felt like 74 degree Celsius with the humidity.

Here in Oman, July was hotter than usual, too. In both Muscat and Ibri, for example, 17 days had temperatures that matched or exceeded the average highs. In Nizwa this was the case for 18 days.

Most impressive in Oman were the temperatures in Khasab, which were higher than average every single day in July.

Middle East The high temperatures in the Middle East are due to a strong ridge of high pressure which has been hovering over the region for the most of July and into August, explained AccuWeather meteorologist Anthony Sagliani. He said this was expected to continue for at least another week.

“Around the Gulf, where water temperatures are in the lower to middle 30s Celsius, the extreme heat combines with incredibly high humidity to produce

ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company

Dust envelops Muscat skyline Staff Reporter MUSCAT: Dust-laden winds caused poor visibility in different parts of Muscat and Batinah area on Sunday evening.

Oman Meteorology department tweeted that visibility in Muscat has been reduced because of dusty winds.

Meanwhile, Oman Meteorology department said that rain clouds are hovering over Muscat, Batinah and Al Dhakliyah areas. In its next 48 hours forecast, Oman Me-

astounding apparent temperatures,” he said, adding that water temperatures have been higher than normal this summer, too.

The heat wave in Iran is the latest in an unusually hot summer across the Middle East, South Asia and Europe, where a number of temperature records have

Despite repeated safety alerts from the authorities and

AC C I D E N T A FT E R M AT H

E X T R E M E W E AT H E R

sarah@timesofoman.com

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Wadi crossers, will you ever heed warning?

OMAN

As the possibility of smuggling of Omani fuel into the UAE has set alarm bells ringing, prominent members of Majlis Al Shura have once again called for measures to curb exploitation of Oman’s resources. Sultan bin Majid Al Ibri, Shura member representing Ibri, has questioned the rationale for opening three filling stations in Al Rawda in the Wilayat of Mahda in Buraimi. >A3

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teorology said skies would be cloudy along the coastal areas of Dhofar Governorate and adjoining mountains with intermittent drizzle.

It also said there are chances of convective cloud formation and occasional thundershowers associated with fresh winds over Al Hajar mountains and adjoining areas in the afternoon.

Chance of late night to early morning low level cloud formation or fog patches along coastal areas of Arabian sea have also been predicted.

been broken. Bandar Mahshahr’s location on the Arabian Gulf is the cause for its high, humid temperatures, explained Sagliani, who tweeted his reaction to the temperature. The temperature, with the humidity factor, was near the world record set in 2003 in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia of 81 C. >A6

experts, some people continue to put their lives at risk while crossing wadis DANGEROUS DRIVING: A file photo of drivers while crossing

flooded stretches.

FAHAD AL GHADANI

fahadnews@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Another pointless death to add to so many others has led emergency services to wonder if the public will ever heed their life saving advice.

Ignoring the advice of the authorities and professionals is not only irresponsible but could even cost you your life or that of the rescuer, say safety experts.

“Last few days have been rife with reports of Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) and other concerned authorities responding to SOS calls. While they have been saving people from drowning, they have also been rescuing people who attempted to cross wadis,” said a

member of the Majlis Al Shura.

“Sadly, most of the incidents could have been avoided. Some of the videos that we are seeing of people trying to cross the wadis in the interior show how irresponsible some people are,” he said.

Incidentally, the interior areas of Oman have been receiving rainfall and many of the wadis have been overflowing.

On Friday, a person lost his life when he became trapped inside a vehicle while crossing the Al Hajar Wadi.

Similarly, on Thursday, authorities rescued two boys from drowning in Ras Al Hadd in Al Sharqiyah Governorate but are continuing to search for two others.

“While we can’t say for sure, I feel some of them might have ignored safety warnings,” the member said.

Mark Pudwell, business development and training manager, Competence HR, said, “It’s extremely sad when people ignore the advice of the professionals, as such advice is only meant to protect them from unduly suffering any injury or a situation that could prove to be fatal, be it an advice about driver safety, imminent adverse weather conditions or general safety advice.”

He said it was vital that everyone listened to the warnings and the advice given in the press and via other media. >A6

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

OMAN N C S I D ATA

Road accidents decrease in June MUSCAT: Road accidents declined by 1.7% by the end of June this year. Also, road accident deaths came down by 24% and the injuries by 43.8%, according to the latest figures released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

NCSI data until the end of June 2015 showed that 2,958 accidents were reported, down from 2,909

in the same month last year. The number of deaths came down by 24% from 404 in June 2014 to 307 this June. The deaths included 208 Omanis - 172 men and the rest women.

Expatriates The 99 expatriates, who were killed in road accidents included 90 men and 9 women.

NCSI data till June 2015 put the number of road accident injuries at 1,240 a decline by 43.8% compared to the same period in 2014 which witnessed 2,832.

Among those injured till June 2015, 1,240 were Omanis (903 men and 337 women). The number of expatriates injured was 353, which included 321 men and 32 women.–ONA

Registration of vehicles declines Vehicle registrations in Oman as of June 2015 The total number of vehicles registered until the end of

68,700

50,802

End of June 2014

End of June 2015

June 2015 stood at 50,802 as compared

2014

2015

2.61% decrease

35.6%

to 68,700 during the same period in

37.3%

35%

5.6%

23.2%

2014, according to an official bulletin

Private vehicles

Taxis

Commercial vehicles

Rent-a-car

Graphics

Source: NCSI

MUSCAT: Showing a declining trend, the number of vehicles registered until the end of June 2015 decreased by 2.61 per cent, according to a bulletin released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The total number of vehicles registered until the end of June 2015 stood at 50,802 as compared to 68,700 during the same period in 2014.

The number of new registrations recorded for the private vehicles decreased by 35.6 per cent in June 2015, with 34,387 new vehicles registered against the 2014 figure of 53,364.

The number of new registrations recorded for taxis decreased

by 37.3 per cent in June 2015, with 341 compared to 544 taxis registered in the same period last year.

In contrast, the number of new registrations recorded for commercial vehicles increased by 5.6 per cent in June 2015 to reach 11,828 vehicles compared to 11,205 vehicles registered in the same period in 2014.

The number of new registrations recorded for rent-a-care vehicles also increased by 35 per cent at the end of June 2015 to reach 2,227 vehicles compared to 1,650 vehicles at the end of June 2014.

The number of new registrations recorded for motorcycles at the end of June 2015 stood at 520

Government vehicles

motorcycles, a 21.3 per cent decline compared to June 2014.

The number of vehicles registered by the government witnessed a rise of 23.2 per cent in June 2015, with 1,332 vehicles registered against 1,081 in 2012.

The number of new registrations for corps diplomatique vehicles witnessed a drop of 26.7 per cent, with 33 vehicles registered in June 2015.

The number of new registrations for tractors also declined by 39.7 per cent, with 35 tractors, while the number of new registrations for driving school vehicles rose by 7.6 per cent to reach 99 vehicles, compared to 92 vehicles registered in June 2014. – ONA

‘I AM OMANI’

Omani students celebrate Renaissance Day in Pune Times News Service MUSCAT: Students from Oman on exchange programme in Pune celebrated Oman’s Renaissance Day recently.

The ceremony started with playing the Omani national anthem. Then an exhibition with the title ‘I am Omani’ was opened under the auspicious of Vidya Yeravdekar, principal director, Symbiosis Institute.

The exhibition reflected Omani culture. Hospitality, customs, identity and Henna were the main sections in the exhibition beside many others.

The exhibition visitors were fascinated by the Omani culture.

OVERSEAS IMPACT: The exhibition reflected Omani culture. Hospitality, customs, identity and Henna were the main sections in the exhibition beside many others.– Supplied photo

JORDAN CONFERENCE

Call to work on literary encyclopedia AMMAN: Participants at the Contemporary Literary and Language Movement in Oman conference recommended compiling a literary encyclopedia for the contemporary creative works, the scientific studies and literary and language movement in the Sultanate. They also recommended publishing such encyclopedia at the websites and cultural centers in the Arab countries.

The conference was organised by the Omani Studies Unit at Al Bait University in collaboration with Omani Studies Center at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) and the Sultanate’s Embassy in Jordan.

It should be noted that the 34 scientists and researches from Oman, Jordan and some Arab countries participated in the two-day conference, which was attended by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saud al-Siyabi, Secretary General of the Iftaa Office in the Sultanate, Khamis bin Mohammed al-Farsi, Sultanate’s ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. -ONA

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OMAN

Majlis for crackdown on petrol smuggling Majlis members have questioned the rationale behind opening three filling stations in a sparsely populated border area near Dubai PETROL RACKET: Fuel prices at these stations should match the ones offered by stations located on the other side of the border, while locals in the region should be compensated.

MEHDI AL LAWATI MUSCAT: As alarm bells ring about possibly more smuggling of Omani fuel into the UAE, prominent members of Majlis Al Shura have once again called for measures to curb exploitation of Oman’s resources.

Sultan bin Majid Al Ibri, Majlis Al Shura member representing the Wilayat of Ibri, has questioned the rationale behind opening three filling stations in Al Rawda in the Wilayat of Mahda in Buraimi, a border area with Dubai,

which has a very small population.

“These locations are much sought after as there is a huge market on the other side of the border,” he noted.

Similarly, Tawfiq Al Lawati, another Majlis Al Shura member representing the Wilayat of Muttrah, has also questioned the need for three filling stations near Hatta on the road to Dubai, noting that less than 500 people reside in the region.

According to Al Abri, Oman,

among others, witnesses organised fuel smuggling operations that bring millions and are carried out through the land and sea routes. He feared that a wider gap in fuel prices with neighbouring Emirates will exacerbate the problem.

Describing the situation, Al Abri said, “Trailers are being filled with fuel, costing around OMR120, which are then sold and refilled again. You can imagine the extent of the loss. That is in

addition to a massive number of vehicles registered with foreign number plates benefitting from the subsidised fuel.”

To curb smuggling, Al Ibri suggested that only a certain amount of fuel should be sold to cars registered with foreign number plates along the filling stations situated close to the border. Furthermore, the number of filling stations should not exceed those required to cater to the local demand and cameras must be installed to catch any related violations.

Meanwhile, Al Lawati suggested that fuel prices at these stations should match the ones offered by stations located on the other side of the border, while locals in the region should be compensated.

Last January, UAE’s Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed Faraj Al Mazroui had said that fuel smuggling was widespread across the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), and the UAE, among other GCC countries, is working on a law to prevent smuggling.

“The ministry is working on a law to prevent smuggling of diesel or other products. Saudi Arabia is also working on a similar law as is being done in some neighbouring countries where the fuel is subsidised,” he said.

H O S P I TA L I T Y S E C T O R

Hotel revenues exceed OMR87m in May Times News Service MUSCAT: There has been a decrease in the total number of guests of 3 to 5 star hotels, which reached 499,646 at the end of May 2015 compared to 516,962 recorded during the same period of 2014, registering a decline rate of 3.3%.

The statistics issued by the National Centre for Statistics and In-

formation (NCSI) about the main indicators of the 3-5 star hotels indicate that the total revenues of such hotels during last May logged a 1.5% decline compared to the revenues recorded during May 2014 to reach OMR87,308,000 compared to OMR88,650,000 recorded during the same period of 2014.

The occupancy rate recorded a

7.3% decrease as it reached 62.7% compared to 67.7% logged during the same period of 2014.

The statistics showed that the Europeans topped the list of the hotels’ guests during last May with an increase rate of 36.1% to reach 180,616 guests compared to 161,081 recorded during February 2014. They were followed by the Omani guests whose num-

ber reached 149,403 compared to 159,638 guests recorded during May 2014.

The Asian guests came third on the list by recording 59,722 till the end of last May. They were followed by the gulf guests who reached 45,745.

The other Arab guests reached 23,615 while the American guests reached 19,570.

OMAN SCOUTS SHOWCASE SKILLS

Oman Scouts showed their scouting skills at the TwentyThird World Scout Jamboree in Japan. The scouts took part in social events apart from introducing Omani culture at the global stage.—ONA

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

October 1,

OMAN OMANI HANDICRAFTS IN BRAZIL

The Public Authority for Craft Industries (PACI) stall is showcasing handicrafts at the Omani Cultural Days being held in Brazil. — ONA

2, and 3 is the scheduled date for the performance of Turandot by the Arena di Verona at ROHM

ROHM invites local extras for opera roles ROHM’s Turandot will include 51 extras and the play offers locals an opportunity to act in the play. The extras get a chance to discover their talent and become

SUMMER SCHOOL

Sohar port starts IT, English programme

part of the history of the ROHM and to be on stage with worldclass artistes

Times News Service MUSCAT: Providing a big boost to education, Sohar Port and Freezone is gearing up for the launch of its fourth annual Summer Educational Programme.

The Programme is designed to help students in Sohar and the nearby province of Liwa to enhance their English and IT knowledge, arming them with vital skills that will help increase their employment prospects in the future.

The Summer Educational Programme, which commenced on August 1, will last for two weeks.

This year’s programme is being held in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Sohar’s neighbouring International Maritime College of Oman (IMCO).

The programme has helped almost a 1,000 local school students over the last three years. This year, 330 students aged 10 to 14 will be participating. The programme was launched four years ago to help augment participants’ educational acumen and thus help them find employment in the future.

Development priorities The Programme aims to provide surrounding communities with the skills and income required to improve their own livelihoods and meet the development priorities outlined in the Oman government’s Economic Vision 2020.

Classes will take place at IMCO, a specialist education and training institute in Sohar, which offers Diploma and Degree Courses for the Maritime, Shipping, Port, Transport and Petrochemical Process industries.

Andre Toet, CEO of Sohar Port, said: “We are delighted to be running the Summer Educational

The Summer Educational Programme has helped almost a 1,000 local school students over the last three years. This year, 330 students aged 10 to 14 will be participating

Programme again this year and are very much looking forward to welcoming another group of ambitious, bright young people onto the Programme. SOHAR is committed to creating opportunities for young people in the area and the Summer Educational Programme is just one small part of our wider plans to work with the local community to create a thriving region, in every way possible.”

With global investments worth over $21 billion, more and more opportunities are emerging as the Port and adjacent Freezone continues to expand. Jamal Aziz, CEO of Sohar Freezone, commented: “Sohar is growing at an unprecedented rate, and this presents vast opportunities for young, local talent. The Summer Educational Programme is a fantastic opportunity to align our ambitions for the future with market trends and to involve up-and-coming young talents at an early stage; I cannot think of a better match.”

GRAND DESIGNS: Set in ancient dynastic China, Turandot, Giacomo Puccini’s final masterpiece, tells the mythical story of an imperial princess eventually won by a prince.– ROHM file photos

Times News Service MUSCAT: Local residents are being offered an exciting opportunity by the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) to participate on stage as ‘extras’, or amateurs in non-singing roles, for its magnificent encore production of Turandot, the opera that was staged for the venue’s inauguration in 2011.

Set in ancient dynastic China, Turandot, Giacomo Puccini’s final masterpiece, tells the mythical story of an imperial princess whose cold, vengeful heart is eventually won by a prince with a love so great that he would willingly sacrifice his life for her.

The ROHM’s production was staged by Franco Zeffirelli, a famous Italian set and costume designer, filmmaker and director.

Zeffirelli is one of the world’s most important opera interpreters, renowned for gorgeous productions with authentic detailing.

With all the magnificent original sets and costumes, Turandot will be performed again by the incomparable Arena di Verona, its orchestra, chorus and corps de ballet, on October 1, 3 and 4.

But this time, ROHM’s Turandot will include 51 extras and the play offers locals an opportunity to act in the play. The extras get a chance to discover their talent and become part of the history of the Royal Opera House, to be on stage with world-class singers, and, like them, to take cues from the orchestra conductor as they take part fully costumed in the unfolding plot of this glorious opera. Check the requirements below, and if you feel inspired, follow the instructions carefully.

Requirements 35 Men: Age: 18–45 years; Approximate size: Average build.

Height: 1m72–1m90.

Roles: Soldiers, peasants, mandarins, executioners and princes.

Qualities: Men who love the theatre and arts, are passionate and like new experiences.

4 Women: Age: 20–35 years; Approximate size: Average build.

Height: 1m64–1m75 Roles: Peasant women and princesses.

Qualities: Women who love music, are energetic and like new experiences.

12 Children (Boys or Girls): Age: 6-12 years; Approximate size: Average build Roles: Peasants and attendants.

Qualities: Children who love music, are energetic and like new experiences.

Schedule (may be changed) Applicants will need to be available for all scheduled rehearsals and performances, although this does not necessarily mean that those selected (particularly children) will be required at all the times set out below. You may also be required to come in slightly earlier to don your costume for dress rehearsals. For performances, you must come one hour early, at 5 pm for 6 pm start.

Single daily rehearsal from 16.0020.30 on the following dates in September: Sunday through Thursday – September 13, 14, 15, 16 & 17 Saturday through Monday – September 19, 20 & 21 Twice daily rehearsals in Septem-

ber from 14.00-16.00 and from 18.30-22.00 Wednesday through Sunday 23, 24, 25, 26 & 27 Once daily rehearsal in September from14.00-18.30 Monday and Tuesday, 28 & 29 Performances – 18.00 arrival for 19.00 start time on October 1, October 3 and October 4 Application process Send email to extras@rohmuscat. org.om which includes: 1) a full length photograph of yourself; and 2) a headshot photograph; along with: 3) a covering e-mail about yourself, including your name, age, height, clothing size and contact telephone number; and a one or two concise paragraphs on why you would like to be involved.

If we already have your details on

file from past participation as an extra, then please send an e-mail to register your interest.

Auditions will take place on August 20 at 5 pm, at the Royal Opera House Muscat.

You may take part in the audition only if you have applied by e-mail in advance and have been invited by the ROHM to come. If you are not available for the audition, for all scheduled rehearsals and all three performances, then you cannot be considered. Applicants must be based locally, and have a bank account in Oman and an Omani ID card, or for non-Omanis, a Resident ID Card.

Application closing date: August 18. Shortly after the audition on August 20, successful applicants will be informed by e-mail that they have been selected.

HUMAN RESOURCES

US TOUR

Oman Post holds staff workshop on excellence model Times News Service

EDUCATIONAL TRIP: The Indian School Sohar students spent three days touring the Kennedy Space Centre, where they participated in several activities. – Supplied photo

Sohar students return from NASA trip Times News Service MUSCAT: More than 100 students from Indian School Sohar went on a trip to the USA in June, which included visiting NASA’s Kennedy Space and Research Centre.

The first group of students, led by the Principal, Sanchita Verma and teachers Divya Johari and Kamal Gurung, left on May 30. The second and the third group left on June 1, led by Vice-Principal Dr. Vinu Kumar and teachers Nisha Aravind, Indira Vinod and Smita Mishra.

The students spent three days touring the Kennedy Space Centre, where they participated in sev-

eral activities. The children had an opportunity to visit the Rocket Garden, Atlantis Museum, and saw a documentary on the creation of Atlantis. Besides meeting with NASA astronauts, they explored the launching and landing of space shuttles, understanding the mechanism of robotics, riding a shuttle launch simulation and much more.

“We have been planning for a while that students should get a chance to not just have fun, but also explore innovative prospects during educational trips. Since a lot of students were attracted to space and astronautics, we chose the NASA Kennedy Space Centre for the purpose,” said Sanchita

Verma. “Students came back with much information to share with the rest of the class. The whole idea behind the trip was to provide enduring education to students. I am confident that such experiences live on in students’ minds long after they have received their degrees and certificates”, she added.

Talking about the Rocket Garden at NASA, student Aayushi Singh said, “The only thing growing in this “garden” is your imagination, as you stroll amidst an array of real and replica capsules and rockets – soaring as high as 109 feet into the sky.”

“In this programme students made their own robot, learnt to drive and control it wirelessly to

ultimately compete for a challenge to move on an artificially created lunar surface. This made them understand how space probes like ROVER are controlled wirelessly from the Earth station. It was, indeed, a marvellous experience of a lifetime for us,” added Kush Ajay Damani, one of the students, while discussing the Space Robotic programme called ‘Space Trek’,” said another student.

For recreation, the children were brought to Universal Studios in Orlando. Visiting the enchanting and magical world of Harry Potter was a dream come true for many of the young wizards’ fans. Students also rode rides at Walt Disney’s Magic Kingdom.

MUSCAT: In a move to improve the skills of its employees, Oman Post, in cooperation with the Regional Institute for Studies and Training, held a workshop on quality management and adoption of the European excellence model from June 27 to July 1, 2015.

An expert from the British Association for Leadership and Administration delivered lectures at the training workshop, where he presented the European excellence cycle model, which is based on self-assessment and qualitybased analysis to focus on operations to revitalise the project.

The workshop also presented methods to manage, analyse and restructure operations to merge and unify other initiatives with the mail services to improve overall quality.

The excellence workshop further discussed methods for adding value to improve the work culture and adapt global standards in the postal sector. The forum sought to assist employees and trainees to achieve best results in improving their skills to assure increased customer satisfaction.

The workshop presented methods to manage, analyse and restructure operations to merge and unify other initiatives with the mail services to improve overall quality

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OMAN

ACADEMICS

GUtech geoscience students to conduct field seminar in UK Times News Service

In the South of the UK the geological structure is very simple and the making of the relevant observations is doable Dr Wiekert Visser

Head, Petroleum Geoscience

MUSCAT: It will be a great opportunity for students from Oman as the Department of Petroleum Geoscience at the German University of Technology (GUtech) in Oman, will conducted a field-seminar for its MSc students, on the south coast of the United Kingdom (UK) in August.

The one-week course is led by Professor Dr Wiekert Visser, head of the department of Petroleum Geoscience at GUtech.

“The objective of the field-excursion is to teach students the socalled play evaluation in petroleum exploration,” said Prof Wiekert. “In the South of the UK the geological structure is very simple and the

Fish sales grow in first 4 months Al Wusta Governorate landed the highest fish catch by traditional fishery methods, contributing a total 22,323 tonnes

Times News Service MUSCAT: Fish sales have been on the rise since the beginning of this year and remained steady until the end of April, according to figures issued by the National Centre of Statistics and Information’s (NCSI) monthly statistical bulletin for July 2015.

Since the beginning of 2015 until the end of April, the total value of fish increased by 1.4 per cent to OMR62.563 million, compared to OMR61.683 million in the same period last year.

Al Wusta Governorate landed most fish by traditional fishery methods which contributed 22,323 tonnes, followed by Asharqiyah with 21,117 tonnes and Dhofar with 13,202 tonnes.

Al Batinah Governorate followed with 10,354 tonnes and Musandam with 7,065 tonnes, leaving Muscat with the least amount of

MARINE WEALTH: Since the beginning of 2015 until the end of April, the total value of fish increased by 1.4 per cent to OMR62.563 million.–File photograph

fish with only 4,084 tonnes.

However, compared to the same period last year, the regions contributed to a 12.8 per cent increase in total fish landed by traditional fishery methods, posting a figure of 78,145 tonnes as opposed to 69,284 tonnes caught last year.

Small Pelagic fish contributed to the most fish landed by species with 30,328 tonnes, compared to the same period last year with 26,871 tonnes while demersal fish followed with 23,746 tonnes and large pelagic fish with 19,673 tonnes.

Meanwhile, 3,302 tonnes sharks and rays were landed followed by crustaceans with 349 tonnes, mollusks with 611 tonnes and unidentified fish with 406 tonnes.

In other related news, the

Central Wholesale Fish Market in Al Flaij, Barka, raked up over OMR1.2 million in sales since the beginning of January this year until the end of June. According to statistics from the Directorate General of Marketing and Fishery Investments at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, 1,486 tonnes of fish were in stock at the market while 1,136 tonnes were sold for a total of OMR1,249,339 until the end of June 2015.

Salim Al Rasbi, Director General of Marketing and Fishery Investments in the Ministry, said, “The Directorate has prepared detailed economic statistics on how many and how much fish were sold during each month for the first six months of the year 2015 as well as economic statistics regarding the activity in the market during these months.”

making of the relevant observations is doable within a few days.

This would be impossible in Oman because of the geological complexity,” he said.

The one-week field-seminar is an integral part of the MSc programme in Petroleum Geoscience, a three-year part-time programme.

Throughout their studies the students conduct a number of fieldtrips in Oman and abroad. They are also taught by experienced academics in the oil and gas sector.

“There are very good reasons that many oil companies and universities visit the Dorset coast for petroleum geological training. The Southern coastline of the UK, especially the regions of Devon and Dorset, are renowned for their O M A N I S AT I O N

Private sector employs 292 Omani youths MUSCAT: In signs of more citizens joining the private sector, 292 Omanis have found employment in private sector establishments in July, thanks to coordination of the Directorate General of Manpower in North Al Batinah Governorate with the companies.

The locals have been employed in various departments and with different academic qualifications in the private sector.

Mohammad Ali Al Maamari, Assistant Director General of Manpower in North Al Batinah said, “The department of employment in the directorate extends its efforts to find job opportunities for local job seekers in establishments that are available in the governorate.”

“By constantly visiting these companies and looking for job opportunities with them or by trying to fulfill the Omanisation rates that are imposed on private sector establishments,” he added explaining.–ONA

teaching possibilities in oil and gas exploration geology. The area has very good examples of the key geological elements necessary for creating oil or gas fields. There are rocks from which oil and gas are generated (source rocks), rocks in which oil and gas are stored (reservoirs), rocks which make sure that oil and gas do not escape to the surface over time (seals), and features that create “traps” or the shape of an oil/gas field.

Moreover, the largest onshore oilfield in Europe is present in the area,” said Professor Wiekert Visser. During the seminar the students work together in small teams, and learn how they can use observations on source, reservoir, seal and structure in the field to derive the

history of the rocks, which then helps to predict the potential for petroleum exploration. Students will also combine their field observations with offshore seismic data to predict prospectivity of the offshore area. At the end of the fiveday trip, the teams have to present their petroleum exploration concept to a senior explorationist.

The students going on the UK trip are now entering their last year of the MSc programme. Looking ahead, Prof. Wiekert says that GUtech is very happy to announce that on October 18th a new group of students will start the MSc in Petroleum Geoscience. Those interested in giving their career in the oil industry a boost are stimulated to join the programme.

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015 We are very excited to announce the opening of this new clinic Dr. Petar Bogunovic, licenced veterinarian

OMAN C O P I N G W I T H T H E H E AT

SALALAH

Unfit meat seized, accused arrested SALALAH: Meat not fit for human consumption being sold by expatriates was seized by the Consumer Protection Department (CPD) in Dhofar Governorate in cooperation with Dhofar Municipality, Royal Oman Police and the Public Prosecution.

Meat quality The Consumer Protection Department had received calls from a number of consumers on the quality of meat being served.

The personnel of the concerned departments along with food safety officials rushed to the outlet and found a number of consumers showing symptoms of vomiting after eating the meat they had bought from the outlet.

When examined, the meat was found unfit for human consumption. The meat was examined at the laboratories of the Dhofar Municipality and it was confirmed that it was unfit.

An expatriate worker who dis-

tributed large quantities of imported meat in private vehicles on the plea that it was local meat after adding camel fat to the consignment to look like local meat was arrested.

Warrants issued Information on the key person who supplied meat to other outlets was gathered and in coordination with the Public Prosecution warrants were issued for the inspection of the place where the meat was for sale in the market.

The suspected personnel were arrested while the sources importing the import has not yet been identified.

Ali bin Salim Al Basrawi, Director of the Consumer Protection Department in Dhofar Governorate said that such work aimed at generating quick income without any consideration of the health of the visitors and residents.—ONA

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Extremely high temperatures

“That was one of the most incredible temperature observations I have ever seen and it is one of the most extreme readings ever in the world,” Sagliani stated.

In Iraq, where temperatures reached the low 50s, a four-day holiday was declared to help people cope with the heat, and the government advised people to stay out of the sun and stay hydrated.

Hot summer The southern Iraqi city of Basra has been feeling the heat the most, with temperatures exceeded 48.9 degree Celsius for over a week, while the capital Baghdad has had temperatures of at least 37.8 degree Celsius every day since May 30 and hit 51 on July 30, matching its all time high, according to AccuWeather.

These temperatures are a continuation of what has already been an unusually hot summer not just in the Middle East, but also in India, Pakistan and Europe.

In May a heat wave in India OMANI HAJ MISSION

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Meeting discusses pilgrim services

The Omani Haj Mission for 2015 held its first meeting at the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs under the chair of Sheikh Issa bin Yousef Al Busaidi, Chairman of the Omani Haj Mission.

Al Busaidi said the approved 230 Haj campaigns have been divided into three groups — for Omanis only (199, that have been merged into 54), for expatriates and Arabs (14, that have been merged into 3) and nonArab expatriates (17 companies that have been merged into 4).

During the meeting, the participants developed the strategic aims of the mission, its work method and assignments of the delegations.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Send us your comments at facebook.com/timesofoman blog.timesofoman.com haveyoursay@timesofoman.com

killed over 2,500 people. This was followed by a heat wave which struck Pakistan in June, bringing temperatures in the high 40s C to Sindh, Southern Punjab and Balochistan, caused the deaths of more than 2,000 people.

In July, a number of records

were shattered in Europe, too, where unseasonably warm weather smothered most of the continent. On July 6 the mercury reached 39.9 in Madrid, breaking the previous record of 39.5 degree Celsius . Many cities in Germany set their heat records on the July

4-5 weekend, including Berlin which reached 37.9 degree Celsius and Frankfurt which hit 39 degree Celsius.

On July 1 a temperature of 36.7 degree Celsius was recorded in London, breaking not just a city record but a UK record for July.

The previous record was set in July 2006 when the temperature hit 36.5 degree Celsius.

To beat the heat in Oman many people have been enjoying swimming in the wadis and sea, going for boat rides to catch sea breezes and visiting Dhofar or the mountains, or simply staying inside under the air conditioning.

According the Sultanate of Oman’s Directorate General of Meteorology high temperatures are expected to continue this week in Oman, with most cities forecasted to be in the low 40s Celsius without the humidity factor. More moderate temperatures and drizzle are expected in Dhofar, as the khareef continues, while thunderstorms and rain are forecasted for the Hajar Mountains.

Comprehensive care of pets at Azaiba clinic The clinic offers veterinary services and a wide selection of pet foods and supplies, and will remain open six days a week FULL-SERVICE VET CLINIC: Dr. Petar Bogunovic, a licenced veterinarian, will be providing care at this branch.

Times News Service MUSCAT: A full-service vet clinic providing comprehensive pet health care including anaesthesia, examinations, vaccinations, identification of animals, surgery and histology, cardiology, and radiology has opened in Azaiba.

Al Qurum Veterinary Clinic announced the opening of its new clinic in Athaiba.

Dr. Petar Bogunovic, a licenced veterinarian, will be providing care at this branch, located on the 18th November Street.

The branch offers veterinary services and a wide selection of pet foods and supplies, and will stay open six days a week, Saturday through Thursday, from 8am to 8pm. Appointments are recommended and walk-ins will be accommodated whenever possible.

Dr. Petar, in partnership with Dr. Elke Heitz, founder and owner

of Al Qurum Veterinary Clinic, have created an inviting and comfortable environment for clients and their pets.

The clinic offers comprehensive pet wellness services, including routine medical, surgical, and dental care for dogs and cats - as well as exotic animals - and orthopaedics, preventative and emergency veterinary care, during the clinic’s regular hours.

Their goal is for everyone, either two legged or four, to feel welcome as soon as they enter the veterinary clinic.

“We are very excited to announce the opening of this new clinic,” said Dr. Petar.

“Whether a pet needs a wellness check-up and vaccinations, or spay or neuter surgery, our veterinary care team is committed to providing excellence in all aspects of veterinary care. We treat each

pet like a member of our family.”

The full-service vet clinic provides comprehensive pet health care, namely anaesthesia, examinations, vaccinations, identification of animals, surgery and histology, cardiology, and radiology. The clinic has a well-stocked pharmacy, prescription diets, and nutritional and behavioural counselling. Complete veterinary services are available for dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, rabbits and other exotic animals.

Dr. Petar is dedicated to the local community and has been providing unparalleled service and quality products for customers and their animal friends in Muscat for the past eight years.

Being the proud parent of Munchkin, a rescued Saluki, two cats, and a turtle, he has become attuned to the unique nutritional needs of pets.

H I G H C O S T O F O P E R AT I O N S

< FROM

A1 ‘Warnings not taken seriously’ “Failing to listen is not only irresponsible but could cost you your life and potentially that of any would be rescuer,” Pudwell said.

The PACDA official also said, “We have been constantly sending out messages about the overflowing wadis. We have spread awareness via the social media, put up safety warnings yet some people don’t take it seriously.”

“The PACDA personnel respond to every single rescue call but public should be more responsible now and think about the loss they might suffer before indulging in any irresponsible act,” said the source.

He added that people should understand that such operations cost the government a lot of money and effort.

Pudwell said, “Our shores are blessed with some of the best beaches and swimming conditions in the region and attract many people throughout the year, but advice and warnings from the emergency response and meteorological authorities often go unheeded, resulting in loss of life.”

He added, “Rescue devices and equipment on beaches should never be tampered with or removed as they can save the lives of those in difficulty in the water.

There is usually no need to swim in water that you can’t stand up in safely but even then, undercurrents and rip tides can drag unwitting swimmers further out to sea. Swimmers should always choose to swim in water close to shore where it’s known to be safe but always remain vigilant to the local conditions. If you are unsure whether it’s safe to swim, the simple answer is -- don’t.”

Dangers Speaking about wadis, Pudwell said, “They are inherently attractive areas for families to spend time, camping and swimming, but adults must be aware of the dangers that they present in the form of flash flooding, underwater hazards and eddies. A weather event many kilometres away can affect wadis being used for leisure and conditions may change rapidly.

So this requires everyone to be

extremely vigilant. Any noticeable change in water conditions should be treated seriously and everyone should be made to leave the area immediately.”

Pudwell also advised that all parents should ensure that their children learn to swim at an early age in the same manner that they teach them to walk.

“Being able to swim is a life skill and may at some point in an individual’s life serve them or others well in the event of an emergency. However, all swimmers have their limitations, even those who consider themselves competent and strong swimmers and this is where the advice of emergency response professionals must be heeded, regardless of whether one can swim well or not,” Pudwell said.

According to the amendments being proposed in the civil defence law, which are still undergoing review, those who attempt to cross wadis when it is unsafe to do so, may face tough sanctions, a PACDA official had told the Times of Oman recently.

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015 Egypt remains vital... to engagement and stability in the region as a whole. There are obviously circumstances where we have found reason to have grave concern and we have expressed it very publicly.

John Kerry, US Secretary of State

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REGION

US, Egypt returning to ‘stronger base’ in bilateral ties, says Kerry The US Secretary of State, who held the first strategic dialogue between the two countries since 2009, said Egypt remains ‘vital’ CAIRO: The United States and Egypt are returning to a “stronger base” in bilateral ties despite tensions and human rights concerns, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday after talks with his Egyptian counterpart.

Vital “Egypt remains vital... to engagement and stability in the region as a whole,” said Kerry, who held the first strategic dialogue between the two countries since 2009.

“There are obviously circumstances where we have found reason to have grave concern and we

PARLEYS: Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, centre, and his Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, right, listen to US Secretary of State John Kerry, left, speaking before a meeting at the presidential palace in Cairo on Sunday. – Reuters

have expressed it very publicly,” he said at a news conference with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. “But we have multiple issues that we need to work on simultaneously.”

US-Egyptian relations cooled

after president Mohamed Morsi was ousted in 2013 by the military amid mass protests against his rule. But Cairo remains one of Washington’s closest security allies in the Middle East, an increas-

REPLACING AGEING FLEET

Iran plans to buy 90 planes TEHRAN: Iran plans on buying 80 to 90 Airbus and Boeing passenger planes per year until 300 are in place to replace its ageing fleet, media reported on Sunday quoting a civil aviation official.

Civil Aviation Organisation (CAO) deputy chief Mohammad Khodakarami said the July 14 nuclear deal struck with Western powers lifts a ban preventing Iran from purchasing new planes and spare parts. “We must add 80 to 90 planes to our fleet each year in order to have 300 new and operational ones,” Khodakarami was quoted as saying.

He said the CAO would renovate the national fleet by purchasing an equal number of Airbus and Boeing planes at an estimat-

HUGE PLANS: An Airbus A310

of Iranian private airline Mahan Air. – File Photo

ed cost of $20 billion (18.2 billion euros). An embargo dating from 1995 prevents Western manufacturers from selling equipment and spare parts to Iranian companies. The restrictions, which have been blamed for crippling the industry, were partially lifted by an interim agreement on Iran’s

BENGHAZI

Five killed, 12 injured in Libya clashes BENGHAZI (LIBYA): Five people were killed and 12 wounded during clashes in eastern Libya between forces loyal to its internationally recognised government and hardline groups, medics said on Sunday.

Fighting broke out on Saturday in the town of Ajdabiya, near the oil port of Brega, and a war plane attacked suspected hardliners’ positions to the south of the town, residents said.

It was unclear whether the fighters were affiliated to IS militant group , who on Friday attacked a checkpoint manned by troops loyal to the official government outside Ajdabiya, killing

five soldiers. Two more soldiers were killed when the government sent reinforcements, and another 15 have been missing since.

Security vacuum IS has exploited a growing security vacuum in Libya, where two administrations - each with its own government and parliament are fighting for control four years after the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi. The official prime minister has been based in the east since a rival group seized the capital Tripoli. He has been working with his cabinet from hotels in the city of Tobruk, about 270 km (167 miles) from Ajdabiya. — Reuters

nuclear programme that came into force in January 2014. This allowed for the sale of spare parts, though direct sales of planes remained banned. Khodakarami said the historic deal struck in July “stipulates clearly that the ban on buying or leasing planes as well as the transfer of engines or spare parts has been lifted”.

In May, Transport Minister Abbas Akhoundi said Iranian airlines had obtained 15 used planes since February as part of efforts to renovate the ageing fleet. And Iranian aviation officials said in April that the country would need 400 to 500 passenger planes in the next decade. The Iranian fleet has around 140 aircraft, most 20 years old and in need of replacement. — AFP

ingly crucial role in a region beset by turmoil in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Libya. Shoukry told journalists his country had no major disagreements with Washington but there were “differences in points

of view over some issues, which is natural”. While Washington supports former general Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, who led Morsi’s overthrow and was elected to succeed him, it has also cautiously criticised Egypt’s human rights record.

Following Morsi’s ouster, Cairo launched a tough crackdown on the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. Security forces killed hundreds of Brotherhood supporters, jailed thousands of others. They then went after liberal activists.

Egypt says the Brotherhood is a terrorist group that poses a threat to national security. The Interior Ministry denies allegations of widespread human rights abuses. In one such rights case, a Cairo court on Sunday postponed giving its verdict in the retrial of Al Jazeera television journalists accused of aiding a terrorist organisation, a reference to the Brotherhood.

Journalists Shoukry said no journalists in Egypt were in jail over their reporting. The Committee to Protect Journalists said a prison census it had conducted on June 1 found at least 18 Egyptian journalists were being held in jail for reasons related to their reporting. A govern-

ment source at the time said that the numbers were not accurate.

Cairo and Washington have been exploring opportunities to expand their security relationship. In late March, US President Barack Obama lifted a hold on supplying arms to Cairo, authorising deliveries valued at over $1.3 billion.

The United States delivered eight F-16 fighter jets last week to Egypt, which is battling insurgents in the Sinai Peninsula who have killed hundreds of soldiers and police since Mursi’s removal.

The most active group is Sinai Province, an affiliate of IS militant group.

Kerry also said he was “absolutely convinced” all countries in the Middle East would be safer as a result of a nuclear deal between world powers and Iran agreed last month.

“There can be absolutely no question that the Vienna plan, if implemented, will make Egypt and all the countries of this region safer than they otherwise would be,” he said.

Kerry will travel on to Qatar for meetings with other Arab countries on the fight against Islamic State and to seek to reassure them about the nuclear deal. — Reuters

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

INDIA Letters sent to UK for terror funding probe Overseas judicial request dispatched by the Enforcement Directorate to obtain information on the finances, bank accounts and assets of Mirchi and his associates

NEW DELHI: The ED has sent a Letters Rogatory (LR) to the United Kingdom as part of its global probe into suspected terror funding and hawala operations of late Iqbal Mirchi, a longtime associate of fugitive Pakistan-based don Dawood Ibrahim.

The overseas judicial request dispatched recently by the Enforcement Directorate through diplomatic channels has sought to obtain information on the finances, bank accounts and assets of Mirchi and his associates which are suspected to be created by him illegally in the foreign country through dubious ways like hawala.

Sources privy to the development said the LR has been issued after vetting from the Union Finance and Home ministries and has been prepared after some preliminary information conducted by the central probe agency in coordination with their counterparts in London.

Apart from UK, the agency is already in touch with a few more countries like UAE, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey and Morocco as part of the overseas judicial requests.

The agency, which has recently

LETTERS ROGATORY: Apart from UK, the Enforcement Directorate

is already in touch with a few more countries like the UAE, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey and Morocco as part of the overseas judicial requests.

Mirchi, who died in 2013 in the UK, is suspected to have laundered funds through the hawala route to purchase properties in at least 10 or more countries

launched a multi-level probe into the Rs30 billion slush funds ring, has already issued notices to two sons and the widow of Mirchi, his relatives, lawyers and business associates in connection with its investigation conducted under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

As part of the latest LR, the sources said, ED has sought all “available documents and material” which are related to Mirchi

and other suspects it has identified in this probe.

Mirchi, who died in 2013 in the UK, is suspected to have laundered and moved funds through the hawala route to purchase a host of properties in at least 10 or more countries with the help of his associates.

Tainted assets The agency had earlier also written to the Mumbai police Crime Branch, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Maharashtra land records authorities seeking their cooperation in this probe that involves about 50 tainted assets in over 10 countries, a clutch of about 40 firms in the country and abroad and a maze of at least 20 bank accounts in India and some private banks overseas.

Highly-sensitive probe The highly-sensitive probe, in the making for over a year now, claims to suggest that Mirchi’s family and associates sold at least five prime properties in Mumbai and allegedly moved crores of funds

obtained from their sale to purchase some costly assets abroad.

A huge amount of monies from these deals is also suspected to have found its way into the terrorist and arms-running mafia run by Dawood which is part of the larger probe, sources had said.

The agency is probing the entire gamut of complex real estate transactions as it found that at least four buildings, measuring about 6,132 sq mt in total, and located in Mumbai’s Worli Sea Face were sold off by Mirchi’s family in 2010 by creating “fictitious identities” and front companies in “contravention of RBI guidelines and FEMA rules”.

The four buildings on Worli Sea Face were sealed under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act (SAFEMA) and CrPC in the aftermath of the 1993 Mumbai bombings as they were suspected to be ‘benami’ assets of Mirchi.

Main henchman The assets were later released by a court order following which they were sold. Mirchi was not only the main henchman in executing underworld contracts for Dawood but was also allegedly one of the world’s top ranking narcotics smuggler.

India had issued an Interpol Red Corner notice against him in 1994. The dossiers received by ED from multiple sources claim to reveal that some of these assets, including commercial ones, are located in Dubai, Britain and Turkey.

Investigators suspect a good tranche of money from the sale of these assets have reached the pockets of Dawood even as probe suggests that a number of these assets purchased by Mirchi and his family are being operated by gangsters deputed by the underworld don who too left India soon after the 1993 blasts and his been elusive since. -PTI

OBSOLETE PRACTICE

Tharoor opposes death penalty even for terrorists THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Unfazed by criticism, former union minister Shashi Tharoor on Sunday opposed death penalty even for terrorists saying it was an “obsolete practice” and they should instead be put behind bars for the rest of their lives without parole.

“Terrorists should be put behind bars throughout their life without parole. In earlier days, there was a belief that if a person murders someone, he should be killed. Why do we need to follow the old obsolete practice...,” Tharoor said.

“When we implement capital punishment, we are actually acting like them. They are the murderers and the state should not act like them,” the Congress MP told reporters here on the sidelines of a function, organised by ‘Tree Walk’, an environmental organisation.

On the recent controversy over his tweet on the execution of Mumbai terror attack convict Yakub Memon, he said: “I have not said a word on Memon case. What I tweeted was that I was not going into the merits of an individual case and it was the responsibility of the Supreme Court. I had tweeted against the death penalty which is an obsolete practice.”

Right to life UN Secretary General Ban KiMoon had also said that “we don’t have the right to take anyone’s life.”

The Congress MP from Thiruvanathapuram said not only he, but several leaders, including Sitaram Yechury, D Raja, Kanimozhi, Shatrughan Sinha and Varun Gandhi had also supported the abolition of death penalty.

“As many as 143 countries have already abandoned the practice of death penalty. Another 25 countries are not practicing it though the capital punishment is there in their law. Only around 35 countries are practicing it at present.

Former union minister Shashi Tharoor.

Why should our country follow such a practice?,” Tharoor asked.

Tharoor had earlier faced BJP’s ire for saying that he was “saddened” by the news that “our government has hanged a human being. ” Private matters Tharoor said he had “never disclosed private matters” on or off record as he feels that doing so is “indecent.”

“Neither during my service in UN nor in politics have I ever disclosed private matters. I have never disclosed private talks, discussed behind closed doors, outside on the record or off the record,” the Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram said.

The provocation for the snub was the alleged leak by him of his views against the party’s stalling tactics in Parliament at a strategy meet of Congress on July 21.

“Whether at a family gathering or at a meeting of a company, school or party, different kinds of contacts, interactions and exchanges takes place....To take a small portion and leak it outside for someone’s personal interest, isn’t it indecent?,” Tharoor asked. -PTI

DIVISIVE POLITICAL IDEOLOGY

BJP move to expand base in Kerala won’t succeed: Chandy KOCHI: The BJP’s reported moves to expand its base in south Indian state Kerala with support from a community outfit will not pay any dividend as people of the state are still reluctant to accept “divisive political ideology”, says Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

He maintains that the Congress’ main rival in the state, Left is still relevant as an alternative in the bipolar polity.

“Kerala society is totally different. The people of the state took a different line...a line of peace and harmony... even during tougher times... when country faced communal riots and divisive politics,” Chandy said in an interview.

The Chief Minister’s comments assume significance in the wake of the recent meeting between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah and Vellappally Natesan in Delhi, the general secretary of SNDP Yogam which espouses the cause of the dominant backward community Eazhava and forms the main support base of CPI(M).

Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam was founded by social reformer Narayan

Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

Guru. Chandy said any effort to gain political mileage by communalising society would not yield permanent result as the foundation of communal harmony in Kerala was laid by Sree Narayan Guru through his teachings.

Narayana Guru Hailing the contributions of Narayana Guru in Kerala society, Chandy said it was his teachings that helped the people to think beyond caste, creed and religion.

“All sections of the Kerala society are influenced by his teachings. So I don’t think.... any attempt to make political gain through communal politics would help yield a permanent result.

“A temporary gain....I don’t know. But permanently it will not succeed on the soil of Kerala,” the Chief Minister said Refusing to buy the argument that the Left is becoming irrelevant in the state, Chandy said people of Kerala always wish to see both United Democratic Front (UDF) and Left Democratic Front (LDF) as two major political forces.

“I will not say Left is collapsing in the state. They should change their style. There is no place for negative politics which oppose everything in Kerala. If they fail to recognise this, they will have to suffer losses,” the Chief Minister said when asked about the message of Aruvikkara Assembly bypoll result in which ruling Congress won trouncing the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) and BJP saw five-fold increase in their voteshare.-PTI

SELF RELIANCE

Plan to produce 90 fighter jets NEW DELHI: In another major step towards self reliance in the defence sector, a plan is being finalised to produce 90 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) in India, informed sources said.

A Request for Proposal (RFP) is expected to be drafted soon after the new Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) comes in place.

Expected to be one of the biggest projects under the Make in India campaign, the cost of the programme is expected to be around $30 million, the sources said.

The Indian Air Force requires 126 MMRCAs. With India getting into an agreement with France to

get 36 Rafale fighter jets in flyaway condition, there was a lack of clarity on how the rest of the gap will be filled.

The sources said that now these remaining jets will be made in India, in what will be a major step in domestic manufacturing of such aircraft.

According to the sources, the air force does not have enough squadrons in the event of a joint war with Pakistan and China.

“An RFP is expected to be drafted soon for making 90 MMRCAs in India. A global tender will be floated. The private sector will also have an active participation,” said an official from the defence ministry.

As many foreign bidders were in the race when India set out to buy 126 MMRCAs, for which Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale, was finally chosen, the sources said all original bidders will be invited.

The list of fighters that were in competition for the MMRCA bid included Russia’s MIG-35 (RAC MiG), Swedish Gripen, Dassault, American Lockheed Martin and Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet and Eurofighter Typhoon made by a consortium of British, German, Spanish and Italian firms.

The sources said that out of the 90 aircraft, 54 will be single-seaters and the remaining 36 tandemseaters. -IANS

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FORMER SPEAKER

Somnath: Parliament disruptions ‘agonising’ NEW DELHI: Former Speaker of the Lower House of Indian parliament (Lok Sabha), Somnath Chatterjee, on Sunday described as “very agonising” the frequent disruptions of Parliament and lamented the “inadequacy” of the position of the presiding officer who is unable to run the House because of circumstances beyond his control.

Chatterjee, during whose tenure as Speaker between 2004 and 2009 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was the main opposition party, recalled he too faced long periods of trouble.

“I used to be told sometimes just through a phone call half an hour before the House was to assemble for the day that it will not run on that day as our party has decided that it should not run,” he said in an interview.

Regret The former Speaker regretted that the “fight” in Parliament was getting worse with no meeting point. Whoever is in the opposition is feeling he is not being heard, he said.

Referring to the current scenario when BJP has a majority on its own and the opposition is a “weakened lot”, he said,”It is weakening the whole process of Parliamentary democracy.

Opposition finds no way out.

“Ruling party feels why should I talk because I have majority. Ultimately, it leads to ordinances and government orders and Parliament sessions remain unproductive,” he said. “A no holds barred” fight erupts as all ways for settlement of the demands of the opposition are closed, he said, adding the evolving political culture is “very agnoising”.

Such circumstances, he said, showed the “inadequacy” of the position of the Speaker “whose plight is extremely painful”.

Asked what would be his advice to Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to end the deadlock, the veteran former parliamentarian said,”The Speaker does not need any advice”.

Parliament’s monsoon session has been a virtual washout so far with opposition Congress resolutely following the “no resignation, no discussion” line.

The opposition has been insisting on the resignation of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Chief Minister of the north Indian state Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje, for helping “fugitive” former IPL boss Lalit Modi. It is also seeking Chief Minister of the central Indian state Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s ouster over the Vyapam scam. - PTI

Buildings with weak structures collapsed in several areas, including in Kolkata, due to overnight downpour

KOLKATA: The death toll in West Bengal due to heavy rains and floods crossed 50 on Sunday after seven more deaths, including of four children, were reported from various districts.

At least four children were killed and four other people seriously injured after they were struck by lightning in Barasat in North Paraganas district on Sunday, police said.

Buildings with weak structures collapsed in several areas, including in the city, due to overnight downpour.

An elderly man was crushed to death after a portion of his house collapsed here. A two-year-old was killed in Murshidabad district when a wall collapsed. A similar death was reported in Bankura.

The rains triggered flood-like situation, affecting 12 districts, damaging nearly two lakh houses and rendering over a lakh people homeless.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee met district officials and postponed her upcoming north Bengal tour. “Several districts, including North and South 24 Parganas, Murshidabad, Burdwan and Howrah, have been affected. Disaster management teams are working on a war footing,” she said.

Banerjee said crops over 2.10 lakh hectares of farmland were destroyed across the state.

Situation getting worse “The situation is getting worse with every passing day as more and more areas are getting inundated,” the chief minister said.

“While the entire state administration is working to reach out to the affected, we urge all political parties and NGOs to assist in relief work,” Banerjee said.

After several parts of the city got waterlogged, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation pressed into service over 300 pumps to drain out rainwater.

Meanwhile, the regional Met office has forecast heavy to very heavy rains at a few places in the Gangetic and sub-Himalayan

RESCUE: People try to retrieve a vehicle washed away by swirling flood waters following incessant rainfall in Thoubal district of Manipur on Saturday. – PTI

West Bengal till Tuesday.

Fishermen have been warned not to venture out into the sea on the West Bengal coast.

Search Rescuers were searching Sunday for 20 villagers feared killed in a landslide in remote northeast india, as the death toll from days of torrential rains elsewhere in the country rose, officials said.

The side of a hill collapsed on Saturday on a village in Manipur state close to the border with Mynamar where monsoon downpours there have also triggered landslides and flooding.

Local magistrate Memi Mary said a handful of rescuers reached the village by trekking on foot after blocked roads hampered efforts to reach the site, some 80 kilometres (50 miles) from Manipur capital Imphal.

“So far we have reports of 20 people killed when a hillock caved and trapped the villagers,” the magistrate told by telephone from the nearby town of Chandel.

Photos showed a bridge washed away by floodwaters in Manipur, while TV stations showed footage of a house collapsing and families sleeping in make-shift evacuation centres.

The national government has ordered rescue and relief teams be sent to the state as the annual monsoon wreaks havoc across the region.

In West Bengal, some 42 people have been killed in the last week from flooding, while some 250,000

Congress party’s ‘negativism’ hurting economy, says Jaitley

New regime The government needs Parliament to approve the Constitution Amendment Bill in the current monsoon session ending on August 13 before half of the 30 states clear it and the new regime is rolled out from April 1, 2016, so that a nationwide Goods and Services Tax (GST) can replace all existing indirect taxes like excise and VAT. However, Parliament proceedings

INDIA

More than 50 die as rains, floods batter West Bengal

PA S S AG E O F G S T B I L L

NEW DELHI: Racing against time to get the GST bill cleared from Parliament, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday attacked the Congress for blocking the legislation that it had itself brought in and said ‘obstructionist’ tendencies and negativism were hurting the country and its economy.

Acknowledging that there may be merit in Congress’ demand for 18 per cent rate of GST, he said the National Democratic Alliance government has “not made any significant modifications” to the bill that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government had proposed in 2006-07 Budget, “except to bring a consensus between manufacturing and the consuming states”. “The state governments belonging to the Congress party have consistently supported the proposal. Is it only out of an obstructionist attitude that the Congress has adopted a negative role?” he asked.

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MAKING A POINT: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the rationale of the GST bill is to simplify the complex indirect tax structure. – PTI

have been repeatedly getting disrupted over issues like Lalit Modi controversy and the Vyapam scam for the past two weeks.

“Since Parliament is not functioning and there is no way to clarify these points before the same, I am constrained to place the above facts in public domain,” Jaitley wrote in a Facebook post titled ‘Dissent or Disruption.’

Giving a point-wise rebuttal on the Congress Party’s dissent note to the Select Committee’s report on GST, Jaitley said the rationale of the bill is to simplify the complex indirect tax structure in the country. “The present system involves multiplicity of taxes, absence of uniform rates of taxation, and the cascading effect of ‘Tax on Tax’. It is also an impediment to the seamless transfer of goods and services

across the country,” he said. The GST Constitution Amendment Bill has been cleared by the Lok Sabha and is waiting for nod of the Rajya Sabha, where the ruling NDA does not have a majority.

The report of the Rajya Sabha Select Committee was tabled in Parliament last month. The Committee had suggested to compensate the states fully for five years for any revenue loss for GST rollout. However, the Congress, the AIADMK and the Left had submitted dissent notes on the same.

Jaitley said the proposal for introduction of GST was first mooted by former FM P Chidambaram in his Budget for 2006-07.

“After detailed deliberations and negotiations in the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers, the 115th Constitution Amendment Bill, 2011, was introduced by Pranab Mukherjee, the then Finance Minister,” he said, adding that the Bill was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee, which submitted its report in August 2013.

The bill, however, lapsed with dissolution of the Fifteenth Lok Sabha. Thereafter, the NDA government again held negotiations with the Empowered Committee and after an overwhelming consensus, introduced a bill incorporating certain changes which had also been recommended by the Parliamentary Standing Committee. — PTI

MAROONED: Army jawans undertaking a rescue operation in areas affected by floodwaters in Banaskantha on Saturday. – PTI

homes have been destroyed, state disaster management minister Javed Ahmad Khan said.

Heavy rain in Odisha Heavy to very heavy rainfall accompanied by gusty surface winds is likely to pound several places in south and north Odisha in the next 24 hours under the influence of a depression.

The depression over Bangladesh, which moved west-northwest and lay centered over the Gangetic West Bengal and adjoining Bangladesh on Sunday, would trigger rain and thundershower in most places in northern part of the state and many places in southern part too, MeT office said.

Heavy to very heavy rainfall in a few places in northern part

and heavy rainfall would occur in one or two places in southern part of the state in the next 24 hours, it said.

Gusty surface winds with 45 to 55 kmph speed and gusting up to 65 kmph would hit the state coast.

Sea condition would be rough to very rough. Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea, it said. — IANS/PTI

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

PAKISTAN R E H A B I L I TAT I O N

$10m China aid for the displaced

FLOOD-HIT

Rescue crews evacuate a family to a safe area in Camp Koruna Akbar in the Pura area of Nowshera District, northwestern Pakistan, on Sunday. Flash flooding caused by torrential monsoon rains affected hundreds of thousands of people, according to aid agencies, with further monsoon downpours expected in the coming days. — Reuters

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday said that China will provide $10 million to Pakistan for rehabilitation of temporarily displaced persons (TDPs), Radio Pakistan reported.

While chairing a meeting in Islamabad, Dar said the government was paying complete attention to the rehabilitation of TDPs. Secretary Economic Affairs Division Saleem Sethi briefed the meeting about arrangements for rehabilitation of the displaced.

Dar also sought details of development projects being executed in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in cooperation with the Chinese government. He also called for speeding up work on projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Meanwhile, the World Bank (WB) has also committed to deliver $75 million it promised to help the TDPs in the continuing month.

Last month, Dar called on Army chief General Raheel Sharif at the General Headquarters to discuss issues related to early return of TDPs and their resettlement.

The meeting held at army headquarters also discussed the execution of development works in FATA — Express Tribune

Mullah Omar’s family not to back new Taliban leader Akhtar Mansour faces opposition within the movement, including from Omar’s son Yaqoob, who were among more than a dozen Taliban figures who walked out of Wednesday’s leadership meeting

PESHAWAR: The family of late Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar has not backed his announced successor, it said on Sunday, and wants the new chief to be chosen by leading religious scholars and veterans of the movement.

An audio statement, which four Taliban sources said was by Omar’s younger brother Abdul Manan, said the family had not given its baiyat, or pledge of allegiance, to Akhtar Mohammad Mansour and did not want to make a choice amid differences.

Always stressed “Mullah Omar during his life had always stressed unity among the mujahideen,” said the statement released on Sunday.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid announced Mansour as

Pakistani city of Quetta, according to three people who were at the shura, or council. While the late leader’s family does not appear to have a formal role in naming a successor, his prestige lends weight to their opinions.

RALLY: Pakistan members of Jamiat Nazriati party shout slogans at a rally to pay tribute to Afghanistan’s deceased Taliban chief Mullah Omar, in Quetta on Sunday. — Reuters

the new leader in a statement on Friday, a day after confirming that Mullah Omar was dead.

However he faces opposition within the movement, includ-

ing from Manan and Omar’s son Yaqoob, who were among more than a dozen Taliban figures who walked out of Wednesday’s leadership meeting in the western

Leading scholars Although the statement did not name Mansour directly, it underlined the obstacles he faces to consolidating his position as successor to the secretive longtime leader and founder of the extremist movement.

The statement said the next leader should be appointed on the recommendations of leading scholars “and those mujahideen who had laid down the base of the Emirate of Afghanistan through their sacrifices”. — Reuters

INSURGENCY

Al Qaeda leader killed in Balochistan QUETTA: Security forces killed a senior al Qaeda commander and detained his wife in an overnight raid on his hideout in Balochistan, provincial home minister Sarfraz Bugti said on Sunday.

The security forces also took the couple’s two young daughters into custody during the raid in the Chaghi district.

“An important Al Qaeda commander – Umar Lateef, a Pakistani national – was killed in an encounter with local security agencies,” Bugti told reporters.

Lateef had established an Al Qaeda network and was supervising its “terrorist activities and providing travel and logistical facilities to terrorists in both Balochistan and south Punjab as well as in Afghanistan,” he said. Bugti said Punjab had offered a reward of Rs2 million for Lateef and Rs500,000 for his wife. — Express Tribune

M I N I - E C O N O M I C R E V I VA L

Japanese-dominated car market poised for new players ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s car market has been dominated by Japanese automakers for decades, but a mini-economic revival looks set to attract new players from Europe and Korea into the mix.

Despite heavy taxation on imported vehicles, enthusiasm for owning a car in Pakistan has remained undented -- thanks in part to underdeveloped public transport in the country’s sprawling cities, but also the social status it brings.

Toyota, Suzuki and Honda car assembly plants already work around the clock in the southern port city of Karachi and eastern Lahore -- yet customers can still wait for up to four months for new vehicles to be delivered.

Now demand for cars in the South Asian giant of 200 million people is accelerating even more quickly, as economic growth has reached its fastest pace since 2008 while renewed investor confidence and easing inflation have spurred consumer spending.

No decisions Keen to cash in, a delegation from German auto giant Volkswagen visited the country in recent weeks, according to Pakistani officials and German diplomats.

Company spokesman Christoph Adomat told AFP that while “Volkswagen is constantly evaluating market opportunities on a worldwide basis... there are no decisions for an investment from Volkswagen side in Pakistan”.

cantly above the regional average.

The bottom-of-the-range Suzuki Mehran costs the equivalent of $6,300 in Pakistan but sells for around $3,900 in neighbouring India.

The most popular Corolla 1.3 sedan starts at 1.6 million rupees ($16,000), but buyers have to wait months or pay $1,500 for prompt delivery.

CAR MARKET: In this photograph taken on July 26, 2015, Pakistanis gather around cars at the Sunday

car market in Karachi. — AFP

Miftah Ismail, the chairman of Pakistan Board of Investment who took part in the talks, said Volkswagen was not the only company expressing an interest.

“There are a number of other companies from (South) Korea and Europe that we are talking to who are thinking of setting up assembly plants in Pakistan,” he said, without naming the firms.

US and European cars dominated Pakistan’s roads in the early years after it gained independence from Britain in 1947.

But fuel prices made their compact, efficient Japanese rivals more popular and from the 1960s onwards manufacturers like Toyota, Suzuki and Honda gained a stranglehold on the market.

Italy’s Fiat made a brief foray

in the 1990s, while South Korea’s Hyundai as well as Daewoo-owned Chevrolet tried -- and failed -- to gain a foothold in the 2000s before the financial crisis forced them to exit.

Because Pakistan charges heavy duties on imported cars less than three years old, Japanese companies with in-country assembly operations can set prices signifi-

Volkswagen cars The news that Volkswagen was exploring options to enter the Pakistani market has excited car enthusiasts, who are tired of high prices and limited choices.

“I think it is a great idea because Volkswagen cars are value for money and reliability,” said Romano Karim, a fan of the classic Volkswagen Beetles from the 60s and 70s that can often be seen on Pakistan’s roads.

Haji Mohammad Shahzad, chairman of the All Pakistan Motor Dealers Association, added that having Volkswagen in the market would help drive costs down.

“The monopoly of big three could be broken if Volkswagen produces at least 20,000-25,000 cars annually,” Shahzad told AFP. Global auto giants are attracted

by Pakistan’s booming economy, which the International Monetary Fund predicts will grow by 4.5 percent in the next financial year.

Investor confidence in the medium-sized economy of $232 billion has improved since a new business-friendly government led

by Nawaz Sharif took power in 2013, with Karachi’s share market among the world’s top 10 performers in the past year.

The country is also undergoing a major construction boom driven

by Chinese investment after President Xi Jinping visited Islamabad in April to unveil a $46 billion investment plan known as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Car sales have also boomed thanks to the growth of car leasing and financing facilities. Sales in the 11 months to May this year rose 30 percent from a year earlier, according to industry group the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association.

Respective domains Baber Kaleem Khan, editor of PakWheels.com magazine, said Volkswagen would be well poised to tap into the lower to mid-range market.

“Pakistani automakers haven’t really had much competition because their respective domains are well protected by monopolistic business practices,” Khan said.

“But given VW’s impressive small-range of vehicles, the German automaker can take the market from the ground up and start working to the top.” — AFP

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FA L L O U T O F C O N T R O V E R S I A L P O L L S

Burundi in crisis as top general killed in attack BUJUMBURA: A top Burundian general and right-hand man to President Pierre Nkurunziza was killed in a rocket attack on his car on Sunday, prompting fears of further instability in the crisishit country.

Adolphe Nshimirimana was widely seen as the central African nation’s de facto internal security chief and even considered the regime’s number-two.

Police and witnesses said General Nshimirimana’s pick-up was hit by two rockets and sprayed with automatic gunfire in the capital Bujumbura on Sunday morning. He was later confirmed dead, along with his driver.

The presidency’s communications chief Willy Nyamitwe confirmed that the general, a former army chief of staff and intelligence chief, had been killed.

“I have lost a brother, a companion in the struggle. The sad reality is that General Adolphe Nshimirimana is no longer with this world,” he said in a message posted on Twitter.

Outright winner The assassination comes just over a week after Nkurunziza was declared the outright winner of a controversial presidential election, securing a third consecutive term despite opposition protests and international condemnation.

Nkurunziza’s candidacy was condemned as unconstitutional by the opposition and provoked

months of protests that left at least 100 people dead in a fierce government crackdown, as well as an attempted coup in midMay. Nshimirimana was seen as the mastermind behind the crackdown on the protests as well as a key player in foiling the coup attempt.

Barbaric act African Union Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said in a statement she was “horrified” by the assassination, condemning “this barbaric act that is likely to further destabilise the country”.

She urged the Burundian government, opposition political parties and civil society “to work very closely together to find a lasting solution to the current crisis”.

Burundian journalist and AFP correspondent Esdras Ndikumana said he was detained by government security forces at the scene of the murder and badly beaten.

Severe beatings He was held for around two hours, during with he said he was subjected to severe beatings on his back, legs and the soles of his feet.

He was then released and hospitalised, with the injuries also including a suspected broken finger. — AFP

RISING TENSIONS: Burundian police patrol a street in the Burun-

dian capital Bujumbura on Sunday. — AFP

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY INSTALL WHATSNEWS

Kurdish militants drove a tractor filled with explosives into a military outpost in the Dogubeyazit district of the eastern Agri province bordering Iran, the army said in a statement

ISTANBUL: Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants killed two soldiers and wounded 31 in a suicide attack overnight in eastern Turkey, the army said on Sunday, as violence escalated following Ankara’s air bombardment targeting Kurdish militants.

PKK militants drove a tractor filled with explosives into a military outpost in the Dogubeyazit district of the eastern Agri province bordering Iran, the army said in a statement.

Four of the wounded were in serious condition, it said.

The PKK also attacked a unit on patrol in the southeastern province of Mardin late on Saturday night, killing one soldier and wounding seven, the army said.

The PKK announced it was stepping up attacks in mid-July over what it said were ceasefire violations, but has responded with yet more violence since Turkey began a campaign of air strikes on PKK camps in northern Iraq on July 24, in what the prime minister has called a “synchronised fight against terror”.

Access to bases Ankara granted a US-led coalition battling IS in Syria and Iraq access to its bases and launched air strikes against the extremist militants and the PKK. However, so far the majority of Turkey air bombardment has been on PKK targets.

No plane link to new debris in island hunt for MH370

METALLIC DEBRIS: This picture taken on August 2, 2015 shows metallic debris found on a beach in Saint-Denis on the French Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, close to where where a Boeing 777 wing part believed to belong to missing flight MH370 washed up last week. — AFP

flight MH370, but there are objects all along the coast, the ocean continually throws them up,” said Jean-Yves Sambimanan, spokesman for the town of Saint-Andre where the wing debris was found.

He said islanders were also dumbfounded that after cursory helicopter flights the day after the wing part was found, no official search of the coastline is under way.

“If it comes from a plane it would be a pity if I didn’t take it” to police, said Luc Igounet, 62, who found the metal bar that turned out to be from a ladder.

The rush to find more debris showed the desperation for answers 16 months after MH370 disappeared on March 8, 2014, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board.

“There is a sort of ‘treasure hunt’ mentality that is taking hold

WORLD

2 Turkish soldiers killed as PKK steps up attacks

MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE

SAINT-ANDRÉ (FRANCE): A fevered hunt for more wreckage from missing flight MH370 on La Reunion island turned up no new clues on Sunday as authorities said metallic debris found by locals did not come from an airplane.

However Malaysia urged authorities in the Indian Ocean region to be on the lookout for debris washing up on their shores after the discovery of part of a Boeing 777 wing raised hopes it could help solve one of aviation’s greatest mysteries.

Locals on La Reunion island have been combing the shores since the wing part was found last Wednesday, handing over bits of what they believe to be wreckage to police.

On Sunday, several pieces of debris sparked excitement, one of which was believed by locals to be from a plane door.

However investigators quickly shot down hopes.

Malaysian Director General of Civil Aviation Azharuddin Abdul Rahman who is in France for the analysis of the wing part, told AFP one item “was actually from a domestic ladder. It is not a door”.

And a source close to the investigation in Paris said “no object or debris likely to come from a plane” had been placed into evidence on Sunday.

Police on the Indian Ocean island also collected Sunday a mangled piece of metal inscribed with two Chinese characters and attached to what appears to be a leather-covered handle.

Chinese internet users suggested it may be a kettle.

“People are more vigilant. They are going to think any metallic object they find on the beach is from

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and people are calling us for everything,” said a local source close to the investigation.

Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai said civil aviation authorities were reaching out to their counterparts in other Indian Ocean territories to be on the lookout for further debris that could provide “more clues to the missing aircraft.” He also confirmed that the wing part had been “officially identified” as from a Boeing 777 -- making it virtually certain that it was from the missing Malaysia Airlines flight.

Flight MH370 is the only Boeing 777 to ever be lost at sea.

The flight’s disappearance, which saw it vanish off radars as a key transponder appeared to have been shut off, has baffled aviation experts and grieving families and given rise to a myriad conspiracy theories. — AFP

CONFLICT: A wounded Iraqi Kurdish man receives treatment at a hospital in Arbil, the capital of the

autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, on Sunday, following air strikes by Turkish warplanes against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) positions in the Kurdish village of Zergale in the Qandil mountains, the PKK headquarters in northern Iraq. — AFP

The PKK announced it was stepping up attacks in midJuly over what it said were ceasefire violations, but has responded with yet more violence since Turkey began a campaign of air strikes on PKK camps in northern Iraq on July 24, in what the prime minister has called a ‘synchronised fight against terror’

Turkish officials have said the strikes against the PKK are a response to increased violence from the militants. At least 16 members of the security forces have been killed in attacks by the PKK since July 20.

The Turkish military on Sunday also denied accusations of having killed civilians in Friday’s bombardment on Zargala in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, which had drawn protest the region’s President Massoud Barzani.

The army said an investigation

revealed there to be no civilian residential areas within the impact range of the bombardment.

Turkey’s foreign ministry said on Saturday the strike on Zargala was targeting senior PKK commanders and accused PKK militants of using civilians as human shields.

Spare civilians Barzani also called on the PKK to distance the war from Iraq’s Kurdistan region in order to spare civilian lives.

Western allies, including NATO

and the United States, have supported Turkey’s military actions but several have also urged it not to use excessive force, nor to let years of peace efforts with Kurdish militants collapse.

Negotiations Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan initiated negotiations in 2012 to try to end the PKK insurgency which has killed 40,000 people since 1984. The ceasefire, though fragile, had been holding since March 2013.

On Tuesday, Erdogan said it had become impossible to continue the process and urged parliament to strip politicians with links to the militants of immunity from prosecution. Turkey’s campaign on IS in Iraq and Syria has aroused suspicion among some Kurds as being a cover to prevent Kurdish territorial and political gains. — Reuters

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Migrant crisis puts Britain in a spot

Photo: Dr Mahmudul Hasan

CLAUDIA PRITCHARD

Parkinson’s Law declares that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. But its author, the British historian Cyril Northcote Parkinson, coined a second less well-known adage. Parkinson’s Law of Triviality took the example of the committee asked to approve a new nuclear reactor, a new bike shed for the clerical staff and a rise in the price of coffee in the canteen. It asserted that people will always spend most time talking about the smallest issue, because the big one is generally beyond their comprehension.

The Triviality Principle clearly applies to what is being called “the Calais migrant crisis”. So the biggest row has been over whether David Cameron should use words like “swarm” when describing the migrants trying to board UK-bound trucks coming through the Channel Tunnel. Secondary stories include how terrible it is that British holidaymakers are having the start of their holidays delayed – and how useless the French are at maintaining law and order. But there is very little focus on the real problem.

Perhaps that is because the real problem is so intractable. Politicians and press – committed as they are to facile solutions and easy scapegoating – are reluctant to acknowledge their impotence in the face of an issue of international complexity.

That is why David Cameron, after Friday’s crisis committee meeting, was unable to come up with anything better than: “We rule nothing out in taking action to deal with this very serious problem.

We are absolutely on it. We know it needs more work.” Indeed it does.

His critics were not impressed. The head of the Road Haulage Association dismissed the prime ministerial response – of more fencing and sniffer dogs at Calais, and the use of Ministry of Defence land as an extended lorry park for hauliers in the long queues to enter the Eurotunnel – as mere “sticking plasters”. But the critics too often look at the issue down the wrong end of the telescope.

The current moral panic about illegal migrants is based on two facts that are comparatively minor in the wider context of a global movement of refugees that is now bigger than at any time since the Second World War. The first is that the number of migrants at Calais has risen from around 600 in January to 5,000 today. The second is that this larger figure has caused the migrants’ tactics

to change; stealthy attempts to slip unnoticed aboard lorries bound for England have given way to an ability to surge through police lines by sheer weight of numbers. Hence the word swarm.

There is a new, brazen aggression in the attitude of the migrants that one police officer put down to the grimness of the ordeal so many of them have endured in the perilous crossings of the Mediterranean, which have increased dramatically over the past year. Lorry drivers fear the Stanley knives that the men wield to cut their way through the tarpaulins of their trucks – though it has to be said that the only deaths around Calais this year have been those of nine desperate migrants.

Yet the 5,000 migrants camped out in Calais are a drop in the tide of human misery that has flowed from the massive dislocation in countries like Syria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Eritrea and Sudan. War has now uprooted half the entire population of Syria. More than four million Syrians are refugees in neighbouring countries. Only a small percentage have made it into Europe. Around 170,000 migrants arrived in Italy last year. This year Greece has taken the most of any country, with 63,000.

Last year Germany gave asylum to 41,000; Sweden took 31,000; and France 15,000. The UK accepted 10,050. At the last summit on how Europe should share the burden of incomers the British government announced it would take none.

The British government should be pointing out to the European Union that the Schengen agreement allows for the re-imposition of border controls inside the EU in difficult circumstances. David Cameron should revive the process adopted in 2002 when a Red Cross centre at Sangatte drew thousands of migrants to Calais. A Sangatte-style solution would allow the 5,000 to be processed, to discern a number who might be given UK work permits – so that Britain is seen as taking its share of the burden. It would open an avenue for dealing differently with those migrants whom European rules suggest can be sent home to countries that do not have poor human rights records.

None of this offers a swift solution. But it points us towards one which would be politically realistic and morally sustainable. And in the end it might be considerably cheaper than the current paralysis which is taking a costly cumulative toll on the economy, police, social services and stress levels of significant sectors of the British population.

- The Independent

READERS’ FORUM Tag products with material safety data sheets This refers to the online story, Oman traders told to put warning labels or face jail (August 1). This is a very welcome decision. Strict measures should be taken by the traders to tag material safety data sheets (MSDS) with the products traded by them, as it not only helps maintain the quality of the product but also makes users aware about the product in detail. This not only goes for the food industry but for all industries whose products are directly procured by people.

— Eqbal Hashmi, Kolkata, India

New York show of support for Cecil aims at gaining attention

Scan this QR code to send letters to the Readers’ Forum, containing not more than 200 words with full name, address and telephone number, may be sent by mail (Times of Oman, P.O. Box 770, P.C. 112, Ruwi).

This refers to the online story, ‘Cecil’ the lion lights up Empire State building (August 2). It is a wonderful sight to see New Yorkers rally for the slain Zimbabwean lion. However, these people do not care for the issue. The whole event seems to be a function — flash mob scene — where people gather to gain attention and applause. If they really cared about animals, I am sure that a completely different set of legislation on environmental issues would have been put into place at the Capitol Hill.

— Ian McDermott, Muscat

Locust swarm to lead to food shortages; threat unnoticed This refers to the online story, Locusts threaten crops in southern Russia (July 31). The area around the city Stavropol is surrounded by farms, which have all been adversely affected. It seems with global war clouds on the mind of the United Nations, the impending food shortages will be noticed only after the worst has happened. — Olga Schimdt, Ruwi

Finnish schools are to stop teaching joined-up writing, on the grounds that being nifty at a keyboard is more important. This is like giving up the piano because you can ride a bike. Handwriting is the face of a person out of sight, as distinctive as their gait, their features or their dress bit.ly/finlandfornohandwriting

CLIPPINGS FROM OUR ARCHIVES AUGUST 2000 Special panel on fisheries formed Dr Ahmed bin Khalfan Al Rowahi, minister of agriculture and fisheries, has formed a special committee headed by the director general of fisheries to study the possibilities of setting up new fisheries project. The assistant general for researches and fisheries guidance at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, the director of environment and licence department at the Ministry of Regional Municipalities and Environment and the director of survey department at the Ministry of Transport and Housing will be the members of the committee.

PICTOGRAPH BIRTHS (LIVE) & DEATHS End of March 2015 Omani BIRTHS TOTAL

19,419

Expats Male

Female

9,895

9,524

9,267

8,884

TODAY IN HISTORY

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1553 An invading French army is destroyed at the Battle of Marciano in Italy by an imperial army.

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1819: The first parachute jump from a balloon is made by Charles Guille in New York City.

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1914: Germany invades Luxembourg.

1964: US destroyer Maddoxis reportedly attacked by North Vietnamese patrol boats.

640

628 DEATHS TOTAL

2,160 1,081

288

1,369 Source: NCSI

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SPECIAL

The American dentist who killed Cecil the lion was a ‘foreign poacher’ who paid for an illegal hunt and he should be extradited to Zimbabwe to face justice Oppah Muchinguri, Zimbabwe’s Environment minister

END OF ICONIC ATTRACTION: Cecil the lion is seen at Hwange National Parks in this undated handout picture received on Friday. The conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force had said on Saturday that it had been ‘informed’ of the death of Jericho, described as Cecil’s brother. – Reuters/A.J. Loveridge/Handout

‘Jericho the lion hasn’t met Cecil fate’ The lion known as Jericho is still alive and being monitored by Brent Stapelias of the Lion Research Project, said Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority JOHANNESBURG: Zimbabwe wildlife authorities on Sunday dismissed rumours that a second lion, known as Jericho, had been slain after the killing last month of Cecil the lion by an American trophy hunter caused a global outcry.

“The lion known as Jericho is still alive and being monitored by Brent Stapelias of the Lion Research Project,” Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said in a statement.

“It is also important to note that Jericho is a ‘coalition’ partner to Cecil and not a blood related sibling,” it said.

The conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force had said on Saturday that it had been “informed” of the death of Jericho, described as Cecil’s brother.

The announcement was swiftly picked up by global media, causing consternation among animal lovers who were outraged by Walter Palmer’s killing of Zimbabwe’s best-known lion, renowned for his black mane, outside Hwange park.

But the Friends of Hwange Trust urged the public to treat the ZCTF’s announcement about Jericho with caution, saying the reports “appear to be untrue”.

Palmer, a wealthy Minnesota dentist, shot Cecil with a crossbow and arrow earlier this month during a hunt that cost him $55,000.

Allegations denied His guide, Theo Bronkhorst, has denied allegations that they spent the next 40 hours tracking the wounded animal before finishing him off with a gun. Instead he said they found the lion early the next morning and killed it with the crossbow.

Bronkhorst also strongly denied that the hunters had lured the animal out of Hwange.

Palmer, who is being investigated by the US government over Cecil’s death, has apologised and said he was misled by Bronkhorst.

But Bronkhorst told AFP on Friday that they had “shot an old

RASING AWARENESS: An image of Cecil the lion is projected onto the Empire State Building as part of an endangered species projection to raise awareness, in New York on Saturday. The ‘Projecting Change on the Empire State Building’ initiative was designed to raise awareness about the plight of endangered animals and was billed as a first of its kind. – Reuters

Cecil the lion lights up New York’s Empire State building in a dazzling display NEW YORK: A giant picture of the beloved Zimbabwean lion killed by an American trophy hunter was among images projected on Saturday onto the Empire State Building in New York in a dazzling display.

The “Projecting Change on the Empire State Building” initiative was designed to raise

male lion that I believed was past his breeding age... I don’t think that I’ve done anything wrong”.

Bronkhorst, who was charged this week with “failing to prevent an illegal hunt”, claimed both he and Palmer had been “devastated” when they realised Cecil was wearing a collar.

Cecil was a popular tourist draw at the park and was wearing a

awareness about the plight of endangered animals and was billed as a first of its kind.

An image of the lion Cecil, whose killing has sparked international outrage, was prime among animals whose pictures covered 33 floors of the southern face of one of the world’s most famous landmarks in an

tracking collar as part of an Oxford University research project.

Devastated “Both I and the client were extremely devastated that this thing had a collar on because at no time did we see a collar on this lion prior to shooting it,” Bronkhorst told AFP. “We had done everything above board,” he said.

eight-minute video loop.

Snapped pictures New Yorkers from as far as 20 blocks away snapped pictures of the building as it lit up the nighttime sky over a steamy Manhattan.

The project was the brainchild of Louie Psihoyos, founder

“I don’t foresee any jail sentence at all. I think it’s been blown out of proportion by social media and I think it’s been a deliberate ploy to ban all hunting.

“It has probably changed my family’s life, my business, forever... We have had many, many death threats.”

Zimbabwe called for Palmer’s extradition as worldwide outrage

of the Oceanic Preservation Society and director of Oscarwinning 2009 documentary film “The Cove,” which shone a grisly light on Japan’s dolphinhunting industry.

Fisher Stevens, producer of “The Cove,” told AFP that Psihoyos had chosen the Empire State “because he wanted the

over the shooting swelled. US authorities have opened a probe into the killing.

‘Most hated man’ Palmer was branded by US talk show host Jimmy Kimmel as “the most hated man in America” and has been vilified on social media globally.

He has issued a statement ex-

most iconic building that he could think of, and for him it was the Empire State.”

The project was designed “to start a conversation,” he added.

In 2011 the top portion of the Empire State building was lit up in red to symbolise the blood of the slaughter depicted in “The Cove.” — AFP

pressing regret at the killing but said he had no idea the lion was protected and part of a study and that he thought the hunt was legal.

He has not appeared in public.

Zimbabwe’s parks authority on Saturday announced restrictions on hunting around Hwange park, including an immediate suspension of the hunting of lions, leopards and elephants. — AFP

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

GLOBAL EYE

UNITED STATES: Brush and trees burn during the Rocky fire off highway 20 near South Lake, United States, on Sunday. The fire has charred more than 27,000 acres, and is currently only five per cent

contained. — AFP

RUSSIA: A pilot stands near a burning Mi-28N from the Berkuty (Golden Eagles) helicopter display team after a hard touchdown during the ‘Aviadarts’ military aviation competition at the Dubrovichi range near Ryazan, Russia, on Sunday. — Reuters

JAPAN: Costumed performers as Pikachu, the popular animation Pokemon series character, perform at

the Yokohama Dance Parade in Yokohama on Sunday. The dance began on August 1 and will run for 65 days throughout the city, with more than 200 dance programmes. — AFP

REUNION ISLAND: Molten lava erupts from the Piton de la FourSPAIN: A ‘Toro embolado’ (fire bull) with balls of flammable mate-

rial attached to its horns charges down a street during a ‘Pena Taurina’ where bull fighting aficionados gather to chase bulls through the streets in Meliana, near Valencia on August 1. — AFP

naise, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, on Friday, on the French Indian Ocean Reunion Island. The volcano erupted on Friday, opening up a 800-metre-long crack in its crater and sending hot jets of molten lava spewing up from the peak. — Reuters

FRANCE: Large-scale puppet King Leon, the mascotte of the Fetes de Bayonne, appears on the balcony of the city hall during the 79th Bayonne festival (Fetes de Bayonne) in Bayonne, southwestern France, on Sunday. — AFP

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015 Around 3,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and Asia are camped in Calais hoping to smuggle themselves into Britain, and the costly crisis has strained ties across the Channel.

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WORLD

UAE to try 41 for ‘setting up terror group’ The suspects, who include Emiratis as well as foreigners, are accused of setting up a group ‘with a

of an American teacher in an Abu Dhabi mall, authorities enacted tougher anti-terror legislation, including harsher jail terms and even introducing the death penalty for crimes linked to religious hatred and “terror groups”.

terrorist ideology,’ in a bid to’seize power and establish a caliphate’, the prosecutor general said ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates is to try 41 people for allegedly seeking to overthrow the government to set up an IS groupstyle caliphate in the Gulf country, prosecutors said on Sunday.

BROUGHT TO JUSTICE: The suspects, who include Emiratis as well as foreigners, are accused of setting up a group ‘with a terrorist ideology’, in a bid to ‘seize power and establish a caliphate’, the prosecutor general said. – AFP

The suspects, who include Emiratis as well as foreigners, are accused of setting up a group “with a terrorist ideology,” in a bid to “seize power and establish a caliphate”,

IN SHELLING

CLOSE VIGIL: Yemeni fighters loyal to exiled President Abedrab-

bo Mansour Hadi stand on the tarmac as a Qatari plane carrying relief aid arrives at Aden’s international airport in Yemen’s second city on Saturday. – AFP

Saudi killed on Yemen border RIYADH: Shelling from Yemen killed a civilian on Sunday across the border in Saudi Arabia, which has been leading air strikes against Houthi rebels in the war-torn country, a civil defence spokesman said.

The civilian died when a projectile hit his house in the Saudi city of Najran before dawn. It had been fired from an area of northern Yemen under the control of Houthi rebels, the spokesman was quoted as saying by official Saudi news agency SPA.

At least 49 people, mostly soldiers, have been killed on the Saudi-Yemeni border since a Saudi-led military coalition launched air strikes on the Houthi rebels and their allies in Yemen on March 26.

The military campaign aims to support forces loyal to exiled Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who fled Yemen to Saudi Arabia in late March as Houthis advanced on the southern city of Aden, threatening to take over the whole country. — AFP

SIMMERING ANGER

UK, France unite to solve migrants crisis PARIS: France and Britain vowed on Sunday that a crossChannel migrant crisis was their “top priority” in a united front that belied simmering anger over an issue which has become a political hot potato.

Heightened security has curbed the number of attempts by migrants in the port city of Calais trying to make it through an undersea tunnel to Britain, with only 400 bids Saturday night, a police source said, compared to 2,000 earlier in the week.

Around 3,000 people from Africa, the Middle East and Asia are camped in Calais hoping to smuggle themselves into Britain, and the costly crisis has strained ties across the Channel.

“Tackling this situation is the top priority for the UK and French governments,” French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve and his British counterpart Theresa May said in a statement published in France’s Journal Du Dimanche and Britain’s Telegraph newspaper. “We are committed and determined to solve this, and to solve it together.”

However politicians were less conciliatory on the ground, with those in Britain accusing France of security failings, while London was accused of making it too easy for migrants to work illegally, this luring them to its shores.

The mayor of Calais Natacha Bouchar, from the opposition Republicans party, accused the British of “imposing their laws on our border and it is becoming unacceptable.” “The British government must agree to quickly re-

consider its controls of the labour ‘black market’ -- because that is why the migrants go to the United Kingdom -- and open a transit zone or refugee camp on their territory to filter the migrants themselves.” Her comments came after former employment minister Xavier Bertrand, said that if Britain failed to improve the situation “let’s let the migrants leave and let Mr (David) Cameron handle his politics in his own way, but on his own island.”

At least 10 migrants have died since June in the nightly attempts to find a way onto a train or a lorry headed for Britain -- seen as a better economic option by migrants, many of whom do not speak French. The incursion attempts on Saturday night saw traffic blocked for five hours, a Eurotunnel spokesman said, adding the measure was taken for the security of both clients and migrants. The spokesman said the migrants had changed tactics and instead of making a dash into Eurotunnel premises in small groups, were attempting to storm security barriers in large numbers. In Britain, politicians reminded Cameron of the soaring economic cost of the traffic chaos, demanding more compensation from the French.

Acting Labour Party leader Harriet Harman said the crisis was costing hauliers 700,000 pounds (900,000 euros) a day.

“It is wrong for UK businesses and families to face these costs given border security failures in France,” she wrote in a letter to Cameron. — AFP

the prosecutor general said. They are accused of setting up cells to train members in handling weapons and the manufacture of explosives in preparation for attacks on

UAE soil. Prosecutors charge that they were “in contact with foreign terrorist organisations... to help them achieve their goals.”

In July, following the murder

Executed Alaa Bader Al Hashemi, 30, was executed last month for December’s stabbing murder of Ibolya Ryan, 47. Hashemi’s execution was the first in the federation since January 2014 when a Sri Lankan was put to death by firing squad for murdering an Emirati man in 2006. The prosecutor said that the cell was highly organised, operating under a “hierarchy” to recruit

young Emiratis, obtain weapons and manufacture explosives, and spread hardline propaganda.

Second time It is the second time in recent years that the UAE has carried out a mass trial on terrorism charges.

In 2013, it sentenced 60 people to jail terms of between seven and 15 years for links to the Brotherhood in the first trial of its kind in the country. — AFP

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Iraqi ‘Jon Stewart’ fights IS group militants with his biting satire Ahmad Al Basheer, who has been likened to renowned US political satirist Jon Stewart, says he aims to ‘break the image’ of the militants AMMAN: Defying death threats, an Iraqi television comedian is fighting the IS militant group with biting satire aimed at lifting the aura of fear that is one of the militants’ strongest weapons.

Two men with fake beards walk into a restaurant and ask for orange juice and “halal” water, with a wink and a smile to the barman who promptly serves them two glasses of beverages.

“This round’s is to mark the first anniversary of the occupation of Mosul,” the waiter says before a bomb blast cuts short his reference to IS leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi and the capture of the northern Iraqi city.

Ahmad Al Basheer, who has been likened to renowned US political satirist Jon Stewart, says he aims to “break the image” of the militants and their declared puritanical enforcement of laws.

The Basheer Show Millions of Iraqis tune in weekly for “The Basheer Show” and its diet of irreverence and no-holdsbarred humour. “Weapons are not the best solution for Iraq,” he says at his studio in Amman, capital of neighbouring Jordan.

“We fight IS with satire. After all, its members are only human.

We can fight them by making fun of them.”

We fight IS with satire.

After all, its members are only human. We can fight them by making fun of them Ahmad Al Basheer

Iraqi television comedian IRAQI TELEVISION COMEDIAN: Iraqi Ahmad Al Basheer, host of the ‘Basheer Show’, poses last Wednesday at his studio in the Jordanian

capital, Amman. Basheer says his programme shows IS leaders for what they are, rather than religious paragons. – AFP

Basheer says his programme shows IS leaders for what they are, rather than religious paragons.

“Their halos drop and they become simple human beings. That’s why it’s very dangerous for them,” he says.

“We make fun of everyone who is bad for our country, starting with government officials who make mistakes and fail to do their jobs, then corrupt and bad politicians, or those who exploit religion for political ends, and finally extremists, sectarian stirrers and militias.”

Basheer is an ex-journalist who

worked for several different Iraqi television stations until 2011 when he narrowly escaped injury in a bomb attack at a festival in the western city of Ramadi that cost the lives of seven colleagues.

He decided it was time to leave his violence-wracked homeland and resettled in Jordan.

Frequent death threats are a consequence of his new business of poking fun at targets including IS militants who have occupied large parts of Iraq and Syria, where they are accused of widespread atrocities.

“Most of the threats come from

IS or people loyal to the militias... through social media like Twitter or Facebook but also by post or SMS on our mobiles,” he says.

“We’ve got used to it. New threats come in after every episode.”

The 30-year-old runs a modern studio in Amman and heads a 24-member team, mostly fellow Iraqis, including a unit which follows all the latest news from back home.

One of the latest shows poked fun at the contradictory statements coming from Iraqi officials on how Mosul is to be recaptured

from more than a year of IS control. While Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi says the battle for Mosul has already been under way for three months, Vice President Iyad Allawi goes on the air to admit he doesn’t know when Iraqi security forces backed by militia allies will finally launch the operation.

Risking death In another scene, an IS standup comedian tells “jokes” to an audience who know they risk death unless they show their appreciation.

“What was the name of the first suicide bomber who blew himself

up and went to paradise? He was called ‘Boom’,” quips the comedian.

A member of the audience bursts into laugher, only to be ordered to stand up and is gunned down in a burst of Kalashnikov fire. “That wasn’t a joke. That was a test. How can the martyrdom of a brother make us laugh?” was the cautionary message from the performer.

“We’re just trying to make Iraqis laugh so they can live a normal life and forget their troubles for a while,” Basheer says.

“Laughter is the best way to unify people the world over. It’s smiling that makes us all human.” — AFP

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WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

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DIGEST VIDEO Top stories in one minute with our new daily Digest

Muscat 6,555.32 - 2.86 - 0.04%

Dubai 4,104.09 - 39.12 - 0.94%

Abu Dhabi 4,790.94 - 43.28 - 0.90%

Saudi Arabia

8,805.54 - 292.73 - 3.22%

Kuwait 6,236.72 - 16.99 - 0.27%

Bahrain 1,330.38 - 1.28 - 0.10%

Qatar 11,651.26 - 133.96 - 1.14%

CRUDE OIL PRICE

CURRENCY RATES*

DRAFT RATES (OMR1)*

GOLD PRICES*

Type ............................Delivery...........Price

Forex rates vs OMR1* US Dollar ................................. 2.58 Euro ............................................ 2.33 Pound ........................................... 1.65 Indian Rs ..............................166.14 Pak Rs ....................................260.15 Bangla Taka.......................199.52

Indian Rs .................................. 166.40 Pakistan Rs ............................ 264.00 Sri Lanka Rs .......................... 346.60 Bangla Taka.............................201.70 Phil Peso .................................... 118.40

Muscat 24ct per gm (OMR) ........14.10

Oman Crude............. (Spot) ........$52.32 Dubai Crude ............. (Spot) ........$52.36 Murban Crude ........ (Spot) .........$53.75 Arabian Light ......... (Spot) ........$52.33 N.Sea Brent............... (Spot) ........ $52.79 West Texas Int ....... (Spot) ..........$47.16

* Rates are as of August 2 Source: Bank Muscat

* Rates as of August 2 Source: Oman UAE Exchange

Muscat 22ct per gm (OMR) .......13.60 Dubai 24ct per gm (Dh) ............132.50 Dubai 22ct per gm (Dh) .............126.25 * Rates as of August 2 Source: Malabar Gold & Diamonds

Oman’s exports plunge by 32.9 per cent on falling crude price tre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). Among various product segments, plastics and rubber products plummeted by 33.9 per cent to OMR83.5 million. The Sultanate’s export promotion agency is targeting a 15 per cent growth in non-oil exports.

Decline in export revenue for the first four months of 2015 was mainly due to a fall in oil and gas prices and reexports. The average

HIGHER TARGETS: The Sultanate’s export promotion agency is targeting a 15 per cent growth in non-oil exports. — Times file picture

price of Oman Crude dipped to $59.3 per barrel for the first half of this year

A E JAMES

businesseditor@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Oman’s total exports for the first four months of 2015 declined by 32.9 per cent to OMR4.53 billion from OMR6.76 CRUDE SUPPLIES

Iran can boost oil production one week after normal trade DUBAI: Iran can boost oil production in one week after international sanctions are lifted, and Opec’s refusal to accommodate Iran in export markets would result in lower crude prices, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said. Production can increase by 500,000 barrels a day in a week after sanctions end and by one million barrels a day in one month, Irna reported, citing Zanganeh in an TV interview. Sanctions against Iran’s oil industry should be lifted by late November, he said, according to Iran oil ministry’s Shana news agency.

Oil producers such as BP and Royal Dutch Shell have expressed interest in developing Iran’s reserves, the world’s fourth-biggest, once sanctions are removed. Iran is organising a conference in London in December to discuss new oil contract models with international companies. Iran had the second-biggest output in Opec before US-led sanctions banned the purchase, transport, finance and insuring of its crude began July 2012.

“Our lost share of the market, which was about one million barrels a day, will manifest itself,” Zanganeh said, according to IRNA. - Bloomberg News

billion for the same period last year. The fall in export revenue was mainly on account of a plunge in oil and gas prices in international markets and re-exports.

The average price of Oman Crude dipped by 43.7 per cent to $59.3 per barrel for the first half of this year from $105.38 a barrel for the same period of 2014.

As a result, exports of crude oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas plunged by 36.5 per cent to OMR2.83 billion in the first four-month period of 2015

from OMR4.46 billion in the same period last year. Of this, crude oil exports showed a 38.6 per cent fall, while liquefied natural gas exports were down by 18.5 per cent.

The Sultanate produced 175.67 million barrels of crude oil in the first half of 2015, up by 2.9 per cent over the same period last year.

Likewise, non-oil exports for the four-month period plunged by 20 per cent to OMR1,007.8 million from OMR1,260 million, according to the latest monthly report released by National Cen-

Re-exports decline Re-exports also showed a drastic fall of 32.8 per cent to OMR694.4 million from OMR1,034.1 million during the four-month period under view.

Oman’s export development agency Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development is taking several initiatives to enhance non-oil exports.

These programmes include visits of trade delegation, participation in international exhibitions, business-to-business meetings and market studies in potential export markets. Oman’s leading market for non-oil exports is the United States, which imported non-oil Omani goods worth OMR206.4 million for the first four months.

The Sultanate’s non-oil exports to Saudi Arabia showed a fall of 18 per cent, compared to the previous year, according to NCSI.

Budget deficit hits OMR1.5b A E JAMES businesseditor@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Oman’s budget deficit for the first five months of this year surged ahead to OMR1,501.1 million, against a surplus of OMR232.9 million for the same period of 2014, mainly due to a plunge in oil prices, according to National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). This is against a government target of OMR2.5 billion deficit for the whole of 2015.

Total revenue dips The government’s total revenue dipped by 36.2 per cent to OMR3,858.1 million for the first five months, from OMR6,044.1 million for the same period of 2014, mainly on account of a drastic fall in oil revenue. Net oil revenue plunged by 46.3 per cent to

OMR2,325.9 million from OMR4,335.1 million. Average price of Oman Crude dipped by 43.7 per cent to $59.3 per barrel in the first half from $105.38 a barrel for the same period of 2014. However, the crude oil production was up by 2.9 per cent at 175.67 million barrels in the first half of this year.

As far as government expenditure is concerned, public expenditure declined by 5 per cent to OMR4,809.2 million for the first five months of 2015, from OMR5,061.2 million for the same period last year. Of this, current expenditure edged up by 0.6 per cent to OMR3,246.9 million from OMR3227.4 million, while investment expenditure fell by 4.1 per cent to OMR1,078 million for the first five months of 2015 from OMR1,124.5 million for the same period last year.

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

MARKET G C C B U S I N E S S C O N C L AV E

Four expats from Oman win Gulf Business Excellence awards Times News Service MUSCAT: Four expatriate entrepreneurs from Oman bagged the prestigious Gulf Business Excellence award 2015 at the GCC business conclave held in Dubai.

For the first time, Oman-based entrepreneurs have been recognised with prestigious awards this year at the event organised by DNA Creative Global in association with Media One TV, Arabian Radio Network, HiT 96.7 and South Indian Bank.

Four out of the 15 winners were Oman-based entrepreneurs — Thomas Alexander from Al Adarak Group; V. T. Vinodan of Mars International Group; Sharafudeen of Muscat Bakery Markets; and Dr

Nithin R. S. of Axis group of companies, received special recognition as the young emerging entrepreneur.

Ramesh Chennithala, the home minister of the Indian state of

Kerala, who was the chief guest at the event, gave away the awards and the citations were given by George Kavalam, the VP of South Indian Bank; Scott Armstrong, the

chief executive editor of ‘Times of Oman’ and Roma Asrani, an Indian movie star.

Utilising the entrepreneurial excellence and global experience

of the non resident Indian (NRI) business community, various projects in the areas of tourism, information technology and industry were discussed. These discussions

will be forwarded to the federal and the state government of India for the formation of trade relations between India and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

The guests of honour at the function included Lieutenant Colonel Ali Bin Dabhooi Al Flassi, Jasim Hassan Juma Mohamed Al Maazmi, Farooq Al Irani and other dignitaries from the Arab Council.

Other winners from different GCC states who won the awards as promising entrepreneurs include George Neriyamparambil of Geo Group of Companies; Abdul Wahap of Bridge Way Group; Basheer Padiyath of the STS group; Dr Ramachandran of the Atlas Group; and Shamshudeen Bin Mohiyideen of Regency Group.

Egypt signs $36b worth investment agreements The government said it had signed the deals at an international investment conference in Sharm El Sheikh CAIRO: Egypt has turned more than half of initial agreements signed at a March investor conference into investment projects, the planning minister said, as Cairo tries to regenerate an economy battered by years of turmoil.

The government said it had signed deals worth $36 billion at an international investment conference in Sharm El Sheikh, and that the total worth of deals and memorandums of understanding (MoU) signed was $60 billion, in addition to $12.5 billion pledged

by Gulf allies.

“Over 50 per cent of the MoUs we signed in the Sharm El Sheikh summit have turned into deals and work has started on them,” Planning Minister Ashraf Al Arabi said in an interview on Saturday.

Egypt has signed exploration deals worth around $21 billion with global oil companies such as BP, BG and Italy’s Eni since the

conference. It also signed a deal with Germany’s Siemens worth $9 billion to supply gas and wind power plants to boost Egypt’s electricity generation by 50 per cent.

Egypt’s reform agenda The conference was an important test of Egypt’s reform agenda under President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, a former army chief who wants to remove investment barriers to help turn around the ailing economy of the Arab world’s most populous country.

Sisi’s crackdown on Islamists and secular opponents has drawn fire from human rights groups.

But he has won praise from foreign investors by cutting fuel subsidies that imposed a heavy burden on the state and by implementing other reforms.

He is also focused on state-driven mega projects, such as Egypt’s New Suez Canal, a project he sees

$60b

worth of deals and MoUs were signed, in addition to $12.5 billion pledged

by Gulf allies to Egypt at an investor conference in March

as a symbol of national pride and a major chance to stimulate an economy suffering double-digit unemployment.

Egypt sees unemployment falling to below 12 per cent in the financial year 2015-16, and less than 10 per cent by 2019, Arabi said on Saturday. It stood at 13.3 per cent in the financial year 2014-15 before falling to 12.8 per cent in March.

Canal project The new canal is set to be inaugurated at a lavish ceremony on August 6.

The first cargo ships passed through in a test-run last week.

The army led work 12 months ago on the $8-billion canal, flanking the existing, 145-year-old waterway and part of a larger under-

taking to expand trade along the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia.

The existing Suez Canal is a vital source of hard currency for Egypt, particularly since the 2011 uprising that scared off tourists and foreign investment. It is projected to bring in $5.4 billion in the financial year 2014-15 and $5.5 billion in 2015-16, Arabi said.

The New Suez Canal, which will allow two-way traffic of larger ships, is supposed to increase revenues by 2023 to $15 billion. The planning minister also said he did not expect more grants from Gulf Arab allies in the current financial year, adding that he instead expected fuel aid.

“We are already in talks with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates over this,” Arabi said. Egypt would again sell dollar-denominated bonds this year, he said. The Egyptian government sold 10-year dollardenominated bonds worth $1.5 billion in June, the first such issue in five years. - Reuters

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ACQUISITION

UAE firm raises offer to buy Dragon DUBAI: Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) increased its offer to buy Dragon Oil to 800 pence ($5.12) a share, winning support from minority owners including Paul Singer’s Elliott Advisors UK that rejected ENOC’s offer in June.

Elliott and Baillie Gifford, which hold a combined 13.1 stake in Dragon Oil, have accepted the new price, ENOC said in a state-

ment. ENOC had offered to buy the 46 per cent of Dragon Oil it didn’t own for 750 pence a share, or £1.7 billion on June 15. The Dubai-based company said it plans to delist Dragon Oil from the London and Dublin exchanges.

“We look forward to taking operational control of Dragon Oil and integrating the company into the ENOC Group, moving another step closer towards creating a

fully integrated oil and gas company,” Saif Al Falasi, group chief executive of ENOC, said in the statement. ENOC’s new offer is unconditional and final, according to the statement.

Shares of Dragon Oil rose 1.5 per cent to 733 pence on Friday.

They have gained 44 per cent since March 13, one day before the takeover talks with ENOC were disclosed. - Bloomberg News

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

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MARKET Power projects worth OMR232m approved in Sultanate last year Registered customer accounts by company: 2013 and 2014 OETC accounts for 52.5% of approved projects by value, Mazoon accounts for 12%, Raeco

For the Sultanate as a whole, residential customers accounted for 69% of the 67,792 increase in accounts and commercial customers 27.8% of the increase. Residential customers accounted for 75% of all customer accounts in 2014 2013 accounts

2014 accounts

11.5%, MEDC 10.1%, DPC 9.2% and Majan 4.8% 23,145 (8.9%) BUSINESS REPORTER

MUSCAT: Three hundred fiftynine projects with a total value of around OMR232million were approved by licensed operators last year to enhance the electricity network in Oman.

According to the annual report of the Authority for Electricity Regulation for 2014, the projects were approved by Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC), Muscat Electricity Distribution Company (MEDC), Majan Electricity Company,Mazoon Electricity Company,Rural Areas Electricity Company (RAEC) and Dhofar Power Company (DPC).

“OETC accounts for 52.5 per cent of approved projects by value, which reflects the significant investment made to connect and transport electricity from new production facilities,” the author-

ity said in the report. Mazoon accounts for 12 per cent of projects by value, RAEC for 11.5 per cent, MEDC 10.1 per cent, DPC 9.2 per cent and Majan 4.8 per cent.

Projects According to the report, OETC approved 23 projects worth OMR121.44 million, while MEDC approved 35 projects with a total value of OMR23.29 million. The value of the 88 projects approved

by Majan totaled OMR11 million, and 28 projects worth OMR27.68 million were approved by Mazoon.

In addition, the total cost of the 23 projects approved by RAEC amounted to OMR26.66 million, while 162 projects worth OMR21.37 million were approved

by DPC. In terms of regional investment, Muscat region accounts for 27.3 per cent (OMR63.3 million) of ap-

261,480 284,625

Total 2013 accounts

Net change in accounts

22,741 (7.1%)

754,254 754 254

812,153

12,013 112 013 (6 (6.9%) 9%) 2,617 (9.3%)

340 923 3318,182 18 182 340,923 , 174,592 186,605

28,287 30,904 Muscat

859,392

57,899 (7.7%)

Majan

Mazoon

MIS

RAECO

7,276 (9.5%)

76,851 84,127

859,392 in 2013 to 927,184 in 2014.

Employment For the Sultanate as a whole, residential customers accounted for 69 per cent of the 67,792 increase in accounts and commercial customers for 27.8 per cent of the increase. Residential customers accounted for 75 per cent of all customer accounts in 2014.

Total electricity and related water sector employment (direct and contractor employees) increased by 10.5 per cent in 2014, reflecting a 1 per cent increase in direct em-

927,184

Net change in accounts

67,762 (7.9%)

DPC

Source: Annual Report, Authority for Electricity Regulation

proved projects and Al Sharqiya 21.2 per cent (OMR49.0 million) due to significant network investments by OETC, Mazoon and RAEC in these regions.

The authority says that all regions benefited from electricity and related water sector investment in 2014 in line with the government’s policy commitment to provide electricity and related water services throughout the Sultanate.

The report also showed that the number of electricity customer accounts in the Sultanate increased by 67,792, or 7.9 per cent from

2014 accounts

Graphics

ployment (from 2,798 to 2,825) and a 15.4 per cent increase in indirect employment (from 5,479 to 6,322).

Omani nationals accounted for 90 per cent of direct employment in 2014, and for 44 per cent of indirect employment, contributing to a sector Omanisation rate of 58 per cent.

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Power sector used 7.8% more gas in 2014 MUSCAT: Gas consumption grew by 7.8 per cent last year to support increases in gross electricity and related waterproduction of 9.6 per cent and 2.6 per cent, respectively.

According to the annual report, the specific gas consumption of the Main Interconnected System (MIS) connected facilities fell to 283 Sm3/MWh in 2014 from 289 Sm3/MWh in 2013 (a 2.3 per cent reduction), and was 21 per cent lower than in 2005.

The Rural Areas Electricity Company consumed about 211,904,000 litres of diesel last year to support increases in electricity and related water production.

- Times News Service

B4

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

MARKET MSM index ends lower

OMAN STOCKS

MUSCAT SECURITIES MARKET

INDICES Index .................................................High .................Low..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff % MSM30 Index ........................................6,564.75 ...............6,555.09 ................... 6,555.32 ................... 6,558.18..................-2.86 .................. -0.04 Financial Index ....................................8,044.62 ...............8,020.16 ................... 8,025.37 ................... 8,021.05....................4.32 ................... 0.05 Industrial Index ....................................8,307.42 .............. 8,292.77 ................... 8,299.58 ...................8,292.77.................... 6.81 ...................0.08 Services Index ...................................... 3,525.42 ...............3,523.79 ................... 3,523.96 ...................3,525.42...................-1.46 .................. -0.04 MSM SHARIAH INDEX.......................993.87 ..................992.83 ...................... 993.06 ...................... 993.37.................. -0.31 .................. -0.03 Trading Summary Volume ................Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded 7,776,267 ....................2,255,443 .................... 498 ............... 15,184,027,244 .................. 8 ..................... 10 .................... 15 .........................33

The top gainer was Oman United Insurance,

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR SUNDAY, AUGUST 2

up by 1.92 per cent, while DIDIC, down by 3.40 per cent, was the day’s top loser

ISIN ..................................................SECURITY NAME ...............................................................................................VOLUME ..............TURNOVER...................TRADES ...........OPEN PRICE............. HIGH....................LOW...............CLOSE PR. ..........PREV. CLOSE..........DIFF (RO) .................DIFF %......................LAST PR...............LAST BID.....................LAST OFFER .................MARKET CAP ........PAR VALUE

MUSCAT: Amid weak trading activity, the MSM 30 Index ended on a flat note to close at 6,555.32 points, down marginally by 0.04 per cent. The MSM Sharia Index closed at 993.06 points, down by 0.03 per cent.

Phoenix Power was the most active in terms of volume while Al Anwar Holding was the most active in terms of turnover. The top gainer was Oman United Insurance, up by 1.92 per cent, while DIDIC, down by 3.40 per cent, was the day’s top loser.

As many as 498 trades were executed during the day’s trading session generating turnover of OMR2.2 million with more than 7.7 million shares changing hands. Out of 33 traded securities, eight advanced, ten declined and 15 remained unchanged.

Omani investors switched to net buyers for OMR136,000 while GCC and Arab investors were net sellers for OMR91,000 followed by foreign investors for OMR44,000 worth of shares.

Financial Index closed on a steady note at 8,025.37 points, up by 0.05 per cent. Oman United Insurance, Oman Orix Leasing and Al Anwar Holding gained 1.92 per cent, 1.38 per cent, and 0.45 per cent, respectively. DIDIC, Al Madina Takaful, Al Batinah Development, NBO and Bank Muscat declined by 3.40 per cent, 2.15 per cent, 1.64 per cent, 0.56 per cent and 0.36 per cent, respectively.

Industrial Sector Index advanced by 0.08 per cent to close at 8,299.58 points. Oman Cables, Galfar Engineering, Gulf Inter-

national Chemicals and Al Maha Ceramics gained by 0.88 per cent, 0.83 per cent, 0.75 per cent and 0.36 per cent, respectively. Al Anwar Ceramics, down by 0.99 per cent, was the only sector loser.

Services Sector Index declined by 0.04 per cent to close at 3,523.96 points. Sharqiyah Desalination increased by 1.78 per cent to close at OMR4. Phoenix Power, National Gas and Ooredoo declined by 0.64 per cent, 0.56 per cent, and 0.50 per cent, respectively.

Saudi stocks dip Saudi Arabia’s stocks fell the most since March, leading declines across equity markets in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, after crude fell to a sixmonth low.

The Tadawul All Share Index slipped 3.5 per cent, the most since March 26 to 8,781.12 in Riyadh.

Saudi Basic Industries Corporartion retreated 5.5 per cent, the most in more than four months.

The QE Index in Qatar, home to the world’s third-largest naturalgas reserves, lost 1.1 per cent.

Oil’s decline is increasing pressure on the economies of the GCC, home to about 29 per cent of the world’s proven crude reserves. Additionally, Iran can boost oil production in as little as one week once international sanctions are lifted, and Opec’s refusal to accommodate Iran in export markets would result in lower crude prices, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said.

REGULAR MARKET .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

OM0000001087............OMAN UNITED INSURANCE ............................... 432,300.......... 137,177..................... 36 ............0.318 ...........0.320 ...........0.314 ............0.318 .............0.312............ 0.006............. 1.923 ................0.314 ..............0.312...................0.314...................31,800,000.........0.100 OM0000004669 ...........SHARQIYAH DESALINATION .................................. 7,500 ............30,000........................1 ........... 4.000...........4.000 ...........4.000 .......... 4.000 .............3.930 ............0.070..............1.781................ 4.000 .............3.900...................0.000 ..................39,120,864 .........1.000 OM0000001707 ............OMAN CABLES INDUSTRY..................................... 60,000 ..........138,000........................3 ........... 2.300...........2.300 ...........2.300 .......... 2.300 .............2.280 ........... 0.020............. 0.877 ................2.300 ............ 2.290...................2.320 ................ 206,310,000 .......0.100 OM0000003521 ............GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. .................. 416,377.............50,798......................18 ............0.122 ........... 0.122 ...........0.122........... 0.122 ............. 0.121.............0.001 ............. 0.826 ................0.122.............. 0.121...................0.122................... 35,377,638 .........0.100 OM0000002028 ...........GULF INTERNATIONAL CHEMICALS ..............50,810 ............. 13,721........................8 ........... 0.274 ........... 0.274 ...........0.270........... 0.270 .............0.268 ........... 0.002............. 0.746 ................0.270..............0.270...................0.273....................5,670,000 ..........0.100 OM0000001772 ............AL ANWAR HOLDING............................................... 1,556,530 ...... 350,617..................... 88 ........... 0.225 ...........0.226 ...........0.224 .......... 0.225 .............0.224 ............0.001 .............0.446 ................0.226..............0.225...................0.226 .................. 33,766,875 .........0.100 OM0000005005 ...........ALMAHA CERAMICS .................................................. 19,328 .............10,862......................12 ........... 0.560 ...........0.562 ...........0.560........... 0.562 .............0.560 ........... 0.002............. 0.357 ................0.562..............0.556...................0.564...................29,505,000.........0.100 OM0000001681 ............OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING........... 113,740 .............12,786..................... 10 ............0.113 ........... 0.114............0.112 ............0.112 ............. 0.112............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.112 .............. 0.112................... 0.113 ...................13,650,000 .........0.100 OM0000001749 ............OMAN CEMENT .......................................................... 100,000 ...........52,000........................1 ........... 0.520 ...........0.520 ...........0.520........... 0.520 .............0.520 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.520.............. 0.516...................0.520 .................172,053,809........0.100 OM0000001962............AL MADINA INVESTMENT ................................... 100,000 ..............6,700........................1 ........... 0.067 ...........0.067 ...........0.067........... 0.067 .............0.067 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.067..............0.067...................0.071................... 13,879,143 .........0.100 OM0000002614............ONIC. HOLDING .......................................................... 654,690 ..........314,251......................13 ........... 0.480 ...........0.480 ...........0.480........... 0.480 .............0.480 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.480..............0.480...................0.000 ..................83,243,160 .........0.100 OM0000002820 ...........GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ......................... 156,000 ........... 20,463......................14 ............0.133 ........... 0.133 ...........0.130............0.131 ............. 0.131 ............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.130 ..............0.130................... 0.131 .....................7,708,461 ..........0.100 OM0000003026 ...........OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ......................... 30,000 ............52,800........................5 ............1.760 ........... 1.760............1.760 ............1.760 ............. 1.760............ 0.000.............0.000 ................1.760 .............. 1.750...................1.760 ................1,320,000,000......0.100 OM0000003125 ............GLOBAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT ....................3,000 .................. 330........................1 ............0.110 ........... 0.110............0.110 ............0.119 ............. 0.119 ............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.110 ...............0.111...................0.125...................23,800,000 ........0.100 OM0000003224 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES ...................................... 70,000 .............19,460........................2 ........... 0.278 ...........0.278 ...........0.278........... 0.278 .............0.278 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.278..............0.270...................0.278...................78,422,258.........0.100 OM0000003398 ...........BANK SOHAR................................................................ 115,000............ 23,720........................3 ........... 0.208...........0.208 ...........0.206 .......... 0.206 .............0.206 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.206............. 0.200...................0.206 ................ 296,936,640 .......0.100 OM0000004735 ...........SEMBCORP SALALAH.................................................. 1,000 ...............2,450........................1 ........... 2.450 ...........2.450 ...........2.450........... 2.450 .............2.450 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................2.450..............2.450...................2.600 .................233,870,128........1.000 OM0000004925 ...........AL BATINAH POWER................................................ 100,000 ...........23,000........................6 ........... 0.230 ...........0.230 ...........0.230........... 0.230 .............0.230 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.230..............0.225...................0.230 .................155,224,109........0.100 OM0000004933 ...........AL SUWADI POWER .................................................. 100,000 ...........23,000........................7 ........... 0.230 ...........0.230 ...........0.230........... 0.230 .............0.230 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.230..............0.223...................0.230 .................164,313,458 ........0.100 OM0000002796 ...........BANK MUSCAT ............................................................ 581,370..........320,786..................... 56 ........... 0.554 ...........0.554 ...........0.550........... 0.552 .............0.554 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.361................0.550..............0.550...................0.554................1,265,086,074 ......0.100 OM0000003968 ...........OOREDOO......................................................................... 58,312 .............46,742......................12 ........... 0.804...........0.804 ...........0.800 .......... 0.800 .............0.804 ...........-0.004 ........... -0.498 ...............0.800..............0.796...................0.800 .................520,755,384........0.100 OM0000001160 ............NATIONAL GAS ................................................................7,645 ...............2,736........................5 ........... 0.358 ........... 0.358 ...........0.356........... 0.358 .............0.360 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.556 ...............0.356..............0.356...................0.358...................17,900,000 .........0.100 OM0000001483............NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ................................. 250,000 ........... 88,980........................7 ........... 0.356 ........... 0.356 ...........0.354........... 0.356 .............0.358 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.559 ...............0.356..............0.346...................0.356..................477,292,849 .......0.100 OM0000002168............AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ............................... 408,000.........163,203......................15 ........... 0.404...........0.404 ...........0.400 .......... 0.400 .............0.404 ...........-0.004 ........... -0.990 ...............0.400..............0.390...................0.404 .................118,485,473 ........0.100 OM0000002366 ...........AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ...................... 119,249 .............14,315......................12 ............0.122 ........... 0.122 ...........0.120........... 0.120 .............0.122 ...........-0.002 ............-1.639................0.120.............. 0.119...................0.120....................3,600,000 ..........0.100 OM0000004768 ...........AL MADINA TAKAFUL...............................................76,000 ...............6,933........................9 ........... 0.092 ...........0.093 ...........0.091 ............0.091 .............0.093 ...........-0.002 ............-2.151................0.091 ..............0.091...................0.093...................15,925,000 .........0.100 OM0000001509............DHOFAR INT.DEV.AND INV. HOLD.......................17,876 ................8,116........................4 ........... 0.454 ...........0.454 ...........0.454........... 0.454 .............0.470 ...........-0.016 ........... -3.404 ...............0.454..............0.454...................0.470..................111,865,600 ........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 5,604,727 ...1,933,944...................350 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......27........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

PARALLEL MARKET .................................................................................................................................................................................

OM0000001723 ............OMAN ORIX LEASING .............................................. 24,000 ...............3,520........................2 ............0.150 ........... 0.150 ...........0.146............0.147 ............. 0.145............ 0.002............. 1.379 ................0.146 ..............0.146...................0.150...................35,483,454 .........0.100 OM0000001368 ............CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. ................... 30,000 ...............1,200........................3 ........... 0.040...........0.040 ...........0.040 .......... 0.040 .............0.040 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.040 .............0.039...................0.041....................3,400,000 ..........0.100 OM0000004420 ...........BANK NIZWA ................................................................ 143,750 .............10,625......................12 ........... 0.073 ........... 0.074 ...........0.073........... 0.074 .............0.074 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.074..............0.074...................0.075..................111,000,000 ........0.100 OM0000004776 ...........TAKAFUL OMAN INSURANCE ..............................23,544 ...............2,637........................2 ............0.112 ........... 0.112............0.112 ............0.112 ............. 0.112............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.112 .............. 0.112................... 0.114 ...................11,200,000 .........0.100 OM0000005963 ...........PHOENIX POWER ...................................................... 1,924,027 ...... 301,001...................126 ............0.157 ........... 0.157 ...........0.156 ............0.156 ............. 0.157............-0.001 ........... -0.637 ...............0.156 .............. 0.155...................0.156..................228,165,828........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 2,145,321 ...... 318,983................... 145 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........ 5........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

- United Securities/Bloomberg News

ECONOMY

SECOND EDITION

Chinese central bank official sees downward pressure on economy Riyada annual award aims at promoting entrepreneurship Times News Service MUSCAT: Riyada, the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises, will launch the second edition of the Entrepreneurship Award on Monday.

At a press conference which will be organised at the Supreme Council for Planning and attended by officials, journalists and entrepreneurs, details of the award’s categories, general conditions, workshops and date of registration will be discussed.

The Entrepreneurship Award is one of the outcomes of the small and medium enterprises symposium which was held in early 2013 following the Royal directives of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said. The third resolution of symposium stated: “An annual award of high standard aimed at SMEs, entities and individuals supporting them shall be instituted and launched in 2014.”

The decision came to enable small, medium, and micro enterprises to be an effective contributor to the nationalisation of jobs and establishment of a diversified economy that is based on knowledge and innovation. The Entrepreneurship Award is an annual event managed by Riyada.

The award aspires to cultivate entrepreneurship culture in the Omani society and develop the performance and competitiveness of the micro, small, and medium enterprises. It aims as well to encourage excellence, competitiveness, innovation, and appreciation

The Entrepreneurship Award is one of the outcomes of the small and medium enterprises symposium, which was held in early 2013 following the Royal directives of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said

for the individuals or institutions who support SMEs and provide them with theconvenient environment to network and exchange expertise in fields of entrepreneurship and development of SMEs. The first edition of the Entrepreneurship Award received 581 applications. Participations were divided into three main categories — 312 participants in the Entrepreneurship Award category, 245 participants in the SME Award category, and 24 in the Supporter/ Sponsor of Entrepreneurship category. At the end, 13 winners were awarded and a number of other awards were withheld by the judging panel.

BLEAK PROSPECTS: Chinese companies are not optimistic about business prospects, according to the central bank's second-quarter

economic survey. -

Bloomberg News

BEIJING: Downward pressure on China’s economy will persist in the second half of the year as growth in infrastructure spending and exports is unlikely to pick up, a senior central bank official was quoted as saying.

Chinese companies are not optimistic about business prospects according to the central bank’s second-quarter survey, Sheng Songcheng, the director of the statistics division of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), was quoted as saying by the National Business Daily on Saturday.

Pressured by uneven domestic and export demand, cooling investment and factory overcapacity, China’s economic growth is expected to slow to around 7 per cent this year, the lowest in a

quarter of a century, from 7.4 per cent in 2014.

A plunge in the country’s share markets since mid-June has added to worries about the economy, and reinforced expectations that policymakers will roll out more support measures.

The PBOC has already cut interest rates four times since November and repeatedly loosened restrictions on bank lending in its most aggressive stimulus campaign since the global financial crisis. Sheng warned about the risks of local government debt, saying that 2 trillion yuan ($322.08 billion) in bond swaps may not be able to fully cover maturing debt, according to the report.

Sheng said the PBOC needs to step up the monitoring of local

government financing vehicles given the current downturn in property market and limited local government revenues.

Second-quarter profit Sheng also said he expected second-quarter net profit growth for banks to fall, adding that banks’ exposure to risk “has become clearer”. But he said the real-estate market could rebound in the second half and provide support for the economy.

Sheng said he still expects economic growth this year of around 7 percent, an inflation target of around 1.5 per cent and growth of M2 — a broad-based measure of money supply — of around 12 per cent.

Economists at the central bank said in June they expected growth

to pick up modestly in the next six months as previous policy easing measures start to take effect and the housing market stabilises.

But other analysts say that view is unduly optimistic, pointing to huge inventories of unsold homes and high local government debt which is curbing their ability to spend on infrastructure projects.

Growth at China’s manufacturing companies unexpectedly stalled in July as demand at home and abroad weakened, an official survey showed on Saturday. - Reuters

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B

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

SECTION

SLOW DOWN ENJOY THE RIDE

E-

IMES TECH STUFF

With a portable backup battery, being off the grid does not mean being without power. Goal Zero goes a step further with its solar power pack, which includes its durable Venture 30 Recharger and Nomad 7 Solar Panel.

Recharger has an attached micro-USB cable and a USB port for charging other devices, with the ports protected by a waterproof rubber coating.

When the device runs out of juice, the solar panel can be used to recharge it. (Charging takes eight hours in full sunlight.) A “pass-through” feature allows the Recharger to send out power while it is charging.

Microsoft seeks to reboot connections For the first time, Microsoft is making a major new version of Windows available free as an upgrade to anyone using either of the prior two generations of the system. The goal is to swiftly have Windows 10 powering a billion devices, creating a gigantic audience

M

icrosoft is aiming to build lasting relationships with Windows 10, the operating system that was launched recently and seen as critical to reviving the fortunes of the once-dominant tech giant.

For the first time, Microsoft is making a major new version of Windows available free as an upgrade to anyone using either of the prior two generations of the system. The goal is to swiftly have Windows 10 powering a billion devices, creating a gigantic audience to induce developers to crank out must-have apps for the platform.

Microsoft hopes to break the cycle in which consumers shun Windows for mobile because it lacks the large catalogue of applications found on rival platforms, thus discouraging app makers from creating Windows versions.

Windows-driven hardware Hit apps could ramp up popularity of Windows-driven hardware made by Microsoft and its partners, and increase opportunities for the company to make money from online activities such as search, shopping and software as services in the Internet cloud.

“This is all in the direction of building a relationship, being connected with you,” Forrester Research analyst Frank Gillett said of Windows 10.

“They make it free so developers make good stuff. And then create an ongoing relationship instead of just a transaction, which is how Microsoft has operated in the past.”

Microsoft has built its empire on packaged software sold to computer users and makers.

Windows remains the leading operating system for personal computers but has failed to gain traction on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, that is mainly dominated by Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS.

‘Aggressive’ move Special were planned in across 13 cities around the world in tribute to the more than five million “insiders” who took part in a Windows 10 test period.

The operating system came as a free upgrade to people who already use Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 and will be available in 190 countries.

Microsoft is not making Windows 10 free to computer makers, which is where it has historically gotten the bulk of its revenue from the operating system.

“The piece that is given away free is a piece that nobody was buying anyway,” Gartner analyst Stephen Kleynhans told AFP. “You can think of the free upgrade almost as being a teaser — a free sample of the new operating system,” he added.

Microsoft has also made Windows available free to makers of small-screen gadgets such as smartphones or tablets to gain traction in the mobile market.

Windows 10 will come pre-installed on Microsoft-compatible computers and tablets from July 29 and will be available for purchase later in the year.

The move marks a major launch for Microsoft, after the lukewarm

response to Windows 8, which was rolled out in 2013.

To mark the shift, Microsoft skipped directly from Windows 8 to Windows 10.

“This the first time they have gone two generations back and said you are getting it free. It is pretty aggressive,” said independent technology analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group.

“They are doing it because Windows 8 bounced. They have to move the Windows 7 and 8 users and do it en masse,” he further added.

High hopes Microsoft has high hopes for Windows 10, which it wants to see installed in a billion devices around the world by 2018. Some 1.5 billion machines run on earlier versions of the operating system.

Windows 10 boasts a common base on which developers will be able to build apps that work on smartphones, tablets, PCs and desktops, and even Xbox. It will also feature virtual assistant Cortana.

The new operating system is critical for Microsoft as the PC market has been shrinking while smartphone sales have boomed.

And even in PCs, the longtime

A STEP FURTHER WITH SOLAR POWER PACK

Microsoft bastion is under siege by devices such as Android or Apple tablets and Google Chromebooks.

“The hope is to pull the application guys over, particularly on the phone side where Microsoft has struggled, and give users a common experience on phone, tablet, and PC,” Enderle said. “Microsoft phones are still strategic.”

Early this month, Microsoft said it will cut 7,800 jobs and wrote down the value of the struggling mobile phone division it acquired last year from Nokia by some $7.6 billion. The announcement represented the second major round of layoffs in a year for Microsoft, which cut some 18,000 jobs a year ago as part of its effort to integrate the Finnish-based phone group.

Phone hardware business Microsoft said that it would “restructure the company’s phone hardware business to better focus and align resources.”

Satya Nadella, who became chief executive in 2014, is seeking to reinvigorate a company that had been the world’s largest but which has lost the leadership of the tech sector in recent years.

Gillett predicted that Microsoft will shift from doing major Windows releases to routinely honing the software and adding features.

“The dramatic idea is that this is Windows as an ongoing service experience that evolves with you,” the Forrester analyst said.

Microsoft’s efforts to adapt to modern Internet trends have included making popular productivity programs available as cloud services and as applications on mobile devices powered by Apple or Android software.

“They really are focused on delivering a range of cloud services, and in a lot of cases it won’t just be on Microsoft’s platforms,” said Gartner analyst Kleynhans. “It’s a good strategy.” — AFP

P R O D UC T U P D AT E S

Sophos offers cloud-based new secure web gateway Times News Service Sophos recently announced the availability of Sophos Cloud Web Gateway, a cloud-based secure web gateway that delivers advanced protection for users, devices and data across multiple operating systems, regardless of their location.

The addition of secure web gateway to Sophos Cloud integrates technology from Mojave Networks, which Sophos acquired in October 2014.

Sophos Cloud Web Gateway provides protection from the latest malware and phishing threats, granular policy management, advanced content filtering and big-data web traffic analytics – all without the need for physical appliances. Access to a global network of data centers makes the comprehensive analysis of data traffic for content and security compliance fast and transparent for the end user. IT managers are able to pinpoint ‘at risk’ users or devices through activity, behaviours and usage monitoring with advanced alerts, warnings and notifications. Granular policies can be set by device, by user or by group, and tamper protection prevents the accidental or intentional changing of settings, keeping even rogue users compliant.

Bill Lucchini (pictured), senior vice president and general manager for Sophos Cloud Security business unit commented, “In today’s world employees are mobile and work across multiple devices. Securing the perimeter or a single device is no longer sufficient. Sophos Cloud Endpoint and Mobile products cover employees wherever they work and on whatever device they are using. Now, with the addition of a powerful web gateway Sophos Cloud provides a full suite of enterprise-grade security solutions designed for the mid-market.”

Trend Micro security is fully Windows 10 compatible Times News Service Trend Micro continues to focus on making everyone’s digital lives easier and safer. To offer consumers optimal protection, the global leader in security software today announced Trend Micro Security 10 – a security and privacy solution fully compatible with Microsoft Windows 10, which will be launched later this week.

The new version’s security features are simpleto-use, yet provide stateof-the-art protection for consumers’ data, delivered with optimal performance. This allows users to securely connect and engage safely online from today’s evolving threat environment. Trend Micro Security 10 (pictured) provides protection against threats and privacy concerns regardless of the device or operating system. The software will feature protection from exposing private information or becoming susceptible to datatheft and other malicious online threats on both personal and business devices.

“It’s a fact of life that all laptops, smart phones, PC’s and tablets are susceptible to data theft, and stealing information from one’s digital life is easier than most people think,” said Akihiko Omikawa, Executive Vice President at Trend Micro. “People are accessing the Internet anytime and anywhere. It’s hard to know if personal or business information is being shared without permission. We want to ensure our customers are protected in this fastchanging world, providing them with advanced protection without disruption.” With the growing number of malicious threats, breaches, and hacks, Trend Micro Security 10 helps people be safe online with its superior phishing detection and industry-leading tools. These tools block viruses, spyware, worms and Trojans, preventing their devices from becoming infected. Trend Micro is adding in new features to its already award-winning protection to further protect customers from the threats of today: from additional social media protection, SSL verification, ransomware and online banking protections. With this solution, users’ personal information is far less at risk from being compromised by cybercriminals while maintaining privacy and protection of online activity.

B6

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

ROUND-UP

Kia Optima earns top accolades The Optima received two prestigious accolades — ‘National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Overall 5-Star Crash Safety Rating’ in frontal crash, side crash and rollover tests and ‘Edmunds.

Com Top 10 Least Expensive Midsize Sedan For 2015’

MUSCAT: Good looking cars remarkably offer a great sense of pride. Like Kia’s Optima. And along with that when it receives the highest safety rating; the thought of owning the Optima becomes even more exciting.

Recently the Optima received two prestigious accolades — ‘National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Overall 5-Star Crash Safety Rating’ in frontal crash, side crash and rollover tests and ‘Edmunds.Com Top 10 Least Expensive Midsize Sedan For 2015’, says a press release.

In Oman, the Optima’s 2.4L (178 HP), dual exhaust engine is mated with a 6-speed auto transmission.

The steering controls include bluetooth/cruise/paddle shifter/ eco/audio/trip computer. The rear view camera and back warning sensors aid in parking the vehicle while the dual zone auto A/C & rear A/C vents keep all occupants comfortable. The panoramic sunroof and rear spoiler add to its luxurious feel.

Some of Optima’s trailblazing

features include an innovative motor-driven ‘D’ shaped steering wheel. The Optima also features a drive selector with a choice of eco, normal or sport modes. Optima’s LED daytime front running lights (DRL), fog lamps and darknesspiercing Xenon headlamps light up the road ahead.

The Xenon headlamps also have cornering lighting – that anticipates corners and lights up the dark spaces. Adding to the safety is the Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) system that keeps the Optima balanced and steady. This is further enhanced by the front and rear sensors.

LUGGAGE SHOWROOM

NEW ADDITION

KR Group opens its first ‘House of Samsonite’ in Oman Avenues Mall MUSCAT: The Khimji Ramdas Group recently opened its first ‘House of Samsonite’ luggage showroom at the Oman Avenues Mall, the new concept from Samsonite is the only one of its kind in the entire Middle East region offering a wide range of products to meet distinctive travel requirements.

It features three brands under the same roof — Samsonite, American Tourister and High Sierra, says a press release.

Commenting on the new concept Vivek Pande, CEO, Lifestyle Group, said: “We are thrilled to be the first company in the entire region to launch the ‘House of Samsonite’ store. It was a vision shared between Samsonite and the Kh-

imji Ramdas Group to start a store that allows our valuable customers to choose from a wide variety of products available at different price points.”

Customers will now have a wide array of travel worthy luggage to choose from that ranges from business bags to rolling totes to backpacks and various other

travel accessories.

“The store has been designed to meet various travel needs at an accessible point of sale so that we can maximise customers’ convenience and satisfaction. We take this opportunity to invite our patrons to visit the store and share their valuable feedback,” said Rohit Shah, general manager, Luxury and Lifestyle Division.

Samsonite products are also available at the Khimji store in Qurum, Samsonite – Muscat City Centre and the Khimji store in Salalah, while American Tourister — which is widely distributed – is available at the House of Samsonite — Oman Avenues Mall, Khimji store in Salalah and all leading hypermarkets in the Sultanate.

GAINS POPULARITY

Visitors at Khareef Festival enjoy A’Saffa’s appetising snacks menu MUSCAT: A’Saffa Foods as every year is offering their signature value snacks to visitors at the Khareef Festival in Salalah.

After setting up their very own specially branded restaurant outlet at the festival ground in Salalah, they have gained popularity for their delicious and appetising food range like A’Saffa zingle fillet sandwich, Khayrat beef sheekh kebab sandwich and Khayrat chapli beef kebab sandwich to name a few. Also the restaurant offers customers with tasty, healthy and 100 per cent pure halal snacks at great value prices, says a press release.

The company’s manufacturing operations are at its large scale fully integrated chicken farm based at Thumrait in the Dhofar region and its processed food state-of-the-art plant in Muscat, always supports the annual Khareef Festival in a big way.

A’Saffa chickens are raised at the company’s largest fully integrated poultry farms in Thumrait, Salalah and are fed with 100% natural feed in one of Middle East (internation-

al standard) best scientifically / hygienically managed bio secured farms to ensure disease free health of the birds and guarantee a fresh, pure, tasty, halal and quality product to the consumer. A’Saffa chickens are 100% halal (hand slaughtered) as per sharia principles and do not use electric shock on the birds before slaughtering.

A’Saffa Foods, Sales and Marketing Head, Sidhartha Lenka said: “We are delighted to have set up our special Khareef restaurant facility as it enables us to reward our loyal customers and visitors

from different places with great value snacks.”

He elaborated, “As a company with its main operations in the region we are always keen to support the Khareef Festival which is so important to the region. All of our customers can buy with confidence at our restaurant knowing that our chicken and beef products are 100 per cent halal and offer a great tasting meal for individuals and families.”

The fantastic value offer has already led to hundreds of people lining up to buy their great value

sandwiches from the A’Saffa restaurant with the facility rapidly becoming one of the most popular eating place at the festival grounds.

A’Saffa will be using this as an opportunity to promote their other products as well such as fresh fruit pulps and their other products from the Khayrat and Taybat brands. Khayrat was established by the company to produce both beef and frozen vegetable products. Taybat is known for their tasty chicken and beef products like breaded chicken burgers, chicken burgers, chicken fillet, chicken fingers, chicken nuggets, chicken popcorn, chicken franks, chicken mince, beef burgers and beef mince, which are made using only the best quality ingredients.

In addition to the restaurant, A’Saffa chicken is always highly sought after during the festival and many of the traditional chicken barbecue stands that cook their chickens on hot stones known as ‘Madbi’ always use A’Saffa chicken to give their customers the freshest, healthiest and tastiest meals.

RAMADAN SPECIAL

8 lucky winners win Geely Emgrand 7 cars MUSCAT: Geely, the leading and fasting growing Chinese automotive brand in Oman and the flagship brand of Towell Auto Centre, sponsored the reality TV programme Al Rahla on Oman TV and gave away 8 Geely Emgrand 7 cars to lucky winners.

Produced by the prolific Lebanese director and producer Bassem Christo, Al Rahla was a Ramadan special programme that gained popularity among viewers, says a press release.

Riyadh Ali Sultan, General Manager, TAC comments: “We were privileged to be associated with Al Rahla, the flagship programme of Oman TV. It was a real-

The Optima’ personality is further enhanced with the fitment of the newly designed 225/45 R 18 Alloy Wheels – that add a scintillating touch to the sharp looks of the vehicle!

Apart from these the Optima includes driver and passenger airbags, anti-lock braking system

(ABS), cool glove box, power lumbar support, gull-wing type power folding outer mirrors with LED turn indicators, fog lamps and escort headlamp function, wood grain steering/ TGS knob.

The Optima is on display at the showroom – for those who wish to have a closer look!

Reliable International Automotive (RIA), the distributor for Kia in Oman provides a rewarding ownership experience for customers.

Excellent product attributes and unmatched facilities easily ensure their absolute satisfaction, every mile of the way. No wonder then that Reliable International Automotive has been ranked amongst the top Kia distributors worldwide and has been honoured with prestigious accolades including the ‘Good Partnership award, ‘Family Like Care’ Service award’, and ‘Kia ‘Distributor of Distinction’ award.

The prestigious ‘Kia Award for Overall Excellence and Outstanding Performance’ amongst Kia distributors worldwide was bestowed most deservingly.

ity competition show in which the participants had to answer general knowledge questions and the winners were awarded exciting prices.

We gave 8 Geely Emgrand 7 cars

as prizes to the winners during the course of this show.

“We hope the winners would enjoy their Emgrand 7s. Geely as a brand has established its credibil-

ity with its quality and efficiency and is extremely popular due to its state-of-the-art features and reasonable pricing.”

Geely a Fortune 500 Company are also the owners of international brands like Volvo Cars, London Taxi, Emerald Automotive and Australia’s DSI transmission systems. From the design concept to the manufacturing, all Geely models have been developed in accordance with European standards by European and Chinese designers.

By bringing the Geely range to the Sultanate, TAC has reinforced its commitment to provide highquality products and services to its customers in Oman.

Enjoy latest ‘grab and go’ offering ‘Pizza Pockets’ at Pizza Hut MUSCAT: Enjoy the latest ‘grab and go’ offering from Oman’s most-loved pizza chain.

Pizza Hut Oman in keeping with its tradition of offering exciting treats presents to pizza lovers in the Sultanate the allnew ‘Pizza Pockets’. Packed with flavour and available for dine in, take away and delivery, these wraps are the perfect answer to the on-the-go hunger call, says a press release.

The ‘Pizza Pockets’ are wraps made out of Pizza Hut’s famous dough with two options to choose from — garlic butter chicken and barbecue chicken.

“Our goal at Pizza Hut is to understand and meet the food and dining habits of our valued customers. ‘Pizza Pockets’ have been launched to satiate our patron’s demand for something quick and something delicious,” stated, Vivek Pande, CEO, Khimji Ramdas Lifestyle Group.

Packed with Mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken, fresh lettuce, cheese sauce and with garlic butter or barbecue sauce to choose from, the wraps have been designed to deliver on taste and convenience.

“In yet another attempt at surprising our guests and pleasing their taste buds, we have introduced ‘Pizza Pockets’. These wraps are the ultimate solution for those days when time is constrained and hunger pangs demand for something sumptuous,” stated, Yogesh Shah, general manager, Khimji Restaurant Division.

Packed with Mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken, fresh lettuce, cheese sauce and with garlic butter or barbecue sauce to choose from, the wraps have been designed to deliver on taste and convenience

S E RV E D O N T H R E E - T I E R T R AY

Sip classic styled tea at Halwa Lounge Cafe MUSCAT: Holiday Inn Muscat Al Seeb, has launched a classic styled afternoon tea, served on a three-tier tray, with a plate each for all that we expect and love of a traditional tea/ coffee, sandwiches, scones and cakes.

All delivered to a table in chic Halwa Lounge Cafe, with its stunning pool views, alongside a freshly-brewed pot of tea or coffee served in pretty cups and saucers, says a press release.

The bottom plate of the cake stand includes finger sandwiches of smoked salmon, cucumber and cream cheese, egg mayonnaise and cress, and ham and tomato.

In the middle are scones, served with clotted cream and jam.

The top plate is reserved for our pastry chef’s daily creations, such as cream-filled meringues, lemon drizzle cake and chocolate fairy cakes. You can choose from a range of teas, but we recommend one of the following: Moroccan tea, Green tea, Darjeeling, Earl Grey or choose Kahwa in keeping with the Omani tradition.

This traditional afternoon tea is served daily from 2pm to 9pm.

Not only this for all sports lov-

The afternoon tea is delivered to a table in the cafe, with its stunning pool views, alongside a freshly-brewed pot of tea or coffee served in pretty cups and saucers ers we are now showing beIN sports channel on our brand new, 75 inches TV found in our chic Halwa Lounge!

In Oman, halwa is a symbol of traditional hospitality often served with the local coffee, kahwa and used to mark occasions of joy or sorrow.

At Halwa Lounge Café, we celebrate this symbol of hospitality with all your favourites on the menu, from delicious international salads to freshly cut sandwiches and great individual meals complemented by local and international beverages.

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

SECTION

RECRUI JOB POSTINGS

The secret of success is to know something nobody else knows.

— Aristotle Onassis

CAREER COACH

Tips for improving your writing in the age of instant communication WITH the fast-paced universe of instant communication via e-mails, text messages and social media, we are all constantly writing. Since we write so much, so often, our words have the potential to reach more people than ever before. As a result, we need to pay greater attention to the quality of our prose.

Effective writing skills are half the equation for effective communication, a critical component of leadership. Unfortunately, top

QUOTES It doesn’t matter how long we may have been stuck in a sense of our limitations. If we go into a darkened room and turn on the light, it doesn’t matter if the room has been dark for a day, a week, or ten thousand years — we turn on the light and it is illuminated.

— Sharon Salzberg As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world — that is the myth of the atomic age — as in being able to remake ourselves.

— Mahatma Gandhi He who is not busy being born is busy dying. — Bob Dylan

executives aren’t always the gifted writers they should be. In many cases, leaders may have had topnotch writing skills at one time, but as more responsibilities are added to their plate, those skills can diminish.

Effective writing is a skill that can and must be practised.

Make time: CEOs with full plates have to do their own writing, too. Block time on your schedule to focus on writing to avoid interrup-

tions. If it’s on your calendar, you are more likely to treat writing as a priority.

Have a plan: When we’re writing, we tend to just jump in headfirst. We often bang out e-mails without much planning. The better approach: Take a few minutes to figure out what you’re trying to say. Think about your message or your thesis statement first. Get that set, and then write. This applies to creating PowerPoint pres-

entations, too. Don’t start populating slides before you first plan, and then write, your presentation.

Be concise: We are bombarded with written communications.

Every one of us has an inbox filled with e-mails, and we want to read what’s on the Web and in the newspaper, etc. We have so much to consume, but if you need to get your message across in writing, it needs to be concise.

Be authentic: Social media has

been a game-changer. In the “old” days (10 years or so ago), a CEO wouldn’t have thought twice about having someone in marketing or communications draft his or her communications. Now with blogs and social media, the audience expects and demands the author to be the author. You can’t ghostwrite a blog. You can’t be a CEO with a Twitter account and have someone in marketing doing the tweeting for you.

Know your audience: The best communicators are those who put their audience first. Every member of every audience asks, consciously or subconsciously, “What’s in this for me?”

Hone your craft: Like anything, improving your writing skills takes practice. Become a consumer of good writing and communications that you hope to emulate. Write more often than required to practice. — Ken White/ The Washington Post

B8

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

ROUND-UP

Love us on Facebook

Hyundai ranks highly in J.D. Power Study The 2015 Hyundai Sonata ranked second in the midsize car segment.

Furthermore, five Hyundai models — Elantra, Genesis, Santa Fe, Tucson and Veloster — increased their scores in this year’s study

MUSCAT: Hyundai ranked second in the J.D. Power 2015 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study released recently. In its 20th year, the APEAL study examines owners’ assessments of the design, content, layout and performance

of their new vehicle.

The 2015 Hyundai Sonata ranked second in the midsize car segment. Furthermore, five Hyundai models — Elantra, Genesis, Santa Fe, Tucson and Veloster — increased their scores in this year’s study, says a press release.

“Finishing among the top two non-premium brands in this year’s J.D. Power APEAL Study shows Hyundai takes design, technology, features and performance seriously across the entire lineup,” said Mike O’Brien, vice president, corporate and product planning, Hyundai Motor America. “Having the best-selling Sonata ranking among the top two in its class is a tremendous achievement and we

are committed to delivering the highest customer experience possible to our owners.”

Recently, Hyundai ranked fourth among all brands in the J.D. Power 2015 US Initial Quality Study (IQS). The 2015 Hyundai Tucson was awarded for the highest initial quality in the small SUV segment and the 2015 Hyundai Accent earned the highest IQS honour in the small car segment for the second year in a row.

Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Company is committed to becoming a lifetime partner in automobiles and beyond. Hyundai Motor has eight manufacturing bases and seven design and technical centres worldwide and in 2014,

sold 4.96 million vehicles globally.

With these remarkable achievements, Hyundai is moving closer to its ambition of becoming the ‘most-loved automotive brand’.

Hyundai as a brand has made significant strides on the back of sophisticated product design, quality, safety technology and exceptional value. No wonder Hyundai has become one of the top automotive brands in the world. One has to test drive and discover what millions of satisfied Hyundai owners already experience and enjoy — Hyundai stands for uncompromising quality.

Hyundai has a strong presence in the passenger vehicles category in Oman with its wide range of Sedans and SUVs each in various trim variants. Hyundai sedan range in Oman includes Accent, Elantra, Sonata and Azera, apart from the trendy Veloster and Veloster Turbo.

Grand i10, i20, i30, i40 form the cutting edge ‘i’ series range designed to meet global customer needs.

OTE Group is the exclusive dealer of Hyundai’s range of vehicles in Oman. With a nationwide network of showrooms and service centres, OTE Group ensures that Hyundai customers are never far from getting high quality service.

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E D UC AT I O NA L I N S T I T U T I O N

Shell supports ‘My School’ expansion MUSCAT: When Nabil Al Raisi and his wife Samia, who are running a privately owned educational institute, called ‘My School’, wanted to expand their organisation and make it a stateof-the-art yet affordable school, they turned to the Nomou Fund.

This fund was Shell’s gift to the nation in 2010 and was established to showcase a proven and scalable small and medium sized enterprise development model. The fund is administered

by GroFin, a pioneering SME development and financing organisation, says a press release.

In late 2012, the couple became aware of the Nomou Oman Fund.

They immediately made the decision to expand their promising ‘My School’ project with the assistance of the programme. With Nomou’s support, Nabil and Samia added eight new classrooms to accommodate 321 students, and recruited 17 additional qualified teachers and staff members, to increase the tally to a total of 48 employees.

In addition to doubling the school’s capacity, the Nomou Fund has supported the school to expand to a host of services not existing previously, including a fully equipped computer suite with tens of Apple Macs, all

structured around an improved learning experience.

“Thanks to Nomou’s support, continuous guidance and becoming more of a business partner than just a financing company, we have grown in capacity and quality,” commented Samia Al Raisi, principal and co-owner of My School. “Now we are confident of reaching our goal of providing quality learning to more than 450 students in the coming school year.”

“We are proud to assist entrepreneurs like Nabil and Samia Al Raisi who contribute in creating much needed employment opportunities and are passionately engaged in improving their community through education,” added Al Hassan.

PROMOTION

OBFA RECEPTION

His Highness Sayyid Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, minister of Heritage and Culture, being greeted by M. A. Yusuffali, managing director of Lulu Group, during the recently held Omani British Friendship Association (OBFA) reception. Also seen is A. V. Ananth, Lulu’s Oman regional director. — Supplied photo

Omantel customers with Nama, GoBiz plans to get smartphones MUSCAT: As part of the continuous offers provided by Omantel Corporate Business Unit (CBU) to its corporate customers in Nama and GoBiz Executive plans, Omantel announced providing smartphones with LTE technology at competitive rates to meet the needs of its customers and help them remain connected with their clients and employees, says a press release.

Eng. Adel bin Yousef Al Awadhi, manager, Communication Solutions at Omantel Corporate Business Unit said, “Omantel is very keen on enriching the experience of its customers by providing them with the latest communication devises together with the value added offers and services that meet their needs and provide them with high quality communication solutions at competitive rates.”

“The offer provides Omantel customers at Nama and GoBiz Executive plans with many options for smartphones. Subscribers to Nama plan get 20% on all devices with OMR100 down payment. The remaining amount will be paid in instalments over one year in case of subscription with 1GB package or higher. The package may be changed during the subscription period subject to a minimum of 1GB,” he added.

“Customers to GoBiz Executive plan will get 100% discount

in case of subscription for one full year and will enjoy the services as well as other benefits provided to corporate clients,” he furthered.

Omantel offers wide range of smartphones that will be available for corporate customers at

Omantel business outlets until the stock is over or the expiry of the offer on October 26.

Omantel Corporate Business Unit is a specialised unit in providing communication solutions to corporate customers including public and private organisations.

SPECIALISED SERVICES

KIMS Oman doctors offer quality care at cardiology department MUSCAT: KIMS Oman Hospital (KOH) has inducted highly experienced professionals in its cardiology department that constitutes of Dr Praveen Kumar, consultant cardiologist along with Dr Saad Haddad, specialist cardiologist.

The doctors at the cardiology department at KIMS Oman Hospital are highly experienced in echocardiography and colour Doppler, exercise stress test including stress echocardiography and dobutamine stress echocardiography, 24 Hours Holter ECG and BP monitoring, CT angiography evaluation, management of critical cardiac illness including valvular, coronary arrhythmias and heart failure besides cardiac evaluation for risk of heart attacks and coronary disease.

“Our cardiology department at KIMS Oman Hospital is fully equipped to offer full cardiac treatment and care to our patients,” said Dr Hussam Akoum,

Our cardiology department at KIMS Oman Hospital is fully equipped to offer full cardiac treatment and care to our patients Dr Hussam Akoum Chief operating officer at KOH

chief operating officer at KOH. KIMS Oman Hospital is committed to provide high quality health care services with care, compassion and courtesy to its patients at affordable prices.

C

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM M MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015 15

SECTION

SPOR YOUR GAME

S

Zimbabwe’s Ervine tames Kiwis for win

WAQAR CREDITS TEAM’S ATTACKING MINDSET Pakistan coach Waqar Younis Sunday hailed his players’ positive and attacking approach after they comprehensively defeated Sri Lanka in all three formats on the islanders’ home turf. >C2

FOOTBALL

SCOREBOARD

PERFECT START: Arsenal’s Francis Coquelin and Olivier Giroud NEW ZEALAND M. Guptill c Masakadza b Panyangara 11 T. Latham b Chibhabha 14 K. Williamson b Panyangara 97 R. Taylor not out 112 G. Elliott run out 43 J. Neesham not out 14 Extras (4-lb, 7-w, 1-nb) 12 Total (4 wkts, 50 overs) 303 Fall of wickets: 1-20 (Guptill), 2-39 (Latham), 3-176 (Williamson), 4-255 (Elliott).

Did not bat: Luke Ronchi, Nathan McCullum, Matt Henry, Mitchell McClenaghan, Ish Sodhi.

Bowling: Mpofu 10-0-84-0, Panyangara 10-0-50-2, Chibhabha 7-2-32-1, Utseya 7-0-43-0, Cremer 10-0-48-0, Williams 4-0-27-0, Sikandar Raza 2-0-15-0.

ZIMBABWE H. Masakadza c Ronchi b McCullum 84 C. Chibhabha b McCullum 42 C. Ervine not out 130 E. Chigumbura c Guptill b McCullum 26 S. Williams not out 7 Extras (1-lb, 13-w, 1-nb) 15 Total (3 wkts, 49 overs) 304 Fall of wickets: 1-74 (Chibhabha), 2-194 (Masakadza), 3-260 (Chigumbura).

Did not bat: Regis Chakabva, Sikandar Raza, Graeme Cremer, Prosper Utseya, Tinashe Panyangara, Chris Mpofu.

Bowling: Henry 9-0-58-0, McClenaghan 9-0-47-0, Neesham 7-0-44-0, McCullum 9-0-62-3, Sodhi 10-1-65-0, Elliott 3-0-17-0, Williamson 2-0-10-0.

Toss: Zimbabwe Umpires: Richard Illingworth (ENG) and Russell Tiffin (ZIM) TV umpire: Langton Rusere (ZIM) Match referee: David Boon (AUS) Result: Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets.

Series: Zimbabwe lead the three-match series 1-0.

Taylor and Williamson continued their remarkable run of form as New Zealand racked up 303 for four, only for Ervine’s dashing innings to carry Zimbabwe to victory with six balls to spare

HARARE: Craig Ervine’s maiden century upstaged Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson’s record-breaking exploits as Zimbabwe stunned New Zealand by seven wickets in the first one-day international at Harare Sports Club on Sunday.

Taylor and Williamson continued their remarkable run of form as New Zealand racked up 303 for four, only for Ervine’s dashing innings to carry Zimbabwe to victory with six balls to spare.

The 29-year-old left-hander’s previous best in ODIs was 85, but promoted to the number three position by coach Dav Whatmore, he finished unbeaten on 130 from just 108 deliveries as the hosts chased more than 300 for just the second time in an ODI. “It has been a hard road for us, and it shows we are capable of winning games,” Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura said.

Williamson, who is captaining New Zealand on the tour in the absence of the rested Brendon McCullum, believed their total would have seen them to victory.

“I thought 303 was enough. It wasn’t easy up front and I thought it was a good effort,” he said.

“They outplayed us in all areas though, so full credit to them.”

A Zimbabwean victory appeared highly unlikely after Taylor and Williamson added 137 for the third wicket to register their fourth straight century stand in ODIs. Zimbabwe started well enough after winning the toss and elect-

DAY’S HERO: Zimbabwean batsman Craig Ervine celebrates after his match-winning knock in the One-day International match against New Zealand in Harare. – AP/PTI

ing to bowl, removing openers Martin Guptill and Tom Latham in the opening 10 overs, but their inability to make further inroads left them exposed.

Williamson and Taylor had no trouble in recording their 10th century stand in ODIs — a new record for a New Zealand pair.

Taylor finished unbeaten on 112, his third ODI hundred in five matches and his 15th overall, and although Williamson missed out on an eighth ODI century, his controlled 97 was his fifth straight

score above fifty in the format.

Williamson has now scored 1,134 ODI runs since the start of the year — the most by a New Zealand batsman in a calendar year — and sits top of the ODI run-scoring charts for 2015.

Taylor is second on the list for 2015 with 1,041 runs, having helped himself to 59 runs in the final 10 overs as New Zealand moved from 188 for three to their final score to set Zimbabwe a tall target.

However Hamilton Masakadza and Chamu Chibhabha put on 74

for the first wicket in reply, and after Chibhabha fell to Nathan McCullum for 42, Masakadza added a further 120 with Ervine.

With Tim Southee rested and Trent Boult missing the tour through injury, New Zealand’s attack lacked teeth on a surface that flattened out as the day wore on, and Zimbabwe’s batsmen were able to keep the required rate within reach.

Masakadza was eventually caught behind for 84 off the bowling of McCullum, who also dismissed Elton Chigumbura for 26, but Ervine held his nerve to see Zimbabwe home with time to spare. - AFP

lift the trophy as team members celebrate after winning the FA Community Shield. – Reuters

Morale-boosting win for Arsenal LONDON: FA Cup winners Arsenal beat champions Chelsea 1-0 in England’s Community Shield season curtain-raiser at Wembley on Sunday to end a long wait for victory over their London rivals. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s brilliant goal after 24 minutes settled a match played in warm sunshine.

The 21-year-old received a pass from Theo Walcott and cut inside Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta before firing an unstoppable shot.

It was the first time in 14 attempts that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger had got the better of Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho and the result offered hope to Chelsea’s title rivals hat the champions might not have such an easy time this year.

Chelsea won the title in May with a commanding lead of eight points over second-placed Manchester City and they are the bookies’ favourites to retain the

trophy in the new season which kicks off on Saturday.

Arsenal dominated the first half and were rewarded with Oxlade-Chamberlain’s superb goal.

Chelsea sought to up their sluggish tempo in the second half, bringing on new loan signing Radamael Falcao for striker Loic Remy and replacing Ramires with Brazilian compatriot Oscar.

Goalkeeper Petr Cech, who made nearly 500 appearances for Chelsea before signing for Arsenal and received a rousing reception from both sets of fans before the game, saved impressively from an Oscar free kick in the 69th minute.

Chelsea looked short of menace in front of goal with Spain striker Diego Costa sidelined by injury. Arsenal rested key players including striker Alexis Sanchez who returned to training later than most of his team mates after helping Chile to win Latin America’s Copa America. - Reuters

TEST SERIES

Rain continues to hold up Dhaka Test DHAKA: Bangladesh and South Africa were left frustrated Sunday after rain prevented any play for the third successive day, leaving the second and final Test headed for a draw with just one day remaining. Match officials called off play in the afternoon, without the teams taking to the field at Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla stadium following continuous heavy showers.

Bangladesh reached 246-8 in their first innings on the opening day, before rain prevented a single ball being bowled on the second,

third and fourth days. South African paceman Dale Steyn took 3-30 on the first day, making him just the 13th cricketer in history to claim more than 400 Test wickets.

South Africa’s debutant wicketkeeper Dane Villas expressed frustration with Sunday’s washout, after the first Test in Chittagong ended in a draw when rain stopped play on the last two days.

“We have been preparing ourselves to get on the park. The field has been unbelievable. We were really surprised how well the drainage works here,” he said. - AFP

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

SPORTS

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Brave Broad eager to lead England’s attack England’s senior bowler in Nottingham after longtime new-ball partner Anderson was ruled out of the fourth Test with a side injury eight-wicket win at Edgbaston

BIRMINGHAM: Stuart Broad has said he’s ready to lead England’s attack as they bid for an Ashes-clinching win against Australia at his Trent Bridge home ground in the absence of James Anderson.

Broad is set to be England’s senior bowler in Nottingham after longtime new-ball partner Anderson was ruled out of the fourth Test with a side injury suffered during an eight-wicket win at Edgbaston on Friday that put the hosts 2-1 up in the five-match series.

Not only is Anderson England’s most successful Test bowler of alltime, with 413 wickets — including an Ashes-best six for 47 at Edgbaston — he also has a brilliant record

H A P P Y PA K I S TA N C O A C H

is incredibly exciting,” he said. “I’m told only 11 players have scored 2,000 runs and taken 300 wickets in the history of the (Test) game so it’s quite illustrious company.”

Broad is set to be

suffered during an

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY INSTALL WHATSNEWS

EXPERIENCED CAMPAIGNER: England’s Stuart Broad is ready to lead England’s attack in the absence of James Anderson. – AFP

at Trent Bridge.

The 33-year-old swing and seam bowler has taken 53 wickets in eight Tests there at an average of 19.24 with England’s victory in the 2013 Ashes Test at Trent Bridge yielding a 10-wicket haul for the Lancastrian.

But 29-year-old Nottinghamshire paceman Broad, a veteran of 82 Tests, is an experienced campaigner in his own right.

“In Jimmy’s absence it’s going to be up to all the other bowlers to step up,” Broad told the Mail on Sunday.

“I’ve probably not got as many wickets as I’d have liked during this series (12 in three matches at 27.41 apiece) but I feel as if I’ve bowled the best I’ve bowled for a long time.

“You don’t know what’s going to

happen but hopefully I’ll take on that extra responsibility to ensure we’re not crying out for Jimmy over the next couple of days,” he added.

Broad heads into the Trent Bridge clash, which starts on Thursday, just one wicket away from becoming only the fifth England bowler to take 300 Test wickets after Anderson, Ian Botham, Bob Willis and the late Fred Trueman.

And having already scored more than 2,000 Test runs, including a best of 169 against Pakistan at Lord’s in 2010, Broad, the son of former England Ashes-winning opening batsman Chris Broad, is also in sight of a notable ‘double’.

“It would have been nice to have got there at Edgbaston but the chance to achieve it at Trent Bridge

Johnson respect One of those players is Australia left-arm quick Mitchell Johnson, taunted mercilessly by the crowd as England surged to victory at Edgbaston on Friday.

But Broad insisted the mocking chants, which appeared to get to Johnson, were in fact a compliment. “He gets masses of stick from the crowd but it’s a sign of how much respect there is for him...He gets stick out of respect.

He’s a top cricketer,” Broad said.

“You don’t boo someone you’re not interested in do you?”

Victory at Trent Bridge would give England a fourth successive home Ashes series win, something they haven’t achieved since Australia’s first away series win back in 1899. But if they are to triumph in Nottingham, England will have to win two Tests in a row -- something that has so far proved beyond them this year.

Since drawing their series opener against the West Indies at Antigua in April, England’s next seven Tests have seen them alternate between winning and losing.

Trevor Bayliss, England’s Australian coach, has urged his side to be ruthless in Nottingham.

“Some of the Australians will be under pressure, as we were in this game, and we hope we will be able to build on that pressure in the next match and not let them up off the floor,” he said. - AFP

Waqar credits team’s attacking mindset KARACHI: Pakistan coach Waqar Younis Sunday hailed his players’ positive and attacking approach after they comprehensively defeated Sri Lanka in all three formats on the islanders’ home turf.

Pakistan clinched the second Twenty20 against Sri Lanka in a sensational last-over finish by one wicket to take the series 2-0 on Saturday, capping a successful tour where they also won the Test series 2-1 and one-dayers 3-2.

Waqar said the victory had made him proud of his players, and the team was on the up.

“I would not say that we have become world beaters after winning the whole tour but I would say that we are heading in the right direction,” he told AFP via phone from Colombo. “I think the best thing on this tour was that the mindset of the players has changed towards positive cricket.”

The former fast bowler attributed the team’s recent success in Tests, where they are now ranked third in the world, to finding the right blend of youth and experience.

“I think for the last one year we have been well settled in Tests as

R E L I E F F O R T H E S TA R

CRICKET

MCA revokes Wankhede ban on Shah Rukh Khan MUMBAI: The over 3-yearold ban on Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on entering the Wankhede Stadium was lifted on Sunday by the Mumbai Cricket Association, which had imposed it following a 2012 fracas involving the Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner and security personnel during an IPL match.

“Today, in the MCA meeting, it was decided that the ban imposed on IPL’s Kolkata franchise owner Shah Rukh Khan should be lifted.

With the prior approval of our President Sharad Pawar, it was proposed by me that the ban on him be lifted and the managing committee approved it unanimously.

“Therefore, the ban on his entry in the Wankhede Stadium has been revoked,” MCA vice president Ashish Shelar said after the meeting. The Bollywood superstar was banned from entering MCA premises, including the Wankhede Stadium, for five years for engaging in a scuffle with the

seniors support the juniors and everyone knows how to perform their roles,” he said, singling out batsmen Younis Khan and Shan Masood and leg-spinner Yasir Shah for extra praise.

On the one-day series victory, Waqar said the introduction of fresh blood had helped Pakistan improve their fielding and shed the go-slow approach that had hindered them in recent times.

“Azhar Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan and Anwar Ali were outstanding,” he said.

“The change in world cricket was adopted by us, which was to smash the ball if it is there for a hit,” he added, referring to surging run-rates that have become a feature of one-day cricket following the arrival of the Twenty20 format. Pakistan’s victory in the one-day series moved them from ninth in the rankings to eighth, thereby ensuring their qualification for the 2017 Champions Trophy in England.

Pakistan will next tour Zimbabwe, where they play three T20s and as many one-day internationals from September to October. - AFP

BAN REVOKED: Shah Rukh Khan

officials of the cricketing body and the security staff on May 16 following KKR’s victory over Mumbai Indians.

The ban order was issued two days later by the MCA’s Managing Committee then headed by Vilasrao Deshmukh, a former Maharashtra chief minister.

The actor had rejected the charge of misbehaviour and claimed he had reacted only after children who had accompanied him for the match, including his own kinds, were “manhandled” by

the security staff. “Action had been taken against him when required and we felt it was not good to take it any further. The whole managing committee consented on it. We felt it would not look good to bar somebody like this,” Shelar said.

MCA sources said that Khan had called up Pawar and requested for revocation of the ban. The MCA Managing Committee also decided not to contest the life ban imposed by the BCCI on Mumbai cricketer Ankeet Chavan in connection with IPL 6 spot fixing scandal despite a Delhi court dropping criminal charges against him.

Chavan had requested MCA to persuade the BCCI to lift the ban.

“Ankeet Chavan, who has been cleared of MCOCA (Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act) charges, requested us to convince BCCI to lift the ban on him. But the BCCI has already sent a mail to MCA clearing the factual position on this issue,” Shelar said. “So, we have rejected his request.” - PTI

Australia to tour Bangladesh this year DHAKA: Australia will head to Bangladesh to play two Tests in October, the first such series between the nations since 2006, the Bangladesh Cricket Board announced on Sunday.

The Aussies will arrive on September 28 to play a threeday warm-up match against the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s XI at Fatullah outside the capital.

The series will be the first between the nations since Australia’s 2-0 victory during their tour in 2006.

Australia will be the fourth team to visit the cricketing minnows this year after Pakistan, India and South Africa.

Schedule: October 3: Three-day practice match vs the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s XI, Fatullah; October 9-13: First Test, Chittagong; October 17-21: Second Test, Dhaka. - AFP

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SPORTS

GRAND PLANS FOR GOLF’S GROWTH

We need to take golf to the youth instead of trying to take youth to the golf. Launching golf scholarships is the way forward Dr. Mohammed Al Rumhy Patron of Oman Golf

Developing golf tourism Stressing on the need for “golf tourism” in Oman, Al Rumhy said: “Golf contributes to tourism. People think golf is about building a nice park and having some greenery, it’s not so.”

“We have beautiful golf courses in Oman,” he said. “We have the Royal Opera House, historical sites, beaches and golf clubs. We need to connect them and bring in the hotels, airlines and convention centre. We need to co-mingle and combine them as a destination. We need to package them.”

From the days of ‘brown courses’, read sand stretches, to the lush green beauties, golf in Oman has come a long way. But Dr. Mohammed Al Rumhy, Patron of Oman Golf, sees the need to take the sport to the youth,

Arrange conventions Pointing out on the need for conventions, Al Rumhy said: “If we can pull 2020 events to 2015, it will be our success. The OGC should have a convention for all golfers annually, and it should invite others in the industry, talk about the benefit of golf; have an action plan, a road map. Oman Air, Royal Opera House, Oman Sail and a convention centre can be invited to it. We can ask them to form a package and sell it to tourists.”

for the corporates to come up with mutually beneficial ideas and to establish a strong link with the country’s tourism in order to elevate golf to a whole new level

MUSCAT: With golf having taken off in the Oman through several success stories in recent times, Dr. Mohammed Al Rumhy, the Minister of Oil & Gas and the Patron of OGC (Oman Golf Committee), has outlined a number of grand plans that could forever change the country’s golfing landscape for good.

From launching an integrated golf scholarship programme just like in the golf-mad western countries, to exploring the possibility of packaging golf as a key component of tourism in Oman, Al Rumhy spoke at length about various ways in which the sport can rise to new heights.

Introduction of scholarship Al Rumhy, who is himself an avid golfer and a keen follower of the sport, has mooted the idea of launching an integrated golf scholarship programme that would “link the sport with education” and hence, provide the parents of upcoming golfers in Oman with the incentive to encourage their kids in pursuing the sport.

“Launching golf scholarships is the way forward,” Al Rumhy said.

“For parents who want to choose between sports and education, there would be models to pursue both of them. And the way to do it is to link the two.”

He is keen on the idea and wants OGC to “take the lead” and create golf scholarships.

“If anybody does well in golf and does well in high school as well, OGC can offer two or three of them partial or full scholarships for colleges or universities here, so that

they can continue playing golf:” Al Rumhy added: “If members of our junior team choose to study abroad, OGC can guide them to a suitable place where they can continue to pursue golf along with studies. We can convince their parents that they can be sent to, say, US. And if they want stay here, too, we can have the same arrangement.

This link has to be established.”

Al Rumhy said he has discussed the idea with “a couple of reputed colleges and a few corporate bodies” in Oman, who are keen to take part in this scheme.

“In Oman, there’s not much competition in this sport as compared to many other countries. It’s not like in places like India, US or say UK where you need to be at least a zero-handicap player to be awarded a golf scholarship.”

Catch them young Al Rumhy believes there are two prominent ways of attracting Omani youngsters to golf — firstly, by roping in the schools, and secondly, by setting up a transportation service that would facilitate Omani kids’ access to golf courses.

“We need to take golf to the youth instead of trying to take youth to the golf,” he said. “We need to have two or three golfers from every school in Muscat. If we do that, we can have at least 200 golfers to work with.”

He elaborated: “My dream is to create a transportation system. In the past, we used to have a transportation system in place for young footballers to reach the

Infrastructure development Al Rumhy said he has witnessed a remarkable change in golfing landscape in Oman. “I started playing golf in the 1990s. Back then, we used to play on sand. It was dusty and dirty. You had to be a golf addict to play in those courses.

“But now you can see four green courses in Muscat. What has happened is extremely encouraging.

Also, I have seen the youth getting interested in golf. Golf has begun to be appreciated in Oman, that’s one of our biggest achievements.”

DREAMING TO DEVELOP: Dr. Mohammed Al Rumhy. – Supplied photo

clubs. Three or four years ago, I remember when we were about 50 golfers here, we asked each other if each one of us could bring in a golfer. The idea was to have 50 new golfers. Basically, we need golfers to recruit golfers.”

Al Rumhy called upon parents to realise how golf can help groom their kids.

“It will be wonderful if parents get to know what golf can do to their kids:” he said. “We will have to make parents understand that if you send your kids to the golf

course, they will learn good manners apart from learning golfing skills. Take the example of my sons, they literally grew up on the golf course. Globally, 99 percent of golfers are good-mannered people.”

Welcoming corporates Al Rumhy has called upon Oman’s business community to participate in the development of golf.

“I welcome all big, medium and small corporate houses to come forward to sponsor OGC’s golfing events,” he said. “There

are two ways for OGC. One is to approach companies and banks for sponsorships. The other way is to tell corporate bodies — let’s see how you can help yourself by helping us.”

Al Rumhy explained: “Corporates can benefit from golf. In many counties, hosting a golf event is a competitive business.

And then, of course, golf can promote business interactions. Interestingly, on a visit to Australia, I even saw weddings taking place at a golf club.”

Let’s go beyond Muscat Al Rumhy has dreams of taking golf beyond Muscat.

He said: “So far, golf is concentrated in Muscat. If I have a wish list, I would like to see golf in other areas, like Salalah, Sohar, Sur and Duqm. Golf will attract people if we build courses. You build a golf course you create an interest in the area. That will serve as a catalyst for golf development. Golf courses are part of tourism projects in Salalah and Duqm.”

Hosting an Asian Tour event Al Rumhy is also hoping that Oman soon hosts an Asian Tour event.

“We are now thinking about hosting an Asian tour event,” he said. “Maybe one day, we can even have a PGA or a European Tour event. We will benefit from such events as a host country.”

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

SPORTS Oman U-23s gearing up for West Asia and GCC events ing deep defensive structures and more. The course is scheduled to end on August 7.

The team, who are undergoing the summer preparatory camp in Salalah, will return to Muscat to play a friendly game on August 10 against Oman senior national team TWIN CHALLENGES: A file photo of Oman under-23 team.

MUSCAT: Hamed Al Azzani coached Oman National Under-23 Team continue the preparations for the forthcoming West Asia Championship in Qatar (October 2015), and the GCC tournament in Bahrain (November 2015).

The team has started the summer preparatory camp in Salalah with two friendly games on August 2 (which they lost 1-2 to Salalah Club) and August 8 (against Al Nasr Club) before returning to Muscat for a

third friendly game on August 10 against senior Oman national team.

The probables selected by Al Azzani are Ahmed Al Rawahi, Bilal Al Balushi, Mohamed Al Rawahi, Nader Awadh, Thani Al Rasheedi, Yousef Al Noobi, yaser AL Mukhaini, Hassan Al Saadi, Omar Al Fazari, Abdullah Fawaz, Ahmed AL Siyabi, Jamil Al Yahmadi, Bassam Al Salhi, Hatim Al Roshdi, Al Munther Al Alawi, Yousef Al Mukhaini, Khalid Al Hamadani, Marwan To’eib, Omar

Al Malki, Ahmed Al Breiki, Amjed Al Harthi, Ahmed Al Kaabi and Muhanned Al Habsi.

Coaching Course Meanwhile, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has launched the second series of workshops for Grade A coaches in Muscat hosted by the Oman Football Association (OFA).

A total of 24 coaches are taking part and are being trained by Lim

Kim Chon, from the AFC, and AFC Instructor Khalid Al Lahori from OFA. Once completed, each coach will be presented with an official AFC certificate of completion.

Theoretical and practical sessions are conducted such as development of movement in team play, goalkeeping, leadership in professional football, sport psychology, student coaching sessions, goal-scoring, working with a diamond system of play, attack-

Referees workshop The Oman Football Association (OFA) has organised a preparatory workshop for the International and Elite Referees who will be officiating in different competitions in the new season. The workshop took place in Salalah from July 25 to August 1 with a total number of 32 referees.

The workshop was prepared and run by the Referees’ Department at the OFA on a daily basis including theoretical and practical sessions.

List of referees: Ibrahim Al Sharqi, Abu Bakr Al Amri, Ahmed Al Kaf, Ishaq Al Subhi, Al Mutasim Al Yaqoobi, Bader Salim, Jamal Al Obedani, Hamed Al Mayahi, Hamed Al Ghafri, Humood Al Shuibi, Khalid Al Shaqsi, Khalid Al Sheedi, Rashid AL Ghaithi, Zakariya Al Hinai, Abdullah Al Jardani, Abdullah Al Shammakhi, Abdullah Al Hilali, Omar Al Yaqoobi, Falah Al Balushi, Qasim Al Hatmi, Majid Al Raqqadi, Majid Al Hatmi, Mazin Al Meshaikhi, Mohamed Al Alawi, Mohamed Al Ghazali, Mahmood Al Majrafi, Mohanna Alokesh, Naser Ambusaidi, Naif Al Balushi, Haitham Al Aamri and Yousef Al Ghafri.

CHANGES

IOC approves amendments to OOC LAUSANNE: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) approved the amendments made by the general assembly of the Omani Olympic Committee OOC) during its extraordinary meeting, which was held on March 30.

The IOC approved a number of articles, which were introduced to the Articles of Association (AoA) of the Omani Olympic Committee in a bid to enhance its system.

The provisions are related to settlement of disputes and sports arbitration. - ONA BRIDGE

MBL to host pairs tourney MUSCAT: The Muscat Bridge League (MBL) will organise a Pairs Bridge Tournament on Saturday.

According to a press release issued by the organisers on Sunday, the tournament will take place at Ruwi Novotel.

Interested players should report at the venue of the event at 2.30 pm on Saturday.

C S R I N I T I AT I V E

Bank Muscat reviews 2015 Green Sports applicant fields MUSCAT: Bank Muscat, the flagship financial services provider in the Sultanate, is currently organising visits to review 2015 Green Sports applicant fields belonging to sports clubs and teams for greening and infrastructure development of playgrounds across the Sultanate.

Response to Green Sports initiative has increased since its launch in 2012, with over 75 applications received this year. The bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability officials will conclude the field visits soon to evaluate the applications and select 15 beneficiaries in 2015.

The Green Sports CSR programme was launched by the bank to lay the foundation at the grass-root level for a sustainable sports infrastructure.

In record time, the bank achieved notable success in developing green fields in all parts of the Sultanate, thus contributing to the realisation of sporting dreams of the clubs and affiliated

teams. To date, the bank has supported 34 sports clubs and teams to green their playing fields.

As part of its commitment to promoting a sporting nation, the bank this year widened the scope of Green Sports initiative beyond greening of fields.

From 2015, sports teams and clubs seeking Green Sports support can choose from four options to either green their playgrounds with natural or synthetic turf, or avail support to affix flood lights or water desalination equipment to facilitate greening of fields in areas facing problems of water salinity.

The move is aimed at providing wider representation to sports clubs and teams to build sustainable sports infrastructure in all parts of the Sultanate.

The bank’s support to the initiative stems from its commitment to giving a helping hand to all deserving teams and clubs in Oman to green as well as provide infrastructural support for playgrounds in Oman.

The bank recognises that local clubs wield immense influence on neighbourhood communities, especially youth, hence clubs with modern infrastructure facilities can help raise sporting heroes for the country.

The funding criteria of the programme, include that sports clubs/teams should have been in existence for three years with a minimum membership of 300 youth from the local community.

The Green Sports initiative reiterates the bank’s support to Oman’s youth who represent the future of Oman.

True to its commitment to supporting varied sporting activities in the country, Bank Muscat remains at the forefront in offering the required encouragement to youth of the country.

As the nation’s leading financial institution, Bank Muscat aims to motivate and provide the required impetus for youth to excel in all arenas and thereby contribute to the development and progress of the nation.

FOOTBALL

Paraguay FA backs Platini’s bid for FIFA presidency ASUNCION: Paraguay has offered to be one of the official backers of Michel Platini’s bid for the FIFA presidency, the country’s football association said in a letter sent to FIFA. Candidates for the FIFA presidency have to present the written support of five national football associations by October 26, four months before the election.

Honoured “The Paraguayan Football Association (APF) is honoured to officially offer its backing to Michel Platini’s candidacy for the president of FIFA,” said the association

in a letter addressed to FIFA Secretary-General Jerome Valcke.

“Please send Michel Platini’s candidacy to the FIFA electoral committee to be examined,” the letter, signed by APF President Alejandro Dominguez and published on its website, added.

Frontrunner Platini, president of European football’s ruling body UEFA, has emerged as the early frontrunner in the race to replace Sepp Blatter as head of FIFA. South Korean Chung MongJoon, former Brazil great Zico and Liberian FA president Musa

Bility have announced they will run in the February presidential election, though Zico has admitted he may struggle to get the five official backers.

South African businessman and former political prisoner Tokyo Sexwale is also considering a bid, a spokesman said on Saturday.

Blatter was re-elected for a fifth term as FIFA president on May 29, but four days later he said he would lay down his mandate as soccer’s governing body became embroiled in the worst crisis in its history.

Each of FIFA’s 209 member associations hold one vote in the presidential election. - Reuters

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SPORTS

Sultanate of Oman stay third at GC32 Kiel Cup

SAILILNG STEADY: Sultanate of Oman in action on third day of the 2015 Bullitt GC32 Racing Tour, Kiel Cup. – Supplied photo

Oman Sail’s GC32 Sultanate of Oman go into the final day of racing in third place overall

MUSCAT: Stage three of the Bullitt GC32 Racing Tour in Kiel, Germany, has proved to be one of their most challenging events this year but the crew of Oman Sail’s GC32 Sultanate of Oman go into the final day of racing in third place overall.

The narrow Kieler Fjorde is a brand new racing experience for the GC32 crafts and the German crowds have shown their support by turning up in their thousands every day, following at close quarters and clearly eager to watch these high performance machines tear around the tiny race track at astonishing speeds.

Crowd numbers are among the highest so far in the inaugural GC32 season and the enthusiasm is going a long way to offsetting some of the frustrations encountered by Sultanate of Oman skipper Leigh McMillan in the fight for honours which earned them one outright win and another podium place on Saturday.

A morning where there was no wind and no racing was followed by an afternoon of fresh breeze and plenty of exciting action giving spectators a dramatic exhibition of high speed racing with the GC32s skimming across the water on their foils. By the close of

play, Sultanate of Oman was holding steady in third place but McMillan rued missed opportunities.

“Things didn’t really go our way today because we were getting good starts and not managing to convert them into good results,” said McMillan.

“We need just a bit more practice as a team!” he said referring to a last minute change of crew when Pete Greenhalgh became ill and Paul Campbell James, who stood in for Leigh at the end of the Cowes Cup and for the Round the Island Race, stepped in again for the Kiel Sailing Cup. “To win in this fleet you need to nail all aspects of the racing – you have to get absolutely everything in place.

“We are scratching our heads a bit, especially upwind and even when we were happy with our strategies and everything was going OK, a boat would come up from behind in a puff of wind, on their foils and engulf us so it was pretty frustrating.”

“Having said that these boats are incredibly fun to sail — and having enough wind to get up on the foils was great but we want to go out and win.

“We know we can do it because we won overall in Austria and put in some great performances in Cowes but we have to work harder on our starts and on strategy.

“We will talk about it tonight and find a way because we are determined to rise up through the ranks and we have just a day left to do it.”

McMillan’s crew of Paul Campbell James, Ed Smyth, Nasser Al Mashari and Alister Richardson were blown away by the support they received from the German crowds.

“We are used to racing in front of good crowds in the Extreme 40 and GC32 circuits but the spectators in Kiel were fantastic,” said Al Mashari. “We could hear them cheering and clapping and it seems like they really enjoyed watching these boats in action.”

MOTORSPORT

Ahmad Al Harthy satisfied with grid determining run at Brands Hatch GP MUSCAT: Aston Martin Middle East and North Africa ambassador Ahmad Al Harthy heads into the sixth round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship at Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit confident of a strong front-running challenge, after qualifying eighth fastest for the two-hour contest.

Producing a very competitive showing on Saturday, the 33-yearold Oman Racing Team (ORT) driver posted a fastest lap time of one minute and 26.804 seconds during his session to end the opening qualification run third fastest.

Teammate Daniel Lloyd then went on to lap in one minute and 25.871 seconds during the subsequent period to deliver a combined effort of 2:52.675 – equating to eighth on the.

Despite encountering a few small issues in the opening practice session on Saturday, which did limit the squad’s running in comparison to the competition, full focus in practice two went towards ensuring the No.2 Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 was set-up as well as possible for qualifying.

Pleased with his own pace and satisfied with the overall result from the all-important grid determining run, Oman Air, Oman Ministry of Sports Affairs, Ooredoo, National Bank of Oman and Al Hashar Group-backed Ahmad is quietly confident going into round six.

“The car was perfect for qualifying, we were very close to our best performance of the year and to be P8 on the combined times, just eight tenths off the front row, is good — I’m satisfied with that,” said the Omani. “I’m feeling very

COMPETITIVE SHOWING: Ahmad Al Harthy in action at Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit. – Supplied photo

confident with my pace, we had limited running in the first practice so in FP2 we concentrated on getting the car good for qualifying and the team did a great job.

“I think we’re stronger than quite a few cars in front of us on the grid, so we need to keep everything clean at the start and then take advantage of any opportunities. We know what we need

to do and I think we have a very good chance of a strong result this weekend.”

Leading the Silver Cup classification going into this afternoon’s race, Ahmad and Lloyd are also fifth overall in the outright British GT Championship standings while the Oman Racing Team leads the way in the entrants’ title battle.

Provisional 2015 Avon Tyres

C5

British GT Championship GT3 driver standings: 5. Ahmad Al Harthy/Daniel Lloyd, 46 pts.

Provisional 2015 Avon Tyres British GT Championship GT3 Silver Cup: 1. Ahmad Al Harthy/ Daniel Lloyd, 81.5 pts.

Provisional 2015 Avon Tyres British GT Championship GT3 team standings: 1. Oman Racing Team, 144.5 pts.

FOOTBALL

Selfies, six packs to derail Arsenal title hopes: Keane LONDON: Arsenal are not capable of winning the Premier League title this season because they have too many players interested in selfies and six packs rather than winning football matches, according to former Manchester United captain Roy Keane.

Keane, a fire and brimstone midfielder, won seven Premier League titles as a player and enjoyed particularly competitive relationship with Arsenal and their similarly combative captain Patrick Viera.

The current Ireland assistant manager, however, said he saw little in the current Gunners side to convince him that they are poised for a first league title since their Viera-led ‘Invincibles’ team in 2004.

“Arsenal have some really good players — some good characters who roll their sleeves up,” Keane told the Mail on Sunday.

“But they also have one or two players who are more interested in selfies and six-packs, guys who are trying to get their pictures taken every day of the week.

“Every year we hear the same thing about Arsenal being contenders. Instead of focusing on the Premier League, it’s all about how their bodies look, how their hair is, more so than winning football matches.”

Arsenal, under manager

Arsene Wenger, have become one of the most dazzling attacking sides in Europe but a perceived lack of leadership has undermined their ability to make a sustained title challenge for a number of years.

Back-to-back FA Cup triumphs ended their nine-year trophy drought but for too long the north Londoners have not been relevant during the intense 38-game toil of a Premier League season.

Last season, under Jose Mourinho, Chelsea — built around a strong spine of hard-working, physical players — stifled their closest rivals to canter to the league title and Keane said the Stamford Bridge side remained the benchmark in the upcoming season.

“For me, Chelsea remain the team to beat,” the 43-year-old added. “Their team is the one with the strongest spine — John Terry, their goalkeeper (Thibault Courtois), Eden Hazard — and if they can add (Everton’s England defender) John Stones to their team then they will be even harder to beat.

“The bottom line is that if Chelsea’s players show the same hunger and desire that they did last year then they’ll win the league. They will only be in trouble if they are complacent.” - Reuters

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Leaks of confidential doping data throws global athletics into chaos The news

IAAF ‘power struggle’ behind Russian doping allegations

organisations said they had shown the data to two experts, who concluded that track and field endurance events were in the same dire state as cycling had been at the peak of a doping scandal

KUALA LUMPUR: Leaks of confidential doping data threw global athletics into chaos on Sunday, after a newspaper and a broadcaster said a third of medals in Olympic and world championship endurance races from 2001-2012 were won by runners with suspicious blood.

Britain’s Sunday Times and Germany’s ARD/WDR broadcaster said they had obtained the secret data from the vaults of the global athletics governing body, the IAAF, supplied by a whistleblower “disgusted” by the extent of doping.

The news organisations said they had shown the data to two experts, who concluded that track and field endurance events were in the same dire state as cycling had been at the peak of a doping scandal that nearly destroyed that sport, when American Lance Armstrong was stripped of seven Tour de France victories.

“Never have I seen such an alarmingly abnormal set of blood values,” the Sunday Times quoted Australian doping expert Robin Parisotto, one of the two scientists that reviewed the data on behalf of the two news organisations, as saying.

“So many athletes appear to have doped with impunity, and it is damning that the IAAF appears to have sat idly by and let this happen.”

The IAAF did not immediately address the substance of the reports but said it was preparing

MOSCOW: Russia’s sports minister Vitaly Mutko says a power struggle at the top of athletics’ world body the IAAF is behind damning new doping allegations which he dismisses as “nonsense”.

“It seems that somebody wants to ruin the track and field athletics by issuing such films on air,” the ITAR-TASS news agency quoted Mutko as saying on Sunday.

“In any case it’s incorrect to base any kind of accusations on the documentary, it’s just nonsense.

“The elections of the new IAAF president will take place in August and the struggle for power is currently in full swing.

“We shouldn’t fall into panic but to continue to work with no worry. Currently there’s no real power to rule IAAF and everything there looks like a mess.”

German TV channel ARD on Saturday broadcast a documentary named: “Doping — Top Secret: The Shadowy World of Athletics” with a series of new accusations aimed at Russian and Kenyan athletes.

ARD, who last December had aired similar accusations of doping and corruption in Russia, returned to the controversy just three weeks out from the

a response and noted they were based on confidential information obtained without permission.

The World Anti-Doping Agency, a separate body set up in 1999 to coordinate doping investigations across global sport, said it was “very disturbed”.

The allegations “will, once again, shake the foundations of clean athletes worldwide,” WADA’s President Craig Reedie said at a session meeting of the International Olympic Committee in Kuala Lumpur.

“These are wild allegations, wide allegations and we will check them out and have that done with

“We’ve already commented on it in December,” federation press secretary Alla Glushchenko told radio station “Echo of Moscow” on Sunday. “We found there a barefaced lie, nothing else. So far everything (in the film) is unsubstantiated.”

JUST NONSENSE: Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko.

world championships in Beijing.

“Despite assurances from the Russian authorities (in favour of a clean sport) doped competitors and their suppliers are always protected,” the public broadcaster said in a statement.

The makers of the film claim to have evidence of human growth hormone being used to boost Russian runners.

They also say that a hidden camera recorded 800m athlete Anastasia Bazdireva as praising the benefits of drugs. “With anabolics, I have stiff muscles. But I can run. It’s hard but it’s OK. You feel different with anabolics,” she is recorded as claiming.

But the minister has raised

the commission as quickly as possible,” Reedie said.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) expressed confidence that WADA would get to the bottom of the allegations.

The allegations concern techniques used to improve the ability of blood to carry oxygen to cells, which can give an advantage to competitors in events where endurance is critical, like long distance cycling, or, in the case of athletics, running over medium and long distances.

The Sunday Times and ARD said they were given access to the results of over 12,000 blood

doubts about the credibility of the statements in the ARD film.

“Our former athletics federation bosses have launched a legal action against the first ARD film authors,” Mutko said.

“We had a feeling that there was no direct Russian speech in that documentary, only the German text. We have asked them to give us evidence for inspection but haven’t got anything.

“That’s why the attitude to the new accusations should be very careful. But we’re set to study them thoroughly anyway.”

Russia’s athletics federation has called all the accusations in the ARD documentaries “unfounded”.

tests provided by more than 5,000 athletes between 2001 and 2012.

More than 800 of the athletes had recorded one or more “abnormal” results, defined as a result that had less than one chance in 100 of being natural.

Between them, those athletes accounted for 146 medals at top events, including 55 golds, according to the data. Russia accounted for by far the most suspicious results, with 415 abnormal tests, followed distantly by Ukraine, Morocco, Spain, Kenya, Turkey and others.

“A remarkable 80 percent of Russia’s medal winners had recorded suspicious scores at some

Kenya hits back Kenya’s athletics federation, meanwhile, hit back at renewed doping allegations levelled by ARD against its fabled distance runners, calling the claims “libellous”.

ARD alleged doping was ongoing in Kenya, and claimed there was “massive corruption” within the Kenyan set-up and “a desire to cover-up doping... to the summit of the Kenyan athletics federation”.

“We have watched with grave concern the German TV ARD documentary,” Athletics Kenya said in a statement, calling the broadcast “extremely suspect and ill motivated”.

“The documentary not only makes serious and sweeping allegations on doping but also makes serious allegations on the integrity of our current and former leaders, including our sponsor without giving them an opportunity to respond,” Athletics Kenya said. - AFP

point in their careers,” the Sunday Times said.

It said results were clean for a number of top athletes, including Britain’s 2012 Olympic double gold medallist Mo Farah, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and British heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill.

‘Zero tolerance’ The allegations are likely to overshadow the biennial world athletics championships, which begin in 20 days in Beijing.

The IAAF said in a statement the allegations were largely based on analysis of its database of private and confidential medical

F LY I N G D I S C

UNANIMOUS RECOGNITION

South Sudan becomes IOC’s 206th member KUALA LUMPUR: South Sudan became the 206th member of the Olympic family on Friday after the International Olympic Committee approved its inclusion, despite ongoing fighting in the African country.

The unanimous recognition of the country’s Olympic Committee drew a loud round of applause from the IOC members with South Sudanese officials visibly moved and some in tears.

“Let me wish you a very bright future,” IOC President Thomas Bach said. “We will stand by your side. We look forward to welcoming you to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games of Rio de Janeiro (in 2016). This will put your nation on the world map.”

Thousands have been killed and more than 2.2 million displaced since fighting broke out in December 2013 between President Salva Kiir’s government and rebels commanded by Riek Machar.

Both sides have been accused of human rights abuses and indiscriminate killings, which have of-

data, “which has been obtained without consent.”

It said it would “reserve the right to take any follow up action necessary to protect the rights of the IAAF and its athletes”.

While he did not comment directly on the allegations, IAAF Vice-President Sergey Bubka said after meeting WADA’s Reedie: “There will be zero tolerance, this is clear.”

“The IAAF is a very strong leader in the fight against doping. We will not stop the fight. If we need to change rules and regulations we will do it,” Bubka, a Ukrainian pole vault champion vying with Britain’s Sebastian Coe to succeed Senegal’s Lamine Diack as the new boss of world athletics, said.

The allegations are the latest scandal to tarnish the multi-billion dollar world of global sport, following an ongoing corruption scandal in soccer.

Athletics are a central part of the only global sporting event that rivals the soccer World Cup in scale — the Olympics — which collect billions of dollars from sponsors like Coca-Cola, Panasonic, Visa and McDonald’s.

The IAAF, and its world championships later this month, count Adidas, Canon, Seiko and Toyota among its sponsors.

An independent commission chaired by WADA’s founding president Dick Pound is already investigating previous allegations of doping that implicate Russia, the IAAF, athletes, coaches, trainers, doctors and other members of athletes’ entourages, as well as an accredited laboratory based in Moscow and the Russian AntiDoping Agency.

Reedie said the initial findings of the commission had been expected by September, but the new allegations meant the process could now take longer. “I am very surprised by the numbers from the leak from the IAAF... I am sure they will want to look at it closely to determine the source,” he said.

He emphasised that “athletes are innocent until proven guilty”.

International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said the IOC had “full confidence in our partners WADA”.

“It is up to the WADA commission to gather the evidence but we have full confidence in them.” - Reuters

ten been carried out along ethnic lines, with Machar’s Nuers pitted against Kiir’s powerful Dinkas.

South Sudan’s marathon runner Guor Marial competed at the London 2012 Olympics but did so under the Olympic flag after refusing to run for Sudan and with South Sudan not yet an IOC member at the time.

With the country now officially part of the IOC it can send a team to next year’s Rio summer Olympics who can compete under its own flag. Marial will compete at the athletics world championships in Beijing this month before preparing for Rio. “It is very simple, the goal is to win a medal if I am healthy and train well,” Marial said from his training base in Kenya, where he watched the IOC ceremony by internet.

“I have been working for this since 2005, this is a dream come true,” Marial added.

“There will be nothing better than competing in Rio under the South Sudanese flag.” - Agencies

‘Frisbee’ earns Olympic recognition KUALA LUMPUR: The sport of flying disc, commonly known as “frisbee”, was officially recognised as an Olympic sport by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Sunday, opening the way for it to try and join the Games’ programme in the future.

After meeting all the criteria to become an Olympic sport, including having 62 national federations and gender equality, the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) was given the nod at the 128th IOC Session session in the Malaysian capital.

While Olympic recognition opens the door to some funding from the IOC, participation in the Olympic Games is years away and involved intense competition from many other sports vying for entry. The sport became popular in the 1960s and 70s and the WFDF now holds major championships in several events including Ultimate Frisbee, Beach Ultimate and field events. - Reuters

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LIFESTYLE

SECTION

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

Gear

A THING OF BEAUTY WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

By Scott Armstrong

Climbing into a Bentley feels like putting on a new tailored suit â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that sense of somehow being an inch taller, an inch slimmer, and a whole lot better looking all in one go.

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

LIFESTYLE

Continental GT V8 S Convertible Engine 4-litre twin-turbocharged direct injection V8 with cylinder deactivation Max Power: 521 bhp / 528 PS / 389 KW @ 6,000 rpm Max Torque: 680 Nm / 502 lb.ft @ 1700 rpm Transmission: ZF 8-speed automatic with Quickshift, Block Shifting and column mounted paddleshift Driveline: Continuous allwheel drive (40:60 rear bias) Performance Top Speed: 308 km/h 0-100 km/h in 4.7 secs Fuel Consumption: Urban 15.8 litres/100 km Extra Urban 8 litres/100 km Combined 10.9 litres/100 km

Scott’s drive was courtesy of Bentley Oman, Wattayah Motors LLC.

T

here are days, just some days, in this unremitting toil we call existence that make the daily drudgery worthwhile.

This was one of those days. Behind the wheel of a Kingfisher blue Bentley Continental GT V8 S Convertible with the top down, the Sea of Oman to my right, the Al Hajar mountains to my left with the wind whistling through my hair (okay, massaging my bald pate), I had one of those freeze-frame moments when you just want to stop the scene and savour the present while it lasts.

There are cars to be driven in and cars to drive, this is the latter by about a million per cent.

This is a car that the hallowed Jeremy Clarkson, the artist formerly known on Top Gear, called “one of the world’s best cars”.

And there is a reason why: This car is a thing of beauty to drive.

In traffic it will happily glide along minding its own business (rather than sulking in the lower range like some sports cars). But put your foot down and it’s as if the entire percussion section of an orchestra has sprung into life.

The bass of the engine exploding around you (especially with the top down) is astonishing. Musicians that were gently blowing panpipes a split-second before are now blaring out the Ride of the Valkyries on tubas, big tubas.

Mathematically expressed the convertible is finding 100 kilome-

tres per hour in just 4.7 seconds, which is breathtaking given the sturdy shoulders of this twin turbo-charged beast.

And yet, as you surge forward, you remain in complete control.

The suspension, not too soft or springy, allows you to feel the road, complemented by steering pitched just right. The weight and the balance as you head into turns enables the driver to instinctively trust this machine.

As you lean into the corners you feel this wonderfully-balanced vehicle defying physics as it throws its two-and-a-half tons into the bend with utter exuberance, but you can relax with the sure knowledge that it can do it – sort of like Neo from the Matrix dodging bullets in slow motion.

Bentley’s PR speak says this: “Drive it with the hood down and a new dimension is revealed. You’re no longer an observer of the passing landscape, but a part of it, with every aspect of your journey – especially the thrilling sound track — amplified in the open air.”

Bit overdone perhaps, but yes, that’s pretty much it. And it’s an effect that works especially well out here in the Gulf, where for eight months of the year (stretching it, but you would in this car) the outside temperature is just begging you to put the top down.

And it’s out here that Clarkson’s biggest, and only real issue, with the convertible evaporates.

The colour.

Behind the wheel of a Kingfisher blue Bentley Continental GT V8 S Convertible with the top down, the Sea of Oman on my right, the Al Hajar mountains to my left with the wind whistling through my hair (okay, massaging my bald pate), I had one of those freeze-frame moments when you just want to stop the scene and savour the present It’s fair to say that the Continental’s dress code of colours is bright, understandably garish for an Englishman and a professional critic to boot, but when the sun is shining, bright shirts and bright cars, particularly Bentleys, are de rigueur. It is perhaps not the Downton Abbey image one would associate with brand Bentley back in Blighty, but a Kingfisher blue Bentley Continental GT V8 S Convertible works here.

To quote Clarkson’s hilarious review: “If you buy a car such as this, you are almost certainly going to be in your fifties and to have — let’s be kind — a prosperous waistline and a bald patch the size of a jellyfish.”

Apart from the age (not quite there yet) this driver is guilty as charged, but so what?

Gliding along the roads with the stunning coastline zipping past, the Continental becomes the greatest cosmetic surgeon alive, because in your mind that lack of hair makes you look less like Duncan Goodhew (look him up kids) and more like Jason Statham. And the good thing is, no-one is going to shatter that illusion, because they are all looking at the car.

Is it sad or shallow to say or write such things? Perhaps, but when you are buying the second most expensive car in one of the world’s most luxurious fleets, you really should buy it for you.

Forget Clarkson (apologies to the legend if you are reading), forget society (high or otherwise), just climb in, start the motor, and drive. And you’ll be able to drive, and drive, and drive, as you’ll get around 800 kilometres between fill-ups, giving you 10.9 litre per 100 kilometres.

So, on behalf of all the overweight and under-haired I say this: “Be bald, be bold, and be Bentley.”

—scottarmstrong@timesofoman.com

PHOTOGRAPHY: Bentley Motors - Venecio Datan

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MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

O M O E N IN H T R 20 E 1 U 7 Q N O

fo m an .co m

L P A S NNIN I I D GT AU O

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LIFESTYLE

Ċ LI A T KA U A SH RAN

BY MAH

AUDI HAS SET ITS SIGHTS on the moon. The German carmaker’s Quattro all-wheel drive system is known the world over for conquering the toughest roads, and now Audi has gotten ambitious and wants to scale the unexplored roads of the Moon, too.

Supporting the efforts of a team from Berlin called the “Part-Time Scientists” in order to win the Google Lunar X Prize, a $30 million competition to land a privately funded robot on the moon, the Audi rover would need to successfully overcome three main tasks: land safely, scale at least 500 metres, and send HD photos of the moon’s surface back to earth.

The carmaker is working closely with the team to create the Audi lu-

nar Quattro, an all-wheel drive, lightweight rover with electric mobility and piloted driving that runs on lithium batteries that are solar charged.

“The concept of a privately-financed mission to the moon is fascinating,” Audi Board Member for Sales and Marketing, Luca de Meo, was quoted as saying in a statement

on the Google Lunar X prize website.

“And innovative ideas need supporters that promote them. We want to send a signal with our involvement with the Part-Time Scientists and also motivate other partners to contribute their know-how.”

The Part-Time Scientists developed the lunar rover and Audi lent considerable resources to the development work, including restyling the rover in its Concept Design Studio in Munich.

The robot will have two stereoscopic cameras to allow it to record images for the contest and its estimated top speed will be 3.6 kilometres per hour.

Now known as the Audi lunar Quattro, they hope to launch in 2017 and

o es tim @ an hr a m

land on the same sight as Apollo 17, Nasa’s first manned mission to the moon. The trip is expected to take about five days, ending at an area north of the moon’s equator.

The Part-Time Scientists are pleased with the collaboration.

“With Audi we have acquired a strong partner that will bring us a big step forward with its technological and mobility capabilities,” said Robert Böhme, founder and head of the team.

In the 1960s, the United States and Russia were caught up in race for space. Some of the most exciting cars from the 1960s were designed

and named to invoke images of satellites, planets, and rocket ships.

Ford Galaxie Starline, Dodge’s Polara, Dodge Charger are some classic examples. Funny how the tables have turned.

The Google Lunar X Prize competition started with 25 teams from all over the world, and Audi and PartTime Scientists are now in the finals.

If Audi manages to win this competition, we can be sure that many others will follow in subsequent challenges to get their share of the lucrative “race to explore” space market.

Lucky for us down here on earth, it also means there will likely be many more developments in auto design, for those destined for space and those destined for a more grounded existence down here with us.

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12:30, 7:15, 9:30, 11:45 pm (3D) ANT-MAN 3D(Action, Adv) (PG12) Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll

10:00AM, 9:30, 11:45PM Gold Class: 3:45, 9:00, 11:15PM Ant-Man 2D (Action, Sci-Fi ) (PG12) 2:00PM Drishyam 2D (Drama, Mystery) (PG12) Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran 8:45PM Gold Class: 6:00PM Paper Towns 2D (Drama, Mystery) (15+) Cast: Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne 4:30, 6:40PM Terminator Genisys (3D): (Action) (PG12) 11:55PM Minions (3D) (Animation, Comady) (PG) 12:15, 2:45PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2D): (Drama) (PG) Cast: Salman Khan, Harshaali Malthotra 6:30PM

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SOHAR Terminator Genisys - 3D (PG12) Action, 6:00, 11:30 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan - 2D (PG) Drama, Action 3:15, 8:15 PM Minions - 3D (PG); 4:15 PM Baahubali - 2D (Hindi) (12+) Action 9:00 PM Ant-Man- 2D (PG12) (Action, Sci-Fi) Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll 2:45 PM Ant-Man- 3D (PG12) Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi 5:00, 9:30, 11:45PM The Night Crew - 2D (15+) Action Cast: Danny Trejo, Jason Mewes, Luke Goss

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Dubai

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TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62) 06:30 06:30

BURAIMI Ant Man - 2D (Horror, Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll 5:10PM Ant Man - 2D (Horror, Thriller) (PG12) 3:00, 7:45, 9:30, 11:45PM Ted 2 – 2D (Comedy) (12+) Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Amanda Seydfried 3:00, 7:20PM The Night Crew – 2D (Action, Thriller) (15+) Cast: Dany Trejo, Chasty Ballesteros

SUR Ant Man (2D) (Action | Sci-Fi) (PG12) 6:00 PM Ant Man (3D) (PG12) 9:30, 11:45 PM Minions (3D) (Animation ) (PG) 4.15 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Hindi) (Action) (PG) 4:30 PM Drishyam (Hindi) (Action) (PG12) 8:15 PM Ted 2 (Comedy) (12+) Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Seth MacFarlane, 7:30 PM Acha Din (Malayalam) (Drama) (PG) 11:15 PM

STAR CINEMA

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

10:20 12:30

TO SUR (ROUTE 55) 07:30 14:30

Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll 4:00PM Ant-Man (3D)(PG12); 12:00, 9:15, 11:30PM Minions (3D) (PG) (Animation) 10:15AM, 2:15PM Terminator (3D)(PG12) (Action) 2:30, 11:45PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2D) (PG) (Drama/Action) 6:15, 11:15PM The Night Crew (2D) (15+) (Action/Thriller) Cast: Danny Trejo, Jason Mewes, Luke Goss 9:30PM Ted 2 (2D)(12+) (Comedy) Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Amanda Seyfried 10:15AM, 2:30, 6:40PM Paper Towns (2D)(15+) (Drama) Cast: Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin 12:30, 4:45PM Drishyam (2D)(PG12)(Hindi) (Drama) 11:30AM, 8:45PM Acha Din (2D)(12+)(Malayalam) (Drama) Cast Mammootty, P. Balachandran, Jaise Jose 4:30PM Sakalakala Vallavan Appatakkar (2D) (PG12)(Tamil) (Comic Drama) Cast: Anjali, Jayam Ravi, Trisha Krishnan 6:40PM

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54) 08:00 08:00

08:55 Daily 11:40 Daily 20:20 Daily via Ibri 14:55 Daily 17:40 Daily 19:20 Daily 22:15 Daily

3:45, 9:50PM Drishyam– 2D (Drama, Thriller) (TBC) Cast: Ajay Devgan, Shriya Sharan, Tabu, 8:15, 11:15PM Acha Din – 2D (Comedy) (TBC) Cast: Mammoothy , Mansi Sharma, Renji 5:30PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan– 2D (Drama, Action) (PG) 5:15, 11:30PM

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52) 20:50

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54) 14:30 14:30

Sohar Ruwi Ruwi Sohar Ruwi Sohar Ruwi

Daily Daily Daily

9:30 pm THE NIGHT CREW (2D) (15+) (Action/ Thriller) Cast: Danny Trejo, Jason Mewes, Luke Goss

WEATHER

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36) Quriyat Sur Jaalan

5:30 pm ACHA DIN (2D) (Comedy ) (TBC) Cast: Mammoothy , Mansi Sharma, Renji

2:15, 11:55 PM Ted 2- 2D (12+) Comedy Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Seth MacFarlane, 2:00, 7:15 PM Paper Towns - 2D (15+) (Drama, Mystery) Cast: Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin 6:15 PM Drishyam- 2D (Hindi) (TBC) (Drama, Thriller) Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran 8:30, 11:15 PM Acha Din - 2D (M) (TBC) Drama Cast: P. Balachandran, Jaise Jose 6:45 PM Sakalakala Vallavan Appatakkar - 2D (T) (TBC) Comic Drama Cast: Anjali, Jayam Ravi, Trisha Krishnan 4:00 PM

SCREEN 3 Baahubali: The Beginning (Action) – 12+ Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty 3.45, 6.45, 9.45PM

RUWI SCREEN 1 Drishyam (Thriller/Drama ) – PG12 Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran 3.30, 9.30 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Action/Drama ) – PG Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Harshaali Malthotra 6.30 PM

3.30, 6:45, 9.30PM DRISHYAM (Thriller/Drama ) (PG12) Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran

Daily Daily Daily

Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain Bangladesh Brazil Brunei China Cyprus Egypt France Germany India Indonesia Iran Iraq Italy Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya South Korea Kuwait

24698 791/4 24605 593 24 605 074/133 24 698 660 24640100 24 603533 24 696782 24 699815 24 600 982/411 24681 800 24835000 24684500 2469 1050 24 696 944/7 24603642 24693727 24 601 028 24692760/1/3 24 692418 24 697664 24 691490 24 699628

Lebanon Libya Malaysia Morocco Nepal Netherlands Pakistan Palestine Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Senegal Somalia South Africa Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Switzerland Syria Tanzania Thailand Tunisia Turkey UAE United Kingdom United States Yemen

24 693208 24603466 24698329/643 24696152/3 24696177 24603706 24603439 24601312 24605335 24 691 153/2/4 24602894 24601705 24694139 24697977 24647300 24691101 24697841/2 24697875 24603267 24697904 24601 174 24 602684/5 24603486 24697050/1/2 24400000 24609000 24643400 24600815

PHARMACIES Round the clock Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi 24783334

Appolo Medical Centre, Hamriya Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi Salalah Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra Muscat Region Apollo, Al Hamriya Muscat, A Seeb Market Muscat, Al Khuwair Muscat, Al Hail South Dhofar Region Muscat, Al Nahdha Road, Salalah

24782666 24702542 23291635; 24503585 24787766 24421691 24485740 24537080

23291635

HOSPITALS Al Amal Medical & Health Care Centre 24485052 Atlas Hospital Ruwi 24811743/ Ghubra 24504000 Al Musafir Specialised Medical Clinic 24706453 Hatat Polyclinic LLC, Ruwi 24563641 Azaiba 24499269 Sohar 2683006 Al Raffah Hospital 24618900/1/2 Al Massaraat Clinic & Laboratory 24566435 Al Makook Medical Coordinance Centre 24499434 Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24787766, 24787780 Capital Polyclinic 24707549 Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic, Ruwi 24799760/1/2 Capital Clinic, Seeb 24420740 Ceregem National Raak 24485633 Dr Harub’s Clinic 24563217 Elixir Health Centre 24565802 Emirates Medical Centre 24604540 1st Chiropractic Centre 24472274 Hamdan Hospital 23212340 International Medical Centre LLC 24794501/2/3/4/5 Kims Oman Hospital 24760100 24 Hrs Emergency 24760123 Lama Polyclinic, Sohar 26751128 MBD 24799077 Al Khuwair 24478818 Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital 24568870 Muscat Private Hospital 24583600 Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair 24477666 Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC 22004000 AIRLINE OFFICES Muscat Airport Flight information (24 hours) 24519456/24519223 Aeroflot 24704455 Air Arabia 24700828 Air France 24562153 Air India 24799801

Air New Zealand 24700732 Biman Bangladesh Airlines 24701128 British Airways 24568777 Cathay Pacific 24789818 Egypt Air 24794113 Emirates Air 24404400 Ethiopian Airlines 24660313 Gulf Air 80072424 Indian 24791914 Iran Air 24787423 Japan Airlines 24704455 Jazeera Airways 23294848 Jet Airways 24787248 Kenya Airways 24660300 KML Royal Dutch Airlines 24566737 Kuwait Airways 24701262 LOT Polish Airlines 24796387 Lufthansa 24796692 Malaysian Airlines 24560796 Middle East Airlines 24796680 Oman Air 24531111 Pakistan International Airlines 24792471 Qatar Airways 24771900 Qantas 24559941 Royal Jordanian 24796693 Saudi Arabian Airlines 24789485 Singapore Airlines 24791233 Shaheen Air 24816565 SriLankan Airlines 24784545 Swiss International Airlines 24796692 Thai Airways 24705934

C12

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

LIFESTYLE

BY THE NUMBERS

WHAT’S WITH WEB FRAUD? People are becoming increasingly more concerned about their online privacy and eager to learn how they can gain control of their personal information. But is there anything worth being worried about?

Here’s the breakdown.

Identity fraud across Europe continues to grow.

Since 1999, it has risen by

Global identity theft hits a new victim every two seconds

Crime investigators estimate the financial losses due to theft of identity in 2014 at

In the last year there have been more than 317 million new pieces of malware created, meaning nearly one million new threats were released into the wild each day.

New Android malware families were discovered in 2014. In addition, there are perhaps as many as 2.3 million “greyware” apps that, while not technically malware, display undesirable behaviour, such as bombarding the user with advertising.

Is the number of identities exposed due to security breaches in 2014.

Is the average price of stolen credit card information on the black market, but it can go for as little as 50 cents.

1 in 4 users admitted they did not know what they agreed to give access to on their phone when downloading an application.

On April 7, 2014, a security bug nicknamed ‘Heartbleed’ was discovered in the Open SSL encryption library which is used by millions of online services. This allowed hackers to access personal data on affected servers. Within 4 hours of the vulnerability becoming public, the rate of attacks peaked to more than

Law enforcement figures indicate that the average arrest rate for ID theft crimes is under 5% for all reported cases.

per day.

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2015

C11

LIFESTYLE BRIEFS

Windows 10 arrives on 14 million computers with some intrusive features

Windows 10 has already been downloaded on 14 million computers, Microsoft has said — but there’s still a long way to go.

The new operating system came out earlier this week.

“We still have many more upgrades to go before we catch up to each of you that reserved your upgrade,” Microsoft wrote in a blog post.

The company asked users to reserve their copy of Windows 10 in advance, using an app that appeared on their computers weeks ahead of the release. Microsoft will then check those computers for compatibility and push up a notification when a computer is ready to be updated.

But Microsoft’s officially sponsored method isn’t the only way to get hold of Windows 10.

By heading to the company’s website and downloading an application, users can jump the queue and start downloading.

5

Awesome Inventions

THE MOST FAMOUS INVENTOR YOU NEVER HEARD OF

BY MAHRAN SHAUKAT ALI

INVENTOR NIKOLA TESLA, born in what is now Croatia in 1856, came to the United States in 1884 and briefly worked with Thomas Edison. He held several patent rights, but eventually sold many of them, including those for his alternating-current machinery, which were purchased

by George Westinghouse. Westinghouse’s 1891 invention, the “Tesla coil,” is still used in radio technology today and is regarded as one of the most important modern inventions. The great thinker foresaw the future of smartphones back in 1901, during the race to develop the first transatlantic radio, when he described to his funder and business partner, J.P. Morgan, a new means of instant communication that involved gathering stock quotes and telegram messages, funnelling them to his laboratory where he would encode them and assign them each a new frequency, which would then be broadcasted to a device that would fit in one’s hand. Despite his amazing mind, Tesla’s work wasn’t appreciated until long after he died, penniless and relatively nameless, in New York City on January 7, 1943.

Here are five awesome ideas for

which Tesla is long overdue credit: 1. Alternate Current The vision of Edison and the vision of Tesla differed on how electricity would be produced and distributed. The DC current that Edison (backed by General Electric) had been working on was costly over long distances and was dangerous. Edison believed in commercialisation of energy and Tesla believed that it was the duty of inventors to promote the free distribution of energy. This lead to the Edison-Tesla (GE-Westinghouse) feud of 1893, the culmination of over a decade of shady business deals, stolen ideas, and patent suppression that Edison and his moneyed interests wielded over Tesla’s inventions. Out of this divide, Tesla’s discovery of the rotating magnetic field contributed to the development of the alternating-current (AC) electrical system that’s widely used today.

2. Light Of course Tesla didn’t invent light itself, but he did invent how light can be harnessed and distributed when he developed and used fluorescent bulbs in his laboratory some 40 years before the

his belief that everything we need to understand the universe is around us at all times, but we need to use our minds to develop real-world devices to augment our innate perception of existence. It was this kind of thinking that no doubt enabled Tesla to play a central role in the development of this transformative invention in the field of medical diagnostics.

bulb industry “invented” them.

Tesla also took glass tubes and bent them into famous scientists’ names, in effect creating the first neon signs. However, it is his Tesla Coil that might be the most impressive, and controversial theory, which posited that the Earth itself is a magnet that can generate electricity, which could be freely available if harnessed effectively.

3. X-Rays X-rays, like so many of Tesla’s contributions, stemmed from

4. Radio Guglielmo Marconi was thought to be the inventor of radio to this day. However, the Supreme Court in the (US) overturned Marconi’s patent in 1943, when it was proven that Tesla invented the radio years previous to Marconi. Marconi was thought to have used his financial weight to buy off patents illegally.

5. Remote Control Nikola Tesla demonstrated a remote-controlled boat back in 1898, which laid the foundation for the robotic and drone technology used today. While this exact technology was not widely used for quite some time, we now can see the massive commercial and military potential of this invention.—mahran@timesofoman.com

Windows 10 may be spying on you Windows 10 has been well received by users and tech writers alike, but parts of Microsoft’s new privacy policy are raising eyebrows due to concerns that they could be ‘spying’ on what users do.

The tech company’s service agreement stretches to 12,000 words, but one part of it has worried users over the safety of their data.

One excerpt worryingly tells users that “we will access, disclose and preserve personal data”, including the contents of e-mails or files in private folders.

They add that they will do this when they need to comply with law enforcement, prevent spam, maintain the security of their networks, or protect their rights

or property. Microsoft also keeps tabs on your behaviour in order to target adverts to you.

Opt out Go to Settings — Privacy and turn off everything that looks dodgy. There are 13 screens you need to get through to cover every aspect of your machine, including what apps and programmes have access to your location, contacts, messaging details and camera, amongst other things.

Turn off Cortana Again, this could be a problem, as the Cortana search function, which is similar to Apple’s Siri, has been highly praised as one of the best functions of Windows 10.

Users will have to decide whether they’re willing to disable Cortana in exchange for increasing privacy.

Turn off personalised ads Windows 10 ads work by delivering you targeted adverts wherever you’re logged in to your Microsoft account.

It’s clear that Microsoft doesn’t want users to do this, because it’s not as easy to disable as the other privacy features.

However, it’s still pretty straightforward. You need to go to an external website, and simply turn both personalised ad options to ‘off’.

Use a local Windows account This is a fairly drastic option, because it would severely cut back on the synchronisation of features between your devices.

Instead of using an existing Windows account, you could use a newly made local account — prevents Microsoft from getting your data. -Agencies

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w w w.t i m e s o f o m a n . c o m m o n day, au g u s t 3 , 2 0 1 5

SECTION

CONNEC t h e d a i ly g u i d e

RENT

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VACANCY

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CARGO

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*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s publication. * Subject to space availability

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Daily guide

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

for rent

3BR villa, sitting, dining & hall, Azaiba behind Al Meera H- Market.

Contact: 99259977 / 95033008 1BHK, Darsait, walking distance to ISM , neat and clean building, ground floor, OMR 260/- per month rent Call IQRAR on 99076557 Fully furnished 3 BHK accommodation with all spacious rooms in a villa at Darsait near ISD. Contact: 9526 5289 / 9604 8422 Furnished room for rent at Al Khuwair R.O 225/- for family only.

Contact: 99251975 Readymade office space for rent (100sm) in Bank Melli Iran building, MBA area Ruwi opposite Center Point. Contact: 99011352 Flat for rent in Wadi Al Kabeer behind Muscat club.

Contact: 92222922 2BHK near Oman house behind Khimji H.O. Contact: 95865686 2BHK flat available behind Majan College / Darsait. Contact 24705742 1 &2 BHK flats for rent at Wadi Kabir, Wadi Adai, Hamriya and Al Khoud areas, shop for rent at Wadi Adai Round about. Contact: 24834644, GSM 93994401 /02/03 lines

550 sqm built up area Deluxe villa with 3 sitting halls located at prime commercial location North Al Ghobrah. Contact: Owner 99411607 / 99892238 2 BHK with split /AC in W/K behind Sana fashion. Contact: 96708000 At Al Hail 2BHK 260/- & 1BHK 180/- , shop or store space RO 240/-.

Contact: 96072686 2BHK ground flr in Darsait Near Muscat Municipality, walkable distance from Indian School Muscat, Rent: OMR.275/- Contact : 99451845 2BK Wadi Kabir near Kuwaiti Mosque. Contact: 97007934 / 92629232 House for rent in Sidab at reasonable rent. Contact: 95555162 / 95755953 Flat for rent with AC in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 95555162 /95755953

1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK new flat available at Mabela in front of Modern English School Contact: 96239126

2B/R, RES / COMM flat directly from owner Bausher near Dolphin Complex. Contact 92158031

2 BHK Flats for rent in Muttrah near Oman house. Contact: 97009734 / 92629232

3BHK with split AC in MSQ, opp.

Al Fair. Contact: 96708000

Flat for rent in Mabellah 8th.

Contact: 97147240 Flats for rent at Darsait near to Ministry of Sports. Interested candidates please Contact : 00968-92225523 840 Sqr Mtrs Store for Rent in Misfah. Contact 99792181 Warehouse for Rent in Misfah.

Contact 99792181 Spacious 2BHK Flat with Split A/câ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s behind Sultan Center, Azaiba â&#x20AC;&#x201C; RO.425/- p.m. Contact: 99824803 / 99849325 Deluxe PH 1BHK at North Ghoubra.

Contact: 99242218

2BHK in Al Ghubra near Indian School. Contact : 96708000 2BHK commercial Al Khuwair R.O 400/-. Contact: 97799175 2 rooms in Al Khuwair.

Contact 99330385 Office / shop near Star Cinema & CBD Muttrah. Contact: 99233116 2BHK near CBD & Star Cinema, Muttrah. Contact: 99233116 BHK Flat in Azaiba.

Contact 99385835 / 99428143 Deluxe 1, 2,3 bedroom flats in Ruwi & Wadi Kabir & Al Khuwair.

Contact: 95282986 / 24707340

2BHK, 2 Baths, Split A/C, Wadi kabeer, near Indian Elementary School.

Contact 99441193, 93004801

250 sq mtrs restaurant for rent in Plaza Hotel, Walja Ruwi.

Contact 99326339

Office/ storage space in new building at MBD South.

Contact 94460790 / 24714625

Two shops in Muttrah Souq, for rent. For more details please contact: 99364735 / 91214849

Godown for rent Approx: 4500 sqm area with building materials in Barka for rent with workers accommodation etc. Showrooms also for building materials available. Contact: 99808868

600 sqm build up office / warehouse area for rent. Consisting of basement space, ground floor and mezzanine showroom / office area.

Easy access and parking space also available. Located on opposite Oman flour mills and beside to Lulu, Darsait available from 1 August 2015 onwards for lease.

Contact: 99364735 / 91214849

500 sq mtrs office space on mezzanine floor near Royal Hospital.

OMR 6.500 per sq mtr.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 600 sqr mtrs showroom in Wadi Kabir. Contact: 99792181 1bedroom, kitchen, sharing toilet, parking, family R.O 110/-, 1bedroom sharing K& T family in Al Khuwair R.O 100/-. Contact: 95154331

Coffee shop for rent, Muttrah, Mabelah (with visa). Contact: 92749464 / 92222806 Flat for rent in Wadi Kabir with 3 rooms. Contact : 98555580 / 92800007

m o n day, au g u s t 3 , 2 0 1 5

Daily guide

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Motor Vehicle for SALE

Honda CRV 2008 model, expat driven, 2.4L, 78000 kms, OMR 5200/(Negotiable). Contact: 99867670 Hyundai Tuscon 2.4 Full option (including Moon roof) for sale in Muscat, Model 2013 , Single Owner (University Lecturer) driven, 39,600 kms, in excellent condition, for sale.

Contact 99653760.

Mazda 3, 2007 KM 1,43000, full automatic R.O 1900/-.

Contact : 99781671 RAV4-2009 model, silver colour, 2.4 liter, single hand use by Indian Expat. Contact 99355382

available Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting, Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crockery, Glassware, Chafing Dishes, Ice Sculptures, to Large Sound Systems and spectacular lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222 for Catering and Croyden 9623 5555 for Sound & Light. www.tunesoman.com, E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

for rent Villa 4 & 5 BHK for rent in Al Khuwair. Contact 99792181 Flats shops for rent in Ruwi MBD area Mumtaz area.

Contact: 97293708 / 92433127

for rent

For rent if require flats for rent in Wadi Kabir please send me messages through Whatsapp.

Contact: 99376454 Deluxe 3 BHK Penthouse with Seaview, ideal for office / residence at Qurum near PDO. Contact: 9772 1313 / 9507 0421 1,000 sq mtrs industrial land in Misfah Industrial area near to Khanco. OMR 1,500 Monthly. It has Electricity and boundary wall.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

Flats for rent in Al Khuwair, Al hail, Wadi Kabir, Al Falaj, MBD, and Muttrah. Contact: 99119699 / 95250300 / 24813002 1 BR flat at Darsait, near ISM. Contact 99237971 / 99320633 Flat for rent in Darsait near Indian School 1 bedroom, living room, 2 bathrooms & kitchen. Contact: 95806611 / 94694662 Flat for rent in Ruwi, 1 bedroom (Walja) 1 bedroom, living room , 2 bath rooms, kitchen.

Contact: 95464607 / 95464608 Furnished offices for rent in prime location in Ruwi (Mumtaz) with free electricity, water and internet for lease long & short term. Contact: 99331181

Shop for rent prime location in Ruwi Mumtaz near Al Burj hotel.

Contact: 99331181 Two bedrooms flats in Wadi Kabir near Indian School. # 99313274 Commercial Space 68 SQM, Wadi kabeer, near Indian Elementary School. Contact 99441193, 93004802 Flats for rent near Indian School in Wadi Kabir. Contact 99777122 Brand new villa Bosher 37, 4 BHK. Contact: 91936034

2BHK flat near Indian School, Wadi Kabir. Contact: 94460790/24714625

Store 2000 Sqr mtrs for rent in Wadi Kabir. Contact 99792181

A fully equipped furnished and licensed private polyclinic for sale or rent in excellent location in Sohar - Falaj al Qabail opposite to life line hospital Departments are GP clinic, Dental, Medical lab, X-ray And Working Pharmacy. Contact 95603395

2 bed rooms, kitchen, toilet & car park in Al Khuwair R.O 200/- .

Contact 95154331

Well maintained spacious 2BHK at Rex Road. Contact: 92227165

2BHK near Oman house Muttrah.

Contact: 99233116 3BHK, 3 bathrooms, 2 balconies, nr Al Hassan W/Kabir R.O 340/-.

Contact: 99384640

Fabulous AC flat at Al Khoud 3 bedrooms, hall and kitchen RO 270/for rent. Contact: 99334699 2 bedrooms apartments for rent in Al Khuwair and Ghubra. Call Yellow Bird property on 24615375 / 97137989 or visit www.muscat-realty.com

for sale 400 sq mtrs Commercial/Residential land in Maabela Phase 5 Block 2. OMR 140 Thousand.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 Used furniture of readymade Garments shop. Contact: 96441670 Truck spare parts (new) for sale.

Contact: 92600900 3 floor commercial building in Muttrah behind Police. Generating income of OMR 18 Thousand annually. Neat and well maintained. Built on 197 sq mtrs land. 2 tailor shops on ground floor and 6 flats. OMR 207 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 Running established for sale including industrial licenses for marble & granite, fully furnished kitchen showroom and fully equipped factory. Contact: 99337670 / 92623665 House hold items. Contact: 97094797 Brand new Panasonic 60” full HD LED, TV TH60A430M R.O 350/- .

Contact: 99628819 2560 sq mtrs industrial land in Wadi Kabir main road, First line on way to Al Bustan hotel. Possible to make petrol station or hotel. OMR 990 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 Ladies beauty Saloon for sale at Amerat on prime location with two clearances. Contact : 95867900 Shop for sale in Ruwi High street, Contact 96078411

3 Bedroom flat in Wadi Kabeer and 2 bedroom villa in Sidab- Muscat.

Contact: 95755953

New villa at Qurum, 6 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, sitting, dining and open sitting on the terrace.

Contact: 99342733

Villa with two floors in (Hay Al Arjan) in AL Khoud with 4 bedrooms, hall, Majles, kitchen & one room in ground floor. Contact: 93219597

60,000 Sq Mtrs Agriculture Land in Misfah, can be changed to Industrial Land. OMR 29 Per Square Meter.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

1 Villa & 3 big Flats of 2/3 BHK with hall, Kitchen & ACs Al Khoudh 6, Close to express way, from owner. Tel 97600322 alnehang@gmail.com

Vehicle automotive batteries available at cost price. Interested parties who want to buy the batteries in bulk numbers for reselling purpose may. Contact: 24794657

House in Amerat near to Makah hypermarket with three room, 5toilets, kitchen and hall 430/-.

Contact: 92747078 Bath attached room for rent Al Khuwair. Contact 99743569 4 BHK single villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158

5 Flats of 1 bedroom for Sale in Boushar: OMR 35 Thousand each.

Monthly income OMR 270 Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 23,886 Sq Mtrs Agriculture land with water well in Al Salwa, Barka.

OMR 260 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

Touareg 2011 Oman cars, 114000 KM, silver, 8500/-R.O. Contact 92857111

Acc. available Furnished single room attached bath in Mumtaz area. Contact : 95212017 Large room with separate bathroom and sharing available in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 95250161 Room for rent with Electricity, water & A/C kitchen RO 115/- RO, RO 130/Al Khuwair. Contact: 95423391 Acc available single room with attach bathroom, kitchen at Mabella near BP Petrol Pump rent R.O 100/- near Indian School. Contact: 91516775 Independent rooms in Qurum / Al Hail. Contact 95529970

Prado ,2012. Contact : 99336093 Izuzu 4 ton Vehicle - 2nos (2008), Izuzu 3 ton Vehicle- 1 no (2006), Nissan UD 10 ton 1 no (2001), Mitsubishi 7 ton -1 no (2004), Toyota forklift – 1 no (2000). Contact: 99719124 Email: thekkutt@gmail.com Volkswagen Caddy 2013, 146,000 KM, under warranty.

Contact: 99822843 Tucson automatic V-6 2007, R.O 2300/-. Contact: 99384640 Land Cruiser 2012. Contact: 99336093 Sportage, 2013.

Contact:99336093

For hire Volvo 12 Ton Truck for monthly rent. Contact: 98713900

BUYING/SELLING Used furniture & Electronic items, office & house. Contact: 99834373

Acc. wanted Required a room in Darsait / WadiKabir /Ruwi area. #95405033

nri

Single room with attached toilet & bath in Ruwi for Executive bachelor rent Including with water & electricity. Contact: 99327158 New fully furnished room & attached bathroom, kitchen, Wifi, for bachelor Honda road. # 98582078 Sharing accommodation available at Wadi Kabir for bachelor.

Contact : 94195690 Rooms in Seeb for couple / single ladies. Contact : 96996938 Large room furnished bath attached separate entrance Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 99336206 Fully furnished room for a decent expatriate. independent kitchen, bathroom in Wadi Adai.

Contact 96243086 at 5p.m.

Furnished room in Ruwi for non cooking Executive bachelor in Ruwi, rent RO 90/- per month. # 94412557 Family sharing accommodation available in Al Khodh. # 99371129 Room for rent available in CBD near Papa John’s Restaurant.

Contact 96568100 Fully furnished 1BHK with all household items in Darsait near Lulu on monthly Basis. Contact : 99378397 Sharing accommodation available for working lady or couples near Ruwi Church. Contact: 92837206 Room attached toilet and kitchen near Indian School Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 95345537

Matrimonial Kerala Hindu boy 28 (star – Chitra) Engineer with MBA working in a reputed co. in Oman looking for alliance from good looking, well educated , religious and veg. girl of reputed family. Contact : 99426627 Remarriage, Pentecostal boy, LLB 35 /170 Project Executive hailing suitable proposal. .

Contact 97413778 Email: winupaul01@gmail.com Christen boy 31-170.

Contact: 95131495 Sunni Muslim girl, Indian origin, 20 yrs BA graduate from Oman, good looking homely with good religious values, seeking alliances from Muslim professionals, well settled in Oman or Middle East.

Contact: 99644760 or Email: ghulamuzma23@gmail.com

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

d 4 m o n day, au g u s t 3 , 2 0 1 5

Daily guide

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

SITUATION WANTED

SITUATION situation WANTED vacant

Account. & Finance Chartered Accountant with ICWA Inter having 5 years experience in Finance, Accounts, Costing, Budgeting, Audit, Insurance, Treasury & Banking operations - NOC Available + OmanDrivingLicense Contact :97881548 Email-financecost2@gmail.com Indian male, 30 years, CMA (Inter),M. com.4 out of 7 years experience in Oman in Auditing/ Accounts/ Finance. Having NOC and valid Oman D/L. Contact: 96746420, Email: sijuthampi@ymail.com MBA (Finance) with NOC, 6 years accounting and finance experience in Oman, knowledge of Tally ERP9 having Omani driving license seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 97205715 Email: ammar_uh@hotmail.com 12 years Oman experienced Chief Accountant looking for immediate placement. Contact: 99513082

Accountant

engineer

Urgently required Junior Accountant. Please send CV: hr.azatllc@gmail.com

Civil Construction company in Muscat looking for SUB Contractors for 3 floor commercial building (4 Nos – 3000 m2 each) project at Mabellah ready to start. For enquiries mail to awahaibitrad@gmai.com

Urgently required male Accountant & Office Admin. Contact: 96339339 Email CV on info@eigllcoman.com Urgently required Jr. Accountant/ Purchasing Manager (preferably Indian) 3-5 yrs Exp. to work with food stuff market. software/hardware knowledge would be an advantage, valid Omani D/L with NOC Contact 99417418 Reputed Construction Company require Accountant experience in Construction Company with accountancy degree.

Email: jvacancy05@gmail.com Urgently required cash investors for company’s profitable projects.

Contact: 92950082

beauty Wanted experience Beautician for beauty parlor in Muscat. Contact: 94241385 Urgently required gulf experienced female professional Beauticians and storekeeper for a reputed high end beauty centre in the capital area.

Interested please ensure release letter and send your CV to email: linnujiya@gmail.com or contact 99500330

A leading civil construction company in Muscat requires Project Manager (BE. Civil) with minimum 10 years experience (Gulf experience preferred). Please send C.V to hr.azatllc@gmail.com Heavy Equipment Mechanic (sports) & (classic) (bicycle) 2No. Contact : 99550084 Required Architectural Engineer for consulting company.

Contact: 99077856 Email: rgeorge@omantd.com Urgently Required: Civil Engineer minimum 5years experience in building construction in GCC, MUST have NOC and immediately join.

Apply, fax 00968–24605955, emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com, sbeoman@yahoo.com.

Required Electrical Engineer minimum 5years experience in building construction in GCC, MUST have NOC and immediately join. Apply, fax 00968–24605955, emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com, sbeoman@yahoo.com.

MEP Engineer on urgent basis required for immediate placement.

Please contact tgi17@omantel.net.om

Wanted experience henna designer for beauty parlor. Contact 93571312

Education

Urgently required beautician with min 3 years. Contact 93231403 Email: rainbowfurnishing156@ gmail.com

Arabic speaking Female Vice Principal/Arabic Teachers / Secretary / Computer Teacher / PRO s wanted for a Bilingual (Arabic – English) school in Azaiba. Knowledge of English preferred. Please apply to email : burj@alhakkim.com

Wanted experienced Beautician for beauty parlor in Al Amerat 3.

Contact: 91107337

Catering Chinese/ Arab/ continental cook & helper wanted.

Contact 95529970

Domestic Helper Urgently required housemaid.

Contact: 96339339 Email CV on info@eigllcoman.com REQUIRED URGENTLY Full time house maid for Omani family. Contact : 95164139 between 8.30 am to 5 pm Require qualify caregiver for an orderly mother.

Contact 99425200 Indian House Maid with experience required to work in Sohar, visa ready.

Contact 99417418 Full time housemaid required for Indian family in Ghubra, Nepalese preferred, call 95681350

driver Required heavy duty truck driver holding Omani driving license w/ 5 years experience please contact 92001111 Wanted driver. Contact: 95112461 Driver heavy duty required urgently for trailer. Oman / GCC experience must. Those ready for immediate joining. Contact: 99310859

Kindergarten in Seeb looking for (female) English Teacher bachelor in English language.

Contact: 99319259 / 93972775 Email: saif123.s171@gmail.com

it Software developer with experience in asp.net, sql server and crystal reports required for a software development firm. Email CV to hr@ promisworld.com

medical Wanted Lab Technician, Staff Nurse, Pharmacist for a polyclinic in Sohar. Contact 99767605 Required Pharmacist for 2 months for a Pharmacy.

Contact: 99705799 Staff Nurse for 2 months for a clinic in Muttrah.( LOCUM).

Contact: 99330385 Dental surgeon, Staff Nurses (female), Dental Technician with or without MOH license for a polyclinic near Sohar. Excellent salary package. Phone: 99006915, Email : alhinaee.clinic@yahoo.com General Practitioner DR to work in Bidbid, Prometric passed, 3 years of work experience, Send CV clinic@m-oman.com Immediately required lady Doctor (DGO) or GP with Gynecology experience & lab technician.

Contact: 99310590.

Email : tjmaluke@gmail.com

Miscellaneous Wanted JCB Operator. Contact: 99325827 Required Indian or Pakistani calligrapher & Painter (staff accommodation) Contact# 24480487/24483493 Urgently required experienced Safety Officer with valid license for a reputed construction company.

Interested candidates can send their CVs to rajesh@oasisgrace.com Contact: 99881459 / 99885931 fax: 24812226 Wanted urgently Secretary to the managing partner, Sales Executive with driving license for rent a car business & electrical Engineer, linemen, electricians. All the above vacancies are for Salalah and enough experience required. Apply soon to hr_oman1@yahoo.com

Sales / Marketing Urgently required : Counter Service Assistant (male) for a fast food outlet in a food court in Sohar.

Email: aliyanational@gmail.com Wanted Marketing Managers and Executives, candidates with minimum 2 years experience in Oman holding valid driving license May only Apply 94151791/ 22050729 or Email: sales@dewdropoman.com Wanted designer & Salesman for Advertising CO. With Oman D/L. Contact: 96440587 / 94055643 Urgently required out door Sales Executive for furnishing company with Oman D/L and min 3 years experience. Contact : 93231403 / rainbowfurnishing156@gmail.com Building Material Sales man required at Al Amerat shop.

Contact: 99467054 Required Chinese / Biryani cook / Sales person for restaurant.

Contact : 95395378 / 94053449 A leading Tissue paper & food stuffs company requires Sales & Marketing person with minimum 5 yrs exp. in Oman with good communication skills & valid Oman D/L. Candidate with interior market knowledge & experience preferable.

Send CV : allub@alhosnigroup.com, fax: 24451430 Wanted male written & spoken Malayalam & Bengali as freelancers to conduct corporate & individual markets surveys on temporary basis, Must be fluent in English with driving license. Contact: 24701242 A leading building materials shop required Marketing Executive (Omani National only) 1No with minimum 2 years experience and driving license. Contact: 99808868 Email: aalfarsi2020@gmail.com Experienced Marketing representative – interlock blocks with light Omani driving license is required.

Contact 99222086 Looking for Outdoor Salesman for heavy equipment spare parts.

Contact - 93292015, Email: mail.om@gulfcenter.co Salesman required for a well established building materials company.

Oman D/L required.

Contact: 93698385 Email: united@omantel.net.om

Secretarial & office Required Omani Receptionist / Office assistant for a company in Ghoubra. Fresher’s can apply with expected salary.

Email : thomas.john@ext.gfk.com

SITUATION WANTsit. WANTED ED Account. & Finance Indian male,Accountant, B.com, 1 yr experience in auditing and having knowledge in tally. #94733824/95769355 32 male Pakistani Accountant B.Com having 2 years experience in Oman. Contact 99761664 Indian male 33, B.com, MBA (HR) tally having 9 yrs exp looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 98181652, Email: wailsmathew@gamil.com

15 years Oman experienced Admin & Accounts Manager looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 92253080 Good experienced in accounts and Admin knowledge of Tally ERP9 having NOC looking for suitable job.

Contact: 98717938 Accountant Indian male 8 years experience, 6 years in Oman with Oman driving license, seeking suitable job. Contact 96012973 Indian male (34) B.Com with computer, 11 years experience as Store Manager, Accountant, Sales Executive having Oman driving license, looking for suitable job.

Contact: 92753822 13 years exp (7.5 years gulf exp) B.Com graduate, looking for Accountant job, GSM No:-92957064 with NOC.

Pakistani male 25 years male MBA finance having, 18 months experience accounts and transport seeking suitable job having valid Omani D/L /. Contact: 99191284

Energetic Finance & Audit Manager / Chief Accountant, C.A , MBA ,ACCA , CPA..15 yrs in GULF , Expert in Banking, Financing, Profit Maximizations, Admin, Biz Developments ,All ERPs Software’s, 15yrs Audit Exp. with Big 5 , NOC & Driving License Call 94403270 – 94504505

Indian male 24 years MBA finance 2 years experience in accounts looking for suitable job.

Contact: 98222753 Email: shemeejvp@gmail.com

Accountant, Indian Male, 15 Years experience (8 Years in Oman with Driving License) seeks suitable placement with NOC, Contact 94117616, 91238272

CA , Inter, M.Com Indian 7 years experience in Audit / finance handled independent audit / finance assignments on visit looking for suitable placement. Contact: 91148139 Email: smurug@live.com

Fresh Graduate B.Com with CIMA (partly Qualified) looking for a suitable position. Contact 94652485

Part - time Accountant available.

Contact : 98803439

6 years experienced male having masters degree and experience in sales, accounts, customer services and IT. Contact: 98823248 Email: sajjadhussain@yahoo.com

Accountant having 4 yrs experience looking job. Contact: 99867456 Email: ashkar7673@gmail.com

Indian 24 years MBA finance 2 years experience seeking suitable placement. Contact: 9822253

Part time Accountant with 15 yrs exp in accounts, finance audit taxation. Contact: 95857199

Indian female 25 yrs B.Com MBA / 3months experience looking for job in Accts /Mktg. Contact: 94657403 / 99355931

Indian female Accountant with 5 yrs Gulf exp in accounts, audit, Admin payroll. Contact: 96263157 Indian male, B.Com, MBA, having 5 years experience(3 years in U.A.E) is currently seeking suitable opportunities within finance/accounts/ admin dept. Contact:93953613, allen.mathew83@gmail.com Seeking for a job completed B.Tech in ECE under Anna University knowledge in hardware troubleshooting ready to work with accounting & software section holding one year experience in India.

Contact: 96142153 Indian National, male, 41 years, CA Inter, persuing CA final. Now on express visa. 7 years of Experience in OMAN as Finance and Accounts Manager in Trading, Construction and Firefighting industry. Total 21 Years of Experience seeking suitable Managerial positions. No visa issues. Immediate joining. Phone no: 98469311 Email:sebin30@yahoo.co.in Filipino Male 26 years old, Certified Public Accountant, Bachelor of Science in Accountancy with 5 yrs of experience now on visit visa, Looking for suitable opening.

Contact: +968 91278583, Email: kennethalcedo07@gmail.com Chartered Accountant with 7 years of post qualification experience in the areas of auditing/accounts & finance/taxation/IFRS, etc. seeking challenging job opportunity. Can obtain NOC. Email: sns2205@gmail. com and GSM +968 95763680.

Indian female B.Com 20 yrs exp in Accounts / Insurance seeking suitable placement. Contact: 92986455 15 yrs of experience in Oman, Indian male – Accounts & finance professional with Oman driving license is looking for suitable position. Commerce Graduate with certifications in DPCS & PPGDCA. Contact 93422557 Indian male 22 years, having 1 year experience in accounts & admin looking for suitable vacancy.

Contact 97375512 Accounts or sales 27 years male Graduate B.Com 2 years experience in Oman as Asst Accountant looking for suitable job currently working in Oman. Contact: 98427810 Email: shaheel9895@gmial.com Motivated and energetic male 25 having 4 years of experience in finance with Master’s degree in Economics and CAT Certified seeking opportunity in Accounts/finance/ audit in a reputable organization.

Cell no: 00968-94626209 E-Mail: omerjawedshah@gmail.com Accountant, Indian male, 10 years experience in Oman, having knowledge of Tally ERP9 & able to do upto finalization and can be joined immediately with NOC. Contact: 94134085 Email: mascatoman95@yahoo.com Well experienced and hard working Restaurant Manager seek immediate placement. Release available.

Contact: 92953199

Indian male Accountant B.Com 8 yrs in Oman exp with N.O.C, valid driving license. Contact: 95052969 Email: chetansmma@yahoo.co.in / chetansmma@gmail.com Jordanian Accountant (ACPA) with more than 15 yrs experience in Oman (Accounts, Purchase & finance). Contact: 92881223 Email: kamal_sarhan@yahoo.com Indian female MBA with 1 year experience seeks suitable placement. Contact: 98435532 MBA, B.Com CA (finalist) 7 years experience (2 years in Oman) looking for suitable placement in a reputable organization. Expertise in ERP, Tally Quickbooks, peachtree and Excel.

NOC available.

Contact: 97736404 Email: adnantahir1990@gmail.com

admin Indian male MBA having 10 years experience as Document Controller and 2+ years experience as Project Assistant/ Executive Secretary in Oman seeks immediate placement.

NOC available. Contact: 95373198 Indian Male 18 years ( 7 years in Oman ) experience in HR / Admin in Oil & Gas , construction fields with Oman D/L seeks suitable position.

Visa Transfer / NOC available.

Call 92854993.

Training coordinator Indian male, 17 yrs experience with Training & Consultancy Company. Well knowledge in admin works. Release available and have D/L. Contact: 99573353 Indian male 36 years MBA experience as AS. Manager seeking suitable job in HR/ Marketing in Oman on visit visa. Contact : 98200741, Email: phmnsudheesh857@gmail. com Indian male having 15 years Gulf experience in purchase Admin on visit. Contact : 95435370 Indian male B.Com & Tally with 2.5 years Admin/HR Experience in Oman with 2 years employment Visa seeking placement. Release Available 96796477 Egyptian woman resident in Muscat bachelor in business administration has an experience in the Executive Secretarial, HR and all the administration tasks very good in computer skills, looking for a job in a company. Contact: 97221126 14 years of Gulf experience in HR / Admin & logistics fluent in Arabic / English with D/L looking for suitable position. Contact: 95824598 Indian male 2+yrs oman exp in HR. joing immediatly. release available.

Contact :93671437 Indian female 24 years MBA (HR) having 3 years experience in HR Administration, payroll seeking suitable placement. Contact: 91104352 / 99012861 Indian male looking for company job, 2 years visa light Oman D/ License experience in office works also & driving. Contact: 92233068 5 years experience in store and admin department with Omni driving license looking for suitable job, release available and can join immediately. Contact : 95860170 Indian female MBA, 3 Years experience in Admin MIS, Family Visa.

Contact 98234427, jkjsmith01@gmail.com BSCS hons (4 years) 2 years experience female currently on visit visa looking for any vacancy.

Contact: 91519478 Email: marryum.akmal@gmail.com Indian female, 29 yrs, MBA (HR) 4 yrs exp in HR & Admin seeking suitable placement. Contact: 95619537 Master degree HRM professional having excellent experience in finance and management and having 8 yrs experience looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92955453 / 91213269

beautician Beautician exp Gulf and India looking job. Contact 93554741 *Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

m o n day, au g u s t 3 , 2 0 1 5

Daily guide

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SITUATION WANTED Engg. / Technical SAP – SCM.MM Consultant B.Tech.

(Chemical), from NIT, working with oil industry, seeks employment.

Contact: 98049288

Engg. / Technical 5+ years experience BE Electrical Engineer having knowledge in execution & basic knowledge in electrical design looking for suitable post.

Contact: 99704742 / 97469689

Catering

Domestic Helper

Indian male 33 yrs DEM, chef DE Partie (Continental, Chinese & South Indian) 14 yrs exp in hotel Industry, 7 yrs in Oman N.O.C available, seeks placement. Contact 97858956 Email: pratheesh.chef@gmail.com

Experienced Indian lady is looking housemaid job looking full time job for European family total experience : 9 years, 2 years exp. with European family 6 years worked with Indian family language English & Hindi.

Contact: 93392788

Indian male 33 yrs DEMI chef DE Partie Chinese South Indian, cold kitchen 13 yrs exp in Hotel industry 7 yrs in Oman, N.O.C available seeks placement. Contact: 95872464, Email: sreejith809@gmail.com

driver Pakistani Light Duty Driver seeks placement. Contact: 95746203 Looking for driving job light driver.

Contact : 96913836 Looking for driving job light driver.

Contact :92787245 Looking for driving job light driver.

Contact :94648986 Driver with Car. Contact: 99716938 Driver with 2 yrs exp looking for job. Contact: 98487511 Light duty driver ,driving license, Experienced. Ph: 92814816 Looking for job as Electrician, Gulf 7 years exp. Contact: 93015630 Driver with car (Fortuner).

Contact: 95365938 Looking for driving for job.

Contact: 98219182 Light driver, 10 yrs experience looking for job. Contact 93060050 Experienced LTV driver available.

Contact: 99514703 / 96943902 Bangladeshi male looking for job in any company or family, speak English, Hindi & Arabic, exp 3 years in Dubai taxi and 3 years in Oman in company. Contact: 93822195 Driver with car 3 yrs exp looking for part time job. Contact: 92041902 Light driver, age 3 yrs exp, KSA 7 years & Oman 5 years Education – HSC seeking job in Oman.

Contact: 98474031 NOC available Driver LTV 3 years exp available local release. Contact: 98503406 Job driver light operator shawl and excavator. Contact: 91376612 Light vehicle driver NOC available, seeks suitable job with 4 yrs exp in Oman having driving license.

Contact: 95683735 / 95495003 Driver 8 years exp India (Keralite).

Contact: 93412587 Light driver searching for job experience 5 years. Language English, Arabic & Hindi. Contact: 92458526 / 97941771 Faisal Light driver looking for suitable placement. Contact: 95141473 Driver available with car and without car. Contact 96771598 / 92883299 Looking for driver. Contact 91788481 Looking for driver job. Contact 93650209 Male Driver 2 years exp in Oman seeking suitable placement.

Contact 96362684 Driver with 8 years experience looking for job. Contact 98130645 / 94342106

Domestic Helper Housemaid (full time / part time) looking for job. Contact: 95799643

Housemaid Indian looking for Madras family house job.

Contact: 93554741

Engg. / Technical Indian female (M. Tech – power system) having Gulf experience, currently on family visa seeking suitable placement in Oman.

Contact: 94306164 Indian female 26 yrs, B.Tech in Electrical and Electronics with two years experience in Ministry of Electricity Kerala govt , as Operating Assistant Engineer presently on visit visa seeks placement.

Contact: 98657132 / 97199123 Email: pinks1819@gmail.com 2 years experienced Electrical Engineer looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 98480509 B.Tech Computer Engineer wanted job to work on IT / Banking / sales marketing, MCITP, CCNA, Networking, having NOC. Contact: 98857689 Email: khanshoebameer@gmail.com Mechanical Engr, B. Tech, exp in QA/QC, In Piping Design, Its softwares Ph:96539085 Indian male 23, Mechanical Engineer, 1 year experience, knowledge in HVAC currently on visit visa looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 95434381 Email: shuhaibusman313@gmail.com Male, BE (Mechanical holder) 1 yr exp in Indian & 4 months in Oman NOC available, embassy attested certificate . Contact: 95721521 / 96625245 (Salalah) Email: sajukoippallil@gmail.com Indian male B.Tech (ECE) CCNA 1 yrs exp in broadcast Engg having hands on exp in harris ADC,PPC, Velocity & Invenio, avid inews, vizrt,nexio farad, grass, valley kayak HD 300. also having on practice in PLC (AB,ABB, Siemens) DCS & scada systems. Contact: 00919846990093 / 99235291 Indian job in procurement & contract, have “12” years purchase & contract experience in infrastructure & energy sector. NOC is available. Contact-98009274 Engineer BE (Electrical, Electronics), Indian male 24 years, having 2 plus years of experience, seeking for suitable placement. Contact: 98201244

Indian male 23 B.E mechanical & AutoCAD 1 year experience currently on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact: 92835957 Email: rafeekmohammed84@gmail.com Indian male 25MBA having 4years Gulf experience in Coordination with contracting company .NOC Available. Looking for(Store,Coor dination,Admin,Backoffice) Jobs Ph:95405885 Indian male Electrical Engineer with 7 years experience (electrical, marine, fire fighting) valid Oman driving license seeking suitable placement. Contact 93396338 Email: syamsk2255@gmail.com Egyptian Civil Engineer-total experience 7 years - 2 years@Oman.

I have good experience in Technical office & site Works.

Contact: 98078095 M Tech Computer Science Engineer, female seeking suitable placement.

Contact : 93035521,96439645 Email : anzilav@yahoo.co.in Indian male 27 years, Mechanical Engineer (B.E) having experience seeks suitable placement holds valid Oman driving license, on visit visa. Contact: 98847638 MEP Project Engg 23 years experience out of 13 years in Gulf holding Electrical and driving license. NOC available. Contact: 98894682 Computer Engineer Iraqi Nationality 7 years experience seeking suitable placement. Contact: 94694146 Indian male diploma Civil Eng with 2 yrs experience on site as QS & AutoCAD seeking on site or - off site position. Contact: 94756183 Email: indianexpat1@gmail.com Engineer with 4 years Oman experience in telecom operations, having valid Oman driving license looking for a suitable opportunity, interested in Marketing also. Contact 98513495 Indian female, Electronics and Communication Engineering Graduate presently in Salalah Oman on visit visa, fresher, seeks entry in a reputed organization. Has good communication skills both in English and Hindi and excellent computer knowledge. Contact: 93889495/ 92089906 / 98152686 Email: rukzanabavakunju@gmail.com Indian m 25 yrs B.E Mechanical 3 yrs exp in oil & gas as Piping Project Engineer now on visit visa.

Contact: 96487013 Email: riarun.007@gmail.com Civil Engineer B.E 12 years experience with valid Oman driving license. Contact: 93843448 Sudanese male Telecommunication Engineer looking for job.

Contact: 94537607

Indian male 24 years B.E mechanical 2 years exp. or visit visa.

Contact: 99247326

Electrical Engineer bachelor degree having 6+ years experience of Gulf and professional license available to join. Contact: 98063081 Email: imran.engr08@gmail.com

Indian (M) B.Tech (civil) with 2 yrs exp in Structural Designing using Etabs, Staad, Safe, excel looking for suitable position.

Contact: 96698342 / 98768045 Email: qadeertom@gmail.com

Indian 24 yrs male, 2 years experience in Site Engineer (Diploma in Civil Engineering), Now on visit visa in Oman. Contact: 94050311

Civil Engineer diploma holder having 7 years experience in construction / oil & gas as Site Engineer seeking for suitable placement.

Contact: 93294965 Civil Diploma Engineer 6 years experience in Oman Indian male with valid Oman D/L. Contact: 93356736 Electrical Engineer, B.Sc. degree/ B.Tech, 4 years experience. Looking for suitable placement. Available in visit visa. Contact: 94739355, Email: mahin.eee@gmail.com Indian male B.E Electronic and Communication Engineering & have 2 years experience in oil & gas sector (maintenance & construction).

Contact: 98848077

Civil Engineer B.E, 5.5 years experience with Omani D/L. # 96785311 Indian Male, Diploma in Civil Engineer working as a Project engineer with 7years of experience looking for suitable job. Contact- 92636569 Indian female 23, B.Tech (Electrical & Electronics) & Diploma in Electrical CAD on Visit Visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 99278410 / 94027398, Email: renju.raghavan7@gmail.com Electrical Engineer Indian male 29 years, having 5 years of experience in industrial automation and utility maintenance in India (MRF Tyres) seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 92789995 Email: akhilabrahamlktr@gmail.com

Btech computer science graduate 2015 passout.. Android application marketing.. Having good communication skills and mindset to work in a team. Contact 91024385 B.E in ECE worked as Junior Scientist Trainee in Chennai worked as System Admin in Berik Honda Nagger coil worked at Technical Support in Samsung Service, presently in Bangalore.

Contact : 0091 7026267513 Engineer with 3 yrs experience in Indian in MEP, HVAC& mechanical maintained field on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact 99191535 Email: fareed029@gmail.com Indian Male, IT Support Engineer, 2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experience. Contact 97311847 Electrical Eng. Degree (MEP) need suitable job of construction 12 yrs exp.

Email: mohd.ateeq.khan@gmail.com

education Female 24, with 6 yrs of experience in teaching Montessori & kindergarten grade. Currently in Salalah on visit visa, seeks suitable placement.

Contact 97306607 Email Id: amna.ast@gmail.com

it IT System Support: Indian Male 2 years exp in Oman & 3 years in India. Contact 91937060 Communications networks, Technician specializing in the main divider and ADSL VDSL system experience of STC. Contact 93398796 Indian visit visa, Network / System Engineer switches, routers, servers, load balancers 5 yrs of exp holds B.E (ECE), CCNA looking for good opportunity. Contact: 91911792 Email: arafakdnl@gmail.com Male 25 B.Com with 3.5 years experience in IT and Administration excellent computer and communication skills, web developing and handling, looking for relevant job, on family visit till 5th Oct 2015.

Contact: 91298960 Email: usman.ali786@hotmail.com Male BE ECE having 1 years experience CCTV, ACCESS CONTROL, Server now on visit visa, seeking suitable opportunity.

Contact 96792239

Miscellaneous Seeking for job fire and safety completed 2.5 years experience language known Hindi, English & Tamil seeking suitable job. Contact: 98431032 Indian material controller / store keeper with 9 years exp , seeking job in Oman NOC/ Release available.

Contact: 91946174 Electrician, Plumber, Driver, looking for job. Contact 95175192 Mason, still fitter, carpenter, helper, looking job. Contact 95175192

Medical Doctor seeking job an experienced female Indian Doctor (DHMS NAET USA), 49 yrs, specialist in Homeopathy and Allergy Elimination Technology seeks suitable placement. Contact: 919447110003 Oman 96439091 Email: anithabaydr@gmail.com Male Staff Nurse looking for job passed Prometric 63% + 3 years experience. Contact: 94035637 / 95068075 If you need A GP DOCTOR now: Immediately want change placement preferably in Sohar areas .

23 yrs of uninterrupted experience in Oman .Hospital, Polyclinic & Big companies having own clinic can contact. Mobile : 95406530 .

Prefer Email to get Bio-data : uneedgpdr@yahoo.com

Medical Female Nurse - Indian, well experienced, Prometric passed – 60%, currently on visit visa, ready to join immediately. Kindly contact: 9721 9495 / 9655 0603 or jshani67@gmail.com

Manager/ Supervisor Indian with license looking job safety officer, camp boss. Supervisor or marketing. Contact: 94003617 Facility / Project Mgmt, 4+ yrs of exp holds B.E (ECE) Indian visit visa looking for suitable opening.

Contact: 98580569 Email: arafacareer@gmail.com

Sales / Marketing Indian male with 14 years of experience in Business development / sales & marketing seeks suitable placement, 6.5 years of work experience in Oman. Contact: 93400177 Sales man, experience in Saudi, Good in Arabic. Ph: 97103168 Indian male B.Com & MBA Graduate 11 years experience airline travel & tourism, Sales & Marketing in Dubai & Oman with driving license NOC available. Contact: 92552612 Email: mazmanu1@gmail.com Indian male 27 years, B.Tech Graduate having good work experience with valid Oman D/L looking for a suitable opening as Sales Engineer.

Contact: 91472953 Email: harees.rasheed.2014@gmail.com Procurement / Purchase Executive 1.6 yrs exp in Oman construction industry Indian male 27 yrs, MBA with valid Oman D/L, available for immediate placement.

Contact: 96300958 / 24796010 Business intelligence / Global Marketing management specialist with 9 years of experience developing brand value & managing overall projects to achieve business objectives seeking suitable position on family visit. Contact: 91902154 Indian male 35 yrs, 10 yrs experience in FMCG Sales & Marketing in UAE with valid GCC license looking for suitable position on visit.

Contact: 93438747 / 93033252 Indian male MBA (Marketing) 26 on visit visa, with experience in stores looking for suitable position in warehouse stores logistics or in sales. Contact: 96915871 Email: ajanadoor@yahoo.com Indian female 35 years MCA, MBA six sigma black belt, 14 years Gulf experience in business analytics, Marketing business development qualities seeks placement. NOC available, Omani driving license available. Contact: 95783792 MBA from UK with 9 yrs experience in London, Dubai & Mumbai. Specialized GCC experience in top real estate co & bank with driving license. NOC available. #968 95168205, dubaihomes1@gmail.com

Sales / Marketing Indian 44 yrs, 16 yrs Indian Army 5 and Half years in Oman exp ware house, seeks suitable placement in store, ware house or sales having Oman driving license. # 94050311 Indian Keralite, 27 yrs, experience 3 years in sales with visa & NOC, driving license seeks suitable job.

Contact: 98626682 22 years Indian B.Com Graduate having 5 years experience in Sales with a valid Oman driving license looking for a suitable job.

Contact: 97302353 Sudanese Business development Manager, long experience International trade in Oman (import /export / marketing) seeking suitable placement full / part time in reputable company. Contact: 91173146

Skilled / unskilled Welder 16 years experience Arc Tig Welding & fabrication seeks placement, NOC available. Contact: 91345047 / 91604842

Tours & Travels Five years experience in Travel field ,BCom.,IATA & pursuing MBA, Presently working in the Travel Desk of (ITC managed) Five Star Hotel in India.Looking for a suitable position in the Middleeast.

Contact 9465 2485 B.Com IATA MCSE working for Qatar Airways, Sales Reservation, ticketing English, Hindi, and Malayalam, Marathi NOC is available.

Contact: 92954613 Indian male B.Com MBA (Tourism) 23 years, seeks a job in any field currently on visit visa. # 92363811 Email: faizekk@gmail.com

Miscellaneous Indian, male, 41 years, CA Inter, Persuing CA final. Now on express visa. 7 years of Experience in OMAN as Finance and Accounts Manager in Trading , Construction and Firefighting industry. 21 Years of exp. seeking suitable Managerial positions. No visa issues. Immediate joining. #98469311 Email:sebin30@yahoo.co.in Indian Female, M.Com & MBA with 1.5 years of experience in Reinsurance Treaty seeking a good job opportunity in Insurance & Reinsurance Accounts or General Accounts. Contact: +968 91920189, Email:neethumano.manohar@gmail. com ME. Civil Engineer, Structural Designer, 3 Years Structural Design, 6 Years Str Supervising Experience, Looking For Structural Designer Position. Iranian Male. #93696929 Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com Female, Indian, 35 Yrs- house maid available for Full/Part time work in Muscat. Please contact- 96754303.

BA degree Nursing professional having excellent looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92955453 /91213269

Sales Mechanical Engineer 14 year’s exp looking for Senior position. Contact: 0091 9600987895 Email: srameson@yahoo.co.in

ACCOUNTANT, M.Com holder with 2 year working experience as an accountant in Kerela-India, seeks suitable placement.

GSM NO:96947500,9 9463120, Email:mohamedshafikk5@gmail.com

GP Doctor Yemeni national-male, with 4 years of work experience.

Mobile:00966531598754 Email: alsyaniramzy@gmail.com

Indian male B.Com (Computer) looking Sales Manager.

Contact: 97235819, Email: aji.roja@gmail.com

8 yrs exp 2d, 3d draughtsman (HOLDING OMANI DRIVING LICENSE) seeking job.

Contact : 93790601

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Daily guide

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461

Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED Miscellaneous CCNA MCITP network support / network technician with 2 years experience Indian male having bachelors degree on visit visa. # 93080871 sean.f.peters@outlook.com Indian Male 22 Years, Graduation In Electronics Seeking Jobs In Supervisory , Sales & Sales Co-ordination Fields , Good Communication Skill Contact 96141317, E-mail: akhilek5@gmail.com Indian Female B.Sc., B.Ed.(Maths), M.C.A residing in Al-Ghubra seeking a teaching position as a Math Teacher GSM.- 94231633 Indian Female Interior Designer, 4.5 yrs experience, seeking immediate mid-senior level position with firm having lady clearance. NOC Available. Contact 93033072 Driver with car seeking suitable post. Contact : 91660291 Sudanese.male 32 years.B.SC mechanical engineer.7years experience.5 years experiance in Gulf. working now in water pipeline projects.fluent Arabic and English.have Omani driving license.looking for good opportunity TEl:91117089 Indian Male 22 years, ACCA Affiliate with B..Sc. Degree in Applied Accounting having three months working experience seeking suitable placement in Finance / Accounts / Audit. Holding valid Oman D/L. Contact 97378607 / 92558734 Indian female Nurse, Prometric passed 64%, 5 years of experience, MOH licensed, presently working in Oman seeking a suitable placement in reputed Hospitals, NOC available.

Contact: 98329941, Email: ancyanish2011@gmail.com.

Part- Time Accountant, well experience senior accountant, doing all type of accounting works, Finalization, Budgeting available.

Contact 98803439 B.Tech Mechanical Engineer, Indian male 23 yrs, currently on visit visa seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 94070164 Email: prathapkumarthuvara@yahoo.com Female from India -MA. B.Ed. with One year three months Teaching experience. English seeking for a urgent better placement, Now working in Oman. #: 93961142, 92184408 Email:-anoopkesavan78@gmail.com.

Video Editor 29 years Indian male with 8 years experience on visit visa looking for a suitable placement.

Contact: 91275969 / leomoorkoth@gmail.com 8 yrs exp 2d, 3d Draughtsman (HOLDING OMANI DRIVING LICENSE) seeking job. Contact : 97449630 Tunisian shoes designer wuth 40years expereince in designing and manifacturing loocking for a job in a related field contact : 97816917 Indian male MBA + TALLY , 29 years & 7years experience in Administration and Manager level in Reputed companies, Seeking suitable placement.#96297709 / +91 9066130371, Email: jomonjohnm9@gmail.com Indian female MBA Finance currently on visit visa seeks immediate placement. Phone: 968-98430089 Indian male,27, IT/Telecom Engineer, 2 yrs exp in Oman, with valid Oman D/L, NOC Available. Ph: 9393 8727 ACCOUNTANT, Indian male, 29 years.8 years experience .Presently working in Oman as a Senior Accountant with oman Driving license.

NOC available. Seek suitable opportunity. GSM: 98184170

Indian Male, 28, B.Com, 6+ yrs exp in Accounts, 2 yrs in Oman with Valid Oman D/L, NOC available.

Contact: 9719 4864 Indian male post graduate.2 years experience in sales. currently in oman on visit visa.seeks suitable placement.Gsm 92388346 Civil site coordinator, Diploma, Male 25, now present in Oman, Seeking job in Oman. Contact: 92875345, jubincivileng@gmail.com Syrian male 3yrs. exp in IT support, Networking, Security systems, Server support, IT sales and marketing.

Valid Omani D/L seeking suitable placement. Contact 91033395 Chartered Accountant with 7 years of post qualification experience, seeking challenging job opportunity.

Experience in auditing/accounts & finance/taxation/IFRS, etc.

GSM +968 95763680

Indian male Auto cad Draughtsman (civil) 8 years experience seeking for part time job.

Contact : 00968 99070584, Email: remluvp@gmail.com ACCOUNTANT, Indian Male, 25 years old, 5 years Experience (2 years in Oman & 3 years in India) Presently working in Oman. Going exit on this week with NOC. Seeking suitable opportunities. GSM : 97018783 Civil Engineer, Diploma, Male 25, 3 years experience in site, CAD, 3d, MS Project, Seeking job in Oman. # 92875345, jubincivileng@gmail.com Indian male accountants, 12 years experience, tally also. Looking for a part time/ full time job in accounts or purchase. Contact- 98983122 Indian Female 2yrs exp. in Accountant 5 yrs exp. in Electronics, seeking suitable Job. Contact: 97162705,93705090

Male Indian 27, working as finance analyst having two years Oman experience with Driving license looking for suitable position.

Mob: 98097009, rameesnm@gmail.com

Indian male, 14 years Experience in maintenance & Supervisor in hotel field (Electrical, Ac Mechanical & Plumber). NOC available Contact 95253640 email = hareeshma24@yahoo.com

FRESH - B.Com Graduate on Family Visa, looking for any suitable Job. Contact : 92567020 / 95322175, Email: shwayanad@gmail.com

Female Candidate: Having experience (ISRO India) in Administration (seeking suitable opportunities &presently in Oman Mob:97239854, Mail:asherlalitha@yahoo.com

Admin Executive, Indian Female having 10 years Gulf experience in seeking suitable placement currently working in Muscat.

Email: meenafajar@yahoo.com, Mobile 0096893211402 Having 9+ years exp. in Administration & HR in reputed companies.

Presently working in Muscat and seeking for suitable placement.

Contact No.: 97693456. Email : muralimahdav77@gmail.com MOH Indian Dentist 10 years experience in Oman. Can speak Arabic, has driving license. Contact 98995321 or ventureoman007@gmail.com Omani , female, have diploma in quantity survey, bachelor in Constitution management, seeking situated placement at Sohar.

Tel 94454180, Mail nhlmct@yahoo.com Finance Manager / Chief Accountant / Audit Manager, C.A , MBA ,ACCA , CPA..15years in GULF , Expert in Banking ,Financing, Profit Maximizations , Admin & Management, Business Developments , ERPs Software’s, Audit Exp. with Big 5 , NOC & Driving License Call 94403270 or 94504505 Indian male having 4 years of experience in IT Support & networking. Currently on visit visa. seeking suitable opportunities. Contact: 92013641.

Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a Suitable Job in Telecom / Networking. 1 year sales experience. MSc. Communications Engineering & Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com 29 years Indian female (MBAFinance) with 4+yrs experience (Oman) in Accounts is seeking suitable placement in Accounts/Admin.

Contact:96141283.

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian male,29 years.8 years experience .Presently working in Oman as a Senior Accountant with oman Driving license. NOC available. Seek suitable opportunity. GSM: 97705854 MEP Quantity Surveyor-EstimationProject, 10 Years Experience (3 years in Oman). Having NOC & Oman D/L. Looking for suitable job, Contact – 98291626

Diploma civil Engineer seeking jobs(positions suits me: civil engineer ,site engineer,qa/qc engineer,land surveyor ,total station, auto level,draftsman (autocad, microstation) mob:97239854, Mail:asherlalitha@yahoo.com Indian Female 10 years exp as cook in Oman. South Indian & Gujarati special looking for part-time job Contact 96733187.

BRANCH-HEAD, MBA-BBA, Indian Male having experience in UAE, India, Oman total 5 years (including MNC), looking for similar or same openings.

NOC available. #:92700670, E mail:catanalur131@gmail.com Qualified Native speaking male English Teacher with 18 years experience seeks position. Salary Negotiable. Whatsapp on +968 9334 1047 / +968 93952732 or e-mail me on nadgov@gmail.com Indian female, IATA, B. Sc, looking for suitable placement.Contact-95514305, E mail idraveendranmala@gmail.com ACCOUNTANT, Indian male, 29 years, 8 years experience. Presently working in Oman as a Senior Accountant with Oman Driving license.

NOC available seek suitable opportunity. GSM: 98184170 Freelance Graphic Designer available to assist in Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Corel Draw Projects.

Contact : 95811820 Indian Female Lawyer 36 Yrs having 11 yrs experience presently working in Oman as Legal Advisor seeks placement in Legal/HR/Admin NOC available Contact-94436960 Email: famidakhan123@gmail.com 23, Male, ACCA Affiliate, 2 years+ experience in Audit and Finance in audit firm, Looking for suitable permanent placement, NOC release Available. Contact: #95140445 a.saran891@gmail.com MBA - (F), M.Com, B.COM. Indian female having knowledge of accounts with Tally looking for part time or full time job. Presently on family visa. Contact :- 91892264.

Email:- yashicapandya@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTED 12 yrs exp FREELANCE 2d, 3d Draughtsman (holding Omani driving license). Contact : 93790601 MBA (F), B.COM. Indian female having knowledge of accounts with Tally looking for full or part time job. presently on family visit visa.

Contact :- 96259171.

Email:- bhumicapandya@gmail.com Seeking Teaching Position. Qualified and experienced Native English speaking teacher seeking position in Muscat, I have a Teaching Diploma , two Honours Degrees and a CELTA Certificate. Position at Language school will be suitable. Will e-mail CV. Whatsapp only +96893952732 Sudanese male, 31 year, have 3 year Diploma in Electrical Engineer, 6 years experience in construction and electrical plant. Mobile :94549609 Indian male-28 Years, Diploma in Electrical Egg, having gulf experience. Specialization on Electrical Installation and Maintenance, Operation. 7 years experience seeks for suitable placement.:95334580.

E-mail -sunilkumar257.sk23@gmail.com

Indian Male, 34 years old, DEE – Electrical Supervisor 10 years Oman experience. Ready for NOC , VISA transfer and valid Oman driving licence light, ready to join immediately, Mob +91 9740679094, kulasekar1980@gmail.com 24 years, Indian Chartered Accountant male with 3 yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat, currently on visit visa & ready to join immediately. Kindly contact him on 98201476 or email at lokeshkaluri@gmail.com Indian Male, 38 years old, DME – Mechanical Maintenance Technician 11 years Oman experience.

Ready for NOC , VISA transfer, ready to join immediately, Mob :95612870, seeniselvan@gmail.com Young Indian Chartered Accountant, female, Having 6 years experience in Oman and India. Accounts and Finance Manager, Auditor.

Urgently seeking suitable positions.

Contact 92530131, jobcareer44@gmail.com

Indian male auto cad draughtsman (civil) 8 years experience seeking for part time job Mobile 99070584, E mail: remluvp@gmail.com

Indian male 25 years B.tech computers (Having 3 years of experience in customer service/Admin/IT Support) looking for suitable position.

Visa Transfer/NOC Available immediate to join. Contact: 98402389, Mail: naresh6672@gmail.com

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian male,29 years.8 years experience .Presently working in Oman as a Senior Accountant with oman Driving license. NOC available, seek suitable opportunity. GSM: 97705854

Manager, Young Indian Male, MBA, BBA. Having excellent managerial experience (around 5 years) in leading Multi-National-Company.

Looking for suitable positions. #92700670,fardhaan@gmail.com

Sudanese male (B.Sc Computer Science) (Diploma Computer Engineering) 6 yrs. experience DBA Oracle PL-SQL , MS SQL-server, MS visual studio VBA, network.

Contact :91415886

Indian Female MA. B.Ed. with One year three months Teaching experience. Subject: EnglishSeeking for a Better placement. Now working in Oman. # 93961142, 92184408, Email:-anoopkesavan78@gmail.com

Syrian male 3yrs. exp in IT support, Networking, Security systems, Server support, IT sales and marketing.

Valid Omani D/L seeking suitable placement. Contact 91033395

ACCOUNTANT: Indian male 25 having 4years experience in accounting & having well knowledge in tally.

Contact:968094535881, 0091 9037622048 Email: vishnuraj889@gmail.com

Tunisian women looking for a job, khnows english,frensh, italian and arabic. Contact: 91171838 BSc Graduate, INDIAN male , seeking suitable jobs.

GSM: +91-8589820233.

MAIL ID: prajinap45@gmail.com

ACCA Affiliate, 2.5years experience in Audit/Finance in Global Big6 Firms and Oil company in Oman, Looking for suitable permanent placement. Release NOC Available.

Contact: #95140445, a.saran891@gmail.com

Available for part time accounting job, contact 99196621 Electrical Engineer, 29, Indian Male, having 7+ years exp. in reputed companies. Seeking suitable placement in any Oman.

Contact - 97693456.

Mail ID : venkatbadri23@gmail.com BE. Biomedical Engineer, 5 years experience in the same field (Hospital/company)looking for suitable placement. Contact:92084807 Email:bonnygeorge1005@gmail. com ELECTRICAL ENGINEER – Indian male seeking Electrical Engineer job with 2 years’ experience.

Contact: 94263445, E mail – janardhanan53@gmail.com 32 years, Filipina with experience in Teleperformance, Manila call centre, now working as Waitress in Qatar seeking suitable post.

Contact 99022484 24 Years, indian male 2.5 Years experience in admin & accounts, dubai. Currently on visit visa. Seeking suitable placement in admin & accounts. M: 93016252 EMAIL: shahabaskp@gmail.com Indian male, MBA with 20 years of experience in back office operation, risk and operational management, financial management for Finance and Trading companies. Presently available on visit visa. # 91276221 CCNA MCITP network support /network technician with 2 years experience indian male having bachelors degree on visit visa. #93080871 sean.f.peters@outlook.com Omani male , BBA ,with 6 year experience in HR &Admin looking for opportunity in HR & Admin in Muscat. Joint date after one month notice period . Mobile 92223279 Having 9+ years exp. in Admin, Purchase, Stores & Warehouse in reputed companies. Presently working in Muscat and seeking for suitable placement. Contact +968 97693456. email : muralimahdav77@gmail.com Video Editor 29 years Indian male with 8 years experience on visit visa looking for a suitable placement Contact 91275969 leomoorkoth@gmail.com

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Daily guide

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Tours

SITUATION WANTcargo

SITUATION WANTED cargo

RENT A CAR

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain Marine Tours Contact- 98029602, 92808636

Transportation Transport. Contact: 93637289 Transportation available.

Contact 95570429 Transport. Contact: 95190627 Transportation. Contact: 91310107 House shifting, transporting.

Contact : 94229277 Pick & drop anytime in Al Khuwair.

Contact 99764307 Transportation. Contact: 96538078 Transportation. Contact:98522914 Transportation. Contact 99508282 Car for rent. Contact: 92516090 Silver Car, car for rent. Contact: 96166155 / 98402662

Butter cup rent a car competitive prices new car 2016.

Contact: 97249449

Transportation. Contact: 98244078 Pick & Drop any time. Contact: 97014786

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Daily guide

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461

Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED services

COMPUTER

website

driving

change of name I Basheerkutty Asanarukunju (holder of Indian passport No. F 8718152) Son of Asanarukunju having permanent residence in Chekkanteazhikath Kizhakkathil Veedu Njarackal Perinad PO Kollam DT Kerala (complete postal address in India) and presently residing in P.B No. 138, PC. No. 124 Muscat, Oman (complete postal address in Oman) intend to change my name from Basheerkutty Asanarukunju (old name) to Abdul Rasheed Asanarukunju (new name) for all practical purpose. Any objection towards my name change may please be communicated to Embassy of India, Muscat, Diplomatic Quarters, Al Khuwair, P.Box No, 1727 Postal Code 112, Ruwi, Sultanate of Oman.

I Bethel Thomas Varghis (holder of Indian passport No. M 2296679) son of Mulanthanathukuzhi Chandy Varghese having permanent residence in Bethel, Vakathanam PO. Kottayam Kerthel PIN 686538 (complete postal address in India) and presently residing in Sultanate of Oman P.O Box 1222 P.C 121(complete postal in Oman) intend to change my name from Bethel Thomas Varghis (old name) to Bethel Varghese (new name) for all practical purpose. Any objection towards my name change may please be communicated to Embassy of India, Muscat, diplomatic Quarters, AL Khuwair, P.Box No, 1727 postal code 112, Ruwi, Sultanate of Oman.

lost

good news Genuine Ayurvedic treatments & massage, Ayurvedic clinic at AL Khuwair. Contact: 24478618 / 97263637 / 93309131 Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain, backache, paralysis massage, steam bath, obesity, spondylitis IDEAL , CARE Ayurvedic Clinic 18 November street, Azaiba.

Contact 99639695 / 99117987

WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

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Driver for Automatic Transmission. Contact: 99040813

SITUATION WANTBusiness sit.

WANTED ED

Ayurvedic treatment for backache, paralysis, arthritis etc & massage, All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact 24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980 www.siddhayur.com

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422 Marble crystallization restore the original shine of your marble. Contact 24793614/ 99314807

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know more about Islam, please call: 99425598, 96050000, 99353988, 99253818, 99341395, and 99379133. For ladies: 99415818, 99321360, 99730723 Orvisit: www.islamfact.com

House shifting.

Contact 99708138 Split window cassette AC unit servicing, maintenance.

Contact: 99540621

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House shifting packing.

99657644 / 98518013

Sami Ullah Ali Tahseen has lost Pakistan Passport No. DA 2748421.

Finder please handover to ROP Saif Ullah Sami Ullah has lost Pakistan Passport No. DB 5989641.

Finder please handover to ROP Mehwish Akram has lost Pakistan Passport No. AK 1327972. Finder please handover to ROP

Mohammad Sajiad Azeem has lost Pakistan Passport No. AA5578552.

Finder please handover to ROP

Hadiya Sami Ullah has lost Pakistan Passport No. AQ 5290241.

Finder please handover to ROP

Sumibt BT Jumsani has lost Indonesian Passport No. AS 425848.

Finder please handover to ROP

Zahid Hasan Kanik has lost Bangladeshi Passport No. F 0707212.

Finder please handover to ROP

New company seek partnership.

Contact: 96996938

SITUATION WANTmanpower

Looking for financial partner or investor for running small industry. Contact : 92337002 General Investors.

Gsm-99674870 Serious investor needed for succeeded furniture company for expansion purposes.

Contact: 99041337

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile polishing, pest control & anti-termite treatment, general cleaning painting, Plumbing, Electrical, shifting. Contact Mundhir Al-Rizaiqi trading. L.L.C. # 24810137, 99450130 Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles polishing, carpet shampooing, maintenance.Contact ABU QABAS99320217 /24788722 A/C Maintenance & servicing, fridge, washing machine & dish washer repairing, painting & cleaning services, electrical & plumbing.

Contact: 99447257 / 97014234 / 24504281

Split & window A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact 93769089/95323517 GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing, Contact 99314807/24792998 Pest control Treatments, Cockroaches, Ants ,Rodents & Termites. Ocean Center LLC. Contact: 99357908 / 99344723.

Water proofing ABUQABASContact 99320217/24788722 General cleaning & Shampooing.

Ocean Center LLC. Contact: 99344723 / 99357908 Civil maintenance - plumbing, electrical, painting, and tiling, interior decorations, shop furnishing and all other maintenance works.

Contact: 97897831 / 92112094 (Indian, Keralite)

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