Times of Oman - August 11, 2015

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TUESDAY, August 11, 2015 / 25 Shawwal 1436 AH

CABLES

His Majesty sends greetings MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has sent a cable of congratulations to President Dr. Andrzej Duda of the Republic of Poland on being sworn in as a new president for the Republic of Poland.

In his cable, His Majesty the Sultan has expressed his sincere congratulations and best wishes of good health and happiness to President Duda. His Majesty wished him success to achieve the hopes and aspirations of the Polish people and further progress to the relations between the two countries.

His Majesty the Sultan has also sent a cable of congratulations to President Idriss Deby of the Republic of Chad on the occasion of his country’s National Day. In his cable, His Majesty the Sultan has expressed his sincere congratulations and wishes of good health and happiness to President Deby and the people of Chad further progress. -ONA TOP THREE INSIDE STORIES

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With the government freezing jobs, young Omani graduates are now turning to the

EXPATRIATES IN GOVERNMENT JOBS DECLINE

May

June 386

Male

In May, 59 expatriates left public sector jobs but that figure increased more than ten times by June, reaching 694

37 22

for opportunities Number of expats who stopped working for the public sector

SALEH AL SHAIBANY

saleh@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Expatriates in Oman are fearful of losing their jobs as the government continues to accelerate its Omanisation process to find employment for thousands of Omani job-seekers.

The concern is shared by people of all nationalities, age and gender across all types of positions, except low-paid jobs such as construction labourers, housemaids, plumbing and carpentry.

Expats make up around 40 per cent of Oman’s population of 4.2million but a majority of them are in domestic and manual labour. Some expatriates say job-security is not what it used to be for them like it was in the past. It has been a constant worry for them as

308

DEPAR TURE

Female

private sector

0

59

694

Total expat workers in the public sector

60,308

59,614

Total expat workers in the private sector

1,294,490

1,303,637

Total expat workers living with families

249,301

252,757

Source: National Centre for Statistics & Information

they fear the axe may come down any time. “I feel less secure now with my job than five years ago.

The recruitment demand is not the way it used to be for expatriates with many Omanis looking for jobs,” Saif Khan, a Pakistani national working as a surveyor at a construction company, told the Times of Oman.

It is estimated that more than 12,000 young Omanis leave schools and universities every

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year looking for jobs. Only about 60 per cent of them get employed as scarcity of jobs is tightening up the job market. Most of the expats work in the private sector while Omani graduates normally choose to work for the government because of less working hours and better perks.

However, with the government freezing jobs this year and most likely in 2016, many Omanis are now turning to the private sector.

“We see many angry Omanis queuing up at the HR office trying to secure interviews. Almost all of them have degrees. Majority are rejected but it will not be long before company directors decide to replace us by recruiting locals,” an Egyptian who did not want to identified and working at Oman Air, said. But some expatriates are already prepared for that possibility knowing that if it comes to be replaced by a younger Omani, they

have got themselves covered up.

“I have been working in Oman for 23 years. Perhaps I am among the lucky ones who have made enough savings. I am planning to have a little business in India when my contract is not renewed. I also have a decent gratuity on top of my savings to help me when I leave Oman,” Manish Sarwal, an Indian civil engineer told Times of Oman.

The expats who are less concerned about leaving Oman unexpectedly are business people and low-paid staff. Mohammed Islamudeen has few worries about packing his bags and heading back to his native Bangladesh in the near future. He has been a construction supervisor for a large construction company for seven years. He is not well paid but that is a blessing in disguise, according to him.

“Omanis do not like to work in the sun and get paid just OMR620 a month. My kind of job has very few threats. I feel very secure and I am sure I can go on another seven years without fear of losing my job,” Islamudeen said. So is Hamida Abdulrahman, a 38-yearold Jordanian woman who owns a hairdressing saloon in Ruwi. “I own my own business and I pay my sponsor generously. I cannot be replaced because I am not employed.

I have been doing this business for 12 years and I don’t see any reason why shouldn’t do it for many years to come,” Hamida explained.

E X PAT JO B S E E K E R S

‘Stricter rules could help curb reach of fraudulent job agents’

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Clear sky and a moonless night could give stargazers in Oman a fantastic cosmic show, with at least 100 meteors passing through the earth’s atmosphere on August 12 night, says planetarium official. >A2

longings and come here. Here, the sponsor has already received his share from the middleman present in Oman, who also received his cut,” he added.

According to him, the problem starts when the worker is told in his country that he will get (for example) OMR150, which to him seems lucrative. Once he arrives here, he is paid OMR60 and that too, sometimes, after several months.

ELHAM POURMOHAMMADI

elham@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: New initiatives can prevent uneducated job-seekers from falling into the hands of fraudulent agents, regulate the labour market, and improve the lives of expatriates in Oman, say social organisations.

A. H. Raja, vice chairman of Pakistan Social Club, says that labour-related problems are very common among blue-collar workers, who account for around 70 per cent of Pakistani workers here. Of the rest, some 15 per cent are white-collar workers in mid-level positions, 5 per cent are white-collar workers in higher positions and the rest 10 per cent are professionals, he told the Times of Oman.

He believes that stricter rules and some new regulations are required to prevent recruitment agents from taking advantage of those looking for jobs in Oman.

Raja said that when a sponsor wants to bring workers to Oman, he contacts an agent in the country of origin to provide the compa-

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India eases norms for NRI pension fund

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To encourage savings and old age income among NRIs, especially bluecollar workers in the Gulf region, pension regulator has decided to ease the norms and promote the National Pension System. >A3

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PIA cuts fares as gift for Independence Day Pakistan’s 69th Independence Day has come with a big incentive for those planning to join their families back home with PIA announcing a significant cut in its fares. >A5

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As Omanisation gathers steam, expats fear for jobs

Stargazers await meteor showers

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A. H. Raja, vice chairman of Pakistan Social Club.

ny with the required workforce.

“There is another party which is behind the scenes and that party is the local agent in Oman,” he said, and added that local agent plays an important role in the process particularly for those joining small contractors.

Raja said that there are some dishonest employers, especially in smaller companies.

“When they (workers) travel from their country, they pay some money there. They sell their be-

Blocking employees Raja said that even some employers block a worker at the Ministry of Manpower if they find him to be problematic and pay for a oneway ticket without informing the worker. So, the person is still working for them and sometimes gets a salary and sometimes he doesn’t, he added.

After a certain period, the employer hires another worker, as blocking an employee entitles them to another visa, he said.

In this way, the sponsor brings in more people by blocking the existing workers, and earns more money, added Raja. >A6

S C O R C H I N G H E AT

Expect the hottest day in Oman tomorrow: Meteorologists REJIMON K

reji@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: With the Middle East, including Oman, already sweltering from the scorching heat, tomorrow would most probably be the hottest day in the region, said meteorologists.

“A strong upper level ridge of high pressure is the main cause of the extreme heat across the Middle East, including Oman recently.

This ridge will hold a strong trough on Wednesday with more extreme heat expected. The ridge is expected to weaken late in the week bringing a return of more seasonal levels of heat to end the week,” Jason Nicholls, senior meteorologist at Accuweather.com, told the Times of Oman.

In Oman, the temperatures were hovering around 48° Celsius at many places on Monday. Data from Oman meteorology reveals that Qarn Alam, Zamaim and Fahud recorded 48°C at 3:50pm on Monday. In Sunaynah

it was 47, Ibri was 46 and in Adam it was 46.

Mercury levels For the last few days, citing temperature sensors in vehicles, many residents said that mercury levels were already above 50°C. Many had even uploaded pictures on social networking sites of temperature readings above 50°C. In the region, the heat wave that has been building for days is testing those limits, and it is testing the region’s national temperature records too.

Four-day holiday The searing heat led to an impromptu, mandatory four-day holiday in Iraq beginning last Thursday. Last week, Iranians in Bandar Mahshahr also suffered the record heat levels.

In the GCC region, Accuweather.com reported that in Kuwait City the official high recorded on July 30 was 49.6°C.

HOT WEATHER

should have three litres of normal water per day. This can keep their body hydrated. People should not consume cold water as it can cause viral infection,” said the medic.

“People should avoid fried food and sweets as this will only worsen the situation. It is better to have fruits and fruit juices to keep you hydrated and healthy,” added the medic.

Temperatures registered in some cities of Oman, yesterday at 3:50 pm o

C

Qarn Alam

48

Zamaim

48

Fahud

48

Suanaynah

47

Ibri

46

Adam

46

Source: Directorate General of Meteorology

Rush of patients Meanwhile, a senior medic in Muscat said they are receiving more than 10 patients every day complaining of heat-related illnesses.

“For the last two weeks, we have treated more than 10 patients daily

EXTREME TEMPERATURES: For the last few days, citing temperature sensors in vehicles, many residents said that mercury levels were already above 50°C. – Times of Oman

with heat cramps and dehydration.

This year, the number is higher,” said Javed Ali, internist at Badr Al Samaa Hospital in Ruwi.

“Workers involved in outdoor

activities should have at least three to four litres of oral rehydration solution (ORS) or lemon water mixed with salt per day. Workers involved in indoor activities

Sunscreen lotions Meanwhile, a dermatologist from the same hospital advised that one should apply sunscreen lotions while stepping out.

“However, excessive use of sunscreen lotions, fairness creams and other cosmetics might lead to skin damage. So, always take a medic’s advice before buying one,” said Dr Shibu Mohammed, a dermatologist.

Hundreds of people in India and Pakistan had died and many others were hospitalised earlier this summer due to the heat wave. >A6

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

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The brightest meteor shower of the year is coming up, and it should be very easy to see.

There is no need for any special equipment.

Suleiman Al Busaidy, PDO planetarium co-ordinator

Stargazers await August 12 climax of meteor shower 2015 Perseid meteor shower, which began on July 13, will last until August 26, with activity peaking around August 12

REJIMON K

reji@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: A less polluted sky and a moonless night could give stargazers in Oman a fantastic cosmic show, with at least 100 meteors passing through the earth’s atmosphere on August 12 night, says PDO planetarium co-ordinator.

“The brightest meteor shower of the year is coming up, and it should be very easy to see. There is no need for any special equipment. Stargazers just have to find a less light polluted place to enjoy this show,” Suleiman Al Busaidy, PDO planetarium coordinator, told the Times of Oman.

The 2015 Perseid meteor shower which began on July 13 will last till August 26, with activity peaking around August 12 and 13.

According to spacedex.com, the best viewing time in Oman is between 11:00 pm and 4:30 am (Oman Time).

The Perseids are typically the brightest of the year. Earthsky.org says that this year should be an especially good year for the Perseids since the moon will not emerge until after sunrise, avoiding the pesky bright light it gives off.

COSMIC SHOW: The big meteor showers like the Perseids, and later the Leonids in November, are caused when Earth and its atmosphere travels through a region of the sky filled with leftover debris lost by a particular comet.

Meteor showers happen when the earth passes through the orbit of a comet. Bits of the comet that have broken off pass through the earth’s atmosphere, and when they burn up, they create a gorgeous streaking pattern across the night sky.

NASA estimates that at its peak, Perseids will produce up to 100 meteors per hour streaking at 37 miles per second.

The big meteor showers like the Perseids, and later the Leonids in November, are caused when Earth and its atmosphere travels through a region of the sky filled with leftover debris lost by a particular comet.

In the case of the Perseids, the small fragments were ripped off the tail of comet Swift-Tuttle,

which orbits the sun once every 130 years.

NASA’s viewing tips The Perseids are best viewed in the Northern Hemisphere during the pre-dawn hours, though at times it is possible to view meteors from this shower as early as 10:00 pm.

Find an area well away from the city or street lights. Come prepared with a sleeping bag, blanket or lawn chair. Lie flat on your back with your feet facing northeast and look up, taking in as much of the sky as possible after about 30 minutes in the dark, your eyes will adapt and you will begin to see meteors. Be patient — the show will last until dawn, so you have plenty of time to catch a glimpse.

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S O C I A L W E L FA R E

Oman’s biggest bride show India eases norms to help set to be staged next year NRIs save for pension fund Times News Service MUSCAT: Set to be the Sultanate’s biggest wedding event, a bride show in Muscat will showcase an array of bridal products and services — from fashion, make-up and jewellery to flowers, transport, entertainment and venues.

The Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre (OCEC) has confirmed that it will be hosting the Oman Bride Show 2016 from April 27 to 30, 2016, organised by leading local exhibition organising company East Expo.

Trevor McCartney, the OCEC’s general manager said, “The OCEC will give the Oman Bride Show 2016 invaluable exposure, bringing a host of significant possibilities for its exhibitors locally, regionally and globally. This will also allow us to present the OCEC as a venue for weddings in our own Grand and Junior Ballrooms, which together can accommodate 1,990 guests; 1,390 in the former, the largest ballroom space in Oman, and 600 in the latter.”

“OCEC’s advanced facilities are the perfect platform for the debut of a new edition of The Oman Bride Show 2016,” remarked Eyad Bdeir, general manager of East Expo. “The exceptional venue’s flexible exhibition space is ideal to showcase the many and varied aspects of the bridal industry and the expert OCEC team fully understand the complex needs of events of this calibre, ensuring a highly successful show,” he added.

The Oman Bride Show 2016 will tap into the momentum of Oman’s burgeoning wedding industry, driven by the increasingly sophis-

REJIMON K reji@timesofoman.com

FUTURE POSITIVE: The Oman Bride Show 2016 will tap Oman’s burgeoning wedding industry, driven by the increasingly sophisticated tastes of its young population.–Supplied photo

ticated and aspiring tastes of its young demographics, and the Sultanate’s fast-growing popularity as a wedding tourism destination.

McCartney added, “The launch of Oman’s biggest wedding event in 2016 is extremely well-timed as Omani families are spending more on engagements, weddings and honeymoons than ever before, and wedding tourism is taking off in Oman, with the idyllic setting and opulent ballrooms of the OCEC attracting considerable interest in this regard.”

The OCEC general manager pointed out that the Oman Bride Show 2016 will be an important platform to showcase the Sultanate’s SMEs, placing their specialisations and expertise in the industry spotlight and positioning them alongside prestigious international brands. The Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre is located in its own fully integrated precinct only four kilometres from Muscat International Airport.

The design of the Centre will ensure a flow of meeting space to

suit the most discerning conference and exhibition organisers. It also incorporates expansive concourse areas to enable ease of large delegations with floor to ceiling windows overlooking landscaped gardens and water features.

The Centre will feature twotiered auditoriums to seat 3,200 and 450, while the five exhibition halls will feature 22,000 square metres of column-free exhibition space. Hall 1 will have a superior fit out, specialised acoustic treatment, advanced lighting and rigging requirements to act as a multi-purpose space for plenary sessions, concerts, performances and gala dinners on a larger scale.

Halls 1 & 2 combined will seat up to 10,000 seated in theatre-style.

The Centre will include additional 13 meeting rooms for 80-300 delegates, two well-appointed ballrooms to seat up to 2,590, 10 hospitality suites, a VIP Pavilion, offering over 55 meeting space options, and a multistorey car park with a capacity for 4,000 vehicles.

MUSCAT: In a move to encourage savings and old age income among non-resident Indians (NRI), especially blue-collared workers in the Gulf region, India’s pension regulator has decided to ease the norms and promote the National Pension System (NPS) in a big way.

“The NPS could prove to be a long-term solution to their old age income security if these NRIs are persuaded to join the NPS and save for their retirement income,” said Hemant Contractor, chairman of India’s Pension Fund Regulatory And Development Authority (PFRDA).

NPS is an easily accessible, low cost, tax-efficient, flexible and portable retirement savings account. Under the NPS, the individual contributes to his retirement account. It is designed on a defined contribution basis wherein the subscriber contributes to his own account.

The benefit subscribers ultimately receive depends on the amount of contributions, the returns made on the contributions and the period of contributions.

“Most of the Indians going abroad are labour migrants, who migrate for a definite period, then return and settle in India for their post-work life. During their stay in the foreign countries, they remit money to India and most of these remittances are in the form of bank deposits, equity share investments, real estate acquisitions etc. and very little or negligible goes into creation of a postwork retired life corpus,” added

Experts to formulate drainage, flood plans

CIVIC CHALLENGES: Local authorities and key consultants have identified inadequate planning and a lack of proper maintenance of drainage networks as the main challenge leading to flooding in urban areas.–File photograph

Water scarcity, increase in population and improvement of the living standards have put a strain on water resources and their use in the country. Hence, finding new unconventional water resources such as treated wastewater (TWW) has become of crucial importance in the country

Times News Service MUSCAT: More than 150 international and regional drainage, wastewater and flood control experts will join key representatives from Ministry of Regional Municipalities and Water Resources, Muscat Municipality, Haya Water, National Survey Authority of the Ministry of Defence, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, at the Second Annual Drainage Rehabilitation and Wastewater Management Conference on September 7 and 8 in Muscat.

Established as Oman’s largest gathering of drainage, wastewater, flood control and dam design

and construction specialists, the conference will deliver high level presentations, new technologies and solutions for the advancement of storm water and wastewater management.

Water scarcity, increase in population and improvement of the living standards have put a strain on water resources and their use in the country.

Hence, finding new unconventional water resources such as treated wastewater (TWW) has become of crucial importance in the country.

Another challenge that exists in Oman is the lack of proper drainage systems. Local authorities and

key consultants have identified inadequate planning and a lack of proper maintenance of drainage networks as the main challenge leading to flooding in urban areas.

Researched and developed by Global Exhibitions & Conferences LLC, the conference will cover the main theme, which is ‘Overcoming the water floods through efficient drainage networks and maintaining a sustainable wastewater system across the Sultanate.’

The conference will explore several sub-themes which include presenting the current drainage and wastewater infrastructure projects in the Sultanate, apart from designing, constructing, operating and maintaining an effective sewerage and world class water reuse system networks in Oman, understanding the wastewater reuse and its purposes, and discussing the role of GIS technology in evaluating and maintaining drainage systems and flooding.

Main issues The other themes to be discussed at the conference are, learning from regional and international best practice case studies on implementing a sustainable drainage infrastructure, analysing the different technologies and solutions for rehabilitating the current drainage infrastructure in the Sultanate, and understanding the lat-

est flood control techniques and strategies in planning, in addition to maintaining flood protection systems, and avoiding flash floods by preventing run-offs through an efficient drainage system.

Local authorities The conference includes presentations from local authorities such as Ministry of Regional Municipalities and Water Resources, Muscat Municipality, Haya Water, and National Survey Authority in the Ministry of Defence Oman, in addition to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and the Ministry of Health.

Also presenting will be international authorities such as Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, Ajman Sewerage Private Company Limited (ASPCL), Alexandria Sanitary Drainage Company, and General Water Authority, in addition to the Ministry of Water Resources, Libya, Ras Al Khaimah Wastewater Authority and Public Works and Services Department, UNESCO Iranian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, and the National Water Company, Saudi Arabia among others.

The sponsors and exhibiting companies include Haya Water, International Aramoon Ltd (IAC), United National Factory Company for Fiberglass (UNFCF) and BioQ8.

SAVINGS CRUNCH: Most of the Indians going abroad are labour migrants, whose savings do not go into creation of a post-work retired life corpus. – File photo

the PFRDA chairman. India has the second-largest Diaspora in the world, with around 29 million people living in over 200 countries, and of these, 25 per cent live in the Gulf countries.

“It is a common phenomenon in India that a majority of migrants struggle to push their days ahead due to lack of savings in their retirement after ending their migrant life. Many are unaware about the need for savings when they retire. If the government has decided to expand the NPS among NRIs, then it is a welcome move,” said Rafee K Ravuther, co-ordinator of Migrant Forum in Asia, a regional network which stands up for migrants’ rights.

According to the World Bank statistics, India topped the remittance chart for 2014, pulling in $70.38 billion from its global migrant workforce.

Meanwhile, Shaji Sebastin, a

Muscat-based social worker, said that he is doubtful about how much secure the investment in the NPS will be.

“According to the PFRDA itself, the investment is usually in Equity (E), Corporate Bonds (C) and /or Government Securities (G).

The individual subscriber has a choice of selecting investment mix (E,C,G), as per his/her risk appetite. So, we cannot just ignore the risks of our savings when it is invested in bonds and securities,” said Shaji.

“Recently, there were reports that Indian employees are concerned over the government decision to invest social security and pension fund in equity markets,” he added.

Currently, the NPS has more than 9.2 million subscribers with total Asset Under Management (AUM) of more than Rs899.46 billion (OMR5.43 billion).

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

OMAN E X PAT A F FA I R S

76

year-old David H. Insall, passed away in Wales on Sunday, played an important role in the country with the Royal Air Force of Oman and as an advocate for its environment and heritage.

British ecologist leaves his legacy for Omanis From the time he

NEW BEGINNING: Two workers transferred their sponsorships and 308 amended their professions with their employers.-File photo

Ministry corrects status of non-Omani workers

first arrived in the Sultanate of Oman in 1970, David Insall played an important role as an advocate

MUSCAT: A total 368 non-Omani workers corrected their status during the period from August 2 to August 8. While two workers transferred their sponsorships, 308 amended their professions with their employers.

Meanwhile, 1,139 non-Omani workers expressed their desire to correct their status and leave the country. The Ministry of Manpower has been correcting the status

of the private sector organisations and non-Omani workers from early last month.

The grace period is divided into two categories — non-Omani workers who are living in Oman in violation of laws and who want to leave the country for good, who will be exempted from fines and charges, and non-Omani workers who want to rectify their status inside the Sultanate. -ONA

for its environment and cultural heritage

SARAH MACDONALD sarah@timesofoman.com END OF AN ERA: David H. Insall (right) believed in the richness of

MUSCAT: He may have been Oman’s heritage, culture and identity.–Supplied photo from Wales and served in the British Royal Air Force, but David H. Insall will also be remembered for the Royal Corps of Signals. He was cinated by Oman’s history and his great contributions to the Sul- an excellent target rifle marks- culture. He helped recruit the man, and in 1967 he became the country’s first Director of Antiqtanate of Oman. uities in 1973, encouraged the Insall passed away in Wales British Army’s Pistol Champion.

In 1970 Insall came to Oman, a restoration of Jabreen Castle, and on Sunday, aged 76 years, but his legacy in Oman will live on, say country that he had a passion for while studying Omani code lanthose who knew him here. From until his death. He was head of re- guages, he was appointed to the the time he first arrived in the cruiting and training in the Royal National Committee for the ProSultanate in 1970, Insall played Air Force of Oman. He also did tection of the National Heritage an important role in the country extensive work related to the local by Royal Decree in 1980. with the Royal Air Force of Oman environment and heritage, most and as an advocate for its environ- recently as an environmental Oman trek consultant at Majan Engineering According to Al Mukhaini, David ment and heritage. trekked all over Oman on foot “He loved Oman. He believed Consultants LLC. His environmental work in- in the early 1970s, exploring the in the potential for Oman. He believed in the richness of Oman’s cluded studies of the Arabian country from top to bottom. He heritage, culture, identity and ‘tahr’ (Waal Al Arabi), founding got to know the people very well I know if he had been living he the Wadi Sareen Nature Reserve and as soon as someone told him would do more to protect the en- in 1973, and helping found the their family name, he could idenvironment, protect that heritage, Environment Society of Oman tify where they were from and ask protect that identity, that culture, (ESO), in which he was an active about their tribal leaders, doing so all in Arabic. understanding it better,” said member.

His love of Oman was so deep Insall was also an adviser in the Ahmed Ali Al Mukhaini, former secretary of the Historical Asso- Ministry of the Environment and that he even proposed to his wife, ciation of Oman, and a man who Climate Affairs where he wrote Jeanette, here at the ancient vilOman’s environmental guidelines lage of Qalhat. As Al Mukhaini knew Insall well.

Insall graduated from the Royal and nature conservation policies. recalls, “He said to me that he proApart from being an environ- posed to his most beloved person Military Academy Sandhurst in 1958. He was commissioned into mentalist, Insall was also fas- in his most beloved place.”

Insall also helped found the Historical Association of Oman, an organisation in which he was active for years. Current board member Dr Mohammed Al Muqaddam, remembers him fondly. He said Insall was not only a founding member of the association, but he was also very hardworking and active on its different committees and involved in the activities.

“He gave some lectures about Oman’s history, and he always attended other people’s lectures. He was a very nice man. He loved this country,” Al Muqaddam recalled.

Insall wrote numerous articles about Oman, as well as a book published with ESO called Landscaping with Omani Trees, in which he brought awareness to the importance of indigenous plants. He also revived the Journal of Oman studies in 1998 and became the managing editor.

Al Mukhaini said Insall was a man deeply attracted to the rich heritage, culture and environment in Oman. “It’s almost like he felt committed or obliged to give Oman its due of research,” he said.

Insall’s contributions to Oman were recognised in 1982 when he awarded the Order of Oman personally by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said.

Insall was a role model for Omanis and others in Oman who are working to develop the country, Al Mukhaini said, adding that he was shocked and saddened by his death. He said Insall always worked hard to protect the environment, setting a great example for those around him.

Osamah Al Abullatif, who also knew Insall, described him as a living encyclopaedia due to his vast knowledge and commented that he would be missed in Oman.

Mourning the loss on his twitter feed he wrote: “Oman’s environment and conservation community lost a giant today with the passing of David H Insall.”

G L O B A L I M PAC T

‘Omani Cultural Days’ open Arab window for Brazilians

CULTURAL FIESTA: The Ministry of Heritage and Culture set an extensive cultural programme for these days including many cultural activities and events to highlight the Omani culture. –ONA

RIO DE JANEIRO: ‘Omani Cultural Days’ in Brazil, the first of its kind for an Arab country to be held in Brazil, concluded its show in the city of Rio de Janeiro.

The Ministry of Heritage and Culture had set an extensive cultural programme for these days as it included many cultural activities and events to highlight the Omani culture, in cooperation and coordination with the Sultanate’s Embassy in Brazil, and with participation of a number of institutions in the Sultanate.

These activities were held in Sao Paulo from July 28 to August 2 and in Rio de Janeiro from August 5 to 9.

It is worth mentioning that the Omani Cultural Days in Brazil were organised by the Ministry of Heritage and Culture in collaboration with the Ministry of Information, the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, the Ministry of Tourism, the Foreign Ministry, the Public Authority for Radio and Television (PART), the Public Authority for Craft Industries (PACI), the National Records and Archives Authority (NRAA), Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) , Omani Society for Fine Arts (OSFA), Omani Photographic Society and Oman Establishment for Press Publication and Advertising. –ONA

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BP Oman hires fresh graduates for global challenge programme Times News Service MUSCAT: In a big incentive for youths, BP Oman hosted an induction week for 10 fresh recruits as part of BP’s global Graduate Challenge Programme, a development programme for fresh graduates from around the world.

The competency based programme focuses on training and developing graduates within their fields of study to gain hands-on work experience while building discipline foundations.

The training and development includes some international assignments and global exposure based on a career path plan which BP develops for each new newcomer.

The recruits met BP Oman’s Leadership Team as part of the induction week and were introduced to BP’s activities, strategies, values, and health and safety guidelines.

BP Oman launched the Challenge

LOCAL TALENT: The competency based programme focuses on training and developing graduates within their fields of study.–ONA

Programme in 2010 and has recruited dozens of fresh graduates.

In a Yousuf Al Ojaili, president of BP Oman, said, “This is not just a great example of how we are try-

ing to build local talent for the long term. It is our way of fulfilling our duties and commitment to Oman and its development.”

“To date, we have hired more

than 40 fresh graduates, some of whom now hold senior positions in the organisation.

Over the years, BP Oman’s Graduate Challengers have also worked

on international assignments in countries like the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, Azerbaijan and Jordan. We look forward to continuing our development of local talent,” he added.

BP Oman has another programme for young Omani graduates to recruit graduates from local technical colleges and develop them into competent world class technicians. So far, BP has 72 technicians in the programme and will hire additional 17 recruits shortly.

BP is one of the largest oil and gas companies in the world and has had an upstream presence in Oman since 2007.

In January 2007, BP signed an agreement with the government for the appraisal and development of the Khazzan and Makarem gas fields in Block 61.

In March 2011, BP Oman achieved a major milestone with the first gas delivery to the govern-

ment from its extended well test project in Block 61. This successful pilot project is helping to demonstrate the potential of a much larger scale development.

BP is a pioneer in exploiting tight gas, and is looking to apply its technology and expertise to develop one of the Middle East’s largest tight gas accumulations the Khazzan and Makarem fields in Block 61.

The full field development of the resource, if it goes ahead, will involve drilling around 300 wells, with the capability to deliver over one billion cubic feet of gas per day. This represents an increase of around a third in Oman’s current total domestic supply.

BP is committed to developing Oman’s human resources through our presence in the country. Omani employees hold different positions with BP in Oman, ranging from graduate entrants to leadership team members.

PIA cuts fares as special I-Day gift With nearly 250,000 Pakistanis living in Oman, various airlines operating in the

The month of August dawns with the spirit to celebrate our independence and PIA wanted to join in the revelry by making it easier and much more affordable for our countrymen to celebrate the festive occasion with their families in Pakistan

Pakistan sector are doing robust business.

Flights to major cities like Lahore, Karachi, and Sialkot, in addition to Islamabad and Peshawar, are normally booked to capacity in peak travel seasons

SHAHZAD RAZA shahzad@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Pakistan’s 69th Independence Day has come with a big incentive for those planning to join their families back home with Pakistan International Airline (PIA) announcing a significant cut in its fares to mark the nation’s celebratory mood.

PIA Oman has slashed its fares to Pakistan by up to 37 per cent, making it, perhaps, the most significant cut in recent times. Apart from the reduced fares, the airline has also increased its baggage allowance to

40kg (for two pieces) from the previously 32kg for one piece.

“The month of August dawns with the spirit to celebrate our independence and PIA wanted to join in the revelry by making it easier and much more affordable for our countrymen to celebrate the festive occasion with their families in Pakistan,” Shahzad Paracha, country manager – Oman, PIA, told the Times of Oman yesterday.

The promotion, which started on August 7 will continue till the end of October.

However, the promotional fares will not be applicable briefly, dur-

BRIEFS

Camel riding training centre gains popularity

MUSCAT: A centre for training youths and local Omanis in the traditional sport of camel riding is being run by the Department of Sports Affairs, at Mahout. The centre has evoked keen response from both youths as well as elderly people. -ONA

Vocational registration plan to empower Omanis MUSCAT: In view of the growing importance of the project, the Public Authority for Manpower Register (PAMR) held a meeting with CrimsonLogic of Singapore and some members of Information Technology Authority (ITA) at the Authority’s headquarters to initiate the ‘vocational registration project’.

The project manager made a presentation about the importance of this project in terms of empowering Omani manpower and help them get job opportunities through different channels. It also enabled them to follow up the vacancies at the public and private sector organisations. -ONA

Focus on boosting abalone fisheries at Mirbat seminar MIRBAT: The status of abalone, methods of fishing, sales, processing and export were discussed at a seminar titled ‘The Status of Abalone Fisheries’, in Mirbat on Monday. It was held under the auspices of Dr Hamad bin Said Al Oufi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

The seminar was organised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, represented by the Directorate General of Fisheries in the Governorate of Dhofar. The presentation also covered the improper practices during the season and thereafter. The seminar aimed at raising awareness of fisheries wealth and presenting the outcomes of the fisheries survey. -ONA

Shahzad Paracha Country manager – Oman, PIA

ing the high traffic Eid Al Adha period from September 10 to 24, when demand for seats is expected to be extremely high.

PIA fares have been hovering around OMR135 to OMR150 in the months of April, May and June to almost all Pakistan sectors from Oman.

“Yes PIA has reduced its rates and we are selling tickets at much

cheaper prices than before,” confirmed Ansar Shahzad, manager, Ittfaq Travel and Tourism, a busy travel agency in Ruwi.

With nearly 250,000 Pakistanis living in Oman, various airlines operating in the Pakistan sector are doing robust business. Flights to major cities like Lahore, Karachi, and Sialkot, in addition to Islamabad and Peshawar, are nor-

mally booked to capacity in peak travel seasons.

Additional customers “Low return fares in the range of OMR110 to Lahore, Sialkot, and Peshawar and OMR105 to Karachi are sure to fetch us a few additional customers. Even the fare to Islamabad has come down to OMR125 from over OMR150,” added Ansar.

He said the cut in fares to sectors other than Islamabad was bigger because of heavier traffic to those cities and PIA perhaps wanted the maximum number of its travellers to benefit from its generous offer.

“Passengers travelling on PIA enjoy the distinct advantage of paying little or no money to change the date of their return flight from Pakistan. Since other airlines do charge significantly for any change in travel dates, this does appear to be a major benefit to PIA customers,” explained Ansar while replying to a question.

Popular choice With the number of Pakistani expatriates in Oman growing every year and more and more foreign clients opting for convenient connecting flights, PIA continues to be a popular choice for travel to and from Oman. The airline has been operating to the Sultanate since December 2, 1971, and has provided immense travel facilities to both incoming and outgoing passengers to Oman. More baggage, convenient connecting flights and other incentives have kept PIA customers loyal to the airline over the years.

PIA also transports bodies of its nationals working abroad to Pakistan free of cost.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

OMAN

Jailed Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian should learn his fate “within a week” after his secretive trial on accusations of spying on Iran ended Monday, his lawyer said ‘Post’ journalist Iran trial verdict ‘within a week’ >A7

Sunburn to make its debut in Muscat on August 20 overall 7,00,000 people attended them. Over the last eight seasons, Sunburn has hosted some of the most adept artists of our times including Above & Beyond, Afrojack, Armin Van Buuren, and Avicii, in addition to Axwell, Carl Cox, David Guetta, and Deadmau 5. The others who attended Sunburn are DVLM, Fedde Le Grand, Hardwell, and Knike Party, apart from Krewella, Nickey Romero, Paul Oakenfold, and Sander Van Doorn. Sasha, Swedish House Mafia, and Tiesto, among others, were also part of the festival.

Kick-starting his career at the age of 15 with Sunburn, Shaan is a name to reckon with in the progressive house music fraternity

Times News Service MUSCAT: Sunburn, one of the world’s largest and most successful dance music festivals, is making its debut in Muscat with its club brand, Sunburn Reload.

This is high-powered concept that gives one a subliminal taste of the ultimate music festival – Sunburn Goa. The ‘reloaded’ experience gives you a state-of-the-art technical set-up, mind- blowing visuals, impressive laser graphics, in addition to special effects like CO2 guns and confetti blasters that ensure an extravaganza.

With varied styles of electronic dance music (EDM) being played at the event along with a spectacular set up of experiences, Sunburn Reload is bound to take music experience to a whole new level.

Sunburn Reload, Muscat will feature DJ Shaan, Sunburn resident and India’s youngest and first import to Tomorrowland. Kickstarting his career at the age of 15 with Sunburn, Shaan is a name

ULTIMATE MUSIC FESTIVAL: Sunburn is a synergy of music, entertainment and lifestyle that attracts music tourism in India and has spread its wings across the globe to Sri Lanka in 2012 and Dubai in 2013. -Supplied picture

to reckon with in the progressive house music fraternity.

Having played to many packed houses across India and the United Kingdom, he opened for Funkagenda, Helium Project, and Miss Nine.

He proved his mettle in the international market as well, playing for a Global Truce Public Awareness Concert and for an exclusive gig on a private yacht on Temple Pier, London, and at the Sunburn International Festival in Colombo. His music is described as expansive and uplifting, leaving festival-goers all over the world elevated.

Sunburn reload, Muscat will be held on August 20 at On The Rocks and will form a natural extension of the much-loved place of Indian EDM, Sunburn, Goa. The early tickets are priced at General OMR30 and VIP OMR50.

For more details on the venue and prices, the fans can call 24346765 and 97983333.

Launched in 2007, Sunburn is a synergy of music, entertainment and lifestyle that attracts music tourism in India and has spread its wings across the globe to Sri Lanka in 2012 and Dubai in 2013.

Holistic experience Karan Singh, CEO, Sunburn states, “Having hosted multiple indigenous editions of Sunburn Reload over the last three years we have brought the holistic dance music experience to many cities.

We have been seeing an increasing number of Sunburn fan base from the Middle East which led us to believe that Sunburn will be a huge hit with music lovers here in Muscat and we can give our global fans the brand experience in a smaller format at their home

turf. This is of course on the road to Sunburn Goa 2015, which happens every year in December. And we hope to see many fans in Goa this year.”

More than just a music festival, Sunburn has nurtured the electronic music culture in India.

Sunburn Goa is ranked as big as Tomorrowland and Ultra Miami festival as per IMS APAC Business Report 2014. 2015 will witness a boost in the global fan footprint with devout fanatics pouring in from more than 40 countries.

The ninth edition of Sunburn Goa will deliver the world’s best, in technology, music and production in a great web of artistry.

The first-ever Sunburn festival in 2007 attracted a crowd of 2,000.

Last December, Sunburn Goa was attended by almost 3,00,000 people. In 2014 alone, 96 Sunburn events were held across India;

Encompassing experience Music lovers can expect to witness a festival unlike any other as Sunburn Goa 2015 gears up to present an all encompassing experience that will see a cosmic mash of dance music genres, state-ofthe-art experiential zones and phenomenal production spanning over 5,00,000 square metres of mountain top venue at Vagator, making this an extravaganza of mammoth proportions and maintaining its reputation as a must-attend festival for any EDM enthusiast.

Connecting serious music enthusiasts directly with the artists they love, Sunburn is no doubt set to become a sanctuary for forward-thinking music fans looking for life-affirming experiences.

Maintaining a healthy balance between popular and underground music, this will be a festival for the true dance music fan, for whom music is a way of life.

It is time to take a break and leave your world behind. Welcome to Planet Sunburn. Be who you want to be.

This is your festival.

STEEL STRUCTURES

Oman Dry Dock bags $10m order MUSCAT: Oman Dry Dock Company (ODC) obtained a $10 million worth contract to provide Rabab Harweel project of the Consolidated Contractors Company with super steel structures. Rabab Harweel is one of PDO oilfields near the Wilayat of Duqm.

Dr. Sheikh Abdul Malik Al Hina’ee, Chairman of Oman Dry Dock, said that the company has carried out similar works in the past.

He added that the company’s operations are not limited to ship repair and maintenance but include major overhaul and complicated conversion of vessels.

He added that the completion of this contract will convey an important message to the marine and industry sector about the company’s capabilities and competitive edges in building marine structures inside and outside the Sultanate.

Dr. Ahmed Al Abri, Deputy CEO for Operations said that the implementation would start next October with the participation of more than 200 workers and the use of more than 12,000 tonnes of steel manufactured at the company.

The company will create an independent administrative team for the project to ensure its quick and smooth running.

He added that in a record time, Oman Dry Dock Company managed to diversify itself from general ship repairs to sophisticated repairs, and the construction of steel structures to meet the needs of the market.

It is worth mentioning that Oman Dry Dock Company has received more than 340 ships of different sizes and purposes since the launch of the dry dock in 2012.

The company has staff from more than 12 countries. -ONA

R E C RU I T M E N T O F E X PAT S

< FROM

A1 ‘Middlemen give wrong information to job-seekers’ He says that another scenario is that some white-collar workers, being employed in Oman on a two-year visa, are not paid in time so they abscond and end up staying illegally.

Lax rules Raja argues that the title of the profession should be printed on the visa because sometimes these visas are sold under a different title, and only when the person comes to Oman does he realise that he has been recruited for a different, lower-level position.

Another initiative that Raja says should be taken is of auditing

agents involved in the recruitment business and issuing licences to them.

Some regulations in this field should be introduced by the Omani government, he said, adding that companies should also be mandated to pay their employees’ salaries through the banking system.

Vital information Raja also highlighted the importance of providing correct information to uneducated job seekers about various aspects of life in Oman, including income and expenses.

Raja explained that in his coun-

try, there is something called ‘protector fee’, which is an arrangement between the country’s foreign office and that of another country, ensuring that people going to work abroad are given the necessary information through several-day training workshops.

Compliance with this system can help job seekers take the right decision and face fewer problems, he noted.

Legal procedure In addition, Raja said that labourrelated cases should be handled through a one-window operation, adding that the current legal proS OA R I N G T E M P E R AT U R E S

< FROM

A1

Heat wave kills 21 in Egypt

Meanwhile, 21 people have died and 66 others were hospitalised with exhaustion as soaring temperatures and high humidity hit Cairo and other parts of Egypt, the health ministry said on Monday.

The victims, who all died on Sunday, succumbed as temperatures soared as high as 47 degrees Celsius, in conditions made less bearable by elevated humidity levels. Fifteen people died in Cairo, four in the Delta province of Qalibiya and two in Upper Egypt’s Qena province, the ministry said in a statement.

Those who died, including seven women, were all aged over 60.

Sixty-six people were admitted to hospital. -With AFP inputs

cedure is slow and complicated.

He also said that employers should be required to send their workers to their home country for a break as some workers are asked by some employers to work for 4 or 5 years without a break.

Raja added that another law which should be revised is the one which states that when children of expatriates turn 21, they are no longer eligible for a family visa.

There are expatriates who have been living here for the past 30 or 40 years and their children are born and brought up here and the situation becomes difficult for their children when they turn 21,

especially females, he said.

There should be some exceptions at least for females and those born here, said Raja.

Misinformation Nitin Sujanani, general manager of Indian Social Club Muscat, also believes that misinformation about working in Oman leads workers into unfortunate situations.

There are some agents who are honest and helpful and explain the necessary details to those who want to come to Oman, he said.

However, sometimes there are different middlemen involved,

each of whom is getting a commission, and the last person does not even bother to give information to the worker, he added.

“Once he comes here, he is unaware of so many things,” said Sujanani, adding that some initiatives can be taken by the governments of the countries, which send labourers abroad, to raise their awareness.

Migrant workers should be provided with the necessary information about the cost of living and other important matters and should be provided a guidebook to educate them and prepare them mentally.

E X PA N D I N G T H E R E AC H

Campaign launched for Entrepreneurship Award Times News Service MUSCAT: An awareness campaign was launched by the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Riyada, for the Entrepreneurship Award, at Hormuz Grand Hotel in Muscat on Monday.

The campaign will cover a series of workshops in most of the Sultanate’s governorates as it aims to promote the award’s rules, categories, and the registration process.

The workshop for the launch was held on Monday in two sessions and attended by more than 100 participants.

The workshop was led by Abdullah Al Jufaili, general manager, Sharakah, who has more than 17 years of experience in the field SMEs development.

Badriya Al Hinai, the project manager of the award, said, “We aim to encourage entrepreneurs to participate in the award and explain to them its different categories.

Taking into consideration the feedback received from the 2014 edition of the award, we decided this year to shed more focus on the registration process and criteria to show the participants practically how they can fill up the forms and submit their applications.”

“We will be visiting different

ENCOURAGING ENTREPRENEURS: Entrepreneurship Award aims at enabling SMEs to be an effective contributor to the nationalisation of jobs and establishment of a diversified economy that is based on knowledge and innovation.– Supplied photo

governorates to expand the reach of the award and provide more in depth information for the potential participants and answer their inquiries. Our next workshop will be on August 12 in Ibra in the North Sharqiyah Governorate,” added Al Hinai.

The award aims at enabling 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.

It seeks to cultivate the entrepreneurship culture in Omani society and develop the perfor-

mance and competitiveness of the micro, small, and medium enterprises.

This year, the award maintained the same main three categories, which are the Entrepreneurship Award, Entrepreneurship Award for SMEs, and Entrepreneurship Award for Supporting Organisations.

However, it made some changes in its sub-categories as a result of the outcomes of the first edition’s key performance indicators.

This year, the organisers expect to welcome more participation and support from individuals, and private and public organisations.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

REGION

The 39-year-old Iranian-American Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian has been in custody more than a year and the allegations were heard behind closed doors, drawing condemnation from his family, employer and press freedom groups.

‘Post’ journalist Iran trial verdict ‘within a week’ Reporter’s lawyer Leila Ahsan said she had presented her defence and a judgement would soon follow

TEHRAN: Jailed Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian should learn his fate “within a week” after his secretive trial on accusations of spying on Iran ended Monday, his lawyer said.

The 39-year-old IranianAmerican has been in custody more than a year and the allegations were heard behind closed doors, drawing condemnation from his family, employer and press freedom groups.

Outside court Rezaian’s mother read a statement to reporters in which she defiantly defended her son, saying he was an innocent victim of bad diplomatic relations between Iran and the United States. The journalist, who has suffered bad health in prison, was “paying the price of the suspicion, the animosity, and the paranoia between the two countries,” Mary Rezaian said.

Confirming that Monday’s hearing was the last in the case unless there is an appeal, the reporter’s lawyer Leila Ahsan said she had presented her defence and a judgement would soon follow. “The verdict will be issued and communicated to us within a week,” she told AFP by telephone in Tehran.

“I expect my client to be acquitted, as he is completely innocent.”

Monday’s hearing -- the trial’s fourth -- was the first since Iran struck a nuclear deal with the leading powers in Vienna on July 14, and it centred on the reporter’s rebuttal of the charges.

He stands accused of “espionage, collaboration with hostile

HOPING AGAINST HOPE: Mary Rezaian, right, the mother of detained Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian and his wife Yeganeh Salehi, left, leave the Revolutionary Court after a hearing in the capital Tehran, yesterday. – AFP

governments, gathering classified information and disseminating propaganda against Iran”.

The trial started in May and the charges are thought to carry a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment. Iran and the United States said there was no linkage between Rezaian’s case and the nuclear talks but President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry criticised the journalist’s trial and called for his release. Ahsan on July 28 said she hoped the recent accord -- in which Iran agreed to curb its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of crippling sanctions imposed by the West -- would hasten her client’s freedom. But repeated bail requests have been refused.

Iran has said the case is a matter for its judiciary and the verdict should not be pre-judged.

The accusations were heard in private at a Revolutionary Court, which usually presides over political cases or those related to national security. Rezaian, the Post’s Tehran correspondent, was arrested with his wife Yeganeh Salehi, also a journalist, at their home in Tehran on July 22, 2014.

Although Salehi was released on bail after spending two and a half months in custody she has not worked since and is barred from discussing the case. A pho-

tographer arrested on the same day is also out on bail.

No charges have been disclosed against either but Ahsan said she expected court action against Salehi and the other accused after the Rezaian verdict is announced.

Salehi and Rezaian’s mother were at court but not allowed inside.

“This case is not about what Jason did. This is a political case, political issues between the United States and Iran,” the reporter’s mother said, noting that she was allowed to visit him last week.

“He is very tired, he is very isolated. Jason’s rights as an Iranian citizen have not been fulfilled because he was kept in prison more than one year and many times his trial was delayed.

“I’m challenging those people who arrested him and are trying him, to show the evidence... accusing him of espionage.” Washington Post executive editor Martin Baron on Saturday criticised Rezaian’s trial and the conditions of his incarceration. “Iran has behaved unconscionably throughout this travesty of a case,” he said.

“It has imprisoned an innocent journalist for more than a year and subjected him to physical mistreatment and psychological abuse. The secret court proceedings that began on May 25 have been a farce.” — AFP

A7

VIOLENCE

Bomb blast injures three policemen in Cairo CAIRO: Three policemen were wounded on Monday when a bomb exploded under a traffic sentry post near a Cairo court, security sources said, the latest in a series of attacks to hit the Egyptian capital.

Also on Monday, Egypt postponed again its verdict in the trial of the brother of the Al Qaeda chief but sentenced 10 co-defendants to death for forming a “terrorist group”, a court official said. Bomb disposal experts defused a second device they found inside a black bag while searching the area following the blast, state news agency MENA said. The explosion, which occurred in the affluent northeastern Heliopolis district, was claimed on Twitter

by Ajnad Misr, a militant group that emerged in January 2014 and has targeted security forces in and around Cairo.

“Almighty made it possible for a company of our heroes to target a gathering of criminal security forces in the vicinity of Heliopolis Court with a bomb that led to the serious injury of two of their senior officers... and a conscript,” the group’s media wing said on Twitter.

Meanwhile, the verdict against Mohamed Al Zawahiri, whose brother Ayman Al Zawahiri heads the global militant network, was postponed until September 27. He and 67 codefendants are accused of having formed “a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda” and plotting attacks on government installations, security forces and Egypt’s Christian minority -- all charges which his lawyer has denied. On Monday, 10 of those on trial were sentenced to death for “joining a terrorist group, inciting the killing of police and army officers and attacking police and government buildings,” the court official said. — Agencies

IS CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY

IS car bomb attack kills 9 in Libya city TRIPOLI: A car bomb attack claimed by the IS militant group has killed nine people and wounded dozens in Libya’s eastern coastal city of Derna, a medical source said. “Nine persons were killed and dozens wounded in a car bomb in Derna city” on Sunday night, a medical official in eastern Libya told AFP by telephone.

“Some of the dead and wounded are civilians.”

IS said it was behind the attack and that it was carried out by a Sudanese militant. “The martyr Abu Jaafar Al Sudani blew up his car bomb... in the city of Derna, causing many dead and wounded,” read a statement the group posted online.

The militant group’s fighters last month lost control of Derna, which had been a bastion of IS since late last year. IS promised to avenge its fighters in a video posted online.

IS has built up a significant presence in Libya, exploiting a security vacuum as two rival governments

battle for power four years after the ousting of Muammar Gaddafi.

But IS was expelled from Derna in June by rival hardline groups backed up by residents angry over the arrival of foreign fighters and clerics in the city.

IS militants were trying on Sunday to retake Derna, residents said. The rival Abu Salim Martyrs Brigade managed to repulse their attack, but fighting with heavy weapons raged on the eastern edge of the city late into Sunday night, they said. A commander opposing IS was killed, IS said, adding others had been killed and wounded.

But no further details were immediately available.

The air force of Libya’s official government, which has been based in the east of the country since losing control of the capital Tripoli a year ago, conducted an air strike on an area that IS was trying to take, said Abdul Karim Sabra, a local military spokesman. — Agencies

A8

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

INDIA

Pained at loss of lives due to the stampede in Jharkhand. My thoughts & prayers are with the families of the deceased in this hour of grief Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Temple stampede leaves 11 dead in Jharkhand Ten men and a woman died in the stampede as the devotees tried to jump queue at around 4am, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Deogarh, Amit Kumar said

DEOGARH (Jharkhand): At least 11 people, including a woman, were killed and more than 30 injured in a stampede near a temple in the district where thousands of devotees had lined up before dawn for special prayers during the month of Shravan as per the Hindu calender.

“Ten men and a woman died in the stampede as the devotees tried to jump queue at around 4am,” Deputy Commissioner of Police, Deogarh, Amit Kumar said.

The incident took place near the Baidyanath temple at Belabagan More in Deogarh, about 350 kilometres from the east Indian state of Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi.

All the injured were being treated at a nearby hospital, Civil Surgeon Diwakar Kamath said.

It is the second Monday of the Shravan month when Degoarh is generally teeming with tens of thousands of devotees.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das expressed grief over the loss of lives.

“Pained at loss of lives due to the stampede in Jharkhand. My thoughts & prayers are with the

TAKING STOCK: Police personnel conduct investigations at the site of a stampede by pilgrims at the Baidyanath temple complex in Deoghar district of Jharkhand state, about 400 kilometres from Ranchi on Monday. - AFP

families of the deceased in this hour of grief,” the prime minister said on twitter.

Modi spoke to Das who apprised him about the incident. The chief minister announced a compensation of Rs200,000 to the kin of those killed. The injured would be given Rs 50,000, an official statement said.

High-level probe A high-level committee headed by state Home Secretary N. N. Pandey will probe the incident.

Pandey, Additional Director General of Police S. N. Pradhan and other officials were supervising the relief operation, the statement said.

“At about at 4am, a rumour spread that the temple doors were being opened. Some of the wait-

ing devotees tried to jump queue which led to the stampede,” Pradhan said.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh said additional forces were being sent to the state for crowd control.

“There is a huge rush of devotees. They asked for additional forces. So I have told the Home Secretary to send Rapid Action Force there,” he said.

BJP MP from Godda Nishikant Dubey said steps will taken to ensure that such incidents do not recur. Making a statement in Lok Sabha on the stampede, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said he spoke to Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das, who apprised him of the situation in Deoghar after the stampede and requested for additional RAF personnel.

Singh said two RAF compa-

nies (around 200 personnel) are being sent to Deoghar for better crowd and security management in addition to the Central Armed Police Forces already deployed in the state.

All injured will be given free treatment, Singh said.

Singh condoled the loss of lives due to stampede and expressed heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed in the stampede.

Earlier, Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav of RJD and Nishikant Dubey of BJP raised the issue and said there were very little facilities for devotees at the Deogarh temple where thousands gather to offer prayers.

Both of them demanded that the area should be developed and proper facilities should be offered to the pilgrims to prevent such incidents in future. - PTI

TA K E B A C K Y O U R W O R D S C A M PA I G N

‘Biharis will send their DNA samples to prime minister’ PATNA: Escalating his confrontation with Narendra Modi, Chief Minister of eastern Indian state of Bihar Nitish Kumar on Monday announced the launch of “Shabd Wapsi” campaign, demanding that the Prime Minister take back his ‘DNA’ remark and signalling the issue will be a key plank in the assembly polls.

Taking their antagonism a step further, Nitish said 5 million people will participate in a signature campaign and also send their DNA samples to the Prime Minister for tests.

“In spite of our repeated pleas Modiji hasn’t retracted his derogatory remarks on our DNA, we’re going to launch Take Back Your Words,” Kumar tweeted.

“Modiji’s DNA remark is an insult to Bihar and its people. In democracy, people are supreme.

Now the matter will be decided in people’s court,” he said on Twitter, making it clear that the issue will not be put to rest anytime soon and will be flagged by him in the run up to the elections likely in October-November.

The chief minister said the matter will be taken to “every nook and corner” and his party JD(U) will also organise 4-5 “Swabhiman rallies” to highlight the issue.

“Modiji’s stubbornness in not taking back his DNA remark and then calling Bihar a BIMARU state and its people unfortunate is distressing,” he said in another tweet. Kumar had joined issue with the Prime Minister on Sunday after the latter vowed to remove Bihar’s BIMARU (laggard) tag at an NDA rally in Gaya.

“Bihar’s growth rate, performance on social indices like education and health care present a picture which does not show it is a laggard state,” Kumar had said, hitting back at Modi.

He had recently written an ‘open letter’ to Modi demanding

Modiji’s DNA remark is an insult to Bihar and its people. In democracy, people are supreme. Now the matter will be decided in people’s court Nitish Kumar Bihar chief minister

that he take back his DNA remark made at a rally in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur town last month.

“Your comments on my DNA at a rally recently has left me and a large section of society deeply hurt. Not just people of Bihar, but even those living outside the state have felt insulted by the choice of your words,” he had said.

Despite clarifications by several BJP leaders that Modi had spoken about Kumar “political DNA”, the Chief Minister and his ally RJD boss Lalu Prasad have linked it to “Bihari pride”, which they insist has been hurt. -PTI

GEARING UP Workers inside a textile printing workshop produce Indian national flags ahead of the Independence Day celebrations in Ahmedabad, India, on Monday. India commemorates its Independence Day on August 15. - Reuters

GOVERNMENT’S EFFORT

Salman Khan bats for Indian girl stranded in Pakistan MUMBAI: Superstar Salman Khan on Monday supported the government’s effort to bring back Geeta, stranded in Pakistan for 15 years, and unite her with her rightful parents, just as he did in his runaway hit Bajrangi Bhaijaan. Geeta, 23, is believed to have mistakenly crossed into Pakistani territory as a child.

She was 7-8 years old when she was found by the Pakistan Rangers 15 years ago from Lahore railway station, according to reports from Pakistan.

She has got a fresh lease of hope after the success of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, where Salman plays an Indian guy who helps a little girl reach her home in Pakistan.

When asked whether he had tried to help Geeta, Salman said he would have got involved but the government is already looking into the matter. “... Government is looking into it. And they are competent and should take this forward. If she

Salman Khan

agrees and they find her rightful parents, this should definitely be done.”

He, however, said that once Geeta is back in India and wants to meet him, “I would definitely meet her”. Talking to reporters on the success of his cross-border drama, which earned Rs 300 crore at the box-office, Salman said he was happy that Geeta was being

looked after well in Pakistan.

“I am not very clear. I am aware of some history. Like 15 years ago, she reached Pakistan in a train.

Before this, her parents did not try to claim her? No FIRs were filed?

I think some NGO from Pakistan is involved.

We should leave it to the girl and thank the NGO of Pakistan and the foster parents, who supported her all these years and gave her a good life,” he said.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj recently said that the government will bring back Geeta. Four families from different parts of the country have claimed Geeta to be their child.

When journalists asked him about his recent controversial tweets on Yakub Memon, Salman sidestepped the question saying “there would be a better time to talk about it”, adding he would love to speak on the issue but right now he wanted to focus on Bajrangi Bhaijaan. - PTI

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INDIA

‘Sonia, Rahul used Swaraj as pretext to block parliament’ top Congress brass

Congress leadership should understand that if these kinds of questions were asked of them, then they may not have any answers

for the stalling of Parliament, Arun Jaitley said the main opposition had taken a ‘maximalist position’ that it would not allow the House

Arun Jaitley

to function ‘under

Finance Minister

any circumstances’

Assessment Citing a meeting called by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Monday to break the logjam, Jaitley said Congress was the only party which opposed any debate and insisted that the House would not run while most opposition parties were for it to function.

“The assessment in the government is that there are not many in

COMMENTS

Infosys’ Murthy pitches for nuclear energy

gress was “completely isolated”.

“Its best endeavour is that since it won’t be able to stop the GST it is definitely trying to delay.”

Hitting out at the

NEW DELHI: As disruptions rocked the last week of Parliament’s Monsoon’s session, Government on Monday singled out Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and her deputy Rahul Gandhi for stalling the House, saying not many of its leaders favoured it and accused them of using the row over Sushma Swaraj as a “pretext” to stop passage of the GST bill.

With Congress continuing to disrupt both the Houses seeking the resignation of Swaraj and two BJP chief ministers, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley ripped into its top leadership for its “stubbornness” and alleged that they wanted India’s growth story to suffer by obstructing the GST bill’s passage.

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Democracy calls for ‘active’ parliament: President NEW DELHI: Amid continuing logjam in both the Houses, President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday said Indian democracy can “flourish” if there is an “active parliament”, MPs with clear vision along with a diligent government and an independent judiciary.

He made these remarks at an event to confer the 24th Saraswati Samman, a literary award, on former Union Minister M. Veerappa Moily for his epic poem ‘Ramayana Mahanveshanam’ here. “...Our democracy can only flourish if there is an active parliament, if the representa-

even Congress pushing this logic that House should not run.

Only their top two leaders...have been stubborn on it. (They say) Parliament should not function, legislations should not be passed.

tives of the people have a clear vision, if their efforts are supported and supplemented by a diligent government and an independent judiciary. Additionally, the system depends on a responsible media and a vigilant society,” he said.

In his speech, Pranab elucidated the importance of epics such as Ramayana and Mahabharata in daily life holding them as a “rare combination” of political philosophy and spiritual discourse.

“He (Moily) has shared his belief that present day India has a lot to learn from the Ramayana — especially that

If there is harm to the country, to the system let it be,” the Leader of the Rajya Sabha told reporters.

Attacking Sonia Gandhi, Jaitley said her policies, which “inflicted” on the then UPA government, were

our nation-building effort must be based on the strong foundation of tolerance, pluralism and inclusiveness,” he said.

“I am reminded of Gandhiji’s dream of ‘Ram Rajya’, in which he envisioned an ideal society — where justice, equality, idealism, renunciation and sacrifice are practised.

“His Ram Rajya is a nation where peace, prosperity and tranquillity prevail. Mahatma Gandhiji had once said that the Ram Rajya of his dreams meant, and I quote, ‘sovereignty of the people based on pure moral authority’,” the president said. - PTI

“directly responsible” for slowing down the economy.

Even when the UPA was in power, economic growth had ceased to be a priority for Congress, he said.

On the GST bill, he said, Con-

‘Unfounded’ allegations Asked about Rahul Gandhi’s charge that Lalit Modi had paid money to External Affairs Minister Swaraj’s family and she should disclose the transactions, Jaitley said anybody can make such “unfounded” allegations.

Citing Smriti Irani’s retort that women and their sons from common families have to toil to earn their living and Gandhi family may be an “exception”, Jaitley said the Congress leadership should ponder over it.

“Congress leadership should understand that if these kinds of questions were asked of them, then they may not have any answers,” he said and defended Swaraj over Rahul’s charge, saying she has had a long political career.

Hitting out at the top Congress brass for the stalling of Parliament, he said the main opposition had taken a “maximalist position” that it would not allow the House to function “under any circumstance”.

“We are constrained to observe that the issue of Sushmaji merely a pretext. The real motive of the Congress leadership is that they do not want GST bill to be passed.

To stop it is their clear motive.

They want India’s growth story to suffer and are making a full endeavour in that direction through their distruptionist policy.

“They want that the country should not develop and the boost the bill’s passage will give to the economy should not happen.Congress is in a disruptionist mood.

Even when the UPA was in power, economic growth had ceased to be a priority for it. Some policies which were inflicted on the government by the Congress president caused the slowdown,” he said.

The finance minister said Congress was “completely isolated” on the GST bill and numbers were in the favour of its passage. -PTI

Narayan Murthy

MUMBAI: Batting strongly for nuclear energy, Infosys cofounder Narayan Murthy on Monday said policymakers should pay greater attention to its trade-offs and described the arguments forwarded by critics as ineffective.

“As long as we’re diligent and strive for excellence, there is nothing wrong in using nuclear technology for peaceful energy,” Murthy said while speaking at St Xavier’s College here.

Citing detractors who quote disasters like Fukushima and Chernobyl, Murthy said the number of people affected in these tragedies are far less than those who die in car accidents.

Nothing risk-free There is nothing which is riskfree and hence, it is important to look at the trade-offs which are on the table, he said, adding a developed country like France draws 85 per cent of its power from nuclear sources.

Murthy said he was proud when he visited the country’s first indigenously designed nuclear reactor Dhruva at the BARC here.

Drawing attention to the environmental concerns, he said a nuclear plant generates far less carbon than a thermal power station.

Murthy’s comments come at a time of continuing opposition to nuclear plants like Kudankulam, which is operational, and the proposed Jaitapur nuclear project in Konkan region of the Maharashtra. - PTI

D I S C L O S U R E S O F U N A C C O U N T E D O V E R S E A S W E A LT H

Government assures ‘full confidentiality’ under black money window NEW DELHI: Seeking to allay fears, the Indian government on Monday said full confidentiality will be maintained with regard to disclosures of unaccounted overseas wealth made under the black money compliance window and only those who do not take advantage of the scheme need to worry.

Asking people to disclose unaccounted wealth by September 30, Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das on Monday said the 90-day compliance window will not be extended, though the CBDT would continue to clarify all doubts on the black money law.

At a workshop organised by ICAI at the behest of CBDT he said, “A person can file disclosure online and information will be re-

stricted to officers who require to know. Information will not be circulated far and wide. Confidentiality shall be maintained.”

Information This is in contrast to the Das’ statement last week, where he had said that the information provided during the one-time compliance window can be revealed in the public interest.

“In this law, there is no assurance of confidentiality but at the same time there is a provision that Section 138 of I-T Act, which is basically a confidentiality provision...

However, the Department in public interest can declare it,” Das had said.

Clarifying government’s stand,

The Tax Department had kept secret the names the persons who had disclosed assets under the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS) which was announced in 1996

Das on Monday said the provisions of Section 138 of the Income Tax Act will be applicable to the informations disclosed and full confidentiality will be maintained.

“Let us not create false alarm.

Those who have stashed money abroad and not declared them has

DELHI

Lawmaker booked for ‘trespass’ NEW DELHI: A day after she was attacked during an anti-drug drive in a North Delhi market, AAP MLA Alka Lamba was on Monday booked for trespass and damage to property after a video clip emerged in which she was seen vandalising shops along with some of her supporters.

On her part, Lamba filed a complaint with the Delhi Commission for Women against BJP lawmaker OP Sharma for calling her a “drug addict”. AAP alleged that the BJP legislator was behind the attack on Lamba on Sunday and that the video was shot from Sharma’s shop.

IN SOUP: Alka Lamba was allegedly pelted with stones by some unidentified men at Rajghat during an anti-drug drive in New Delhi on Sunday. - PTI

Case registered A senior police official said a case against Lamba was registered at Kashmere Gate police station under Sections 451 (trespass), 427(mischief causing damage), 186 (deter public servant from official duty) of IPC on a complaint of traders including properitor of the sweet shop Shiv Mishthan Bhandar where she was hit by a stone.

The CCTV camera footage re-

covered from the shop showed Lamba toppling the billing machine while one of her colleagues was seen pushing everything from a table and jostling with cops.

“The shop is believed to be owned by O P Sharma. The stone thrower is an employee in that shop,” AAP leader Ashutosh said, adding, “Fight against drug menace is not easy. We are ready to face the wrath of drug lords.

Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP)fight will continue.”

Lamba claimed the 30 second CCTV footage was from Sharma’s shop and it was shot after she was attacked.

In the wee hours of on Sunday, Lamba was attacked during an anti-drugs campaign in Kashmere Gate area where she sustained head injuries.

AAP suspected Bharatiya Janata Party’s BJP Vishwas Nagar MLA Sharma’s involvement in the incident.

Lamba said the raid was aimed at shops in the area which were operating illegally and helping drug peddlers.

Earlier in the day, Sharma kicked up a row terming Lamba a “drug addict”, as he questioned her motive behind the night operation.

Alleging the involvement of Lamba, the Chandni Chowk MLA, and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s “goons” in vandalising shops in Chandi Chowk, Sharma threatened retaliation by “lathiwielding” BJP workers in future in case of such incidents. - PTI

a lot more to worry because we will start getting information under automatic exchange of information and FATCA. Those who file disclosure information under compliance window under Black Money Act need not worry,” Das said.

To allay fears that the Tax De-

partment would start a greater scrutiny after someone avails a disclosure window, Das said if someone makes a declaration the I-T department “will not make a roving enquiry”.

“We will verify whether we have received that information earlier under double taxation avoidance agreements and will inform him.

“We will not harass him. He can then file his undisclosed assets under the Income Tax Act,” he said.

The Revenue Department would come out with a second set of FAQs on the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 to clarify the provisions of the law, he added. The department had earlier issued the rules and the

first set of FAQs on the new law, which has come into force from July 1, provides a 90-day compliance window to help people holding unaccounted assets abroad to come clean by paying 60 per cent tax and penalty.

Transparent law Black Money law is based on principle of rule of law and is transparent, objective and is a fair law, he said, adding that the compliance window in the new Act is not an amnesty programme.

The Tax Department had kept secret the names the persons who had disclosed assets under the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS) which was announced in 1996. - PTI

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

PAKISTAN Judicial probe ordered into Punjab child abuse scandal

Government response on Hafiz Saeed’s plea sought LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday issued a notice to the federal government seeking its response on a petition filed

by Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed who had challenged the planned exhibition of Indian movie Phantom in Pakistan.

Justice Shahid Bilal Hasan of the LHC directed the government to file its response before August 13, the next date of hearing.

During the hearing, Saeed’s counsel requested the court to issue a stay order, contending that the movie was against the integrity of Pakistan.

However, the judge ruled that it was necessary to hear the respondents first.

Jamaatud Dawa spokesperson and Hafiz Saeed’s brother-inlaw Hafiz Abdul Rehman Makki was also present during the proceedings.

At least 280 children were filmed being abused by a gang of 25 men who used the hundreds of videos they produced to blackmail the youngsters’ parents, according to Latif Ahmed Sara, a lawyer and activist representing the victims

HUSSAIN KHANWALA: Pakistani police arrested five more people on Monday over a major child sex abuse scandal after a lawyer for the victims accused them of protecting culprits, while activists said the case was just the tip of the iceberg.

At least 280 children were filmed being sexually abused by a gang of 25 men who used the hundreds of videos they produced to blackmail the youngsters’ parents, according to Latif Ahmed Sara, a lawyer and activist representing the victims.

Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab province where the abuse took place, has ordered an independent judicial inquiry and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has vowed stern action against those responsible.

The Lahore High Court, however, declined Sharif’s request, saying police should continue their investigation, court spokesman Arif Javed told AFP. “The judicial inquiry is required where facts are hidden, in this case police are already investigating and some of the accused have already been arrested,” Javed said.

The total number of suspects in custody stands at 12 following Monday’s arrests.

The case has provoked expressions of outrage in Pakistani newspapers, several of which have suggested a politically-influenced cover up.

The village at the heart of the

INDIAN FILM

HEINOUS CRIME: Pakistani rights activists carry placards as they shout slogans during a protest against a child abuse scandal in Islamabad on Monday. — AFP

The police are protecting the criminals, they are supporting them and have provided them an opportunity to escape the village, Latif Ahmed Sara, a lawyer and activist representing the victims

scandal, Hussain Khanwala, lies in the Punjab stronghold of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) party.

Sara accused the police of dragging their feet -- some of the videos date back to 2007.

“The police are protecting the criminals, they are supporting them and have provided them an opportunity to escape the village,” Sara told reporters.

On Monday parliament’s upper house, the Senate, passed a unanimous resolution condemning the abuse and demanding exemplary punishment for the culprits.

The head of Punjab’s Child Protection Bureau, Saba Sad-

HARIPUR CONSTITUENCY

iq, described the case as “the largest child abuse scandal in Pakistan’s history”.

But an initial police probe, carried out last week at the behest of the provincial government described the allegations as “baseless”, a conclusion immediately rejected by local media and rights activists.

District police chief Rai Baber Saeed told AFP that officers were doing their best to catch those responsible, but insisted there were no more than 30 victims and accused activists and media of exaggerating.

“Police have 30 video clips of the scandal involving 15 people.

Seven of them have been arrested while four or five are on pre-arrest bail and the rest are absconders,” he said before the latest arrests.

He described the case as an old one, dragged up recently by a group of villagers as a tactic in a dispute over the sale of some land.

Property dispute The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said the property dispute did not detract from the horror of the abuse and demanded a thorough and impartial investigation, voicing doubts over the judicial commission ordered by the Punjab chief minister.

The abusers allegedly tried to extort money from parents of victims, selling clips of the videos locally for 40 Pakistan rupees each (around 40 US cents) if they did not pay up.

“They made the video of my son in 2011 and we have been paying the blackmailers since then,” the mother of one of the victims told an AFP reporter.

Activists working to fight child sex abuse in Pakistan said the

problem was widespread but difficult to quantify because victims were often unwilling to speak out.

Mumtaz Hussain from Sahil, Pakistan’s leading campaign group working against child abuse, told AFP there were more than 3,500 registered cases last year -- representing nearly 10 children a day being abused.

But he said the true figure was far higher, perhaps as many as 10,000.

“Very few are reported because the victims and families are shy to disclose the sexual offence against them because of cultural, social and religious barriers,” he said.

Rights activist Samar Minallah said the unwillingness to discuss it was making it easier for abuse to happen.

“It is important to break the silence and challenge the taboo around it,” Minallah said. — AFP

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Every medium Replying to a question after the proceedings, Makki said this was only the beginning of their litigation against the movie, adding that JuD would get it banned on every medium including the Internet, in cinemas and on CDs, DVDs. In his petition, Saeed had contended that the Jamaatud Dawa was a charitable organisation and has no connection with the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

The petitioner also submitted a CD containing a copy of the movie’s trailer, and added that television footage of Hafiz Saeed was included in the movie.

Direct threat Saeed’s counsel AK Dogar said that there was a direct threat to the petitioner and his associates’ lives owing to the content of the trailer and added that the petitioner’s grievance is that the film has been advertised to be exhibited in Pakistan.

He said it was necessary to restrain the film from exhibition in Pakistan.

Threatening citizens He added that the security of life is the fundamental right of the petitioner and his associates and it is the duty of the state to prevent any foreign country from threatening Pakistani citizens. Further, he appealed to the court to direct the government to take action through its High Commission in India to stop the movie from being shown in Pakistan. The movie is scheduled to be released in Pakistan on August 28. — Express Tribune

K A R AC H I O P E R AT I O N

Cadres unhappy Extrajudicial killings rise in crackdown with Reham’s cameo in PTI election campaign ISLAMABAD: Opponents of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) reproached its chief Imran Khan on Sunday for allowing his spouse to campaign for the party’s election candidate in Haripur constituency, even though he has publicly denounced any form of dynastic politics.

Imran Khan had, in his speeches during the 126-day sit-in, censured Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and former president Asif Ali Zardari for their unabashed support of their family members in party politics yet he seems to be adopting the same policy himself.

Insiders said that PTI members were somewhat perturbed

by Reham Khan’s new role, which would be difficult to defend.

These members also suggested the chairman start attending the National Assembly session as per commitments made when the judicial commission was constituted. PTI members also expressed concerns when Reham Khan started taking interest in party affairs while Imran Khan remained silent. Opponents as well, are of the view that the PTI has launched family members in politics against its tall claims on the issue in the past.

However, PTI chairman’s spokesperson Dr Shireen Mazari

Reham Khan

Imran Khan had, in his speeches during the 126day sit-in, censured Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and former president Asif Ali Zardari for their unabashed support of their family members in party politics defended the move saying “women must be visible especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to get women voters out to vote. PTI dharnas gave women confidence politically and Imran Khan’s sisters were visibly part of it.” — Express Tribune

KARACHI: Some senior current and former Karachi police officials say extrajudicial killings by the force are happening as part of a crackdown on crime in the city, in a stark admission of the practice

by Pakistani authorities.

Karachi, a metropolis of 20 million that hosts the stock exchange and central bank, is beset by armed violence, and many of its sprawling slums are no-go areas for outsiders.

Two years ago, the military, with help from police, paramilitary Rangers and intelligence agencies, unleashed a campaign against armed gangs and suspected militants in the city.

Murders are down to 202 so far in 2015, compared with 2,507 in 2013, police records show.

“The efforts carried out by government have resulted in a marked decrease in crimes,” Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar said.

Murders in Karachi decreased by 50 per cent over the 12 months through July, while no new kidnapping for ransom cases were reported over that period, Nisar said.

According to political leaders, human rights activists and families of victims, however, the crackdown has been accompanied by allegations of extortion and killings by the police in staged encounters - a practice where police claim the victim was killed in a gunfight though they were executed.

In interviews, half a dozen serving and former police officials said such extra-judicial killings were being used as a policing technique and a way to release the burden on courts.

Accusations of abuses by Paki-

Neither the intelligence services nor Rangers answered requests for comment.

While police acknowledge that the crackdown has resulted in excesses on the margins, they say police are also often victims of attacks by criminals. More than 150 police have been killed since the start of the operation, police said.

JUSTICE: Blindfolded men, who were detained by paramilitary soldiers during a raid on the Muttahida Qaumi Movement political party’s headquarters, are led out of an anti-terrorism court in Karachi, Pakistan, on March 13, 2015. — Reuters

stan’s military and police are not new, but the acknowledgment by officials marks an unusual admission in a country with a poor human rights record.

Dealt with Rao Anwar, a senior Karachi police official against whom the NGO United Human Rights Commission of Pakistan filed a court case in May for alleged extra-judicial killings, said suspects were sometimes handed over to police by Rangers and intelligence officials to be “dealt with”.

But he added that most of the killings were as a result of police clashes with criminals.

When asked whether he thinks innocent people were also killed, Anwar said, “This is a state of war.”

“There are always grey areas in such matters. And when the jus-

tice system fails to convict suspects then these things happen,” he said.

The United Human Rights Commission alleged in the case against Anwar that he killed 60 people in staged encounters.

The Sindh High Court will hear the case next month.

Anwar declined to comment on the case.

Ghulam Qadir Thebo, the inspector general for Karachi until July, said police had killed 234 criminals in police clashes since January this year.

A senior policeman, who declined to be named, put the figure at 1,000, saying a majority of the deaths were extrajudicial killings.

Three other serving officials confirmed the assessment.

The inspector general’s office declined comment on the figure.

Mass arrests According to the families of six alleged victims, identified by Reuters through cases filed in the Supreme Court and high courts, security forces have carried out mass arrests, and some of those detained have faced a stark choice: pay or be killed.

Reuters could not independently verify their claims.

Muhammad Noman, a Karachi resident, said he and his uncle were on their way to work in Jan. 3, 2014 when they were bundled into a vehicle by armed men wearing police and Rangers’ uniforms.

“They covered our eyes and half an hour after picking us up, they let me go,” Noman said. “We searched for my uncle everywhere. Three days later, police called us and said his body had been found.”

Noman and his family filed a court case four days later against the police and say they have received threats that more relatives will “disappear” unless they retract the case. The police have filed a denial before the court.

Azeem Khan, an unemployed heroin addict, said he was grabbed by four policemen outside a poultry shop in the slums of Karachi in April and driven to an abandoned plaza. — Reuters

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Six Turkish securitymen killed as US consulate in Istanbul attacked SCAN THIS QR CODE TO INSTANTLY VISIT

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The violence was

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N .C O M

blamed on Kurdish and Marxist radicals

on the PKK. Ankara has on occasion linked the leftist-orientated PKK to the DHKP-C. A suspected suicide bomber detonated a vehicle packed with explosives at a police station in the Sultanbeyli district on the Asian side of Istanbul just after midnight, wounding 10 people, three of them police, the governor’s office said in a statement.

as the government pressed on its air campaign against militants DAMAGED POLICE STATION: Workers cover a police station damaged after an attack in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday. – Reuters

ISTANBUL: Six members of the Turkish security forces were killed and the US consulate in Istanbul hit by a gun attack in a day of violence on Monday blamed on Kurdish and Marxist radicals as the government pressed on its air campaign against militants.

Turkey’s largest city Istanbul was shaken by twin attacks on the US consulate and a police station that killed one senior officer, while five police were killed in the southeastern Sirnak province in an escalating cycle of violence.

The government is waging a two-pronged “anti-terror” offen-

sive against IS militants and Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants following a wave of attacks in the country.

But so far air strikes have overwhelmingly focused on the Kurdish militants, who have struck back by attacking the Turkish security forces and leaving a 2013 ceasefire in tatters.

Four Turkish police officers were killed in a roadside bomb attack in the southeastern Silopi district of Sirnak province bordering Iraq and Syria blamed on Kurdish

ENDANGERED ANIMAL

CRACKDOWN: Police display the confiscated skin, bones and teeth of a critically endangered Sumatran tiger, bottom, together with four suspects, top, at a police station in Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province, on Monday. – AFP

Four poachers held for killing Sumatran tiger BANDA ACEH (INDONESIA): Indonesian police have arrested four men for allegedly killing a Sumatran tiger and trying to sell its body parts, an official said on Monday, the latest case of the critically endangered animals being targeted.

Acting on a tipoff, a group of police officers posing as potential buyers arrested the men on Saturday as they allegedly attempted to sell the tiger’s skin, bones and teeth. Poachers frequently hunt the tigers, which are native to vast, biodiverse Sumatra island in western Indonesia, as their body parts are used in traditional Chinese medicine and fetch high prices. The men were detained in Jambe Rambung village in Aceh province, on the northern tip of Sumatra, local police official Mirwazi, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told AFP. The group, who caught the young male tiger in another part of the province, could face up to five years in jail and a fine of $7,400 (100 million rupiah) each, he said. One of the suspects admitted to having killed another Sumatran tiger and selling its

UNDER THREAT: The confiscated skin and teeth of the Sumatran tiger. – AFP

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body parts three years ago, according to the policeman.

There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild, according to environmental group WWF. As well as poaching, the animals are also under threat due to the destruction of their rainforest habitat to make way for palm oil as well as pulp and paper plantations. — AFP

militants, Turkish media said.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, one Turkish soldier was killed when Kurdish militants attacked a military helicopter with rocket launchers as it was transporting personnel in Sirnak’s Beytussebap district, the Dogan news agency said. However the violence also spread to Istanbul, with the authorities blaming an attack on the US consulate on the outlawed Marxist Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C), and an attack on a police station

Clashes Clashes with police then continued throughout the night as other militants fired on the police station. Police took cover behind walls and behind their armoured vehicles to engage in pitched battles with the militants, television pictures showed.

Beyazit Ceken, head of the police bomb disposal department, was wounded in the clashes and died of his injuries in hospital, the governor’s office said. Two militants were also killed in the clashes, it added.

Meanwhile, two armed individuals early Monday launched a gun

attack against the well-fortified US consulate in the quiet district of Istinye on the Bosphorus on the outskirts of Istanbul.

An operation was launched to capture the two militants and one of the attackers -- a woman -- was later captured wounded, the governor’s office said, while the other female suspect was at large.

The official Anatolia news agency named her as Hatice Asik, 42, a member of the outlawed DHKP-C who had been planning a suicide bombing.

The DHKP-C has carried out a string of attacks in Turkey in the past, including claiming a 2013 suicide attack on the US embassy in Ankara. The authorities have targeted suspected members of DHKP-C as well as IS and the PKK in a succession of “anti-terror” raids in the last two weeks.

A statement by a consulate spokesperson confirmed that there had been a “security incident” near the mission.

“The Consulate General remains closed to the public until further notice,” the statement said.

The state-run Anatolia news agency said over the weekend that so far 390 “terrorists” have been killed in the air campaign in Turkey and northern Iraq with 400

wounded. The PKK’s insurgency for greater rights and powers for Turkey’s Kurdish minority began more than 30 years ago and has left tens of thousands dead.

The PKK is designated as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the EU and the United States but Ankara’s Western allies have urged it to show restraint in the onslaught.

Senior PKK figure Cemil Bayik told the BBC in an interview Monday that Turkey was trying to protect IS by fighting the PKK, who are bitterly opposed to the militants. “They are doing it to limit the PKK’s fight against IS. Turkey is protecting IS,” he said.

According to an AFP toll, 28 members of the security forces have been killed in violence linked to the PKK since the current crisis began.

The government has also vowed to begin strikes against IS militants in Syria alongside US forces who have now started arriving to use the well-located Incirlik Turkish air base in the south of the country.

Washington has long been pushing its historic ally Turkey to step up the fight against IS, something Ankara had been reluctant to do. But Turkish officials have vowed that a wider fight against IS will start in the coming days. — AFP

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Founder: Essa bin Mohammed Al Zedjali Chairman / Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al Zadjali Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Anees bin Essa Al Zedjali Chief Executive Officer: Ahmed Essa Al Zedjali EDITORIAL Telephone: 24726666 Fax: 24813153 E-mail: editor@timesofoman.com ADVERTISING Telephone: 24726666 Fax: 24812624 E-mail: advertising@timesofoman.com CIRCULATION Telephone: 24726666 Fax: 24818270 E-mail: circulation@timesofoman.com

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2 Islam gives new meaning of

4 3,265 amnesty-seekers to

life to Filipino man in Oman

exit Oman

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bit.ly/amnestyseekersexit

3 Vladimir Putin, a failed spy?

5 Omani Paws suspends

rescue of animals over fund crunch

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4 Nishikori avenges US Open

Printed and published by: Muscat Media Group Post Box: 770 Postal Code: 112

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loss to reach Washington final bit.ly/nishikoriavengeloss

5 Five firms in race for Oman

TIMESOFOMAN.COM/OPINION

Oil Refinery’s polymers plant bit.ly/raceforpolymersplant

BEN CHU MOST POPULAR VIDEO

TIMESOFOMAN.COM/VIDEOS Sabina Khan There is no need for a renewal of grants to job seekers as it would be an extra burden on the government and would not help improve the work culture in Oman, say representatives of the business community.

Opponents of the intellectual property provisions of today’s treaties may be assuming that America and its corporations are more powerful than they truly are. History shows that ideas and technologies are immensely hard to protect bit.ly/pirateorinnovator

TWEET WE LIKE @faisalmib Today My Training & Meeting With Company in Muscat, Oman — feeling awesome

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SHAHID JAVED BURKI

INSTAGRAM.COM/TIMESOFOMAN The claim that Pakistan has the lowest income inequality in the South Asian region is hard to accept. Sometimes, it is better to trust one’s eyes than official data.

The levels of consumption one generally sees in the large cities suggest significant inequality bit.ly/inequalityinpakistan

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More surveillance isn’t always the answer

Location: Wadi Al Abyad, near Nakhal Photo: Ravikumar Kannaiyan

IAN BIRRELL

T

hanks to Edward Snowden, two years ago, the world began to discover substantial details of the surveillance tactics implemented by the US. The scope of its data collection and storage of personal information rivals some of the most imaginative fiction and has validated people once shunned as paranoid conspiracy theorists. Yet, this all-knowing nation was apparently clueless about the fact that one of their most soughtafter targets had been dead for more than two years.

The US can store the data of millions of people when investigating one suspected terrorist. In addition to phone records, the National Security Agency’s XKeyscore programme collects virtually everything a person does on the internet. The emails of suspects, their searches and websites visited are all stored and searchable.

The application of their monitoring was allowed to use three ‘hops’. This threehop policy allowed the spy agency to collect and monitor communications of people far removed from direct communication with the suspect.

With so much data and tools at its disposal, the US appeared to be unaware that Mullah Omar was deceased all this while. Mullah Omar was on America’s most wanted list for almost 15 years.

Pentagon official Rear Admiral Kirby had been claiming that he was still considered a threat early in 2015. With access to all this information, aided by aircraft and satellite surveillance, why was the US caught flat-footed in the midst of negotiations with the Afghan Taliban? Meanwhile, the Afghan Taliban are busy taking over Afghanistan and are wreaking recordbreaking casualties on the Afghan security forces. As predicted, Afghan policemen are surrendering in hordes after the withdrawal of US forces, and allowing the Taliban to make crucial

gains across Afghanistan.

Some may claim that the US knew all along that Mullah Omar was deceased, yet they played along with the myth of his survival in order to improve the chances of successful negotiations with the fractured organisation. Recent events introduce doubt that the US has any such restraint. Is it capable of not touting the death of one of its most sought-after terror suspects? Judging by the press conference and fanfare around the death of Osama Bin Laden, this seems unlikely.

Among the other possibilities is that the US has limited its effectiveness by collecting too much data. Surveillance agencies have limited manpower and actually use private consultants for much of the work. Snowden was working for one such private security company when he was able to flee with a treasure trove of classified information.

Sucking up information on millions of people loosely tied to a suspect creates a ‘needle in the haystack’ situation and increases the workload involved in finding anything actionable.

Another possibility is that the communication methods used by Mullah Omar and his contacts may be immune to US mass data collection.

Such a scenario would be seriously damaging for proponents of current spying techniques.

If the Afghan Taliban manage to limit their correspondence to direct contact and hand-written letters, then the ‘national security’ justification for such broad surveillance as the US indulges in, would be questioned more than ever.

The perception within the US is already that the government is sitting on a pile of citizen’s personal information.

Whatever the reasons for the oversight over Mullah Omar’s death, serious questions should be raised about intrusive surveillance techniques and whether there is sufficient justification for continuance of such programmes.” — Express Tribune

READERS’ FORUM Go like a winner and you will be a winner This refers to the news story, Go home for your own good, expatriates told (August 10). Expatriates should know that their presence is not required in Oman if they do not fulfil the requirements. If they have spent good time in Oman and now it’s their turn to return back, they must show their love for Oman and go happily. The world is a small place and they can love Oman from their own country. They can use the Internet to be in touch with their Omani friends. As for their physical presence, there is no need for it. Food, shelter and clothing are very much available all around the world, including their own countries and they would be happy to have wealth of contentment. Living illegally is always a bad choice in comparison to living legally with respect. My message to expatriates!

“Go like a winner and you will be a winner”.

They must know that home is the place Scan this QR code where love is. This is the reason, we say, to send letters to the home sweet home. — Munawar Hameed Readers’ Forum, containing not more Mangalawala, Muscat 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).

As people drown in their hundreds, Prime Minister David Cameron says the key is to deal with the causes rather than the consequences, the Home Secretary argues aid will help African countries develop economic and social opportunities so people stay bit.ly/helpingmigrantsreally

PICTOGRAPH

NEW VEHICLES

FROM OUR ARCHIVES AUGUST 2000 Ghassani visits health institutions in Dhahirah MUSCAT: Dr Ahmed bin Abdul Qadir Al Ghassani, undersecretary for health affairs at the Ministry of Health, yesterday visited a number of health institutions in the Dhahirah region. The visit was within the context of his inspection tour of health services in the regions. Yesterday he visited the Ibri referral hospital, Tana’am hospital and health centres in Hajrmat, Khanat, Maqnayat and Ibri. and health officials, and experts in the region.

Number of new vehicles registered in Oman per month Registration type

TODAY IN HISTORY

MAY

JUNE

5,544

4,438

6,022

2,056

1,958

2,071

401

361

367

46

40

80

105

62

83

10

4

1

275

230

165

Commercial

Taxi Motorbike

NEW INDIA ASSURANCE

1539 King Francis of France declares that all official documents are to be written in French, not Latin.

Diplomatic

New India’s PERSONAL ACCIDENT INSURANCE offers you world-wide cover/ protection and TRAVEL INSURANCE that ensures you tension-free travels. www.newindiaoman.com

1582: Russia ends its 25-year war with Poland.

Tractor

1941: Great Britain and the Soviet Union promise aid to Turkey if it is attacked by the Axis Powers.

Driving school

1994: The last British troops leave Hong Kong. After 153 years of British rule, the island is returned to China.

APRIL

Private

Rental

Suspension of animal rescue work is really shocking

This refers to the online story, Omani Paws suspends rescue of animals over fund crunch (August 9). This news really shocked me. How can anyone not help facilitate animals getting a sweet loving family to look after them? Animals, not just dogs, are anyone’s best friend. Keeping them as pets is the best way to ward off depression and anxiety. This is also a great habit for children to learn as it makes them realise the toughness of practical life as adults. It is hoped that this suspension will not last long and soon the work for this cause will start again.— Martina Owen, Ruwi

CLIPPINGS

Government

Total

4

9

7

12

12

21

8,453 7,114 8,817

Source: National Centre for Statistics & Information

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

A13

SPECIAL

Hong Kong is the second-largest consumer of seafood per capita in Asia — an average resident consumes 71.2 kilos (157 pounds) of seafood each year, more than four times the global average, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong.

Let appetite not threaten marine life

CHANGING HABITS: Customers eating seafood at Chuen Kee seafood restaurant in the Sai Kung district of Hong Kong. A seafood lunch in Hong Kong is enjoyed by locals and visitors alike, but with threatened species on the menu and fishing practices that endanger marine life, campaigners want to change the city’s appetite. – AFP

The World Wide Fund for Nature has launched a new online seafood guide for Hong Kong detailing which types are deemed unsustainable

HONG KONG: A seafood lunch in Hong Kong is enjoyed by locals and visitors alike, but with threatened species on the menu and fishing practices that endanger marine life, campaigners want to change the city’s appetite.

Hong Kong is the second-largest consumer of seafood per capita in Asia — an average resident consumes 71.2 kilos (157 pounds) of seafood each year, more than four times the global average, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong.

Yet the city of seven million has been forced to become one of the biggest seafood importers in the world as local waters are depleted of fish stocks.

Whether in high-end restaurants or waterside eateries, seafood is ubiquitous in the southern Chinese city, where customers often choose their fish live from a tank. Baked lobster with noodles in cheese and deep-fried prawns in salted egg yolk are among local favourites.

But a “fish tank index” compiled

by WWF Hong Kong found that more than 50 per cent of the species available in the city’s traditional restaurant tanks were from “highly unsustainable” sources.

Overfishing “Overfishing is driving the collapse of the world’s ocean fish stocks and edging many types of fish towards extinction, yet they are still on our menus,” WWF Hong Kong conservation director Gavin Edwards told AFP. “Hong Kong has a special responsibility to turn the tide as one of the biggest consumers of seafood.”

Unsustainable fish include those caught by controversial fishing practices, such as using cyanide poison, or from overfishing already depleted species.

Popular, threatened seafood in Hong Kong include grouper, wild

SUSTAINABLE DIET: Cafe Deco’s executive sous chef William Chang preparing a meal from the sustainable seafood menu at their restaurant on The Peak in Hong Kong. – AFP

STAPLE FOOD: Ng Wai-lun holding lobsters for sale at Chuen Kee seafood Restaurant in the Sai Kung district of Hong Kong. – AFP

sea cucumber and humphead wrasse — a coral reef fish.

The WWF has launched a new online seafood guide for Hong Kong detailing which types are deemed unsustainable.

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Palawan, a major source for Hong Kong. “We have fishermen who say they used to catch them near the coast. But now, they have to go further out to sea,” said Melo Ponce De Leon, spokeswoman of the government’s Palawan Council for Sustainable Development.

Sustainable Seafood Week It also recently held a “Sustainable Seafood Week” asking restaurants to provide ocean-friendly options.

But there is still a way to go to change consumer habits.

Visiting Hong Kong for a postgraduation trip, Japanese student Ted Machizawa, 22, has just finished lunch in the coastal town of Sai Kung, famous for its seafood.

He says he had no idea whether his meal — steamed grouper and shrimps — could pose a threat to the ocean. “We’re just trying to see what it’s like here. We are probably not too keen on knowing what kind of fish it is,” he said, sitting metres away from tanks packed with live crabs and reef fish.

Hong Konger Janice Fung said restaurants rarely gave information on sourcing.

Not comprehensive “If you go to an expensive restaurant or a specialised seafood shop they might tell you. Otherwise the information is not comprehensive,” she said as she waited for a meal at Cafe Deco on the city’s famous Peak, which serves a wide range of seafood. “If you tell me what I am eating is not sustainable I will try to avoid it,” she added.

Cafe Deco has opted to provide an alternative sustainable menu

WIDE RANGE: A seafood stall in the Wanchai wet markets in Hong Kong. – AFP

as part of the WWF push -- shunning the controversial delicacy shark fin, for example. “You can’t necessarily tell the difference (in flavour)... if you don’t use shark fin to make dumplings,” senior chef William Chang told AFP as he put the finishing touches to ocean trout-stuffed ravioli, a dish on the sustainable menu.

Chang says restaurants should “take the first step” to change people’s eating habits. Some suppliers are also trying to help. Bankerturned-fish farmer Mark Kwok hopes that by farming groupers, which are on the decline in the ocean, he can help stem the crisis.

His farm in the northern hillside town of Yuen Long was accredited

as sustainable by the WWF in 2013.

“We have about 35,000 fish.

Even if you were to eat all of them, it wouldn’t make a dent in the ecosystem because these are farmed fish that have never seen the ocean,” he told AFP. Environmentalists in the Philippines say stocks of grouper are dwindling near the island of

Worry Some Hong Kong restaurateurs worry that changing their menus would dent their incomes.

“Many of our customers are from mainland China and they want to get something they have never seen before,” says Ng Wailun, one of the owners of Chuen Kee Seafood Restaurant on Sai Kung’s promenade.

“They like to pick the colourful ones... or something caught fresh from the wild,” said Ng, pointing out a tank of humphead wrasse and groupers.

Ng says he would have to scrap 70 per cent of the menu to make it ocean-friendly, something he fears would drive customers away.

But campaigners say progress has been made. “We found in a recent survey that 80 per cent of customers would not buy unsustainable seafood if they knew it was unsustainable,” says Edwards.

“There is more awareness, but we still have much further to go.” — AFP

A 14

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

GLOBAL EYE

PHILIPPINES: Members of the Philippine Navy salute beside one of the two newly-acquired AW109E multi-purpose helicopters during a ceremony at the Philippine Navy headquarters in Manila on Monday.

The Philippines acquired two AW109 helicopters, which the navy armed with machine guns and rockets to support amphibious landing operations by local marines. — Reuters

CHINA: A man walks down a flooded street in Wenling, in eastern FRANCE: French ship Hermione, back, arrives on Monday in Brest, western of France. A replica of the French frigate that transported General Lafayette to America in 1780 to rally US rebels battling for independence, the ship was due back in France after a four-month Atlantic voyage. The Hermione landed with its 80-strong crew at Brest in northwestern France, accompanied by a fleet of 25 traditional boats and a modern navy frigate. — AFP

China’s Zhejiang province on Monday after strong storms hit the area during Typhoon Soudelor’s landfall. The number of people killed by Typhoon Soudelor in China rose to 21 Monday, authorities said, with five more missing. —AFP

JAPAN: Police officers and security personnel stand in front of the

GREECE: Migrant children reach out for slices of bread delivered

to them by locals in a park on the southeastern Greek island of Kos on Monday. — AFP

COLOMBIA: A man wearing a floral arrangement on his back takes part in the annual flower parade, in which flower growers known as “silleteros” present their floral arrangements, in Medellin, Colombia, on Sunday. — Reuters

gate of the Kyushu Electric Power’s Sendai nuclear power plant as anti-nuclear protesters rally against the restart of the nuclear reactor in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima prefecture, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu on Monday. Japan is set to restart a mothballed nuclear reactor for the first time in two years on Tuesday, the operator said. — AFP/JIJI PRESS

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

A15

WORLD Five killed in Taliban suicide attack at Kabul airport gate Observers say the upsurge in violence represents a bid by new leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour to distract attention from the crisis roiling the militant movement as planned peace talks falter

KABUL: At least five people were killed on Monday when a Taliban suicide car bomber struck near the entrance of Kabul’s international airport, the latest in a wave of lethal bombings in the Afghan capital.

The Taliban, which claimed responsibility for the blast, have stepped up attacks amid a bitter leadership transition following the announcement of the death of their leader Mullah Omar.

Observers say the upsurge in violence represents a bid by new leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour to distract attention from the crisis roiling the militant movement as planned peace talks falter.

“The incident took place when a suicide car bomber struck the front gate of the airport,” said Kabul police spokesman Ebadullah Karimi.

“Five civilians were killed and 16 others wounded including children,” he said, with the interior ministry confirming the toll.

Smoke billowed from the scene of the explosion, which occurred during the busy lunchtime period.

An AFP photographer saw pieces of charred flesh littered around the checkpoint, where passengers undergo the first round of body checks before entering the air-

CARNAGE: An Afghan policeman stands guard as smoke and flames rise from the site of a huge blast near the entrance of Kabul’s international airport, in Kabul on Monday. - AFP

port. Ambulances with wailing sirens rushed to the site and were seen removing bodies from the area, which was strewn with the twisted and mangled wreckage of burning vehicles.

Coalition force vehicle Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said two vehicles belonging to foreign coalition forces were the target of the attack, claiming that all people aboard were killed.

The Taliban are known to routinely exaggerate the impact of their attacks.

The NATO mission in Afghanistan has not yet commented on the bombing, which the Afghan interior ministry denounced as a “heinous acts (that goes) against the values of humanity”.

The attack follows a barrage of deadly bombings in the Afghan

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capital on Friday, which struck close to an army complex, a police academy and a US special forces base and killed at least 51 people.

They were the first major attacks since Mullah Akhtar Mansour was named as the new Taliban chief in an acrimonious power transition after the insurgents confirmed the death of longtime leader Mullah Omar.

Some top leaders of the extremist insurgency, including Omar’s son and brother, have refused to pledge allegiance to Mansour, saying the process to select him was rushed and even biased.

Tayeb Agha, the head of the Qatar political office set up in 2013 to facilitate talks with Kabul, resigned last week in protest at Mansour’s appointment and two more members of the office followed suit.

The wave of violence underscores Afghanistan’s volatile security situation amid a flailing peace process.

The first face-to-face talks aimed at ending the 14-year insurgency took place last month between the Afghan government and the Taliban in the Pakistani hill town of Murree. The Taliban distanced themselves from a second round of talks scheduled for the end of July, after the announcement of Omar’s death.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani discussed initiating another round of talks in a telephone call

Sunday to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, a senior official in Islamabad told AFP without elaborating.

Experts say insurgents are stepping up attacks as Mansour tries to distract attention from the internal rifts.

Growing insecurity The uptick in violence highlights growing insecurity in the country as Afghan forces face their first summer fighting season without full NATO support.

A UN report published last week said civilian casualties in Afghanistan hit a record high in the first half of 2015.

The report said 1,592 civilians were killed, a six percent fall from last year, but the number of injured jumped four percent to 3,329. — AFP

ALLIANCE OF CRITICS

Russia bars anti-Kremlin coalition from elections MOSCOW: A Russian opposition coalition co-led by leading Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has had nearly all its candidates barred from September regional and local elections, a representative told AFP on Monday.

“We have been excluded from all the polls that we wanted to take part in,” said Sergei Davidis of the RPR-Parnas opposition coalition, which includes the party of slain Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov.

“This shows that the authorities are afraid of us. It shows we’re hitting them in a sensitive spot,” Davidis said.

Navalny, a key figure in mass opposition protests against President Vladimir Putin who has twice been given suspended sentences for fraud and spent a year under house arrest, accused the authorities on Friday of trying to rig the local and regional elections planned in 11 regions on September 13.

Russia’s opposition has been marginalised under Putin and the coalition was planning to use its participation in the regional polls as a rehearsal for parliamentary elections next year.

“We are set on taking part in the national elections next year and view our campaign as successful, despite the obstacles we have faced,” Davidis said.

In the latest blow for the opposition, electoral officials in the central Russian industrial city of Nizhny Novgorod on Monday refused to register its candidate for the September 13 vote.

The officials claimed that the signatures the bloc presented in support of the candidate were invalid, RPR-Parnas said.

The authorities have given various reasons for the coalition’s exclusion, including its alleged collection of forged signatures.

The bloc’s only representative in the September polls will be opposition activist Yegor Savin in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia’s third most populous.

“It’s a miracle that I was not excluded,” Savin, who recently ended a 13-day hunger strike launched to protest against the opposition’s registration difficulties, said. — AFP

THREE YEARS IN PRISON

Prominent Syria activist Darwish freed ahead of final verdict BEIRUT: Prominent Syrian rights defender Mazen Darwish has been released after more than three years in prison pending a verdict in his case at the end of this month, his wife said Monday.

“He has been freed ahead of a final verdict in his case on August 31,” Darwish’s wife Yara Bader told AFP. The leading journalist and rights activist was arrested in February 2012 along with two colleagues from his Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression.

The three were accused of “promoting terrorist acts” and held despite repeated calls from media and rights groups for their release.

They were moved between prisons several times, and court dates in their case were regularly postponed.

Darwish’s colleagues Hussein Ghreir and Hani Al Zaitani were released last month in an amnesty announced as a gesture for the Muslim holiday of Eid Al Fitr.

Bader said Darwish, who is in his early 40s, was supposed to benefit from the same amnesty, but his release was delayed.

Both Amnesty International and media watchdog Reporters without Borders welcomed Darwish’s release.

“We are relieved that Mazen Darwish is free again and we are

The leading journalist and rights activist was arrested in February 2012 along with two colleagues from his Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression

now waiting for the court to find him innocent,” said the secretary general of Reporters Without Borders, Christophe Deloire.

“Darwish is a leading symbol of resistance to a regime that has constantly suppressed independently reported news and infor-

mation and covered up human rights violations.”

Amnesty International hailed his “long overdue” release and said charges against him and his colleagues should be dropped.

“Mazen Darwish and his colleagues should never have been

IRAQI SPEAKER’S CALL

Abadi asked to sack ‘corrupt’ ministers BAGHDAD: Iraq’s parliament speaker called Monday for Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi to sack ministers found to be negligent or corrupt as part of a wide-ranging reform drive.

Abadi on Sunday proposed a series of measures aimed at curbing corruption, streamlining the government and improving services after weeks of protests and a call from Iraq’s top majority sect cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani for drastic change.

Parliament speaker Salim Al Juburi called on lawmakers to approve Abadi’s measures and said even more reforms were required.

The house is to discuss the reforms on Tuesday.

“We asked the prime minister to dismiss a number of ministers who are clearly guilty of dereliction, negligence and corruption,” Juburi said in televised remarks.

Juburi did not name specific ministers in his public statement.

But a parliamentary official said those responsible for electricity and water resources were both

SUPPORT: Iraqi demonstrators gather in the streets of Najaf on Monday shouting slogans in support of reforms proposed by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi aimed at curbing corruption. — AFP

proposed for the chopping block in a meeting Monday between the speaker and political leaders.

Juburi also called for MPs who are absent more than a third of the time to be removed.

Absent MPs are a perennial problem for the Iraqi legislature,

which even failed to reach a quorum for an emergency session called in response to a sweeping offensive by extremists in June 2014. Amid a major heatwave that has seen temperatures top 50 degrees Celsius, protesters have railed against the poor quality of

services, especially power outages that leave just a few hours of government-supplied electricity per day.

Thousands of people have turned out in Baghdad and various cities in the south to vent their anger at the authorities.

Their demands were given a boost on Friday when Sistani called for Abadi to take “drastic measures” against corruption, saying that the “minor steps” he had announced were not enough.

Abadi rolled out the reform programme two days later.

One of the most drastic of Abadi’s proposals, which were approved by the cabinet on Sunday, was the call for the posts of vice president and deputy prime minister to be eliminated “immediately”.

The plan also calls for the elimination of “political and sectarian quotas” for senior officials, for increased oversight to prevent corruption, and for services to be improved, among other measures. — AFP

in jail in the first place,” said Said Boumedouha, acting director of Amnesty’s Middle East and North Africa Programme.

“The Syrian authorities must drop all charges against Mazen and his colleagues and end their relentless campaign to target anyone who dares to speak out about the appalling human rights violations in the country.”

Multiple awards Darwish has received multiple awards in acknowledgement of his work, including UNESCO’s annual press freedom prize in May. His wife accepted the award on his behalf, saying it was dedicated

to his children in the hope they would grow up in a free Syria.

“We need a time to learn how to listen to people who have different opinions,” she said.

“Mazen has already forgiven those who tortured him almost to death.”

Some 200,000 people are held in Syrian government detention centres, prisons and security facilities, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor.

Last year, President Bashar Al Assad signed an amnesty that was supposed to see tens of thousands of political prisoners freed, but activists say only several hundred were actually released. — AFP

A 16

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

WORLD

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Two shot in Ferguson amid standoff with protesters fire,” county police spokesman Shawn McGuire said in a statement. He said at least two unmarked police cars had been hit by gunshots.

Brown’s death — and a grand jury decision to spare officer Darren Wilson from criminal charges for shooting him — sparked a prolonged wave of demonstrations in Ferguson last year that boiled over into rioting and arson at times and spawned sympathy rallies across the country.

It also sparked greater scrutiny of racial bias within the US criminal justice system, giving rise to the “Black Lives Matter” movement that gained momentum from a series of other high-profile slayings of unarmed minorities by white police in cities such as New York, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Cincinnati.

Several volleys of gunshots rang out as police tried to disperse demonstrators blocking traffic along a street that was a flashpoint of last year’s unrest in the St. Louis suburb following the slaying of Michael Brown

VIGIL: St. Louis County Police and Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers, centre, stand guard as protesters, right, march on West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Missouri on Sunday. - AFP

FERGUSON: Two people were struck by gunfire during a standoff between riot police and protesters on Sunday night in Ferguson, Missouri, after a day of otherwise peaceful rallies commemorating the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white officer one year ago.

Several volleys of gunshots rang out as police tried to disperse demonstrators blocking traffic and smashing storefront windows along a street that was a flashpoint of last year’s unrest in the St. Louis suburb following the slaying of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

Anniversary commemorations for Brown had begun hours earlier with a peaceful march through the St. Louis suburb after a moment of silence for the teenager, whose death on August 9, 2014, ignited months of demonstrations and a national debate on race and justice.

The scene changed dramatically after dark with dozens of protesters blocking traffic and smashing store windows along West Florissant Avenue, which bore the brunt of last summer’s rioting, chanting “Shut it down” in the midst of a severe thunderstorm.

A phalanx of helmeted police wearing body armor and carrying shields moved in. Protesters briefly fell away before regrouping to confront the line of officers, who ordered them to disperse.

The protesters, locking arms and edging closer to the police cordon, began throwing water

Demonstrations The origin of the gunfire and condition of the two people shot was not immediately known, police said. One of the victims, a black male who looked to be a teenager or young adult, appeared in a Reuters photo to have been badly wounded.

bottles and shouting, “We are ready for war!”

Both sides held their ground, and police did not move immediately to make any arrests as clergy members and activists circulated between the two sides appealing for calm.

The face-off was shattered by bursts of gunfire, sending police crouching behind their patrol cars and demonstrators scurrying for cover. Helicopters whirred overhead as additional police armed with assault rifles swarmed the area, some roaring down the

street in armoured vehicles in the direction of the gunfire.

A body could be seen on West Florissant Avenue and a young woman screamed that her brother had been shot. Multiple store windows were smashed and police stood atop vehicles surveying the scene.

Merchants, some armed, stood guard outside their businesses early Monday after the incident.

“The St. Louis County Police Department was involved in an officer-involved shooting after officers came under heavy gun-

Marked contrast The unrest that erupted on Sunday night was in marked contrast to a day of mostly subdued, peaceful commemorations in Ferguson and elsewhere.White doves were released after 4-1/2 minutes of silence to represent the roughly 4-1/2 hours that Brown’s body lay in the middle of the street after he was shot.

A crowd of about 1,000 then embarked on a silent march through Ferguson to honour Brown and others killed in confrontations with police.

Another name was added to that list on Friday when unarmed 19-year-old Christian Taylor, a black college student, was shot dead by a white police officer investigating a burglary at a car dealership in Arlington, Texas.

A federal review of Brown’s slaying found that officer Wilson acted lawfully. However, it also determined that Ferguson’s predominantly white police department had for years violated the rights of the city’s black population. - Reuters

YEMEN

Red cross oversees prisoner exchange SANAA: Seven pro-government activists were heading to Yemen’s main southern city of Aden on Monday as part of a prisoner swap overseen by the International Committee of the Red Cross, rebel officials said. The seven activists belong to the Southern Movement, whose militants were locked in deadly battles with Houthi rebels, who they helped to push out of Aden in mid-July.

They will be exchanged for seven Houthi militiamen, the officials said. The activists will depart with ICRC head Peter Maurer from the rebel-held capital Sanaa aboard a Red Cross plane, according to an AFP photographer who saw the prisoners at the airport.

Aden was the scene of deadly battles between local loyalist forces and rebels who entered in March, days before a Saudi-led coalition launched an air war against the Houthis and their allies across Yemen. Mauer arrived in Sanaa Saturday at the start of a three-day visit to assess the “dire humanitarian situation” in the country.

Displaced by conflict The United Nations says nearly 4,000 people have been killed since March, half of them civilians, while 80 per cent of Yemen’s 21 million people are in need of aid and protection. The ICRC says 1.3 million Yemenis have been displaced by the conflict.

Meanwhile, fighters opposed to Houthi movement seized four districts in the central province of Ibb on Monday, residents and local officials said, bringing the armed resistance closer to the group’s stronghold in the capital Sanaa.

Tribal gunmen and hardline militias loyal to Yemen’s exiled government took control of the areas amid heavy clashes with the Houthis, in the latest of a series of northward gains with the backing of Gulf Arab air strikes and weapons. - Agencies

H E AV Y M O N S O O N S E A S O N

Myanmar flood death toll tops 100, nearly one million affected

INUNDATED: Residents sit inside their flood-affected home in the village of Kyaut Ye near the town of Hinthada in Myanmar’s Irrawaddy region on Monday. - AFP

HINTHADA(Myanmar): The death toll from severe flooding across Myanmar has topped 100, state media reported on Monday, with nearly one million people affected as fears intensify for the country’s crucial rice bowl region.

Floods from a heavy monsoon season have cut through swathes of South and Southeast Asia in recent weeks, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing millions.

Torrential rain Myanmar, one of Asia’s most impoverished countries, has been hit particularly hard by weeks of torrential rain with 12 out of 14 states and regions suffering flooding. International aid has been stepped up in recent days following an official government request for help.

The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper on Monday gave updated government figures, of “more than 100” dead and “nearly one million” people affected nationwide by the inundations.

More than 1.2 million acres (486,000 hectares) of rice fields

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ence in its sluggish response to Cyclone Nargis in May 2008, a crisis which at least 138,000 people dead or missing.

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N .C O M

are currently under water, with more than 430,000 acres destroyed by the floods, the paper added.

Four regions have been designated disaster zones, with the cyclone-battered western state of Rakhine particularly hard hit.

In recent days fears have grown for rising waters in the more downstream areas of the Irrawaddy basin and its delta, two key agricultural areas close to the commercial hub Yangon.

River levels drop Citing the weather bureau, the Global New Light of Myanmar said river levels had dropped slightly on Sunday but “still remained above their designated danger levels”.

Myanmar’s previous junta government was accused of indiffer-

General election The country is set for a general election in November and the floods have taken on a political dimension, with both the quasicivilian government and opposition -- led by Aung San Suu Kyi -at pains to show they are reacting speedily to the floods.

President Thein Sein was pictured visiting relief efforts on Sunday in the Irrawaddy region as army chief Min Aung Hlaing made trips to the western states of Sagaing and Chin.

But many of those hit by the flooding appear not to be relying on government help, either trying to cope alone or turning to local monasteries or community groups.

Authorities have insisted that the election set for November 8 will go ahead despite the floods, even as they try to assess the scale of the damage. - AFP

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Muscat 6,419.97 + 12.11 + 0.19%

Dubai 4,068.46 - 30.03 - 0.73%

Abu Dhabi 4,820.53 + 11.58 + 0.24%

Kuwait 6,299.04 + 27.58 + 0.44%

Saudi Arabia

8,836.60 + 137.43 + 1.58%

Bahrain 1,333.48 + 0.33 + 0.02%

Qatar 11,610.22 - 160.03 - 1.36%

CRUDE OIL PRICE

CURRENCY RATES*

DRAFT RATES (OMR1)*

GOLD PRICES*

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

Forex rates vs OMR1* US Dollar ................................. 2.58 Euro ............................................ 2.34 Pound ...........................................1.66 Indian Rs ..............................165.21 Pak Rs ....................................260.15 Bangla Taka.......................199.48

Indian Rs ...................................165.70 Pakistan Rs ............................ 263.60 Sri Lanka Rs .......................... 346.60 Bangla Taka.............................201.70 Phil Peso .................................... 118.50

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

Oman Crude............. (Spot) ........$49.29 Dubai Crude ............. (Spot) ........$48.97 Murban Crude ........ (Spot) ........ $49.79 Arabian Light ......... (Spot) ........ $48.73 N.Sea Brent............... (Spot) ........$49.30 West Texas Int ....... (Spot) ........$43.95

* Rates are as of August 10 Source: Bank Muscat

* Rates as of August 10 Source: Oman UAE Exchange

Sembcorp seeks $600m refinance at lower cost making it one of the largest share offersin Oman in recent years.

company is seeking to refinance about $600 million of loans at better terms to take advantage of interest cost. HSBC Holdings is advising the company on the financing, originally

Presently, the company’s debt-equity ratio is 74:26, which is equivalent to around OMR250m debt and a shareholders’ equity capital of OMR84m. However, the shareholders’ fund is standing at OMR105.26m

raised from about six major banks

Times News Service MUSCAT: Sembcorp Salalah Power and Water, an independent water and power producer based in Salalah, is seeking to refinance about $600 million of loans at better terms to take advantage of interest cost, according to a report from Bloomberg News agency.

HSBC Holdings is advising the company on the financing, originally raised from about six banks, according to sources.

However, an official at the Salalah-based company said that the discussions are at an early stage and the company does not

want to make any comment right now. It has to be approved by the shareholders and Oman Power and Water Procurement (OPWP) Company. Also, there are several procedures involved in arranging the fund.

Debt-equity ratio Presently, the company’s debtequity ratio is 74:26, which is equivalent to around OMR250 million debt and a shareholders’ equity capital of OMR84 million.

However, the shareholders’ fund is standing at OMR105.26 million.

Sembcorp Salalah has a contracted power capacity of 445 megawatt and a contracted water capacity of 15MiGD. Sembcorp Salalah, 40 per cent owned by Singapore’s Sembcorp Utilities,

spent about $1 billion to build the power plant in the Dhofar province, which began full commercial operation in May, 2012.

SembcorpSalalah contributes more than 70 per cent of the total electricity demand and 100 per cent of the desalinated water demand in the Dhofar Governorate by end-June 2015.

Power contributes 52 per cent (excluding fuel charge) and water contributes 22 per cent to overall revenue. The company’s promoters offered 35 per cent of their holding at a price of OMR1.590 per share through a one-month long subscription between August and September, 2013.

The company’s OMR53 million-initial public offering (IPO) was oversubscribed by 8.3 times,

Saudi power firm Another power firm in Saudi Arabia is also seeking to refinance its debt at lower costs, according to two people with knowledge of the plans. Dhuruma Electricity, jointly owned by state-controlled Saudi Electricity and GDF Suez Group, is seeking a cut in interest rates of about one percentage point on $1.5 billion of loans, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The Riyadh PP11 Independent Power Project, as the company is also known, wants to extend loan maturities, they said.

Borrowing costs drop Companies across the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which includes Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, have sought to cut interest rates on their loans over the past two years as borrowing costs declined and banks with excess cash competed to lend. Dubai Duty Free, one of the world’s biggest airport retailers, cut the price on $2.5 billion of loans last year as rates in the loan market were very favourable, it said.

Spokesmen for Saudi Electricity and for GDF Suez in Dubai declined to comment.

Spokesmen for Sembcorp Salalah and HSBC also declined to comment.

Riyadh PP11 commissioned a 1,729 megawatt gas-fired power plant in 2013 about 125 kilometres (78 miles) west of Riyadh.

– With inputs from Bloomberg News

Dubai 24ct per gm (Dh) ............132.59 Dubai 22ct per gm (Dh) ............ 126.00 * Rates as of August 10 Source: Malabar Gold & Diamonds

E X PA N S I O N P L A N

Raysut Cement plans subsidiary firm in Somalia Times News Service

The Salalah-based

Muscat 22ct per gm (OMR) .......13.55

MUSCAT: Raysut Cement is in the process of setting up a subsidiary firm – Barqaaqo Cement Company — for supplying cement mostly to Somalia through a newly built terminal there.

Raysut Cement will have 51 per cent stake in the newly formed Barwaaqo Cement Company, the company said in its six month report. Further, Raysut Cement’s plans to build a terminal in Duqm are underway, which will ease supplies of cement required for developing the area.

Also, the company is planning for 150 tonnes per hour Rotary Packing Machine with Auto Truck loader at Salalah to provide larger and faster capability of packing cements in bags. “The company also is in the process of increasing the silo capacity in Salalah plant and Pioneer to add flexibility to higher productions,” Raysut Cement said in the statement posted on MSM website.

Gas price hike hits profit Raysut Cement said its profit before tax fell 30.34 per cent from OMR17.48 million for the first half of 2014, to OMR12.18 million, mainly due to a substantial rise in natural gas price from January 1, 2015. The group’s operating profit declined by 25.89 per cent to OMR13.21 million for the first half of 2015 from OMR17.83 million for the same period last year.

Raysut Cement’s group revenue fell by 5.39 per cent to OMR46.82 million from OMR49.49 million

during the six-month period under review.

“In spite of the severe price competition from the UAE suppliers, and the volatility in the export market, the parent company has achieved the sales revenue out of its Salalah operation of OMR32.05 million during the period against OMR35.61 million during the corresponding period in the previous year, which fell by 9.99 per cent.”

Profit before tax of the parent company stood at OMR8.94 million for the period against OMR15.16 million earned during the corresponding period of last year, a decline of 41 per cent.

The major markets for the parent company are domestic, Yemen and East African markets, and that for Pioneer, there are UAE and Oman markets.

In southern Oman and southern Yemen markets, the parent company is the major player. Raysut Cement’s group as a whole has sold 1,885,041 tonnes of cement in the first half of 2015 against 1,981,710 tonnes of cement in the same period last year. Overall, there is a decline of 4.87 per cent.

The parent company has sold 1,151,917 tonnes of cement during the period against1,295,000 tonnes of cement in the same period of last year, out of the operations in its Salalah plant, afall of 11.05 per cent.

At Pioneer Cement, a subsidiary company, plant in UAE, has sold 738,186 tonnes of cement against 720,254 tonnes in the same period of last year, indicating a growth of 2.49 per cent.

B2

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

MARKET DEBT

Saudi plans to raise $27b via bond market RIYADH: After an eight-year interlude, Saudi Arabia’s government bond sales are coming alive.

The desert kingdom that’s home to both the world’s second-biggest oil reserves and Islam’s holiest sites plans to auction as much as 20 billion Saudi riyals ($5.3 billion) as part of a programme to raise a maximum of 100 billion ri-

yals by the end of the year, two people familiar with the matter said last week. The government confirmed last month it already sold 15 billion riyals of bonds in a direct sale to private investors.

The country’s renewed appetite for debt comes against a backdrop of deepening involvement in regional conflicts in Yemen

and Syria, and a budget deficit that’s poised to widen to the most since 1987. For Mazen Al Sudairi, the programme also underlines the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman’s resolve to maintain spending amid a collapse in oil prices, the country’s biggest revenue stream.

“Oil prices have given incentive

for the government to issue bonds now,” Al Sudairi, the Riyadh-based head of sell-side research at Alistithmar Capital, a unit of Saudi Investment Bank, said by phone on Sunday. The debt sale “also shows the government’s confidence in its oil and development policies.

We have so many infrastructure and energy projects that will

need funding,” he said.

Budget gap Until this year, Saudi Arabia hadn’t issued securities with a maturity of more than 12 months since 2007, according to data. Details of its recent private placement, including the price, the maturity and even the date of the sale haven’t

been made public. The government has yet to confirm the plan to raise as much as 100 billion riyals in 2015. “The country needs the government to issue debt instruments to develop the debt-capital market,” Mohammed Al Jadaan, the chairman of the Riyadh-based Capital Market Authority, said on Sunday by phone. – Bloomberg News

TRADE TALKS: India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and has emerged as a key destination for foreign investors and exporters in recent years. – Supplied picture

Omani exporters seek trade ties with Indian firms Fourteen-member Ithraa-led trade delegation will be holding business seminars in New Delhi and Mumbai in a bid to develop new business deals

Times News Service MUSCAT: Fourteen high-profile Omani exporters are participating in a four-day Ithraa-led trade delegation to India that will take place in New Delhi and Mumbai.

The visit began on Monday in New Delhi with a business seminar and meetings with Indian importers, agents and manufacturers — all in an effort to develop new business opportunities and strengthen existing trade and investment ties in food processing, petrochemicals and plastics.

India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and has emerged as a key destination for foreign investors and exporters in recent years. According to

the International Monetary Fund (IMF), India will grow by 7.5 per cent this fiscal year (which ends March 2016), faster than China over a similar period.

“India has always been on Ithraa’s investment and export radar. Its strategic and geographic location, entrepreneurial business culture, historic trading ties with the Sultanate and fast growing economy provides significant potential for Omani exporters,” said Ayman Al Hasani, vice-chairman of Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Ithraa board member.

Accompanying the trade delegation, Nasima Al Balushi, Ithraa’s director general of Export Development, pointed out that the “key objective of the mission is to introduce our New Delhi and Mumbai hosts to a range of high quality, Oman-made products. Today, goods made in Oman are sold in 136 countries and enjoy a strong international reputation for quality and luxury. Indeed, the Omani companies participating on this trade visit are looking to explore the incredible commercial opportunities on offer in India.”

India’s food sector Ibrahim Al Hoqani of Nizwa Food Industries, and a delegate on the New Delhi and Mumbai visit said: “We are grateful to Ithraa for organising this important export initiative. The business to business meetings are a perfect opportunity

for us to meet with potential buyers as well as get a better understanding of the consumer trends driving India’s food sector. Visits like this are invaluable to Omani businesses looking to penetrate the growing Indian market.”

Ultimately, Oman’s non-oil export success depends on entrepreneurial, competitive and outward-looking companies. “To realise our potential, there here has to be a focused and collaborative approach from government and the business community ensuring we are united in taking every opportunity to support Omani exporters in markets such as India. Thistrade mission is a great example of public-private collaboration.”

Companies participating on the Ithraa-led trade mission include Oman State General Reserve Fund; Sohar Port & Free Zone; Public Establishment for Industrial States; Bright Sun Dates Production; Nizwa Food Industry; Sea Pride; Modern Diary Factory; Al Bahja Group of Companies; Sohar Sulphur Fertilizer; Techno Plastic Industry; Poly Products; Al-Tuhami Group; Taghleef Industries; Al Shamal Plastics and The Modern Stitch Enterprise.

As a follow-up to the delegation’s visit to New Delhi and Mumbai, Ithraa will organise an investment forum with Indian businesses in Muscat, from October 12 to 13.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

B3

MARKET CRUDE OIL MARKET

Record oil imports by China unlikely to prop up prices HONG KONG: Record oil imports by China may fail to boost oil prices as global oversupply overwhelms opportunistic buying by the world’s second-biggest user.

The country’s overseas crude purchases in July jumped nearly 30 per cent to the highest monthly level on record on demand from filling strategic petroleum reserves.

Meanwhile, net exports of products such as diesel jumped to a nine-month high, signalling weakening consumer demand. Brent crude fell as much as 0.8 per cent to $48.24 a barrel on Monday, extending its 16 per cent slide this year.

“The Chinese look to buy on the dip,” Mark Pervan, the head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Melbourne, said in a Bloomberg Television interview.

“In this market, where the demand conditions aren’t so strong, they’ll

million barrels a day of oil in June, according to data from the country’s National Bureau of Statistics.

Processing rates in July, which have not been released yet, were likely to be little changed near those levels, according to Amy Sun, an analyst with Shanghaibased researcher ICIS China.

That is putting pressure on refining margins and boosting oil product exports.

be very opportunistic.”

Overseas purchases increased a second month to 30.71 million metric tonnes in July, equivalent to about 7.3 million barrels a day, according to data released by the Beijing-based General Administration of Customs on Saturday.

Imports hit a record 7.4 million barrels a day in April.

Oversupply The global oil market is facing a 2 million barrel a day oversupply, up from 1.8 million in the first half of this year, driven by a surge in production from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Russia, analysts at Goldman Sachs said in a report last week.

Filling emergency inventories was estimated by Citigroup to account for 49 million barrels of imports in the first half of this year, or about 286,000 barrels a day. The government stockpiles will prob-

OIL GLUT: Global oil market is facing a 2 million barrel a day oversupply driven by a surge in production from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Russia, analysts at Goldman Sachs said in a report. - Bloomberg News

ably draw in an additional 100 million tonnes a year, or about 274,000 barrels a day, for the next four years, according to Neil Beveridge, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Company.

Strategic stockpiling “The majority of the increase in

crude oil imports is triggered by further Chinese strategic stockpiling to exploit decade-low prices,” said Gordon Kwan, the HongKong-based head of regional oil and gas research at Nomura Holdings.

At the same time, the nation’s refiners processed a record 10.59

Call to strictly regulate SME sector in Sultanate ness and the goals he has set for himself keep him motivated. He noted that even during the first few months of creating his business he did not have any income coming in, but did not allow this to discourage him.

Omani entrepreneur says that it is now easy to receive commercial registration, but authorities are not monitoring these

CONCERNED: Jassim Al Ma’amari, managing director of Lab Scientific & Laboratory Supplies, says one of the problems in the SME sector is that the market is not being properly regulated and monitored. – ISMAIL AL FARSI/Times of Oman

businesses, whose performance affects other companies

ELHAM POURMOHAMMADI

elham@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Laws related to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) need to be updated and modified and should be implemented quickly and effectively, according to an Omani entrepreneur.

Currently, the SME market is not well-organised, said Jassim Al Ma’amari, managing director of Lab Scientific & Laboratory Supplies, the first Omani company specialising in fine research chemicals.

Speaking to ‘Times of Oman, Al Ma’amari said that he decided to set up his business because he saw a gap in the market and sought to take advantage of this gap using his background in forensic chemistry.

Having gained experience by working in the government sector and in several companies, Al Ma’amari set up his company at the end of 2009 to provide forensic-re-

lated services and fine chemicals to be used for research purposes.

Challenges He pointed out that the culture of entrepreneurship in Oman is improving, though there are certain issues that have hindered the progress of the SME sector. In his opinion, one of the problems is that the market is not being properly regulated and monitored.

Al Ma’amari says that it is now easy to receive commercial registration, but unfortunately authorities are not monitoring these businesses, whose performance affects other companies, as well. For example, he sid, Lab Scientific & Laboratory Supplies has employed five people, who are all Omanis.

Al Ma’amari said it is not that he does not have a belief in expatriates, but rather believes that the energy, skills and knowledge of local Omanis should be utilised.

On the other hand, there are other companies employing expatriates who agree to work at lower salaries and this is impacting other suppliers, he said, adding that if his business is affected, he must then reduce the number of employees to survive.

The Omani entrepreneur also said that authorities and other institutions dealing with SMEs should pay more than lip service to their requirements, as in reality some of the initiatives introduced to help develop these businesses are not being strictly implemented.

For instance, Al Ma’amari said that an earlier decision calling for the allocation of 10 per cent of government purchases and tenders to SMEs is still not being carried out. Also, there are some banks that claim to be supporting SMEs, yet when they are sought out, businesses face many obstacles, he added.

Online services Shifting to e-governance and online services is another area that he thinks should be addressed, since it would help assist and speed up procedures.

The funds provided to small companies and incubation support will not be effective as long as the market is not properly organised, as there is no serious support or follow-ups, he said.

Commenting on his company, Al Ma’amari said that he always wanted to establish his own busi-

Awards His hard work is now paying off as Lab Scientific & Laboratory Supplies has won several awards, including from the National Business Centre, Omantel, Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) and Sigma-Aldrich.

Al Ma’amari gained the necessary financial and administrative skills mostly through the Internet, where he believes everything is available.

He also learned from people working in the same field, taking advantage of their experience.

“The Fund for Development of Youth Projects (Sharakah) supported me from the beginning of the project,” he said, adding that he also received support from other institutions, including the Al Raffd Fund, to manage his business.

The company is working with a number of clients, including SQU, and is involved in important projects, including a unique forensic project. Al Ma’amari said that Lab Scientific & Laboratory Supplies plans to expand its business and is expected to open offices in Sohar and Salalah.

The office in Sohar will be launched by the end of the year, he said, adding that there is still potential for more Omani companies in this field.

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

Product exports Net oil product exports — which strips out imports — increased to 610,000 tonnes last month, the highest since October, according to calculations based on the customs data. Growth in China’s diesel consumption, which represents 40 per cent of domestic fuel demand, will be challenged by lower industrial output, especially among steel and cement producers, the largest

users, Grace Lee, an analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, said in a note on July 30.

“Exports are likely to remain strong due to increasing refinery runs and modest domestic demand and are exerting strong downwards pressure on Asian refinery margins,” Citigroup analysts including Ivan Szpakowski wrote in a report on Monday.

India, too, is filling its reserves, although to a much smaller extent.

It bought two cargoes of Basrah Light crude oil from Iraq over the last two months to half fill the Visakhapatnam underground cavern that can hold as much as 9.75 million barrels of oil, Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves chief executive officer Rajan K. Pillai said in an interview on August 4. The country is building two more caverns to hold an additional 29.4 million barrels of oil. - Bloomberg News

BRIEFS

United Power gets green signal to reduce capital MUSCAT: Oman’s Muscat Securities Market (MSM) has approved a decision of United Power Company to reduce its capital from 5 million shares to 2 million shares. The company’s extra ordinary meeting in March decided to reduce its capital.

Rate cut imminent as Egypt inflation hits 13-month low CAIRO: Egypt’s consumer prices rose in July at their slowest pace in 13 months, raising prospects that the central bank will cut key interest rates. The urban inflation rate fell to 8.4 per cent from 11.4 per cent in June, state-run statistics body Capmas said on its website. Food price increases moderated and the effect of energy subsidy reductions last year eased.

Alibaba to buy stake in Suning SHANGHAI: Chinese Internet giant Alibaba is to pay 28.3 billion yuan ($4.6 billion) for a near-20 per cent stake in consumer electronics retailer Suning, the two companies said. At the same time the Chinese shopping chain will invest up to 14 billion yuan for just over one per cent of Alibaba. - Times News Service/Agencies

B4

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

MARKET OMAN STOCKS

MUSCAT SECURITIES MARKET

INDICES Index .................................................High .................Low..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff % MSM30 Index ........................................6,420.11 ...............6,405.16 ....................6,419.97 ................... 6,407.86.................. 12.11 ................... 0.19 Financial Index ..................................... 7,813.48 ............... 7,759.70 ................... 7,808.24 .................... 7,761.74................. 46.50 ...................0.60 Industrial Index ....................................8,160.60 .............. 8,144.86 ................... 8,160.60 ...................8,144.86.................. 15.74 ................... 0.19 Services Index .......................................3,473.55 .............. 3,465.06 ....................3,467.87 ................... 3,473.10.................. -5.23 .................. -0.15 MSM SHARIAH INDEX.......................976.43 ..................975.87 .......................976.43 .......................976.01....................0.42 ...................0.04 Trading Summary Volume ................Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded 9,114,606 .....................2,613,065 .................... 646 .............. 14,902,366,387 ................ 16 ........................9 .................... 14 .........................39

STRONG SUPPORT: As many as 646 trades were executed on Monday’s trading session generating turnover of OMR2.6 million.

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR MONDAY, AUGUST 10 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

MSM rises marginally

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

OM0000002440 ...........AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING ............. 43,767 ............... 5,612......................11 ............0.128 ........... 0.130 ...........0.126........... 0.128 ............. 0.123............ 0.005............. 4.065 ................0.130 ..............0.129...................0.130...................11,520,000 .........0.100 OM0000001517 ............HSBC BANK OMAN .................................................... 200,000...........26,200........................6 ............0.131 ........... 0.131............0.131 ............0.131 .............0.126............ 0.005............. 3.968 ................0.131 ..............0.130................... 0.131 ................. 262,040,975 .......0.100 OM0000002820 ...........GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ......................... 387,065.............48,813.....................40 ............0.123 ........... 0.127 ...........0.123 ........... 0.126 .............0.122 ........... 0.004............. 3.279 ................0.127 ..............0.126...................0.127.................... 7,414,245 ..........0.100 OM0000001772 ............AL ANWAR HOLDING............................................... 1,064,132 ......227,884..................... 95 ........... 0.208........... 0.216 ...........0.208 .......... 0.214 .............0.209 ........... 0.005.............2.392 ................0.215 ..............0.214...................0.215................... 32,116,050 .........0.100 OM0000001962............AL MADINA INVESTMENT .....................................15,300 ............... 1,021........................3 ........... 0.066 ...........0.067 ...........0.066........... 0.067 .............0.066 ............0.001 ..............1.515.................0.067..............0.066...................0.067................... 13,879,143 .........0.100 OM0000003661 ............VOLTAMP ENERGY ..................................................... 12,770 ...............5,684........................5 ........... 0.442 ...........0.446 ...........0.442........... 0.446 .............0.440 ........... 0.006............. 1.364 ................0.442..............0.442...................0.464 ..................26,983,000.........0.100 OM0000004768 ...........AL MADINA TAKAFUL................................................. 9,500 ..................846........................4 ........... 0.089 ...........0.089 ...........0.089........... 0.089 .............0.088 ............0.001 ..............1.136.................0.089..............0.088...................0.089...................15,575,000 .........0.100 OM0000002200 ...........AHLI BANK ...................................................................... 30,031 ...............6,487........................3 ............0.214 ........... 0.216 ...........0.214........... 0.216 .............0.214 ........... 0.002............. 0.935 ................0.216 ............. 0.200...................0.216..................307,807,807........0.100 OM0000001681 ............OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING............ 70,000 ............... 7,770........................4 ............0.111 ............0.111 ............ 0.111 ............0.111.............. 0.110.............0.001 .............0.909 ................ 0.111 ...............0.111................... 0.114 ................... 13,528,125 .........0.100 OM0000003521 ............GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. .................. 130,871 .............15,493......................15 ............0.117 ........... 0.119............ 0.117 ............0.118 ............. 0.117 .............0.001 ............. 0.855 ................0.118 .............. 0.118...................0.120................... 34,217,715 .........0.100 OM0000002028 ...........GULF INTERNATIONAL CHEMICALS ..............77,900 ............ 20,856......................13 ........... 0.266 ...........0.268 ...........0.266........... 0.268 .............0.266 ........... 0.002............. 0.752 ................0.268..............0.267...................0.268 ...................5,628,000 ..........0.100

The top gainer was Al Sharqia Investments,

OM0000002168............AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ............................... 100,000 ........... 39,800........................1 ........... 0.398 ...........0.398 ...........0.398........... 0.398 .............0.396 ........... 0.002............. 0.505 ................0.398..............0.390...................0.400 ................. 117,893,045 ........0.100 OM0000001525 ............OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE.............. 228,475 ............ 47,719..................... 34 ........... 0.208........... 0.210 ...........0.207........... 0.209 .............0.208 ............0.001 ............. 0.481 ................0.209............. 0.208...................0.209 ..................41,800,000.........0.100

up by 4.07 per cent, while the top loser was

OM0000003026 ...........OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION .......................... 31,335 ............ 54,360.....................20 ............1.730 ........... 1.740............1.730 ............1.735 ............. 1.730............ 0.005.............0.289 ................1.740 .............. 1.730...................1.740 ................1,301,250,000 ......0.100

National Mineral Water, down by 6 per cent.

OM0000001533 ............OMINVEST .................................................................... 1,575,197.......756,095........................8 ........... 0.480 ...........0.480 ...........0.480........... 0.480 .............0.480 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.480..............0.480...................0.484 .................177,800,304........0.100

OM0000001707 ............OMAN CABLES INDUSTRY......................................33,000 ............74,200......................13 ........... 2.245 ...........2.250 ...........2.245........... 2.250 .............2.245 ........... 0.005.............0.223 ................2.250............. 0.000...................2.300 .................201,825,000 .......0.100

OM0000001889............SALALAH MILLS................................................................ 500 .................. 735........................1 ............1.470 ........... 1.470 ...........1.470 ............1.495 ............. 1.495............ 0.000.............0.000 ................1.470 .............. 1.470...................1.500...................72,003,781 .........0.100 OM0000002366 ...........AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ........................35,000 ...............4,025........................9 ............0.115 ........... 0.115............ 0.115 ............0.115 ............. 0.115 ............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.115 ...............0.113................... 0.115 ....................3,450,000 ..........0.100

MUSCAT: Shares on the Muscat Securities Market (MSM) recovered on better support from retail and institutional investors.

The MSM30 had a positive day on Monday amidst continuous selling in recent days and ended at 6,419.97 points, up by 0.19 per cent. The MSM Sharia Index closed at 976.43 points, up by 0.04 per cent. Phoenix Power was the most active in terms of volume while Ominvest was the most active in terms of turnover.

Top gainer was Al Sharqia Investments, up by 4.07 per cent, while the top loser was National Mineral Water, down by 6.06 per cent. As many as 646 trades were executed during Monday’s trading session generating turnover of OMR2.6 million with more than 9.1 million shares changing hands. Out of 39 traded securities, 16 advanced, nine declined and 14 remained unchanged.

Omani investors were net buyers for OMR140,000 while Foreign investors were net sellers for OMR117,000 followed

by GCC and Arab investors for OMR23,000 worth of shares.

Financial Index recovered to close at 7,808.24 points, up by 0.60 per cent. Al Sharqia Investments, HSBC Bank, Gulf Investment Services, Al Anwar Holding and Takaful Oman increased.

Industrial Index gained 0.19 per cent to close at 8,160.60 points. Voltamp Energy, Galfar Engineering, Gulf International Chemicals, Al Anwar Ceramics and Oman Cables gained 1.36 per cent, 0.85 per cent, 0.75 per cent, 0.51 per cent and 0.22 per cent respectively.

Services Index fell 0.15 per cent and closed at 3,467.87 points.

OIFC and Omantel increased 0.48 per cent and 0.29 per cent respectively. — United Securities

OM0000002614............ONIC. HOLDING ................................................................. 300 ...................143........................1 ............0.476 ........... 0.476 ...........0.476........... 0.480 .............0.480 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.476..............0.476...................0.480 ..................83,243,160 .........0.100 OM0000003000 ...........ALMAHA PETROLEUM PRODUCTS MAR. ..... 210,000 .........441,000.....................20 ........... 2.100 ........... 2.100 ...........2.100........... 2.100 .............2.100 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................2.100............. 0.000...................2.100................. 144,900,000 .......0.100 OM0000003224 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES ..................................... 100,000 ........... 25,100........................5 ............0.251 ........... 0.251 ...........0.251 ............0.251 ............. 0.251............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.251 ............. 0.240...................0.251...................72,953,406.........0.100 OM0000003968 ...........OOREDOO........................................................................... 1,500 ............... 1,170........................2 ............0.780 ........... 0.780 ...........0.780........... 0.780 .............0.780 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.780..............0.784...................0.800 .................507,736,499 ........0.100 OM0000004669 ...........SHARQIYAH DESALINATION .................................. 2,397 ...............9,588........................5 ........... 4.000...........4.000 ...........4.000 .......... 4.000 .............4.000 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ............... 4.000 ............ 4.000...................4.400 ..................39,120,864 .........1.000 OM0000005005 ...........ALMAHA CERAMICS ................................................ 123,128 ............ 66,266......................21 ........... 0.538 ...........0.540 ...........0.534........... 0.538 .............0.540 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.370 ...............0.538..............0.534...................0.538...................28,245,000.........0.100 OM0000002796 ...........BANK MUSCAT ............................................................ 270,649 .........144,966......................21 ........... 0.538 ........... 0.538 ...........0.532........... 0.536 .............0.538 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.372 ...............0.534..............0.532...................0.534................ 1,228,416,912 ......0.100 OM0000004925 ...........AL BATINAH POWER................................................ 158,416 .............35,659......................11 ........... 0.224...........0.226 ...........0.224 .......... 0.225 .............0.226 ...........-0.001 ........... -0.442 ...............0.226..............0.226...................0.229 .................151,849,672 ........0.100 OM0000004933 ...........AL SUWADI POWER .................................................. 230,267 ............52,198......................16 ........... 0.224...........0.229 ...........0.224 .......... 0.227 .............0.229 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.873 ...............0.229..............0.218...................0.229 .................162,170,239 ........0.100 OM0000001145 ............PORT SERVICES CORPORATION .........................62,752 .............11,280......................12 ............0.181 ........... 0.181............0.179 ........... 0.180 ............. 0.185............-0.005 ........... -2.703 ...............0.179 ............. 0.000...................0.180................... 17,107,200 .........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 5,204,252 ..2,130,969...................399 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......28........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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

OM0000004776 ...........TAKAFUL OMAN INSURANCE ..............................28,050 ............... 3,198........................4 ............0.114 ........... 0.114............0.113 ............0.114 ............. 0.112............ 0.002............. 1.786.................0.113 .............. 0.112................... 0.114 ...................11,400,000 .........0.100 OM0000001301 ............DHOFAR CATTLE FEED ..............................................5,000 .................. 950........................1 ............0.190 ........... 0.190 ...........0.190........... 0.190 .............0.190 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.190..............0.190...................0.195 ...................14,630,000.........0.100 OM0000001400 ...........OMAN FLOUR MILLS ...................................................2,500 ...............1,250........................2 ........... 0.500 ...........0.500 ...........0.500........... 0.500 .............0.500 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.500..............0.484...................0.500 ..................78,750,000 .........0.100 OM0000002564 ...........AL HASSAN ENGINEERING...................................... 2,273 .................. 218........................1 ........... 0.096 ...........0.096 ...........0.096........... 0.096 .............0.096 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.096..............0.095...................0.096.................... 7,219,968 ..........0.100 OM0000004511 ............ALIZZ ISLAMIC BANK............................................... 60,000 .............. 4,440........................4 ........... 0.074 ........... 0.074 ...........0.074........... 0.074 .............0.074 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.074..............0.074...................0.080 ..................74,000,000 ........0.100 OM0000005963 ...........PHOENIX POWER ...................................................... 2,556,800 .....384,166................... 173 ............0.149 ........... 0.151............0.149 ........... 0.150 .............0.150............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.151 ..............0.150................... 0.151 ..................219,390,219 ........0.100 OM0000004420 ...........BANK NIZWA ................................................................ 1,161,934..........82,871..................... 49 ........... 0.072 ...........0.072 ...........0.071 ............0.071 .............0.072 ...........-0.001 ........... -1.389................0.071 ..............0.070...................0.071................. 106,500,000 .......0.100 OM0000001566 ............OMAN FISHERIES .......................................................60,688 ...............3,088........................9 ........... 0.052 ...........0.052 ...........0.050............0.051 .............0.052 ...........-0.001 ........... -1.923................0.051 ..............0.050...................0.051....................6,375,000 ..........0.100 OM0000001368 ............CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. ....................10,000 ..................360........................1 ........... 0.036 ...........0.036 ...........0.036........... 0.036 .............0.038 ...........-0.002 ........... -5.263 ...............0.036..............0.036...................0.039....................3,060,000 ..........0.100 OM0000001285 ............NATIONAL MINERAL WATER ............................... 19,399 ...............1,203........................1 ........... 0.062 ...........0.062 ...........0.062........... 0.062 .............0.066 ...........-0.004 ........... -6.061................0.062..............0.062...................0.070.................... 1,674,188 ..........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 3,906,644 ..... 481,744...................245 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......10........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

ECONOMY

Greece seeks resolution to bailout deal as talks progress

VITAL INSTITUTION: Even as the European governments are racing to cinch an agreement before Greece needs to pay 3.2 billion euros to the European Central Bank on August 20, the situation is not as dire as it was earlier this summer. - Bloomberg file picture

ATHENS: The Greek government is seeking to conclude talks on a rescue programme by Tuesday, leaving enough time for national parliaments to assess the deal so funds can be disbursed for an August 20 payment to the European Central Bank (ECB).

The four institutions representing Greece’s creditors — the ECB, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Commission and the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) — made progress over the weekend on the details of a plan that would make as much as 86 billion euros ($93 billion) available to Greece, according to three people with knowledge of the discussions. Officials are optimistic an agreement will be reached, allowing Greece’s parliament to pass any new required reforms in

the middle of the week and paving the way for a meeting of euro-area finance ministers at the end of the week, said two of the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.

The indebted nation needs a quick release of about 20 billion euros to create a buffer for its banks and to make loan payments.

“We are trying to make swift progress in order to have a deal preferably before the 20th of August so the disbursement can be made under the new ESM programme,” European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva told reporters on Friday in Brussels.

The yield on Greece’s 1.74 billion euros of three per cent bonds due February 2025 rose about 5 basis points to 11.72 percent at 9:23 a.m. in Brussels. That’s down from a

closing high this year of 19.23 per cent in July. Greece and its creditors still need to decide exactly how much money will be required for the bailout, which will be the nation’s third in five years, as well as what reforms will have to be concluded before any money is released, one of the people said.

The headway comes as some members of the 19-nation common currency express scepticism that a deal can work.

Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini said over the weekend that his government is ready to discuss a new aid plan for Greece but that “we should admit that this isn’t going to work.”

Last week, Hans Michelbach, a Bavarian lawmaker who has argued against a deal with Greece, said he didn’t believe a rescue

program could be reached in time and other financing arrangements would be needed. The Athens Stock Index, which reopened August 3 after being shuttered for five weeks, fell 15.2 per cent for the five days ended on August 7 to 676.33, just shy of its lowest closing level in three years. A measure of Greek banks fell 58 per cent last week, reaching the lowest closing level since 1995 on August 5.

Even as the European governments are racing to cinch an agreement before Greece needs to pay 3.2 billion euros to the ECB on August 20, the situation isn’t as dire as it was earlier this summer; if the leaders fail to disburse the funds in time, Greece could still request a short-term loan from a European fund that has about 5 billion euros available. — Bloomberg News

INDIAN BOURSE

Sensex ends lower by 135 points MUMBAI: Fag-end selling pressure from operators on the back of lower global cues, pulled down the S&P BSE benchmark Sensex by 135 points to close at 28,101.72 and CNX Nifty by 39 points to finish at 8,525.60.

Foreign capital outflows also affected the market sentiment.

The Sensex resumed higher at

28,250.78 and firmed up further to a 2-1/2 week high of 28,417.59 on early buying mainly in Realty, IT, Banking, Refinery and Power sectors due to fall in crude oil prices. In the global commodities markets, Brent crude oil futures edged lower touching fresh multi-month lows after disappointing data from China over

the weekend showed exports tumbled in the world’s secondlargest economy.

India imports about 80 per cent of its crude requirements and a decline in crude eases concerns on fiscal deficit, inflation and gives more room for the government to boost growth through spending on infrastructure. - PTI

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

B5

FEATURE

FIVE MYTHS ABOUT COAL

1

Popular depictions of coal focus on its polluting qualities: blighted landscapes, black lungs and smokestacks belching out toxic clouds that cause acid rain. News coverage of the industry typically spotlights its contributions to climate change. Films depict miners coated in black dust or trapped deep underground.

There’s truth to these images, but they don’t tell coal’s whole story.

Starting about 150 years ago, coal performed a very important environmental service. Forests in the upper Midwest and the Northeast were being cut down rapidly as demand for firewood to heat homes and fuel factories outstripped the rate at which the trees grew back.

Coal mines brought that rampant deforestation to a halt. The black rock was cheaper, hotter and more plentiful. It was also cleaner: Burning a pound of coal produces less carbon dioxide than burning a pound of wood, while releasing more energy.

Today, biomass is promoted as an ecofriendly, renewable energy source, but it’s the old fossil fuel that emits fewer greenhouse gases when burned. And, used the right way — with scrubbers and other environmental controls, along with technology that captures carbon emissions and sequesters them underground — coal can be combusted in a very clean way. “Clean coal” isn’t an oxymoron. It can be implemented with technically viable (though expensive) solutions.

2

The domestic coal-mining industry is suffering: The number of coal-mine workers dropped by more than 10 per cent in 2013, and the combined market capitalisation of the four largest coal extraction companies has collapsed to $1 billion, down from $22 billion just five years ago. Moods are dour, and a typical refrain in coal country is that the demise of its fortunes is the result of Obama’s policies.

While the Environmental Protection Agency’s smokestack emissions standards certainly aren’t helpful for coal, the rules have been around in some form for decades, and the first federal regulation to permanently cap and reduce coal plants’ mercury emissions was issued in 2005, during the George W. Bush administration.

Cheap natural gas has been much more damaging for coal’s market share than environmental rules. The shale revolution has unleashed a huge supply of gas that competes with coal on price and ease of use, so utilities are switching to natural gas at a much greater rate than was anticipated just a few years ago.

In addition, US coal miners are competing against cheap Australian coal, which is closer to Asia-Pacific customers. Any way you slice it, domestic coal producers have a tough road ahead, whether Obama is president or not.

If the worst-case scenarios for climate change come true, they say, we will see flooded cities, violence and hundreds of millions of displaced refugees.

As Americans ponder coal’s fate, let’s debunk some myths about this multifaceted hydrocarbon COAL IS DIRTY

‘WAR ON COAL’ IS KILLING THE MINING INDUSTRY

COAL DEPENDS ON APPALACHIA

COAL IS UNSUBSIDISED

CHINA IS ADDICTED TO COAL

3

Appalachia was the historic heart of coal production and has been the iconic setting for Hollywood’s coal movies. During the 1930s, the industry employed as much as 75 per cent of the male workforce in some Appalachian counties. Fifty years ago, 95 per cent of America’s coal was produced east of the Mississippi River.

But as environmental regulations tightened, cleaner coal out West (it contains less sulphur, which forms sulfur dioxide, the precursor to acid rain) became more popular.

Today, just one percent of jobs in Appalachia are related to mining. Wyoming is by far the nation’s leading coal producer.

Coal mining was never particularly lucrative for Appalachia. While mine owners are often very rich, and the cheap electricity coal produces is a great economic enabler nationwide, Appalachia’s mining towns have been among the poorest in the nation.

They have suffered from a lack of economic diversity, making them susceptible to coal’s boom-and-bust cycles.

In response, communities throughout the Appalachian states have begun to make changes. Economic development programs are trying to help the region identify new sectors, including natural gas and technology, that aren’t subject to the whims of coal markets.

And the largest portion of Appalachia’s workers — 14.5 per cent — labour not in mining, but in the food, lodging and entertainment industries, according to a 2010 report by the Appalachian Regional Commission.

5 4

China’s demand for electricity has been booming this century.

To keep up, the country has been building out its electrical grid at a furious pace. And since coal is an abundant natural resource in China, it has been a preferred fuel. For several years, China was constructing the equivalent of a small to mid-size coal-fired power plant every week to 10 days.

But more recently, the situation on the ground has changed rapidly. Beijing is shutting down all of its major coal-fired power plants, and nearly 2,000 small coal mines are slated to be closed nationwide by the end of this year. In an ironic twist, Chinese coal has even lowered the price of wind turbines and solar panels, which are produced in factories powered by cheap, coal-fired electricity.

Crippling air pollution kills at least one million people in China prematurely each year, a dire situation that required action from government officials. Consequently, solar and wind farms have been built at a staggering rate to combat pollution, cutting into the market share for coal and leading to declining coal consumption over the past year.

While China and coal seem to go hand in hand, it looks like the country has turned a corner.

In town hall meetings and public policy debates, fossil fuel defenders complain about the subsidies allocated to renewable energy.

They rail against using federal funds to “pick winners and losers” in the energy marketplace. Often forgotten in that debate is the fact that coal receives about $1 billion in subsidies and largesse from the federal government each year.

Certainly, that’s less than the $6 billion the government allots for the wind production tax credit. But while renewable-energy tax credits are direct subsidies, and therefore easy targets, the subsidies for coal are less obvious. They pay to support research and development and to lower tax liabilities for coal companies. Plus, the decade-long prohibition on new natural-gas power plants beginning in 1978 effectively subsidised the construction of coal plants by removing natural gas as a competitor.

Environmentalists also like to point out that allowing coal-burners to pollute without paying a tax on carbon is a hidden subsidy worth tens of billions of dollars, as the healthcare costs and ecosystem damage are borne by individuals, insurance companies and others.

Globally, coal gets more subsidies than any other form of energy, when the environmental costs are included, according to the International Monetary Fund. If governments removed the subsidies and put a price on pollution, the price of coal-generated energy would be much higher than what consumers pay today.

— MICHAEL E. WEBBER / Washington Post-Bloomberg News

B6

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

ROUND-UP

Mazda extends service interval From now on, Mazda service interval will be 10,000km or six months, whichever is earlier.

This means greater convenience, savings and more peace of mind for the Mazda owners

MUSCAT: Good news for all Mazda customers, new and old!

Mazda Oman has extended the service interval allowing customers to service their Mazda every 10,000km or every six months

rather than the current schedule of every three months or 5,000km, says a press release.

Kasber Johnson, national service manager of Towell Auto Centre (TAC), the sole distributor of

Mazda range of vehicles in Oman, commented: “Starting now, all current owners and prospective Mazda customers will have the convenience of an extended service interval that will benefit them in more ways than one.

“Currently the servicing schedule calls for each Mazda to be serviced at least once every three months or 5,000km, whichever occurs first. But from now on, Mazda service interval will be 10,000km or six months, whichever is earlier.

This means greater convenience, savings and more peace of mind for the Mazda owners.”

“This would also mean that the cost of maintaining a Mazda is

VA L U E F O R M O N E Y

now 30 per cent lower and hence, one more reason to own a stunning Mazda from the huge range at TAC which comes at unbelievable prices,” Kasber adds.

All new Mazda models are equipped with innovative Skyactiv technology that gives 30 per cent more fuel efficiency.

Optimum efficiency It includes highly efficient engines with a world beating compression ratio developed in pursuit of ideal combustion, highly efficient transmissions for improved fuel economy and lightweight but rigid chassis and body with excellent collision safety for improved com-

fort and security. It ensures that Mazda vehicles run with optimum efficiency and safety for a longer period of time.

Mazda Oman has always offered efficient after-sale services with the most advanced diagnostic tools, latest software upgrades and highly trained staff who pride in their quality of service. With a network of 13 service outlets and 10 parts outlets spread across Oman, TAC is the only Mazda distributor in the world to win the Mazda Customer Service award five years in a row. With 98.2 per cent parts deliverability, TAC also offers quick, efficient service with genuine parts available for all models.

H E A LT H C A R E

Nissan Xterra comes with advanced Aster Al Raffah features, unrivalled off-road ability launches weight loss campaign MUSCAT: The Nissan Xterra from the house of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles is designed with the intent of being a tough, essential SUV that inspires and facilitates outdoor enthusiasts’ active lifestyles.

All Xterra models feature an advanced 4.0-litre straight-six engine, rated at a muscular 270 horsepower, along with Nissan’s rugged ‘F-Alpha’ ladder frame platform for adventure-ready performance. With a special offer for grabs, customers can now avail EMI rate starting from OMR192 on the Nissan Xterra.

Easy financing options Nissan customers can also avail easy financing option of a loan term up to eight years with attractive interest rates from Bank Muscat. Flexible EMIs can also be tailor made for any individual requirement from in-house Auto Finance team.

Unique NissanConnect NissanConnect uses hands-free technology, smartphone, and the Nissan’s display screen to help customers stay in touch with the outside world from inside their vehicle. It’s loaded with features and compatibility with a growing list of apps that allows customers play music, keep tabs on social network, and navigate any city like a local.

Once logged in, customers have to connect to Nissan through bluetooth or the USB port. The Quick Start Guide helps to select from a list of supported apps, and NissanConnect automatically instals them.

Comfort and convenience Standard interior features include sporty reclining front bucket seats, footrest, dual front and rear 20-ounce cup holders, power windows, power locks, power mirrors, remote keyless entry and cruise control with steering wheel-mounted controls. It also comes with driver seat height adjustment and lumbar support.

Taking into consideration driver comfort and conveniences, the Xterra features a centre console and leather steering wheel.

Striking exterior features Xterra’s signature exterior styl-

ing features include large flared fenders, a versatile roof rack with latchable lid and a rear bumper design with side steps for easy access to the roof rack. It also offers a large, powerful looking hood and headlights and Nissan SUV-style angled strut grille.

The vehicle also features Chrome ORVM and Fr. fog lamps.

The new Xterra looks good on the road with its enhanced styling that includes a roof rail with attachments and side step.

The Xterra also features a youth style dashboard, shift on the fly – 4WD system, navigation, rearview camera, a steering switch for bluetooth, audio and cruise controls.

Xterra’s long wheelbase gives a smooth ride and ample interior room, yet overall length is highly manageable due to the short front overhang – helping to enhance manoeuvrability in off-road hill climbing and trail situations.

Key elements The new Xterra is also known for its other key elements that include 6” off road wheel, Bilstein shock absorber, off road tyre 265/75R16 OWL BFGoodrich, 6 speakers, the steering wheel comes with audio and cruise controls, bluetooth hands free phone and AUX-in and lastly a rear diff lock.

Xterra’s versatile cargo area is highlighted by an available Easy Clean cargo surface and a total of 10 cargo area utility hooks – six on the floor/sides and four on the ceiling. There’s also an available builtin first-aid kit and space to securely carry jugs up to a one-gallon size.

Underneath its unique exterior

design, every Xterra features a fully boxed, all-steel ladder frame and a rugged suspension featuring a steel double-wishbone front suspension and solid axle leaf spring rear suspension, with stabiliser bars front and rear.

Two advanced transmissions are offered with the Xterra. An available electronically controlled 5-speed automatic transmission with an emphasis on acceleration, fuel economy and shift quality, or a 6-speed manual transmission tuned for driving performance and fuel economy.

Other driveline components include engine speed-sensitive power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering and 4-wheel vented disc brakes with Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD).

Wheel and tyre packages include 16-inch steel wheels. Xterra off-road models feature new 6-spoke 16-inch machine-finished aluminium-alloy wheels.

Advanced technology The Nissan Xterra offers drivers today a long list of advanced technological features including a booming sound system and bluetooth Hands-free phone system.

Today the Nissan Xterra has the technology to keep drivers rocking and talking no matter where the trail takes.

Off-road capability The Adventure Park is built at the Oman Automobile Association to address auto enthusiasts across interest levels and skill sets through multitude of engage-

ment opportunities and promote the spirit of driving a Nissan SUV safely on the roads.

For the first time Nissan has created this exclusive platform to nurture and hone driving skills of SUV owners in Oman.

Also this is first of its kind offroading experience wherein auto enthusiasts and SUV owners will be invited at the specially created off road test-track. Under supervision of experienced trainers the participants will be taught the basics of off-road driving.

Xterra’s performance at the 4x4 Adventure Park has been impeccable as the vehicle tops the list of safe manoeuvrability and enhanced driving techniques like cornering, braking, slalom etc.

Cruising comfortably on the highways, conquering desert dunes with ease, or manoeuvring through the city at rush hour, Nissan Xterra offers unrivalled off-road capability and on road handling.

A senior official from SBA commented, “The Adventure Park is a technical and demanding 4x4 track designed to demonstrate vehicles capabilities. This kind of driving requires low speed and very smooth driving manners, by a driver with knowledge and experience of off road driving. Depending on the vehicle used, capabilities are different and the way of driving has to be different as well and adapted to each vehicle.”

Safety and security Xterra’s list of safety features and equipment includes Nissan Advanced Air Bag System (AABS) with dual-stage supplemental front air bags with seat belt and occupant classification sensors and 3-point front/rear seat belts with pre-tensioners and load limiters, tire pressure warning system and adjustable upper anchors.

SBA is largely committed to supporting Nissan’s growth in the Sultanate through major emphasis on customer satisfaction and by providing world-class after-sales services in Oman. With a national network of more than 19 showrooms, 22 service centres and 35 spare parts outlets, SBA has further built upon its legacy of trust, excellent customer service and providing value for money to each of its customers.

POPULAR

MUSCAT: Obesity is a global burning issue and obesity rates have soared among all age groups worldwide. Achieving a healthy weight is a long-term challenge for millions of people. However, it can be the first step in preventing many life threatening ailments.

Fortunately, there are opportunities waiting for us right in our hands to change these trends.

Aster Al Raffah hospital recognises the serious concern obesity poses to society and is keen to help in decreasing its prevalence in coming years. Since the time of inception Aster group of hospitals has been aware of the need to protect society from obesity which is the mother of many diseases.

In continuation to giving best healthcare services and dealing with major health concerns for the people of Oman, Aster Al Raffah hospital, Sohar organised Aster Weight Loss Challenge for three months, says a press release.

This three months programme was held to bring the community together to make lifestyle changes through healthy eating and exercise and weight loss.

The programme’s nearly 500 enthusiastic participants included people of different age groups from all walks of life. Participants were given a target weight to lose every month for three months (after checking height/weight/ BMI) and were asked to follow up after one month.

The lucky participants who achieved their target weight loss, not only gained good health and confidence but were also awarded with some exciting prizes like LED TV, microwave oven, mobile phones, music system and other electronic appliances. Some of the participants shared their experiences of this three-month weight loss challenge and said that the initial battle of bulge can be a bit difficult but gradually it becomes a healthy part of your life and the results can be lifetime.

Registration forms for the Aster Weight Loss Challenge are available in Al Raffah Hospital Gubrah, Aster Al Raffah Polyclinic Amerat and Aster Al Raffah

Obesity is a serious health concern worldwide and health programmes like this help spread awareness at national level Seeniya Biju CEO, Al Raffah

Polyclinic Al Khoud.

Seeniya Biju, CEO, Al Raffah, said, “We at Al Raffah firmly believe that each and every person can contribute significantly towards the betterment of our society. Obesity is a serious health concern worldwide and health programmes like this help spread awareness at national level.”

She was overwhelmed with the response of people of Sohar and encouraged to promote this campaign in Muscat region. This month, there is an extraordinary opportunity waiting for people right in their hands to create awareness and take action and make a healthier society. So take your best foot forward and encourage your family, friends, relatives to participate in this Weight Loss Challenge programme to be held for first time in Muscat.

Now that the holidays are over, come and join this exciting challenge not only to shed those extra kilos but to win some exciting prizes and a free counselling session with our nutritionist to discuss various therapeutic needs of your diet. Our qualified team of professionals are ready to support you and your family and set you all on a healthy road of good habits and the battle of bulge starts at Al Raffah Muscat.

R A M A D A N F E S T I VA L P R O M O T I O N

Audi records impressive half-year sales growth Grand raffle draw held at Safeer Mall Sohar

MUSCAT: The ever-increasing popularity of Audi cars in the Sultanate has contributed to an impressive half-year sales figure for the brand this year, says a press release.

“Our impressive sales growth of 12 per cent year to date in Oman has been driven by the outstanding success of the popular Audi A3 sedan (72 per cent increase), the luxurious Audi A8 (57 per cent increase), the new Audi Q3 (36 per cent increase), the Audi A4 (23 per cent increase) and the Audi A6 (17.2 per cent increase),” said Faisal Nawaz, marketing manager of Audi Oman.

“It is Audi’s objective to ‘delight customers worldwide’ which assures their premium cars are built to the highest quality and which our customers buy in everincreasing numbers. We are elated that our models are popular and earning plaudits from automotive enthusiasts in Oman and the Middle East, all of which makes it exciting to be a part of the Audi fam-

ily,” added Faisal.

Sophisticated features Audi has a strong presence in the passenger vehicles category in Oman with its wide range of sedans and SUVs. Each Audi has sophisti-

cated features that add value and comfort, keeping the brand ahead of its competition and making Audi a crème de la crème brand that is respected worldwide.

Audi’s recent summer campaign – ‘You Deserve Extra’ and

similar peace-of-mind ownership initiatives aim to continue to attract new and existing customers to the brand and with new models such as the all new Audi Q7 about to arrive in the market, Audi sales success is assured for the future.

SOHAR: Safeer Mall Sohar remarkably concluded its Ramadan Festival promotion that has made shopping an exciting experience.

Ammar Al Hosni, a college student from Khabourah and winner of the all-new Mitsubishi Pajero, was delighted at winning the grand prize. For him, it was a dream that turned into reality, says a press release.

The offer was launched in June which included a car raffle promotion and mall gift vouchers. Adding to the festivities, the grand raffle draw evening started with an exceptional live performance by professional drummers from Dubai Drums. The invigorating sounds of drums made everyone enjoy the beat of an interactive rhythmic drumming. Drummers had a couple of solo performances and many interactive drumming sessions which thrilled the crowd and made the grand raffle draw

even more memorable.

“Safeer Mall Sohar has always been proactive in coming up with promotions that has significantly made a viable leap in business for our mall shops. Ramadan Festival promotion, which strategically covered the shopping season, was once again a success. We thank our customers for the ceaseless support and for patronising us,” said Vijay Manwani, COO of Safeer Mall.

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Bank Sohar hosts Al Mumayaz saving scheme monthly draw The draw, which was held as part of a VIP client gathering in Salalah witnessed five Bank Sohar customers win OMR10,000 each and five minor account holders win OMR1,000 each

SALALAH: Bank Sohar recently conducted its monthly draw for the month of July under the Al Mumayaz saving scheme with a prize amount totalling OMR55,000 distributed among 10 lucky winners under the auspices of Mohsin bin Ahmed Al Hadad, member of State Council.

The draw, which was held as part of a VIP client gathering in Salalah, witnessed five Bank Sohar customers win OMR10,000 each and five minor account holders win OMR1,000 each, says a press release.

Representing Bank Sohar at the event, which was held at the Hilton Salalah Resort recently, were Ghazi Nasser Salim Al Alawi, member of Bank Sohar’s Board of

Directors, Khalfan Rashid Al Taley, DGM and head of Operations, Munira Abdulnabi Macki, DGM of Human Resource and Corporate Support, R. Narasimhan, DGM of and head of Retail Banking. Also in attendance were other senior members of the bank including Khamis Masoud Al Rahbi, AGM of Branches, Mazin Al Raisi, AGM and head of Marketing and Publicity and Amur Said Al Amri, senior chief manager of the Salalah Branch, who welcomed the chief guest and the bank’s VIP customers from the area.

The event commenced with a welcome address by Amur Said Al Amri followed by an introductory speech by Mazin Al Raisi conveying the Acting CEO’s message

NOBLE SERVICE

to the gathering. Shortly after, a video was played showcasing the recent official opening of the relocated Salalah branch followed by a comprehensive overview of the features of the 2015 Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme, presented to the audience by Amur Al Amri, highlighting the main enhancements of the new scheme and other value added advantages.

During his informative presentation, he also showcased the range of superior hi-tech retail banking products and services provided by the bank.

Key to success Commenting on the occasion, Narasimhan said, “We strongly believe that building and maintaining strong positive relationships with our customers is the key to success. Over the past eight years, this principle has governed our operations and ensured our continued growth. We were happy to host such a prestigious VIP annual client gathering during the Khareef season where the festive mood of the entire region reverberates with the ongoing celebrations and the many thousands of visitors, not only from Oman, but also other GCC countries and abroad.

“Despite the busy schedules of

our valued clients, the overwhelming response for the VIP gathering underlines the strong relationship with our bank in the region. Such gatherings also provide a great opportunity to show our gratitude and appreciation for our evergrowing number of loyal customers from such a prominent region of our country.”

The draws were then initiated with the children monthly draws, which saw five children – J. A. from Al Qurum branch; Ahmed Al Alawi from Al Buraimi branch; Mohammed Al Hamdani from Sohar branch; Faiz Mohammed from Al Khoudh branch; and Mohammed Al Ajmi from Al Khaboura branch; win OMR1,000 each.

The guest of honour then conducted the draws to reveal the winners of the Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme Monthly Draws which saw Noora Abdullah from MBD branch; Nasser M. S. from Nizwa branch; R.S. Al Harrasi from Al Seeb Branch; Said Al Maqbali from Sohar branch; and Ahmed Mohammed, from Salalah branch, win the monthly grand prize of OMR10,000 each.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate our monthly winners and encourage others to continue saving. I would

also like to wish all our customers the best of luck in our other upcoming draws,” added Narasimhan.

Token of appreciation The event concluded by handing over a special token of appreciation to Mohsin Al Hadad by Ghazi Al Alawi. A documentary video was played, showcasing the journey of the Al Mumayaz Saving Scheme highlighting the various hourly, weekly, and monthly draws, and the year-end grand draw event during the dinner.

The event provided a great platform for the senior management and staff for a one-to-one interaction with customers and proved to be a great success.

Following the popularity of last year’s savings scheme, the bank has revised this year’s scheme to provide even better incentives to save by offering significantly more chances, more winners, and more prizes.

In addition to continuing with its hourly prize draws of OMR1,000 each from Sunday to Wednesday; the bank is undertaking a branch-wide tour conducting the weekly draw at each of its branches throughout the year; where one winner will win OMR5,000 per draw in addition

to a dedicated branch draw worth OMR1,000 specifically for customers of the branch in which the weekly draw event is held. In total the weekly draws will see more than 70 winners before the end of the year.

The monthly draws, which will continue till November, will witness over 80 winners throughout the year; where each month five winners will receive OMR10,000 each, while five minor account holders will win OMR1,000 each.

Furthermore, the half yearly prize draw, which was conducted in July, was worth over OMR150,000 where two winners received OMR50,000 each, while one minor account received OMR5,000, and one exclusive draw winner received OMR50,000.

Meanwhile, the year-end prize draw boasts a prize pool of over half a million rials for more than 30 winners, with one lucky saver winning OMR450,000, one exclusive winner receiving OMR50,000 and one lucky minor receiving OMR5,000. In addition, as part of the year-end prize draw, the bank will also be conducting a special branch-wide draw for the first time where one lucky winner from each of the bank’s branches will win OMR5,000.

ALLO CALLING CARDS

TeO inks pact with Khimji Ramdas

BankDhofar holds blood donation day MUSCAT: Striving to implement and participate in various activities and events that contribute to the development and wellbeing of the society, BankDhofar organised a blood donation drive in collaboration with the Directorate General of Health Affairs at the Ministry of Health in Sultanate of Oman.

BankDhofar staff enthusiastically supported the cause which took place at the bank’s head office yesterday that comes within the Ministry of Health’s continuous efforts to assemble blood units from donors, and to provide these units to healthcare institutions.

Commenting on the initiative, Sami Omar Al Zadjali, Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications at BankDhofar, noted: “Blood donation helps healthcare institutions provide safe blood units for inpatients and those in need of urgent blood transfer. We at BankDhofar save no efforts to support healthcare providers across the Sultanate and to contribute to their work that aims to provide high quality health services to meet the needs and requirements of the society.”

Dr Sabriya Al Hashami, director of Blood Banks Services at the Ministry of Health, elaborated on the numerous benefits of blood donation.

“The Blood Bank at the Minis-

BankDhofar staff enthusiastically supported the cause which took place at the bank’s head office that comes within the Ministry of Health’s continuous efforts to assemble blood units from donors, and to provide these units to healthcare institutions try of Health exerts lots of effort to assemble blood units from donors in order to provide for healthcare institutions across Oman. In addition to its various health benefits for the donor, donating blood is a noble thing to do and it helps safe lives and enhances the health and wellbeing of those who need it the most,” she said.

Community development and social investment is one of the key pillars in BankDhofar operational strategy.

MUSCAT: Allo, the market leading international calling service from Telecom Oman (TeO), recently signed an agreement with Khimji Ramdas Retail Group for the listing of Allo products in all KR Group managed outlets.

Allo’s flagship product, AlloCard, a first-of-its-kind international calling and recharge card, is now available in all Khimji’s Mart and Al Asalah Mart outlets across Oman. This unique card, available in denominations of OMR1 and OMR5 allows customers to make international calls from Oman at the most attractive prices in the market and can be used from any mobile or landline in Oman, says a press release.

Allo Home is an innovative new plug-and-play product that allows customers to automatically direct all the international calls from their home landlines through Allo thereby giving customers’ even greater savings on their international calls. The product listing at Khimji’s Mart was accompanied with in-store promotional activities which was a big success and received great response from cus-

tomers delighted by Allo’s fantastic prices, great convenience and excellent quality.

Ali Al Mamari, sales manager at TeO, expressed his delight on the signing of the agreement and commented, “Khimjis are amongst our most valuable partners and

having our products available in the Khimji Ramdas retail outlets across Oman will provide our customers with choice of purchasing the cards across all governorates in Oman.”

Khimji Ramdas manages Oman’s largest chain of supermar-

kets by the brand name of Khimji’s Mart and Al Asalah Mart. It has the most extensive nationwide distribution network. With an area of more than 300,000 sq. ft., generating footfalls of up to 35,000 a day, it is aptly called ‘Your Friendly Neighbourhood Store’.

A LITERARY WING EVENT

PSC to launch Urdu poetry book on eve of Pakistan Independence Day Times News Service MUSCAT: With literary events in the country happening on a regular basis, Literary Wing of Pakistan Social Club (PSC)-Oman is organising the launching ceremony of Tilism-e-Wafa (magic of devotion), the Urdu poetry book written by Zakir Hussain Zakir, a prominent Pakistani poet based in Oman.

The event is scheduled to be held on Thursday, August 13 at 9pm at Al Maasa Hall, behind Modern Oman Bakery at Rex Road. Ayaz Hussain, ambassador of Pakistan to the Sultanate of Oman, will be the chief guest at the function. All lovers of Urdu poetry are welcome

as entry to the event is free.

“I wanted to launch my book on the eve of our country’s Independence Day to highlight how important this day is to the people of Pakistan,” Zakir told Times of Oman.

Some of the senior local poets and writers will read their reviews of Zakir’s book in the beginning.

Apart from other noted Urdu poets, Zakir will also recite his heart touching poetry from his poetic creation Tilism-e-Wafa which contains Hamd-o-Na’at, Salaam, Ghazals, Nazmz, humorous poetry and national songs.

Zakir has also paid a poetic tribute to Oman in his book.

“It is a moment of pride for Pakistan Social Club-Oman to organise

the launching ceremony of a poetry book written in our national language Urdu,” said A. H. Raja, vice chairman of PSC-Oman.

“We are trying our best to make this family oriented literary evening a memorable event,” Muhammad Zaeem Akhtar, general secretary of PSC-Oman told Times of Oman.

The event is sponsored by Muhammad Kashif Zaeem, managing director of Rahat Computer Services. Refreshments will be served at the end of the programme.

Further information can be had from Qamar Riaz, general secretary, PSC Literary Wing (98985106) and Tahir Mehmood (24795326).

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Ooredoo launches new superfast fibre home broadband packages Featuring unlimited data with download speeds reaching as high as 100Mbps, these are the fastest and most powerful residential broadband packages currently available in the market

MUSCAT: Launching a new phase of its nationwide fibre rollout plan, Ooredoo has introduced its new superfast fibre as part of its suite of home broadband services.

Featuring unlimited data with download speeds reaching as high as 100Mbps, up to 25 times faster than the company’s current home broadband packages, these are the

TEST DRIVE

fastest and most powerful residential broadband packages currently available in the market, says a press release.

Ooredoo is introducing four Superfast Fibre Home Broadband packages, each with unique benefits and unlimited data.

The first value-added subscription comprises speeds of 15Mbps, with an additional 250 minutes of voice calls between fixed Ooredoo lines each month; the second, 25Mbps with the same 250 minute allowance on calls; the third raises the bar to 50Mbps with unlimited Ooredoo to Ooredoo fixed line voice calls per month; and the fourth, the ultimate 100Mbps, which handles

downloads and online gaming like never before.

“This life-changing technology is the most powerful domestic connection that the Sultanate has ever seen, and by introducing Superfast Fibre Home Broadband services, as an addition to our popular wireless Home Broadband services, we are delivering a whole new online experience for local communities,” said Greg Young, chief executive officer at Ooredoo.

“With unparalleled connection strength and speed, this is what home broadband is supposed to be. Where previously customers may have downloaded movies or streamed data that used the majority of their bandwidth, it will

now be a breeze with plenty to spare; if families want to download a HD movie, it can now be on their screens in less than 10 minutes.”

Phase 1 of the rollout has been completed which means that 11,000 homes in Mabelah are able to subscribe to our Superfast Fibre service and feel the power of Ooredoo’s industry-leading broadband technology.

The next phase of the rollout will see an additional 20,000 homes in Al Khoudh able to use Superfast Fibre Service at the beginning of September, thereafter the service is expected to expand gradually to cover the majority of the Muscat governorate, Salalah, Sohar and Duqm areas and beyond.

EXCITING EVENT

Kia roadshow ends with a flourish al Mazyona monthly draw set MUSCAT: In what was a perfect win-win opportunity for Kia fans in Oman, lots of prizes were given away to the people who took test drives at the ‘Kia On Tour’ venues — Qurum City Centre, Nizwa (Lulu Hypermarket), Sohar Safeer Mall) and Salalah (Gardens Mall).

Assured prizes for test drive included — Apple iPad, microwave ovens, food processor, freezers, bluetooth speaker and Kia keychains and footballs, says a press release.

Winner for QR code quiz contest was Basil. He won a Samsung S5 mini mobile phone. The participants just needed to scan the QR codes and answer three simple questions correctly to win the Samsung S5 Mini mobile phone.

There was also another Kia quiz contest running on Kia Oman Facebook page where one was required to just answer three simple questions correctly to win online Roumaan vouchers upto OMR60 every week.

to enliven Salalah Festival

Alongside the road shows there was also a Kia Caravan which travelled all over Oman and imparted test drives on the go. The all-new Sorento was displayed on the truck along with a test drive Sorento which people could test drive even at the remotest of locations. The idea was to reach people’s doorsteps and give them a chance to experience Kia. “I am an ardent Kia fan and I often visit the Kia showroom in Wattayah,” said a Kia fan. “I got to know about the ‘Kia on Tour’ pro-

motion from their friendly staff there and, like every year, I made sure that I attended the event. I am lucky I won, as well!”

Kia’s range of vehicles has built a strong reputation for embracing some of the most advanced technologies and luxury. Allowing customers the privilege of indulging with the future in the present.

Many of its class-leading features and technologies have been the subject of inspiration for many automobile manufacturers eager to enjoy a fan base as vast as Kia’s.

SALALAH: Bank Muscat, the flagship financial services provider in the Sultanate, is all set to reward al Mazyona customers with 45 monthly prizes totalling OMR450,000 at Salalah Festival.

In keeping with the spirit of celebration linked to Salalah Festival, the bank has lined up an exciting programme at the main festival venue on Thursday, August 13 at 9pm, which is open to the public, says a press release. al Mazyona customers maintaining a minimum balance of OMR1,000 get a chance to win OMR10,000 every month. For every OMR1,000 balance, customers are entitled to 10 winning chances. Forty-five monthly prizes, including one each for asalah Priority Banking and Zeinah customers, totalling OMR450,000, are reserved for customers covering all regions. The more the balance, higher the winning chances.

Marking Oman’s 45th Renaissance anniversary, Bank Mus-

cat raised the 2015 al Mazyona prize money to OMR9 million compared to OMR8 million in 2014. Structured on the thematic ‘45’ reflecting the Sultanate’s 45 years of Renaissance under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, the 2015 al Mazyona campaign reaches out with a powerful call to action ‘Save more, Dream big’ guaranteeing more for everyone to share in the biggest prize money in Oman and the region.

The enhanced 2015 prize money is to be shared by more winners as customers from all regions are guaranteed to win prizes ranging from OMR45,000 a week to OMR450,000 a month and OMR1.5 million at the end of the year. A special prize draw offering OMR450,000 in celebration of the 45th National Day is another highlight. al Mazyona scheme reflects innovative customer segmentation based on two principles — region

and demographics — ensuring a higher winning chance to all customers across the Sultanate. The 2015 al Mazyona scheme reaches out to all individual segments with exclusive prizes earmarked for ladies, youth, children and high savings balance customers in all regions where the Bank Muscat branches are located.

Winning with al Mazyona has never been simpler as customers are not required to block their money for long or wait for a long time to win big prizes.

Over the years, al Mazyona has succeeded in inculcating a strong savings culture in Oman. The objective of al Mazyona is to create a lifetime change for winners and allow them to invest the prize money in things that will make a lasting difference and the wellbeing of their families. The flexible scheme makes regular saving easier and is available across the largest network of 140 branches in Oman.

ENHANCED DRIVING EXPERIENCE

Toyota Aurion: Refined luxury and performance

MUSCAT: Toyota Aurion has made an impressive mark on customers in search of well-balanced luxury and performance.

The Aurion is packed with a host of superior features that promote an enhanced driving experience while making an impactful impression with its refined looks, says a press release.

The interior of the Aurion is made with an emphasis on luxury and quality, creating a unique classy look. The cabin of the Aurion is spacious and the dashboard has an exclusive horizontal TShaped design, which significantly enhances the feeling of prestige.

The ‘Quieter Cabin Experience’ is due to the reduced road and wind noise. The feeling of quality is enhanced with leather stitching, while the curved woodgrain and silver accents create a sense of functional beauty.

The ECO-meter allows drivers to recognise when they are driving in a fuel efficient and economical manner. Chrome accents on the air conditioning vents and audio controls complete the sense of prestige that extends even to the smallest of details, including the audio switches on the steer-

ing wheel and a two seat position memory system. Available with 6-speed Multi-mode automatic transmission mated to a 3.5 L, V6 engine, with Dual VVT-I, the Aurion surges forward on an awesome 268 hp. Thin, long headlamps on either side of the impressive front grille and elevated hood lend it a majestic and powerful presence.

The side of the Aurion is accented for a stronger appearance through a flared bottom section and an accented door-cross section.

The Aurion’s 17-inch wheels enhance the character of the vehicle and provide a feeling of advanced luxury. The rear of the Aurion blends into the rear combination lamps for a greater emphasis on width, with the bumper corners protruding outwards, creating a wide stable feeling and a ground-hugging stance. Cuttingedge aerodynamic technology ensures that the Aurion experiences straight line stability, while the column mounted electric power steering mechanism allows an optimum level of vehicle control.

The Aurion’s VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) plus TRC (Traction Control) technologies give it a ‘firmer footing’ while the

HID (High Intensity Discharge Headlamps) help to see better in the dark, by improving nighttime visibility.

The Aurion offers utility features such as front and rear parking systems, which alert the driver when approaching obstacles. The Aurion also has an audio system with a 7-inch navigation system, a USB/AUX terminal for external audio devices, advanced bluetooth communication compatibility, smart entry and push button start, dual-zone air conditioning and a back window power sunshade.

All specifications listed are standard Toyota equipment.

Safety kit (fire extinguisher, warning triangle, tyre pressure gauge and first aid kit) and floor mats are dealer installed non Toyota items. Vehicle specifications may change without prior notice. Pictures and colours may differ from actual specifications of the vehicle.

In Oman, Toyota’s outstanding product quality is supported by the nationwide parts and service network of Saud Bahwan Automotive. No wonder then that today Toyota is one of the most trusted and well-known brands.

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MODI REVEALS PLANS FOR BREAKAWAY CRICKET BODY Former cricket boss Lalit Modi admitted on Monday his involvement in a plot to overthrow the sport’s establishment, aiming to create a new world governing body affiliated with the Olympic movement. >C3

Kohli-led Team India set for Sangakkara’s farewell party The Sri Lankan batting great Kumar Sangakkara, whose 12,305 runs make him Test cricket’s leading scorer among those still playing, is due to quit international cricket after playing in the first two Tests as Indian captain Virat Kohli said his team plans to give him a fond farewell

GALLE: India hope to end a 22year wait for a Test series win in Sri Lanka when the three-match rubber marking Kumar Sangakkara’s farewell opens in Galle on Wednesday.

The Sri Lankan batting great, whose 12,305 runs make him Test cricket’s leading scorer among those still playing, is due to quit international cricket after playing in the first two Tests.

Indian captain Virat Kohli said his team plans to give 37-year-old Sangakkara a fond farewell — but also make sure they do not allow the prolific left-hander to pile up big scores.

“Great man and a great cricketer, he deserves a very good farewell and we will prepare accordingly,” Kohli said of Sangakkara.

“But hopefully we will also get him out cheaply.”

The tourists will not be distracted by the hype over Sangakkara’s farewell series as they bid to end a barren phase in Sri Lanka since the 1-0 victory by Mohammad Azharuddin’s men in 1993.

India have played four series on the island since, losing in 2001 and 2008 while drawing in 1997 and 2010.

against the likes of Mahela and Sangakkara.

“We have to be patient with this side.

The best farewell we can give Sanga is by being competitive and playing to the best of our abilities. The results will take care of themselves.”

The first Test at the Galle International Stadium and the second at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo from August 20 will be played on either side of Sri Lanka’s parliamentary elections on August 17.

The third and final Test will be held at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo from August 28.

India: Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Ishant Sharma.

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne, Kaushal Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kumar Sangakkara, Dinesh Chandimal, Upul Tharanga, Jehan Mubarak, Kusal Perera, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Tharindu Kaushal, Nuwan Pradeep, Dhammika Prasad, Vishwa Fernando, Dushmantha Chameera.

Five-year gap The five-year gap since their last series means that 11 of the 15 tourists, including skipper Kohli, have not played a Test match on Sri Lankan soil before.

Opening batsman Murali Vijay and bowlers, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra, are the exceptions, although several others in the squad have played limited-overs games in Sri Lanka.

Kohli, regarded as one of the most accomplished batsmen in the modern game, is determined to make a winning start in his first full series as captain after taking over from Mahendra Singh Dhoni in Australia last year.

India will be relieved at playing Test cricket in familiar subcontinental conditions after losing four series in a row in South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia.

“We are here to play good cricket,” Kohli said, downplaying India’s poor overseas record. “History and records are sidelined when the focus is on playing good cricket.

“For us, every series is part of the plan to build a really strong unit that will continue to play for a long time. The prime focus is to back ourselves to execute our skills and have a really competitive side.”

Schedule August 12-16 : First Test, Galle; August 20-24 : Second Test, P. Sara Oval, Colombo; August 28-Sept 1: Third Test, Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo. - AFP

Rebuilding phase Like India, Sri Lanka too are rebuilding following the retirement of greats such as Muttiah Muralitharan and Mahela Jayawardene, leaving Sangakkara to hold fort in his last two Tests.

Sri Lanka were undone by Pakistani leg-spinner Yasir Shah during the recent home series where his 24 wickets in three matches fashioned a 2-1 win for the tourists.

Yasir’s success prompted the Indian selectors to recall leggie Amit Mishra after a four-year absence to bolster a spin attack that comprises two seasoned off-spinners in Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh.

Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews acknowledged Yasir as making the difference for Pakistan, but hoped his team was prepared to face what the Indians had in store.

“Ours is a young side and learning all the time,” he said. “It’s unfair to measure these youngsters

Vijay to miss Galle Test with hamstring injury

NOT TO PLAY: File photo of India opener Murali Vijay, who will sit out of first Test.

COLOMBO: India opener Murali Vijay will miss the first Test against Sri Lanka with a hamstring injury, team director Ravi Shastri said on Monday.

The 31-year-old sustained the niggle in Zimbabwe during India’s recent limited over series there and did not bat in either innings of India’s only warm-up match ahead of the Galle Test starting on Wednesday.

“Murali Vijay will not be fit for the first Test. He has not fully recovered and we don’t want to take a chance, especially with weather like this, slippery outfield and things like that,” Shastri told reporters.

In his absence, Shikhar Dhawan is set to open the innings with the 23-year-old Lokesh Rahul who has played only two tests. “It’s a big blow,” Shastri said of the injury to Vijay, who averages 41.75 after 32 Tests and is one of India’s most consistent batsmen in recent times. “He is the in-form player, had a fabulous run in Test cricket. He has the ability to play the long innings as he has shown. He will be missed.”

Shastri was coy about the chances of Cheteshwar Puajra, once considered an automatic selection at number three before a slump in form set in.

“We will have to play the best five batsmen, if he fits into that five, he plays, if he doesn’t, he doesn’t play,” the former India Test player said.

Team Director Ravi Shastri says the learning curve for the Indian side is over and it’s time that the players start winning Test matches abroad by finding ways to get 20 wickets.

Vijay is the in-form player, had a fabulous run in Test cricket. He has the ability to play the long innings as he has shown Ravi Shastri Team Director India are aiming to win a first series on Lankan soil in more than two decades when the first Test gets underway here Wednesday.

“You don’t come to a cricket ground to draw a cricket match so you play a brand of cricket where you look to take the game forward and you look to take 20 wickets, that is paramount.

You have got to think how you can take 20 wickets to take the game forward and win the game,” Shastri said.

“It is extremely important to start winnings games.

They have had the learning curve in South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia.

They have played a lot of cricket overseas and that experience factor will certainly come into play when they get back to conditions they are familiar with.” Shastri also backed skipper Virat Kohli’s strategy to field five bowlers. - PTI, Reuters

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

SPORTS

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Clarke rubbishes disunity claims ent cars. What a load of shit. Wives and girlfriends being on tour is a distraction? What a load of shit.

That’s absolute garbage,” he added.

“I’ll give back 10 of my Test 100s if it wasn’t for my beautiful wife.”

Australian skipper’s departure has been met by rumblings of off-field unrest in the Australian media, with the ‘Sydney Daily Telegraph’ claiming there was a long-running feud between the wives of two senior players which caused distractions

HEATED DISCUSSION ON THIRD DAY OF TRENT BRIDGE TEST: Australian captain Michael Clarke, right, talks with head coach Darren Lehmann before play on the third day of the fourth Ashes Test. – AFP

SYDNEY: Australia captain Michael Clarke angrily denied Monday claims that the disastrous England tour has been plagued by off-field dramas, saying it was “absolute garbage”.

Clarke, 34, announced he was retiring after England completed

a crushing innings and 78-run victory in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge on Saturday to take an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the five-match Ashes series.

He will play the final Test at The Oval on August 20 before the curtain comes down on a distinguished career. But his departure

has been met by rumblings of off-field unrest in the Australian media, with the Sydney Daily Telegraph claiming there was a longrunning feud between the wives of two senior players which caused distractions.

It also claimed Clarke refused to travel on the team bus or socialise

with teammates, while the sacking of popular vice-captain Brad Haddin after time off for family reasons did not go down well.

“There is no disharmony is this group whatsoever. The players are as tight as any team I’ve been a part of,” Clarke told Sydney radio station Triple M. “Travelling in differ-

‘Stunned’ The newspaper had claimed it was “the year-long disintegration in the off-field relationship between Clarke and the rest of the team” that hindered any chance of Ashes success. “He often chooses to travel by private car instead of the team bus and rarely attends team get-togethers,” it said.

“On the night that he made his decision to step down, team members were stunned when he joined them for a rare drink in the hotel bar, although he ended the night drowning his sorrows with former teammate Shane Warne rather than any of the current side.”

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has vowed a full review of the tour, and Clarke said the players had to accept blame. “At the end of the day the players are the ones who walk onto the field, we have to perform and we haven’t performed well enough,” he said.

In a column for the Sydney Daily Telegraph on Monday, Clarke revealed it was a tough decision to walk away from Test cricket.

“My entire life has been about

CRICKET

‘Emotional’ “Definitely telling my grandfather was perhaps the hardest part and he was very emotional. Pop’s made it clear to me over the past 10 years that watching me play cricket is a big part of what keeps him going.

“I tried not to let emotion overcome me — I’ve done too much crying over the years.”

Clarke, one of the best batsmen of his generation but plagued by injuries, knew the time was right to go, having reached 25 just six times in his last 30 Test innings.

He added that he was proud that “right up to the last day of my career I can look myself in the mirror and say that I have left nothing in the tank in terms of my work ethic and trying my best”.

Meanwhile, cricketers Ben Cutting and former Test star Ryan Harris took to Twitter to slam Monday’s edition of the Brisbane Courier Mail over a damning “From loner to loser” front page headline on Clarke.

“Today’s front page of the @couriermail is the most distastefully poor timed page in a long time,” said Queensland all-rounder Cutting.

Harris agreed: “Well said Cuttsy, couldn’t have put it better myself! #norespect”. - AFP CRICKET

Australia A edge India A to reach tri-series final CHENNAI: Australia A batsmen once again showed their prowess in tackling the Indian spin attack on a difficult track as they comfortably beat the hosts by three wickets to enter the final of the tri-series cricket tournament, here on Monday.

Australia A have so far won their all three matches and they will now play one among India A or South Africa A in the final slated on August 14. Chasing a 259 for a win on a slow track that was offering some turn, Australia were

cricket. I’ve thought about the great game every day for as long as I can remember,” he said.

reduced 178 for six at one stage before experienced Callum Ferguson (45 no) and young Adam Zampa (54 off 49 balls) added 80 runs for the seventh wicket in 13.3 overs to take their team to the final.

Karn Sharma gave a much improved account of himself on the day as he kept India in the game till the 35th over with impressive figures of 3-45. However it was the Ferguson-Zampa partnership that sealed the match, which seemed like slipping out of Australia A’s

grip at one stage. Zampa hit seven fours and a big six off Axar Patel over long-on. While the baby-faced leg-spinner attacked the bowling, the senior pro Ferguson decided to drop anchor as he rotated the strike well during his 63-ball-45.

India A’s seam trio of Dhawal Kulkarni (0-39 off 5 overs), Sandeep Sharma (1-43 off 7 overs) and Rishi Dhawan (1-38 in 7.3 overs) did not pose any threat to the batsmen on a docile track. Their change of pace was predictable as the opposition

batsmen read them with ease.

It was Karn, who asked a few probing questions with his legbreaks and flippers. It was in a space of two overs that Karn removed Matthew Wade with a flighted delivery that had the batsman bowled through the gate.

Karun Nair then bowled a sharp off-break to get rid of Ashton Agar, who was smartly stumped by Sanju Samson. But it was Zampa and Ferguson, who had other ideas as they steered the team home.

Earlier, India A reached 258 for nine in 50 overs primarily due to in-form Mayank Agarwal’s run-aball 61 that had seven fours and a six and Manish Pandey’s gritty 50.

Pandey in fact should be lauded for his effort as he survived a gash on his cheek, which required a couple of stitches after he collided with opposition glovesman Wade while taking a run.

Pandey was retired hurt for the time and came back after the fall of the fifth wicket. - PTI

ASHES REACTION

England’s 2005 side better than 2015 version: Pietersen LONDON: England’s 2005 Ashes-winning side were better than the team that sealed a series victory over Australia with a game to spare in Nottingham on Saturday, according to Kevin Pietersen.

“This team has been brilliant but our 2005 side was better,” England’s fifth highest run-scorer in tests said on Monday.

“I think our batting lineup was stronger than this side and with the likes of (Simon) Jones, (Steve) Harmison and (Andrew) Flintoff we definitely had a much stronger bowling attack.”

England regained the Ashes when they beat Australia by an innings and 78 runs on day three of

the fourth test to take an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series. They skittled the opposition for 60 in the first innings with Stuart Broad taking eight for 15.

Pietersen, however, said the series victory in 2005 was more special because it was against one of the great Australian sides.

“There were stronger characters in both sides in the 2005 series,” said Pietersen who was sacked after the 5-0 series defeat in Australia in 2013-14 and agitated for a recall after England were crushed in the second test at Lord’s last month.

“Australia had the likes of (Shane) Warne, (Adam) Gil-

christ, (Justin) Langer, (Matthew) Hayden and (Ricky) Ponting while we had Harmison, (Michael) Vaughan, Flintoff and me whacking it round with a stupid hairstyle so I think there was definitely a lot more for the crowds in 2005.”

Pietersen felt this year’s matches were too one-sided with England winning comfortably in Cardiff, Birmingham and Nottingham and Australia thumping the hosts at Lord’s. “The matches in this series haven’t been as close, they’ve been over in two or three days and while that is great for the team who’s winning, it isn’t for everyone else,” he added. - Reuters

WORLD CUP QUALIFIER

Tickets on sale for Oman’s match against Turkmenistan MUSCAT: With Oman gearing up to take on Turkmenistan in a World Cup qualifier at home on September 3, the Oman Football Association (OFA) on Monday announced that tickets are now on sale for the match to be played at the Seeb Sports Stadium.

Oman, who began their qualifying campaign with a 2-1 away victory in India, are also scheduled to play home games against Iran on October 8 at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher and against India on October 13 at Seeb Sports Stadium.

In a press statement issued on Monday, the OFA said: “There is sure to be big interest in these games, and the OFA have planned to play three of the games at Seeb Sports Stadium to produce a more intimidating atmosphere for the opponents.

“Hence fans are urged to take advantage of the available options to buy their tickets.”

Tickets are now on sale at

Oman Oil and Khimji outlets across Muscat, while fans can also buy tickets online at roumaan.com – where orders of 10 or more tickets will receive free delivery.

“Tickers are priced at just OMR. 2 for general entry and OMR. 5 for Premium tickets – which include food and drink on arrival at the stadium,” the OFA statement said.

The OFA also said it will soon announce a raft of promotions.

Meanwhile, OFA’s Head of Media Khamis Balushi urged fans to start planning their trip to Seeb Sports Stadium on September 3.

“We realise that this is the day before the weekend and that the kick off is later in the day, but our fixture dates are set by FIFA. Our plans have revolved around that, therefore giving the team the best chance of a good result – what better way to start your weekend than cheering on your team to a great victory.”

England selector Fraser reveals Ashes ‘anger’ LONDON: England selector Angus Fraser said he still felt a “bit of anger” following the team’s Ashes series win over Australia because of the stinging criticism that had previously come the way of management and senior players.

Last season saw England captain Alastair Cook face repeated calls to resign, while national selector James Whitaker had his position called into question as well. Meanwhile this year saw Andrew Strauss, England’s incoming director of cricket, face widespread flak both for his refusal to end the international exile of star batsman Kevin Pietersen and for saying the decision was a matter of “trust”.

But last Saturday an England side captained by Cook and, in part, selected by Whitaker, beat Australia by an innings and 78 runs at Trent Bridge in the fourth Test to take an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the five-match Ashes series.

“What has been said or written about Cook, Strauss and Whitaker has been harsh and personal,” former England seamer Fraser told BBC Radio on Monday. “There’s a bit of anger. But there is also huge satisfaction. I’m delighted for Cook and Strauss, who took a lot of stick for the decisions he made.”

Last weekend’s victory capped a turbulent 18-month period in English cricket history. After England were whitewashed 5-0 in Australia, Pietersen’s international career was controversially brought to an end, with Cook retaining his position as Test captain.

However, Cook was axed entirely from the one-day squad on the eve of the World Cup, although the decision did not spare England from an embarrassing first-round exit.

England managing director Paul Downton, a former teammate of Fraser’s at Middlesex, and coach Peter Moores were both sacked, with ex-England captain Strauss’s appointment leading to renewed speculation about Whitaker’s role.

“Jimmy is the one at the front so he gets named-checked all the time,” said Middlesex director of cricket Fraser, who sits on a selection panel with Whitaker, England coach Trevor Bayliss and Nottinghamshire coach Mick Newell.

“Quite rightly you are under inspection, because you are there to do a job properly.

But when people are making judgements on your character, knowledge and whether you are in touch with the game, you sit there and seethe.” — AFP

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

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SPORTS CRICKET

Modi reveals plans for breakaway governing body SYDNEY: Former cricket boss Lalit Modi admitted on Monday his involvement in a plot to overthrow the sport’s establishment, aiming to create a new world governing body affiliated with the Olympic movement.

The former Indian Premier League chairman, who is wanted by police over allegations of money laundering linked to a lucrative television deal, said a detailed plan had been years in the making.

“We’re talking about another cricketing system. There is a blueprint out there, it’s got my rubber stamp on it,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in an interview.

“I have been involved in it. I say it for the first time, I’ve been involved in putting that (blue) print together.”

In the past, while acknowledging involvement in discussions to set up a new governing body, Modi had insisted he had walked away from the project.

“The plan that I have put together is a very detailed plan, it’s not a plan that’s come off the cuff, it’s been taking years and years and years in the making,” he said.

Modi, who lives in London after fleeing India in 2010 when tax and financial crime authorities raided his premises, has long been critical of the International Cricket Council’s governance structure and financial model.

He has voiced concern at the control exercised by India, England and Australia over the way world cricket is run and said he believed he could spearhead an alternative.

“We could take on the existing establishment, no problem,” he said. “It requires a few billion dollars, I don’t think it would be a problem to get that... into action.”

Modi was fired from his job as IPL commissioner in 2010. In 2013 he was banned for life from playing any role in cricket admin-

Oman ready to visit Karachi: PCB chief ‘We are yet to decide’

Shahryar talked about how some

Hong Kong and Oman are ready to visit Karachi. In the next few weeks, we will finalise the plan of all the countries who will tour Pakistan

associate teams are ready to visit Pakistan and the reluctance of PCB to INVOLVED: Lalit Modi

istration by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Last week a warrant for his arrest was issued by a court in Mumbai at the request of India’s economic intelligence agency, the Enforcement Directorate, which is investigating allegations of money laundering.

Modi has not been charged and denies all the allegations.

His blueprint foresees a new cricketing world body affiliated with the Olympic movement and a rival calendar of events to the ICC’s, based on Test matches and T20s with 50-over one-day internationals dumped.

“The plan conceives only of Test cricket and T20; it doesn’t take into account one-day at all,” he told the broadcaster. “I think that is completely redundant in today’s day and age. I think it should just be T20 and Test matches that should be played.”

He added that an affiliation with the Olympic movement, amid growing calls for T20 to be played at the world’s biggest sporting event, was part of the plan.

“I have been proposing that.

The ICC will never agree to that; never means never,” he said.

“That means they would have to do away with the ICC. It is a plan that one day, if I ever implement it, will rewrite history in sport.” - AFP

not pressurise fullmember nations to come to the country to play a series

Shahryar Khan PCB chairman

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman, Shahryar Khan, is hopeful that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will honour the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Pakistan to play a series.

Shahryar, while talking to the reporters on Monday, said that BCCI is ready to play a series with Pakistan but they are still waiting for their government’s approval.

“BCCI is standing firm that they will respect the MoU signed with Pakistan, but they need permission from the recently elected government,” said Shahryar.

“Another issue is the dispute between Ten Sports and BCCI. The Indian board is reluctant to visit if Ten Sports is given broadcasting rights.

“We can’t do anything about this issue because we placed an open tender and Ten Sports won the broadcasting rights. If this is solved then the only remaining problem will be the political environment between the countries. We are still maintaining our stance that sports and politics should be kept apart.

“We hope India honours the

agreement. If they don’t, it would not be good. Moreover, we can’t interfere in government affairs but we want to see a green light from the Indian government soon.”

Shahryar also talked about how some associate teams are ready to visit Pakistan and the reluctance of PCB to not pressurise full-member nations to come to the country to play a series.

“Hong Kong and Oman are ready to visit Karachi. In the next few weeks, we will finalise the plan of all the countries who will tour Pakistan. They will play three to four matches on their way to Mumbai for the World Twenty20. We have the same conditions as India, so it will help them practice for the tournament.

“We won’t pressure full-member teams to visit Pakistan after a successful Zimbabwe tour. There are indications that they (Sri Lanka and Bangladesh) are considering a visit to Pakistan.

“Our security conditions are

ISC FELICITATES HISTORY-MAKING OMAN CRICKET TEAM Oman cricket team which created history by qualifying for the T20 World Cup 2016 to be played in India was felicitated by the Indian Social Club (ISC) Muscat. Speaking at a well attended function, ISC Chairman Dr. Sathish Nambiar lauded the brilliant performances of the team and congratulated the officials of Oman Cricket. Team Manager Jameel Zaidi shared his thought and experiences of the journey of the team during the qualifying matches until the glorious moment. He recounted the brilliant individual efforts put in by each member of the team. Kanak Khimji, Kiran Asher, Sudhir Keshavji, Pankaj Khimji, Madhu Jesrani, Dad Mohammed Al Balushi and other Oman Cricket officials as well as ISC office bearers attended the felicitation ceremony. — Supplied photo

better now. We hosted Kenya, Afghanistan and the Australian army team so now the decision rests in the teams’ hand. Ireland and Scotland, meanwhile, are ready to come to Pakistan.”

Shahryar also explained how he raised the issue of a non-effective ‘Pakistan task force’ made by International Cricket Council (ICC) and how the chairman of the committee, Giles Clark, responded to the query.

“We asked ICC about the Pakistan task force,” explained Shahryar. “Its main work was to revive cricket in Pakistan. We said we are doing all the things ourselves, inviting teams and providing them secure environment to play.

“We questioned the effectiveness of the task force. Committee chairman Giles Clark then proposed that he will bring an international team to Pakistan. He said the team will play at three venues including Karachi, Lahore and any other place where the PCB wants.” - Express Tribune

OC General Secretary Madhu Jesrani

MUSCAT: Reacting to PCB chief Shahryar Khan’s comments that Oman cricket team are ready to play in Karachi, Oman Cricket (OC) General Secretary Madhu Jesrani said nothing has been finalised yet.

“At the moment we are not in a position to confirm,” he said but did mention that there was a meeting between the officials of the two boards.

“There have been many proposals from different cricket boards and the PCB too made an offer during a meeting between Shahryar Khan and Pankaj Khimji (OC board member) in London,” Madhu informed Times Sport. “The PCB chief had offered to provide facilities for Oman to train in Pakistan ahead of the next year’s ICC World T20 Championship.”

“We will make a call after the next board meeting,” he clarified.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

SPORTS REFORMS CRUCIAL

Football fans across the globe want Blatter out: Prince Ali PARIS: Football fans around the globe want FIFA leader Sepp Blatter to quit now and let an independent commission reform world football’s scandal-tainted governing body, Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, who could run for president, said.

The Jordanian prince, a former FIFA vice-president, remains a fierce opponent of UEFA boss Michel Platini’s FIFA candidacy.

But he is still sounding out football leaders before deciding whether to launch a new bid.

Blatter has said he will stand down when an election is held on February 26, but Prince Ali said the FIFA leader’s proposed reform task force, mainly named by regional confederations, is doomed.

“It has to be done with a new president. I don’t think that they can do it in such a short period of time,” said the 39-year-old prince.

“I also believe that you have to have a real independent task force come in and help the situation and help implement it.”

Prince Ali said quick reforms are crucial but was adamant that Blatter, engulfed in the storm over bribery charges in the United States against seven FIFA officials and seven sports business executives, must leave now.

“I don’t think that anyone who has been involved in the past should remain. They cannot be a

It (reform task force) has to be done with a new president. I also believe that you have to have a real independent task force come in and help the situation and help implement it Prince Ali bin Al Hussein Former FIFA vice-president

part of that process,” the prince said by telephone from Amman.

Following the allegations that more than $150 million was given in bribes “people have to take responsibility and they have to step aside”.

“You need to have new blood,

HASSAN BAGS GOLD FOR OMAN Hassan Al Kharusi clinched a gold medal for hosts Oman when he won the individual event in the youth category at the ongoing GCC Bowling Championships for Youth and Juniors at the Oman Bowling Centre in Al Khuwair.

The championships, being organised by the Oman Bowling Committee, runs till August 15. — MOSA

new ideas. That’s a given and that’s clearly a demand of the entire world, from football fans across the globe.” FIFA has said an independent personality will head the proposed 10-person task force. Francois Carrard, a former

International Olympic Committee (IOC) Director General, has been approached but he has not yet given an answer. Critics say the task force will lack credibility as the other members will all be named by FIFA’s six member confederations.

Nothing personal French football legend Platini is considered favourite to win the FIFA election, but the prince said he was the wrong person to change world football.

“The practice of backroom, under-the-table deals must end,” the prince said in a strongly worded statement when Platini announced his campaign.

“I have total respect for him as a player and also as UEFA president,” the prince said.

“I worked with him, we had our agreements, disagreements. It is nothing personal at all, but I don’t believe that he is the right person to do the reforms for FIFA right now. You have to have fresh people in there and he has been part of that system.”

The prince said he had listened to Platini’s proposals but did not consider it strong enough to change FIFA. The prince and Platini have both called for the publication of Michael Garcia’s report into bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, awarded to Russia and Qatar.

He said the secrecy surrounding the report was “emblematic of the problems within the organisation”.

The malaise has spread to key sponsors such as Coca-Cola, Visa and McDonalds who were to hold a summit with FIFA in August.

“I have talked to sponsors and

heard from them, just as everybody else who cares for the game, I think everybody is concerned about the situation” the prince said.

Hell of a lot of money Prince Ali stood against Blatter in an election this year. He said his role in the looming election is not yet decided even if FIFA observers say he wants to enter.

“Honestly right now I am just talking with colleagues, listening to them, hearing their opinions and seeing where they want things to go. It is never about who is president it is about getting the right people in who can do the job.”

He stood against Blatter on a platform of reform and giving more resources to national federations.

“You can’t have an organisation which governs the most popular sport in the world that has the reputation that it has right now. That clearly has to change and then from there we have to do a lot more in terms of listening to national associations,” he said.

The prince said FIFA should be spending up to 80 percent of the five billion dollars-plus it earns every four years on stadiums and equipment for the 209 member federations.

“That’s where FIFA can serve.

I think they can give a hell of a lot more back — excuse my language.” - AFP

Chou sent packing, Momota moves up Momota, the Japanese wunderkind, never looked in trouble as he eased past Germany’s Dieter Domke 21-17, 21-8

JAKARTA: Fourth seed Kento Momota sailed into the second round of the World Badminton Championships on Monday, declaring he only has one goal in mind at badminton’s most prestigious tournament — the winners crown.

The Japanese wunderkind never looked in trouble as he eased past Germany’s Dieter Domke 21-17, 21-8 in Jakarta, the very same arena where the 20-year-old emerged victorious from the Indonesian Open just two months ago.

Momota said winning that title had given him great mental confidence and he was not feeling any pressure chasing his first world crown, despite carrying Japan’s hopes on his shoulders after Kenichi Tago withdrew due to injury.

When asked what he expects to achieve in Jakarta, the confident young shuttler didn’t hide his ambitions.

“To be champion,” he told reporters via a translator.

But he’ll face a slew of formidable players all with their eyes on the top prize, with world No. 1 Chen Long, five-time world champion Lin Dan and Malaysian superstar Lee Chong Wei posing the biggest hurdles.

Taiwan’s Chou Tien Chen is no longer in contention, becoming the first seeded casualty of the championships when he crashed out in the opening round.

EASY OUTING: Japan’s Kento Momota hits a return to Germany’s Dieter Domke during their men’s singles match at the BWF World Badminton Championships in Jakarta on Monday. – AFP

The sixth-seed didn’t last 40 minutes against Malaysia’s Zulfadli Zulkiffli, who demolished him 21-5, 22-20.

Chou’s shock exit comes just weeks after he staged a major upset of his own at the Taiwan Open, where he dismissed world No. 2 Jan O. Jorgensen before prevailing over five-time world champion Lin Dan in a marathon contest.

None of that impressive form was on display in Jakarta as Zulkiffli — a former world junior champion 30 rankings behind his Taiwanese opponent — ended his title dreams.

Zulkiffli, 22, had not been expected to survive his opening match and approached his formidable opponent with low expectations.

“I just played as an underdog.

The pressure was on him,” he told reporters after his stunning upset.

‘I rushed to attack’ Home favourite Tommy Sugiarto earlier cruised into the second round of the world championships with a two-set win over European Games victor Pablo Abian as the tournament got under way in Jakarta.

Sugiarto, Indonesia’s top medal hopeful, defeated the Spaniard 21-16, 21-13 and will now face unseeded Hong Kong shuttler Wei Nan. The 15th seed looked a little unsteady in the first set, with Abian taking an early lead and threatening to upstage the Indonesian champion before a rowdy home crowd.

But Sugiarto recovered with a string of quick points to claim the first set, before overpowering the visitor in routine fashion in the second.

“I rushed to attack early on,

and did not relax,” he told a postmatch press conference.

“I tried to get the confidence back to reverse the situation.”

Hong Kong’s Wei Nan had to fight hard to secure his secondround showdown against Sugiarto, only just prevailing over American Howard Shu in a threeset cliffhanger that ended 21-19, 24-26, 21-18.

Earlier, 10th-seeded Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap made light work of Holland’s Erik Meijs, while fellow countryman and 11th seed H.S. Prannoy trounced Brazil’s Alex Yuwan Tjong.

Seventh-seed Viktor Axelsen wasted no time with Petr Koukal, thrashing him 21-14, 21-11.

Bigger names, including China’s Lin Dan and Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, are due to play their opening matches on Tuesday. - AFP

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Lesser lights sparkle on opening weekend of EPL Ayew, signed by Swansea City from Olympique de Marseille, capped a lively debut with a dazzling piece of footwork to score his side’s first equaliser in a 2-2 draw at champions Chelsea on Saturday. Ayew was not alone either

DAZZLING FOOTWORK: Swansea City’s Ghanaian striker Andre Ayew scores an equaliser during their English Premier League match against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in London on Saturday. – AFP

“Rudy is going to be a nightmare for a lot of defenders,” said Villa boss Tim Sherwood of the 26-year-old Benin striker who was bought for a fifth of the fee received for Benteke.

Benteke barely got a look-in during Liverpool’s 1-0 win at Stoke City the following day.

Newcastle United’s fans may have found a new goal-scoring hero in Georginho Wijnaldum as the £14.5 million acquisition from PSV Eindhoven marked his debut with a goal in a 2-2 home draw with Southampton.

Wijnaldum, 24, was a Dutch title winner last season alongside Memphis Depay whose debut in

Manchester United’s 1-0 triumph at home to Tottenham Hotspur lasted 68 frustrating minutes before he was substituted.

Newcastle’s other signings also made instant impacts.

Chancel Mbemba impressed, on and off the field, after arriving at St James’ Park wearing a bow tie and tuxedo, while Serbia’s Aleksandar Mitrovic was booked five seconds after coming on as a substitute.

Eye-watering TV deal Further proof of the incredible spending power now wielded by the sides outside the league’s top four or five came in the form of

French midfielder Yohan Cabaye.

The former Newcastle player, bought by modest Crystal Palace from Paris St Germain for £12.5 million, scored in the London club’s 3-1 triumph at promoted Norwich City.

It is dangerous to base assumptions on the opening day of the season but there is a growing sense that, with an eye-watering new TV deal in place for next season, mere membership of the league means all clubs can now attract the kind of players that were once out of reach.

On the evidence of the weekend’s skirmishes, the usual title

FOOTBALL

Mourinho satisfied with Costa’s fitness, says ‘we don’t miss Cech’ LONDON: Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said he is satisfied with striker Diego Costa’s fitness after the Spain international recovered from a hamstring injury to play the full 90 minutes in Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Swansea City.

The injury had ruled Costa out of Chelsea’s Community Shield defeat to Arsenal and their last preseason game against Fiorentina.

“He did very well and in the second half it was very difficult because there was a big distance (between him and his teammates), we had one player less and it was a great effort,” Mourinho said.

“Even so, I was not expecting him to resist for 90 minutes but because we wanted to try to collect a goal we went with him until the end and it was very important for us that he played for 90 minutes with such a physical performance.

“He’s very happy with the reaction of his body after such a difficult game,” the Portuguese added.

The 52-year-old Mourinho said Chelsea do not miss goalkeeper Petr Cech and he was sure his side would cope well without the suspended Thibaut Courtois when they visit Manchester City on Sunday.

Mourinho was not keen on allowing the 33-year-old Cech to join London rivals Arsenal after 11 successful years with the champions, but the manager insists he is

UNITED NEW SIGNING

Depay keen to prove worthy of No. 7 shirt LONDON: New Manchester United signing Memphis Depay is confident he can handle the pressure of wearing the iconic number seven jersey after making an impressive competitive debut against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

The No. 7 jersey was previously worn by several United greats like George Best, Eric Cantona, Cristiano Ronaldo and David Beckham and was last worn by the British record signing Angel Di Maria, who left for Paris Saint-Germain recently.

Depay, who asked for the number, feels he is ready to take on that pressure and is convinced he will have a successful first year at the club.

“Yes, of course (I’m aware of the pressure) and the history,” the Dutch international was quoted as saying by the British media.

“I appreciate the history, but I want to be my own man. It’s an honour to wear the number seven and I will wear it with pride.

“Last year I played with seven on my back (for PSV) and I scored a lot of goals so I am confident with that number.”

Ghanaian Andre

LONDON: Despite a splurge of summer spending of more than £500 million ($1.55 million) and counting, it was a free transfer from France who provided one of the standout moments of the Premier League’s big kickoff.

Ghanaian Andre Ayew, signed by Swansea City from Olympique de Marseille, capped a lively debut with a dazzling piece of footwork to score his side’s first equaliser in a 2-2 draw at champions Chelsea on Saturday.

Ayew was not alone either.

While some of the close-season’s marquee signings endured lowkey, and in Petr Cech’s case horrible, starts it was the new names brought in by the league’s middleranking clubs who stood out.

Aston Villa’s Rudy Gestede filled the void left by Christian Benteke’s 32 million pounds sale to Liverpool, heading the only goal in a 1-0 victory at Bournemouth.

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The problem with Petr is not that we miss him because we have two excellent keepers. The problem with Petr is that an opponent is better than before Jose Mourinho happy with the goalkeeping options at his disposal.

“We don’t miss Petr,” Mourinho was quoted as saying by the British media. “We’ve got a good keeper, the problem with Petr is not that we miss him because we have two excellent keepers. The problem with Petr is that an opponent is better than before.”

Cech opted to move to Arsenal after finding himself playing second fiddle to Belgian international Courtois, who Chelsea recalled from loan at Atletico Madrid last season. Chelsea bought Stoke City keeper Asmir Begovic as a backup to Courtois following Cech’s transfer. “Thibaut and Asmir are two fantastic keepers. My club

did very well by getting a keeper on time and not on the August 31,” Mourinho added.

Courtois is banned for the match at the Etihad Stadium after he was sent off against Swansea for a foul on striker Bafetimbi Gomis, which earned their opponents a penalty and allowed them to draw the game 2-2. - Reuters

suspects might suffer some rude awakenings this season.

Chelsea did not sign a ‘galactico’ type of player in the summer while Arsenal’s only addition to a squad that finished third last time is former Stamford Bridge keeper Cech who was at fault for both of West Ham United’s goal in a shock 2-0 home defeat.

Manchester United did spend freely with Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger the most illustrious new attraction for the league, yet the former Bayern Munich powerhouse arrives with many suspecting he is a fading force. - Reuters

Discipline in midfield Depay scored 22 goals last season for PSV though he failed to find the net against Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Saturday.

“I’m aware of that and I want to be as good as possible this year,” the 21-year-old said. “I want to bring creative things, goals. I have to play with discipline in midfield.

“I can’t lose the ball too much, but I can make risks on the sides and when I come into the third phase, then I can make my tricks and take risks.”

Manchester United travel to Aston Villa for their next Premier League game on Friday night. - Reuters

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Mertesacker backs Arsenal to recover quickly from loss Gunners deny Giroud suffered concussion

The Germany international bemoaned his side’s lack of decisiveness

FOOTBALL

I STAY STRONG: Papiss Cisse

in front of goal as LONDON: Arsenal have confirmed striker Olivier Giroud did not suffer a concussion after clashing heads with James Tomkins during the club’s 2-0 defeat to West Ham United on Sunday.

The 28-year-old France international collided with Tomkins in the 76th minute at the Emirates and appeared to be dazed by the clash, but was left on the pitch after being assessed by his team’s medical staff.

The Gunners released a statement on Twitter on Sunday night dismissing reports that Giroud had lost consciousness after the clash.

“Update on Olivier Giroud: contrary to some reports, he was not unconscious at any point after collision today and has returned home as usual,” the statement read.

Arsenal were widely criticised in the local media for keeping Giroud on as they chased the game, which West Ham won 2-0 thanks to goals from Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro Zarate. - Reuters

Arsenal were well beaten by West Ham

LONDON: Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker rued his side’s “massive loss” to West Ham United on Sunday but was confident the Gunners will bounce back from the setback in their Premier League opener.

The Germany international bemoaned his side’s lack of decisiveness in front of goal as Arsenal were well beaten by a West Ham side that defended strongly and looked to hit their London rivals on the break.

“It’s a massive loss for us,” Mertesacker was quoted as saying on the club’s website (www.arsenal.com). Overall, we weren’t decisive enough, especially in the final third. It looked like the last ball was always the wrong decision.”

Arsenal failed to win four of their opening six games last season and the 30-year-old centreback believes Arsenal could not afford another upset in their next game, when they visit Crystal Palace on Sunday.

“Sometimes it’s good to come back from a massive loss. I think we are capable of coming back,” he said. “It’s very important. We want to have a better start than last season so we need to be very cautious of the situation.

“To start with a game like that is not good but to bounce back is even more important now.”

Hard work paid off, Zarate Meanwhile, West Ham striker Mauro Zarate, who scored a 25yard goal as his side shocked Arsenal 2-0 on Saturday, praised his team’s efforts, saying it had been their hard work which saw them over the line.

‘MASSIVE LOSS’: Arsenal’s Per Mertesacker, left, in action during their English Premier League match against West Ham United at Emirates Stadium on Sunday. – Reuters

The Hammers last won at the Emirates Stadium, the home of the Gunners, a little over eight years ago in April 2007.

And Argentine Zarate felt that his hard work had helped his team more than the goal he scored in the 57th minute.

“It was a really hard match but we took three points, so we are so

happy.” Zarate told the club website.

“I think my work was more important than my goal. We worked so hard, we ran and we kept the ball when we had to and we scored, and if you don’t score you don’t win the match. They played very well, but we worked so much.

“It was not easy. We played behind (Diafra)Sakho with Dimitri

(Payet) and we tried to keep the ball and to shoot when we had the chance. We worked with their players, running back with them, but it was not easy.” he added.

The 28-year-old also combined promisingly with new signing Payet. The pair outclassed a formidable Arsenal midfield boasting the likes of Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey.

Zarate praised Payet’s ability to take the pressure off his team saying “I think he did a fantastic match.

“He kept the ball and he dribbled many times, but it was good for the team to take a break.

“He is an important player and we have to help him and work all together. If we work, we can make results like this.” he added.

West Ham next host Leicester City on Saturday. - Reuters

Papiss Cisse focused only on Newcastle LONDON: Senegal striker Papiss Cisse said he has no problems in keeping focus on his job at Newcastle United despite being heavily linked with a move away from St James’ Park.

The future of the 30-yearold, who incurred a seven-game ban last season for spitting, has been unclear with Newcastle signing Aleksandar Mitrovic last month and also reportedly looking to bring in another striker in the summer.

“I have a contract at Newcastle United. I need to be professional every time I play. I don’t have a team to leave to,” Cisse was quoted as saying by the Chronicle Live. “I am a Newcastle player. I try to work hard in every game I get.”

Cisse, who scored in the 2-2 draw against Southampton on Sunday, said he wanted to move on from the troubles of last season which was plagued by two suspensions and injuries.

“I try to forget about last season because it was very, very hard for me,” said Cisse, who scored 11 goals last season.

“Sometimes I take something back. I stay strong. I always do my best. I enjoy this moment.

“I had injuries and I was in and out the team. I always keep my smile, though.

“I stay happy because I knew one day I’d come back ready.”

Newcastle travel to Liberty Stadium to face Swansea City in their next Premier League match on Saturday. - Reuters

FOOTBALL

Mark Hughes feels Stokes deserved a point against Liverpool in a game of few chances LONDON: Stoke City matched their fancied opponents Liverpool on Sunday and did not deserve to lose their Premier League opener, according to manager Mark Hughes.

In a game which saw few chances created, Stoke conceded in the 86th minute of the game from a brilliant 25-yard strike from Liverpool midfielder Philipe Coutinho.

“It was a game of very few chances to be perfectly honest, and I don’t think anybody inside the stadium will have walked away thinking Liverpool deserved to win it,” the Welshman told the club website (www.stokecityfc.com).

“In the end Coutinho has produced a moment of absolute brilliance and that has proven to be the difference between two very even sides I would suggest.

“It’s hard for the guys to accept the result today because we were very even, and I didn’t think they created anything of any real note today. I think that both teams had pretty much accepted that the

HARD TO ACCEPT: Stoke City manager Mark Hughes

game was going to end in a draw, and I think we would have all been satisfied with that.”

Hughes felt despite Liverpool spending over £70 million reportedly in the summer it did not translate in their performance on the pitch. “We matched them toeto-toe today; they have spent a lot

of money during the summer and I didn’t think that was evident at all given both sides’ performances,” the 51-year-old added.

Hughes was, however, encouraged by the performance of three of his new recruits but acknowledged it will take a few weeks until they fully find their feet at the club.

“I thought Ibrahim Afellay was superb for us, but he tired towards the end, Marco van Ginkel produced a good performance too and Glen Johnson just reminded everybody what he has been for a long, long time, a very accomplished full-back,” he said.

“It will take four or five games until the guys are right up to speed, but we always knew that would be the case. That said, I was very encouraged with what I saw today.”

Meanwhile, Inter Milan midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri, who has been heavily linked with the club, was spotted at the Britannia Stadium on Sunday.

“It’s fair to say we are hopeful we can do something. But until he’s at the training ground with a shirt on, you never know,” Hughes was quoted as saying to the Stoke Sentinel.

“By virtue of the fact he’s here, it shows that we are encouraged and hopeful, but these days it’s never easy and the more it goes on the more cautious you are.” - Reuters

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SECTION

LIFESTYLE

Dining WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

Stroganoff From Moscow To Mumbai Recipe by Pallavi Nigam

B

eef stroganoff is a classic Russian dish featuring strips of beef simmered in a creamy white mushroom sauce and served over thick egg noodles. But the dish has been on the move, gaining popularity and unique local twists in other countries around the world, from 18th century France, where it was included in the 1891 cookbook L’Art

Photography by Venecio Datan

Culinaire, to mid-century America where it became a popular dinner party dish for which some sautéed the beef in butter or used canned cream of mushroom soup in place of fresh. In Mumbai, Chef Pallavi developed her own version featuring grated ginger, cloves, and tomato purée in the creamy sauce for a flavourful, vibrant take on this old world classic. -Felicia Campbell

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

LIFESTYLE Photo credit: Wires

BRIEFS

A

fter a long week, what could be better than a creamy beef dish over steaming basmati rice? Tender strips of beef tossed with a slosh of cream along with an onion and tomato purée create a blast of flavours in my easy-to-make Mumbaistyle stroganoff, which I consider to be the ultimate comfort food.

Indian chefs can change world view of their cuisine: Gary Mehigan The diversity in India’s food palate has left globally popular MasterChef Australia judge Gary Mehigan fascinated, especially since his view of the country’s cuisine was limited.

The chef, who explored the tastes of India for a new TV show, says the country’s chefs can change the world view about ‘desi’ cuisine.

His passion for food is known by all and starting August 15, FOX Life’s Far Flung with Gary Mehigan will catch the traveller and adventurous side of the chef on his fascinating journey through the far flung markets of Asia - India, Vietnam, Laos, South Korea and Hong Kong.

“Things are changing of course, but there is an enormous opportunity for brilliant Indian chefs to change the world’s view of the cuisine,” he said.

INGREDIENTS • Lean beef, cut into strips • 3-4 black peppercorn • 2-3 cloves • 2 cardamom • 1 cinnamon stick • 1 onion, chopped • 1/2 tsp, grated ginger • 1/2 cup tomato purée • 1 cup fresh cream • 2tsp paprika powder • Salt • 2tbsp oil • red chillies, sliced for garnish • cooked basmati rice, for serving

PREPARATION • Clean and dry the beef strips.

• Heat a pan over high heat and add 1tbsp of oil; brown the beef strips, then reduce heat to low and sauté until cooked.

Season with salt and pepper, remove from heat and set aside • To the same pan, add black pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon, cook until fragrant.

• Add onion, sauté for 2 minutes. Add paprika powder, grated ginger, and tomato purée; sauté for two minutes more.

• Add cream and cooked beef strips; let it simmer for a few minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken.

• Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.

• Serve over steamed rice and garnish with sliced hot chillies, if you like.

Indian-origin chef’s restaurant nominated for ‘Bon Appetit Hot 10’ An Indian-origin chef’s restaurant in San Francisco has been nominated for a coveted spot for ‘Bon Appetit Hot 10’ competition that felicitates the best new restaurants in the US, the media reported.

Liholiho Yacht Club coowned by chef Ravi Kapur is one of the six San Francisco restaurants that have made it into the monthly US food and entertainment magazine Bon Appetit’s annual list of 50 nominees for “America’s Best New Restaurants”, CBS San Francisco reported.

The restaurant is famous for its mouth watering menu like tuna poke with nori crackers, beef ribs with kimchi-chilli sauce and the off-menu, house-made Spam, served over rice with furikake. Bon Appetit will announce the winners on August 18.

Cooking oil that can be used 80 times over Using palm oil and a natural herb extract, researchers have produced a cooking oil that can be used repeatedly for at least 80 times, thus reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The team from University of Putra, Malaysia, (UPM) found that “AFDHAL cooking oil” was scientifically defined using the main ingredients — palm oil and Rutaceae herb.

These are not only capable of reducing oil absorption in fried cooking up to 85 per cent but also minimise the risks of getting cardiovascular diseases.

“Extracts from Rutaceae herb serve as a natural antioxidant that prevents cooking oil from damage.

Besides, wastage can be avoided through the use of cooking oil for 80 times, without affecting one’s health,” said lead researcher Suhaila Mohamed in a university statement.

Pallavi Nigam

Pallavi Nigam completed her culinary education at ICIF in Italy and worked as a chef for Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. She is now based in Muscat where she writes recipes and takes cooking classes.

Contact her: pallavi_nigam@hotmail.com twitter @pallavizzao pallavizza.com

Messing With Meat

There are lots of things to think about when cooking meat and it’s important to avoid making these common mistakes. By Swati Dasgupta

1 Don’t thaw uncooked meat at room temperature as it becomes an ideal breeding ground for bacteria.

Instead, thaw by running under cold water or leaving in the fridge overnight.

3 Pre-heat your pan to prevent meat from sticking. Let the meat cook (without flipping) until it has a deep-coloured sear, or until the breading is deep golden brown, and it releases easily from the pan.

5 Always start by cooking meat over high heat to get a good sear, then turn down to medium or low heat.

If you start your meat over medium heat, it will never caramelize.

2 Don’t cook meat straight out from the refrigerator as it yields unevenly cooked dishes. Let your meat sit out at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes, then cook.

4 Don’t overcrowd your frying pan.

Meat releases moisture as it cooks, so overcrowding will prevent the meat from getting nice and brown.

Struggling with a kitchen calamity of your own? Want advice? Share your horror stories and your cooking tips with swati@timesofoman.com

PHOTOGRAPHY: VENECIO DATAN (STROGANOFF)

KITCHEN CALAMITIES

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

LIFESTYLE

Garlic Twist Mincer The Next Trend Garlic Twist Mincer is designed to make prep work fast and easy. A versatile handy tool with a cross-cutting design, it minces garlic with no waste. It can also be used for ginger, and herbs.

By Swati Dasgupta

Pomegranate Juice Squeezer The Cilio Pomegranate Juice Squeezer from Küchenprofi extracts juice from pomegranates and citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, limes and lemons using an effective leverage mechanism, long press handle, and ergonomic wide rubber grip. This convenient tool makes juicing simple and easy.

• Simply put your glass on the base of the squeezer.

• Cut your fruit in half and place one half on the raised cone. Press the handle down to squeeze your juice • Enjoy a delicious, healthy glass of pomegranate or citrus juice.

Tavola Muscat Shop No. 8, Al Noor Plaza Madinat Sultan Qaboos Muscat, Oman +968 24605630 facebook.com/TavolaOman

Spiral Slicer Spirelli With the spiral slicer you can create endless Julienne strips of carrot, radish, cucumber and all kinds of other firm vegetables or hard cheeses. The 2 x 3 mm or 3.5 x 5 mm spirals are perfect for making vegetable stir-fries or pasta dishes, and to create decorate toppings and garnishes. The combination of high-quality plastic and stainless steel means it can be cleaned simply in the dishwasher.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

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Inside Out - 3D (Animation, Comedy) (PG) 3:00, 5:20PM Cop Car - 2D (Thriller) (12+) 3:00, 9:45PM The Gift- 2D (Mystery, Thriller) (12+) 7:00, 11:45PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan - 2D (Drama, Action) (PG) 9:00PM

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CITY CINEMA Contact (10 am to 6PM) 24567664 | 68. www.citycinemaoman.net facebook.com/citycinemaoman

11:45AM, 4:00, 9:30, 11:55PM Gold Class: 11:30AM, 4:00, 8:45, 11:15PM Ant-Man 3D (Action) (PG12) Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll 11:45PM; Gold Class: 6:30PM Ant-Man 2D (Action, Sci-Fi ) (PG12) 2:45PM Drishyam 2D (Drama, Mystery) (PG12) Cast : Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran 6:30PM Minions (3D) (Animation, Comady) (PG) 10:00AM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2D) ( Action ) (PG) 8:45PM

MUSCAT GRAND MALL Inside Out 3D (Animation) (PG) 12:45PM, 5:00PM Gold Class: 2:00PM Inside Out 2D (Animation ) (PG) 10:45AM Cop Car 2D (Thriller) (12+) 2:15PM Eldonia Ma2looba 2D (Comedy) (12+) Cast: Bassem Samra, Ola Ghanem, Ahmed 7:00PM Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation 2D (Action, Adventure, Thriller ) (PG12)

AZAIBA Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation – 2D (PG12) (Action, Adventure, Thriller) Cast: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Jeremy 11:45 AM, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30, 11:55 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan - 2D (PG) (Drama, Action) 3:45, 8:30 PM Inside Out – 3D (PG) (Animation, Adventure) 2:00, 4:00 PM Inside Out – 2D (PG) (Animation, Comedy) 12:00 PM The Gift – 2D (12+) (Mystery, Thriller) Cast - Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, Joel

12:45, 5:00 pm Gold Class: 2:00 pm INSIDE OUT (Animation)(3D) PG Voice Overs: Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Lewis

2:00, 7:45 pm COP CAR (Thriller)(12+) Cast: Kevin Bacon, Shea Whigham, Camryn Manheim

6:45 pm

11:45am, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30, 11:55pm

Idhu Enna Maayam - 2D (TBC) Romantic, Cast : Vikram Prabhu, Keerthy Suresh, Kavya

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation 2D (Action) (PG12) Cast: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson

12:45, 6:45 PM Bangistan – 2D (Comedy) Cast: Jacqueline Fernandez, Riteish Deshmukh 2:45, 8:45 pm Idhu Enna Maayam (Tam) – 2D (Romantic) Cast: Vikram Prabhu, Keerthy Suresh, Kavya 6:00 PM Exists – 2D (15+) Horror Cast: Samuel Davis, Dora Madison, Roger 5:15, 11:45 PM Cop Car – 2D (12+) Thriller Cast: Kevin Bacon, Shea Whigham, Camryn 2:00, 6:45 PM Ant-Man – 2D (PG12) Action, Sci-Fi 11:45 AM Ant-Man – 3D (PG12) ActionSci-Fi 2:45, 11:30 PM Srimanthudu (Telugu) - 2D (TBC) Action Cast - Shruti K. Haasan, Mahesh Babu, 8:45, 11:15 PM

6.30 PM Drishyam (Thriller/Drama ) – PG12 9.30 PM SCREEN 2 Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Action/Drama ) – PG Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Harshaali Malthotra 3.45 PM Drishyam (Thriller/Drama ) – PG12 6:45 PM Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (Action, Adventure, ) – PG 12 Cast: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg 9.45 PM SCREEN 3 Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (Action, Adventure, Thriller) – PG 12 3.45 PM Baahubali: The Beginning (Act ) – 12+ Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty 6.45, 9.45 PM

4:15 PM Ant-Man- 3D (PG12) Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi 7:00, 11:30 PM Drishyam- 2D (Hindi) (PG12) Drama, Thriller 9:00 PM Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation - 2D (PG12) Action, Adventure, Thriller 2:00, 4:30, 6:00, 9:15, 11:45 PM Inside Out - 3D (PG) Animation, Adventure, 2:15, 4:00 PM Cop Car - 2D (12+) Thriller 2:35, 11:55 PM The Gift - 2D (12+) Mystery, Thriller 2:00, 9:30 PM Bangistan - 2D (TBC) Comedy 6:30 PM Idhu Enna Maayam - 2D (TBC) Romantic, Cast: Vikram Prabhu, Keerthy Suresh, Kavya 6:45 PM Srimanthudu - 2D (Telugu) (TBC) Action Cast : Shruti K. Haasan, Mahesh Babu 11:30 PM

RUWI SCREEN 1 Bangistan (Comedy) – TBC Cast: Riteish Deshmukh, Pulkit Samrat 3.30 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Action/Drama ) – PG

SOHAR Bajrangi Bhaijaan - 2D (PG) Drama, Action 8:30 PM Baahubali - 2D (Hindi) (12+) Action 4:00 PM Ant-Man- 2D (PG12) Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

BURAIMI Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - 2D 3:00, 4:45, 7:15, 9:20, 11:45PM (Action) (PG12) Ant Man - 3D (Horror, Thriller) (PG12) 5:00, 7:15, 11:30PM

Dept time

Destination

TO MUSCAT (RUWI) Arrival Operating time days

Dept time

Destination

Arrival Operating time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

TEMPERATURE

05:30 05:30 05:30

Maximum

Daily Daily Daily

Sur Quriyat Ruwi

06:45 08:30 10:00

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

06:30 06:30 08:00 13:00 13:00 16.00 16.00

07:00 07:00 13:30 13:00 13:00 13:00 17:00

Sohar Buraimi Buraimi Sohar Buraimi Sohar Buraimi

08:50 Daily 11:00 Daily 14:30 Daily via Ibri 15:45 Daily 17:40 Daily 18.35 Daily 20:20 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52) 17:30

Sinaw

Nizwa Yanqul

20:50

Daily

16:50 19:30

Daily Daily

Nizwa Al Araqi

38 31

Minimum

0

RELATIVE HUMIDITY

40-80%

07:00

Ruwi

10:25

Daily

08:40 11:00

Daily Daily

06:00 06:00

Nizwa Ruwi

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

10:20 12:30

Daily Daily

15:40 15:40

Nizwa Ruwi

17:55 20:20

Daily Daily

LISTINGS

ROYAL OMAN POLICE TO SUR (ROUTE 55) 07:30 14:30

Sur Sur

TO SUR (ROUTE 55) 12:00 18:45

Daily Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62) 06:30 06:30

Fahud Yibal

Salalah Marmul Salalah Salalah

20:00 20:30 23:30 07:40

Daily Daily

Marmul

Dubai

16:50

Daily

Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai

Daily Daily

12:30 12:30

Fahud Ruwi

13:15 17:30

Daily Daily

07:00 10:00 10:00 19:00

Ruwi Marmul Ruwi Ruwi

19:50 13:15 22:30 07:30

06:00

Marmul

16:30

Daily

08:30 11:30 15:30 18:30 17:35 20:55

Daily Daily Wed,Thur Wed,Thur Daily Daily

15:00

Salalah

Daily

07:00

Daily

10:50 13:40 16:15 19:10 18:45 21:35

Daily Daily Thur-Fri Thur-Fri Daily Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201) 07:30 07:30 13:00 13:00 15:30 15:30

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FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH/SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

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Fujairah Sharjah Dubai

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Emergencies and inquiries: 9999 General Directorate of Passport and Residence 24569603 Directorate General of Customs 24521109 Traffic violations inquiries 24510228 Public Relations Admin 24560099 EMBASSIES IN OMAN

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10:45 19:00

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SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102) 15:00

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TO SALALAH -MARMUL (ROUTE 100) Daily Daily Daily Daily

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Send us a colour photograph of the child (below 16 years) whose birthday you are celebrating, along with his/ her full name, date of birth, address, telephone number and parents’/your name to Times of Oman, With Love, PO Box 770, PC 112, Ruwi or through e-mail to extra@timesofoman.com

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Film information 24791641 / 24786776 Website: www.isurf.co.om Baahubali (Tamil) (Action) 3-45 & 6-45 Pm At Cinema -3; 10-00 Pm At Cinema Main Idhu Enna Maayam (Tamil) (Drama) 3-30, 6-30 & 9-30 Pm At Cinema -2 Srimanthudu (Telugu ) ( Act ) Cast: Mahesh Babu & Shruthi Hassan 3-30 & 6-30 Pm at Cinema Main; 9:45pm Cinema -3 Acha Din (Mal) (Drama/Act) 3-45 & 9-45 Pm At Cinema- 4 Drishyam (Hindi) (Drama) 6-45 Pm At Cinema -4 (NEXT CHANGE: Love 24 X 7 (Mal); Brothers (Hindi); Vasuvum Saravananum (Tamil) Programmes are subject to change

WEATHER

15:00 15:00 15:00

16:30 18:00 19:30

STAR CINEMA

WITH LOVE

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36) Quriyat Sur Jaalan

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation 2D (Action, Adventure, Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Jeremy 11.30am, 2.00, 4.30, 7.00, 9.30 & 11.55 pm CP No: 1894 (PG12) COP CAR (Thriller) Cast: Kevin Baccon, Shea Whigham, Camryn 11.30 am, 3.15 & 10.15 pm CP No: 1895 (12+) THE GIFT (Horror/Thriller) Cast: Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, Joel 1.15 & 6.30 pm CP No: 1896 (12+) EXISTS (Horror) Cast: Samuel Davis, Dora Madison Burgue 5.00 & 11.55 pm CP No: 1897 (15+) The Night Crew (Action/Thriller) Cast: Danny Trejo, Jason Mewes, Luke Goss 8.30 pm; CP No: 1886 (15+)

SALALAH Mission: Impossible- Rogue Nation (2D) 11:55AM, 2:00, 9:30, 11:30, 11:55PM (PG12) Ant-Man (2D)(PG12) (Action/ Sci-Fi ) 10:00AM Ant-Man (3D)(PG12) (Action/Sci-Fi ) 4:20/9:15PM Inside Out (3D)(PG) (Animation/Comedy) 12:10/4:50PM Inside Out (2D)(PG) (Animation/Comedy) 10:00AM Cop Car (2D)(12+) (Thriller) 10:15AM/ 8:40 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2D) (PG) (Drama/Action) 6:30/11:45PM Exists (2D) (15+) (Horror) 2:45/ 10:15PM Eldonia Ma2looba (2D)(12+)(Arabic) 4:15PM Bangistan (2D)(TBC) (Comedy) 6:45PM Drishyam (2D)(PG12)(Hindi) (Drama) 11:45AM Wrong No. (2D)(PG)(Urdu) (Romantic) Cast: Javed Sheikh, Danish Taimoor, Nadeem 2:15PM Idhu Enna Maayam (2D)(PG)(Tamil) (Romantic) Cast: Vikram Prabhu, Keerthi Suresh 6:00PM

LONG DISTANCE BUS TIMINGS (OMAN NATIONAL TRANSPORT COMPANY SAOC) *SUBJECT TO CHANGE

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

Film information 24540856 / Advance Booking 24540855 Website: www.albahjacinemaoman.com

SUR Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation (Action / Adventure / Thriller) (PG12) 4:30, 9:15, 11:45 PM Cop Car (Thriller) (12+) 9:45 PM ANT MAN (3D) (Action / Sci-Fi) (PG12) 7:00 PM Inside Out (3D) (Animation) (PG) 5:00 PM Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Hindi) (Action ) (PG) 11:30 PM Drishyam (Hindi) (Action) (PG12) 6:50 PM

SHATTI Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2D) (Action, Adventure) (PG12) Cast: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Jeremy Renner 1:45, 6:30, 9:00, 11:30 PM EXISTS (Horror)(15+) Cast: Samuel Davis, Dora Madison 5:00, 11:45 PM THE GIFT (Mystery, Thriller)(12+) Cast: Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, 3:00, 6:45 PM COP CAR (Thriller)(12+) Cast: Kevin Bacon, Shea Whigham, Camryn 2:00, 7:45 PM INSIDE OUT (Animation)(2D) PG Voice Overs: Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Lewis 1:00 PM INSIDE OUT (Animation)(3D)PG 2:00, 3:45, 5:45 PM Ant Man (3D)(Action, Adventure) (PG12) Cast: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll 9:30, 11:45 PM Ant Man (2D)(Action, Adventure) (PG12) 4:15 am BAJRANGI BHAIJAAN (Drama)(PG) Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, 8:45 PM

BAHJA CINEMA

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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

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

C11

LIFESTYLE IN THE NEWS

Mouth-watering dishes without water

CHEF’S RECIPE

Lamb Flautas FOR CELEBRITY CHEF Izzat Hussain, who started out life as a Unani practitioner, creating food that is easy to digest and beneficial to the health of countless patrons is de rigueur. Thus, his USP is preparing mouth-watering dishes without water! Yes, you read it right, without water.

“To maintain consistency in the taste of my food, I don’t use water as its taste varies from region to region,” the chef told.

So, what does he substitute water with? A variety of liquids but principally milk.

“There is a certain consistency I find in milk and that’s why it’s my preferred choice. It definitely enhances the overall taste. I use milk for my dishes, milk for kneading dough, cream for pickles and so on,” Izzat explained.

With an enviable lineage tracing back to Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the last nawab of Oudh, Hussain is known the world over for his Awadhi cuisine. “There is a strong need to keep the trust and taste of the people who come to savour authentic and healthy food,” he said at the Radisson Blu hotel.

Having practised Unani, Hussain said he gives a lot of importance to the health of his patrons. “I take great pride in creating food that is

SUMAC PICO DE GALLO INGREDIENTS • Red tomatoes, 2 each • Red onion, 1/2 each • A bunch of coriander leaves • Lime, 2 each • 1tbsp, Sumac • Green chilli, 1/2 each • Salt and pepper to taste PREPARATION • Dice red tomato and onion and place in a mixing bowl.

• Chop coriander and add to the bowl.

• Cut lime and squeeze juice into a bowl.

• Slice chillies into thin rings and add to the bowl.

• Add sumac powder.

• Mix the ingredients and season, set aside.

Yield: 2 servings FOR FLAUTAS INGREDIENTS • 5kg braised lamb • 6” corn tortillas, 6 each • 1 bunch of coriander leaves • 2 cloves of garlic • 1tbsp Omani spice • 1kg Halloumi cheese • Salt and pepper to taste

Photography: Shabin E (chef); Shutterstock

PREPARATION • Buy lamb from the local market.

• Shred the meat and set aside.

• In a large sauce pan heat 2tbsp of oil.

• Sweat garlic and Omani spice.

• Add the shredded meat and stir.• Season with garlic and remove from heat.

• Grate Halloumi and add to the mixture.

• Chop coriander and add to meat mixture.

• Shave iceberg lettuce and set aside.

• In small skillet pour corn oil 1/4” deep and heat to 350F. • Dip tortillas in oil and remove immediately.

• Spoon 2tbsp of lamb mix across the middle of the tortillas.

• Roll the tortillas and place the three side by side.

• Place a skewer through all the three tortillas to hold together and then set aside.

AVOCADO PURÉE • Avocados, 2 each • Lime, 2 each • Salt and pepper to taste PREPARATION • Cut the avocados and scoop out the flesh and blend.

• Cut lime and squeeze juice into the avocado.

• Blend until smooth and season.

LEBNEH CRÈME • .25l cream • .25l lebneh yoghurt • Lime, 2 each PREPARATION • In a mixing bowl whip cream until stiff.

• Fold in the yoghurt.

• Cut the lime and squeeze juice into the bowl and mix.

• Place crème into a squeeze bottle, set aside.

PRESENTATION • Fill a large sauce pan with 3 inches of oil, heat to 350F. • Slowly place 3 of the flautas in it.

• Fry for 1 minute and then remove and place on a paper towel.

• On plate of choice put 1 tbsp of avocado on bottom left of the plate.

• With tip of a spoon drag avocado to top right side of the plate.

• Place a bed of shaved iceberg on top right side of plate.

• Remove skewer and set flautas on top of iceberg.

• Squeeze crème in a zig zag motion over flautas.

• Spoon 2tbsp of pico de gallo over flautas.

• Garnish with fresh coriander sprig and lime wedge.

Photo credit: Wires

with Sumac Pico de Gallo, Avocado, and Lebneh Crème

BRYCE CARTER Chef, Al Bustan Palace Hotel I was born in the California valley and spent my 20s on the coast. After college, I left on a journey to explore the culinary side of the world. I have lived in many countries and experienced a variety of different traditions and flavours, but somehow I always come back to my roots when it comes to creating my own dishes, and I like to add south American flavours or a Tex-Mex twist in my recipes.

easy to digest and beneficial to one’s health,” he emphasised.

Asked about the idea behind the food festival, the celebrity chef said: “The concept of good food and genuine ‘nawabi’ cuisine is changing with every passing day. With these food festivals, I intend to keep alive the originality and heritage of these delicacies and present authentic food on the platter.”

Hussain also debunked the popular belief that Mughlai food needs a lot of oil to prepare and is difficult to digest.

“People think that Mughlai food contains a lot of oil and ghee, but the fact is that these foods take much less oil to prepare compared with other dishes. In fact, it gives us an option to drain out most of the oil once the food is cooked,” Hussain said.

Hussain has a unique distinction of giving to the culinary world a loaf named after him. The flat bread or chapati — named Izzat ki Roti — is made by mixing mixed-grain flour with secret Unani herbs.

Now he plans to develop a concoction of green tea and mulethi (medicinal spice liquorice) which, he said, could be a healthy alternative to normal tea and coffee.

Talking about the food festival, he said it is “one of the best” Delhi has seen in the recent past. — IANS

C1 2

TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015

LIFESTYLE INGROENE DIENT

FIVE W AYS

From poached and fried to pancakes and puddings, eggs can be eaten in different ways. Enjoy the ever tasteful egg in its different forms.

1 2 3 4 5

Scramble or fry an egg in olive oil.

Sprinkle shredded cheese and add sliced tomatoes and/or avocados.

SautĂŠ onions, tomato, and olives in olive oil. Then, beat 2 eggs with feta cheese. Add to the vegetables in the skillet, cover, and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the eggs are set.

Boil eggs for 5 minutes; slice in half and carefully remove the yolks. Mash yolks with hummus and avocado to make ďŹ lling for devilled eggs. Garnish with olives.

Chop hardboiled eggs, jalapenos, and pickles; toss with olive oil and vinegar for a tangy egg salad.

Whisk 2 eggs and pour on the top of baby spinach, white or yellow onion, red bell pepper, and asparagus spears.

Sprinkle one teaspoon of shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese and bake for approximately 8-10 minutes on high until the eggs are set.

D

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M T U E S DAY, AU G U S T 1 1 , 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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T U E S D AY, AU G U S T 1 1 , 2 0 1 5 Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

DAILY GUIDE FOR RENT

We have 2BHK flat in Mabella 7 for family. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033

550 sqm built up area Deluxe villa 7 BR with 3 sitting halls located at prime commercial location North Al Ghobrah. Contact: Owner 99411607 / 99892238

We have 2BHK, flats available in Ghala for families, staff & Execution.

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Contact 97677170

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Contact 99024730

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Contact 95113797

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T U E S DAY, AU G U S T 1 1 , 2 0 1 5

D3

DAILY GUIDE

FOR RENT 1 BR flat at Darsait, near ISM. Contact 99237971 / 99320633 250 sq mtrs restaurant for rent in Plaza Hotel, Walja Ruwi.

Contact 99326339 Flat for rent in Wadi Al Kabeer behind Muscat club.

Contact: 92222922 2BHK flat in Al Khuwair with A.C 350/- Riyals. Contact: 92888337 Villa for rent in Shatti Al Qurum.

Contact: 99315150 Flats for rent at Darsait near to Ministry of Sports. Interested candidates please Contact : 00968-92225523 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 2BK Wadi Kabir near Kuwaiti Mosque. # 97007934 / 92629232 600 sqr mtrs showroom in Wadi Kabir. Contact: 99792181 500 sq mtrs office space on mezzanine floor near Royal Hospital.

OMR 6.500 per sq mtr.

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Contact: 99253125

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Contact: 99376454 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 House in Amerat near to Makah hypermarket with three room, 5toilets, kitchen and hall 430/-.

Contact: 92747078

New villa at Qurum, 6 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, sitting, dining and open sitting on the terrace.

Contact: 99342733 Coffee shop for sale, running condition. Contact 97681599 An excellent grade, 8 yrs old, non residential civil construction company, having registered office in Muscat needs immediate sale.

Company has considerable running projects of handsome amount. Only genuine buyers contact 92978650 A secured land of 1500 sqm available for keeping construction equipments, trailers, container etc. near Sohar Airport - Contact: 94215208

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Tel 97600322 alnehang@gmail.com

SELL/BUY

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Contact: 97616158

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Contact 99385835 / 99428143

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Flat for rent in Mabellah 8th.

Contact: 97147240

Flat for rent in Wadi Kabir with 3 rooms. Contact : 98555580 / 92800007

FOR SALE

2BHK available Mumtaz area Ruwi.

Contact: 99269751

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Contact: 95555162 /95755953

3 Bedroom flat in Wadi Kabeer and 2 bedroom villa in Sidab- Muscat.

Contact: 95755953

MOTOR VEHICLE FOR SALE

Used furniture & Electronic items, office & house. Contact: 99834373 / 96642500

FOR EXPATS From owner plot of land near Zanzibar, airport price RO 15000.

Contact 99348943

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 Ice Cream & Juices shop Ruwi good location for sale suitable for beauty parlor also. Contact: 92150455

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Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

Nissan Tiida, F. automatic 2011, R.O 2800/-. Contact: 93835318 Land Cruiser 2012. Contact 99336093

Auto spare parts shop for sale in Mobella. Contact: 99765905 5 Flats of 1 bedroom for Sale in Boushar: OMR 35 Thousand each.

Monthly income OMR 270 Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 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 Shop for sale in Ruwi High street, Contact 96078411 23,886 Sq Mtrs Agriculture land with water well in Al Salwa, Barka.

OMR 260 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

Mazda 3, 2007 KM 1,43000, full automatic R.O 1900/-.

Contact 99781671 Prado ,2012. Contact : 99336093

Honda Accord 2010, 10,5000 kms, expat lady driven, dealer maintained, new tyres. Contact 99330509

FOR HIRE Volvo 12 Ton Truck for monthly rent. Contact: 98713900

NRI

Sportage, 2013. Contact 99336093

ACC. AVAILABLE Furnished room with attached bath separate entrance in Mabela. Contact :99634841 preferable Omani ladies Furnished room for rent at Al Khuwair RO 225/- for family only.

Contact 99251975 Furnished room for Indian Bachelor in Al Falaj area (Ruwi) & Lady in Wadi Kabir (near Al Maya).

Contact 96761960

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 60,000 Sq Mtrs Agriculture Land in Misfah, can be changed to Industrial Land. OMR 29 Per Square Meter.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

Honda CRV 2008 model, expat driven, 2.4L, 78000 kms, OMR 5200/(Negotiable). Contact: 99867670

Sharing accommodation available with Kerala family, nr. Wadi Kabir Indian School. Contact 95882866 / 96575016

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

ACC. AVAILABLE Fully furnished 1BHK with all household items in Darsait near Lulu on monthly Basis. Contact : 99378397

Room with A/C, independent toilet & sharing kitchen (4th floor) for Indian Ex. Bachelor near Majestic hotel, Wadi Kabir. Contact: 99242984 New rooms available in Seeb for couple / ladies only.

Contact: 96996938 Furnished single room attached bath in Mumtaz area.

Contact: 95212017 Fully furnished room for a decent expatriate. independent kitchen, bathroom in Wadi Adai.

Contact 96243086 at 5p.m.

Room for rent available in CBD near Papa John’s Restaurant.

Contact: 96568110

Sharing accommodation available for working lady or couples near Ruwi Church. Contact: 92837206

LOST

Room attached toilet and kitchen near Indian School Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 95345537

Mohammed Sahadat has lost Bangladesh passport No AC 0412087.

Finder please handover to ROP.

D4

T U E S D AY, AU G U S T 1 1 , 2 0 1 5 Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

DAILY GUIDE

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ED

SITUATION SITUATION WANTED VACANT

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE Accountant Indian male B.Com with 2 years of experience currently on visiting visa seeks suitable placement. Contact: 94649272 Email ID: sherin.am01@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 Indian female, B.com with 2 years of work experience, currently on family visa in Oman and seeking suitable placement for immediate joining.

Contact 94647421 Looking for a job in UAE as a Senior Accountant Indian male, 31 yrs, CA Inter 8 yrs exp good in all aspects of accounts. Good command over English valid driving license (Oman) Contact: 94737231

SALES / MARKETING Wanted designer & Salesman for Advertising CO. With Oman D/L. Contact: 96440587 / 94055643 Experienced Marketing representative – interlock blocks with light Omani driving license is required.

Contact 99222086

DRIVER

ACCOUNTANT Urgently required Junior Accountant. Please send CV: hr.azatllc@gmail.com Urgently required cash investors for company’s profitable projects.

Contact: 92950082

BEAUTY Wanted experience Beautician for beauty parlor in Muscat. Contact: 94241385 Wanted experience henna designer for beauty parlor. Contact 93571312

CATERING Indian Cook required. Should know Omani traditional foods. Contact 99209264 Cook for company mess.

Contact 92341826, email : jobs@prestigeprojectsoman.com Temporary Cook required for 1 month for company mess. Contact 99413089 / 98048952

DRAFTSMAN Leading Civil construction company requires “MEP DRAFTSMAN” with 4-6 years gulf experience. Send your CV to mep.oman2015@gmail. com. (NOC required).

DOMESTIC HELPER An Indian family located in Azaiba looking for a Housemaid.

Contact 99384009 Housemaid required for an Indian family at Al Ghubra, visa will be provided, but need local release letter.

Contact 98622766 Required part time Indian Housemaid. Contact: 95370653 Require qualify caregiver for an orderly mother. Contact 99425200 Indian House Maid with experience required to work in Sohar, visa ready.

Contact 99417418

DRIVER A fast food restaurant in Muscat required Drivers. (1 car and 1 motor cycle) # 93216008. Forward CV :fastfoodoman2014@gmail.com Indian Driver required. #99209264.

Female Driving Instructor needed in Madinat Qaboos. # 95591068 Required Indian national Light Duty Driver for Omani house.

Contact: 99420752 L.D Driver Indian required preferably Keralite. Contact : 92888337 Wanted driver. Contact: 95112461

Looking for Outdoor Salesman for heavy equipment spare parts.

Contact - 93292015, Email: mail.om@gulfcenter.co

Driver heavy duty required urgently for trailer. Oman / GCC experience must. Those ready for immediate joining. Contact: 99310859

SKILLED / UNSKILLED

EDUCATION

Indian Family looking out for the following experienced candidates 1) House maid (Indian) 2) Driver (Indian) Contact : 92800073 / 99247040

Pakistani Female, Masters of Education. 13 years of Experience in Teaching. Looking for suitable placement. Contact: 94739533/97926339 Email: kiranilyas95@gmail.com Required English Teacher , Hindi teacher, Science Teacher.

Contact: 99705799

ENGINEER Wanted urgently Civil Engineer with driving license, Civil Foreman, Masons, Carpenters, Steel fixtures.

Contact Abu Hakeem International LLC. Contact: 24699200 / 92854404 fax: 24602393, shsllc@omantel.net.om Service & Parts Manager with 3-5 years GCC experience in heavy Equipment / cranes, good communication skills, Mechanical Engineering background. Please send your CV to info@almisfat.com or call 96996938 AC Technician with minimum 5 years experience, should have experience in installation & commissioning of Ductable & split AC units, with knowledge of GI ducting & pre insulated ducting, experience in interior fit out industry is preferred Interested candidates can apply by mail: info@smartvisionoman.com Fax: 24818818 MEP Engineer on urgent basis required for immediate placement.

Please contact tgi17@omantel.net.om

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

MISCELLANEOUS Urgently required house maid for Malayalam family in Rustaq.

Contact: 99810765 Established real estate company looking for male or female property agents for leasing and sales of the property. Applicant must be Graduate, possess Omani or GCC driving license. Having oman market experience. Apply with NOC. Attractive salary +commission.

Send your CV: property@ labdmarkmuscat.com Required Indian or Pakistani calligrapher & Painter (staff accommodation) Contact# 24480487/24483493

MEDICAL Wanted Lab Technician, Staff Nurse, Pharmacist for a polyclinic in Sohar. Contact 99767605

Wanted: Loading and unloading people. Apply - Indians only: Contact: 95451713

MEDICAL

SALES / MARKETING

Required Nurse for A Clinic in Al-Buraimi, S. of Oman.

Contact : 00968 92737149. Send CV to drpkabbas@yahoo.co.in

Vacancy for Marketing Executive for TOP CLEAN LAUNDRY in Muscat, Whoever has got experience in the above field. Contact issa. alsuqri@gmail.com, GSM: 99370072

Required prometric passed or MOH license holder for the following posts Indian male & female GP Doctor, Indian Female dentist, Female Staff Nurse & Pharmacists.

Contact: 97985325 Email: polyclinicomanhr@gmail.com Urgently required Lab Technician male / female, Receptionist female Omani (fluent in English and Arabic) at Sinaw – Hala Medical Center. Contact : 95969249 / 94580112 Email: halamedicalgroup@gmail.com Urgently required Pharmacist (B. Pharm) with MOH license for a reputed organization in Oman. Email Id: goodpharma2015@gmail.com Need urgently MBBS Doctor with or without MOH license.

Contact 95395070 Urgently required female GP for a 25-year-old polyclinic in Ibri. Attractive salary package. Contact: 91584445, email: abumoaz19313@ gmail.com Wanted laboratory Technician with MOH License to work in medical center in capital Area Contact 99340135 Required MBBS Doctor with or without MOH license.

Contact 95395070 Wanted female Staff Nurse with MOH license for a dental clinic in sur. Email : dentoman2000@gmail. com Urgently required for MOH license Gynecologist specialist & Staff Nurse clinic at Sumail, Muscat.

Kindly sends C.V to saemomar@gmail.com or GSM: 95498105 Immediately required lady Doctor (DGO) or GP with Gynecology experience & lab technician.

Contact 99310590.

Email : tjmaluke@gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING Required Smart, dynamic Sales & Marketing Executive having 2-3 years sales experience in building materials. Omani Driving License and NOC is must.

Apply with photograph to E-mail: jobdsint@gmail.com.

A REPUTED TRADING & CONTRACTING CO. requires urgently sales Executive (male) having at least 3 years experience of construction materials in Oman/ GCC with valid driving license .

Send CV through Fax 24495411 or email: info@styletrading.net A leading trading group is looking for Sales Executives having experience in building materials / tools with driving license & release / NOC. Email CV to alhajoil@omantel.net. om or Fax: 24701683 Spare parts (Heavy Equipment) Salesman with 3 years experience.

Please send your CV to info@almisfat.com or call 96996938 Outdoor Salesman (heavy Equipment) Sales man with 3 -5 years experience. GCC driving license required Please send your CV to info@almisfat.com or call 96996938 Sales Executive with valid D/L & 5 year experience in office furniture and interior fit out projects interested candidates can apply by mail: info@smartvisionoman.com Fax: 24818818 Sales Executive with valid D/L & 5 year experience, in the field of demountable aluminum & glass partition systems. Interested candidates can apply by Fax: 24818818 mail: info@smartvisionoman.com Sales Executive Industrial products : 2-3 yrs of exp. with good communication & computer skills. D/L is must. Send resume to salescvv@hotmail.com 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 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

Electrician. Contact 968 92341826 Fire safety Technician.

Contact 92341826 Helper at Electrical site work.

Contact 92341826

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ED ACCOUNT. & FINANCE Indian male, 10 years experience, 6 years in Oman with Oman driving license with NOC seeking suitable job. Contact: 96012973 12 years of Oman experienced Chief Accountant looking for immediate placement. Contact : 99513082 Finance/ Audit professional with 18 yrs Gulf experience can work independently or head the division looking for opening. Contact 92787747 / 92168401.

FMCG professional with 18 yrs Gulf experience in commercial / operations looking for opening.

Contact 92787747 / 92168401 B.Com Graduate 3 yrs experience in Oman driving license looking for accounts/sales. Contact 93645008 Indian male, Accountant, B.Com, 1 yr experience in Accounts.

Contact 98295101 Indian male, 23 yrs, B.Com, Finance, Graduate, Diploma in computerized professional accounting 3 yrs experience as a Supervisor cum Cashier, currently on visit visa at Sur, Oman, looking for suitable job in Accounts.

Email : m.a.abuthahir.313@gmail.com Omani female exp. in Accounts & shipping & Secretary & PRO, job knowledge in Computer with Oman D/L. Contact 91161736 Senior Document Controller, male, Indian, MCA 9+ yrs experience as Document controller in oil & gas sector seeks job as Senior Document controller. Contact 95388197, Email : rojanchristopher@gmail.com 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 Indian female Inter CA, strong in Tally ERP 9, MS Office, 7 years experience in accounts upto finalization looking for suitable position. #91759501

Indian male M.Com holder with one year working experience as an Accountant in Kerala looking for suitable opening now on visiting visa.

Contact: 96947500 Email: mohamaedshafikk5@gmail.com Indian female B.Tech (EEE) MBA finance with 1and half years experience as Bank Officer in India seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 91358676 / 98157895 Email: sujivu88@gmail.com MBA finance Indian male (Account & finance), seeking suitable placement. Contact: 97372624 Email: sivaraj.gurukripa@gmail.com Indian male, 27 years, M. Com, having 2years experience in Accounts looking for suitable position. Presently on visit visa. Contact 93455055| gibingeorge88@gmail.com 23 yrs, Indian B.Com, Graduate male ‘Fresher’ well versed in English, Hindi, Arabic & Malayalam with D/L looking for a suitable job. Now on visit visa valid for 1 more month only. Contact 97660518 Part time accountant services available to handle all accounts related work up to finalization.# 96247295 Accountant Indian male 31 yrs Accounts up to finalization, 9 yrs experience (7 yrs in Oman) with D/L & NOC seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 99582979 An Indian Lady Chartered Accountant with five years experience (including articleship), on family visa in Oman looking for a suitable job.

Please Contact 9621 0347 / 9943 5346, shincycrajan@gmail.com Accountant having 4 yrs experience looking job. Contact: 99867456 Email: ashkar7673@gmail.com 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. # 94657403 / 99355931 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 female Accountant with 5 yrs Gulf exp in accounts, audit, Admin payroll. Contact: 96263157 Indian 24 years MBA finance 2 years experience seeking suitable placement. Contact: 9822253 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: muscatoman95@yahoo.com Jordanian Accountant (ACPA) with more than 15 yrs experience in Oman (Accounts, Purchase & finance). Contact: 92881223 Email: kamal_sarhan@yahoo.com 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 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

T U E S DAY, AU G U S T 1 1 , 2 0 1 5

D5

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED

MISCELLANEOUS Indian female, having 9 years experience in Logistics and Sales co ordinator. Experience in SAP, MS office, holding Oman driving license.

Currently on Visit Visa, looking for suitable placement. Contact 95251911

ADMIN Indian Female MBA , 3 Years Experience in Admin MIS , Family Visa. Contact 98234427, jkjsmith01@gmail.com

DRIVER Light duty driver ,driving license, Experienced. Ph: 92814816

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

IT

Keralite, Indian, Diploma in Mechatronic, PG Diploma in Industrial automation (PLC SCADA DCS) interest field. Email : sajasvp@gmail.com

B.C.A, 7 years Operations Management procurement supply chain team handling lean six sigma certified on visit visa. Contact: 99826634 Email: nairsatheesh1984@gmail.com

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

DRAUGHTSMAN HSE Admin experience for 10 years in GCC with valid D/L seeking to join a reputed firm. NOC available.

Contact: 99626821

3D Draughtsman 25 years Indian male having 4 years experience.

Contact: 93746877

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.

Land surveyor: Indian male having two years experience, well handled total station, auto level and Auto cad, seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 95140761 /99208290 Email: binu.brijiv@gmail.com

Keralite 47 years, having 20 years of rich experience in office administration and 6 years of Warehouse Management looking for a suitable opening.

Email: rajeshkorathatt@gmail.com 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 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 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

DRIVER Light duty driver/ salesman looking for job, with Oman Driving license. Contact 91389466 Looking for a job as Driver, with 9 yrs experience in Oman, language : Arabic/ English/ Hindi.

Contact 92517532 Indian light driver having 1 yr experience in Oman, languages Arabic/ English/ Hindi seeks job.

Contact 97366822 Driver, 10 yrs. Contact 94260369 Light Driver, 5 yrs experience looking for job. Contact 92617293 Light driver 5 years exp Education B.A language English, Arabic & Hindi. Contact : 98522914 / 91615715 Indian (Kerala) light driver seeking for job 4 years exp in Oman.

Contact 95844147 Driver available with car.

Contact: 96652352 Sri Lankan driver. Contact: 97387112 Light duty driver 9 years experience wanted visa.

Contact: 97313562 Looking for light driving job, Indian, 4 years experience & language knowing Arabic, English & Indian.

Contact: 94241385 Light duty driver, 8 yrs exp.

Contact: 96736744 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

Indian male 23, Mechanical Engineer having knowledge in HVAC currently on visit visa looking for suitable placement.

Contact : 95434381 email: shuhaibusman313@gmail.com

Indian male 25MBA having 4years Gulf experience in Coordination with contracting company .NOC Available.

Looking for(Store,Coordination,Admin ,Backoffice) Jobs Ph:95405885 Sudanese male Telecommunication Engineer looking for job.

Contact: 94537607 Electrical Engineer 5 years of exp in construction companies, NOC available Indian. Contact: 92641757

DOMESTIC HELPER 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

DESIGNER Sr Designer, Civil & Structural (oil & gas) / Site Supervisor Indian male, 21 years experience in design field with driving license seeks suitable placement N.O.C available.

Contact: 92684051 Email: babyshibu@yahoo.co.in

ENGG. / TECHNICAL Indian male B.Tech Mechanical Engineer 1 year experience seeking suitable placement, available immediately. Contact: 93907707 Email: jubinkasim@gmail.com

Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineer, 26 yrs, Masters from Singapore, Bachelors from India. Having 2 yrs work experience in Oman, with Valid Oman driving license. available immediately.

Contact: 95498953 Indian male 25yrs B.E in Electronics and Communication Engineering with 2 yrs experience D/L. Email : azee245ec@gmail.com, 94188216 Mechatronic Engineer (UK) with business operations PG Certificate (UK) & piping Engineering (IIT) looking for vacancy, with Oman driving license. Contact 99278195, email : justin_johns123@hotmail.com Mechanical Engineer, Indian male, 24 yrs, having 1 yr plant experience currently on visit visa, looking for suitable job. Contact 92835957, rafeekmohammed84@gmail.com

Civil Engineer B.E, 5.5 years experience with Omani D/L. Contact: 96785311

24Yrs, B.E (Mechanical), having 3 Yrs experience as a Piping Engineer, Seeking suitable job in Oman.

Contact: +919965885511 (India), +96898989716(Oman), Email : nandhamek@gmail.com

Indian male 27 years, Mechanical Engineer (B.E) having experience seeks suitable placement holds valid Oman driving license, on visit visa. Contact: 98847638

Indian female (M. Tech – power system) having Gulf experience, currently on family visa seeking suitable placement in Oman.

Contact: 94306164

Indian male 25, BTech (Mechanical), CSWIP 3.1, Welding Inspector, 3 years experience in Oil & Gas (piping and Equipment as QC inspector) now on visit visa seeking suitable opportunities. Contact: 98228262 Email: megbinvetticattu@gmail. com

Bangladeshi male, B.Sc, Engg. in Civil total 9 yrs experience, 2.5 yrs as Contractor Engg. & 3.5 yrs as consultant Engr, total 6 yrs exp in Oman seeking a job.

Contact Mobile 95540721, Email : sheikwet@gmail.com

Electrical Engineer 2 years experience (Indian) construction (building) looking suitable placement.

Contact 00968 92596672 Email: kundara.renjith@gmail.com M. Tech, Applied Electronics Indian female looking for full time or part time job presently on family visit visa. Contact: 92499312 Email: ann.ashhy@gmail.com Computer Engineer Iraqi Nationality 7 years experience seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 94694146 Electrical Engineer bachelor degree having 6+ years experience of Gulf and professional license available to join. Contact: 98063081 Email: imran.engr08@gmail.com Indian 24 yrs male, 2 years experience in Site Engineer (Diploma in Civil Engineering), Now on visit visa in Oman. Contact: 94050311 Indian Male, Diploma in Civil Engineer working as a Project engineer with 7years of experience looking for suitable job.

Contact- 92636569 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 SAP – SCM.MM Consultant B.Tech.

(Chemical), from NIT, working with oil industry, seeks employment.

Contact: 98049288 Btech computer science graduate 2015 passout.. Android application marketing.. Having good communication skills and mindset to work in a team. Contact 91024385

Driver with Car. Contact: 99716938 Driver with 2 yrs exp looking for job. Contact: 98487511

Civil Engineer, more than 6 yrs experience in Supervision, site management, QS, Engineering software with valid Oman driving license.

NOC available. Contact 91761364, Email : a-shqfa@hotmail.com

Electrical Eng. Degree (MEP) need suitable job of construction 12 yrs exp.

Email: mohd.ateeq.khan@gmail.com

Civil Engineer, 10 yrs exp. in building residential M.O.E, M.O.D, Stp looking for suitable placement. NOC available. Good knowledge AutoCAD, computer MS Office, Excel, making B.O.Q. all type of civil work related, building supervision. Contact 99471944, engrzagar@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 HSE, 10 yrs Logistics Site Coordination consultancy valid Oman D/L, PDO driving permit. Contact 92565093 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 Indian male, Supervisor Electrician Diploma 8 yrs in Oman. NOC available. Contact 95057068, jratheesh@yahoo.com BE Civil Graduate /Male – More than 18 years of experience in Infrastructure in India,UAE and Oman. looking for a suitable job in Oman.

Mob :98294123 Email: sandeepj02@gmail.com Egyptian Civil Engineer-total experience 6 years - 1 year @ Oman-I have good experience in Technical office & site Works.

Contact number: 00968 94682217 B.Com MBA, Indian male 2 years experience looking for suitable job.

Contact: 94718663 Email: naveelkhan524@gmail.com B.Tech Mechanical Engineer (HVAC) 2 years experience in India.

Contact: 97654489 Email: nikhilchandpm@gmail.com

BE in ECE Indian female currently on visit visa looking for suitable job.

Contact: 94767662 Email: chaithanyankotian10@gmail.com Civil Engineer B.E 12 years experience with valid Oman driving license. Contact: 93843448 Indian female, Electronics and telecommunication Engineer, currently on family visa looking for suitable openings. Contact: 95020425 Electrical Engineer, Indian, exp. in MEP (AutoCAD). Contact 99079140 / 98205818 Civil Project Engineer exp 10 yrs.

Contact: 92673432 Email: arifjamalkhan8@gmail.com Telecommunication Maintenance Engineer Sudanese male 2 years experience in HUAWEI hardware field cabins good communication English & Arabic. Contact :+ 968 96433495 / +968 94756295 Email: muzamilawadalla@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 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, IT Support Engineer, 2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experience. Contact 97311847 Indian male 24 years B.E mechanical 2 years exp. or visit visa.

Contact: 99247326

EDUCATION Indian lady M.Com, B.Ed looking for openings in teaching.

Contact 97668603 Indian female, English teacher, MA,B.Ed,CELTA, 5+years experience, looking for suitable placement.

Contact 99642462, kalcky@yahoo.com Filipina ESL Teacher for 13 years BEED major in English knowledge in IB, PYP and independent school curriculum computer literate, IELTS qualified, looking for reputable school. Contact: 98938272 Email: m.ann7875@gmail.com

HOSPITALITY 4 Years experienced (Money exchange services & Hospitality services in Oman & India) - Indian male 27 years, graduate in Hospitality science, fluent in English, Hindi & Arabic seeks suitable placement. #91383167

IT 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

Indian female MCA, 24 years seeking suitable job.

Contact 93439467 Indian (f) with 7 yrs exp in software development (2.5 yrs Oman exp) good knowledge in .net and MSSQL Server seeks suitable placement.

Contact : 93276784 email: sanalkumar63@gmail.com B. Tech (CSE) Oracle, DBA Indian female 23 yrs seeking suitable placement now on visiting visa Contact : 91873454 / 99508485. email : shahanasebi@gmail.com Indian female, BCA, MCA, SAP ABAP certification, ASP.Net Certification 2 yrs experience, looking for a suitable opportunity.

Contact 99109121.

NETWORK/NETWORK SECURITY ENGG. Graduate in B.Tech CS. Have 5.3 years of experience in Network and Security devices. Certified on CCNA, CCNP, MCITP and CCIE Sec. Written passed. NOC available.

Can join immediately.

Contact +974-55297089, e-mail: rejad.hashim@gmail.com

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR Indian Male 9 years experience in Purchase/Supply Chain with Oman D/L looking for a suitable opening in Construction/ Oil & Gas Industry.

Contact 91124175 Facility / Project Mgmt, 4+ yrs of exp holds B.E (ECE) Indian visit visa looking for suitable opening.

Contact: 98580569 Email: arafacareer@gmail.com MIB Post Graduate /male – more than 9 years of experience in shipping & Logistics in middle east (Liner Section) looking for a suitable job in Oman. .Mob :( India) 919400043894, Email: jaise81@gmail. com, Oman 99899627

MEDICAL Medical - Staff Nurse (male) with NOC and license, experience 6+ yrs.

Contact: 98680299 Email: georgevaikom@gmail.com Female Nurse- Indian, Total 14 yrs. experience,6 yrs. in KSA, Prometric passed, ready to join immediately.

Contact 95525004 & 98146565 Looking for job as office boy + driver going to visit within this month Oman Muscat working experience 10 years. Contact: 968 97859837 Indian male MDS Doctor specialized in Endodontist with 7 years experience prometric passed, seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 98843139 Email: ppdr2020@gmail.com 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 BA degree Nursing professional having excellent looking for suitable placement. Contact:: 92955453 /91213269 GP Doctor Yemeni national-male, with 4 years of work experience.

Mobile:00966531598754 Email: alsyaniramzy@gmail.com A Pakistani lady, having M.A Islamiyat at B.ED Degree, 7 years Teaching experience. All documents are ready, looking for job in school or private firm. Contact: 96534115 Email: alex_ali1@yahoo.com

Indian male looking for indoor, sales, accountant, storekeeper, office assistant. Contact 98295101 10 yrs exp in Oman in logistics-have Oman D/L-looking for suitable placement. Contact 96410767 ; email: harishkts@yahoo.com Indian Female POST GRADUATE . One Year experience seeking suitable Job Contact :97792820 Email: pnjli.1991@gmail.com Management Professional accountable, responsible for profitable management can handle the entire operations, HR/Recruitment, Business development & Sales & marketing & etc, Great organizational skills with over 23+yrs exp. in Bombay, Saudi Arabia, Dubai-UAE & Oman(11yrs) as General Manager - Publications, Printing,Media. open to any industry, can Join immediately w/NOC. Contact : +968 98864706/99574638 Mail : akdas_uae@yahoo.com 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

SALES / MARKETING MBA (Marketing/ HR) with 4.5 years exp in Business development and marketing, having valid Oman driving license seeks suitable placement currently available on family visa. Contact: 97618033 Email: vjgeorge12@gmail.com MBA, BBA (Marketing), Certificates in NEBOSH, IOSH, MEDIC FIRST AID. 2 years work experience as BDE in HSE firm.

Phone - 94362502, Email libinakurisinkal@gmail.com 7 years Purchase experienced total 17 years Oman with driving license looking for suitable position, Indian with N.O.C. Contact: 96574390 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 Indian male 8yrs experience in Purchase looking for a suitable placement with N.O.C. Contact : 95621614 Female, 5 yrs experience in software and 1 yr experience in administration, looking for any official job full time or part time or work from home. Contact: 00968 91711326 Email: shetty.sapna22@gmail.com 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 female high School Teacher having 30 years experience, currently on visit visa, looking for suitable openings. Contact: 95020425 B.Com Graduate having 5 years of experience in purchase & sales with valid Oman driving license looking for suitable job.

Contact: 97302353 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

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DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED

SALES / MARKETING 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 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 Sales and marketing - male 27 yrs, 2 years experience seeking suitable placement. Contact: 95642740 Email: shaijichakkara@gmail.com Sudanese Business development Manager, long experience International trade in Oman (import /export / marketing) seeking suitable placement full / part time in reputable company. Contact: 91173146

TOURS & TRAVELS Indian female 24 yrs, Bachelor in Travel & Tourism and 1 year exp in Oman as ticketing executive.

GDS-Sabre, Amdeus, Galilio seeking suitable job. Contact- 95883404 11 yrs experience in travel field B.Com, IATA, MCSE working for Qatar Airways, Sales reservation ticketing driving license & NOC available. Contact 92954613 B.Com IATA MCSE working for Qatar Airways, Sales Reservation, ticketing English, Hindi, and Malayalam, Marathi NOC is available.

Contact: 92954613

MISCELLANEOUS Piping Design Engineer, Indian male 27, looking for suitable placement in Piping Design & Engineering. Having 7 years of experience in AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS (11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact : 97351786 / 96143708/97357143 Indian Male 22 Years , Graduation In Electronics Seeking Jobs In Supervisory , Sales & Sales Co-ordination Fields , Good Communication Skill # 96141317, E-mail: akhilek5@gmail.com Indian female B. Com MBA finance ,5 years experience in oman as an account seeking suitable placement.

Contact 99044292 DIPLOMA+B.E.(CIVIL ENGINEER), Indian, 4 years of experience, currently on visit visa; Seeking Right Position. GSM:91570703.

Two year experience in Oman, experience in sales, purchase and system admin, Having GCC license.

Contact number 97475860, Yadhukrishnan08@gmail.com ME. Civil Engineer, Structural Designer, 3 Years Structural Design, 6 Years Str. Engineer Experience, Looking For Structural Designer Position.

Iranian Male. Contact: 93696929, Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com B-tech Electrical Engineer with more than 2 years of experience in erection and designing of HT and LT electrical systems. Seeking for suitable job in Muscat.

Contact: 98269366.

Email: sijincleetus@gmail.com Driver looking for job exp 2 yrs.

Contact: 98522914

MISCELLANEOUS Indian Female Accountant, CA Final (Group I cleared), 5+ year’s experience in the field of Accounts, Audit and Financial ERPs. Currently available in Muscat and seeking suitable job opportunities.Ph:94704800 email id: vinithsavith@gmail.com Civil site coordinator, Diploma, Male 25, now present in Oman, Seeking job in Oman. # 92887561, jubincivileng@gmail.com Data Entry operator cum Buyer, Indian male,26years.BA, Computer proficiency :Operating system (Windows 2000xp & Windows7) E plus and Tally ERP9, 4 yrs Experience in Oman seeks suitable placements. mob:95360255 Indian Female BSC nurse with 8+ years of experience including 3 years of GCC exp. Oman Prometric passed with 57 %. Currently in Oman. Contact : 98034384 Senior Accounts Professional, Indian Male, 36 years, M.Com, MBA (Fin) 9 years in Oman, with valid Oman DL and NOC available. Capable to handle accounts up to finalization.

Contact 9602 3965.

Indian male 27 years B.E & MS Mechanical Engineer working in Delhi for last 4 years in Jcb India pvt. ltd., seeks placement in Oman. Contact 93393768 Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a Suitable Job in Telecom / Networking, 1 year sales experience. M. Sc. Communications Engineering & Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com Indian female, 24yrs, M.COM (Accounts) having 3 yrs experience in Accounts, HR, Administration, Customer Service. Good Computer Proficiency seeking Suitable Position. Visa Transfer/NOC Available.

Contact: 99654913 Indian male 32 years post Graduate , working as Purchaser cum office coordinator 4 years in Oman having Oman driving license & NOC looking for suitable job in Muscat.

Contact : 98399415 Email: thankansam@gmail.com Indian, presently on visit visa in Salalah looking for job B.com failed UAE experience in accounts, commercial Admin & warehouse. Contact: 92754071 /93346931 Email: sathyanathanuk@gmail.com Indian male, 39 yrs, MSC Computer Science 10 years experience IT support, FMS Engineer, bank experience looking for suitable job.

Contact: 94276449 MBA (Marketing /HR) with 45 years exp in business development and marketing, having valid Oman driving license seeks suitable placement currently available on family visa. Contact 97618033 Email: vjgeorge12@gmail.com Indian male 63 years have 30 years Muscat experience all office work sales business development insurance administration accounts with Oman driving license.

Contact : 99249412 Driver 5 years exp know English, Arabic,& Hindi Education B.A. Contact : 91615715 / 99512270 Indian female LLB (Advocate) 2 years experience looking for suitable post legal advisor company secretary etc. # 93343190 / 94476387 Email: shafu1019@gmail.com Indian lady 30 years Graduate having work experience in India and Oman looking for Admin or any other suitable job. Contact : 95676957

Male Graphic designer cum animation, non linear editing VFX, seeking suitable position.

Contact: 97792661 / 96229406 B.E (IT) 1 year exp complete schooling in Muscat needs job in software / net working / java/ WEB design or marketing. Contact: 97136248 / 99313821 Indian male 22 years ACCA affiliate , BSc, Graduate in applied accounting 2 months working experience seeking suitable placement in Finance / Accounts / audit immediately. Contact: 97378607 / 92558734 HR.Admin..indian male..2+ Oman exp..joining immediately..#93671437 Indian male,Accountant, B.com, 1 yr experience in auditing and having knowledge in tally. #94733824/95769355 Indian male Chartered Accountant having 10 years of experience in Process audit, Risk assessment and Internal Audit is urgently looking for a suitable opportunity. Cell: +96897327343 Email: cabalkrishnadubey@gmail.com.

NOC available Light driver 5 years experience language English, Hindi, Arabic education B. A. Contact: 98522914 Pick & drop any time.

Contact: 91615715 B-tech Electrical Engineer with more than 2 years of experience in erection and designing of HT and LT electrical systems. Seeking for suitable job in Muscat. Contact: 98269366.

Email: sijincleetus@gmail.com Project Manager / Senior Engineer, Indian Male BE Civil, 21yrs experienced including Oman looking for the Job Contact +918939295181 Email I’D sanja_bala@yahoo.co.in Indian male 26 , graduate in mechanical engineering having 2 years experience in fabrication production filed in India, looking for a suitable job. mobile: +968-91384621 EMAIL : rmekhil@hotmail.com

SITUATION WANTED

Sr. Sales Executive, Indian Male, Holding Valid Oman DL. Total experience in Oman of 15 years with 4 years Rent a Car Co. experience.

Looking for Opportunities in any Industry for similar sales role.

GSM - 95703233 email id “khetani_r@yahoo.com

29 years Indian female (MBAFinance) with 4+yrs experience (Oman) in Accounts, seeking suitable placement in Accounts/Admin.

Contact:96141283

INDIAN MALE 23 YEARS,B. Tech (Electrical & Electronic). Done IOSH & NEBOSH- IGC certifications. Looking for HSE engineer job in Oil Gas Sector, constructions or in any related industries. Contact 98045482

B-tech Electrical engineer with more than 2 years of experience in erection and designing of HT and LT electrical systems. Seeking for suitable job in Muscat. Contact:98269366.

Email:sijincleetus@gmail.com

Indian male. M.com holder with two year working experience as an accountant in India. Now at Muscat on visiting visa. Seeks suitable placement. Gsm:96947500,99463120, Email:mohamedshafikk5@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, B.Sc, PGDCA, currently on family joining visa, 2 years working experience in oman as customer care / sales co-ordinator, immediate joining seeks suitable placements. Contact no. (968) 95573205 / 95949230 / 95800792 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 Female, Indian, 35 Yrs- house maid available for Full/Part time work in Muscat. contact- 96754303.

INDIAN MALE 23 YEARS, B. Tech (Electrical & Electronic) having 4 years working experience as an Electrical site Engineer. Looking for suitable job in Oil Gas Sector or in related industries. #98045482 Indian male, ERP Functional Consultant (SCM, MM, HRMS), Seeks employment.Contact: 98478928, Email: anand.desai2408@gmail.com Indian male , 14 yrs Experience in maintenance & Supervisor in hotel field ( Electrical . Ac Mechanical & Plumber ) N O C available mob : 95 25 36 40 . email = hareeshma24@yahoo.com Indian male 28YRS, 7Years exp. in Architectural & structural Draughtsman & 3d visualization, looking for a suitable Post GSM: +971551965944.

Email:aboosufiyan@gmail.com 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 Piping Design Engineer, Indian male 27, looking for suitable placement in Piping Design & Engineering. Having 7 years of experience in AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS (11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact : 97351786 / 96143708, Email : mohammednazeer07@gmail.com BSC Female Nurse having 8 years of experience ( 3 years in gulf). Prometric passed - 57%. Currently in Oman.

Contact : 98034384

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 CCNA MCITP network support / network technician with 2 years experience Indian male having bachelors degree on visit visa.

Contact 93080871 sean.f.peters@outlook.com ME. Civil Engineer, Structural Designer, 3 Years Structural Design, 6 Years Str Supervising Experience, Looking For Structural Designer Position. Iranian Male.

Contact: 93696929 Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com 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 8 yrs exp 2d, 3d draughtsman (HOLDING OMANI DRIVING LICENSE) seeking job.

Contact : 93790601 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 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 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.

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 Female from India -MA. B.Ed. with One year three months Teaching experience. English seeking for a urgent better placement, Now working in Oman.

Contact:: 93961142, 92184408 Email:-anoopkesavan78@gmail. com.

MATRIMONIAL RCSC boy, Kanjirapally Diocese, 36-172. Contact 93028813 / 92501521 24 yrs, Keralite Christian girl Engineer working in Oman looking for alliance from good looking, well educated. Contact: 92467948 Roman Catholic girl 31 yrs Indian origin working in U.A.E seeking alliances from Christian family well settled in Oman or Middle East.

Contact: 97622011 24 years old, Sunni Muslim girl Bombay origin, BSc, Hons (Accts) with religious values seeking alliance. Email: morningstar9128@gmail.com Keralite Roman Catholic girl, 27 yrs, M.Fam seeks suitable alliance. Contact: 99253120 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

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DAILY GUIDE 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 Pick & drop anytime in Al Ghubra.

Contact 97681599 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. # 97014786

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DAILY GUIDE

CLASSES

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED SERVICES

SITUATION WANTMANPOWER

Spoken English IELTS & Computer classes. Contact: 92088325 / 24799938

COMPUTER

Admission started in a private school, Darsait (Mount Zion Group of Institutions CBSE 1) for KG and grade 1 to 4 please register soonest.

Contact: 92088325 / 24799938

DRIVING

Driver for Automatic Transmission. Contact: 99040813

SITUATION WANTBUSINESS ED

WEBSITE

Split & widow unit A.C servicing & repairing. Contact: 99557080 Split & window unit A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact: 96236476 Window & split unit A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact: 93769089 / 95323517

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422 MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your marble. Contact 24793614/ 99314807 Seeking financial investor / partner for short term Governmental construction projects of 1.5 million R.O. Contact: 99881303

House shifting. Contact 99708138

The investor is required for successful Educational project to pay 25,000/- Thousand.

Email: bussiness.om9@gmail.com

House shifting packing.

99657644 / 98518013

Split window cassette AC unit servicing, maintenance.

Contact: 99540621

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

New company seek partnership.

Contact: 96996938 General Investors.

Gsm-99674870 Serious investor needed for succeeded furniture company for expansion purposes.

Contact: 99041337

WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles polishing, carpet shampooing, maintenance.Contact ABU QABAS99320217 /24788722

Split & window A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact 93769089/95323517 GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing, Contact 99314807/24792998 A/C Maintenance & servicing, fridge, washing machine & dish washer repairing, painting & cleaning services, electrical & plumbing.

Contact: 99447257 / 97014234 / 24504281 Air condition maintenance split and window A/C split a/c ducted and package type units. Contact: 98667326 Water proofing ABUQABASContact 99320217/24788722 Civil maintenance - plumbing, electrical, painting, and tiling, interior decorations, shop furnishing and all other maintenance works.

Contact: 97897831 / 92112094 (Indian, Keralite)

General cleaning in buildings villas all types interior, exterior, polishing dry cleaning carpets, rugs, marble etc. Contact 94134784 / 98598280 Auditing formation new companies foreign investors visa.

Contact Salah Eldin : 99378379 General cleaning, cleaning contract, cleaner supply. Contact: 95764290 /95113037 Pest control Treatments, Cockroaches, Ants ,Rodents & Termites. Ocean Center LLC. Contact: 99357908 / 99344723.

General cleaning & Shampooing.

Ocean Center LLC. Contact: 99344723 / 99357908

GOOD NEWS Genuine Ayurvedic treatments & massage, Ayurvedic clinic at AL Khuwair. Contact: 24478618 / 97263637 / 93309131

GOOD NEWS Fresh flowers Jasmine Roses Marigold & Garlands for Onam & other festivals, advance booking accepted.

Haridas Nensey.

Contact 24750784 Rakhees Raksha Bandhan available thousands Designs. Also special offer at Haridas Nensey Ruwi.

Contact 24750784 Ayurvedic treatment for backache, paralysis, arthritis etc & massage, All Season (Vaidyaratnam). Contact 24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980 www.siddhayur.com FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know more about Islam, please call: 99425598, 99250777, 99353988, 99253818, 99341395, and 99379133. For ladies: 99415818, 99321360, 99730723 Orvisit: www.islamfact.com