Times of Oman - March 13, 2016

SUNDAY

March 13, 2016 4 Jumada Al Thani 1437 AH

FROM THE WORDS OF HIS MAJESTY THE SULTAN

At The Opening of The Annual Session of the Council of Oman, 2009

‘His Majesty’s Wisdom’ A bright future of progress and growth, happiness and prosperity can only be built through a high level of determination, sustained commitment and patience, diligence and perseverance. We are confident that the sons and daughters of Oman enjoy more than their fair share of those noble qualities.

Founded 1975 . Volume 41 No. 17

| 40 Pages . Baisas 200 . Subscription OMR63 | ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company | Chairman/Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al Zadjali | Printed & Published by Muscat Media Group

Release fee demand on workers ‘illegal’

TELECOM NUMBERING PLAN

New eight digit mobile numbers to begin with ‘seven’ RAHUL DAS

rahuldas@timesofoman.com

VITAL NUMBERS Employers can

Ministry

of Manpower 80077000

transfer a domestic

worker but money should not be involved in the

Indian embassy 968 24695981 968 24684536 968 92769735

Philippine

embassy 968 9988-5073

process. It’s not an Philippine

acceptable practice.

Overseas Labour Office (POLO) 968 9355-7931

It is illegal, said

Bangladesh

an official from the Ministry of

embassy 968 24 698660

Nepal

embassy 968 24 696177

Manpower

Unlawful to hire domestic workers on social media sites REJIMON K FAHAD AL GHADANI

MUSCAT: Social networking sites should not be used to hire domestic workers, an official from the Ministry of Manpower said.

“It’s illegal to put advertisements to hire and fire a domestic worker in Oman on social media networking sites,” the official added.

Recently, social media platforms, especially Facebook pages and groups, have

now become marketplaces to subvert the role of recruitment agencies for hiring a domestic worker.

Cross-border recruitment

These groups are country specific, but also provide cross-border recruitment, bypassing certain moratoriums in place throughout the GCC. These groups and pages demonstrate that bans do little to protect workers, and in fact make them more vulnerable. >A6

REJIMON K FAHAD AL GHADANI

reji@timesofoman.com fahadnews@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: A black market in ‘release fees’ demanded by some employers to transfer domestic workers to new employers inside Oman is illegal, an official from the Ministry of Manpower.

The so called ‘release’ money is requested either to provide a No Objection Certificate or when employers are asked to sign the transfer of sponsorship, the final step after formalities such as police clearances have been completed.

“It’s not an acceptable practice. It is illegal. Employers can transfer a domestic worker but money should not be involved in the process,” the official said.

‘It’s illegal’ A legal expert in Oman also confirmed it was unlawful and said those affected could speak out, “It’s illegal. If the domestic worker feels to challenge it, then she can approach the labour dispute department and the court,” the legal expert added.

The ministry official agreed that domestic workers could chal-

lenge their employers if they felt they were being unfairly treated.

“If there is a dispute, even though the domestic worker doesn’t fall under labour law, he or she can approach for assistance from the government side to settle the issue,” the official added.

To bring in a domestic worker through a recruitment agent it will cost around OMR1,250 for a Filipino worker and OMR800 for Bangladeshi worker. To bring a domestic worker from India, a bank deposit of OMR1,100 has to be made by the employer.

One recruitment agency de-

scribed the charging of ‘release’ money as a common practice.

Recruitment agency “If an employer has to hire a Filipino domestic worker locally, then he has to pay at least OMR1,250 if he has brought the domestic worker through a recruitment agency. It’s a common practice in Oman,” a Muscat-based recruitment agency official said.

“As he has shelled out that amount to bring in a domestic worker, he will demand that money, even though it’s illegal,” the recruitment agent added. >A6

MUSCAT: If you get a call from a mobile number starting with ‘7’, don’t be surprised.

The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Oman has allowed service providers to allot 8-digit numbers starting with ‘7’.

Reason: A swelling subscriber pool and an increasing number of service providers.

Pre-empting a crunch, the TRA has allowed telecom operators to allot numbers beginning with ‘7’.

Second major change Confirming this, Hamdan Moosa Al Harasi, acting vice-president (Corporate Strategy) at Omantel, said that this would be the second major change in the numbering plan after the full overhaul that occurred in 2004/2005 when mobile numbers where changed from 7 digits to 8 digits and fixed numbers from 6 digits to 8 digits.

Thanking TRA for this initiative which will ensure operators ability to meet the rapid growth in mobile subscribers, Al Harasi

said that this change will not have an impact on the existing numbers, nor the services offered to customers. “We will communicate the introduction of the new range soon and we are already working closely with TRA to ensure smooth transition to the new range,” he said.

Chief Commercial Officer at Ooredoo, Johan Buse, said that the management of new numbers is controlled by the TRA under their national numbering plan initiative. “Since the start of that plan, all mobile numbers issued began with ‘9’. However, the majority of these numbers have now been used up and so the TRA has implemented a new numbering series beginning with ‘7’. “These new numbers will be allocated to operators by the TRA and of course, we will be communicating to the public on the availability of these numbers in due course. We will also plan some exciting offers around this new allocation, which we will communicate via our media channels in the coming few weeks” added Johan Buse.

TRA officials were, however, were not available for comments.

MORNING MINUTE

TOP THREE INSIDE STORIES

Meet the blind cat celebrity in Oman

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EVENT

O R G A N I C V E G E TA B L E S

Oman gardener targets Guinness record book entry Times quiz contest to be held on April 21 Times News Service MUSCAT: It’s time to see sharp young minds back in action. The Times of Oman Inter School Quiz Contest (TOOISQC), which has now become an iconic event for children across schools in Oman, is slated to take place on April 21, 2016, at the City Amphitheatre, Qurum, from 7pm onwards. This is the time of the year all the students start reading much more, and schools in Oman start looking forward to grab the limelight, vying for the coveted Essa Bin Mohammed Al Zadjali Best School Rolling Trophy.

The school quiz will be held in three stages, including qualifying rounds, mega prelims and the grand finale.

The qualifying rounds for schools will be held at six different centres, according to the geographical proximity of the schools. >A6

MOBIN MATHEW BLESSON

mobinmathew@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: For Mohammed Shakeel gardening is not a hobby, but a passion, which makes him happy, healthy and active.

Today, the Times of Oman (TOO) is featuring Shakeel, who has transformed his home into a vegetable garden, in its #OmanPride campaign.

“I have loved nature and plants since childhood,” Shakeel, who has worked at the Diwan of Royal court for 37 years told TOO. Matchless characteristics He recently grew a type of pumpkin called the bottle gourd with some matchless characteristics in his garden.

“When I cut it, it weighed 9.5 kilograms and it was lengthy too,” he said.

Right now, Shakeel is planning to approach the Guinness World Record officials to enter into the record book with this exceptional bottle gourd.

“Gardening helps me to spend my leisure time nowadays, it makes me happy and also gives us healthy organic vegetables,” Shakeel said.

Speaking about how he got into gardening, Shakeel said

“During my childhood I used to sow seeds in small containers and enjoyed seeing them grow with curiosity.”

Indoor plants “When I grew up I started planting plenty of indoor plants and arranged them all over my house and later started roof gardening. I have cultivated various kinds of vegetables in wooden boxes on my roof garden,” Shakeel added.

According to Shakeel, he had to sweat it out to make this land amenable for cultivation.

“When I came here (Wadi Kabir), this was an area with full of stone; I have to put lot of effort to convert this land into an agricultural area,” he said.

“I always find time to take care of my garden during my busy schedule and whatever I have sown has been accepted by the soil and it has paid me back for my hard work,” he said. >A6

BUSINESS

Call made for a lasting No discussion on solution to flash floods presidency at talks

Funding for Liwa Plastics completed

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3

Urgent action should be taken to find a lasting solution to the problem of flash floods, which emerges every time it rains in Muscat, a member of the Municipal Council of the Governorate of Muscat said, echoing the concerns of residents in affected areas.>A2

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REGION

2

The Syrian government on Saturday ruled out discussion of presidential elections or the position of the presidency at peace talks due to begin on Monday, saying the opposition was deluded if thought it could take power in Geneva. >A7

State-owned Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company (Orpic) said that the company has closed its Liwa Plastics Industries Complex’s $3.8 billion project financing facility for its $6.5 billion project. >B1

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SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

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The funds directed at the Municipality are not sufficient to implement all of the plans to construct drainage facilities for wadis (valleys) Ali Al Maashari, Municipal Council member

Call for lasting solution to flash floods in Muscat There is a strategy in place to avoid flooding in Muscat, but not enough funds to implement it, said a Municipal Council member Ali Al Maashari

ERIK PRINS

erik@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Urgent action should be taken to find a lasting solution to the problem of flash floods, which emerges every time it rains in Muscat, a member of the Municipal Council of the Governorate of Muscat said, echoing the concerns of residents in affected areas.

Ali Al Maashari, member of the Municipal Council representing Al Amerat, said there is a strategy in place to avoid flooding in Muscat, but not enough funds are available to implement it.

“The funds directed at the Municipality are not sufficient to implement all of the plans to construct drainage facilities for wadis (valleys). Since Muscat has no overlapping system of drainage, we call on the government to provide enough funds,” he said.

Al Maashari explained that the strategy included the building of dams in sensitive areas, three of which have already been built; one in Al Amerat, one in Quriyat and

one in Al Khoudh. However, about 20 more dams are planned.

“The cost of this strategy is very high and not enough funds are available to the municipality, although the construction of dams is the responsibility of the Ministry of Water Resources,” he pointed out.

Another part of the strategy is constructing drainage channels in severely affected areas, such as Al Ghubra North.

“They have started working there, but it will take several years to complete and for residents to see the results,” he said.

Al Maashari called for urgent action. “The Municipal Council urges the government and Muscat Municipality to speed up the implementation of the plan to construct drainage channels in the areas that are always affected by the flooding of wadis, as well as to construct a sewage system. There will be great risk in the future if the water is not directed,” he said.

Residents of Al Ghubra North have also complained on social media about the delay in finding a solution to this problem.

“The thing is that there is no strategy to solve the problem, such as a special committee to protect those affected and finding solutions,” a Twitter user said.

Another user said Oman should learn from other countries where a lot of rain is common. “Why don’t we learn from other countries? There are countries that receive rain, such as this throughout the year,” he added. “We really want urgent action to be taken to solve the problem of flooding in Al Ghubra,” someone else said.

Meanwhile, the Muscat Municipality is recounting its efforts to confront the problem of flooding, without elaborating on any wider plan.

An official from the Muscat Municipality told the Times of Oman that the Municipality had received around 150 reports of disturbance caused by the flooding during the past few days, including overflowing of water channels, collapse of trees, electricity cuts, and holes and cracks in the ground.

“The Municipality immediately took action in these cases,” he said.

According to a press release issued by the Muscat Municipality, it has intensified efforts to deal with the flooding of streets and overflowing drainage channels. It has also constructed water drainage channels along the main roads and in central areas to absorb large quantities of water.

Technical teams have started cleaning drainage channels and removing dirt from the streets.

The press release reported that Mohsin bin Mohammed Al Sheikh, chairman of Muscat Municipality, has instructed all directorates and departments of the municipality to be “fully prepared to confront the consequences of the rain, avoiding any harm to inhabitants and private and public property.”

He had also visited a number of affected wilayats within Muscat on Thursday, including Al Ghubra and Al Amerat.

“That’s only for the image and not to find solutions. Every year, we have to face these problems and we don’t see any solutions,” a resident complained.

The Muscat Municipality has urged every citizen to be extra careful during unstable weather conditions.

“People should refrain from venturing out into the water, driving in flash floods and speeding.

They should also be extra careful in mountainous areas and near lamp posts,” the official said.

C O M M E N TA RY

The vacancy-skills mismatch SUNDAY BEAT SALEH AL SHAIBANY

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D

espite the economic slowdown Oman is currently experiencing, the country still has the ability to create thousands of jobs per year but employers are faced with the problem of finding the right match for the available vacancies.

The job mismatch prevents employers from finding the right candidates they are looking for. Successful employment entirely depends when skills meet the job requirements.

Difficulties in finding the right job match frustrates employers as well as job seekers.

Many companies would tell you that they advertise the same jobs a number of times because they do not find the right candidates to fit in. This is across the board in every sector, whether technical jobs are involved or administrative. The mismatch problem also spans job categories ranging from the relatively low skilled to highly specialised ones in both the private and public sectors.

Attitude The second problem is the attitude of applicants. This is not confined to a particular age group. However, the young applicants are more prone

than older job seekers. Young Omanis in their twenties, especially first time job seekers, have misplaced expectations.

In other words, they are very selective when it comes to which jobs they want.

Their expectations often do not match job availability.

They often apply for jobs are not suited to their skills. They shun positions that match their background because the jobs on the offer are “beneath” them.

Some companies even complain that young Omanis simply have unrealistic expectations about the jobs on offer to the point of arrogance.

These are the jobs that stay vacant for quite a long time not because the right skills are not available but people with the right skills to fill them do not want the jobs. Needless to say that attitude affects the recruitment process.

According to the Ministry of Manpower records, about 12,000 new positions are registered every year but only 52 percent are filled.

For example, graduates are reluctant to make compromises. They are not willing to make adjustments to slightly deviate from what they studied in universities.

Shift work is another factor graduates try to avoid.

Furthermore, they will not accept jobs that involve travelling or accept positions away from Muscat.

Employers also find trouble matching the financial expectations of job seekers, whether experienced or new applicants.

This is particularly true in the private sector.

Omanis still prefer to work for the government because the starting salaries are higher than what offered in the companies. For example, while the private employers offer OMR700 for graduates the government offers OMR900, which is about a third higher.

Skills issue When they could land the right skills for the positions, employers find it difficult to keep its talents onboard for long. A few years experience in the work place is enough to make young Omanis restless. They move on to leave the gap behind.

Between 2011 and 2015, the civil service and government’s organisations have created more jobs than the private sector. It looks good on paper but the realities are different. Most of these jobs were created not to match the skills of applicants but for the sake of getting Omanis out of the streets.

This is where the private companies now find hard to follow. It has also sent a wrong message to Omanis that ‘you don’t have to fit the requirement to get the job you are looking for.’

As a result, graduates still wait to join the government workforce instead of taking whatever is available in the private sector.

For the working Omanis, they apply for a job in the public sector the moment one is advertised. The graduates who wait create a backlog of job seekers even when positions are available.

The experienced staff leaving their jobs for the government posts compounds the problem of talent recruitment in companies. It has become a silent vicious circle. It is all now blamed to lower oil prices but the realities are far from this.

In conclusion, the Ministry of Manpower can testify that there are jobs available but Omanis job seekers must lower their expectations and change their attitudes.

The job matching the private sector is looking for is not about what certificate one holds or experience but the willingness to make a little sacrifice and an effort to fit into the workplace.

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

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2,600 YEAR OLD ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

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Discovery of a 2,600 year old archaeological site in the Wilayat of Adam was announced by the Ministry of Heritage and Culture yesterday. It is a complex 15 metres in length and 8 metres in width located on the edge of the Jabal Midhmar mountain overlooking the desert, the ministry said. -ONA

ECONOMIC GROWTH

More than 635,000 new vehicles registered in five years MUSCAT: Economic growth in the Sultanate in the past five years has led to the recovery of the purchase and sale of the automobile sector.

Statistics prepared by Oman News Agency (ONA) indicated that the total number of new vehicles that have been registered for the first time during the past five years stood at more than 635,000.

Private cars accounted for 74.1 per cent of the total.

The Sultanate witnessed during the past five years good economic growth.

The new jobs that have been created along with the salary increases led to improved living standards, which led to an increase in demand for the acquisition of new cars. The economic growth has led to an increase in the number of new commercial vehicles and the recovery of the car-renting, taxis and driving school sectors.

The new commercial vehicles that have been registered in the last five years accounted for 17.9 per cent of the total number of new vehicles, with 114,000 vehicles, rental cars occupied the third place with 23,000 cars, with 3.6 per cent and government vehicles came in fourth place with 13,000 vehicles, representing two per cent of the total number of vehicles, followed by taxis that have been registered for the first time during the past five years with seven thousand cars, and driving school cars 964 cars.

2014 saw the highest number of registered new vehicles, with more than 143,000 vehicles. The last year saw the lowest number at 109,000 vehicles, despite marketing efforts and presentations made by the car agencies and showrooms and the efforts by banks and finance companies.

The rise in the number of private cars that have been registered for the first time in 2014, stood at 111,000 coincided with the unification of grades and salaries for the civil sector employees, put into action in January 2014, which led to higher levels of salaries in the public sector.

The economic recovery in the Sultanate during the past five years had contributed to the improvement in salary levels in the private sector.

As from the first of July 2013, the minimum salary in the private sector rose to OMR325 instead of OMR200 a month, which reflected positively on the purchasing power and had also contributed to the recovery of many economic sectors. -ONA

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SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

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Healthier barbeque initiative in Sohar Sohar Municipality has taken an initiative to provide barbeque stalls fitted with an electrical outlet for adequate lighting, a fan, a grill and an exhaust for smoke. The municipal health authorities will regularly check them

TARIQ ZIAD AL HAREMI

tariqh@timesofoman.com SOHAR: Barbeques have long been a popular feast globally and Oman is no exception. Young Omanis can be seen flocking on the sides of roads barbequing sticks of meat and chicken for passersby for only a small fee per stick.

The Sohar Municipality has therefore taken an initiative to provide barbeque stalls, which will be funded and supported

by Jusoor. The locals can use these barbeques, which will ease the need for ‘chefs’ to take their equipment every night for the barbeque.

The stalls will be fitted with an electrical outlet to provide them with adequate lighting, a fan, grill and an exhaust for the smoke.

“Their presence was spontaneous and the tables and grills were not compliant to health standards. It also affected the image of the wilayat,” said Khali Al Dhahri, head of Marketing at the Sohar Municipality said.

The stalls will undergo regular inspections by the Health Affairs department at the municipality and will be monitored constantly.

“We would ensure the safety of the products used, as well as the validity of their medical cards,” explained Al Dhahri.

Those who wish to operate barbeque stalls must undergo

medical examinations to ensure that they are free from contagious diseases, as well as obtain prior approval from the municipality.

Commenting on the feedback he had received, Al Dhahri explained that many of these vendors were positive and the idea had been accepted by the community.

“A while ago, some people came to us from surrounding wilayats, wanting to take permission for such stalls. Unfortunately for them, we don’t have jurisdiction in the other wilayats only in Sohar,” said Al Dhahri.

So far, there 26 stalls have been found in Sohar and are operated daily by Omani youth, with plans to install more in the coming future.

We would ensure the safety of the products used, as well as the validity of their medical cards Khali Al Dhahri, Marketing Head, Sohar Municipality

LIFE

Moet, the blind cat who is a social media celebrity and lives in luxury HASAN SHABAN AL LAWATI

hassan@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: She is probably more popular and enjoys a more exciting social life than any of us.

Meet Moet, the blind cat, who is sharing her lavish lifestyle after Internet users in Oman fell in love with her. (The writer imagines the answers coming from the cat while talking to her owner) Question: Tell us about yourself.

Answer: I was either born here in a pet shop’s cage or shipped in from a neighbouring country, am not too sure about that.

But I was in the pet shop’s cage from the time I was a young kitten and unfortunately I got cat flu.

Nobody at the pet shop seemed to care and they just left me in my cage with very little food and water and no bed, no toys, nothing. I got sicker and nobody ever came to check on me or treat my illness.

A lot of time passed and I got sicker and sicker. Eventually, the bright colours and things I saw started to go fuzzy and one day I woke up and there were only shadows and light. It wasn’t too long after that I could see only darkness.

I had now been in that cage for almost a year and I was just resigned to finding eternal sleep in that cage as nobody wanted me and there was nobody to care for me.

Then, very suddenly I was rescued by a lady and taken to a clinic.

Although, I wasn’t in a good state, they were very kind to me. I had food, a soft bed, love and cuddles and most importantly, they removed my decaying eyes to save my life.

I’d only been in the vet’s for a week and still had stitches from my surgery, when another lady, (my mother) appeared from nowhere. She spoke to me in a very kind voice and stroked my cheek and said “Yes, I’ll take her.”

Q: Is Emily (your owner) taking good care of you?

A: Oh yes, she’s definitely my BFF. She spoils me rotten, but so she should. I have so many toys and I keep forgetting which one is my favourite. Mum even ordered me a custom made cat tree, which looks like a real tree. Even though it is 6 feet 6 inches, I can climb all the way to the top. I do like to climb... sometimes a bit too much says mum.

I love to sleep next to mum’s pillow at night and to squeak at her

CHARMED LIFE: Moet, the blind cat does not want to be normal

ever. She is happy being herself and loving everyone. – Supplied photo

incessantly to play when she’s trying to watch TV. I also like to walk across her laptop at inopportune moments and it’s a bonus if it shuts down or the screen goes funny.

Q: Tell us about your fan base and their most frequently asked questions.

A: I started my Twitter account last June and I now have more than 5,300 followers. I just love my Twitter buddies and we have great fun, posting the usual videos and pictures, but also going on virtual trips, ‘pawtying’ together and we even send each other gifts and cards. I got 12 cards and six gifts from my friends in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom for Christmas and I’ve even had a few other gifts... just because.

On Twitter, I even acquired two ‘beaus’ last year and they send me Valentines requests. Now I must tell you, I’m a lady of principle and am only faithful to my beaus; Basil from the U.K. and Otis from Canada. So, despite a few requests, I shall only be their Valentine. Being only three years old, I’ve never had a Valentine before and I’m not sure what to expect, but I’m very

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excited. Maybe I can update you on how my ‘dates’ go.

The most asked question is definitely “how do you get around?”

But I just tell them to go to my YouTube channel and check out the video called “Ping Pong.” I think it surprises a lot of fans; I get around just like a ‘normal’ cat and I’ve learned my mum’s place by heart, so I never bump into things.

Well, except when I’m having ‘mad half hour’ and rush around at top speed, bouncing and jumping at everything (including mum’s ornaments, whoops!).

Q: Is it true that your merchandise is being sold overseas?

A: I have an online store set up on my website: www.moetblindcat. com and I have so far had around 13 orders, not only from Oman, but also from the U.S., Canada, U.K. and France. I’m super-excited that my merchandise is being seen overseas!

Q: Why did social media fall in love

with Moet?

A: I think it’s because I’m a complete character, as well as being blind. I also do the craziest things at times, which you can see from my Twitter photos. Mum tells me I’m rather cute too, but hey, I’m not vain and I never look in the mirror! I also make sure to interact with my friends and fans as much as possible and although I have a few ‘closer’ friends on social media, I like to reach out to all. I like to make people smile and laugh, as well as offer them a friendly paw.

Q: What about your future plans?

Will you go back to being a ‘normal’ cat someday?

A: Me, normal? Never! I’m a oneof-a-kind character, who is happy, happy, happy and loves everybody.

I shall maybe work on my diva status a little, but I reckon I could never be ‘normal.’

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ moetblindcat Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MoetBlindCat/?hc_ location=ufi YouTube: https://www.youtube. com/channel/UC9Qz3jAgQRi10D6ACZzRONg Website: http://www.moetblindcat.com/index.html

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

Tweet all about it

Parents vital in curbing juvenile delinquency Children follow their parents’ actions that can influence a child to behave criminally, such as being abusive to each other

IMPRESSIONABLE: The environment in which the children live

can contribute to them becoming juvenile criminals assuming it is negative.

TARIQ AL HAREMI

tariqh@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Parents in Oman need to very watchful to help curb juvenile delinquency, and while juvenile crimes have registered a slight decrease, the issue remains a major concern for the society as a whole, said an expert dealing with the subject.

Juvenile criminal activity is often associated with psychological factors that trigger negative behaviour, with the living environment and parents topping the list of reasons, according to the Founder of Whispers Serenity and Psychotherapist, Her Highness Sayyida Basma Al Said.

According to a publication issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) on January 18, entitled, “Our Children: A Statistical Vision,” crimes committed by juveniles decreased by 42.4 per cent in 2014, compared with 2010. 97 per cent these juveniles in 2014 were male.

There were 259 juvenile crimes reported in 2014, reflecting a nearly 58 per cent drop from 450 in 2010. A total 252 were male and 7 were female in 2014, compared with 435 males and 15 females.

The term ‘juvenile’ only applies to children aged between nine and 17 years, where if crimes were committed according to the Oman Penal Code, adult punishment will not be applied, but rehabilitation and consultation.

Al Said stated that the environment in which the children live can contribute to them becoming juvenile criminals assuming it is negative. Where they grew up and how they grew up, as well as methods used to raise them, could affect the child, including the physical environment of the NFC

Ferries traffic registers rise of 24 per cent

MUSCAT: Until the end of February 2016 the number of passengers using the ferries grew by 24 per cent, compared to the corresponding period in 2015.

The statistics issued by the National Ferries Company (NFC) pointed out that the number of passengers crossed the 37,000 passengers mark, while vehicles transportation registered a growth by 19 per cent during the same period.

The monthly bulletin issued

by NFC showed that the number of passengers transported by the company’s fleet during February this year stood at 37,566, compared to 30,328 during February 2015.

The number of vehicles shipped during February 2016 stood at 8,898 compared to 7,476 vehicles during the same period in 2015.

The cargo volume also increased through the company’s fleet during February this year to reach 5,260 tons compared to 786 tons during the same period in 2015. -ONA

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house they lived in.

Children follow their parents’ actions that can influence a child to behave criminally, such as being abusive to each other, abusing drugs and/or alcohol or their parents being divorced.

Difficult economic situations are also a trigger where the family does not get much income and the child then develops a habit of thievery.

Children are also often at the receiving end of physical abuse, which tempts them to become violent and mischievous enough to break the law.

“Usually when children get abused, they become abusers.

They sometimes become bullies or worse,” she stated.

Role of environment She also stressed that children absorb the information they see depending on their environment and enact them during their daily life. “For example, in a nursery you can see a little child beating the other and you think he’s just a little kid, how and why does he do it? It is because of what he sees at home and doesn’t know how to express his feelings,” she explained.

Al Said added, “As they grow into their teens, they become very angry inside. Some teens can deal with it and others cannot; so they find themselves in trouble most of the time, taking drugs and stealing.” She also added that some juveniles have been living in good conditions but commit such criminal acts to seek attention.

“When they don’t get the attention they need from their parents and their parents are always out or at work, they easily fall into this as a way to seek attention,” Al Said noted. Robbery cases are the most

common among the juveniles and have decreased to 47.5 per cent of the total percentage of crimes in 2014, compared with 56.4 percent in 2010. Inflicting harm followed with 38.2 per cent, drug abuse with 8.5 per cent and other crimes with 5.8 per cent.

According to NCSI, about a quarter of all crimes against individuals were committed in North Al Batinah, while Muscat led with most indirect crimes (drug abuse), pegged at 59 per cent.

The Royal Oman Police (ROP) said that when an official receives a report about a juvenile, he acts according to the Juvenile Accountability Act, which was promulgated by Royal Decree 30/2008. According to the law, if a juvenile is caught, they should be referred back to their parents, guardian, relative or foster parent that can take care of the child or in worst case scenarios, to Juvenile Care Centres.

Scolding the child and preventing him or her from going to a specific place or preventing them from breaking the law by making them work on something. “We need to understand why this is happening. There must be something, it can’t happen without a reason,” Al Said stated, adding that parents and children need to talk to one another to get to the root of the problem and solve it.

When asked for advice on how parents should deal with their children before they develop a criminal nature, Al Said explained that she receives parents and out-of-control children at her clinic, “We sit with the parents and child separately (and listen to their story), then we’ll analyse the child through tests and work with him and tell the parents how to deal with the child. It’s a process.”

BUS FIRE DOUSED

Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) personnel put off fire on a passenger bus in Quasiaba Al Zaab area.

Nobody was injured in the fire. – PACDA picture

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SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

OMAN

So far we don’t have any official programme to prepare our students for the competitive exams, but in the near future we will implement some programmes Wilson V. George, Chairman, Board of Directors

Students rue dearth of ‘coaching centres’ Many parents are planning to send their children back to India so that they can attend coaching classes to prepare for college entrance

GEARING UP: According to the data available, all over India,

around 50,000 medical seats are available, with colleges being registered with the Medical Council of India. — File picture

competitions to secure a merit seat in one of the leading colleges in India

MOBIN MATHEW BLESSON

mobinmathew@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Indian students in Oman, who are keen to pursue engineering and medical courses in their home country, are facing a dilemma as there are fewer coaching centres in Oman that can help them to prepare for the competitive entrance examinations for such courses.

As the entrance exams are held in the first week of May, many parents are planning to send their children back to India so that they can attend coaching classes prior to the exams.

Indian students in Oman said proper coaching is essential for securing a merit seat in one of the leading colleges in India.

“Coaching is needed to clear the entrance examination with good results as the papers are quite tough,” said Kiran Varghese, a 12th standard student in one of the Indian schools in Oman.

Every year, more than 1000 students pass out from class XII in Oman. All these students are eligible to take part in the entrance examinations conducted by the central and state government of India.

According to the data available, all over India, around 50,000 medical seats are available, with colleges being registered with the Medical Council of India (MCI).

The engineering colleges have nearly 15 lakh seats. In addition to this, for engineering there are some 10,000 seats available at 17 IITs, 15,000 at 25 NITs and 1,000 at IIITs. However, millions of students take the examinations to obtain admission to engineering and medical colleges.

“When millions take the examinations, the competition is tough; only the best can get a merit seat. If the rank is too low, then we have to go for paid seats in private colleges, which is unaffordable for the majority,” explained Varghese’s father.

“So we are forced to send our children to India to join coaching centres,” he added.

According to many parents, the online training available is not that effective.

However, the Bahwan Interna-

tional Institute Technology does run a coaching centre in Oman for IIT and JEE aspirants.

According to IITians, the online tutors have been trained in Oman for last eight years, with incredible results being produced for securing merit positions in JEE/Medican/SAT. “Last year, we enrolled more than 542 students for the JEE and SAT exam preparation and many of our students scored good marks in the exams,” Pankaj Sharma of askIITians told the Times of Oman (TOO).

“This year’s enrolment is underway. Currently, we are conducting career counselling seminars, and have gotten a huge response this year and are hoping to see more than 300 per cent growth in this country,” Sharma added.

Meanwhile, a Muscat-based businessman, who is providing coaching for post-graduate business courses in association with premier business institutes in India, said operating a coaching centre for engineering and medical courses in Oman is not financially viable.

“To bring the faculty from India is quite difficult and moreover, students are always busy with tuitions,” said Jose Chacko, who

INCREDIBLE SHOPPING OPTIONS

runs a business post-graduate learning centre in Muscat.

For the time being, another businessman and his friends are planning to open a coaching centre.

“We are planning to open a crash coaching centre here for students, who are planning to write entrance exams for the Kerala state; so far we are getting a good response from the parents,” John Philips Mathew said.

Some students stated that online coaching classes helped them understand the model of the exams.

“I am attending an online tutoring class, but it is not that effective,” Ribin Raju a student who is preparing for the exams said.

“Even though it helps me to know the exams pattern and structure,” he added.

According to a teacher from one of the Indian Schools, many have opened coaching centres in the past, but they winded up their operations pretty soon.

“There is a need for a good coaching centre here. Nowadays, to clear the examination, you have to be the best. Those days of preparing for an examination at home are gone. Experts are required to train students,” said the teacher, who refused to be named.

Speaking to TOO, Wilson V. George, chairman, Board of Directors, Indian Schools, said in the near future the Indian Schools will start providing coaching to the students.

“So far we don’t have any official programme to prepare our students for the competitive exams, but in the near future we will implement some programmes,” George said.

Some of the parents also noted that the reason they send their children back to India is that the coaching available in Oman is expensive. So their children are currently getting ready to fly back to their home country after their board exams.

Sultanate poised to boost ‘Shopping Tourism’ potential

BY DR DILEEP M.R.*

MUSCAT: ‘Shhopping Tourism’, a buzzword in contemporary global tourism, is being promoted vigorously by many countries. The Sultanate of Oman, rich with natural and cultural features and ample shopping options, has the potential to develop and promote Shopping Tourism.

Indeed, shopping is not just a laborious activity to buy the essential goods; rather, of late, it has become a recreational activity as well. Curious shoppers fly across borders, travel to far away cities with the aim to indulge in joyous shopping. The new phenomenon is to experience the pleasure of relaxed shopping, coupled with travel, stay and sightseeing.

Immense potential Oman has an immense potential for developing Shopping Tourism.

It also has the advantage of having natural and cultural attractions in abundance. Tourists out to do shopping in Oman can enjoy amazing shopping experiences along with unmatched exotic natural and cultural experiences.

Moreover, traditional Souqs in Oman can offer incredible shopping options. Some of the indigenous products of Oman are very unique and rare, like Frankincense of Dhofar. The need of the hour is to conceptualise, design and promote shopping tourism packages, coupled with natural and cultural features to be offered in the global market.

Indeed, the new genre of leisure or recreational shoppers constitutes a relatively new market segment in tourism. Shopping is also an important outlet for social interaction and provides temporary relief from routine and monotonous environments. It is not at all a new phenomenon.

Traditionally tourists used to

TIMES QUIZ 2-16

purchase a variety of items from the destinations visited, but these largely included souvenirs, varying from handicrafts to clothes, to processed food items. On the other hand, the shopping cart of the modern recreational shoppers includes a wide variety of items, of which some are luxury goods, electronic items, costly fashion stuff, crafts and design.

A growing trend Shopping is thus becoming a travel motivation in tourism.

This is a growing trend as many people travel abroad keeping in mind the goal of purchasing various goods. The focus is predominantly on cities.

Oman has a number of traditional Souqs, including Muttrah, Al Hafah, Al Husn, Bahla, Sohar Handicrafts Souq and Nizwa City that have a good potential to attract tourists.

Muscat’s famed Mutrah souq is the best-stocked souk in the Arabian Peninsula. It is famous for traditional clothes, jewellery, spices, antiques, hand-woven Bedouin carpets and craft workshops.

Many craftsmen make traditional sculpted silver and ivory daggers, known as Khanjars.

Moreover, Muscat and Salalah have mega shopping malls. Muscat Festival and Salalah Festival are already established events that attract visitors from far and wide.

Shopping tourism can be developed further with more unique markets with traditional/indigenous products, exclusive markets of electronic and other products with discounts during specific time periods, and packages blended with shopping and natural wonders of Oman. *The writer is Asst. Professor, Salalah College of Applied Sciences, MOHE. He can be reached at dileepmadhav@gmail.com) RELEASE MONEY

< FROM

A1 Times of Oman quiz on April 21 The school qualifying rounds will start from April 10 and last till April 17 at the designated centres and the mega preliminary rounds will be held on April 19, 2016.

The TOOISQ will be held in two categories, namely Juniors and Seniors. Class VIII and below in the junior category and class IX to XIII in senior category. Class XIII is applicable for international schools which have this grade.

The quiz is open to two-member teams from all international and private schools. Any number of teams from one school can GRAND EVENT: The quiz is open to two-member teams from all take part. international and private schools. — Times file picture Each team will have two students from the same school.

The previous Inter-School quizThe entry form should bear the of Oman Office, if not collected by zes witnessed enthusiastic par- school seal and be submitted with the school. For more details call, ticipation from various local and the school quiz coordinator or can Ms. Dipna Jacob at 9507 2122 or international schools in Oman. be directly submitted at the Times quiz@timesofoman.com.

ISSUE

< FROM

A1

QUIZ EVENT SCHEDULE Centre

Time

Participating schools

Sunday, April 10

Qualifier

10am

Monday, April 11

Qualifier

10am

ISD Indian School Darsait ISM Indian School Muscat ISWK, Srilankan Indian School Wadi Kabir Indian School Ghubra ISG, BSM, IS Seeb, IS Mabella Indian School Sohar IS Sohar, PSSohar, BS Sohar Pakistan School Muscat (PSM)

Tuesday, April 12

Qualifier

10 am

Wednesday, April 13 Qualifier

10 am

Thursday, April 14

Qualifier

6pm

Sunday, April 17

Qualifier

10 am

Tuesday, April 19

Mega Prelims

Thursday, April 21

Finals

4pm 4 pm 4pm 7pm

Indian School Ghubra All participating schools City Amphitheatre Top 12 Finalist schools

O R G A N I C FA R M I N G

Hiring of domestic workers

Discussions include “visa transfers”, “part-time”, “maid-sharing”, “live-in” and “live-out” and a whole host of other ways of navigating the narrow and difficult path of hiring and housing a domestic worker.

According to Vani Saraswathi, associate editor at MigrantRights, recruitment on social media can easily slide into the sale and trade of women, made all the more possible by kafala — or sponsorshipbased — labour management.

“No doubt these pages and groups provide a much-needed space for employment mobility and flexibility that the broken recruitment industry and the strict sponsorship system lack.

“But bypassing broken regulations and systems still leaves workers in an unprotected space.

GCC states should recognise that the element of choice in this kind of recruitment, for both employers and workers, needs a place in the legal framework,” Vani further added.

< FROM

A1 An undying passion for gardening According to him, the fruits and vegetables grown in his garden are used by his family friends and neighbours.

“I export dates, mangoes and chikku to my relatives in Al Ain, Dubai, Jeddah and Riyadh,” Shakeel said.

Vegetables, such as onion, radish, spinach, lady finger, green chilly etc. and fruits, such as apple, mangoes, chikku, banana, tamarind dates, grapes etc. are cultivated in his garden.

Shakeel said to develop a passion for gardening, the first and foremost thing is that you should have an interest.

“First we need to have an interest, be ready to work hard in the initial stages, we must love nature and plants, and must be curious to gain knowledge about fertilisers, seeds, and the process of growing it,” Shakeel said.

“You should also be prepared to spend some money as well, if you like to get into this hobby,” he added.

He also said that many people walking in front of his house took pictures and this made him happy

and proud. “I use only organic fertilisers in my garden, so my products are better than what we get outside,” Shakeel asserted.

He also thanked the Muscat Municipality for maintaining a beautiful lawn in front of his house.

Workers A1 rights should be protected < FROM

Date

ORGANIC VEGETABLES: To develop a passion for gardening, the

first and foremost thing is that you should have an interest, said Mohammed Shakeel . — Pictures by Jun Estrada/Times of Oman

Saud Salmi, a trade union leader in Oman who focuses on domestic workers’ rights, said that these kind of exploitative measures will result in bonded labour system.

“Whatever the exploitative condition it may be, NOC and release letter, will force a domestic workers to stick on to the same employer. Domestic worker hiring system should be changed. Workers should be given right to change the employer,” Saud Salmi, added.

Rothna Begum, a women’s rights researcher on the Middle East and North Africa at Human Rights Watch, said that the requirement that domestic workers must have the permission of their employer before they can transfer to a new employer enables employers to become abusive as they have a huge amount of control over their worker.

“In addition, this system also enables employers to require that the new employer pay them exorbitant amounts of money to a “release” their worker, can also be exploitative,” Rothna said while adding that such conditions can provide for forced labour conditions which is against international labour standards.

Nature of Kafala Vani Saraswathi, associate editor at MigrantRights, said that the very nature of Kafala in its current form is commodification of people and in the case of domestic workers this commodification is augmented even further as they are not covered under the labour law.

“They are completely at the mercy of their Kafeel/sponsor. We have also seen how this sponsorship arrangement is a business model for many, where they allow their workers to take up freelance work for an annual fee,” Vani said.

“The sponsor feels they own the worker and hence deserve to be paid for a release is telling.

However, GCC states seem determined to not recognise how the current labor management system facilitates human trafficking,” Vani added.

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

A7

REGION IRAQ

Sadr urges Abadi to act against corruption BAGHDAD: Iraq’s cleric Moqtada Al Sadr called for a sit-at the gates of Baghdad’s heavily fortified government district, stepping up pressure on Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi to deliver on promised anti-corruption reforms.

The protest, that Sadr said would start on Friday, threatened to escalate tensions over a long-awaited economic overhaul in the strife-torn oil producer.

Graft is eating away at Baghdad’s resources even as it struggles with falling revenue due to low oil prices and high spending due to the costs of the war against IS militants.

“I address this historic call to every reform-loving Iraqi. .. so that he rises up to begin a new phase,” read the statement posted online on Saturday from Sadr.

A year and a half into his fouryear term, Abadi is trying to challenge a system of patronage which has become entrenched in Iraq over the last decade, paralyzing politics and allowing corruption to flourish.

But he is facing pressure from two sides as some of the country’s powerful political factions resist any reduction of their influence, while Sadr is threatening to escalate protests to bring down his government should he not press ahead faster. On Friday, Abadi signalled willingness to agree that the political parties have a say in appointing members of a cabinet he plans to form to fight corruption and optimize state spending to better cope with the sharp decline in oil revenue.

The Sadrist bloc in parliament, called Al Ahrar, accounts for only 34 of parliament’s 328 members and may not be able to vote down Abadi should the other parties approve a new cabinet. — Reuters INSURGENCY

Turkish air strikes kill 67 Kurdish rebels in Iraq ANKARA: Turkey’s army said on Saturday it killed 67 Kurdish militants in air strikes on camps and ammunition storage sites in neighbouring northern Iraq on Wednesday.

Jets targeted sites at Qandil, Metina, Avasin, Haftanin and Basyan used by Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants, the armed forces said.

Abomb blast blamed on PKK militants hit an armoured police vehicle near Turkey’s border with Iraq on Friday, Turkish officials said. Two special force police officers were injured in the explosion on a road in Hakkari province’s Yuksekova district, they added. A ceasefire between the PKK and Ankara in July and attacks on Turkey’s military has increased amid a surge in violence in the predominantly Kurdish southeast, killing hundreds of people. — Reuters

No discussion on presidency at talks: Moualem Syrian foreign minister said the UNled peace talks would fail if the opposition had ‘delusions that they will take power in Geneva that they failed to take in battle’

BEIRUT: The Syrian government on Saturday ruled out discussion of presidential elections or the position of the presidency at peace talks due to begin on Monday, saying the opposition was deluded if thought it could take power in Geneva.

Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem confirmed his government’s participation in UN-led talks but said they would fail if the opposition had “delusions that they will take power in Geneva that they failed to take in battle”.

Presidential elections The government delegation would reject any attempt to include presidential elections on the agenda, he said.

“We will not talk to anyone who talks about the position of the presidency,” Moualem said during a televised news conference in Damascus.”I advise them that if this is their thinking, they shouldn’t come to the talks.”

DETERMINED: Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem speaks

during a news conference in Damascus, Syria on Saturday. — Reuters

I believe he (Walid Moualem) is putting the nails in the coffin of Geneva, this is clear, Monzer Makhous, a member of the opposition High Negotiations Committee told Al Arabiya Al Hadath TV

“They must abandon these delusions.”

Moualem said the government delegation would travel to Geneva on Sunday but would return to Damascus within 24 hours if the other side did not show up.

The Syrian government’s understanding of “political transition” was from the existing constitution to a new one, and from the existing government to a new one with participation from the other side, he said. The Syrian opposition wants the talks to focus on the establishment of a transi-

tional governing body with full executive powers, and has rejected the idea of joining an expanded Syrian government.

In response to Moualem’s comments, the main opposition council accused Damascus of halting the talks before they had started.

“I believe he is putting the nails in the coffin of Geneva, this is clear,” Monzer Makhous, a member of the opposition High Negotiations Committee, told Al Arabiya Al Hadath TV. “Moualem is stopping Geneva before it starts.” — Reuters

YEMEN CONFLICT

Hadi troops partially break Taiz siege ADEN: Troops loyal to Yemen’s president have captured the western entrance to the strategic city of Taiz, partially breaking a siege by Houthi fighters, medical and military sources said on Saturday.

At least 48 people have been killed in heavy clashes in Yemen’s third biggest city, the medics and local fighters said, and at least 120 people have been wounded.

Witnesses said there were bodies scattered in the streets.

Supporters of President AbdRabbu Mansour Hadi, backed by a Saudi-led Arab coalition, have been trying for months to lift the siege of the southwestern city and

open up key supply routes.

The struggle is part of coalition efforts since March last year to roll back Houthi gains and restore Hadi, who is currently in Saudi Arabia, to power.

The war has devastated the country, killed more than 6,000 people and displaced millions.

Major breakthrough The reported capture of the western entrance to Taiz, where nearly half of the 250,000 residents had been trapped since May, was hailed by the government-run sabanew.net news agency as a major breakthrough. — Reuters

A8

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

INDIA CONFERENCE

DEMANDING ROLLBACK IN EXCISE DUTY

Members of Gems and Jewellery Association participate in a protest rally against the proposed hike of excise duty by the Central Government, in Kolkata on Saturday. The strike by jewellers and bullion traders continued for a 11th straight day on Saturday demanding withdrawal of the proposed excise duty on nonsilver jewellery items. Most jewellery houses in the country have remained closed since March 2 after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his Budget speech on February 29, proposed 1 per cent excise duty on non-silver jewellery. - PTI

Sonia: Country passing through a critical phase NEW DELHI: Launching a veiled attack on the Modi government, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said the country is passing through a “critical phase” as those in power are “spreading hatred” by targeting secularism and underscored the need to bring together people from diverse backgrounds to fight it.

Sonia made the remarks in her written message to attendees of ‘National Integration Conference’ organised by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind here. “As you know, the country is passing through a critical phase.

Powers that be are spreading hatred across the country. Especially, secularism is being targeted. It is a matter of concern.

“In such a situation, it is an important work to bring together people forgetting their religion, caste, colour and race,” senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad quoted Sonia as saying in the message. Sonia lauded the role played by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind in this regard and for its contribution to the country’s freedom struggle along with Congress.

“In current circumstances, Jamiat has again taken an important step. I pray for this step taken by Jamiat for country’s unity and integrity and hope its efforts will bring good results,” she said. - PTI

CONTROVERSY

AOL to support restoration of Yamuna floodplains NEW DELHI: Art of Living (AOL) founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, whose cultural event on the floodplains of Yamuna is mired in controversy over violation of green norms, on Saturday once again sounded defiant, saying he will not pay any fine or penalty.

But, he said, he would wholeheartedly support the “development and restoration” of the venue where the event is being held.

Addressing the event on the second day, Ravi Shankar said the amount the National Green Tribunal had asked the AOL to pay was for restoration and not as a penalty.

“All through, I have lived a spotless life. I have never been late to school. I have never paid fine, even of a single paisa. So, we said we will not pay any fine. But then I was told that this is not a fine or penalty. It was wrongly reported in newspapers. They said it was for the development here. We said, if this is for development and restoration, then we will whole-heartedly support this and put everything into this,”Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said.

The NGT had on Wednesday allowed Art of Living Foundation to hold the festival but asked it to pay Rs50 million as environmental compensation for ecological damage. However, on Friday the relief to the AOL Foundation came with a stinker from the green panel which took strong exception to Ravi Shankar’s remarks about refusal to pay Rs 50 million and instead saying he would prefer to go to jail. The event got embroiled in a controversy after environmentalists alleged that its preparations have damaged the ecology of Yamuna floodplains. - PTI

Modi accuses Congress for ‘neglecting’ Bihar’s growth Leaving aside political rivalry, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose the occasion to laud the Bihar chief minister’s efforts in taking forward Centre’s rural electrification

ELATED: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laying the foundation stone of the various Railway projects

scheme in Bihar

in Hajipur, Bihar on Saturday. Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind, Union Ministers and Chief Minister of Bihar Nitish Kumar and other dignitaries are also seen. - PTI

HAJIPUR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday trained his guns on Congress accusing it of “neglecting” Bihar’s development since independence and recalled Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s past association with NDA as he inaugurated a number of railway projects here.

“This project was initiated when Nitish Kumar was railway minister and Atal ji was prime minister. The dream of that time is being realised now. Had this not been neglected in last 10 years and work been taken up for it even under routine budget, even then it would have been completed in sixseven years,” Modi said dedicating to the nation the newly constructed Digha-Sonepur rail-cum-road

bridge here, which is stated to be the longest in the country.

He rued that the cost of the project escalated from its earlier estimate of Rs600 crore to Rs 3,000 crore due to the “delay”.

“This money belongs to people.

Some or the other reasons crop up in our country that the process of development gets derailed,” he said. Leaving aside political rivalry, Modi who has shared a contentious relationship with Kumar in past, also chose the occasion to laud the Bihar chief minister’s efforts in taking forward Centre’s rural electrification scheme in Bihar.

“I am grateful to Nitish ji. Work is progressing with speed in Bihar due to his efforts. If the central government and the Bihar government decisively work, we can

finish the work fast and make a proud Bihar,” he said.

Kumar had walked out of National Democratic Alliance snapping the 17-year-old ties with BJP over the deemed projection of Modi as prime ministerial candidate of that party in June 2013.

After having lost badly to the Narendra Modi-led NDA in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Kumar staged a comeback in 2015 assembly elections in Bihar in alliance with Lalu Prasad’s RJD and Congress, decimating BJP. Holding that the “nerve centre” of India’s development lies in eastern India, the Prime Minister said that he is of the firm opinion that India as a country cannot develop fast without the development of it eastern part.

“Bihar is a priority for us because we feel Bihar’s progress is key to India’s progress. This government has spent more for the projects in Bihar in last two and half years than what was spent in five years earlier. This was done because it is my conviction that if India has to progress fast, Bihar’s development has to be accelerated,” he said.

Without naming Congress, Modi said that electricity has not reached 18,000 villages of the country even after 70 years of independence.

“I told my officers that I have to do this work within 1,000 days, which was not done in last 70 years. One thousand days are yet to completed but electricity has already reached in 6,000 villages.

Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are going to benefit the maximum from it,” he said.

Telling youths they have got a “big gift” as two locomotive factories are being opened in the state, Modi once again picked on the previous United Progressive Alliance government led by Congress.

“This matter is moving only on paper since 2006-07. It was being frequently mentioned in speeches but nothing was happening on the ground. Nobody was ready to bid for it. We introduced some innovative things in the tender, fixed target for export and place the order according to the need of the country and prepared it in a manner that big companies of the world they can work in it.

“The process worked and big companies of the world came forward. Foreign Direct Investment of Rs40,000 crore is coming for these two factories, which will be the biggest in the country. This process has been completed within a short time of 18 months since our government came because developing Bihar is our priority,” he said.

Modi also talked about other upcoming ambitious projects for the state including laying of piped natural gas line despite huge expenditure involved in it and said that it is going to bring huge progress in the country.

“I can see how enthusiastic you are about the bridge and I can guess well how much improvement in transportation and economic situation of people, this will bring,” he said adding the maximum work of this pending project, about 34 per cent was completed in last 18 months when NDA government was at Centre. - PTI

NAT I O NA L C O N V E N T I O N O N S U S TA I NA B L E D E V E L O P M E N T G O A L S

Green nod for 900 projects in 20 months, says Javadekar MUMBAI: Environmental clearance has been given to 900 projects worth Rs6 lakh crore in the last 20 months, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said on Saturday, seeking to counter criticism that several projects have been bogged down due to lack of green nod.

Asserting that environmental clearance should not be a “roadblock” for development, Javadekar said that every effort should be made to safeguard the environment and also ensure that development projects do not suffer any delay.

“In the last 20 months, my ministry has given environmental clearance to 900 projects entailing an investment of about Rs 6 lakh crore,” he said at the National Convention on Sustainable Development Goals here.

Opposition parties and environmentalists have been accusing the

Narendra Modi government of not proceeding on several projects for want of environmental clearances.

Dismissing such criticism, the government has claimed that the earlier UPA regime was responsible for stalling projects which were now getting green nod at a fast pace. Squarely blaming the developed countries for carbon emissions and its fallout on climate change, he said, “Climate change is a reality with one degree rise in temperature caused by 150 years of uncontrolled carbon emission by the developed world.”

He said though India is responsible for just three per cent of carbon emissions, it is an active partner in finding solution to the problem of climate change and committed to the UN goals on sustainable development.

He also referred to Prime Minis-

The developed world went ahead with business as usual scenario without bothering about environmental impact. Now it has happened, and we are suffering Prakash Javadekar Union Minister

ter Narendra Modi’s emphasis on climate change that “though India is not part of the problem, it wants to be part of the solution.”

While 30 per cent of cumulative contribution was that of the US,

Europe, Canada and other developed countries accounted for 50 per cent and China 10 per cent.

“The developed world went ahead with business as usual scenario without bothering about

environmental impact. Now it has happened, and we are suffering,” he said. India being well-aware of its responsibilities was committed to UN Goals on sustainable development, he said, adding, “Our

commitment is reflected in every programme being pursued by the government.”

He listed out Government’s ambitious 175 Giga Watt renewable energy programme, covering solar, wind, hydro-power and nuclear energy as a major step in promoting environment friendly development. India had taken pro-active measures to discourage use of fossil fuels in a bid to reduce carbon foot print, he said.

“The Union Budget 2016-17 has levied a green cess of $6 (Rs400) per tonne of coal. This is perhaps the highest levy in the world, as even the United States taxes coal at around $1. If the developed world followed India’s example and levied higher taxes on coal, billions of dollars would accrue to pursue clean energy programmes,” Javadekar said. - PTI

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A9

INDIA

Probe begins at Kakrapar plant to find cause of heavy water leak

Don’t want to overstate bad loan crisis, says Jaitley

AHMEDABAD: A day after one of the units of Kakrapar Atomic Power Station (KAPS) near Surat in Gujarat was shut down after heavy water leakage, a team of experts on Saturday began a probe to identify the cause of the leak even as officials reaffirmed that there was no radioactive release at the site.

Two experts from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) are at the site to assist KAPS officials in the probe. The experts have been deputed for an independent assessment of the situation at the affected plant, which continues to remain shut for the second day on Saturday after the leakage.

One of the two 220 MW units of KAPS was shut down after leakage of heavy water, which is used for cooling off the nuclear reactor core, reported around 9am on Friday. A temporary site emergency was also declared as a measure of safety, although the officials said that there was no radioactive leak and all the workers were safe.

“We have carried out a thorough radiation survey and there is no change in radiation level at the plant and into public domain (outside the plant) as of today.

There is no increase in radiation level. This confirms no radioactive release,” site director KAPS, Lalit K. Jain, said.

“Now that we are assured on the front of containing the leakage, our focus will be on identifying the cause of the leakage. The plant remains totally shut down, and further normalisation of the plant is currently being carried out, with two experts from AERB assisting us,” Jain said.

The radiation levels inside the plant and in the nearby areas are being regularly monitored, he said.

In July last year, another unit (Unit II) of the power station had been shut down due to maintenance issue.

KAPS 1 and 2 consist of two units of pressurised heavy water reactors of 220 MW each. - PTI

absolutely important investment in infrastructure that have to take place. So as a country, as a system, we have to draw that balance very carefully and we are hopeful that we can manage that,” he said.

The gross (NPAs) of the public sector banks (PSBs) increased from 5.43 per cent as on March 2015 to 7.30 per cent as on December 2015. Jaitley expressed hope that the NPA situation, which has been created on account of an overall economic environment and slowdown in certain sectors, would see improvement.

“As the revival of those sectors takes place, you will certainly find cleaning up of balance sheets, which also takes place because over the next few quarters they would probably have a possibility of reviving,” he said.

Rajan said there is a well-defined process for defining wilful defaulters.

“Broadly speaking, it may be manoeuvres, which strictly speaking are not illegal, but which divert funds away from the project and elsewhere. Now some of these actions may also be illegal.

We have a process by which people are declared wilful defaulters, we maintain a registry of wilful defaulters and we have strengthened the penalties, if you are a wilful defaulter on your ability to raise money from the system. So I think that process is there,” the governor said.

He further said that one of the problem in past has been difficulty of enacting the full process given the necessity for following certain aspects that judiciary focused on.

Going forward, Rajan exuded confidence that the process is streamlined so that entities following aberrant practices end up not paying loans and subsequently “we get a better system. So my hope is that some of the attention that has been paid to some of these actions will help streamline the system.” - PTI

AT O M I C P O W E R S TAT I O N

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expressed hope that the Non Performing Assets situation, which has been created on account of an overall economic MAKING A POINT: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley with Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan at a press conference after the 551st Central Board Meeting of RBI, in New Delhi on Saturday. -PTI

environment and slowdown in certain sectors, would see

‘PM owes an explanation on Mallya leaving country’

improvement

NEW DELHI: Amid outrage over Vijay Mallya’s massive default on loans, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Saturday cautioned against overstating the bad loans crisis in the banking system lest it hampers the entire lending operations and growth.

However, Jaitley said individual misdemeanours will be “looked into differently”. Both were speaking to the media after Reserve Bank’s Board Meeting here attended by the Finance Minister as a post Budget tradition in which they discussed the need to clean up the banks balance sheets.

“We don’t want to create a situation where we overstate the crisis and in the process, the whole activity of lending for growth itself starts suffering because people become extraordinarily defensive. We don’t want to reach that situation. So its that limited category where there is some kind

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “explanation” over how business tycoon Vijay Mallya could leave the country which he claimed was not possible without “approval” from the top.

“Since CBI directly reports to PM, PM owes an answer why Mallya was allowed to leave India. CBI couldn’t have allowed without approval from top,” Kejriwal tweeted.

Kejriwal’s comments come amid a raging controversy over UB Group Chairman Mallya leaving India amid continuing efforts by banks to recover

of a prima facie misconduct or misdemeanour, which has taken place by the individual. Its those areas which will be looked into differently,” Jaitley said.

C L O S E S H AV E

IAF plane tyre bursts while landing at Dehradun airport DEHRADUN: A tragedy was averted here on Saturday when one of the tyres of an IAF plane, with ten people on board including a senior officer, burst while landing at Jolly Grant airport, 30km east of the city.

The incident occurred after the 45-seater Avro plane of the IAF (Indian Air Force) landed on the runway, Dehradun SSP Sadanand Date said.

Everyone on board the plane, including a Lt Gen-rank officer, escaped unhurt, but the incident has affected flight operations with the aircraft still stuck on the runway making it impossible for flights to either take off or land.

“There is no reason to worry as everyone is safe. But with the

PASSENGERS SAFE: The Indian Air force (IAF) plane after its one

tyre burst while landing at Jolly Grant airport in Dehradun on Saturday morning. - PTI

plane stuck on the runway, flights are blocked.

“A chopper from IAF’s Agra airbase has arrived with a team of technical staff to replace the tyre and clear the runway so that flight

operations could be restored,” Date said.

Civil Aviation Authorities of the north Indian state of Uttarakhand were not available for comment immediately. - PTI

dues totalling over Rs 9,000 crore of unpaid loans and interest from him.

Meanwhile, former chief financial officer of longgrounded carrier Kingfisher Airlines, A. Raghunathan, appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) here for the second day on Saturday for questioning in connection with the money laundering probe in the alleged default of over Rs 900 crore loan from IDBI bank.

“Yesterday, Raghunathan was questioned for around eight hours. He is being interrogated for the second day today,” a senior ED official

Echoing similar views, Rajan said “we have to be careful as we go forward” that one hand criminal actions are penalised.

“But at the same time we don’t

said. The ED had issued summons to over half a dozen officials of the IDBI bank and Vijay Mallya-owned KFA under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) wherein all the individuals have been asked to submit details about their personal finances and Income Tax Returns (ITRs) of last five years to the investigators.

Apart from Raghunathan, summons have also been issued to former chairman and managing director of the bank, Yogesh Agarwal and other senior executive members and officials of both the organisations. - PTI

indulge in a broad fishing expedition which then becomes a reason for banks to get worried about making loans which then hamper the recovery as well as hamper the

A10

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016 We are unaware of the incident. Our Mujahideen had never been involved in it. We had neither held him (Shahbaz Taseer) nor recovered him Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson

PAKISTAN

Trade deficit widens 4.22% to $15b as exports decline The seven-month data showed that the country got a bonanza of $2.9 billion due to reduction in global crude oil prices.

Despite the huge benefit, the trade deficit ballooned due to massive decline in exports

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit worsened to $15.1 billion in the first eight months of the ongoing fiscal year, as the government failed to exploit opportunities in the shape of steep decline in global crude oil prices and duty-free status for its exports to the European markets.

The trade bulletin released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics on Friday showed the value of imports was more than double the value of exports for the second

STATISTICS: The trade bulletin released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics on Friday showed value of

imports was more than double the value of exports for the second month in a row. - Reuters file photo

month in a row. The trade deficit — gap between exports and imports — widened 4.22 per cent to $15.1 billion from July to February, reported the national datacollecting agency.

The trade deficit was $612 million higher than reported in the comparative period of the last fiscal year. It almost nullified the

$728 million gains Pakistan made due to increase in workers’ remittances during July-February.

The PBS would release the details of imports and exports for July-February later. However, the seven-month data showed that the country got a bonanza of $2.9 billion due to reduction in global crude oil prices. Despite the huge

benefit, the trade deficit ballooned due to massive decline in exports.

Pakistan is also availing the ‘Generalised System of Preference’ (GSP) Plus scheme from the European Union (EU) that allows it to export a range of products at virtually zero duty to the bloc of 27 nations. Despite this facility, textile exports during the first seven

months plunged by over 9 per cent to $7.4 billion.

From July through February, the exports nosedived to $13.87 billion, which were $2.12 billion or 13.3% less than the receipts in the comparative period of the last fiscal year, reported the PBS. A major reason behind the steep fall in exports was the absence of an enabling business environment, as the government has massively increased the cost of doing business by levying numerous indirect taxes.

The PML-N government has so far failed to announce a ‘threeyear strategic trade policy framework’ after the last one expired in June 2015.

The imports during July-February period contracted almost 5 per cent to $29 billion. The imports were $1.5 billion less than the comparative period. On annualised basis, the trade deficit also widened by 6.7 per cent to $1.5 billion in February. It was $95 million higher than the one posted in February last year, according to the PBS. The trade deficit widened due to 4.7 per cent reduction in exports and marginal growth in imports. On annualised basis, the exports stood at $1.8 billion in February, $89 less than the receipts in comparative period.

The imports last month stood at $3.3 billion, which were almost at January’s level.

For this year, the government has set the economic growth target at 5.5 per cent. – Express Tribune

REJECTED REPORTS

Afghan Taliban deny ‘rescuing’ Shahbaz Taseer ISLAMABAD: Afghan Taliban rejected on Saturday reports that they had rescued Shahbaz Taseer, son of slain governor Punjab Salman Taseer, in an operation.

A section of the Pakistani media had reported that the Taliban had recovered Shahbaz, who was kidnapped from Lahore in 2011, in Zabul province, where he had been held hostage by the insurgents.

“We are unaware of the incident.

Our Mujahideen had never been involved in it. We had neither held him (Shahbaz Taseer) nor recovered him,” Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said.

When asked about reports that the Taliban have issued a statement confirming the rumours, Mujahid told The Express Tribune, “This is baseless. We have not issued any statement as the issue does not relate to us and no question arises to comment on it,” he said.

The Taliban denial coincided with the issuance of an Interior Ministry report which said Shahbaz had not been rescued through any operation.

“The facts and evidence show that Shahbaz Taseer has not been recovered through any operation but the captors set him free on their own,” said the report presented to the interior minister on Saturday.

The Interior Ministry’s statement said that it is premature to suggest if Shahbaz was released after paying ransom.

“No institution has the right to take credit of the recovery,” the ministry said. - Express Tribune

B O O S T A G R I C U LT U R E P R O D U C T I O N

Nawaz Sharif directs steps to uplift agriculture sector ISLAMABAD: In an effort to boost the country’s agriculture production, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday directed the Ministry National Food Security and Research to start a consultative process involving various provincial governments and other stakeholders for expanding agriculture production base.

A notice issued by the Prime Minister Secretariat here said that the ministry concerned shall ensure that the consultative process is finalised in due course for approval and appropriate allocation of funds in the budget for 2016-17.

The notification further said that various issues have been keeping the agriculture sector under pressure and the plan will help develop an integrated framework for agriculture, with a view to achieve positive outcomes.

The document underlined these aspects including diversification in the agriculture sector by promoting new crops and modern techniques. Secondly, revitalising agriculture research institutions and re-establishing a national agriculture research system by synergising federal and provincial research institutions.

Additionally, the programme will also focus on the reorientation of agriculture research for development of better crop varieties in terms of yield and pest resistance.

The new system of research funding in the agriculture sector will focus on research output rather than investing in unnecessary employment. Likewise, the system will also look into measures for mitigating the impact of climate change on the agriculture sector and a long-term ground water pol-

icy aimed at ensuring available as well as efficient utilisation of this scarce resource.

Finally, the prime minister has also asked for consultation with stakeholders on a comprehensive framework for seed certification, fertiliser availability at affordable cost and regulation of pesticide business. An official in the food ministry said that Minister Sikander Hayat Khan Bosan had earlier requested the prime minister to increase budgetary allocation so that it can take certain steps for the long term development of the agriculture sector. The minister contended that since the devolution of the agriculture subject to the provinces, the federal budget had drastically reduced from multi-billion to just millions and provinces have shown their neglect towards this sector. - Express Tribune

TOIL: Farmers work around wheat threshers in Lahore on May 17, 2014. The new system of research

funding in the agriculture sector will focus on research output rather than investing in unnecessary employment. - AFP file photo POLICE CHIEF

AD Khawaja appointed new IG Sindh KARACHI: Following the Supreme Court’s order, the federal government announced on Saturday to remove Inspector General (IG) Ghulam Haider Jamali and appoint Allah Dino (AD) Khawaja as the new IG Sindh.

According to reports, the Sindh government had submitted names of three candidates for the post as the top police chief, of which AD Khawaja was selected to replace Jamali.

“The provincial government welcomed the newly appointed IG Sindh,” the government spokesperson said.

On Friday, the top court had directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to efficiently and expeditiously pursue an inquiry into corruption of Sindh police officers, including Ghulam Haider Jamali.

The larger bench, headed

by Justice Amir Hani Muslim, asked the country’s top antigraft watchdog to complete inquiries or investigation fairly, justly and strictly in accordance with the law, and submit a report within a month. Earlier this week, SC directed the provincial chief secretary to find out what action the government will take against officers found guilty of corruption, which includes the provincial police chief, otherwise the apex court will pass such orders. - Express Tribune

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

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US general sought greater powers before Afghan exit WASHINGTON: The US general who until last week commanded the NATO-led coalition in Afghanistan said on Friday he recommended broader scope for US military activity as the country fends off a resilient Taliban insurgency.

Army General John Campbell declined to disclose the specific powers he requested from President Barack Obama’s administration before he stepped down as part of a normal leadership transition. But he expressed a sense of urgency, “otherwise it’s not going to impact” the war in 2016.

“I’m not going to get more people. So the only way that I can impact is potentially change some of the authorities we have. So authorities deal with: what you can strike, what you can’t strike, at what levels you can do train, advise, assist,” Campbell told a group of reporters at the Pentagon.

“So I’ve asked for some modifications.” The incoming commander, General John Nicholson, will also get to weigh in on the matter, Campbell said. - Reuters

U N WA N T E D B I R D S

Rampant roosters rounded up in Sydney SYDNEY: Roosters running rampant in an Australian city were rounded up on Saturday in a campaign to curb the unwanted birds. The Tasmanian state capital of Hobart, and its southern fringe in particular, has been plagued by feral fowls for the past five or six years, according to resident and Southern Tasmanian Bantam Club secretary Steven Baldock.

“They’re crowing and carrying on,” Baldock said.

People who keep chickens for their eggs often abandoned roosters, which do not produce eggs, he said. “We’ve got people dumping them on the side of the road,” Baldock said.

An “amnesty” organised by the Bantam Club and the Royal Tasmanian Agricultural Society on Saturday to encourage people to hand in unwanted birds, no questions asked, resulted in more than 150 fowls being brought in, he said.

Some would be re-homed with breeders, while the rest would be euthanised. - Reuters

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North Korea has

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

denounced the exercises as ‘nuclear war moves’ and threatened to respond with an all-out offensive

POHANG (South Korea): US and South Korean troops staged a big amphibious landing exercise on Saturday, storming simulated North Korean beach defences amid heightened tension and threats by the North to annihilate its enemies.

The landing and assault drills on South Korea’s east coast were part of eight weeks of joint exercises between the allies which the South has said are the largest ever.

TAKING POSITION: South Korean (blue headbands) and US Marines take positions as amphibious assault vehicles of the South Korean Marine Corps fire smoke bombs during a US-South Korea joint landing operation drill in Pohang, South Korea,on Saturday. - Reuters

The North has denounced the exercises as “nuclear war moves” and threatened to respond with an all-out offensive.

Tension on the Korean peninsula has been high since the North conducted its fourth nuclear test in January and followed that with a long-range rocket launch last month, triggering new UN sanctions. About 55 US marine aircraft

and 30 US and South Korean ships, including the USS Bonhomme Richard and USS Boxer, which carry AV-8B Harrier attack jets and V-22 Osprey aircrafts, took part in the assault on beaches near Pohang city, the US navy said.

“They will penetrate notional enemy beach defences, establish a beach head, and rapidly transition forces and sustainment ashore,”

the US military based in South Korea said in a statement before the exercise.

The North’s military said it was prepared to counter the US and South Korean forces “with an ultra-precision blitzkrieg strike of the Korean style”.

“The revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK holding tightly the arms to annihilate the enemies with towering hatred for them are waiting for the dignified Supreme Command to issue an order to launch a preemptive strike of justice,” it said in comments carried by the state KCNA news agency.

Missing submarine DPRK stands for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. CNN reported on Saturday that North Korea has been searching for one of its submarines that has been missing for days off its east coast.

The submarine may be adrift un-

der the sea or have sunk, perhaps after a technical problem during an exercise, CNN quoted US officials with intelligence of secret US monitoring of the North’s activities as saying.

North Korea has said it is developing submarine-launched ballistic missiles although doubts about that were raised after Western experts said publicly released footage of tests appeared to be fake.

On Thursday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watched as his forces fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea.

This month the North conducted drills with what it said were newly developed large caliber rocket launchers. Kim has ordered the country to improve its nuclear attack capability by conducting more tests, in defiance of a UN Security Council resolution adopted last week in response to the isolated state’s latest nuclear test.

Kim also said his country had miniaturised nuclear warheads to mount on ballistic missiles, although the US and South Korean governments have expressed doubts about that too. - Reuters

R E G U L AT I O N S

China’s labour law under fire as restructuring threatens jobs BEIJING: China’s labour protections are coming under fire from high places as economic restructuring pits officials concerned about social stability against a lobby arguing inflexible policies are stifling job creation and suppressing wages.

Company executives, especially at foreign or private firms, have long been critical of labour contract legislation and minimum wage laws that make it difficult for owners of an ailing business to turn it around or find willing buyers. Now policymakers anxious to modernise China’s slowing economy and slash overcapacity in heavy industry are making similar noises.

The export powerhouse province of Guangdong, a trillion-dollar economy that often leads the

way on market reforms, said on Tuesday it would scrap scheduled rises to the local minimum wage in 2016, and keep it at 2015 levels — slightly over 1,500 yuan ($230) per month — through 2018.

Criticised On the same day, the official Xinhua media service highlighted comments by finance minister Lou Jiwei, who criticised China’s Labour Contract Law in a speech during the annual meeting of parliament. The law dates to 2008, when China had a reputation for sweatshops staffed by underpaid workers, an embarrassment for a ruling party that monopolised power in the name of socialism.

The law fixed a 40-hour working week for most employees, regulat-

ed maternity leave, and required businesses to be able to prove their case for sacking employees for incompetence or criminality or face heavy penalties.

Its standards aspire to those of developed economies, rather than emerging markets, though enforcement is weak. The EU, for example, limits the working week to 48 hours, while China’s maximum is about the same, after allowing up to 36 hours a month overtime.

Regulations say minimum wages should be between 40 and 60 per cent of the local average though in practice 30-40 per cent is typical - compared with about 30 per cent in the United States and 50 per cent in Britain.

Protections against dismissal are comparable to Japan’s. “The

Chinese government wanted the best, the most polished labour legislation they could find, and simply imposed it on an economy that couldn’t cope with it,” said Geoffrey Crothall, communications director at China Labour Bulletin.

Chinese wages have risen at double-digit rates since the 2008 act, so factory workers now earn significantly higher than competitors in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia, and some think labour protections are hampering an economic transformation that will benefit workers in the long run.

“For enterprises and employees, the extent of protection afforded by the Labour Contract Law is unbalanced,” Lou said, adding it encouraged companies to moves jobs from China to other coun-

tries. “Who eventually bears the costs? The working class who the law was intended to protect,” Lou said. Labour activists say the protections are still needed, and businesses often break labour law with impunity, especially if they have local government connections.

The Xinhua article was circulated in both Chinese and English with supportive comments from regulators, exciting speculation that changes to the law could be afoot. The timing could suit Beijing, which aims to reduce overcapacity in several industries, laying off an estimated 6 million workers at state-owned firms in the process. It wants to do so without a spike in unemployment or crimping domestic consumption, but strong labour protections make

companies unwilling to create new jobs or pay much for the jobs they do create.

Many economists say China has posted lacklustre business activity and investment figures — while official unemployment stays below 5 per cent — precisely because companies saddled with high wage bills and low profit margins can’t cut debt or invest.

“It’s better to support workers than supporting loss-making firms,” Li Yining, an economist at Peking University, said on the sidelines of the annual parliament meeting on Sunday. Local officials have reason to be cautious about diluting protections, however, as a rise in worker protests in their patch can be both physically dangerous and career limiting. -Reuters

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The end of globalisation?

C

hina has just announced that last year, for the first time since it began opening up its economy to the world at the end of the 1970s, exports declined on an annual basis. And that is not all; in value terms, global trade declined in 2015. The obvious question is why.

While global trade also fell in 2009, the explanation was obvious: The world was experiencing a sharp contraction in GDP at the time. Last year, however, the world economy grew by a respectable 3 per cent. Moreover, trade barriers have not risen significantly anywhere, and transport costs are falling, owing to the sharp decline in oil prices.

Tellingly, the so-called Baltic Dry Index, which measures the cost of chartering the large ships that carry most long-distance trade, has fallen to an all-time low. This indicates that markets do not expect a recovery, meaning that the data from 2015 could herald a new age of slowing trade. The obvious conclusion is that the once-irresistible forces of globalisation are losing steam.

The situation in China is telling. In recent decades, as it became the world’s leading trading economy, China transformed the global trading system.

Now the value of both imports and exports have fallen, though the former have declined more, owing to the collapse of global commodity prices.

In fact, commodity prices are the key to understanding trade trends over the last few decades.

When they were high, they drove increased trade — to the point that the share of trade to GDP rose — fueling hype about the inevitable progress of globalisation. But in 2012, commodity prices began to fall, soon bringing trade down with them.

Assume that one ton of steel and ten barrels of oil are needed to produce one car. In 20022003, that bundle of raw materials was worth around $800, or about 5 per cent of the value of a $16,000 car. This implies that, during the early 2000s, industrial countries had to export five cars for every one hundred bundles of these raw materials they imported.

By 2012-2013, the value of the raw materials needed for a car increased to about $2,000, about 10 per cent of the cost of the same car (prices of cars had increased by much less). Industrial countries thus had to export double, namely ten cars for the same amount of imports of raw materials.

Clearly, there is a direct link between the trends in trade and commodity prices (see figure). Given that this connection affects all manufactured goods that require raw material inputs, it should be no surprise that, as commodity prices have declined, so has global trade.

One might argue that this example concerns only the value of trade, and that in recent decades, the growth of trade by volume also has exceeded that of real GDP growth. But commodity prices affect trade volumes as well, because higher commodity prices force industrial countries to increase the volume of their exports (ten cars instead of five, in the example provided), in order to cover the costs of the same volume of raw material imports.

Because food, fuels, and raw materials comprise about a quarter of global trade, when their prices fluctuate — especially as strongly as they have in recent decades — aggregate trade figures are obviously affected. Given the massive drop in commodity prices lately, there is little need to seek any other explanation for the recent slowdown in trade.

This is not to say that globalisation and trade are one and the same. Globalisation entails many other features, including the surge in cross-border financial transactions and tourism, data exchange, and other economic activities.

In fact, these other interconnections have fed back into trade, as they have enabled the emergence of global value chains, whereby different steps of the production process occur in different countries.

But this phenomenon has been overestimated.

According to the World Trade Organisation, the foreign value-added contained in exports is only around 15 per cent for most large economies, such as the United States and the European Union. In other words, global value chains have little impact on these larger trading economies.

China is the only exception. Its position as an assembly platform for the world’s products meant that it imported most of the highest value-added elements of those goods. But as the country’s industrial structure matures — Chinese-assembled iPhones now contain more Chinese-made parts than they did just a few years ago — it will move closer to the US and the EU in value-added terms, not the other way around.

This is yet another reason why trade might diminish in importance.

When something is widely hyped, there is nearly always a real reason for it.

Most economies are more open today than they were a generation ago.

But it is now becoming clear that the perception that globalisation is some overwhelming and inexorable force largely reflected the side effects of the last decade’s commodity boom. If prices remain low, as seems likely, the next decade might well see global trade stagnate, as the trade pattern “rebalances” from emerging economies to the established industrial powers. - Project Syndicate.

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PICTOGRAPH CHINA: OMAN’S OIL TOP BUYER In January, Oman exported more than 27 million oil barrels, of which, China buyed almost the 90%

Ministry launches human resources information project MUSCAT: The Civil Service Ministry yesterday announced the start of the implementation stage of the human resources information system project. The announcement was made during a seminar attended

by Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Mattar Al Azizi, civil service minister, and senior ministry officials. The project director explained what has already been achieved in it, the most important activities in the implementation plan, the factors which guarantee the success of the project and the mechanisms to implement it. This project is among the vital projects to which the ministry attaches great importance as it links all government units and enables these units to utilise the data which assist in planning process and decision making.

Total oil exports

27,327,500

TODAY IN HISTORY INVITATION TO WRITERS We invite our readers to write articles on topics related to Oman. The articles should not exceed 800 words.

Send us your article along with your picture to akhtar@timesofoman.com

Taiwan

South Korea

998,900 500,500

1881: Russia’s Czar Alexander II is assassinated 1940: Finland capitulates conditionally to Soviet terms, but maintains its independence.

1985 Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the new leader of USSR. 1991: Exxon pays $1 billion in fines and costs for the clean-up of the Alaskan oil spill.

China

Singapore

Other countries

24,420,300

606,300

801,500

Source National Centre for Statistics & Information

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

A1 3

WORLD ALABAMA

Riot breaks out at US prison centre

FLOODS IN BRAZIL

A flooded amusement park is seen in the city of Franco da Rocha, in the north of Sao Paulo state, Brazil, on Friday. — Reuters

BIRMINGHAM (US): A riot broke out at a prison in southern Alabama, authorities said on Saturday, and a local news website said inmates had set fires and overturned beds.

An unidentified dispatcher with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the disturbance at the Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, about 50 miles (80 km) north of Mobile, but declined to give details about the situation.

It was unclear what caused the riot and whether there were any casualties. “We are not taking any calls,” said a woman who answered the phone at the prison. She then hung up.

Setting fires News website Al.com posted photos and a video it said showed prisoners setting fires and roaming freely in the facility.

Several inmates covered their faces with white towels in the video, which appeared to have been shot by an inmate.

The website said prisoners were using social media to report that “gates are rolled up” and that they had overturned beds. — Reuters

Google software in Go game series win over title holder But Lee, 33, had been expected to put up stiffer competition than the player defeated then.

The victory for the AlphaGo programme, designed by Google subsidiary DeepMind, over South Korean professional player Lee Sedol, the holder of 18 international titles, underscored advances in artificial intelligence DEBACLE: The world’s top Go player Lee Sedol reviews the match after the third match of the Google

DeepMind Challenge Match against Google’s artificial intelligence program AlphaGo in Seoul, South Korea on Saturday. — Reuters/Google/Yonhap

SEOUL: Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) programme on Saturday took a 3-0 lead in a five-match series against one of the world’s top players of the complicated board game Go. The victory for the AlphaGo programme, designed by Google subsidiary DeepMind, over South Korean professional player Lee

Sedol, the holder of 18 international titles, has surprised many, including its designers and has underscored advances in AI. “I am very sorry for the powerless display,” a dejected Lee told reporters in the South Korean capital, Seoul, after his defeat.

“Though I have a lot of experience in Go I have never felt before such severe pressure as I do now, and I suppose my abilities were a bit lacking to overcome that.”

Go, most popular in countries such as China, South Korea and Japan, involves two contestants

POTENTIAL SUICIDE

‘Rocker Keith Emerson died from self-inflicted gunshot’ NEW YORK: British-born keyboardist Keith Emerson of the 1970’s progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer died from a self-inflicted single gunshot to his head, police said Friday.

He was 71.

Emerson’s body was found by local police at his Santa Monica, California, home in the early hours of Friday.

Police have preliminarily ruled the death a potential suicide, Santa Monica police spokesman Sergeant Rudy Camarena told Reuters.

Born in 1944 in the Yorkshire village of Todmorden, Emerson was a keyboardist for a number of groups in the 1960’s, including The Nice. But he was best known as a founding member of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, a so-called “super group” of well-known rock musicians formed in 1970.

In addition to Emerson, the band included bassist Greg Lake, formerly of King Crimson, and drummer and percussionist Carl

Keith Emerson

Palmer, a veteran of several famous English bands.

“Keith was a gentle soul whose love for music and passion for his performance as a keyboard player will remain unmatched for many years to come,” said Palmer on his website.

Keith Emerson was best known as a founding member of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, a so-called ‘super group’ of well-known rock musicians formed in 1970

“He was a pioneer and an innovator whose musical genius touched all of us in the worlds of rock, classical and jazz.”

The band posted about Emerson’s passing on Facebook, asking “that the family’s privacy and grief be respected.” — Reuters

moving black and white stones on a square grid, with the aim of seizing the most territory.

Experts did not expect an artificial intelligence programme to beat a human professional for at least a decade, until AlphaGo beat a player last year.

Speechless “To be honest we are a bit stunned and speechless,” said DeepMind founder Demis Hassibis, who earlier tweeted that AlphaGo’s victory was a “historic moment.” Google executives say Go offers too many possible moves for a machine to win simply through brute-force calculations, unlike chess, in which IBM’s Deep Blue famously beat former world champion Garry Kasparov in 1997.

Instead, they said, AlphaGo has sought to approximate human intuition, by studying old matches and using simulated games to hone itself independently.

Lee had initially expected to win the series, even if he were to lose a match or two.

Two more matches will be played - on Sunday and Tuesday.

Not perfect He said AlphaGo was not perfect and had weaknesses, although he did not elaborate on them, holding out hope that someone might beat it.

“Lee Sedol is the one who lost today, not humanity,” he said.

A top player in China fancies his chances. — Reuters

D I S QUA L I F I C AT I O N S

Peruvians hold demo against poll frontrunner LIMA: Thousands of Peruvians marched in downtown Lima on Friday to demand the electoral board bar presidential frontrunner Keiko Fujimori from next month’s vote after it disqualified two of her rivals in an unprecedented move that has shaken the race.

Protesters said the centre-right politician should be thrown from the race because pictures and video show her and a running mate handing out gifts and prizes at rallies in possible violation of a new law against vote-buying.

Electoral authorities are investigating the accusations.

Keiko, the 40-year-old daughter of imprisoned ex-president Alberto Fujimori, has dismissed the accusations as “absurd.”

Her press officer did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside regular working hours.

One of Keiko’s rivals was thrown out of the race on Wednesday for giving cash to poor voters while campaigning.

Her biggest obstacle to winning, Julio Guzman, was disqualified because his party did not comply with electoral procedures - a decision he called “fraud” that threatens to tarnish the legacy of the next president. The electoral board has denied wrongdoing or political bias. — Reuters

A 14

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Merkel’s migrant policy to be tested in German state polls Merkel’s Christian Democrats have been losing support to the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party, which has profited from popular angst about migrants

BERLIN: With a passionate defence of her migrant policy, Chancellor Angela Merkel threw herself into one last campaign push on the eve of “Super Sunday” elections in three German states that risk weakening her.

Migration is the touchstone issue in the three votes — two in western states, and one in the east — with many people worried how Germany can cope with a refugee crisis that saw over 1 mil-

CRUNCH VOTE: Angela Merkel, German Chancellor addresses a Baden-Wuerttemberg state election

campaign rally in Haigerloch, Germany on Saturday, ahead of Sunday’s regional elections in three states. Words read ‘Its about the country’. — Reuters

lion migrants arrive in the country last year.

Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) have been losing support to the anti-

immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has profited from popular angst about migrants after her highrisk decision last year to open

Germany’s borders to refugees fleeing war in Syria.

“There are situations in life and this was the case last autumn — when you can’t hold a long de-

bate on principles,” Merkel said, defending her decision. “People are suddenly there and need protection,” she told a CDU rally in Baden-Wuerttemberg, one of the three states voting on Sunday.

Already represented in five of Germany’s 16 regional parliaments, the AfD looks set to burst into three more on Sunday, campaigning on slogans such as “Secure the borders! Stop the asylum chaos!” Now Merkel, in power since 2005 and facing a federal election next year, is trying to secure a Europe-wide solution to stem the flow of refugees.

In Baden-Wuerttemberg, a CDU stronghold for over 50 years before turning to a Greenled coalition with the Social Democrats after Japan’s Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, the Greens’ state premier is poised to pip his CDU rival.

In Saxony-Anhalt in the east, the CDU is poised to remain the largest party but polls put the AfD on as much as 19 per cent support, and ahead of the Social Democrats (SPD), Merkel’s coalition partner in Berlin.

Asked how she would prepare for the election results, Merkel told Saturday’s rally: “I will cross my fingers.” — Reuters

P O L L A FT E R M AT H

US accuses Uganda of rights violations NAIROBI: Uganda has persistently violated the rights of its citizens and media in the aftermath of last month’s presidential election which saw President Yoweri Museveni retain his hold on power, the United States said.

US State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement on Friday that Uganda’s repeated detention of opposition figures and harassment of their supporter.

“The United States and Uganda have a long standing and strong partnership that has contributed to the stability and prosperity of the region,” the statement said.”We are concerned that the Ugandan government’s recent actions could endanger the economic and political progress that has enabled our relationship to grow.”

Uganda’s electoral commission declared Museveni, 71 and in power since 1986, the winner of the February 18 election with 60 per cent of the vote.

House arrest Kizza Besigye, who came in second with 35 per cent and has rejected the results as fraudulent, has been under virtual house arrest for weeks. — Reuters

HELPING HAND

An employee feeds a one-month-old African grey parrot at the Royev Ruchey zoo in a surburb of Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Russia, on Friday. — Reuters

CONSTITUTIONAL ROW

Attackers throw bomb at Kosovo president’s office PRISTINA: Masked assailants broke windows and threw a petrol bomb at the office of Kosovo’s president on Saturday but failed to set fire to the building, police said.

No one claimed responsibility for the 4 am attack in the centre of the capital Pristina, which the government condemned as “dangerous for the constitutional order and the country’s stability.”

Kosovo is facing a political crisis, with the opposition denouncing an EU-brokered deal with Serbia to give more rights to local Serbs. The issue is highly emotive, eight years after Kosovo declared independence from Belgrade and less than two decades after a war that drew in NATO. “Masked people have hurled a petrol bomb at the president’s office,” the police said in a statement. “They broke the window with stones but failed to throw the petrol bomb inside and the bottle hit the wall.” The office was empty at the time and no one was injured. Part of a wall facing a busy road was blackened by smoke from the burning petrol.

Police were working to identify a white car they suspected was used by the assailants.

The office is used by outgoing President Atifete Jahjaga and will be taken over by newly elected president Hashim Thaci next month. Opposition lawmakers, angry at the deal with Serbia, released teargas in Kosovo’s parliament and protesters outside threw petrol bombs in an unsuccessful attempt to block Thaci’s election last month.

Police are investigating similar attacks in recent weeks in which private cars of government ministers were burned.

The opposition, which is de-

Opposition lawmakers, angry at the deal with Serbia, released teargas in Kosovo’s parliament and protesters outside threw petrol bombs in an unsuccessful attempt to block Hashim Thaci’s election last month

manding the resignation of the government and a snap election, has denied it is behind these attacks. They have called fresh protests on March 26.

Kosovo declared independence in 2008, almost a decade after NATO air strikes drove out Serbian security forces accused of killing and expelling ethnic Albanian civilians during a counter-insurgency war.

Repeated attacks Opposition parties have repeatedly released tear gas in parliament in protest at the deal with Serbia and its supporters have thrown petrol bombs at government and parliament buildings including the private house of Prime Minister Isa Mustafa. In January they set a government building on fire. — Reuters

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

A1 5

WORLD Tens of thousands rally to demand Polish government respect charter Poland’s constitutional court said on Wednesday that the government’s decision to increase number of its judges needed to make rulings was illegal

WARSAW: Tens of thousands of Poles marched through Warsaw on Saturday demanding their government respect the constitution, in an escalation of a confrontation

FURIOUS: People hold a giant Polish national flag as they take part

in a march demanding their government to respect the country’s constitution in Warsaw, Poland, on Saturday. — Reuters

pitting the opposition, the country’s top court and the EU against the ruling conservatives.

Waving Polish and EU flags and chanting “constitution”, the

W E S T E R N I N F I LT R AT I O N F E A R E D

Former employee

of French embassy arrested in Tehran DUBAI: A former employee of the French embassy in Tehran has been arrested at the airport after arriving in Iran to visit her critically ill mother, the opposition website Kalemeh reported on Saturday.

Nazak Afshar, 58, who has French-Iranian citizenship, had previously been arrested in 2009 on charges of spying and of acting against Iran’s national security.

Although she was put on trial at the time, no verdict was issued and she was freed following the intervention of the French government. She left the country the same year.

Nazak had travelled to Iran to visit her mother after “doctors had given up hope of her recovery”, the website said, without giving details of the ailment.

The potential opening up to the West after last year’s nuclear deal has alarmed Iranian conservatives and the arrest of Nazak and the detention of other people with dual citizenship appear to be part of a crackdown on what some officials have called Western infiltration.

Siamak Namazi, a dual U.S.Iranian citizen, was detained

by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in October while visiting family.

Baquer Namazi, Siamak’s 80-year-old father who is also a dual citizen, was arrested in February on his arrival in Tehran.

Nazak Afshar, 58, who has FrenchIranian citizenship, had previously been arrested in 2009 on charges of spying and of acting against Iran’s national security

An Iranian-British former BBC journalist, Bahman Daroshafaei, was also detained in February but was released on bail three weeks later.

Officials have yet to announce charges against them but Iran’s judiciary spokesman said last month that most of the detained dual nationals face espionage charges.

Iran does not recognise dual nationality.

Tehran released four IranianAmericans and one other U.S. citizen in January in a prisoner swap with the United States, which granted clemency to seven Iranians and dropped arrest orders for 14 others. — Reuters

IVORY COAST FESTIVAL

A model presents a creation by Ivorian designer Momotche outside the palais de la culture in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, on March 11, 2016 during the 9th edition of the MASA festival (Market For African Performing Arts. — AFP

crowds on the opposition rally called on the government to recognise a court ruling against divisive legal reforms.

The eurosceptic Law and Jus-

tice (PiS) party has faced growing criticism from the European Union, the United States and rights groups since it swept to power in October and increased controls on media and other institutions.

Poland’s constitutional court said on Wednesday that the government’s decision to increase the number of its judges needed to make rulings was illegal, deepening a crisis that has stirred concerns about democracy and the rule of law in the EU’s largest eastern member.

Critics say the reforms, which also change the order in which cases are heard at the top court, have made it difficult for judges to review, let alone challenge, the government’s legislation. But the government on Saturday repeated its refusal to publish the constitutional court’s ruling in an official journal, saying the ruling itself was illegal and effectively leaving the court order in legal limbo.

It has argued the constitutional court is too powerful, allied to the last administration and deter-

mined to block reforms the party was elected to push through — charges dismissed by the court and rights groups. Large crowds gathered in front of a large banner reading “bring back the constitutional order” at the top court building, then marched towards the presidential palace in Warsaw’s old town, filling a large part of the 3-km route.

In a Twitter entry, a city official put the number of protesters at more than 50,000, though that figure could not be confirmed independently.

“Years ago, Poles protested to change the political system,” former World Bank economist Ryszard Petru, leader of the liberal opposition Modern party, told the crowds, referring to Poland’s anticommunist Solidarity movement.

“Now we’re protesting to make sure they don’t suddenly change it.” — Reuters

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WORLD

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Trump blames ‘thugs’ for cancelled Chicago event US presidential election race’s Chicago event on Friday was cancelled after it turned chaotic, with scuffles breaking out between protesters and backers of the Republican frontrunner

CHICAGO: US Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Saturday blamed organised “thugs” for protests that shut down his Chicago rally and said the incident had “energised America.”

Trump, who will be at a campaign rally in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday, cancelled the Chicago event on Friday after it turned chaotic, with scuffles breaking out between protesters and backers of the real estate magnate.

“The organised group of people, many of them thugs, who shut down our First Amendment rights in Chicago, have totally energised America!” Trump said on Twitter.

The First Amendment to the US Constitution protects freedom of speech and assembly.

The Chicago rally came ahead of five primary elections on Tuesday, including contests in Ohio and Illinois. Trump has drawn fervent support as well as criticism for his calls to build a wall along the USMexico border and to impose a

CHAOTIC SCENES: A Trump supporter, right, yells at a demonstrator, left, after Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump cancelled his rally at the University of Illinois at Chicago on Friday. — Reuters

temporary ban on Muslims entering the country. His rallies often attract small groups of protesters, but Friday’s was the first at which there may have been as many protesters as supporters.

Asked by CNN interviewer Don Lemon if he would take back anything he had said, Trump said: “Now, getting back to before tonight, when I talked about illegal immigration, I have no regrets

whatsoever. If I didn’t bring up illegal immigration, it wouldn’t even be a subject of the campaign,” he added.

At the University of IllinoisChicago stadium rally the two sides shouted at each other until a Trump staffer appeared and said the event would be put off until an unspecified date for security reasons. Police said five people were arrested, including CBS News reporter Sopan Deb. Two officers were injured, with one requiring stitches, police said.

The cancellation followed an appearance by Trump in St. Louis

on Friday during which protests forced him to halt his speech repeatedly. Republican rival candidates Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio both called the incident “sad” and said the protesters should have let the rally happen.

Trump has a significant lead in primary contests over the three remaining Republicans vying for the White House. He is looking to cement it on Tuesday.

Ohio Governor John Kasich, also battling Trump, told reporters before a campaign event in Cincinnati that Trump had “created a toxic environment.” — Reuters

B I D T O L E AV E U K

Nationalists plan new push for Scottish independence GLASGOW: The Scottish National Party (SNP) will start building a new case for independence from the United Kingdom this summer, party leader and Scottish government head Nicola Sturgeon said on Saturday.

She said, however, that a second Scottish referendum after the one the party lost in September 2014 would not take place quickly.

“We want to be in the driving seat of our own destiny,” Sturgeon told 3,000 delegates at the SNP’s spring conference.

“We will not achieve our dream of independence just by wishing that the outcome of the referendum had been different.

“Or wishing we could do it all again next week.”

“This summer the SNP will embark on a new initiative to build support for independence,” she said, to a standing ovation.

Senior British politicians have said that if Britain votes to leave the European Union in a June vote but Scots show they want to stay, this could provide a trigger for a second Scottish secessionist drive.

Success would depend on the strength of the arguments for independence this time around, she said, a nod to the fact that some party insiders have criticised the last campaign for being too dependent on the value of North Sea oil.

Scots voted 55 to 45 per cent against independence in 2014, but the collapse of the Labour and the Conservative parties vaulted the SNP to unprecedented gains in the British election in 2015, where it won almost all the seats assigned to Scotland in the parliament at Westminster. — Reuters

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B MALAYSIA SET TO APPOINT NEW CENTRAL BANK CHIEF A top Malaysian Finance Ministry official is set to be appointed as central bank governor next week, said a report. Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah will replace Zeti Akhtar Aziz as central bank chief. - Reuters

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Orpic completes $3.8b funding for Liwa Plastics Industries with the scheduled commencement of works on the project construction packages. Commissioning for the Liwa Plastic Industries Complex project is scheduled to be completed in 2020.

Financing has been supported by export credit agencies representing the governments of Italy, the Netherlands, Korea, the UK and Germany, along with 19 global, regional and local lenders

Musab Al Mahruqi, Chief executive officer, Orpic– Supplied picture

GIANT LEAP: Orpic had announced the successful award of engineering, procurement and construction contracts to deliver its landmark Liwa Plastics Industries Project. – File picture

Times News Service

Commenting on the significance of LPIC’s project financing, Orpic chief executive officer Musab Al Mahruqi said, “Orpic’s LPIC project is part of our longterm growth strategy to firmly enter into the petrochemical market.

This financing facility, which is the largest ever project financing transaction to be achieved in the Sultanate, is an indication of the level of confidence and support Orpic has from key institutions and stakeholders.”

Liwa Plastics Industries Complex financing has been supported by export credit agencies

representing the governments of Italy (SACE Cdp), the Netherlands (Atradius Dutch State Business), Korea (K-Exim and K-Sure), the United Kingdom (UKEF) and Germany (Euler Hermes), along with 19 international, regional and local commercial lenders.

MUSCAT: State-owned Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company (Orpic) said that the company has closed its Liwa Plastics Industries Complex’s $3.8 billion project financing facility for its $6.5 billion project.

This follows Orpic’s December 2015 announcement of the successful award of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts to deliver its landmark Liwa Plastics Industries Project (LPIC), according to a press statement.

NEW PROJECT

lead arrangers Mandated lead arrangers and arrangers of the LPIC project financing were Arab Banking Corporation, BankDhofar, Bank Muscat, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, BNP Paribas Fortis, Cassadepositi e prestitis, CréditIndustriel et Com-

mercial, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Export Development Canada, HSBC Bank, ING Bank (a branch of ING-DIBA), JPMorgan Chase Bank, KfW IPEX-Bank, Korea Development Bank, NATIXIS, Saudi National Commercial Bank, Société Générale, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and UniCredit.

“Liwa Plastic Industries Complex represents a robust and resilient project to lenders – satisfying the highest international environment and social requirements, and provides appropriate frameworks to address each of the technical,

commercial and legal challenges which customarily arise on major world-scale petrochemical projects. The company has been able to successfully secure financing amid challenging global financial and economic conditions and with limited government guarantees which reflects the trust that international financing institutions have placed on the project and the investment climate within the Sultanate,” added Al Mahruqi.

Orpic completed the financing of Liwa Plastic Industries Complex on a highly accelerated timetable, which was designed to coincide

Global plastics market Upon commissioning in 2020, Orpic’s Liwa Plastics Industries Complex Project will transform Orpic’s product mix and business model, double company profit, create new business opportunities, generate significant employment opportunities and support the development of a downstream plastics industry in Oman.

With the global market for plastics growing, the $6.5 billion Liwa Plastics Industries Complex will firmly establish Orpic as a recognised player in the international petrochemicals marketplace – enabling Oman, for the first time, to produce polyethylene, the form of plastic that rates highest in terms of global demand and increased the current production of polypropylene.

Following commissioning, plastics production is forecast to increase by more than 1 million tons, giving Orpic a total of 1.4 million tons of polyethylene and polypropylene production.

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ECONOMY

Sultanate to sign deal for temporary water projects

Al Bashair plans to invest OMR37m in red meat project

Times News Service MUSCAT: Al Bashair Meat Company, which aims to provide fresh red meat to cover the shortage in local production, will invest OMR37 million during the initial stages of the project.

The new company, which hopes to achieve self-sufficiency by using state-of-the-art technology and business operations, said the shortage of red meat currently stands at 80 per cent.

The company’s founding assembly recently held its first meeting under the chairmanship of Dr Rashid bin Salim Al Masrouri, chairman of the Founding Committee and chairman of the Oman Food Investment Holding Company.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the funds and the investment companies investing in the project — Oman Food Investment Holding Company, Oman National Investments Development Company, Oman Investment Corporation, Civil Service Pension Fund and Arab Agriculture Development and Investment Authority.

The meeting discussed a report of the founding committee on the measures adopted to incorporate the company, a study on the cost of incorporation and getting approval, the election of new company board members, the appointment of auditors and fixing their fees for the first year.

Mohammed bin ObaidAl Mazroui, chairman of the Arab Authority for Investment and Agricultural Development said the authority

The new company, which hopes to achieve self-sufficiency by using state-of-the-art technology, said the shortage of red meat in the country is 80 per cent at the moment.

INFLATION EASES: Under the food and beverages sub-group, bread and cereals went down by 0.11

is considering several investment projects, such as dairy production collection and a manufacturing project in the Governorate of Dhofar, a project for the production of vegetables using hydroponic technology and a project for chicken.

Food security Mohammed bin Salim Al Awaid, representative of the Oman National Animal Wealth Development at the Al Bashair Meet Company said the project is a translation of the government’s directives and ambitious plans to achieve food security and added value for the Omani economy.

Moreover, the project will generate job opportunities for Omanis, he added.

Saleh bin Mohammed Al Shanfari, member of the founding committee and chief executive officer of Oman Food Investment Holding said the company will continue the initiatives in food security, especially in the projects that will enhance the Sultanate’s position as a hub for food products manufacturing and production. - ONA

per cent, while fish and seafood saw prices falling by 1.08 per cent. - ONA

Oman’s inflation drops marginally in February MUSCAT: Oman’s inflation, based on consumer price index (CPI), fell by 0.07 per cent in February from January this year, while on a year-on-year basis, it increased 0.32 per cent, according to latest data published by the National Centre for Statistics and Information.

The food and beverages (nonalcoholic) set carrying a weight of nearly 24 per centin the CPI basket led the monthly fall with a price slump of 1.36 per cent, which was slightly offset by rising prices of the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels subset (with a weight of over 26 per cent) at 0.03 per cent.

Under the food and beverages

set, bread and cereals went down by 0.11 per cent, while fish and seafood saw prices fall by 1.08 per cent.

Prices of meat, and milk, cheese and eggs subsets rose by 0.15 per centand 0.08 per centrespectively in February 2016 compared to January 2016 prices.

Oils and fats rise Oils and fats rose 0.11 per cent, while a price fall was recorded in the fruits and vegetables subsets at 2.93 per centand 8.95 per centrespectively. Sugar, honey and confectionary subset prices increased 0.05 per cent, while non-alcoholic beverages rose by 0.14 per cent.

Tobacco went up 0.04 per cent, while clothing and footwear, and furnishing, household appliances and maintenance sets logged a price fall of 0.05 per centand 0.35 per centrespectively in February compared with January.

Prices stabilised in the health, education and communication sets over the period, even as transport prices hiked by 1.32 per cent. Recreation and culture turned more affordable by 0.07 per cent, while restaurants and hotels became costlier by 0.07 per cent.

Prices of other goods and services increased 0.17 per centin February compared to the previous month. - ONA

MUSCAT: Oman Power and Water Procurement Company, the sole procurer of all new power generation and water desalination capacity in the Sultanate, will sign a water purchase agreement to establish the Qurayyat and Aseelah temporary desalination plants with Muscat Water at a ceremony to be held on Monday, according to a press release.

The total potable water output of Qurayyat plant is 8,000 cubic metres per day (1.76 million gallon per day) whereas total potable water output of Aseelah plant is 10,000 cubic metres per day (2.2 million gallon per day).

The projects will be structured as Independent Water Projects (IWPs) with OPWP purchasing the potable water produced by the project under a water purchase agreement. The scope of the project, which will be located in Qurayyat in Muscat governorate and Jalan Bani Bu Ali in Sharqiyah South governorate, includes the design, construction, ownership, operation and maintenance of a high efficiency reverse osmosis desalination facilities.

Aqua Swiss holds 70 per cent stake in Muscat Water while Al Sulaimi Group Holding holds 30 per cent. Both projects are due to begin operations by mid-2016.

A few days ago, Oman Power and Water Procurement signed OMR115 million ($300 million) agreements to establish the Barka Desalination Company.

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MARKET NAT U R A L G A S

US rejects large scale Jordan gas export proposal NEW YORK: United States regulators rejected Veresen’s multibillion-dollar proposal to build a terminal in the US state of Oregon that would export as many as two tankers of natural gas a week. They also denied its plan to a build a pipeline with Williams Partners to supply gas to the terminal.

Williams and Veresen failed to demonstrate that the pipeline’s benefits would outweigh the “adverse effects on landowners,” the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has said in an order denying authorisation. And without a pipeline supplying gas, the Jordan Cove export terminal “can provide no benefit to the public to counterbalance” the impacts associated with its construction, the agency said.

The rejection throws into question the future of a project that has waited almost three years for regulatory approval. A worldwide glut of liquefied natural gas is meanwhile emerging, threatening the economics of such export terminals in the US. As much as half of the nation’s LNG export capacity is at risk of being shut between 2017 and 2020, according to the research and consulting group Wood Mackenzie.

“Jordan Cove was one of the few projects off the West Coast we would have expected to move forward,” Het Shah, an analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance in New York, said by e-mail late Friday. The terminal would have “brought much-needed relief” to gas markets in Western Canada and the Rockies by creating another outlet for the region’s production, he said.

Extremely surprised Calgary-based Veresen said in a statement that it was “extremely surprised and disappointed” by the decision and plans to request

a rehearing on it. “We will continue to advance negotiations with customers to address this concern,” Don Althoff, the company’s chief executive officer, said.

Williams, based in Oklahoma City, didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

While Veresen has estimated in previous presentations that the Jordan Cove terminal would cost $5.3 billion, a report issued by the federal energy commission’s staff last year estimated construction would total about $3 billion.

Shale boom Jordan Cove is not the first terminal to have been rejected by the federal energy commission, but it may be the first export project to be denied since the US shale boom touched off a flurry of applications to send natural gas abroad. The commission had approved at least seven export plans as of January 6 and was weighing applications for nine more, including Jordan Cove, reports on its website show.

Veresen had proposed to build four “trains,” or LNG production plants, at Jordan Cove that would have been capable of making 6.8 million metric tonnes of LNG a year. The 373-kilometre, $1.74 billion Pacific Connector gas pipeline proposed to supply the plant would have been owned by Veresen and Williams Partners.

The project has been mired in regulatory setbacks since it was first proposed, from delays over a state water permit to the extension of its public commenting period. “The more adverse impact a project would have on a particular interest, the greater the showing of need and public benefits required to balance the adverse impact,” the federal energy commission said in its order on Friday. - Bloomberg News

CREDIT GROWS: According to the Central Bank of Oman, construction sector received OMR2,89.4 million credit, with a share of 11.4 per

cent. The service sector received OMR1,500.8 million, with 8.2 per cent share. – Times file picture

Bank credit in Oman grows 8.4 per cent to OMR18.32b Personal loans were OMR7,333.9m, which shows a 40% share in total commercial credit, according to the Central Bank of Oman

MUSCAT: Total bank credit of commercial banks in the Sultanate by the end of December 2015 amounted to OMR18,316.4 million compared to OMR16,898.4 million during the same period of 2014, an increase of 8.4 per cent.

A quarterly bulletin issued by the Research and Statistics Department of the Central Bank of

Oman (CBO) said that the personal loan disbursement was OMR7,333.9 million, which indicates 40 per cent of the total commercial loan. The construction sector received OMR2,89.4 million, with a share of 11.4 per cent. The service sector received OMR1,500.8 million, with 8.2 per cent share, followed by the indus-

trial sector at OMR1,458.1 million, with 8 per cent.

The bulletin pointed out that the import sector received OMR1,78.6 million, with 5.9 per cent. Transport and Communications sector got OMR999.9 million, with 5.5 percent. The financial institutions sector received OMR920.7 million, with a share of 5 per cent.

The mining sector (mining and quarrying) got OMR808.4 million, with 4.4 per cent.

The electricity, gas and water sector received OMR758.4 million, showing a share of 4.1 per cent.

The wholesale and retail trade sector got OMR631.9 million, with 3.5 per cent, followed by agriculture and related activities sector, which got OMR57.6 million, with

0.3 per cent. The export sector got OMR13.8 million, with 0.1 per cent, followed by the government sector at OMR12.1 million, by 0.1 per cent.

The bulletin said that the size of the bank credit in the Sultanate for other economic activities amounted to OMR460.3 million, a growth of 2 per cent, while bank credit for non-residents amounted to OMR192.5 million, by 1.1 per cent of the total volume of bank credit. - ONA

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TECHNOLOGY

Marissa hopes to lead Yahoo even if firm changes hands CALIFORNIA: Marissa Mayer is hopeful of keeping her job leading Yahoo! even if the struggling Web pioneer changes hands.

Under pressure from investors and facing a potential proxy fight, the chief executive officer has pledged to do what’s best for shareholders as Yahoo reviews alternatives for separating its core Internet business from a stake in Alibaba Group. There are many viable options for splitting the company, Mayer said during an interview on Thursday on the ‘Charlie Rose Show’.

Those included being acquired by a strategic buyer or private equity, along with a reverse-spin to extricate the core Web operations from its Chinese holdings. “I certainly hope the strategic alternative has a place for me,” she said.

“But that said, we’ll obviously honor our commitments to our shareholders.”

Mayer is considering strategic options for the company even as she tries to drive a turnaround with a new plan for sparking growth. Activist investor Starboard Value, which has been critical of her efforts to restore growth and boost shareholder returns, has taken initial steps for a potential proxy fight that could recast the board with new directors, people familiar with the matter said last month.

STRATEGIC OPTIONS: Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is considering

strategic options for the company even as she tries to drive a turnaround with a new plan for sparking growth. – Bloomberg News

Yahoo’s future “The primary issue is Yahoo, our technology, the employees, the services, the end-users -- how do we get that to the best possible place for Yahoo and find it the best possible future,” she said. “I’m secondary to that.”

Mayer expressed confidence in the turnaround plan, saying she can see success coming closer though most similar efforts can take five to seven years.

Mayer said that, among other options, Yahoo going private may give her the opportunity to drive new recovery plans away from public scrutiny.

The company has said the turn-

around includes cutting costs to drive efficiency and invest in more promising opportunities.

Yahoo announced Friday it would shut down Livetext, a messaging app, at the end of the month. The service, which was rolled out with fanfare last year, enabled users to communicate via video — without audio — and text.

The company will incorporate the ‘learnings and features’ into products including Yahoo Messenger, she said.

Yahoo also said it was closing regional media properties, including the astrology service in countries such as France and India. – Bloomberg News

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

B3

MARKET ECONOMY

China factory output growth rate eases BEIJING: China’s industrial production and retail sales slowed in the first two months of the year, highlighting the pressure leaders will face to meet this year’s annual growth target even as the central bank governor said major stimulus wasn’t needed.

Industrial output rose 5.4 per cent from a year earlier in January and February, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Saturday, compared to the 5.6 per cent median estimate of economists surveyed. Retail sales climbed 10.2 per cent from a year earlier, missing the 11 per cent projected gain in the survey, while fixed-asset investment exceeded estimates with a 10.2 per cent increase.

The reports highlight the choice facing policy makers: step up monetary and fiscal stimulus and build up more debt, or let the nation’s industrial engines slow further while reducing overcapacity in the steel, cement and coal sectors.

Steel output fell in the two-month period, while aluminum output tumbled 7.7 per cent, Saturday’s reports showed.

Growth profile gloomy “The overall growth profile remains still gloomy,” said Zhou Hao, an economist at Commerzbank AG in Singapore.

“The mix of data give us a worrying picture. Activity data remained weak while inflation and property prices are turning around.”

Speaking at a briefing just before the data release, People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan sought to project an aura of calm about the economy, saying that the government will be able to meet its target of at least 6.5 per cent growth over the next five years.

“Excessive monetary policy stimulus isn’t necessary to achieve the target,” Zhou said, reiterating past comments that monetary policy is prudent with a slight easing bias. “If there isn’t any big economic or financial turmoil, we’ll keep prudent monetary policy.”

– Bloomberg News

UAE retains leading position among Oman’s export markets Trade surplus at OMR2b shows 71 per cent decline

The Sultanate’s nonoil exports to the UAE touched OMR468.7 million, indicating a 19.8% share in OMR2,364.1m nonoil exports in the first nine months of 2015

A. E. JAMES

businesseditor@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Oman’s neighbouring country, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), retained its position as the main destination of Sultanate’s non-oil exports in the first nine months of 2015.

The Sultanate’s non-oil exports to the UAE touched OMR468.7 million, indicating a 19.8 per cent share in OMR2,364.1 million non-oil exports of the country in the first three quarters of 2015, according to the latest statistics from National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

However, Oman’s exports to the UAE showed a decline of 18.1 per cent in the first nine months of 2015, compared to the same period of previous year.

Saudi Arabia According to NCSI, Saudi Arabia was the second largest importer of Omani products, followed by India, China and the United States of America (USA). China’s non-oil imports from Oman surged ahead by 47 per cent to OMR192.3 million during the period.

It may be noted that the Sultanate’s total non-oil exports fell by 23 per cent to OMR2,364.1 million

IMPORTERS: Saudi Arabia was the second biggest importer of

Omani products, followed by India, China and the US, according to National Centre for Statistics and Information.- File picture

in the first nine months of 2015, from OMR3,068.9 million for the same period of the previous year.

The fall in export revenue was mainly on account of a plunge in commodity prices in international markets.

UAE top exporter As far as the Sultanate’s imports are concerned, the UAE retained its position as the top exporter of goods and services to Oman in the first nine months of 2015, with a share of 35.64 per cent (OMR2,978.8 million).

The country’s total imports from different trading partners edged down by 0.8 per cent to OMR8,356.9 million during the period.

According to the latest statistics released by NCSI, Japan was the second leading country for Oman’s imports, followed by China, India and the United States.

In fact, the Sultanate imported Chinese goods and services worth OMR479.1 million, showing a surge of 24.4 per cent over the same period last year.

Oman’s export development agency, Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development (popularly known as Ithraa), is undertaking several initiatives to enhance non-oil exports, especially to its target markets.

These programmes include visits of trade delegations, participation in international exhibitions, business-to-business meetings and market studies in potential export markets.

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MUSCAT: Oman’s trade balance for the first nine months of 2015 registered a surplus of OMR2,051.1 million, a decline of 71.2 per cent compared to the surplus in the same period of 2014 due to a fall in oil exports .

The National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) said that the merchandise exports, which includes oil and gas, non-oil exports and re-exports registered a decline of 33.1 per cent to OMR10.41 billion compared to OMR15.55 billion during the same period in 2014.

The bulletin said that the value of commodity imports as of the end of third quarter of 2015 stood at OMR8,356.9 million compared to OMR8,420.3 million during the same period in 2014; a decline of 0.8 per cent due to the slump in transportation equipment, live animal and their products’ imports.

The Sultanate’s trade balance in 2014 posted a surplus of OMR9,195.7 million, a growth by 0.8 per cent compared to 2013. NCSI figures also showed that the value of oil and gas exports fell by 39.8 per cent during the first nine months of last year. The non-oil commodity exports declined by 23 per cent.

The total value of oil and gas exports stood at OMR6,157.6 million compared to OMR10,236.9 million during the first nine months of 2014. The value

of crude oil exports during the same period also stood at OMR5,277.0 million.

The value of refined oil exports stood at OMR131,900 and the value of LNG exports stood at OMR748.8 million compared to OMR1,059.6 million during the first nine months of 2014; a fall of 29.3 per cent.

The value of non-oil exports stood at OMR2,364.1 million compared to OMR3,068.9 million, including mineral products exports worth OMR488.8 million; decline of 46.3 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The value of rubber and plastics exports stood at OMR206.9 million; a decline of 23.7 per cent. The value of chemical industries exports stood at OMR565.8 million, a decline by 18 per cent. The value of mineral and mineral works exports stood at OMR502.1 million. The value of the other non-oil exports stood at OMR600.6 million; a growth of 1 per cent.

The re-export activity declined by 16.1 per cent to stand at OMR1,886.3 million compared to OMR2,248.1 million during the first nine months of 2014. The export of transport equipment declined by 15.9 per cent to hit OMR1,224.1 million. The re-export of other minerals increased by 0.1 per cent to hit OMR379.6 million. The value of other activities stood at OMR282.6 million. - ONA

CARGO SHOW

Sohar port sets the pace at Dubai cargo show Times News Service MUSCAT: Experts from Sohar Port and Freezone participated in a number of panel discussions on themes around rail and regional logistics at the Cargo Show Mena last week. The two-day event, held at the Dubai World Trade Centre Arena, brought together over 3,000 industry professionals from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and around the world, said a release.

As one of the keynote speakers at the conference, Marc Evertse, Sohar port executive commercial manager, spoke about intermodal and multimodal connectivity and its role in reducing the costs of doing business. “Thanks to our

prime location outside the Strait of Hormuz and our seamless searoad-air infrastructure, Sohar is ideally placed to become of the key regional logistics hubs,” he said.

New highways Many new highways are under construction in Sohar, including one connecting the Omani port directly to Saudi Arabia, which will avoid the delays associated with the current routes through the UAE. Sohar is also investing heavily in technology, with new automated truck appointment systems for the container terminal, as well as online customs clearance systems and a complete port management system, that gives shipping

ECONOMY

Asia should take bigger role guiding economy: Lagarde NEW DELHI: Asia needs to take a leadership role in the global economy that reflects the continent’s growing clout, International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde said.

Asian officials should keep monetary policy supportive, while using fiscal policy to boost growth and macro-prudential measures to protect financial stability, Lagarde said in a speech

Saturday in New Delhi. Adopting structural reforms to boost competitiveness, growth and jobs will be key, she said.

Lagarde, who was reappointed last month for a second five-year term, called Asia the “world’s most dynamic region,” noting it accounts for 40 per cent of the world economy and will deliver nearly two-thirds of growth over the next four years. - Bloomberg News

agents the platform to access and exchange information.

Summing up the two-day event in Dubai, Andre Toet, chief executive officer of Sohar Port, said: “As the entire region shifts its focus to an economic base fuelled by knowledge, the Sultanate is ideally placed to play a critical role and become a major logistics hub. Whereas many western countries are still struggling to make the transition to a post-industrial economy, there is a huge opportunity for young countries like Oman to focus even more on education and training and leapfrog their way into leading roles in innovation sectors like sustainable energy, clean-technology, and logistics.”

RAIL AND LOGISTICS: Experts from Sohar Port and Freezone participated in a number of panel discussions on themes around rail and regional logistics at the Cargo Show Mena last week. - Supplied picture

B4

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

FEATURE

$ STOLEN WEALTH THEORY f you get involved in online debates about economic history, it won’t be long before someone tells you that the West is rich because it stole the resources of the regions it colonised. This stolen-wealth theory is cited as the reason the UK and France are rich today, while Ethiopia and Burundi are poor. It also is sometimes used to argue that global capitalism is inherently unjust and that wealth must be radically redistributed between nations as compensation.

The problem is, the stolenwealth theory is wrong.

Oh, it’s absolutely true that colonial powers stole natural resources from the lands they conquered.

No one disputes that. And at the time, this definitely made the colonised regions a lot poorer. The UK, for example, caused repeated famines in India by raising taxes on farmers and by encouraging the cultivation of cash crops instead of subsistence crops. That is a pretty stark example of destructive resource extraction.

It’s also probably true that this stolen wealth helped much of the West get rich. Of course, Western

I

countries didn’t simply consume the resources they plundered — the global economy isn’t just a lump of wealth that gets divvied up, but rather relies on the productive efforts of individuals, companies and governments. The UK, for example, was able to industrialise not by consuming spices confiscated from India, but because its citizens invented power looms and steam engines and other technologies, and because its people worked very hard at factories and plants that used those technologies.

So if the West did steal resources from colonised nations, and if this theft did help them get rich, why do I say that the stolen-wealth theory is wrong? I say that because the theory doesn’t explain the global distribution of income today. It is no longer a significant reason why rich countries are rich and poor countries are poor.

The easiest way to see this is to observe all the rich countries that never had the chance to plunder colonies. Germany, Italy, Sweden, Denmark and Japan had colonial empires for only the very briefest of moments, and their greatest eras of development came before

So if the West did steal resources from colonised nations, and if this theft did help them get rich, why do I say that the stolen-wealth theory is wrong? I say that because the theory doesn’t explain the global distribution of income today. It is no longer a significant reason why rich countries are rich and poor countries are poor.

and after those colonial episodes.

Switzerland, Finland, and Austria never had colonies. And South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong were themselves colonies of other powers. Yet today they are very rich. They did it not by theft, but by working hard, being creative, and having good institutions.

Meanwhile, in the poor countries have long since taken control of their natural resources. State-controlled oil companies in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Iran and Russia own far more of the world’s oil than do giant Western corporations like Exxon or BP. The African countries control their own mines, and Latin American countries their own crop land. The era of resource theft by rich countries is over and done.

Yet still, somehow, these countries are not very rich. Only a small handful of tiny nations whose economies are based on natural resources — Brunei, Kuwait and Qatar among others — are actually rich. Most are poor, despite controlling all of their own wealth.

This sad fact is known as the resource curse.

So it’s unlikely that resource-

rich countries would have become industrialised but for the depredations of colonialism. And it seems quite possible that colonial nations such as France and the UK would have gotten rich without their resource plunder, as did Germany, South Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan. Does that mean colonialism was a benign institution?

Definitely not. At a bare minimum, the tens of millions killed by colonial conquests and famines leave an indelible stain on the West. And while colonialism had benefits in some places, in many others it left a nasty legacy that is felt to this day.

Many economic studies show that regions where colonizers focused on extracting resources were later cursed with pernicious political institutions. Those regions, even today, exhibit poor performance.

So colonialising nations did steal resources, and it did hurt colonies by doing it. But the real tragedy is how unnecessary that all was. The UK and France would have gotten rich without plundering Africa, India and Southeast Asia. All of that violence and conquest was probably for nothing.

— Noah Smith/Bloomberg View

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B5

ROUND-UP

A’Saffa ensures high quality hygiene at its feed mill and hatchery facility A’Saffa Foods recognises the importance of the quality commitment of its partners and is committed to deliver products of the highest quality

MUSCAT: A’Saffa Foods, Oman’s leading fully integrated poultry and processed food home-grown food producer has a long standing commitment of providing pure natural feed to its chickens — a mix of specially produced yellow corn and soya that delivers the nutrition the chickens need and helps to ensure the final product for the consumer is tasty, fresh and packed full of nutritious protein, says a press release.

Feed mill A’Saffa has set up Oman’s most modern feed mill in Thumrait.

With a capacity of 15 metric tonnes

per hour, this fully automated feed mill produces specialised pellet and crumble feed especially to cater to A’Saffa’s own needs.

Poultry feed being the major input in the poultry production accounts for around 70 per cent of the total production cost. With the poultry industry in the GCC and Middle East ready for a rapid growth, availability and cost can become critical influencing the production costs and the overall quality of the product. With this keen understanding and foresight, A’Saffa, through its feed mill assures highest quality of feed for its chickens.

A’Saffa’s feed mills are automated with in-built facility to store corn and soya in steel silos. The finished product and other ingredients are further safely stored in the go downs.

Pelleting system, parallel mixer and grinding systems are automated through logic controls. The end product is handled automatically from bagging to loading.

The feed produced in A’Saffa’s completely automated mill meets the highest hygiene and environmental standards.

Parent line Parent lines are reared by A’Saffa’s experts with scientific management processes in a bio-secure environment. With a keen un-

FIELD TRIP

derstanding and insight of the requirements, the parent lines are reared to deliver improved feed conversion rate (FCR), increased productivity, better performance and adaptability of the chicken to Oman’s environmental conditions. A’Saffa’s experts add further value to help achieve better quality chicken meat and eggs.

The parent line ensures that all birds bred and reared in the farms,

are standardised, uniform with the right growth, all from the same parents, which make the end product uniform in taste, tenderness and healthy.

Fertile eggs laid by the parent birds are sent to the hatchery.

Hatchery Chicken is favourable food in supporting the energy metabolism of the body. A’Saffa has its first state-

of-the-art hatchery in Thumrait, Salalah. A’Saffa’s state-of-the-art hatchery helps produce and deliver the healthiest chicks with maximum potential for growth and optimum feed conversion rate (FCR). Further, uniformity in bird size is taken care along with adaptability and liveability. A’Saffa’s team of experts ensure that the eggs are hatched in fully computerised temperature and humidity controlled state of the art setters and hatchers.

Commenting on the way that company feeds and looks after its chickens, Sidhartha Lenka, A’Saffa Foods Head of Sales and Marketing, said: “We are very proud of the way that we feed and ensure the welfare of our chickens. All of our chickens are fed with 100 per cent natural feed that is manufactured in our own feed mill located on our farm premises, using the latest scientific feed management programmes to ensure the best retention of nutritional value.

“At A’Saffa we also ensure that the birds are kept without thirst, hunger or malnutrition, free from discomfort, pain, injury or disease to ensure pure and healthy product. As with our core principles of following religious, healthy and ethical practices, the company also prohibits use of chicken and animal byproducts and substitutes for feeding the birds as happens in

some other poultry companies.”

He explained that A’Saffa also has a highly trained on site medical team at the Thumrait farms complex who monitor the health of the chickens daily to ensure they are kept free from disease, have the right balance of feed and water and ensuring the final product to the consumer is always safe and pure chicken meat.

The farm facility at Thumrait is also certified to the highest international standards with the farm having achieved both ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 certification.

A’Saffa Foods is fully committed to offering a wide range of innovative products to its consumers and its partners. The company recognises the importance of the quality commitment of its partners and is committed to deliver products of the highest quality. This commitment is further underlined with the implementation of HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) systems.

Lenka explained that this major investment in state-of-theart technology and systems that match the highest standards anywhere in the world was part of A’Saffa’s continuing efforts to ensure that customers get the most 100 per cent natural, healthy and tasty halal chicken products available.

T R AV E L T R A D E S H O W

Oman participates at 50th edition of ITB Berlin

IS Muladha students visit Suwaiq farm for agriculture experience MUSCAT: Science Department of Indian School Muladha had organised a field trip recently to Al Raja farm Suwaiq owned by Nehad Agronomy Services.

With the aim of gaining practical experience and learning about the complex connections of issues in agriculture, the environment and natural resources, students of Class VIII accompanied by Mini, Nisha Ullas, Nijo, Sulamin and Aasif visited the farm. The farm cultivates different kinds of fruits, vegetables and seasonal flowers, says a press release.

The students were hosted by Shehul Hameed, production manager, where they were informed about the history of the organisation, different crops of summer and winter season, types of soil (loamy and sandy loam), temperature requirement and advantages of drip irrigation.

The next stop was at the capsicum farm; there were different

varieties of capsicum grown on the farm as per the international norms. Shehul informed the students that the coloured peppers are healthier than the traditional green ones.

Integrated pest management procedure was explained to the students. Students also visited the onion, corn and tomato farms and were allowed to pluck the vegetables later on. The last stop was at the main building where vegetable and flower exhibition was arranged by the farm authorities which was enthralling. Shaun Mathews, the general manager of the farm interacted with the students and answered all their queries. Students were presented with bouquet of flowers. It was indeed a unique opportunity to know the modern farming and exporting techniques.

The trip was organised under the guidance of S. I. Shareef, principal; V. S. Suresh, vice principal and John Ebenezer, HOD.

MUSCAT: The Ministry of Tourism is participating in this year’s 50th edition of ITB Berlin, world’s largest travel trade show, which will conclude today in Germany.

The Sultanate is participating through the Ministry of Tourism, representing 36 organisations from the tourism sector, including a separate stall for the national carrier of the Sultanate – Oman Air, says a press release.

Oman’s delegation is headed

by Ahmed bin Nasser Al Mahrazi, the Minister of Tourism, who attended the official opening of the exhibition and participated in different activities, along with other international tourism ministers and government entities.

He will also attend events with the international tourism organisation, UNWTO. The Ministry of Tourism and the different representations from the Sultanate take part in the ITB Berlin show on a yearly basis, as it is considered the biggest trade show in the world.

The show gives the opportunity to vendors of the Sultanate to showcase the latest tourism developments, as well as learn from the different international developments around the world.

The Sultanate continues its efforts to promote itself in the in-

ternational markets through trade shows like this one and support the country’s efforts in achieving the goals set out for 2040.

The first three days of ITB focused on agreements and meetings between international delegations as well as the organisations

participating in the trade show while the last two days hosted the general public and visitors from around the world.

Last year, the show received 175,000 visitors who were exposed to 10,096 participants and exhibitors representing 186 countries.

R E VA M P E D P R I Z E S T R U C T U R E

Bank Sohar's Al Mumayaz branch guaranteed draws reward customers with OMR1,000 every month MUSCAT: In order to reward customers across the entire bank’s branch network, Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme 2016 from Bank Sohar offers monthly branch guaranteed draws where one account holder from each of the bank’s branches will win OMR1,000 every month translating to over 250 winners before year-end.

This draw comes as part of comprehensively revamped prize structure of the 2016 Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme, which now offers more than 1,500 prizes and more than any Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme to date while including the broadest possible spectrum of winners

including hourly, children’s, general, ladies, and exclusive draw winners, says a press release.

Commenting on the new scheme’s branch guaranteed draws, Khamis Masoud Al Rahbi, senior AGM of Branches & Retail Sales at Bank Sohar, said: “One of the most appreciated aspects of last year’s scheme by our customers was our branch-specific draws conducted in various branches throughout the year as well as the branch-wide year-end draw; through which we ensured having winners from every branch.

"This year we decided to up the ante and host monthly branch guaranteed draws which will guar-

antee a winner from every branch across the Sultanate.”

In order to be eligible for the monthly branch guaranteed draws, the account holders need to maintain a minimum monthly average balance of only OMR100. In addition to these draw, the Al Mumayaz Savings Scheme will continue with its hourly prize draws of OMR 1,000 each from Sunday to Wednesday; totalling over 900 winners by the end of the year. Another new addition this year is the daily children’s draw, which will see one minor account holder win OMR100 every day from Sunday to Thursday.

There will also be a monthly

draw specifically for children where one minor account holder will win OMR1,000. In total there will be more than 240 winners of children’s draws before the end of the year. This year’s general draws include monthly draw of OMR10,000 and a year-end draw of OMR200,000 split amongst four winners. As part of the monthly draws, and for the first time ever, a dedicated ladies draw will also be conducted with two winners of OMR5,000 each; totalling 20 winners. Lastly, the bank will also be conducting exclusive draws of OMR10,000 each month and OMR50,000 as part of the year-end draws.

B6

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

ROUND-UP EXCEPTIONAL DESIGN

Aston Martin DB11: The most powerful and efficient model

Nissan launches new 5-day offer ‘Get It All’ The unique offers from Nissan give customers an opportunity to enjoy exclusive briefings, tips, advices and suggestions from Nissan officials on the entire Nissan range

MUSCAT: Nissan from the house of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles has launched an exciting 5-day ‘Get it All’ campaign.

The promotion is aimed at offering serious buyers and customers with some of the most competitive offers on Nissan vehicles along with a host of other benefits. This offer is applicable till March 17, says a press release.

The unique offers from Nissan give customers an opportunity to enjoy exclusive briefings, tips, advices and suggestions from Nissan officials on the entire Nissan range. Visitors will also get a chance to take a test drive of any of their favourite Nissan vehicle with Nissan officials to assist and guide through the aesthetics of the vehicles at all times.

Edge over competitors Nissan’s iconic vehicles deliver

a refreshed vision of ‘innovation that excites’ with introduction of new levels of sophistication and state of the art features. Nissan vehicles are known to offer smoother ride comfort, more refinement and benchmark fit and finish, while delivering breathtaking performance and road-holding.

Their ‘multi-dimensional performance’ means the driver can enjoy the full depth of a Nissan’s capabilities whether navigating the corners of a winding mountain road, cruising on a motorway or even travelling in an urban environment.

Bigger cashback and more benefits Nissan is offering a host of model specific benefits as part of its current scheme promotion that include cash gift up to OMR2,500, free registration, free insurance (select SUV’s only), six years’ unlimited mileage extended warranty, easy financing options and periodic maintenance service only up to two years/20,000km whichever is earlier (offer includes only on the new service intervals of 10,000km). The offer is applicable on private registrations or personal vehicles only.

The offer varies across all models. Further details can be had from Nissan sales advisers.

Nissan Oman is known to offer some of the firsts in the country as they are committed to offer some of the best services to its customers. “We consider understanding and anticipating customer needs as crucial to our continued success. We believe in ‘customers for life’ concept and strive to provide the best value for money to our customers by offering world-class products and services.

“With our current offer we want to reach out to as many customers and auto enthusiasts and give them back something special which is essential to our continued success,” said a senior official of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles.

Easy finance options Customers are guaranteed hasslefree financing process while purchasing any Nissan vehicle during this week as there is no processing fee or documentation charge to be paid. Customers will also get to avail attractive interest rates and lastly have an option for customised financing and enjoy spot approvals too. During this promotion, trade-in offers will also be available. Customers will get an opportunity to exchange their existing vehicles for a new Nissan model of their choice.

Social media platform Nissan Oman’s Facebook page has gained huge momentum for over a year as they have been successful in reaching out to a diverse audience on the social media platform.

Beating top competitors in the Sultanate region, Nissan Facebook page has been the most liked or favourite page past two years leading up to having one of the highest fan following today.

The aim of Nissan’s Facebook page has always been to offer viewers and Nissan fans an interactive experience and since Nissan as a brand is built on the ethos of ‘innovation that excites’; through its page, Nissan showcases its cutting-edge technology to connect with its audience.

It also showcases Nissan’s path breaking technological features of its various models in easy to understand mode focusing on

core advantages.

The page also provides a plethora of information on the wide range of models from Nissan which is updated on a daily basis to provide the latest information at all times comprising of interactive videos, behind-the-scenes access, international news, pictorial galleries, aesthetic details, and unique model features. The page also regularly runs contests on all its latest models to keep viewers enticed and engaged at all times. The aim has been to be at par with customers’ requirements and needs.

Nationwide presence Suhail Bahwan Automobiles, the exclusive importers and distributors of all Nissan vehicles in Oman, have their Nissan showrooms spread across the Sultanate.

Their showrooms are strategically located all across the country in Muscat, Sohar, Sur, Salalah, Shinas, Samail, Ibra, Ibri, Nizwa, Buraimi, Barka, Bahla, Jalan Bani Bu Ali, Seeb, Mabelah, Sinaw and Bidaya. This goes to show that Nissan Oman has been successfully growing in operations and is consistently spreading its network throughout the Sultanate of Oman.

SBA commitment Suhail Bahwan Automobiles 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.

MUSCAT: Showcasing a fresh and distinctive design language, pioneering aerodynamics, powered by a potent new in-house designed 5.2 litres twin turbocharged V12 engine, which produces 600 horsepower and 700 NM torque, built upon a new lighter, stronger, and more efficient bonded aluminium structure, DB11 is the fastest, most powerful, most efficient and most dynamically gifted DB model in history.

As such it is the most significant new Aston Martin since the introduction of the DB9 in 2003.

As a true 21st century Aston Martin the DB 11 combines the very latest technology developed in conjunction with technical partner, Daimler, with the finest quality and hand craftsmanship, says a press release.

A vast forward-opening clamshell bonnet defines the front end, and the rear features a dazzling bit of airflow-management magic called AeroBlade. Aft of the C-pillars, subtle openings channel air into the rear body work and out through a narrow slot on trailing edge of the boot lid. Aston calls it a ‘virtual spoiler’, and it generates significant down-force at speed without requiring an ungainly fixed wing.

The DB11 uses a new twin-turbo

5.2-litre V12. The engine, designed in-house, produces 600 horsepower and 700 NM of torque. DB11 will run from zero to 100 KMS in 3.9 seconds, which is brisk if not world-beating, and keep moving until the speedometer needle touches the 320 km/h mark.

DB11 has three transmission modes GT, Sport and Sport+ with each mode increasing the aggressiveness of the gear shifts and developing he exhaust soundtrack to create more a visceral experience and increase driver engagement allowing DB11 drivers to enjoy the full scope of both touring and sporting capability.

The 2+2 interior is as enticing as the exterior, and entirely more habitable by humans — two plus two of them, in fact. And the boot, claims Aston, is ‘large enough to accommodate two large holdalls plus carry-on baggage’. The cabin materials, colours and textures — particularly the brogue-detailed leather surfaces. Alas, is the crystal-topped Emotional Control Unit, a conversation-piece key that slotted into the centre console and served as a glowing engine-start button.

A 12-inch TFT LCD screen provides a virtual gauge cluster, with infotainment functions handled on an 8-inch screen atop the centre console.

E N S U R E S S M O O T H O P E R AT I O N S

Oman Fisheries sets up work area disaster recovery site MUSCAT: Towards ensuring continued productivity even during major disruptions, Oman Fisheries Co. has successfully implemented a work area disaster recovery site (back up site) at its corporate office in Ghala.

The site will help the company meet its various IT infrastructure needs apart from ensuring minimal impact to business operations following any disaster, says a press release.

Commenting on the site implementation, Said Al Rawahy, general manager of Oman Fisheries Co., said: “The disaster recovery site implementation reflects Oman Fisheries Co. management’s commitment to enable a highly productive atmosphere for its staff to contribute to the growth of the company and the nation. Providing an alternate work environment and thus ensuring smooth and uninterrupted business operations falls under Oman Fisheries’ corporate responsibility towards customers

as well as the company itself.”

“We have a solid disaster recovery framework under the company’s business continuity planning system; and the implemented disaster recovery site is integral to ensuring business continuity at Oman Fisheries,” Shanmugham, general manager (Operations) at Oman Fisheries said.

“The disaster recovery site is designed to ensure near-complete backups of user data, and it uses asynchronous sites to fully mirror the affected original site’s data environment using WAN links and specialised software. In the event of a work area disaster, the company will now be able to relocate staff limiting the losses to normal operations to the minimum level, within the shortest possible recovery time. Efficient work area with enhanced data recovery time will help us continue our business operations during disasters,” he added.

“The disaster recovery site implemented at Oman Fisheries is

capable of being operational (in terms of data processing) even before key personnel are moved to the site. The site ensures that production environment(s) run concurrently with the main data centre, significantly reducing impact and downtime to business operations. In the event of a major outage, the recovery site is capable of immediate takeover of the impacted site,” commented Amarnath, IT manager at Oman Fisheries.

Data loss and downtime are eliminated through a continuous capture of byte-level changes and asynchronous real-time replication of changes. Failover cluster without shared storage or geographical limitations has also been implemented to avoid single point of failure and facilitate nodes in multiple locations, he added.

Eventually the work area disaster recovery site enables enhanced mobility, availability and recovery for server workloads, improved mirror performance and data recovery plans for databases.

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Bank Sohar takes part in SQU Annual Career Fair

P R O M O T I N G Q H S E C U LT U R E

Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) annual Career and Training Opportunities Fair

Daleel Petroleum conducts QHSE Awareness Day

attracted a large number of participants from private and governmental employment sectors and witnessed visitors from across the country

MUSCAT: Ever committed towards the support of educational initiatives in the Sultanate and developing employment opportunities for Omani youth, Bank Sohar has once again participated in the Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) Annual Career and Training Opportunities Fair for a sixth year.

The event was held under the patronage of Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Al Harrasi, chairman of the Public Authority for Radio and Television, and was attended by a number of the university officials, representatives from the government and private institutions, together with a large number of students, says a press release.

Commenting on the bank’s participation in the three-day event which took place recently, Munira Abdulnabi Macki, GM of HR and Corporate Support at Bank Sohar said, “At Bank Sohar we have always been keen to recruit, train and develop qualified young Omanis supporting them in entering this industry and building a suc-

cessful banking career. As a matter of fact, since the bank’s inception it has attained an Omanisation ratio of 92.19 per cent. Through our participation in events such as this, we can enlighten students on the available job opportunities and the benefits of working at the bank. Furthermore, we have the utmost confidence on the quality of students graduating from Sultan Qaboos University, considering the fact that it is one of the premier educational institutions in the Sultanate.”

Held at the ‘Chamber of Culture – Grand Hall’ annually, the threeday career fair attracted a large number of participants from private and governmental employment sectors and witnessed visitors from across the country. Each of the participating organisations were carefully chosen according to certain criteria such as the availability of outstanding quality and quantity of offered jobs and training opportunities.

Bank Sohar capitalised on the

opportunity offered by the career fair platform and the large number of talented students; attracting a large number of potential candidates and showcasing the various products, services and career opportunities available for talented young Omani undergraduate students. The bank also received numerous applicants who showed interest in becoming part of the bank’s dynamic workforce.

“Bank Sohar has always been fully committed towards nurturing and developing Omani youth and grooming them into financial leaders of tomorrow. We were delighted to have received such an overwhelming interest from the students at the career fair,” added Munira.

Bank Sohar has a committed history of working with various educational institutions and government organisations towards ensuring greater access to educa-

OMAN REFRESHMENT COMPANY HOLDS AGM

tion and business knowledge.

In addition to its latest participation in the SQU Annual Career and Training Opportunities Fair 2016, the bank has, in the past, also sponsored several training programmes and initiatives from several other organisations and educational institutions across Oman.

Organised by the Centre of Career Guidance at SQU, the Annual Career & Training Opportunities Fair ensures the provision of job opportunities or training to the students and graduates of Sultan Qaboos University at all levels of undergraduate majors. Over the years, the fair has proved itself to be a productive avenue for job opportunities and helping university graduates to participate actively in nation building. It also helps them to build excellent relationships with local employers and global companies.

Oman Refreshment Company held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Al Falaj Hotel. Youssef Ezzikhe, general manager; Sheikh Hamoud Al Hinai, managing director; Buti Obaid Al Mulla, chairman; Sheikh Ahmed Al Hinai, vice chairman and Mohamed Abdullah Moosa Al Raisi, director of Oman Refreshment Company, attended the meeting. — Supplied picture

MUSCAT: As part of the company’s commitment to industry policies and standards of HSE, Daleel Petroleum held its 12th annual Quality, Health, Safety and Environment (QHSE) Awareness Day in its oilfield recently that aimed at promoting a QHSE culture and awareness amongst the employees.

A rich programme was arranged for HSE Day 2016 that its activities sparked the participants’ concern and interest, says a press release.

The programme included a number of activities including walkathon, blood donation, and sports activities that engaged participants from the head office in Muscat as well as the field.

In addition, there was a drama performance that embodied the importance of safety observation.

All activities conducted confirmed that Daleel Petroleum is active in promoting HSE awareness amongst the company’s employees.

Gong Changli, chief executive officer of Daleel Petroleum, delivered a speech emphasising the importance of the company con-

ducting its operational activities and business in a manner that promotes the health and safety of its employees, the public and protecting the environment.

On this occasion, Marash Al Kalbani, operations manager, highlighted the necessity of checking the safety of daily operations, such as tools and equipment used, the potential risks and how to manage them if they occur before the beginning of any operation in Block 5 oil concession of the company.

During the ceremony, certificates of appreciation and recognition shields were awarded to Daleel employees and its contractors in recognition of their outstanding contribution and efforts in the implementation and commitment to HSE policies and standards.

Ahmed Suliman Al Mahruqi, quality, safety, health and environment manager, delivered a motivational speech as a way of raising morale and motivating the employees towards high levels of performance for securing a safe and healthy working environment.

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Bank Muscat marks GCC Traffic Week with Drive Safely campaign Aimed at promoting responsible driving behaviour by motorists, this year’s GCC Traffic Week message is ‘Your Decision Determines Your Fate’

MUSCAT: Bank Muscat, the flagship financial services provider in the Sultanate, as part of its commitment to road safety in the Sultanate, has launched a campaign in

association with the Royal Oman Police to mark the GCC Traffic Week beginning today.

Aimed at inculcating responsible driving behaviour by motorists,

this year’s GCC Traffic Week message is ‘Your Decision Determines Your Fate’, says a press release.

The bank has lined up a series of activities covering various communication channels such as SMS, cinema, radio and social media to raise awareness on safe driving.

The highlight of the campaign is a four-part video clip titled ‘Value Life, Drive Safely’ which powerfully communicates four aspects responsible for majority of road accidents - speeding, fatigue, driving distractions such as texting on mobile phones and negligence of wearing seat belt. The video clips focusing on the major causes

of road accidents and the tragic consequences of negligent driving are being screened in popular cinemas and posted on the bank’s social media channels during the GCC Traffic Week, building up the campaign aimed at creating a safe driving environment in Oman.

The campaign messages are also highlighted on radio, newspapers and magazines.

The ‘Value Life, Drive Safely’ campaign is a natural progression of the health and safety measures adopted by the bank.

The bank considers human capital as the most valued asset and any loss or disruptions caused by

P R O M O T I N G Y O U N G TA L E N T

accidents lead to major setbacks for the affected persons.

As ambassadors for health and safety in the banking community in Oman, Bank Muscat remains committed to proactive measures to maintain a safe environment for all on Oman roads.

Bank Muscat, as part of HSE initiatives, is the first to create a safety management system in the banking sector in Oman.

In line with the Royal directive of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said to enhance road safety and reduce traffic accidents, the bank has launched various initiatives to spread traffic safety awareness among employees and

other stakeholders.

The bank vehicles are monitored under the in-vehicle monitoring system (IVMS) aimed at ensuring safety and avoiding accidents, thereby contributing to efficient use of fuel and corresponding reduction in carbon footprint.

Defensive driving training programmes are also arranged for employees to motivate them to follow safe driving practices.

Bank Muscat remains committed to road safety in partnership with the government and the ROP, aimed at educating people, especially employees, to make safer choices when using the roads.

B I G D ATA A N D S M A R T C I T Y

ahlibank partners with SQU Career Fair MEC international MUSCAT: Oman’s fastest growing financial institution ahlibank was part of the much awaited SQU Career and Training Opportunities Fair held recently held at the Grand Hall, Cultural Centre in Sultan Qaboos University, says a press release.

Commenting on the bank’s association with the fair, Lloyd Maddock, CEO, ahlibank, said: “SQU’s Career & Training Opportunities Fair this year opened further avenues for us to connect with the youth. This was yet another chance for us to engage with students and show them the scope of career and professional growth opportunities within the banking sector. Being voted as the ‘Best Bank in Oman’ for the fourth year in a row by OER-Gulf Baader Capital Markets survey, we feel it is our responsibility to promote young talent and extend all possible support to the educational sector and other youth-oriented activities.”

Said Al Hamdani – DGM and head of Human Resource, commented: “The SQU Career and Training Opportunities Fair attract

more than 45 participants from private and governmental employment sectors and between (12,00015,000) visitors from all over Oman.

This is one of the best opportuni-

ties for organisations like us to aim at maximising business relations and also secure new ones.”

All participating organisations are carefully chosen according to

AL BUSAIDY MANSOOR JAMAL & CO.

certain criteria such as the availability of outstanding quality and quantity of offered jobs and training opportunities. This year the fair is gaining special attention due to the establishment of the Entrepreneurship Corner in implementation to the directives of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said to encourage Omani youth to start their own businesses and be self-employed.

The fair was abuzz with several academic, social and art activities; and ahlibank hosted a special stall at the event, showcasing the bank’s products and services.

Al Hamdani concluded saying, “ahlibank has since inception been committed to the growth of education and development programs in Oman. The bank enjoys an excellent rapport with Oman’s premier educational institutions and takes special interest in hiring graduates from reputed colleges in the country. Selected candidates embark upon an extensive and rigorous training program which provides experience across all operations of the bank, for a period of one year.”

conference set to be held on March 15, 16 MUSCAT: Middle East College (MEC) is organising the third MEC International Conference on Big Data and Smart City (ICBDSC) which will be held on March 15 and 16.

The conference will be inaugurated by Hilal bin Hamad Al Hasani, CEO of Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (PEIE), says a press release.

Co-sponsors The conference is technically co-sponsored by IEEE, IEEE Communication Society, and IEEE Oman chapter and it aims to bring together researchers, designers, developers, and practitioners interested in the advances and applications related to the area of smart cities and big data.

Among the keynote speakers are Prof. Martin Curley, vice president and director, Intel

Labs Europe at Intel Corporation, Gilles Betis, Urban Life and Mobility Action Line Leader, EIT Digital; Chair, IEEE Smart Cities Initiative and Dr Manuel Sanromà, managing director, Open Administration of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain to name a few.

Skill development It is worth mentioning that MEC had already successfully organised two international conferences on information and communication.

MEC has research collaboration with University of Barcelona which places education and training at the core of development and seeks to connect various agendas whether they be city planning, logistics, sustainability, skill development, global media and connectivity or regional policy collaboration.

G R A N D C E L E B R AT I O N

BMW Vision Vehicle makes its world debut at Centenary Event in Munich

Omani law firm AMJ receives global Islamic Finance award MUSCAT: Top Oman-based corporate and finance law firm Al Busaidy Mansoor Jamal & Co. (AMJ) has won an international award for its advisory role on Oman’s OMR250 million inaugural sovereign sukuk issuance.

The firm received the prestigious global Sovereign Deal of the Year 2015 award from the industry leading Islamic Finance News (IFN) at its annual Deals of the Year awards ceremony at the Ritz Carlton in Dubai recently, says a press release.

The IFN Deals of the Year were established in 2006 and recognise those who have participated in the industry’s most groundbreaking

transactions each year. Oman’s benchmark sovereign issuance also won an honourable mention in the top global ijarah and sukuk categories.

Speaking on behalf of the fivepartner practice, founder and managing partner, Mansoor Jamal Malik said: “We are delighted that Oman’s first-ever sovereign sukuk issuance has been recognised as the standout sovereign deal of the year in the global Islamic finance space.

“We are pleased to have contributed to a successful debut offering which is expected not only to boost Oman’s emergent Islamic finance industry but also to strengthen the

capital markets and to support the government’s economic diversification drive.”

Despite challenging economic conditions, Oman’s debut sukuk was oversubscribed and the ministry of finance expanded the programme by 25 per cent from OMR200 million to OMR250 million to accommodate the strong orderbook from a wide base of conventional and Islamic institutions. As well as being Oman’s first sovereign sukuk, it was also the first debt capital market instrument – Islamic and conventional – in Oman to be priced through a book-building process with a uniform price auction.

MUNICH: The year 2016 sees the BMW Group celebrate its centenary under the motto ‘The Next 100 Years’.

Throughout its history the company’s image has been defined by a future focus and pioneering action – all made possible by its extraordinary team of employees, who share a fascination for mobility which is integral to all our lives, says a press release.

“At the BMW Group, we are always on a quest for the best solution. It’s part of our DNA,” said Harald Krüger, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, at the Centenary Event in Munich recently. “It’s also the spirit of our collaborations, a recurring theme that permeates our corporate and leadership culture.”

Three qualities in particular set the BMW Group apart: the capacity to learn and adapt, technological innovation, and a sense of responsibility toward society.

“We have demonstrated on many occasions throughout our history that we are capable of learning fast and taking bold steps,” Krüger said.

Against this background, the BMW Group’s centenary celebrations are set to focus primarily on what lies ahead and explore how individual mobility might develop over the coming decades.

To answer this question, the BMW Group has generated a futuristic scenario with a clear vi-

sion: premium mobility by the BMW Group will be completely effortless, comprehensively available and tailored to every customer’s individual preferences. At the moment, the world is on the verge of realising automated driving; in the not-too-distant future the majority of cars will probably be completely self-driving and travel the streets of cities inhabited by far more people than today.

In the future, one thing will be in ever shorter supply: time. But connectivity will become increasingly commonplace, and technologies will learn to learn from people. “Future mobility will connect every area of people’s lives. And that’s where we see new opportunities for premium mobility,” Krüger added.

BMW Vision Next 100’ The BMW Group has now made its vision for the future a reality – with the ‘BMW Vision Next 100’. This vehicle combines coupé-type sportiness with the dynamic elegance of a sedan – but rather than being an anonymous transport machine, it is a highly customised vehicle that is perfectly tailored to suit the driver’s changing needs.

Driver-vehicle interactions are managed by Alive Geometry; Boost and Ease modes offer a choice of driver-controlled or vehicle-controlled operations, and the interior of the vehicle chang-

es to suit the mode of travel. In Boost, the entire vehicle focuses on the driver, offering the support needed to maximise the driving experience – for instance by indicating the ideal driving line, steering point and speed. Ease mode sees the interior transform: the steering wheel and centre console retract; the headrests turn to the side, and the seats and door trim merge to form a single unit so that the driver and front-seat passenger can turn towards each other.

“If, as a designer, you are able to imagine something, there’s a good chance it could one day become reality,” said Adrian van Hooydonk, head of BMW Group Design. “So our objective with the BMW Vision Next 100 Years was to develop a future scenario that people would engage with.”

The BMW Vision Vehicle made its world debut at the Centenary Event in the Munich Olympic Hall on March 7, 2016 – exactly one hundred years after the company that is now known as BMW AG was first entered into the commercial register. About 2,000 guests from industry, politics, research, society and the media will be present, as will selected dealers, suppliers and employees.

A multi-media experience will guide them through the history of the company to this latest interpretation of tomorrow’s premium mobility, culminating in the unveiling of the Vision Vehicle.

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AFGHANS EASE PAST ZIMBABWE AND INTO SUPER 10 STAGE >C2

SPOR YOUR GAME

S

INSIDE LIFESTYLE

UNDERSTANDING ANXIETY >C5

No let up against Bangladesh, warns Oman skipper Sultan we brought in Rajesh Ranpura for Jatinder Singh yesterday, we would like keep options open for the do-ordie match as well,” said the coach.

According to Duleep it means that he will bring in more big hitters, if the rain prospects are more.

In that case Jatinder may have to sit out. Rajesh’s inclusion gives an allround option for the captain as well.

But to know who will be in and who will be out one has to wait until few minutes before the match.

Duleep also mentioned that plans have been made to target some of the hard-hitters of Bangladesh, including the in-form Tamim Iqbal.

Oman coach Duleep Mendis said team’s think-tank is working on various strategies keeping in mind the weather interruptions

T.K. MOHANDOSS

sportseditor@timesofoman.com DHARAMSALA: With rain forcing ICC World T20 Group A into a two-team affair, Oman are determined to fight fire with fire as the amateur boys of the Sultanate will face ICC full-member and highly experienced Bangladesh for the first time here on Sunday.

“There will be no let up on our aggression,” warned Oman captain Sultan Ahmed on eve of the crucial make-or-break day.

Whatever happens Oman Cricket has delivered more than expectations on the world stage and if that stunner happens on Sunday, rain permitting, it will be icing on the cake over the historical debut win the other day.

In Group A, it is left to Bangladesh and Oman to fight it out for the lone spot available in Super 10 and the match promises to be a nail biter.

“We will have a game plan for Bangladesh and the danger man Tamim Iqbal,” the Oman team skipper said.

Tamim indeed has been in

Charged up Oman Cricket official Pankaj Khimji, who has been completely with the team since qualification, said: “We are totally charged up and the boys are raring to unleash their magic on the Bangladesh team. We are battle ready, both physically and mentally.”

BATTLE READY: Members of Oman team pictured during an indoor training session on the eve of their crucial Group A match of the World T20 against Bangladesh in Dharamsala on Saturday. – Times Sport

terrific form since the Premier League in Bangladesh and also the Pakistan Super League in the UAE. He continued with his form in the match against the Netherlands steering Bangladesh to victory almost single-handedly and also toasting on the Irish bowlers in whatever play was possible on the rain-hit Friday.

Suspect action Another advantage for Oman will be the two bowlers — Taskin Ahmed and Arafat Sunny — who

BIG PRESSURE GAME FOR US: MASHRAFE >C2 were reported for suspect bowling action. Naturally there will be nerves behind the performance of Taskin and Arafat, which Oman will capitalise on. However, Oman needs to be at their best if they want to realise the dreams of causing another shock in the ongoing World T20 tournament. The need for tightening the obvious gaps in ground fielding holds foremost im-

portance for Oman and coach Duleep Mendis had hinted at the boys put into strict regime.

The big hitters of Oman must also be cautious while facing the more experience bowling power of Mashrafe Mortaza-led Bangladesh.

For Mortaza, this World T20 will be his last international event as soon after the Asia Cup final he had hinted his desire to retire from the international stage.

Duleep’s strategy After training indoors on Saturday,

Duleep said that various options are being considered keeping in mind possible weather interruptions on Sunday.

The rain has been on and off on Saturday forcing teams to train indoors and Duleep confirmed that all the players are fit and raring to go.

On strategy planned for Bangladesh, Duleep Mendis said more than the opponents it is the weather that was more than a concern.

“We are planning various combinations keeping in mind reduced overs contest. As you saw

Dead rubber Meanwhile, ousted Ireland and the Netherlands will face-off in a dead rubber before the Oman-Bangladesh knock-out.

Respective captains William Porterfield and Peter Borren have been crying foul over the stepmotherly treatment of associates and they would want to bow out with pride weather permitting.

Ireland definitely needs to guard their reputation of being the best outfit among the ICC associates while the Dutch wants to prove that their fair performance against Bangladesh is no fluke but fruit of the hard work they have done since qualifying for the World T20.

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Big pressure game for us, says Bangladesh captain Mashrafe described Oman as ‘a tough

I know Oman are a good side and full of determination. They will be all pumped up after the victory against Ireland

well-knit unit, who ‘have many surprise packages’. The Bangladesh captain, however, refused to reveal if left-arm pacer Mustafizur

Mashrafe Mortaza

will be seen in action

Bangladesh captain

against Oman

T.K. MOHANDOSS

sportseditor@timesofoman.com DHARAMSALA: Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza said on Saturday that his team is ready for Oman challenge and will play to their best potential to make the Super 10 grade of the ICC World

Twenty20 in style.

“Certainly it is a big pressure game for us and I want all our players to contribute, especially the batsmen and bowlers,” the Bangladesh skipper said, who desperately is looking for a win.

Mashrafe understands that any slip-up will trigger the critics back home. “I know Oman are a good

side and full of determination. They will be all pumped up after the victory against Ireland,” he added.

However, Mashrafe did not pick any particular player in the Oman side, though he mentioned that ‘Oman is a tough well-knit unit and they have many surprise packages up their sleeves’.

“Oman will come all out at us

knowing that win only will take them through. We are not really worried about the weather because we have a better net run rate,” he opined.

On concerns in his bowling department especially after Taskin Ahmed and Arafat Sunny have been reported for suspect bowling action, Mashrafe said: “It’s not

a major concern as we have a good set of bowlers. But I don’t want to be critical on ICC. If there is a report against the two, we must follow the procedure and get them cleared.”

Adding on the Bangladesh skipper said: “Since they can continue to bowl, I hope the report don’t affect their performance.”

On Mustafizur Rehman, his main strike bowler in recent times, Mashrafe said the bowler is on recovery path and will be ready for the Super 10 stage. However, he did not comment on whether he will be seen in action against Oman.

On lesser games for the associate team, Mashrafe explained even Bangladesh came up the hard way to become a full-member.

“Yes they need to play more, but it is for the ICC to do the needful,” he said.

Regarding the washed out game against Ireland, Mashrafe said: “We desperately wanted to win the game to take away the pressure from us.”

“We cannot control the weather and now the match against Oman has turned out to crucial for us,” he added The Bangladesh-Oman match will be a night match and will be the first time both will be playing each other in T20 Internationals.

ALL-ROUND SHOW

England beat New Zealand in warm-up tie MUMBAI: England produced an impressive all-round performance to outclass New Zealand by six wickets in their warmup match ahead of the World Twenty20 at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday.

Batting first, skipper Kane Williamson struck a quick fire half-century as New Zealand posted 169 for eight in 20 overs.

In reply, openers Jason Roy (55) and Alex Hales (44) used their skills to good effect as England chased down the total with ease, scoring 170 for four wickets in 19.2 overs.

Chasing a target of 170, England got off to a flying start with openers Roy and Hales smashing the Kiwi bowlers to all parts of the ground to pile up 53 runs in the powerplay.

But after striking seven fours and two sixes, Roy had to head back to the pavilion as he was caught by Trent Boult off the bowling of off-spinner Mitchell Santner to have England at 77 for one in 8.2 overs.

Incoming batsman Joe Root (12) too fell in the space of four overs to hand New Zealand a slight advantage.

With Hales looking good to bring up his half-century, offspinner Nathan McCullum got him caught and bowled in the 16th over followed by Eoin Morgan (20) in the 18th over to take the pressure away from the Kiwis.

But incoming hard-hitting batsmen Jos Buttler (24 not out) and Ben Stokes (8 not out) took their team over the line.

Mitchell Santner (2/24) and Nathan McCullum (2/25) were the pick of the Kiwi bowlers.

Earlier, opting to bat, New Zealand’s hard-hitting opener Martin Guptill (16) gave the team a good start but unfortunately threw his wicket away as he caught by Chris Jordan at mid-on off the bowling off Reece Topley in the second over itself. New Zealand were 19 for one then.

Leading from the front, his opening partner and skipper Kane Williamson (63) held on striking nine boundaries and one six to help his team cross the 50-run mark. Williamson was well supported in the end

by Henry Nicholls (14).

Despite the fall of Guptill, Williamson scored at a good pace to bring up his half-century in just 26 balls.

But as both the batsmen was looking set to pile up some useful runs, off-spinner Moeen Ali got the much needed breakthrough dismissing Nicholls in the eighth over. Incoming batsman Luke Ronchi (13) along with his skipper helped the team cross the 100-run mark in the 10th over itself.

Brief scores: New Zealand 169/8 in 20 overs (Kane Williamson 63; Adil Rashid 3/15, Reece Topley 2/39) lost to England 170/4 in 19.2 overs (Jason Roy 55, Alex Hales 44; Mitchell Santner 2/24, Nathan McCullum 2/25). - IANS

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

C3

SPORTS Unbeaten Afghanistan ease past Zimbabwe and into Super 10 stage In a do-or-die match, the Afghans outplayed Zimbabwe in all departments by first scoring a challenging 186 for six in 20 overs and then bowling out opposition for 127 in 19.4 overs

NAGPUR: Afghanistan on Saturday romped into the main round of the ICC World T20 after crushing Zimbabwe by a whopping 59 runs in their final Group B qualifying contest, here on Saturday.

In a do-or-die match, the Afghans outplayed Zimbabwe in all departments by first scoring a challenging 186 for six in 20 overs and then bowling out opposition for 127 in 19.4 overs.

IMPRESSIVE SHOW: Afghanistan players celebrate after clinching a berth in the T20 World T20 Super 10 stage with an easy victory over

Zimbabwe at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur on Saturday. – AFP

Afghanistan won all their three qualifying round matches having won their first two games against Scotland and Hong Kong respectively. Afghanistan have been

clubbed with England, Sri Lanka, West Indies and South Africa for the Super 10 and they will open their campaign against Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens on March 17.

The Afghans turned the match on its head during the last 10 overs of their innings with Mohammed Nabi (52 off 32 balls) and Samiullah Shenwari (43 off 37 balls) add-

ing 98 runs for the fifth wicket. Nabi’s innings had four boundaries and two sixes while Shenwari hit a six and a four.

In the back-10, Afghanistan

scored a massive 113 runs after the first 10 overs produced 73 for the loss of four wickets.

Opener Mohammed Shahzad also did a great job by going after the bowling during the Powerplay overs, notching up 40 off 23 balls with seven boundaries and a six.

All the Zimbabwe pacers, who had a decent outing so far, went for runs. Wellington Masakadza (0/31), Tendai Chatara (0/34 in 3 overs), Donaldo Tiripano (1/41 in 3 overs) all went for runs.

The only successful bowler was Tinashe Panayngara, who claimed three wickets conceding 32 runs in four overs.

The best part about Afghanistan batting was their fearless strokeplay. If the fine leg was up, they hit the lap shot, played the upper cut over third man and punished any loose deliveries that came their way.

Zimbabwe were never really in contention as they could score only 39 in the Powerplay overs with field restrictions on. They lost wickets at regular intervals with none of their batsmen crossing 20-run mark.

Leg-spinner Rashid Khan (3/11) was the most successful bowler while Hamid Hassan (2/11), Samiullah Shenwari (1/31) and Mohammed Nabi (1/29) all chipped in with wickets. - PTI

RARE SUCCESS

Scotland defeat Hong Kong NAGPUR: Scotland dished out a superb all-round performance to notch up an eight-wicket win — their first victory in an ICC event — over Hong Kong via D/L method in a rain-affected inconsequential match of the ICC World Twenty20 on Saturday.

In the Group B preliminary round match that was interrupted twice due to rain, Hong Kong posted 127 for 7 in 20 overs but with rain delaying the start of the second innings, Scotland were given a revised target of 76 runs in 10 overs.

Scotland then overhauled the target with the loss of two wickets and as many overs to spare to post their first victory in an ICC global event at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Jamtha. It was Matt Machan who took them to victory with a six off Nadeem Ahmed in the last ball of 8th over.

For Hong Kong, Ahmed (1/20) and Aizaz Khan (1/11) picked one wicket each. Chasing 76 to win, opening duo of George Munsey (19 off 11 balls) and Kyle Coetzer (20 off 19 balls) added 20 runs in first

S TA N D I N G S

Bangladesh Oman Ireland Netherlands

Played 2 2 2 2

Won 1 1 0 0

GROUP A Lost Tied 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0

N/R 1 1 1 1

Net RR +0.400 +0.283 -0.283 -0.400

Points 3 3 1 1

Afghanistan Zimbabwe Scotland Hong Kong

3 3 3 3

3 2 1 0

GROUP B 0 0 1 0 2 0 3 0

0 0 0 0

+1.540 -0567 +0.308 -1.267

6 4 2 0

two overs before spinner Ahmed dismissed the former in the first ball of the next over.

Coetzer then blasted a couple of fours as Scotland amassed 29 off the three power play overs.

New man Matthew Cross (22 off 14 balls) too got into the act and plundered two sixes and a boundary as Scotland reached 56 for one in six overs.

He was dismissed by Aizaz with Nizakat taking an easy catch at deep midwicket.

Machan (15 off 4 balls) and Coetzer then finished the job for Scotland.

Earlier, electing to bat, Hong Kong rode on Mark Chapman’s 41ball 40 to post a modest 127 for 7 in their 20 overs after a brief rain interruption in the last over.

Brief scores: Hong Kong 127 for 7 in 20 overs (M Chapman 40; MW Machan 2/26) lost to Scotland 76 for 2 in 8 overs (M Cross 22; Aizaz Khan 1/11). Target revised to 76 in 10 overs due to rain delay. — PTI

AFGHANISTAN M. Shahzad c H. Masakadza b Williams 40 Noor Ali Zadran c S. Raza b Panyangara 10 A Stanikzai c S. Raza b Panyangara 0 Gulbadin Naib b Panyangara 7 S. Shenwari c Sibanda b Tiripano 43 Mohammad Nabi run out 52 Shafiqullah (not out) 9 Dawlat Zadran (not out) 0 Extras (b-4, lb-4, w-17) 25 Total (6 wkts; 20 overs) 186 Did not bat: Najibullah Zadran, Rashid Khan, Hamid Hassan Fall of wickets: 1-49, 2-50, 3-60, 4-63,

5-161, 6-184.

Bowling: W.P. Masakadza 4-1-31-0 (w-1); T.L. Chatara 3-0-34-0 (w-2); D.T. Tiripano 3-0-41-1 (w-4); S. Williams 4-0-25-1; T. Panyangara 4-0-32-3; Sikandar Raza 2-0-15-0 (w-3).

ZIMBABWE V. Sibanda c H. Hassan b Rashid Khan 13 H. Masakadza b Hamid Hassan 11 R. Mutumbami c N. Zadran b M. Nabi 10 S. Williams st M. Shahzad b Rashid Khan 13 M.N. Waller b Samiullah Shenwari 7 Sikandar Raza b Hamid Hassan 15 E. Chigumbura c Shafiqullah b Rashid 10

W.P. Masakadza b Dawlat Zadran 6 D.T. Tiripano run out 2 T. Panyangara (not out) 17 T.L. Chatara c Shafiqullah b A. Stanikzai 8 Extras (lb-11, w-4) 15 Total (all out; 19.4 overs) 127 Fall of wickets: 1-26, 2-43, 3-47, 4-59, 5-65, 6-90, 7-95, 8-98, 9-118.

Bowling: Dawlat Zadran 4-0-30-1 (w-1); Hamid Hassan 3-0-11-2 (w-1); Samiullah Shenwari 4-0-31-1; Mohammed Nabi 3-0-14-1 (w-1); Rashid Khan 4-0-11-3; Gulbadin Naib 1-0-15-0; Asghar Stanikzai 0.4-0-4-1.

C4

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

SPORTS LA LIGA

Messi, Neymar help Barca to 12th straight victory BARCELONA: Barcelona equalled a club record of 12 consecutive league wins as Neymar and Lionel Messi were among the scorers in a 6-0 thrashing of struggling Getafe 6-0 at the Nou Camp on Saturday.

The victory takes Barcelona 11 points clear of nearest challengers Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga standings.

An own goal by Getafe defender Juan Dominguez put Barca on their way to victory after eight minutes but then Messi missed a fourth penalty of the season, before laying on passes for Munir El

Haddadi and Neymar to stretch Barca’s lead.

The Argentine superstar added a fourth goal before the break with a curling strike from the edge of the area.

Neymar then struck a 21st goal of the season in all competitions, again assisted by Messi, while Arda Turan completed the thrashing with an overhead volley.

Luis Enrique’s side are in the midst of a record of 37 matches without defeat in all competitions and the victory over Getafe matched the 12 straight league wins they achieved in 2012-13 un-

der coach Tito Vilanova.

Before the match Barca enjoyed their first week without a match in 2016, and Luis Enrique made five changes from the team that won 4-0 at Eibar last Sunday, resting Luis Suarez, Dani Alves, Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitic before their Champions League round of 16 second leg match with Premier League side Arsenal on Wednesday.

Getafe sit one point above the relegation zone in 16th place and the trouncing they received at the Nou Camp was their eighth defeat in nine league matches. - Reuters

Pakistan team arrive in India Hundreds of fans gathered at the airport to welcome the Pakistan team as Shahid Afridi and his players came out of the airport

KOLKATA: Cleared by their government after days of uncertainty over their participation, the Pakistani contingent arrived in India to take part in the World Twenty20 cricket tournament as they landed here after a long flight.

The 27-member Pakistan cricket contingent arrived in the city from Abu Dhabi, finally ending days of suspension over their participation in the mega event.

The Pakistan contingent comprising 15 players, 12 officials and support staff, reached the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Interna-

WARM WELCOME: Pakistan team coach Waqar Younis arrives

with his team at NSCBI Airport in Kolkata on Saturday. – PTI

tional Airport at 7:55 pm amid tight security after the Pakistan government finally gave their cricket board the green signal to fly to India.

Hundreds of fans gathered at the airport to welcome the Pakistan team as Shahid Afridi and his players came out of the airport.

The Pakistani skipper recipro-

cated the warm gestures, waving at the crowd before leading his teammates into two buses as they went straight to the team hotel.

It took about an hour for the Pakistan players to clear their immigration formalities before they finally came out of the airport to the loud cheers of the fans gathered there. - PTI

T H R I L L I N G M AT C H

South Africa beat India in warm-up tie MUMBAI: Star batsmen JeanPaul Duminy and Quinton de Kock struck fluent half centuries as South Africa registered a nailbiting, four-run victory against India in the warm-up match ahead of the World Twenty20 cricket tournament at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday.

Batting first, South Africa posted 196 for eight in 20 overs, thanks to Duminy’s 67 and Quinton de Kock’s 56.

In reply, despite Shikhar Dhawan’s 73 retired not out and Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s 16-ball 30 in the end, India fell short of the target as they could manage only 192 for three in 20 overs.

Pacers Dale Steyn, Kyle Abbott and leg-spinner Imran Tahir claimed one wicket each for South Africa.

Earlier opting to bat, South Africa got off to a disappointing start losing opener Hashim Amla

(5) in the third over. But the fall of wicket didn’t worry his opening partner de Kock (56 retired not out) as the left-handed batsman scored at a good pace to take the pressure away from the team.

Brief scores: South Africa 196/8 in 20 overs (J.P. Duminy 67, Quinton de Kock 56 retired; Hardik Pandya 3-36, Mohammad Shami 2-37 and Jasprit Bumrah 2-51) bt India 192/3 in 20 overs (Shikhar Dhawan 73 retired; Imran Tahir 1-25, Kyle Abbott 1-32, Dale Steyn 1-36). - IANS

PREMIER LEAGUE

Man City held to 0-0 draw

by Norwich NORWICH: Manchester City’s hopes of regaining the Premier League title suffered a potentially grievous blow on Saturday as they were held to a goalless draw by struggling Norwich City at Carrow Road.

The unpredictable 2014 champions dominated possession and territory but still did not have the urgency nor invention to pierce a well-organised Canaries’ rearguard.

And they had to settle frustratingly for remaining fourth in the title race, still nine points behind leaders Leicester City. - Reuters

C

SECTION

LIFESTYLE

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

Health WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

ANXIETY is an extremely uncomfortable feeling of unease and nervousness similar to fear, usually about an event with an uncertain outcome. It has both emotional and physical sensations and evokes the ďŹ&#x201A;ight or ďŹ ght response in us. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s uncomfortable and people do whatever they can to reduce it.

Difference between normal anxiety and anxiety disorders Normal anxiety is a feeling we have all faced especially when under stress or when making decisions. Usually after a short while or when the situation is resolved it disappears. Anxiety disorders are overwhelming and the anxiety is constant and interferes with the normal functioning in an individual.

Causes of anxiety disorders Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important not to undervalue the distress that people have with anxiety disorders. They are not a sign of personality weakness nor do they respond to simple advice.

People who have never faced the constant anxiety ďŹ nd it difficult to understand the suffering of this disorder. Anxiety disorders

are caused by problems in the functioning of brain circuits. These can be caused by genetic factors, early childhood trauma, hormonal imbalances, and stress. Usually they are triggered by a combination of the four factors.

Ä&#x160; ( , &#- Ĺ&#x2014; (2# .3Ĺ&#x2014; #-), ,Ä&#x2020;Ĺ&#x2014; This disorder involves excessive, unrealistic worry and tension of common every day events.

Negative thinking and worry is a constant companion during each day.

What are the different anxiety disorders? Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014; (# Ĺ&#x2014; #-), ,Ä&#x2020;Ĺ&#x2014; )*& Ĺ&#x2014;1#."Ĺ&#x2014; this condition have feelings of terror that strike suddenly and repeatedly with no warning.

Other symptoms include chest pain, palpitations, and a feeling of choking, which may make the person feel like he or she is having a heart attack. Ä&#x160; ) # &Ĺ&#x2014; (2# .3Ĺ&#x2014; #-), ,Ä&#x2020;Ĺ&#x2014; &-)Ĺ&#x2014; called social phobia, it involves overwhelming worry and selfconsciousness about everyday social situations. The worry plays on a fear of being judged by others, or behaving in a way that might cause embarrassment Ä&#x160; * #Ă° Ĺ&#x2014; ") # -Ä&#x2020;Ĺ&#x2014;#-Ĺ&#x2014; (Ĺ&#x2014;#(. (- Ĺ&#x2014; fear of a speciďŹ c object or situation, such as snakes, heights, or ďŹ&#x201A;ying. The level of fear is usually inappropriate to the situation and may cause the person to avoid common, everyday situations.

How do we help in anxiety disorders?

Understanding and compassion are very important in dealing with it. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important not to criticise or undervalue the suffering that people go through. People with anxiety disorders must be supported to seek professional help to deal with their symptoms and regain their conďŹ dence and strength. Simple words of advice do not help people with anxiety disorders and only help to confuse them. Remember that normal anxiety is incredibly uncomfortable, how much more debilitating chronic uncontrolled anxiety is. They need our help.

Story Dr Gerald Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Costa

Unplug and Unload ANXIETY is a universal affliction affecting millions. And while most will admit to being under some kind of pressure â&#x20AC;&#x201D; be it ďŹ nancial, work or family challenges â&#x20AC;&#x201D; getting to unplug and unload is proving to be a difficult task.

Joyce Meyer, best-selling author, speaker and teacher, agrees that the demands of modern life can be all-consuming, making it hard to mute distractions. In her new book, OVERLOAD: How to Unplug, Unwind, and Unleash Yourself from the Pressure of Stress, Meyer addresses this problem by identifying the catalysts of worry in your life, as well as offering practical, effective advice and wisdom from a scriptural standpoint that she believes is the answer to curing your stress. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Nobody is immune to stress,â&#x20AC;?

Meyer says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But through exploring the inspiring insights you triumph over stress, you can achieve the joyful, peaceful life that is intended for you.â&#x20AC;?

Other ways that may help you regain some sense of control and generally decrease anxiety can be )/( Ĺ&#x2014; &)1Ä&#x2020; Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014; % Ĺ&#x2014;3)/,Ĺ&#x2014;")' Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;" 0 (Ä&#x201E;Ĺ&#x2014; Your home needs to be a place where you go to recuperate and rejuvenate for the next day.

The space should be calm and harmonious. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014; % Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;')' (.Ä&#x201E;Ĺ&#x2014;Ä? " , Ĺ&#x2014; are thousands of ways you can relax. Whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unwinding with music, reading a good book,

taking a warm bath by candlelight, going for a walk or engaging in a sport you enjoy, you know what relaxation feels like and you know when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s happening to you,â&#x20AC;?

Meyer writes in OVERLOAD, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I strongly encourage you to make relaxation a part of your daily life.â&#x20AC;? Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014; - Ĺ&#x2014;3)/,Ĺ&#x2014; ,#0#(!Ĺ&#x2014;.#' Ĺ&#x2014;),Ĺ&#x2014; commuting time to calm down.

This may seem like an oxymoron, but youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d be surprised at how easy it is to disconnect from daily pressures or work on the car ride home. Relax by listening to an audio book or singing along to your favourite music, and, if the weather permits, roll down the windows and let the sun and breeze carry your troubles away.

-NewsUSA

C6

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

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Triple 9 – 2D (Action | Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie 3:30, 6:30, 9:00, 11:30 PM

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FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

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Arrival Operating time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

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05:30 05:30 05:30

Maximum

16:30 18:00 19:30

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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

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20:50

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10:20 12:30

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Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai

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08:40 11:00

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10:45 19:00

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Fahud Ruwi

13:15 17:30

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Ruwi Marmul Ruwi Ruwi

19:50 13:15 22:30 07:30

06:00

Marmul

16:30

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15:00

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07:00

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Daily Daily Wed,Thur Wed,Thur Daily Daily

07:30 07:30 13:00 13:00 15:30 15:30

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10:50 13:40 16:15 19:10 18:45 21:35

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TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

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07:00 07:00 07:00

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11.45 13.30 14.00

London Has Fallen (Action / Crime / Thriller) Cast: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart 8.00, 11.55 PM CP No: 351 (PG12) 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (Action / Drama / Thriller) Cast: John Krasinski, Pablo Schreiber 2.00 PM CP No: 352 (15+) Bleeding Heart (Drama) Cast: Jessica Biel, Zosia Mamet, Joe Anderson 2.00, 4:00, 6:00 & 10.00 PM CP No: 353 (15+) The Divergent Series: Allegiant (Adventure) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz, Navomi Watts 4:30, 7:00, 9:30, 11:55PM CP No: 341 (PG12)

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TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102) 15:00

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SALALAH The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2D) (PG12) (Action| Adventure| Sci-Fi) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz 11:30AM, 2:45, 9:15, 11:15PM London Has Fallen (2D) (PG12) (Action) Cast: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, 2:30, 10:00PM Triple 9 (2D) (15+) (Action | Crime | Drama) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor.12:30, 12:30, 7:00, 9:00, 11:45PM Bleeding Heart (2D) (15+) (Drama) Cast: Jessica Biel, Zosia Mamet, Joe Anderson 3:00, 7:05PM The Other Side of the Door (2D) (18+) Cast: Sarah Wayne Callies, Jeremy Sisto, Sofia Rosinsky 5:00, 11:55PM 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2D) (15+) (Action|Thrille) Cast: John Krasinski, Pablo Schreiber, James Badge Dale 4:30PM Zootropolis (3D) (PG12) (Animation | Action) Voice Overs: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba 12:00, 4:45PM Puthiya Nayamam (2D) (PG12) (Malayalam) Cast: Mammootty, Nayanthara 7:15PM

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10:25

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Ruwi

TO SUR (ROUTE 55) 12:00 18:45

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62) 06:30 06:30

29 20

Cast: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, Charlotte Riley 9.45PM The Divergent Series: Allegiant (Action |Adventure | Sci-Fi) ( PG-12) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Theo James 7.00, 9.15, 11.30PM Zootropolis 3D (Animation | Action| Adventure) ( PG12 ) Voice Overs: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba 5.15PM Puthiya Niyamam (Malayalam) (PG12) Cast: Mammootty, Nayantara 7.15PM Triple 9 (Action | Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie 4.45, 7.15, 9.30, 11.45PM Martyrs (Drama | Horror | Thriller) (18+) Cast: Troian Bellisario, Bailey Noble 5.00, 11,45PM

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

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TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54) 08:00 08:00

08:55 Daily 11:40 Daily 20:20 Daily via Ibri 14:55 Daily 17:40 Daily 19:20 Daily 22:15 Daily

SUR The Divergent Series - Allegiant ( Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi ) ( PG12) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz, Theo James 4:30, 8:45 PM Triple 9 ( Action |Crime | Drama ) (15+) Cast: Casy Affleck, Kate Winslet

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54) 14:30 14:30

Sohar Ruwi Ruwi Sohar Ruwi Sohar Ruwi

Daily Daily Daily

RUWI Screen 1 Jai GangaaJal (Action) –PG12 Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Prakash Jha, Rahul Bhat, Ayush 3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PM Screen 2 The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2D) (Action / Adventure / Sci-Fi) –PG12 Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James 4.00, 10.00 PM Puthiya Niyamam - (Mal) – PG12 Cast: Mammootty, Nayantara, Baby Ananya 7.00 PM Screen 3 Neerja (Action / Biography) –PG12 Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi 3.45, 6.45, 9.45 PM

SOHAR London Has Fallen – 2D (Action) (PG12) Cast: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, Charlotte Riley 2:45, 7:00, 11:30PM The Divergent Series: Allegiant– 2D (Action | Adventure | Sc-Fi) (PG12) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, 2:45, 5:00, 9:15, 11:30PM Triple 9 – 2D (Action | Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie 2:30, 7:15, 9:30, 11:45PM Zootropolis – 3D (Animation) (PG12) Voice Overs: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba 2:30, 4:30PM Bleeding Heart – 2D (Drama|) (15+) Cast: Jessica Biel, Zosia Mamet, Joe Anderson 5:30, 7:15PM The Other Side of the Door– 2D (Horror) (18+) Cast: Sarah Wayne Callies, Jeremy Sisto, Sofia Rosinsky 4:45, 11:45PM Jai GangaaJal – 2D (Action | Drama) (PG12) Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Rahul Bhat, Ayush Mahesh Khedekar 9:00PM Kadhalum Kandathu Pogum– 2D (Romantic | Comedy) (PG12) Cast: Vijay Setupathi, Madonna Sabastian 6:30PM Puthiya Niyamam – 2D (Family) (PG12) Cast: Mammootty, Nayanthara 9:00PM

WEATHER

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36) Quriyat Sur Jaalan

Puthiya Niyamam (Mal) (2D) (Drama) (PG12) Cast: Mammootty, Nayanthara, Baby Ananya 7:00, 8:30 PM

AZAIBA Triple 9 (2D) (Action |Crime) (15+) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie 3:30, 6:30, 11:30 PM London Has Fallen (2D) (Action) (PG12) Cast: Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman 3:00, 5:00, 11:45 PM The Divergent Series-Allegiant (2D) (Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi) (PG12) Cast: Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Theo James 3:30, 9:30, 11:45 PM Jai GangaaJal (2D) (Hindi) (Action) (TBC) Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Rahul Bhat 3:15, 6:00, 9:00, 11:15 PM Neerja (2D) (Hindi) (Biographical) (PG12) Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azami 6:00 PM Puthiya Niyamam (Mal) (2D) (Drama) (PG12) Cast: Mammootty, Nayanthara 7:00, 8:30 PM Kadhalum Kandathu Pogum(2D)(Tamil) (Romantic | Comedy) (TBC) Cast: Vijay Setupathi, Madonna Sabastian 8:45 PM

Zootropolis (3D) (Animation, Action)(PG12) Voice Overs : Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman 2:30, 5:45 PM Triple 9-2D (Action, Crime)(15+) Cast : Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie 3:30, 6:30, 9:00, 11:30 PM Triple 9 (2D) (Action, Crime)(15+)-VIP LOUNGE Cast : Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor 3:45, 8:45, 11:00 PM The Divergent Series: Allegiant-2D (Action, Adventure)(PG12) Cast : Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Theo James 2:45, 9:00, 11:30 PM The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2D) (Action, Adventure)(PG12)-VIP LOUNGE Cast : Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Theo James 6:30 PM The Divergent Series: Allegiant (Action, Adventure)(MX4D)(PG12) Cast : Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz 3:30, 6:15, 8:30, 10:45 PM Bleeding Heart (2D) (Drama)(15+) Cast : Jessica Biel, Zosia Mamet 5:15, 7:45 PM

LONG DISTANCE BUS TIMINGS (OMAN NATIONAL TRANSPORT COMPANY SAOC) *SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Destination

12.21pm 3.46pm 6.20pm 7.30pm 5.03am

CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 3 YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE CINEMA | BOX-OFFICE COUNTER OPENS 30-MINUTES PRIOR TO THE SCREENING OF THE FIRST SHOW

CINEMA SCHEDULE

Dept time

Dhuhr Asr Maghrib Isha Fajr (Tomorrow)

Daily Daily Daily

Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain Bangladesh Brazil Brunei China Cyprus Egypt France Germany India Indonesia Iran Iraq Italy Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya South Korea Kuwait

24698 791/4 24605 593 24 605 074/133 24 698 660 24640100 24 603533 24 696782 24 699815 24 600 982/411 24681 800 24835000 24684500 2469 1050 24 696 944/7 24603642 24693727 24 601 028 24692760/1/3 24 692418 24 697664 24 691490 24 699628

Lebanon Libya Malaysia Morocco Nepal Netherlands Pakistan Palestine Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Senegal Somalia South Africa Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Switzerland Syria Tanzania Thailand Tunisia Turkey UAE United Kingdom United States Yemen

24 693208 24603466 24698329/643 24696152/3 24696177 24603706 24603439 24601312 24605335 24 691 153/2/4 24602894 24601705 24694139 24697977 24647300 24691101 24697841/2 24697875 24603267 24697904 24601 174 24 602684/5 24603486 24697050/1/2 24400000 24609000 24643400 24600815

PHARMACIES Round the clock Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi 24783334

Apollo 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 Lifeline Hospital Salalah 23212340 International Medical Centre LLC 24794501/2/3/4/5 Kims Oman Hospital 24760100 24 Hrs Emergency 24760123 Lama Polyclinic, Sohar 26751128 MBD 24799077 Al Khuwair 24478818 Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital 24568870 Muscat Private Hospital 24583600 Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair 24477666 Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC 22004000 AIRLINE OFFICES Muscat Airport Flight information (24 hours) 24519456/24519223 Aeroflot 24704455 Air Arabia 24700828 Air France 24562153 Air India 24799801

Air New Zealand 24700732 Biman Bangladesh Airlines 24701128 British Airways 24568777 Cathay Pacific 24789818 Egypt Air 24794113 Emirates Air 24404400 Ethiopian Airlines 24660313 Gulf Air 80072424 Indian 24791914 Iran Air 24787423 Japan Airlines 24704455 Jazeera Airways 23294848 Jet Airways 24787248 Kenya Airways 24660300 KML Royal Dutch Airlines 24566737 Kuwait Airways 24701262 LOT Polish Airlines 24796387 Lufthansa 24796692 Malaysian Airlines 24560796 Middle East Airlines 24796680 Oman Air 24531111 Pakistan International Airlines 24792471 Qatar Airways 24771900 Qantas 24559941 Royal Jordanian 24796693 Saudi Arabian Airlines 24789485 Singapore Airlines 24791233 Shaheen Air 24816565 SriLankan Airlines 24784545 Swiss International Airlines 24796692 Thai Airways 24705934

SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

LIFESTYLE

Hair thinning and hair loss. What you can do yourself.

BRIEF

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t litter a beautiful country like OMAN. Ensure proper disposal of garbage.

Retirement can boost positive changes

Individuals who retire become more physically active, reduce their sitting time, are less likely to smoke, and have healthier sleep patterns, when compared with people who are still working, ďŹ nds a new research. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A major life change like retirement creates a great window of opportunity to make positive lifestyle changes â&#x20AC;&#x201D; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a chance to get rid of bad routines and engineer new, healthier behaviours,â&#x20AC;? said lead researcher Melody Ding, senior research fellow at the University of Sydney in Australia. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The lifestyle changes were most pronounced in people who retire after working full time. When people are working and commuting, it eats a lot of time out of their day. When they retire, they have time to be physically active and sleep more,â&#x20AC;?

Ding added.-IANS

here is little you can do to prevent hereditary hair loss, but treatments may reverse some of its effects. For temporary hair loss, try the following to slow hair thinning and encourage regrowth. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014; # .-Ĺ&#x2014; ( Ĺ&#x2014; , -"Ĺ&#x2014; # .-Ĺ&#x2014; ' 3Ĺ&#x2014; contribute to hair loss. Make sure you include plenty of protein and iron in your diet. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; 0)# Ĺ&#x2014;/-#(!Ĺ&#x2014;" #,Ĺ&#x2014; 3 -Ĺ&#x2014; ( Ĺ&#x2014;., .ments to perm or straighten your hair. They contain chemicals that may make hair brittle and liable to break at the roots. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; )(Ä&#x201C;.Ĺ&#x2014;1 ,Ĺ&#x2014;3)/,Ĺ&#x2014;" #,Ĺ&#x2014;#(Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;-.3& Ĺ&#x2014; that pulls on your scalp, or wear a cap or hat continuously unless you have to wear headgear for your work. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; .Ĺ&#x2014; 3)/,Ĺ&#x2014; " #,Ĺ&#x2014; ,3Ĺ&#x2014; ( ./, &&3Ĺ&#x2014; # Ĺ&#x2014; possible, rather than using a hair dryer. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pull on your hair with a brush or comb when it is wet. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;3)/,Ĺ&#x2014;" #,Ĺ&#x2014;#-Ĺ&#x2014;."#((#(!Ä&#x2026;Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;!)) Ĺ&#x2014; haircut can make a difference.

Short, blunt cuts can make hair appear thicker. Some men prefer to cut their hair very short, or shave it off, to disguise a receding hairline. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; Ĺ&#x2014;3)/Ĺ&#x2014; , Ĺ&#x2014;#(Ĺ&#x2014;." Ĺ&#x2014; ,&3Ĺ&#x2014;-. ! -Ĺ&#x2014;) Ĺ&#x2014; hereditary hair loss, you can try a preparation containing minoxidil that may restore hair.

Temporary hair loss often occurs after an illness or period of stress, or because of a skin infection such as ringworm.

Chemical hair treatments, and hairstyles and hats that pull on the hair, can contribute to the problem. Some drugs and long-term illnesses cause hair loss, and women may lose hair temporarily after childbirth. Permanent hair loss is usually hereditary and can begin to affect men as early as in their twenties. Women who inherit the trait develop thin hair later in life but do not usually become bald.

Natural Remedies Protein is essential for building and repairing tissues in the body, including hair. Make sure about one sixth of your total calorie intake is made up of foods such as meat, ďŹ sh, cheese, and nuts. ,)(Ĺ&#x2014; &-)Ĺ&#x2014;" &*-Ĺ&#x2014;' #(. #(Ĺ&#x2014;" &."3Ĺ&#x2014; hair, so eat plenty of iron-rich foods such as grains, beans, ďŹ sh, poultry, meat, and leafy green vegetables.

Make an appointment to see your doctor if: Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; )/Ĺ&#x2014;" 0 Ĺ&#x2014; (Ĺ&#x2014;&)-#(!Ĺ&#x2014;" #,Ĺ&#x2014;, *idly or in patches in recent weeks. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014;Ĺ&#x2014; )/Ĺ&#x2014; ."#(%Ĺ&#x2014; 3)/,Ĺ&#x2014; " #,Ĺ&#x2014; &)--Ĺ&#x2014; ' 3Ĺ&#x2014; be due to a medication or an illness. Ä&#x160;Ĺ&#x2014; )/Ĺ&#x2014; , Ĺ&#x2014;*/&&#(!Ĺ&#x2014;3)/,Ĺ&#x2014;" #,Ĺ&#x2014;)/.Ä&#x201E; -lifestyle@timesofoman.com

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SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016

LIFESTYLE

SMART WAYS TO LOWER YOUR SUGAR INTAKE

W

e all know that excess sugar consumption leads to health problems like obesity, diabetes and other lifestyle diseases. While we tend to control our direct sugar intake, sometimes we unknowingly consume sugar that is added to foods that don’t even taste sweet like breads, condiments, and sauces. Also, it becomes difficult to avoid those added sugar found in processed food.

A little attention to what we eat and drink can help us control our sugar intake. Here are few ways to slash sugar from your diet.

6 tsp per day

Get Enough Sleep Sometimes when we are tired we often use sugar for energy to counteract the exhaustion. Excessive craving for sugar might be a sign of emotional need that isn’t being met.

Read Food Labels While buying things like tomato sauce, crackers, or any condiments check the ingredients list.

If they have words “corn syrup”, “fruit juice concentrate”, “cane sugar”, “brown sugar”, “raw sugar” or “high-fructose corn syrup” molasses, it means that the product is high in sugar. So next time you go to buy your favourite flavoured yoghurt or cereal, make sure you check out on these names. Your seemingly healthy food might not be so healthy in reality.

Cut Down on Raw Sugar Cutting off sugar from food and beverages like tea and coffee is the best way to reduce sugar intake.

Cut back on processed foods which are typically laden with added sugar. Keep sugary snacks away.

Cut back on sodas and soft drinks.

Go for unsweetened, whole-grain cereals. Don’t substitute artificial sweeteners for sugar. All sugars are sugars. Brown or raw sugar isn’t any healthier than others.

Eat Regularly Eat three meals and two snacks or five small meals a day. For many people, if they don’t eat regularly, their blood sugar levels drop, they feel hungry and are more likely to crave sweet sugary snacks.

Adjust Serving Sizes Your serving sizes are a huge key too. Instead of a whole cookie, eat half. Eat a quarter of a cookie and savour it. You will be surprised at how quickly your body will adjust.

Opt for Fresh Fruits Canned fruits are packed with a high amount of corn syrup or fructose that are essentially, different forms of sugar. Simply eat fresh and season fruits to remove such unwanted sugars from your diet.

Similarly, fruit juices sold in the packaged format contain unnecessary sugar. Either have a whole fruit with all its fibres or squeezeout fresh juice.

Ideal Substitutes Instead of adding sugar in recipes, use extracts such as almond, vanilla, orange or lemon. You can also enhance the taste by adding spices like ginger, allspice, cinnamon or nutmeg. Substitute unsweetened applesauce for sugar in recipes. Drink lots of water as it reduces sugar cravings or have a piece of fruit when you have a sweet craving. Cravings are generally short-lived so if you can divert your mind then you are sure to overcome it. Try going for walks.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends to consume no more than 6tsp of sugar per day. It applies to all monosaccharides and disaccharides added to food and also the hidden sugar in processed food.

WHO Guidelines WHO’s current recommendation, is that sugars should make up less than 10% of total energy intake per day. Five per cent of total energy intake is equivalent to around 25 grams (around 6tsp) of sugar per day for an adult of normal Body Mass Index (BMI). The suggested limits on intake apply to all monosaccharides (such as glucose, fructose) and disaccharides (such as sucrose or table sugar) that are added to food by the manufacturer, the cook or the consumer, as well as sugars that are naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit concentrates.

Much of the sugars consumed today are “hidden” in processed foods that are not usually seen as sweets. For example, 1tbsp of ketchup contains around 1tsp of sugars. A single can of sweetened soda contains up to 40g of sugar.

-lifestyle@timesofoman.com

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RENT

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DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

*Tourist visa arranged

Luxury flat for rent in Bareeq Al Shatti building Spacious 2 BHK with sea view, split A/Cs, fixed wardrobes, kitchen appliance.

Near Opera Gallery.

Rent RO.900/- negotiable.

Contact - 94084335 / 96920789

2 BHK fully furnished flat at Ruwi MBD area. Contact – 93211557 / 24814853 Villa in Al-Khuwair 33. Quality Finishing. Consist 5 Bedrooms, 1 Living room, 3 Lounges, All with A/C, Kitchen and storage.

Contact: 90665135

3 Rooms, 2 Toilets Flat for Rent. 18 November Street. Near Mars Hypermarket and The Chedi. Ghobrah -Good for Commercial or Residential use.

OMR 295/- month. Call 94477222 Conditioned room with toilets in Al Khuwair. Contact: 92620858 /92605500 Flat for rent in South AlGhubrah 3 rooms, hall and 3 toilets, kitchen rent 450/-. Contact: 99335580 1BHK at Al Hamriya near Muscat Pharmacy contact: 9922474899332297 Flats, shops and basement in MBD area and Honda road.

Contact: 92433127/96291778/ 92589235/97293708 1 & 2 BHK Flat in Al.Khuwair.

Contact - 99792181 2 BHK flat in Ghobrah.

Contact - 99792181 2 BHK flat in Ruwi.

Contact - 99792181 Office Space Available in Al Khuwair & CBD.Contact – 99792181 Villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 92125648/25250300

1BHK close to Indian nursery, Darsait blog -1619, way No .1322 RO 225/-. Contact: 99476728

Open land + workshop + labour camp in Ghala & Rusayl.

Contact – 99792181

Land (17000sqm) with office / store /shaded area for rent at Ghala industrial area –prime location.

Contact:99476728

Store & workshop in Ghala, Misfah & Rusayl. Contact – 99792181 Flat, 1 bedroom, kitchen, toilet in AL Khuwair family bachelors R.O 150/-. Contact: 95154331

Rooms for rent in Al Khuwair near Ibis hotel. Contact: 95124975

2 Bedrooms, kitchen, toilet, car park R.O 200/- & 1 bedroom, kitchen, toilet R.O 130 in Al Khuwair. Contact: 95154331

Double bed room flat CBD area.

Contact: 97608564 Industrial land in misfit for near Hal service & Al Awazi.950sq.M with 3rooms,5 bathroom, boundary wall with 2 sides road facing &large parking in front. full or part area.

Contact- 99364007/99454425 3 Deluxe flat in Ghobrah near Chedi hotel 550 RO per monthly Contact: 90161220 2 BHK flats /office & shops valuable in a new building at Honda road .Contact: 91165807 Vila for rent in Al Mabela South near gulf college.contact:95950025 Furnished room available for executive bachelor in Ruwi area.

Contact - 99054542

1 Bed room, sharing K& T, R.O 100, 2 bedrooms , sharing K& T R.O 200/- in AL Khuwair.

Contact: 95154331 2BHK and 1BHK flats spilt air conditioners are available for rent in new building in Al Qurum, near rose Garden. Interested persons may content on phone: 9513331/96722449

For rent in Mabela Sanaya road no.6.show room two shutter & warehouse (900m2) & staff accommodation & office with split A.C. reasonable rent Contact: 99318152&99225067.

2 B/R Luxury Fully Furnished @ Al Khuwair 33 1 B/R Luxury Fully Furnished @ Al Khuwair 5 B/R Fully Furnished villa @ Madinat Al Ilam 5 B/R Fully Furnished villa @ Madinat Al Ilam. For Daily, Weekly, monthly or Yearly contract.

Please Contact: Atlas Real Estate & Rent a Car LLC 99249069 / 994617563/92888376 / 24834888E mail: info@alshahiintl.com

Store, workshop, garage for rent in Misfah. Contact – 99792181 1 & 2 B/R flat in Al Khuwair.

Contact – 99792181 4 B/R villa in Al Ansab.

Contact – 99792181 2 B/R flat in Wattaya, Mumtaz & Ruwi area. Contact – 99792181

Flat for rent 2 BHK 2 split A/C, 2 toilets, Wadi Kabir near Kuwaiti Masjid. Contact – 97007934 / 92609232 Commercial/ residential flat for rent in a new building. A warehouse also available, location Muttrah. For more details contact – 99364735 / 95729711 Room Al khuwair 120 R.O Contact: 97799175 2 BHK flat with big rooms behind Bank Muscat, Near ISWK. 99373290, 24815012

Studio type in Qurum.

Contact: 92230462 -98273470 2 BHK in Wadikabir RO250.

Contact: 97799175/92144045 2 BHK in Ghobrah RO310.

Contact: 97799175/92144045 1.2BHK in Darsait .Contact: 97799175/92144045 Flats 2 bedroom Majlis, 2 toilet, kitchen balcony near Indian school Darsait new building rent R.O 275/-Contact: 99243059 4 BHK villa in Qurum.

Contact: 97799175/92144045 2 BR flats with 2Baths Kitchen Al Amerat Aster Hospital .

Contact: 99366142 Furnished flat for rent near City Center Mawalah. 2 Rooms, Majlis, hall, kitchen & 4 bathrooms. Rent RO.400. Contact – 99336776 1000sqm two rooms with compound well at Misfah Sanaiya.

Surround huge open land for trailer movement, Suitable for tile, sanitary ware, building materials etc store.

Contact: 99342733 /99795241 Flats in Darsait.

94051789-97201688

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FOR RENT

FOR RENT

FOR SALE

OFFICE SPACES

220 M2 SHOWROOM

FOR RENT

FOR SALE

230 SQ. Mtr each Ready to move in two offices for rent near Man Truck Showroom, Ghala Contact -

COMMERCIAL/ OFFICE (Open space)

FOR RENT 480 SQM With centralized Air Conditioner

In SOUTH MAWALEH

(near Burj Al Sahwa Round About, Nizwa Road.)

Contact - 98978745 WAREHOUSE AVAILABLE

FOR RENT IN BALADIA SANAYAH AMIRAT (Floor area 600sqmtrs and mezzanine of 500sqmtrs) 1100sqmts fully cover warehouse Θ ƐƚĂī ĂĐĐŽŵŵŽĚĂƟ ŽŶƐ Please contact: G.S.M

99417229/92621039

RESTAURANT AVAILABLE FOR RENT Of area 500 Sq mts with well equipped kitchen and dining facility on Ground Floor at DARVESH Building, Near Royal Hospital.

Contact Person Mr.Mudassir :99314330 Mr.Joao Pereira: 99435952

02 BHK residential flat opposite to Al Nahdha hospital.

Contact: 99342733 /99795241

2 Room, 2 Bathroom, kitchen cat parking 200 Rails.

Contact: 92005298

To spend interesting times with family or friends a new park for rent in Al Amerat near Sultan Center for details. Contact: 99332273 Whatsapp 95806364

Four bedroom two floors luxurious and spacious residential villa in Al Hail North, near to the sea and Oman oil. Each room has its own bathroom. It has splits A/C’s and shaded car park. OMR 750 monthly. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 or 97509955

Building and house in Al Amerat near Bahwan stores suitable for big store and resident for workers for details. Contact: 99332273 Whatsapp 95806364 2 Bed rooms flats with hall 2 bathrooms in Darsait near Muscat municipality. Contact: 92584715 Flat for rent in Hamriya.

Contact 99341112 2 Bed room centrally air conditioned flat in CBD prime location.

Contact: 24714625/91173997 New flats for rent at Al Ghobrah near to atlas hospital the flats includes 2 living room , 1hall , kitchen , toilets , air conditioned room & high Quality finishing rent per flat is R.O 375/-. Interested candidates please Contact: 00968- 97093283 Flats in Wadi Kabir. Contact: 94051789-97201688 4 Bedroom new villa Al Mawaleh 1/2 KM to city center mall High end fit outs split A/C full kitchen fitting all rooms w/ private toilets monthly 600/- R.O. Contact : Hassan 99349990 Two bedrooms flat in Al Ghobrah near Oman Oil of 18 November Street. OMR 330 Monthly.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 or 97509955.

2BHK split A/C 200/- Monthly & 1BHK spilt A/C 150/- monthly new building good location Barka Market. Contact: 99342661 Warehouse at Wadikabir - total area 3500 sqm - covered warehouse (500sqm), office, accommodation (1000sqm), open area (2000sqm) please contact: 99273774 - 99202278 Flats for rent in Ruwi Mumtaz area 2 bedroom. Contact: 91409667/24291500 1BHK Flat with spilt A/C near star cinema 210/-. Contact: 99358589/95570288 /97079146 Full furniture room for rent for family monthly 200/- .

Contact: 99251975 House in Amerat near to Makah hypermarket with 3 room+ 5 toilet+ hall+ living room+ kitchen.

Contact 98885055/ 92744168 Fully Furnished apartments in Boucher (35). 94051789-97201688 Single room with A/C & WIFI having separate entrance for non –cooking Indian executive, near Rawasco, AL Khuwair rent 130/- (W& E). Contact 92888691/95397442/97201100

99269841 / 92429917 Flat with two rooms with window A/C, with toilets & car parking way No: 1670 north Al Hail near Dosteen restaurant 1KM Inside.

Contact: 99238334 3BHK in Qurum P.D.O high 350/Monthly. Contact: 99342661 Flats in Muttrah. Contact: 94051789-97201688 Offices in Ghala.

Contact: 94051789-97201688

@ Sanaya/ Hospital Road- Sohar PLEASE CONTACT:

00968 - 9898 9532/ 2471 4325 info@paramountmuscat.com

CLEARANCE SALE White wood, Red wood, Manhole covers, Hard ware, Electrical items & other building materials for clearance sale (price negotiable) Location Barka – Al Rumais For further details & inspection,

Please contact - 96125603

Offices & Showrooms in Muttrah.

94051789-97201688 Duplex villa in Qurum 29.

94051789-97201688 Offices & Showrooms in Al Khoud.94051789-97201688 Brand new villas in Al Ansab.

94051789-97201688 For rent and investment Land industrial shops in Rusayl.

Contact: 99323957 / 95490842 Flats in Qurum. Contact 94051789-97201688 Flat for rent south Al Mabela.

Contact: 95331177/95230355 1B/R apartment executive fully furnished at AL Khuwair 33 & 5 B/R villa unfurnished at Madinat Al Ilam & 5 B/R villa furnished at Madinat Al Ilam. Contact: Atlas Real Estate & rent a car LLC -24834888/ 99249069/92888376/94617563 Email: info@alshahiintl.com

For sale Porta cabin; new & used (wooden steel p.u.panel) Contact-99318152 Email:ahastco@gmail.com A well established automotive service center is for sale in Mabela area of 2850sqm please contact Virat: 94656682 Dental chair and mobile X-ray unit for sale.contact:92737149 Office furniture for immediate sale 15 workstation, 4 executive desk, chairs & branded 4 TVs. # 94104022 Household & electronic items for sale. Contact – 99421740 Expat leaving. Household items for immediate sale, 99457386 New & used (refurbished) Porta cabin with ablution for sale.

Pleases Contact: 97143704 or email: rsttllc@gmail.com

Luxury villa of 5 BHK in Al Khuwair 33 RO.650/- Contact – 91776665

Treadmill heavy 120kgs new OMR 140/- with massager.

Contact: 92670572

Flat for rent in Al Hail south 2 bedroom.

Contact: 91409667/24291500

400 sq mtrs Commercial/Residential land in Mabela Phase 5 Block 2. OMR 165 Thousand.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 or 97509955

Commercial flats of 3 & 2 BHK in Al Ghobra North 18 Nov street RO.650/- & 450/- Contact 91776665 Brand new villas in Al Ansab.

Contact - 94051789-97201688 Flats in WadiKabir.

Contact - 94051789-97201688 600 M2 showroom or office in Bousher in front of Dolphin complex.

RO.3.5 per m2. Contact 91776665 Offices & Showrooms in Al Khoud. Contact 9405178997201688 Fully Furnished apartments in Boucher (35) Contact- 9405178997201688 Brand new 4 BHK villa in Al Fai compound Al Khoud. RO.475/Contact – 91776665

A well running pharmacy for sale at prime location.

Contact- 99627621, 93240949 Well established coffee shop / restaurant prime location at AL Khoud.

Contact: 92188777/98700760

1ST GRADE RUNNING ESTABLISHMENT

FOR SALE Fully equipped Signboard Fabrication workshop.

Contact – Muhammad

90579500 Concrete Plant & Pump, WŽƌƚĂͲĐĂďŝŶ Kĸ ĐĞ for immediate sale tŽƌŬŝŶŐ ŽŶĚŝƟ ŽŶ ŽŶĐƌĞƚĞ ĂƚĐŚŝŶŐ Plant Pemat mixer, Econocrete - full set TEKA Concrete Pump mounted on MAN Chassis ZĞĂĚLJ ƚŽ ƵƐĞ WŽƌƚĂͲĐĂďŝŶ Kĸ ĐĞ Ͳ about 450 Square Meter area, with cabins.

Contact Mr Mateen - 92892209/ Mr Sreejith - 99478263/ Mr Aqueel - 99338619 Steel Scrap materials for immediate sale: Contact 99273774/ 99202278 HD Scaffoldings, Shuttering Jacks, Wooden Planks, Shuttering wood assorted, Tower hoist (lift), Concrete Mixer, Bending Machine, Steel Fabrication Machinery (Searing/Cutting, lathe & Welding) including tools for immediate sale: Contact 99273774/ 99202278 Urgent sale of steel scrap only serious buyers kindly contact: +968 96725423 for viewing the items.

Single colorful Bed and Sofa for Sale at Al Khuwair. Contact 92881849 / What`s up No 97290565

BUYING

Space for printing press available at wadikabir with or without machinery. Contact 99328430

Bobcat available for rent.

Contact 97623299

Shop for sale near Oman House, Muttrah. Contact 99024362.

Buying cars for cash.

Contact: 90202090

Almost new beach/ garden lounge chairs /bar stools/ counter. Photos can be sent 95865457 Luxury Apartments in Bousher (35). 95056808-97201688 Villas in Al Khoud. 9505680897201688

WANTED IELTS Coaching (academic) required nearby wadi Kabir area.

Please call on mobile or msg on Whats up.

Mobile no: 92927880/ 99012165

ACC. AVAILABLE Room with toilet for working lady.

Contact: 91450718 Sharing single big room for family or couple with separate bathroom near Badr Al Sama clinic Al Khuwair. Contact - 99796500 Accommodation available in Al Khuwair, single room with furniture and A/C, sharing kitchen.

Contact - 94297820 Furnished room attached bath for Indian bachelor, Al-Falaj Ruwi & lady Wadi Kabir near Mars hypermarket.

Contact: 96202458/96761960 Furnish bedroom with attach bathroom for executive bachelor.

Contact: 97704794 Room with attached bathroom and sharing kitchen available for Executive bachelor or small family at wadikabir Contact 93049849 Room available in Mumtaz area 1 room, 1 Bathroom, Kitchen & 1 room, common bathroom. Interested please Contact: 92680041 Mr. Altaf Room for rent with furniture.

Al Bustan villeage. # 93687466

ACC.WANTED Required single room for an executive lady (non cooking) in Darsait, Ruwi, Wadi Kabir.

Contact - 98591132 Accommodation required with food for 1 month, bachelor for March month. Preferably Al Ghobrah area. Contact: 99335742

FOR LADIES Europe beauty centre offers 50% discount on beauty packages, home services, slimming & post delivery massages. CBD – 24797813 / 97082451 / 94004152. Wadi Kabir – 24815805 / 94004153 / 96761960

LOST Sibtain Mohammed has lost Pakistani Passport No. AB5073112.

Finder please handover to ROP.

D4

S U N DAY, M A R C H 1 3, 2 0 1 6

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION SITUATION WANTED VACANT

REQUIRED AN AUDITOR

REQUIRED PROJECT MANAGER

With 6years of experience.

The candidates should be a commerce graduate experienced in auditing.

FŽƌ ĂŶ /ŶĨƌĂͬ ůĚŐ ƉƌŽũĞĐƚ ŝŶ Duqm/Oman Graduate Engineer with 20+ years experience preferably in Oman/ GCC with valid D/L and transferable visa, computer literate.

Send CV to Email :

Interested candidates may mail their CV’s to: auditbureau2016@gmail.com

Urgent placement for Polyclininc at Mabella, Seeb Those who hold valid MOH Licence and NOC from the current sponsor will be given preference.

1. Gynaecologist Arabic Speeking -F 2. Pharmacist -M/F 3. Staff Nurse -F

4.

5.

6.

7.

Radiographer -F Lab. Technician -M/F Marketing Executive -M/F Receptionist -F

Kindly send CV to alsalamaoman@gmail.com www.alsalamamuscat.com

ADMIN

ENGINEER/MECHANIC.

Required urgently a Legal Consultant/ Lawyer for reputed law firm in Sohar, Muscat. Candidates should have 5-7 years experience as a Legal Consultant/ Lawyer with good knowledge of Computer & should be fluent in English both written & spoken.

Email C V to shejaanil66@gmail. com or Contact 99153620 between 8am to 1pm & 2pm to 5.30 pm on Sunday to Thursday

Required urgently experienced Civil Engineers having 2-3 years on building construction jobs.

Contact: 99472795

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE Accountant with two years of experiencerequired for building material shop .contact no.99318152 Email:ahastco@gmail.com Required Accounts Officer- ensure accurate processing of revenue data into ERP systems and invoicing module. Posting of invoices to customer SAP portal and delivery to customer offices and interface with country manager/ reporting to regional CEO. Qualifications: BSc accounting.

Relevant experience & knowledge on online accounting systems especially the customer SAP system. Submit CV to: me-job@interwell.com Accountant with gulf experience in construction field preferred with Oman driving license. Interested candidates send CV to: Email: omanhari@yahoo.com Gsm: 95892831/95197615

DOMESTIC HELP Housemaid required for full-time for Indian family, Hindi/English speaking CBD area Ruwi.

Contact: 96183093 Housemaid required for caring two babies for Keralite family at Al Hail. Contact: 99423608 /95662154 Looking for a part-time cookcum-housemaid in Azaiba.

Call 92450197.

Required Cleaners & Office boys.

Contact 24707833

DRIVER Wanted house driver cum cleaner with Oman valid license contact: 99415443 Looking for motor cycle license holders for FMCG merchandising contact: 92312112 Trailer driver + Hiab truck .

Contact: 99332185 Required a expat driver with Omani D/L. Contact – 91409668 Wanted driver. Contact: 91025698 Part or full time Driver Required call us 91120552

SITUATION WANTED

Required Site Inspector (PRO) having Omani D/L. Contact – 24291500 Email: hr16.careers@gmail.com Required Hydraulic Mechanical.

Contact - 95251213 Civil Engineer with minimum 5/8 years experience with valid Oman driving license. Contact Interested candidates send CV to: Email: omanhari@yahoo.com Gsm: 95892831/95197615

MISCELLANEOUS Required candidates for following posts: Accountant, Storekeeper, Foreman Building Maintenance, Van-salesman (water), Helpers.

Candidates with Omani driving license preferred.

Contact 99273774/99202278 Omani national Security Staff similar experience for immediate employment for an international school. Contact: 99468907

MEDICAL Wanted Nurse for a dental centre in capital area. Interested may contact – 93431024 or send CV to – drasyanaseem@gmail.com Wanted male for managing a lab referral department: degree in pathology/microbiology/laboratory /science. Omani or GCC driving license. Send CV to: healthfactor@gmail.com Wanted Staff Nurse for a dermatology clinic in Muscat .must have MOH license and NOC. Attractive salary and offered. Email: clinic-clinicvacacncy2015@gmail. com Required female Nurse, with MOH license for private dental clinic in Bowshar area, Muscat.

Contact: 92189807 Required Staff Nurse and house maid in Mabela. Clearance available. Urgent Contact. 95200180.

Wanted ORTHODONTIST, IMPLANTOLOGIST with or without MOH License for a polyclinic.

Excellent Salary, Commission and Accommodation. Phone: 99006915 Email: alhinaee.clinic@yahoo.com GP doctor needed for reputed clinic. Preferably with MOH license or with Dataflow & Paramatics pass Contact: 95388934 Nurse required for a dental clinic in Al Khuwair. Contact 95114616 Required gynecologist GEN: practitioner lady lab Technician and pharmacologist immediately for a clinic in Suwaiq.

Contact: 95081010 Email: umchealthcare@gmail.com

EDUCATION/TRAIN

omanproject2011@gmail.com

Required personal lady Trainer at home in Wadi Kabir.

Contact – 94100959

Required Sales Executive knowledge of building materials.

Full or part time.

Contact: 99421513

1. Skilled iron worker 2. Skilled iron welder 3. 3D sign board specialist 4. Skilled painter 5. Skilled carpenter 6. Car wash supervisor Email : creativityeast@gmail.com

Indian male good experienced in Accounts, ERP Tally 9 & Admin in India & Oman, presently on visit visa, looking for suitable placement.

Contact 94834687

A reputed, long standing, multi division Company in Oman requires

Finance manager to be based in Muscat.

The person should be a Commerce Graduate with 10 years professional experience in Accounts up to Finalization, cost control, inventory and tax planning.

Interested candidates can apply at:

jobs4oman2016@yahoo.com Candidates to apply who can meet present Oman Government’s visa condition.

OUR CENTER IS LOOKING FOR FULL TIME: ,ĂŝƌĚƌĞƐƐĞƌƐ ;ŵĂůĞͬĨĞŵĂůĞͿ Ͳ ĞĂƵƟ ĐŝĂŶƐ ;ĨĞŵĂůĞͿ :Žď ĚĞƐĐƌŝƉƟ ŽŶ: Hair related treatments DƵƐƚ ƉŽƐƐĞƐƐ ĞdžĐĞůůĞŶƚ ĐŽŵŵƵŶŝĐĂƟ ŽŶƐ ƐŬŝůůƐ ĂŶĚ ďĞ ĂďůĞ ƚŽ ůĞĂƌŶ ƚŚĞ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƚ ĂŶĚ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞ ŬŶŽǁůĞĚŐĞ ďLJ ĂƩ ĞŶĚŝŶŐ ŝŶ house training classes.

Advises clients on hair care and use of products.

Ensures that the high standard of service is maintained.

Salary based on skills and experience.

Please submit CV to info@artemishfp.com

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT A famous Italian brand is seeking for female applications for the position of “Counter Sales” which will be located in one of Muscat’s most popular malls.

Qualification required: Fluent English speaking, Arabic speaking is preferred, good communication skills, basic knowledge with computers.

Experience required: Minimum of 3 years of professional experience in sales Candidates are requested to send their CVs on recruit

nomination.sales@gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING Urgently required a Marketing Executive with 2 years experience and driving license (GCC) for a reputed building material & electrical showroom in Al Khoud.

Please send CV to – startradingmuscat@gmail.com.

Contact - 94320909 Required Salesman cum Drivers for spare pas shop in Ghala .

Contact: 99410172

TECHNICIAN Urgently required Electronics Technician with at least 2-4 yrs exp, in network cabling, access control, telephone systems, interested send the CV to info @smartvisionoman.com

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

Looking for an immigration advisor who has experience in counseling for PR and migration to Canada and Australia. Email your CV at consultancyvisa82@gmail.com

28/male/MBA - finance/B.Com Accountant with 4 years of Dubai/ India experience looking for a suitable placement. # 90187483 shobinkarikkan1987@gmail.com

Sales Executive Required for an office Stationery company in Muscat with Oman D/L and Noc Send your CV to info@centraltrading-oman.com

Kerala male 25 yrs B.com diploma in IATA PGDCA Tally 2 yrs exp accounts in Kerala. Currently in Oman NOC available. Contact: 99323841 Email: rohitpanam@gmail.com

Required Sales staff 2 NOS Having experience in Cosmetics Sales.

Send your updated CV to james_kunju@yahoo.com GSM 92683688

Dynamic Indian Male Accountant with 9 Years Experience seeks suitable placement. NOC available.

Contact: 96902860

Omani or European female Sales representative required for part time please send CV to gcpe16@gmail.com with expected salary Required Sales/ Marketing executives having light license for facility management co. sendcv-ocean@omantel.net.om Challenging tyres Omani companies seeking for Sales Man only an tyres division sales minimum 2 years experience send CV to saeed@liwainvestments.com Urgently Required Steel Fabricated Products Salesman with an experience in steel fabrication, MUST have Oman driving license, and immediately join. Apply, fax 00968–24605955, emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com, sbeoman@yahoo.com

TECHNICIAN An Omani construction company located at Muscat looking for Marketing executive with GCC driving license & NOC send C.V to kwk585@gmail.com

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

SITUATION VACANT (FINANCE MANAGER)

SALES / MARKETING The Egyptian school requires chemistry Teacher for IG, English, Science & mathematics.

Teacher’s application should be submitted by hand or by email – egyptianschool98@gmail.com / 24603930

SEEKING SKILLED EMPLOYEES

We, the storm shield in the talented candidates for the below positions (Indian only): Maintenance Technician (male -1) should have knowledge of new mobile devices & 3 years Oman experience Contact: 94441111 Send CV to email: gshield9@gmail.com

Accountant India male 25 yrs BBA working seeking for suitable placement: 98201244 Indian male 22 yrs B.Com with one year exp in accounting auditing with good working knowledge in tally erp-9 looking for a suitable placement now on visit visa Contact: 97189500 Indian male 25 years of age, Bachelor degree in B.Com, seeking suitable place in Oman, on visit visa.

Contact – 91240544 / 98016928 Indian female MBA Accountant, 8 yrs exp in accounts seeking suitable placement. Contact: 96117303 Indian Accountant with 30 years experience in construction (Financial & Cost ), Administration, Store Keeping and HR seek full/part time assignment anywhere in Oman or UAE. Contact 98598099 Indian female MBA in finance currently on family visa seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 96471025 Indian female Accountant 8yrs exp in Oman. Contact:93726921 Part time accountant, up to finalization of accounts looking for job after 5 PM (location prefers – MSQ – to AL Hail). Contact: 95694737

Indian male 25 yrs, Graduate in commerce, overall 5 yrs exp in accounts/ finance field. On visit visa. Immediately available. Contact 92836216 / muhammad.tausif623@gmail.com Indian Chartered Accountant - with 8 yrs + Exp in Finance/ Accounts/Auditing in Oman & UAE. Seeking suitable position in Muscat/Dubai and available immediately for joining. NOC available. Available till 9.3.16 in Oman.

CONTACT #: 98707434 Email: casmart007@gmail.com Jordanian, Senior accountant, 15 yrs experience in Oman finance & accountant. Contact: 92881223 Indian male 28 yrs MBA finance/ marketing and graduate in computer experience 3 yrs seeking suitable job, now family visit visa.

Contact: 93195378 Email: faisalme.beg677@gmail.com Accounts Manager 24 years working experience 8 years in Oman looking managerial position with family status interested to work construction or manufacturing trading organization. Contact: 95919546 SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, with 13yrs experience, 6 yrs Oman in manufacturing, trading & contracting Cos, capable of handling all accounting, finance, banking, L/C, import, export & finalization seeks placement. NOC Available.

Call+968-98932752, mail:jjohnmuscat@hotmail.com Indian Male Accountant 10yrs Exp. in OMAN Retail & Furniture Co. (Release Available) #92564955 SENIOR ACCOUNTANT-M. Com Finance-Indian with 7 years experience in Finance & Accounts up to finalization. Currently employed in Oman.

Having D/L & NOC. #94122464, Email: cammk13@gmail.com Indian male MBA (finance) one year exp in Oman with D/L and Noc. Looking for Suitable placement contact: 94103975 Indian male Accountant looking for a suitable placement in Salalah.

More than 20 years exp in accounting job (up to finalization of accounts) 8 years working experience in middle east in Dubai, Muscat & Salalah. Contact - 91325029 Sri Lankan Accountant CIMA Inter mediate qualified, on visit.

Contact: 90660764 Part-time Accounting assignment.9am-5pm.#91126314 Accounts part time services available to handle all accounts up to finalization, on Monthly basis finalization and consulting works.

Contact: 96247295 Indian C.A finalist having 7 years exp in Finance field, looking for a suitable position with license and NOC. Contact – 98097009 25 Years/Male Indian/B.com with 2 Years Experience/Seeking Job in Finance and accounts/Skills Tally ERP9/SAP-FICO/MS Office.

Immediately Joining.

Contact No: +96897184087 Email: modi_harshal@ymail.com

ADMIN Indian male 25 B.B.M 4yrs experience Arabic speaking with Oman/D/L seeking suitable position in accounts Admin sales contact:91266733email: safvank.ka@gmail.com 8 years of intensive Oman experience in procurement & supply chain management looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 97755488 Indian female BS, 2 yrs exp looking for suitable position in HR & Administration. Contact – 94656009 Urgently required Document controller / material controller / HR job 15yrs exp. D/L available plz contact; 96777019/92386043 Indian female with B. Tech and MBA H/R (Liverpool UK) with exp 2yrs looking for suitable job and visit visa. Contact: 98401623 Indian Male more than 10 years gulf experience in Office / Sales Coordinator, Admin, Secretarial and purchase with good computer skills. Holding Oman Driving license. Looking for suitable placement. Contact 99709336 Indian female Graduate with 4yrs exp, looking for suitable placement in admin/accounts .

Contact 99236071 Indian Female, MBA-HR having 8+ experience in Administration/HR, Customer Support, Office Coordinator with good Computer skill, Now on Visit Visa,looking for suitable position. Contact: 90196235 Indian male MBA 33yrs having 10 yrs of exp seeking full time suitable placement in Administration/ HR/ Operations/ Coordination/ Logistics. Holding valid D/L. Contact 99054786 Indian male MBA- UK 18 yrs Gulf exp in Administration/ HR & Public relationship. Fluent in Arabic/ English with D/L. Looking for suitable position. Contact - 99897280 Female business graduate from UK with four years experience in procurement purchasing expediting logistics and supply chain in UAE seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 99581399 Filipino male with 13 years HR and Administration managerial experience. MBA & CIPD holder. Currently looking for job in Oman. Interested employer Contact - 97728418.

Indian, 26 yrs , female , 5 yrs exp in HR/ Admin with valid Oman D/L seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 98236033 Indian male MBA / HR and marketing 2 years experience in royal bank of Scotland looking for opportunities in banking operating marking and HR services excellent communication Kills.

Contact: 90661245 MCA Indian Female on a visit visa seeking suitable job.4yrs exp in office Admin &IT. Contact: 92286147 Indian female, Masters in HR, having 4 + years Oman experience in media management and HR, looking for openings in HR, Education, Admin, Corporate communications. Contact 98252030

CATERING Indian male 34 Yrs, Dual MBA Finance and marketing with IT skills, 7+ yrs of experience, Looking for suitable placement.

Contact : 94879615,Emailsajan_chacko1981@yahoo.com Indian male, B.Com with 6 years experience as an Accountant, looking for suitable placement.

Mob: 93903458 , Email : Akkandyrijesh@gmail.com Chief Accountant 25 years experienced looking for part/full time accountant job.

Contact: 95598477/98803439 Indian male 25 B.Com (graduate) 2 years experience as accountant in country club India with ERP oracle r12, tally knowledge. On visit visa immediately available.

Email: shabi.hyd@gmail.com Contact- 9042-1161 Indian female 25 yrs, MBA HR & Marketing, with one and half years experience as accountant and 6 months experience in teaching, now on a visit visa, seeking suitable position. Contact: 99624044, mail: np.neethu1@gmail.com.

7 yrs exp Dubai marina chandelier restaurant, Arabic food and grill Arabic salad. Contact: 94896474 Cooks (Arabic Indian) gulf exp looking job. Contact: 99531802

DOMESTIC HELP Housemaid (overseas) Indian family looking for job. Contact 99531802

DRIVER Pakistani light looking job 3 years experience in Oman. #93711608 Bangladeshi male light driver looking for job 3 exp.

Contact: 93254149 Looking for job driver 10 yrs exp.

Contact: 99035942 Indian light driver cum house cleaner. Contact: 96255558 /99415443 Light driver. Contact: 96756014

S U N DAY, M A R C H 1 3, 2 0 1 6

D5

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED Indian History graduate with diploma in Safety with valid Oman Driving licence seeks suitable placement.

DRIVER

EXPERT ASSISTANCE AVAILABLE

ELECTRICAL ENGINEER

Pakistani driver with Elantra 2016 model car seeks job: 95873286

FŽƌ LJŽƵƌ WZ͕ ŐƵŝĚĞ Į ŶĂŶĐĞ Θ HR Θ ZD͕ ĂĚǀŝƐĞ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƚ ŵĂƌŬĞƟ ŶŐ & CRM, appraise IT system for ƌĞƉŽƌƟ ŶŐ Θ ĐŽŵŵƵŶŝĐĂƟ ŽŶ͘

Indian male 30 years, having 5 years of experience in industrial automation and utility maintenance in India (MRF Tyres), holding valid Oman D/L.

Contact: Tel - 96500729 Ŭ͘ƉƌŽĮ ƚŽŵĂŶΛŐŵĂŝů͘ĐŽŵ

Contact - 92789995

Contact-93361624, Email-

Email: akhilabrahamlktr@gmail.com

dheerachpadikkala@gmail.com

Pakistani light driver looking job 9 yrs exp in Oman.

Contact: 96048460 Light driver Indian 4yrs exp in Oman having own car looking for job, release available .

Contact: 93053917 Driver looking for job, speaks English, Hindi & Arabic & 4 yrs Oman exp with valid Oman driving license contact: 92820309 2 Years exp in driving, seeking any job .Contact: 97460056 Bangladeshi male looking for job.

Contact - 93822195 20 Years Embassy experience expert driver cum PRO seeks suitable place. Contact – 94297820 Driver cum electrician 7 yrs exp, seeking suitable placement.

Contact – 98255214 3 Years driving exp in Muscat, speaks English, Arabic, Hindi& Bengali. Contact- 97462781 Driver job wanted. Contact 96393082 Pakistan driver with car.

Contact: 97198672 / 98988208 Seeking driver job with own car.

Contact: 98031620 Looking for job light duty driver 6 years experience NOC available.

Contact: 92381696

DESIGNER/DRAUGHTSMAN Indian Female 24yrs, AutoCAD draftsman with 3ds max & rivet, 4yrs exp. looking for suitable vacancy in Muscat now in visit visa .

Contact: 95601266 Email: reshmanb121@gmail.com AutoCAD Draughtsman seeking job. Contact: 95516807 Indian Female, Bsc Fashion Designer with Oman driving Lisence, looking for any good job.

Contact 98757582 B. Arch graduate female with 1 yr experience looking for suitable placement as an architect / Interior designer Contact 95981197 email: merlnoronha@gmail.com Interior Designer Seeking suitable job. On visit visa in Oman.

Contact - 92166130 Interior designer 3 years experience 1 year in Oman and 2 years in Egypt, experience in interior design, 3D max, AutoCAD, Photoshop. Contact - 94762876 AutoCAD draftsman experience 2 years. Contact: 93738335 /95809393 Email: mammoosing@gmail.com

EDUCATION/TRAIN Indian Female, MSc Maths from a central university, B.ED qualified with over 6 yrs into teaching. Distinction holder and passion for teaching, currently on family visa seeking lecturer jobs. Contact: 91360147.

Indian female 25years M.C.A on family visit required suitable placements also interested in teaching. Contact: 90417133 Email: renjitharose04@gmail.com

EDUCATION/TRAIN Indian Civil Engineer in UAE seeking suitable placement in Muscat-Contact 00968 99142171 Project Engineer 14 yrs exp of project execution & operations, all kinds Mech/civil and interior decoration with license Contact: 93260559 Sudanese Civil Engineer 4 years experience –98093544 B.E Mechanical and diploma with 75%, age 28, 2yrs Hyundai Motor and 3yrs in water treatment.

Contact - +91 9003612305. prabugh28@gmil.com Male 25 age M.B.A, HRM, BE Automobile 3.4yrs exp production engineering. Contact: +91 9841873619/ vickey040890pt@gmail.com.

Diploma Civil Engineer 13 years GCC experience NOC available with valid Oman driving license.

Contact: 99794456

ENGG. / TECH./MECH. Indian male 22, Chemical Engineer residing in Oman looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92379181

REVIT (ARCH), Diploma Civil 3yr , in visit visa , exp. Salary : 250 PH : 92279784

Electrical Engineer, Indian male, 6 years industrial experience on visit-visa, seeking job- ready for any roles. Contact: 98750295 Email:bebala04@gmail.com

Electrical diploma Engineer with 1.5 years experience in AutoCAD designing for LV constructions and diesel generator maintenance looking actively for job in Oman.

Contact: 92171858/90595609 Email: nelsondas213@gmail.com

Building Site Supervisor working in Oman since Mar 2010 with Oman D/L looking for suitable placement .contact:91507828 Diploma electrical candidate looking for suitable job, having 2 yrs experience in electrical utilities maintenance and plant maintenance. Contact: 94652387 B.Tech electronics & Comm.Engg with CCNA certified with 2yrs exp.

Contact-99490930. email; sujith8938@gmail.com An Iraqi civil with more than 30 years experience in (Iraq and G.C.C) looking for a job, (N.O.C) available.

Contact: 96561306 Email: iq.bgd.mnsr@gmail.com Civil Engineer 11 yrs exp in construction field having Oman driving license & NOC. Contact – 94194399 / shiblyrock@gmail.com Indian male 22, Chemical Engineer residing in Oman looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92379181 Engineer has 10 years local & international experience in ready mix concrete also in Oil & gas filed also in marketing & sales field , has Omani driving license.

Contact : 92534098 B.Tech Engineer (Indian, 23yrs male) 1.5 yrs exp (IBM India &Pvt Ltd & seizer engineers (Pvt ltd) looking for suitable job.

Currently on visit visa ready to join immediately Contact: 93354092/990249660. email:eapenbijoy92@gmail.com Pakistani male Diploma Civil Engineer 4yrs exp in Oman bulling & mega projects, valid license Oman. contact:98821022 A Pakistani Civil Engineer having 5yrs exp in consulting and building field, looking suitable job good running company with valid driving license. Contact: 91800277 BE Electrical Engineer searching for suitable job. Experience plc driver panel control wring oh crane air compressor etc.

Contact: 90628814 Mechanical Engineer having Omani driving license and 2yrs exp seeks suitable placement. email:malvindevidan@gmail.com Mechanical Diploma Engineer having 8yrs of exp seeking for suitable currently on visit visa.

Contact- 94657806 Diploma Civil 5yrs exp seeking suitable placement Email:sushbinde86@gmil.com. contact: 96938770 Indian male B.Tech civil engineer (Auto cad 3 max) 4 yrs exp in planning, designing & site Supervision seeks Suitable placement NOC available contact: 95472155 B.Tech Mechanical Engineer with 6 yrs of exp in India & Singapore as welding inspector. Having NDT level 2, Cswip3.1, 1so 900:2008 leap auditor certifications .looking for suitable job. Currently on visit visa .contact: 98919114 Project Engineer 9 Civil, 7.5 yrs in Oman, need suitable placement, NOC release available. #91129192 Sudanese Electrical Engineer, granted with distinction, hardworking and can adapt to different work conditions. Contact: 98133281

Mechanical Engineer (B.Tech) with 2 and half years experience Indian male 24 years in visit visa. Contact: 96620482 / + 919605423272 Email: bijumonps@gmail.com Civil Engineer diploma, 4 yrsexp seeks suitable position ina reputed company. NOC available.

Contact – 96789711 Civil Engineer 8 years experience in Oman as a project engineer for governmental & private projects.

Contact – 90164912 Procurement Engineer (27 years single male with Oman Driving License) having 7 years experience (UAE 2, Oman 3) with expertise in MEP, Water, Electromechanical, Instrumentation seeking suitable placements. Contact 95852033, mail: hemal1988@gmail.com Civil Engineer (B.Tech), Indian male 24 years with 1+years Indian experience,(Certified in Staad Pro/ Quantity Survey/ Auto Cad).

Looking for a Suitable position.

Available In Sultanate of Oman (Muscat) on Visit Visa.

Contact: 92835952. E-mail: mohammedamair.bin@gmail.com Indian male Electrical Engineer, having 6 years gulf experience in designing, assembling, commissioning execution etc having valid GCC license too looking for a suitable. Contact: 00968-98052942 Email: azamjeelani78@gmail.com Network Engineering with 9 years and half experience seeking suitable placement. Contact: 95249087 Sudanese mechanical Engineer, 2 years experience HVAC firefighting, on visiting visa.

Contact 95630047 Sudanese civil Engineer holding bachelor with two years of experience in Oman has resident visa and valid license. Contact: 94393880 Indian male 31 years Civil Engineer diploma holder 4 years experience in Oman need placement N.O.C available.

Contact: 93298395 HSE & Fire Safety Engineer 4 years experience air port operational safety, power & chemical industry. Contact: 94374241

Indian male, Mechanical Engineer having 1year experience, on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact:97416564, Email:jovinmathias@gmail.com Civil Engineer 8 years experience Structural buildings marine. Available NOC release. Contact: 92451323.

Email: zubairali134@yahoo.com HSE Engineer (B.E Mech+Diploma Safety+NEBOSH+OSHA) over 10yrs. Exp, (Visa Release Letter (NOC) available), seeking suitable placement, Mob:97061817, Email:jayanammu1977@gmail.com Omani HSE supervisor. Email: jeebal3000@gmail.com Indian female civil engineer B.Tech having 3 years experience sound knowledge of software, REVIT STAD PRO structural detailing currently on family visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 95345591 Civil Engineer (BE) having total 5 years experience in building construction looking for a suitable placement. D/L available Contact# 94450270 Sri Lankan Engineer (27 Years old) – B.Sc Engineering (Hon) Mining / Geotechnical Presently in Muscat, 1.5 years experience.

Contact 91295802 acmfaslan123@gmail.com Indian Electrical Engineer Btech, female 24 seeking job, presently in oman having 2 year experience in design and estimation of Ht &Lt projects. Contact 968 97436557, Mail id : sibinanoop1@gmail.com Bachelor Civil Engineer 6 Years in Oman experience Valid Driving License seeks suitable placement Phone 97619722 Email – golamrob@yahoo.com Diploma in Mechanical Eng piping system in AutoCAD work, 21+ years experience with Driving license. Contact: 95267113 Email: rkakkaryil@gmail.com Civil Engineer 6 yrs Exp in Oman with license. Contact: 98975518 7 Yrs Exp. PM in Mech. Engg in the field of Building Const. Oil & Gas Seeking Job.94625598 Road and Construction Engineer with 5 years exp in Oman.

Contact: 97667113 Mechanical Engineer with 3 Yrs experience in international Oil & Gas company looking for job Contacts: Tel: 90164236 Email: mustafaoshi-62@hotmail.com

22 Years exp in Gulf civil building construction project manager.

Contact – 0097430824610 / arshadjamalkhan@rediffmail.com

Indian female, 31 yrs, 7 yrs experienced as AutoCAD civil draftsman (2 yrs experience in Oman) currently in Oman seeks suitable.

Contact 96789441 Email: simi5304@gmail.com

B.Tech Electronics & comm. Engg & MBA Degree in operation management with five years experience in optical fiber planning coordination etc. Contact: 94819139

Sudanese Telecom Engineer, 5 years experience, 3 years in Oman PMP certificate.

Contact: 93391008 Email: momen.awadallam@gmail.com

Indian Male Degree Holder BE (civil) having 11 years of Oman experience with valid Oman driving license looking for a suitable job .NOC available and ready to join immediately. Mobile: 93803950.

Mail:kavinvasi2007@gmail.com

Indian Male 23 years B.Tech Civil having 2 years experience in quantity survey and site management looking for suitable placement. Contact:- 95042656

B.SC Civil Engineer 27 yrs Oman experience as project manager, structural Engineer looking for suitable placement NOC/ LOCAL transfer available.

Contact: 99349578 Email: farooqatm@hotmail.com Electrical Engineer with 18 years exp in UAE. Contact: 98148034 Email: shassalih66@gmail.com

Electrical & Electronics Engineer with 3 years GCC exp in sales, GCC driving license. Seeking suitable placement. Contact - 90301410

Structural Engineer, 8 yrs experienced in flat slab, post tensioned & slab-beam multi story building design & supervision with driving license. Contact: 98256860

26 yrs Indian Male – B.Tech (IT) - 6 yrs exp -sales & admin -seeks suitable placement 91848460 / 98304080; Email: arun9895431989@gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer M.Tech 2 years experience HVAC design & site Engg revit MEP Auto CAD. Contact: 90150913 Email: mahmanmechengg@yahoo.im

HOSPITALITY Indian male Graduate hotel management 12 yrs exp operations & sales oriented GCC driving license and release available.

Contact - 94525463 Hospitality Degree 5 yrs exp holding Dubai driving license.

Contact - 91234870 Hospitality/Hotel/ Restaurants Dynamic result oriented hospitality professional with 20 years of international exp. MBA in Hotel Management, specializing in Hotel/Restaurant start ups, concepts & Franchise development with proven records. Seeking for Challenging positions in reputed groups as GM/COO/CEO/Business Head. (NOC available) Contact: 96059470

IT

MISCELLANEOUS

MBA Graduate with 6 yrs exp in IT solutions, sales & marketing, solution selling, POS, ERP, time attendance, security system, software development projects, websites & mobile apps. Seeking suitable position. Contact - 92103545

Bangladeshi male, University M.Com, Working as an Accountant & Administrator in Oman; searching better job. Phone: 94864966 Email: sunrisetoiqbal@gmail.com

Indian Male, IT System Engineer having 4 yrs of experience in system administration.CCNA,MCSE, Linux. Looking for suitable job.

Contact :91272867 Indian female, B.Tech graduate, with one and half years experience as ‘web developer’ interested in web development and has experience working in HTML,CSS,Bootstrap, JavaScript and Photoshop. Contact: 9592 7075 e-mail id: mariarosejacob90@gmail.com MSC (IT) male 32 age 4 yrs networking system administrator. Seeking a suitable placement +918608247110. email:samad3301@gmail.com 24yrs Indian male B.SC Computer Science with 2 yrs networking and IT helpdesk support exp, a Cisco Certified, seeking for suitable placement. Contact: 96910605email:shaikzube@gmail.com

MEDICAL Staff Nurse (female) with MOH license. Looking for opportunity in Muscat. NOC / release letter available. Contact - 99433415.

Indian female Dentist specialized endodontic looking for a suitable placement prometric completed.

Contact: 96410448 Indian Bsc Female Nurse with 6.5 years exp, 4 years in KSA. Passed Oman Pro Metric with 69%, completed data flow. Presently in Muscat in visit visa looking for a suitable placement.

Contact 94744900, 94742834, jincyalphonese@gmail.com Indian male Nurse 32 years Oman parametric and data flow completed 8 yrs emergently experience.

Contact: 92463190 Male GP Doctor with NOC 6 yrs experience in Oman for perm/locum job. Contact : 97746074

Pakistani male 26 yrs BS (CS) hold 2 yrs UAE exp in IT software, knowledge in Oracle 1g, MS SQL, C#Net, word press, IT networking and hardware. Looking for suitable job. Contact – 92826049 / m.saifmasood@outlook.com

An experienced Sudanese female Dentist with MOH license looking for job. Contact 96436517 /97396088

Indian male diploma in computer 4 yrs exp in system admin, tele call support, IT hardware networking. Looking for suitable position, on visit visa. Contact - 95917613

Procurement Manger Indian Engineer + MBA. With 16yrs exp, Oman driving NOC valuable Contact: 96561943email:srajan_kripa@yahoo.com

Indian male, IT professional , BE in ECE with 2 yrs of networking and Technical Support EngineerL2’ experience with CNA certification, looking for full time job GSM 92916894 ; Email: salu.mn555@gmail.com

Indian well experienced personal assistant/executive office manager/ senior administrator / commercial executive with license looking for a change. release letter available – 99168054 mbkishore@hotmail.com

Indian female, B.Tech graduate, with one and half years experience as ‘web developer’ interested in web development and has experience working in HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, JavaScript and Photoshop.

Contact : 9592 7075, e-mail id: mariarosejacob90@gmail.com

The Business Development Manager, Iraqi, Experience 15 Years Inside and outside Oman following activities: construction(Very strong and qualified to bringing business for civil work Or any type of the construction work for many million per year with a good experience in pricing and collect payment and cash management of the company & marketing projects & investments& tenders & real estate.

Contact 92385033

SAP/ABAP Consultant, BCA, MCA, ASP.Net certification, Indian female 30, having 1.5 yrs exp, family visa, seeking placement.

Contact – 99109121/ ashamaryphilip@gmail.com Indian male 25 years BSC (C.S) with basic hardware and software knowledge seeks suitable placement now on visit visa.

Contact: 92319677 Email: ismabsc@gmail.com Omani 26(M) seeks placement, 6 yrs excellent experience networking hardware software.

Contact: 95356166 Sudanese net work Engineer holding IT BACHELOR (CCNA, CCNP, and MCSE) has one year experience and license.

Contact: 92394485

MISCELLANEOUS Indian male 37 yrs X-Ray welder 7 yrs exp (ARC, TIG, ARGON, Welding) seeking suitable job.

Contact: 91360190/98223683 Diploma in computer, looking for any office job, exp in tele support and sales, on visit visa. # 95917613 B.Com Graduate with five and half yrs exp in Oman as a purchaser. NOC available. Valid driving license. Looking for suitable placement Contact: 96772166 Graduate, computer literate, experienced in sales, credit control, accounts, Omani D/L , seeks suitable placement. Gsm 98805474 A lady entrepreneur with BF Tech 1st Class (Fashion Technology) since 2006 in Kerala like to make change for better. Specialized in designing, Production Management, Fashion Art, Grading, Surface ornamentation, Garment Construction.

Email: prettyjinu08@gmail.com Mobile: +919539397097.

Indian female on visit MBA (International Business- Marketing & Logistics), BE (Computers & Science Engg.) Trained in SAP-BI/ BW with 1 year experience seeking for job Contact: 90228586 Email:fathimasha16@gmail.com

MANAGER

Manager having 12 years experience in Sales & property management with valid GCC driving license looking for a suitable placement NOC available. Contact: 98125226 B.E Arch working as a project manager (interior fit outs) specializing in shop fit outs restaurateur, offices, lifestyle shops etc looking to work in a reputed firm NOC available.

Contact: 94274437 Operation & Accounts Manager.

Indian 18yrs experiences in Oman –operation, admin, fiancé, purchase, HR& sales looking for SR.position.

Contact:99889396Email: srjobsinoman@yahoo.com Indian male 35 years, mechanical engineering diploma, 15 years of total experience, 4 years in Dubai, seeking challenging assignments in business development/management & sales, on visit,phone:95990541,em ail:kckurup.v@gmail.com P.M/Electrical Engineer B.Sc 5yrs exp.(2yrs in PDO area)driving license looking for suitable job mob.:91175016 E.mail:elmuthana@hotmail.com General Manager MEP also manage civil, MBA, BE Electrical, 10 yrs exp in Oman valid D/L, release available.

Contact – 92447102 MBA with 18 years of experience in Procurement, 2 years in Sohar, Oman driving license with vehicle, looking for suitable position.GSM :94047501, ahmed16071974@gmail.com Indian male experienced in priority and retail Banking handling HNI/ ultra HNI and SME portfolios as relationship manager in UAE and India, with UAE driving license on tourist visa looking for suitable opportunity.

Please contact #90204929 E-mail-hani.leo@gmail.com Indian male, with experience in operations management, information security, purchase & stores mgmt, hold UAE driving license, on visit visa, seeks suitable job. #91904541 Email: naushers@yahoo.com

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DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED

SITUATION WANTED EDUCATION/CLASSES/COMPUTER/WEBSITE

MANAGER

SALES / MARKETING

MISCELLANEOUS

The Business Development Manager, Iraqi, Experience 15 Years Inside and outside Oman following activities: tenders& real estate& construction & marketing projects& investments & transportation & Marine services& companies management& develop business.

Contact: :- 92385033

Indian Male 28 MBA Marketing with 4 years of experience in sales with good communication skills now available in Muscat on visit visa. GSM 95840153 / Mail akbarshareef786@gmail.com

BBA MBA.Male, Indian Human Resource/ Administration/ Office work1 Year Experience Knowledge in MS-Office, Photoshop Searching for suitable job E-mail: antonyshajan11@gmail.com.Contact Number: +91 9655469680 +91 8754086178

Production Manager 9 years experience in Oman manufacture and development factories .GRB. GRC. GRG rubber molds and false ceilings, fiberglass and executive at site emadadly2000@yahoo. com96149081

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE Executive Secretary/ assistant Indian female 9 years experience in Oman, Diploma in Business management. Valid D/L. Contact: 96684705 Lady Secretary / Sales Co-coordinator 12 years experience in Oman in reputed companies, seek immediate Employment. Call: 95244761

Indian sales marketing professional highly experienced in business development in ME India and Africa seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 97897611 B.Com male 2 yrs experience in sales Computer knowledge, seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 98371144 email: nabilnazar22@gmail.com Indian male, MBA Marketing having 2.5 years Sales experience immediately looking for a suitable position. Contact: 91415145, Email: shariqs88@gmail.com Male 38 yrs Graduate 07 years experience indoor / outdoor electronic field with D/License & NOC available (as per new rule).

Contact: 92453375

SKILLED / UNSKILLED SALES / MARKETING Indian male 23 yeas BBM & Diploma in logistic. Looking for Indore/ Outdoor sales & marketing suitable placement, currently in one month visit visa. Contact: 93180270/ faizanmck@gmail.com Having more than 5 yrs exp in sales indoor & outdoor with driving license. Contact – 90126776 4 Years of experience in Sales with driving license.

Contact - 90615235 An experienced sales & marketing person having several years experience in GCC with valid D/L. Looking for a suitable position.

Contact – 92124669 Indian male with 6 yrs of GCC exp in sales and service & 1 year of exp in gym fitness instructor.

Seeking job presently in Muscat in family visit visa. Contact: 90694335/ 99438360 or email:sahildgreat99@yahoo.com Sales Executive 8yrs exp buildings materials group of company in Oman NOC available. Seeking suitable job. With D/L in Oman .email: sameermoul@gmail.com Indian female 23 diploma in tool and die making with one and half yrs exp and also interested in sales & marketing.contact:94743992email:selveena054@gmail.com SriLankan malebusiness management BA (UK) Graduate.Specializedmarketing, key Accounts,sales, and customer services .4years work experience in England .seeks opportunity in Oman. D/L available. Tell: 94820153. email:inshafmalk@yahoo.com MBA graduate having 6 years exp in Sales & Marketing, 4 years with PEPSI, India, having international driving license permit seeks suitable placement.

Contact : 95308167, Email : samir.pag@gmail.com NOC available looking for opening in sales 10 years experience in Oman with driving license to join immediately. Contact: 95941228 Indian male 33 yrs, 11 yrs exp in Oman in sales field, with NOC seeks suitable placement.

Contact – 96169598 / adilj.8782@gmail.com

Mason, SH / carpenter, steel fitter gulf & Indian exp looking job.

Contact: 95175192

TOURS & TRAVEL Filipinas lady having exp in ticketing and preservation, call center, secretarial and real estate is now looking for job please call.94054080 Five years in travel field B.Com. IATA & pursuing MBA including experience in the travel desk of (ITC managed) five star hotel, looking for suitable position.

Contact 9470 5767, 9465 2485, 9536 4479

MISCELLANEOUS Indian Engineer, B. Tech (Mech), MBA, MLM (Master of Labour Management), 23 yrs experience, 5 years in Oman in the positions of Operations Manager and Plant Manager with Oman Driving License seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 99744612. E-mail: deleepkumarpk@gmail.com Indian Male B. Tech, 10+ years of extensive work experience in various aspects like Computer Networking, Technical Support, Management and Engineering with good communications, interpersonal and technical skills seeks suitable opportunity. Now in Oman on Visit Visa GSM : 9489 8009, Email : bios4u@gmail.com Indian male network cabling technician (19-years gulf experience) Seeking for suitable placement.

Contact - 0091-8089909265 (India) email: mohithavp@gmail.com Mechanical Engineering 6 years experience. Contact: 00968998907110091-9841867534 Email: sayed.fortuner88@gmail.con Structural Engineer Education B-Tech in civil Engineering, Work Experience More than 6 yrs contact no.: +968-91431483 E-mail: mohsinyousuf86@rediffmail.com Indian Female Accountant, now in Oman on Visit Visa, looking for suitable placement, #94250871 Indian Female MBA Finance, 6 years Oman experience as account looking Full time/part time accounting Jobs. Contact- 99044292

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

Indian male 26 years MBA finance, seeks suitable placement.

Contact – 92715032 / ajisd@yahoo.com Bangladeshi male, University MA, Working as Store In-charge cum Logistic Manager in Muscat; searching better job. Phone: 91997605 email: mohamednazrulislam2@ gmail.com

IELTS PREPARATION

INDIAN-Male 34yrs, M.Com with 14yrs Exp ( 8yrs in Oman & 6yrs in India)Presently working as PROCUREMENT OFFICER for ROAD,CIVIL,ELECTRO-MECHANICAL & Others Projects in contg & Trdg co LLC, Having Oman LT D/L, NOC available & willing to join immediately within in a month M:94064650, Email: nagauae@gmail.com

Target Band 8.0

Classes for Spoken English TOEFL / GRE / GMAT / SAT Excellent Guidance and Coaching Satisfaction Guaranteed EAGLES INSTITUTE 92325542 | 93657915 | 93657917 | Email: engominst@gmail.com

Indian male, 16 years Oil & Gas experience (Down Hole Tools), 3 years in Oman, Dip. Mechanical Engineer, Having D/L and NOC. Email – jajisuni@yahoo.com, Mob: 965 956 18.

Civil Draftsman seeking job.

Contact-95516807 Indian male: 24 years, diploma in computer science and B.E (CSE) having experience in hardware and networking seeks suitable job.

Contact: 91170912 Email: sales2@witoman.com Sudanese male. Five years diploma in civil engineeringhave five years experience in construction industry. Mobile: 96995670 Sri Lankan female looking for a housemaid job. Please send details to s.c.balthaza@gmail.com Contact: 94036979 Land surveyor Experience: 8 years. Contact: 99585265 Email: wajid.mohiuddin5251@gmail.com Indian male executive secretary having vast experience in admin, logistics & procurement well versed with computer .seek suitable placement. Contact: 99514286 Indian male, accountant 2 year experience doing accounts in Tally and Excel. Searching for suitable job. Contact: subbayan_r@gmail. com GSM: +918098637908 BE Mechanical Engineering with one year experience now on visit visa, looking for suitable positions”#90637918 / 99335742, email: aquasharath@gmail.com Looking for a part time job for drawings struc. BBS Q/S & piping/ pipeline auto cad work. #92103713.

Job Wanted as a Music Teacher Classical Vocal Music, Having 3 years India Exp.Contact- 90310876 A young CA (ACA & ACCA qualified) with 4 years experience in one of top audit firms in UK & KSA seeks suitable placement in Oman.

Contact: Kamran (hkamran112@gmail.com), +44 7480 1196 74. +968 93595050 25 year old male B.Com and insurance graduate with 6 year experience looking for an opening in accounts, finance or operations.

Driving license and NOC available.

Contact-95236312. lilommca@gmail.com

Spoken Arabic class for Non Arabic Speakers & English class for Malayalam Speakers

in Azaiba and Ruwi earn in two months

tion guaranteed

Tel: 95244310 WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman Karate and self defense classes at Azaiba 18 Nov Street. RO 10 per month twice a week Monday and Tuesday 6. 30 TO 7. 30. PM. CONTACT 98294551

SIT. WANTED MCA with 13+ yrs of teaching.

Worked as PGT (Comp Sc.) in CBSE Board Schools, 2 yrs experience in s/w development. Seek suitable placement. Contact - 90477217 Bangladeshi Male, University MA, Working as Store In-charge cum Logistic Manager in Muscat; searching better job. Phone: 91997605 email: mohamednazrulislam2@gmail.com Indian male AUTO CAD Draughtsman (civil) 8 years experience, seeking for part time job.#- 99070584 / email: remluvp@gmail.com BS in Civil Engineering Experience: 3 Year (Road Projects) Omani license: 9 Years. # 97427701 Email: hassanrvc1989@gmail.com Homeopathic Doctor having 2 years experience seeks suitable placement.Contact-93615169, geethasreenathnn@gmail.com Pakistani Male having 6 years Experience Valid Omani Driving license working as a Transport Manager looking for a suitable position. Salary is negotiable.

Mob: +96893363316 / 94202746 mohdnaveed043@gmail.com Indian Male Accountant I have 2 year better experience in accounting field. I can do all my accounts in Tally and Excel searching for suitable job. Contact: +919087776759 contactsubbayan5@gmail.com GSM : +918098637908, Indian female 23 BA economics with computer knowledge looking for the post of Administration dept or day care or sales please Contact 96155921 or Email- fysal.nellaya@gmail.com.

Indian Female, 24 MA Eng. Litr with 2 yrs experience in teaching & 14 months in Administration cum Secretary, Currently on visit visa, seeks suitable job.

Contact: 92613704/99260702 Email:rohinis2010@gmail.com Indian Male, 26 years, with 7 years of experience in Sales Field in shipping company in Dubai, looking for suitable placement. Experienced working in safety Marine equipment and well versed with MS Office. Contact: 90182494/ manojmallya999@gmail.com

AVAILABLE

DRIVING

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. ww.tunesoman.com, E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

NRI Villa for sale Mavelikara behind Cheltikul Angara Temple 3 BHK1700 SQF within 10 cents. Contact: 968-969203467025525606 Flat for sale 1360 Sq.ft semi furnished 3 BHK Flat with covered car park near Vennala, Eroor North Tripunithura, with close proximity to seaport- Airport road ,info park ,vyttila hub, Ernakulum medical center, gold souk, Oberon & lulu malls-for sale. Contact: 96725458 Flats villas land for sale in Pune Contact: 95272138/918139098275 Furnished Apartment for sale at near Nedumbassery Airport.

Contact: 92394014

MV SALE Toyota Corolla, White, 1.6, 2011, Automatic, Warranty available, excellent condition, 63500 KM. All services at Toyota only. 3650 OMR. Contact: 96530058 Nissan Qashqai 2013 low mileage 30.000kms comprehensive insurance UAE Oman valid till 2016 .

Contact: 96665430 Pickup for sale, model 2013, diesel engine 4x4. #94194399 BMW 525.I 2006.

Contact: 99336093 Hyundai Sonata 2008 model, expat driven & well maintained.

Contact: 94222681

MATRIMONIAL

SIT. WANTED Marine Services / Business Development having more than 15 Years experience in GCC Countries with Indian Male with experience in Operations Management / Sales and Procurement / Ship Chandling / valid GCC Driving License seeks suitable job. Presently in Oman on Visit Visa. GSM : 9053 55 65, Email : rafi.vprc@gmail.com

Hindu Boy -30 Yrs MBA Finance Graduate working in Muscat seeking alliance of Hindu girl only.

Contact: 98278401 A Graduate Syrian Christian Pentecostal boy, 27, working in Oman as Store-in-Charge seeks proposals from parents of suitable girl, preferably those working in Oman.

Contact 92411983

Indian Female, 35years, Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) with 6months experience and BSc & MA seeking position as Insurance Coordinator or suitable positions in pharmacy, pharmacy stores, hospital, polyclinic & pharmaceutical companies or in front office/administration office preferably in hospital. Please contact on 90236481

40 Years male divorced, working in Muscat seeks suitable proposals, Indian. Contact - 91346321

Male Locum Pharmacist with MOH & Driving License. Available on request from March to April 2016; Contact #: +968 9188 5485/+968 9943 8058.

Indian male Roman Catholic 40yrs divorcee working in Muscat.

Seeks suitable alliance from widow/ divorcee/ single.

Contact: 96059801.

Malankara Catholic Male Nurse (28) from Thiruvalla working in Nizwa Private Co. Alliance invites parents/nurses working in Oman.

Contact: 968 98267338, 0091 9287215726

S U N DAY, M A R C H 1 3, 2 0 1 6

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DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED CARGO

TOURS

TOURS

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain Marine Tours contact 98029602, 92808636 We arrange tours & accommodation at all the beautiful places in Oman. Contact 99839898

SITUATION WANTBUSINESS SITUATION WANTBUSINESS ED ED ONE STOP SHOP BUSINESS SERVICES Public relation services (PRO), Formation new companies, LLC companies, investor visa, business setup, prepare business & companies accounts, legal services, representing you and your company.

Contact Saleh: 96723485

RENT A CAR

RENT A CAR Best Rates for Saloon Contact: 97869042 / 95730550 sales@modernreem.com

GOOD NEWS

TRANSPORTATION

Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain, backache, paralysis, massage, steambath, obesity, spondylitis. Ideal Care Ayurvedic Clinic, 18 November Street, Azaiba.

Contact: 99639695 / 97397320

Transportation available for Al Khuwair, Azaiba, Al Hail to Ruwi area. Contact - 94297820

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

Ruwi, Muttrah, Al Khuwair, Muscat, Qurum, seek transportation. Contact: 91132238

Ayurvedic treatment for backache, paralysis, arthritis etc & massage, All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact:24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980 www.siddhayur.com

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

Transportation. Contact 98505294

Transportation. Contact 99508282 /93113534 Transportation. Contact 99508282 From Mabela to Mawaleh for school student. Contact: 92757673 Transportation. Contact 92015894 Transportation available Ruwi to Al Khuwair, Ghubra & Azaiba.

Contact: 91103909

25 - 50 seater bus with PDO & BP specification for monthly rent & small car with driver. Contact 99839898

D8

S U N DAY, M A R C H 1 3 , 2 0 1 6

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED SERVICES

DĂƌďůĞ Ɵ ůĞƐ ŐƌŝŶĚŝŶŐ Θ ƉŽůŝƐŚŝŶŐ͕ DŽƐĂŝĐ Ɵ ůĞƐ ŐƌŝŶĚŝŶŐ Θ ƉŽůŝƐŚŝŶŐ͕ carpet shampooing, sofa shampooing, pest control treatment & general cleaning of villa & building.

Express Building Cleaning Services.

Contact 98480070 / 94134784

Pest control & Building cleaning all kinds of pest control ďƵŝůĚŝŶŐ͘ ůĞĂŶŝŶŐ Ɵ ůĞƐ ͬ MĂƌďůĞ ƉŽůŝƐŚŝŶŐ ŵŽŶƚŚůLJͬ YĞĂƌůLJ ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚƐ ĂǀĂŝůĂďůĞ͘ Contact: 98814733 /98814740 Al Husn Cleaning L.L.C

SERVICES We Provide Cleaners, Kĸ ĐĞ ďŽLJƐ͕ ůĞĂŶŝŶŐ ŽŶƚƌĂĐƚƐ͕ General cleaning etc. ů DƵĚĂŬŚŝƌ EĂƟ ŽŶĂů Ɛƚ͘ >> Contact : 94277020 LEGAL SERVICE An Indian lawyer Provides all legal ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ŝŶ ĐŽŵƉĂŶLJ ŵĂƩ ĞƌƐ͘ Labour issues, contracts, agreements, >> ĨŽƌŵĂƟ ŽŶ͕ ůĞŐĂů ŚĞůƉ ĨŽƌ ƐƚĂƌƟ ŶŐ new business in Oman, Civil, criminal cases,.service issues. /ďƌĂŚŝŵ ů DĂƐƐĂůŚŝ͘ůĞŐĂů ĐŽŶƐƵůƚĂŶĐLJ Sarafudheen, >> ͕ D , Legal Advisor Muscat. GSM: 97351649 Split & window A/c servicing & maintenance. Contact 93769089 / 95323517 GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing, Contact 99314807/24792998 Water proofing ABUQABASContact 99320217/24788722

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

Villa cleaning, shifting, marble crystallization, tiles polishing, shampooing sofa & carpet. Modern Eastern Arms. 92145560

House shifting. Contact: 99708138

Sahal Al Wadi White Trad. Specialist in repairing of cold store, chiller, A/C & refrigerator.

Contact – 94528546

Pest control treatments, Ocean center LLC . contact:99344723 MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your marble. Contact 24793614/ 99314807 A/C maintenance & servicing, fridge, washing machine & dish washer repairing, painting & cleaning services, electrical & plumbing.

Contact: 99447257 / 97014234 / 24504281

Marble crystallization & grinding, cleaning & carpet shampooing.

Ocean center LLC. Contact:99344723 Split A/C servicing R.O 10 only.

Contact: 94217681 / 99210141

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile polishing, pest control & anti-termite treatment, general cleaning painting,Plumbing, Electrical, shifting. Contact Mundhir Al-Rizaiqi trading. L.L.C. Contact: 24810137, 99450130

Building maintenance.

Contact: 96173326

House shifting packing.

Contact: 99657644 / 98518013

Al farzdaq Al Fedi Trad and Cont Maintenance services electric, plumbing and A/C. Contact: 96524904 / 94285064 Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles polishing, carpet shampooing, maintenance.

Contact ABU QABAS- 99320217 /24788722

Marble crystallization & grinding, Ocean center LLC .

Contact:99344723

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