Times of Oman - April 16, 2016

SATURDAY April 16, 2016 8 Rajab 1437 AH

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FROM THE WORDS OF HIS MAJESTY THE SULTAN

On the occasion of His First Arrival in Muscat after Assuming the Reins of Power, 1970

‘His Majesty’s Wisdom’ We also hope that every one of you will do his duty in helping us to build the thriving and happy future that we seek for this country, because, as you know, unless there is co-operation between the government and the people we will not be able to build our country with the speed required to free her from the backwardness she has endured for so long.

Founded 1975 . Volume 41 No. 46

CABLE

HM sends greetings to Denmark MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has sent a cable of greetings to Queen Margrethe II, of Denmark on her birthday.

In his cable, His Majesty the Sultan has expressed his sincere greetings and wishes of good health and happiness to the Queen and her country’s people further progress and prosperity.—ONA

| 28 Pages . Baisas 200 . Subscription OMR63 | ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company | Chairman/Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al Zadjali | Printed & Published by Muscat Media Group

Rescued explorers realise folly of ignoring warnings Not caring for the authorities’ warning was their biggest mistake, concede the travellers who had

EARTHQUAKE

Omani students in Japan safe, says embassy TOKYO: The Sultanate’s embassy in Tokyo reassured citizens, yesterday, on the safety of Omani students living in various areas affected by the 6.4 magnitude earthquake which had hit Kyosho, Southwest of Japan, on Thursday.

The embassy said in a statement that the earthquake’s most powerful impact was at Kumamoto, which led to the death of nine persons and injury to 864 others, destruction of houses and fires, according to the latest statistics.

The embassy officials urged students and citizens to contact the embassy in case of emergency.

The Omani embassy also urged Omanis residing or visiting Japan to register their details with the embassy. —ONA

gone to explore Tewi area in Al Sharqiyah

FAHAD A GHADANI

fahadnews@timesofoman.com

RISKY VENTURE: Travellers were fascinated by a waterfall and other beautiful scenery in the region.

MUSCAT: “We could have waited for one more day before deciding to start our journey, which could have killed one of us, or may be all of us,” said one of the four people, who were trapped in an area in Tewi in Al Sharqiyah last Sunday, and were later rescued after a harrowing ordeal.

They had gone to see the natural landscape when they were entrapped in the gushing waters.

Yaser Al Ghilani and three of his close friends, Abdulghani Al Balushi, Mohammed Al Majali and Nasir Al Ghilani, went missing in a wadi (valley) for a day and were finally rescued by citizens and the Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) staff last Monday.

Al Ghilani, speaking exclusively to the Times of Oman about the incident, which led them to spend one night in the dark and walk for long hours to survive, conceded, “Our trip started last Sunday when we decided to explore a village called Niban near Tewi though it was expected to rain that day too.”

It started as a lovely, bright day for them as they reached the area, parked their vehicle on the side and started walking towards the mountains where they could see a waterfall and other beautiful scenery.

“We were fascinated by the place and started taking pictures and walking to the interiors to find

more enchanting scenery,” said Al Ghilani.

They were walking together in groups of two. As they were walking back they suddenly heard a sound, which seemed like a nightmare coming true, and “impossible to believe.”

“It was the sound of water flowing. At first we didn’t want to believe it, but we were soon trapped between mountains. Finally we saw the strong flow of water coming towards us.

“While I and Abdulghani managed to climb the mountain, it was difficult for the other friends to do so as they were right in the middle of the wadi,” recalled Al Ghilani.

Al Ghilani saw his other friends

being swept away in the wadi, said Al Ghilani. “I thought they were about to die. Scary thoughts were haunting my mind. I was thinking of the answers I would have to give to their relatives, especially their parents. It was such a difficult situation,” said Al Ghilani.

Inviting trouble However, he admitted that the incident was of their making and that they had simply invited the trouble upon themselves.

“Abdulghani and I decided to climb the mountain top to survive because we didn’t know if the water level was going to rise further up. The sky was getting darker as we climbed the mountain. Finally,

we reached the top and there was nothing there but darkness.”

After a lot of deliberation, they decided to spend the night at the top of the mountain thinking this was the only way they could survive. “We couldn’t think of a solution as we were thinking of the fate of our other friends. Are they still alive?” The two waited for sunrise so that they could figure out where they were.

“Once the (morning) sunlight dawned upon us, we started to walk. I remember it was 5am. We walked for almost seven hours trying to reach an inhabited area,” recalled Al Ghilani, adding that they were very thirsty and tired, but they had to keep moving ahead to keep themselves alive.

“The happiest moment wasn’t when we reached a village, but when we heard that our friends were alive too and that they had been rescued,” said Al Ghilani.

The four people were saved after learning a lesson the hard way.

“After all of this, I asked myself and my friends a question: Is taking pictures and exploring new places worth taking such huge risks? What if we had met with a more serious end?

“After all, we could have waited for one more day and then commenced our journey. I believe the biggest mistake we made was to not care about the messages issued by the Met office and other concerned authorities, warning people about adverse weather conditions,” conceded Al Ghilani.

TA M

TOP THREE INSIDE STORIES

OMAN

Al Mantheri takes part in OIC summit

PICNICKERS’ DESTINATION Sifah beach is one of the most beautiful beaches in Oman, about 45 minutes drive from Muscat. Blessed with beautiful sand and sea, this place is ideal for swimming and picnickers. -Ahmed Al Jaabri

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Dr. Yahya bin Mahfoudh Al Mantheri took part in 13th summit of the OIC. >A3

Get resident cards activated at ROP civil service centres Times News Service MUSCAT: Citizens and residents can now activate their Resident or ID card at one of the Civil Status service centres of the Royal Oman Police (ROP) and benefit from electronic government services, said Colonel Ali bin Saif Al Marbu’i, director of Civil Status at ROP. The system, called ‘Tam,’ is an electronic certification service provided by the National Digital Certification Centre at the Information Technology Authority.

Tam allows people to securely go through government procedures to protect personal information. Tam ratifies and encrypts documents electronically and makes documents accessible to the person himself.

Al Marbu’i said the system also counters misuse of personal information, like decep-

OMAN

Oman Air to expand its fleet: CEO

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Oman Air is likely to add more planes to its fleet, said CEO. >A3

MARKET

Oil exporters head to Doha to cut output

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Top exporters are eyeing to reach a deal to cut oil production. >B1

tion, counterfeiting and secretly copying someone else’s personal information.

“It will fully protect your personal documents and recognise your identity electronically, without having to travel to a service centre. It will save you time, effort and money,” he said.

He also said documents signed through the electronic system have the same legal status as physical signed documents, which makes it possible to settle government procedures anytime, anywhere, avoiding the need to travel to government offices.

Al Marbu’i said that ROP encourages people to benefit from electronic ratification without the need to head to government service centres.

“It will enable you to electronically sign any official document,” he stated. “In the end, it is just like signing a document as you

were used to.” People can start using Tam either by activating their ID or Resident Card at one of the booths in the ROP Civil Status service centres, or by activating the SIM card of their mobile phone.

Al Marbu’i said the aim is to build an electronic verification infrastructure as part of a national strategy to support electronic services in Oman, which are beneficial for the Omani economy.

He added that it would become the main process for issuing and managing electronic documents in Oman. Tam is part of the efforts of the government to introduce egovernment services to improve efficiency of the government and to make procedures easier for citizens, as well as residents.

More information on resident card activation is available at: https://omanportal.gov.om/tam/ home.htm

BOOSTING MORALE

Innovative way to de-stress employees BABA UMAR

babaumar@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Companies in the Sultanate have been urged to stay committed to employees’ mental health as experts said longer working hours and a hot weather could lead to feelings of frustration arising among workers.

“Daily hassles and obstacles, such as having family or financial problems or getting stuck in traffic can cause stress. Sometimes stress is even expressed through aggressive acts, such as road rage.

“At other times, it is internalised, which can cause health problems,” noted Omani psychiatrist Dr Hamed Al Sinawi told the Times of Oman (TOO).

Some workers try different means to de-stress, he said, “but others easily fall prey to health problems like anxiety, diabetes and high blood pressure after having internalised tension.”

Expats or locals, who are away from their relatives and face work

Firms have measures in place to address the difficulties faced among staffers.

overload get easily stressed out, mental health experts assert, adding, “Long working hours and hot weather causes frustration, which makes it important for people to know the signs of stress and ways to deal with it.”

“Having a supportive social network, such as friends and family is

very important in order to avoid stress, we often ventilate or discuss problems from work with our family and sometime all what we need is to be heard and acknowledged,” Al Sinawi said.

Living with constant stress could increase a person’s risk of dementia. Many studies show a link between work-related stress and Alzheimer’s.

There is no exact data available on the number of Alzheimer’s patients in Oman. Al Sinawi believes that an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 people are living with Alzheimer’s in the country.

In-house clinics A tense worker can take a toll on the overall efforts of a company he or she is working with.

That is why many companies TOO spoke to said they have measures in place to address the difficulties faced among staffers.

At W J Towell—a company of 10,000 employees, including labourers and non-labourers, who

toil in real estate, FMCG, automotive, construction, engineering, industry and services sectors— stress management forms one of the core aspects of running a business smoothly.

“For the labour category, we are taking care of their small needs, which makes a big difference to them. For example, we have a team that takes care of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). They actually visit worker’s homes and offer maintenance services. We have rebuilt some homes, which motivates our workers to be more loyal,” Ali Shabaan, general manager, System and Resource Management of the group, told TOO. W J Towell, he claimed, has rebuilt all its labour camps in the last five years.

“They are like four-star motels. Also, we used to outsource our catering. Now we do it on our own. We have invested in our own people. There is special food for Muslims and non-Muslims in the camps,” he stated. >A3

A master of his craft

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

OMAN

MASTER OF HIS CRAFT In the hands of this flat bread maker a very mundane and drab activity becomes a fine art. Photos by Jun Estrada

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

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OMAN

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Oman Air to expand its fleet: Gregorowitsch

I S TA N B U L

Oman Air will open negotiations in the coming weeks, with

13TH SUMMIT: The two-day Summit discussed the humanitarian situation in the Islamic world. – ONA

a focus on Airbus’s

Al Mantheri takes part in OIC summit

A350-900 model and the 787-9 or -10 from its US rival, Oman Air’s CEO said at a briefing in London EXPANSION PLANS: Oman Air has already sourced two 787-8s from Kenya Airways on three-year lease terms as part of a deal to purchase landing slots at London’s Heathrow airport.

REJIMON K

reji@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Oman Air is likely to add more aircraft to its fleet, its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Paul Gregorowitsch has said, adding that talks are on with Boeing Co. and Airbus Group SE for an order for the latest generation of widebody jets to replace 12 older A330 planes, media reports revealed.

The carrier will open negotiations in the coming weeks, with a focus on Airbus’s A350-900 model and the 787-9 or -10 from its U.S. rival, Oman Air’s CEO said

at a briefing in London. According to Gregorowitsch, the A350 might hold an edge while flying on the longest routes to destinations, such as South Africa.

Meanwhile, a top official from the carrier’s headquarters in Muscat wrote in an email to the Times of Oman (TOO) that the airline could not reveal further details at this stage.

“At this stage, we are not in position to give further details, the same will be available after we finalise the negotiations with

manufacturers,” Abdulrazaq J. Al Raisi, the executive vice president of Corporate Services and Business Development at Oman Air, said in the email to TOO. Oman Air has already sourced two 787-8s from Kenya Airways on three-year lease terms as part of a deal to purchase landing slots at London’s Heathrow airport from the African carrier and Air France, adding to the two Dreamliner aircraft already in its fleet.

Quoting Gregorowitsch, the

BAIT AL ZUBAIR

media reported that Oman Air is aiming to make a profit at an operating level by the end of 2017, with its state owner’s funding contribution due to drop to OMR34 million ($88 million) this year from OMR64 million in 2015.

The company is currently negotiating with two carriers in Europe and one in Asia as it seeks a joint venture partner with which to operate flights as an alternative to joining a global airline alliance, the report added, quoting Gregorowitsch.

ISTANBUL: Assigned by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, Dr. Yahya bin Mahfoudh Al Mantheri, Chairman of the State Council took part in 13th summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which started in Istanbul, Turkey on Thursday under the slogan of “Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace .”

The meeting concluded yesterday with the issuance of Istanbul Declaration. The communiqué reaffirmed that the Palestinian cause was the core for the Muslim nations. The participants called for holding an international peace conference to set mechanisms for the protection of the Palestinians and to put an end to the occupation of the Palestinian territories as well as to the Lebanese lands.

The declaration also stressed the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied territories.

The participants also welcomed the dialogue among the political sides in Lebanon and appreciated the efforts of Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey on welcoming the Syrian refugees.

Meeting Al Mantheri met Dr. Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on the sidelines of the 13th Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

The two leaders discussed bilateral relations between the two countries, matters of mutual interest and ways of strengthening cooperation between them in various fields. -ONA

STRESS

Omani photographer, painter A1 Free health check-up for staff impress art lovers at show < FROM

ERIK PRINS

erik@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Art lovers were impressed by the combined artwork of Omani painter Abdulmajeed Karooh and Omani photographer Hassan Ali Jawad during the opening of their shared exhibition at Bait Al Zubair on Monday night.

Held under the patronage of Sheikh Ahmed Bin Suwaidan Al Balushi, Bait Al Zubair opened the exhibition showcasing the iconic collection called “Light and Brush” by the two artists.

The exhibition contains artworks that merge Jawad’s photographs with Karooh’s brush strokes to create a new form of art. The paintings and photographs mostly reflected scenes of life in Muttrah, where both artists come from.

Karooh, who was influenced by local Omani folklore, in addition to his childhood memories of living in Muttrah, explained to the Times of Oman that they chose to combine the two concepts because they wanted to create something entirely new.

“We choose a location, Hassan takes the picture and I fill it in,” he said.

Karooh is a member of the Om-

Iconic collection called “Light and Brush”.

ani Society for Fine Art and the Youth Studio. He has participated in many local and international art exhibitions in Oman, Egypt, Dubai and New Delhi; he has won distinctive awards for his unique creative vision.

Jawad, whose pictures tend to focus on human character, as well as the picturesque nature, said he and Abdulmajeed have an attitude in common. “We are both very flexible. Usually artists have a mind of their own, but the two of us work together. I’m quite satisfied and happy, because the turnout today is very good.” he stated.

The exhibition is the first attempt to display his pictures, which have accumulated over a

long period of time. He aspires for his photos to speak for themselves, without illumination.

The artwork has proved impressive for the crowd of art lovers present at Bait Al Zubair. Visitors expressed their amazement on how the artists have managed to combine photographs with paintings, as it proved sometimes difficult to distinguish between the picture and the painting in the artwork.

Sheikh Ahmed Bin Suwaidan Al Balushi, the guest of honour at the event and a photography lover, praised the exhibition.

“This exhibition is very beautiful and gives an impression of Omani heritage and history, both before and after 1970. The visitors are surprised by these outstanding paintings and beautiful pictures,” he stated.

Visitor Heather Ford said, “This is the first time I have seen Abdulmajeed combining his artistry with a photographer. I love the way the artists have come together to create something quite unique. It’s very difficult to discern which is the photograph and which is the painting,” she said.

Visitor Georgia said, “They complement each other very well.

What I really like is the shimmering effect they have created.”

D H WAYA M 2 0 1 6

Muscat Malayalees launch website, hold musical event Times News Service MUSCAT: Muscat Malayalees Facebook collaborative forum celebrated its fifth year by holding a musical event named “Dhwayam 2016.”

The event was held at the Ramees Dream Resort in Seeb on April 8. The programme started at 6.00 pm and was inaugurated by Indra Mani Pandey, India’s ambassador to Oman, who lit a lamp, which was followed by songs of famous playback singer duos of Indian cinema.

Talent showcased Leading playback singers of the Malayalam film industry: Ravishankar and Preetha led the show.

The event also showcased the talents of four local singers in Oman.

A website: MuscatMalayalees. com was also launched by Neelu Rohra, Second Secretary, Press, Information, Culture and Community Welfare.

The Muscat Malayalees also honoured three other people:

CULTURAL PROGRAMME: The programme was inaugurated by Indra Mani Pandey, India’s ambassador to Oman. -Supplied photo

Shaji Sebastian for his selfless social service, Sensai Simson, who received the Hall of Honour award from the United States, the first in the Gulf Cooperation Council and the second in India to get this award, and M.K. Prasad.

An impressive performance by Muscat Panchavadya Sangham, incorporating various art forms of Kerala, along with the drums

was enthralling, and a feast for the eyes and ears. The show winded up with the announcement of the raffle draw winner by Cochin Gold.

The programme was organised by claps events and presented by Global Source Trading. Those who wish to join this Facebook group can do so by clicking on the below link. www.facebook.com/ groups/muscatmalayalees/

For non-labour staffers, the company organises and sponsors parties and out-of-Muscat tours.

“We also organise the Towell health week every year where we offer free health check-ups to our staffers and their families.

This year, for example, we held a competition for those who have quickly reduced weight. When we started this event, some of the staffers were not even aware that they suffered from hypertension, high blood pressure and high cholesterol,” he added.

To de-stress staffers, Shabaan said the company offers promotions, bonuses that could include an additional salary for one month.

Respect at work Mental health experts, such as Al Sinawi suggest that workers who do not feel respected at work are at an increased risk of heart disease, which is why having a “clear job description” allows the person to feel more in control of their time so that they can plan their day with little interruptions.

“This way they can avoid stress by achieving their objectives on time,” he stated.

The Swiss Arabian Perfumes Group (SAPG), one of the pioneering perfume manufacturers in the Middle East, tries to pull out its staffers from work-related strain by taking them out for lunch on Saturdays.

“The staffers shared the ups and downs accumulated over a week. We try to increase communication between them and that helps,” Yusuf Radhanpurwala, country manager, Swiss Arabian Perfumes told TOO. The SAPG official said the bonuses and incentives are part of the work and staffers are also taken out twice a year for long tours.

“We also encourage sports activities among the staffers. Sports and food are the best ways to destress,” he added.

Salary on time could be another way of not upsetting the workers.

“We have realised it,” a manger of a cleaning company told TOO. He wished to remain anonymous because he wasn’t authorised to speak with media.

“We make sure the workers get salary on time. If we release salaries a day behind the schedule, they [workers] get upset,” he said.

“We offer bonuses to best workers. It’s always small, but it helps others identify their skills and perform well. We also take them out every Friday evening to Muttrah Corniche. It gives our staffers the opportunity to understand each other and lower stress levels caused from six days of hard work,” he revealed.

In bigger and multicultural organisations, such as Oman Air, stress and its management depends on the nature of work.

From pilots to ground staff, workload meeting strict deadlines could result in unnecessary strain that involves fatigue, exhaustion or a break down.

“We have various courses and stress relief/management exercises, especially for pilots and cabin crew on how to manage their time, remain calm and keep a patient attitude with regards to their daily duties,” Khalid Masoud Al Jadidi, senior officer in the airline’s Media and Communications Department told TOO. Special programmes Oman Air officials said there are “special programmes” for other staffers who work in finance, airport operations, administration and in-flight services that help them cope with stress.

“It involves outdoor activities, half-day outings for lunch or evening dinners, team building workshops and exercises, fun filled family gatherings, etc. In addition, there is a special in-house clinic that offers professional psychological consultation and provides stress relief care whenever needed,” Al Jadidi said.

Some of the staffers at Oman Air or any other airline are required to work long hours, sometimes beyond their daily schedules, while some are called from their given days off to report for duty. This can create a lot of uneasiness.

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016 The recapture of Houta, regional capital of southern Lahj province which has been held by the militants since last summer, is one of the Yemeni government’s most important inroads yet

REGION

Egyptians protest against hand over of two islands Thousands of people called for the Egypt government to fall as security forces detained about 50 protesters

CAIRO: Thousands of Egyptians angered by President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi’s decision to hand over two islands to Saudi Arabia called on Friday for the government to fall, chanting a slogan from the 2011 protests.

Egyptian security forces detained about 50 protesters, according to two security officials.

Police surrounded crowds at the press syndicate, site of the biggest demonstration.

Sisi’s government prompted an outcry in Egyptian newspapers and on social media last week when it announced a maritime demarcation accord that put the uninhabited Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir in Saudi waters.

“The people want the downfall of the regime!” protesters cried outside the Cairo press syndicate, using the signature chant of the 2011 revolt against then president Hosni Mubarak, who later stepped down.

In other parts of Cairo, police fired tear gas at protesters, security sources said.

Saudi and Egyptian officials say the islands belong to the kingdom across the Red Sea and were only under Egyptian control because Riyadh had asked Cairo in 1950 to protect them.

Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states showered Egypt with billions of dollars in aid and grants

UP IN ARMS: Egyptian protesters take part in a demonstration against a controversial deal to hand two islands in the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia on Friday outside the Journalists’ Syndicate in central Cairo. – AFP

after Sisi toppled freely elected president Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood in 2013 after mass protests against him.

But a sharp drop in oil prices and differences with Cairo over regional issues such as the war in Yemen have raised questions over whether strong support is sustainable.

Egyptians are eager for an economic revival after years of political upheaval, but the islands issue seems to have hurt their national pride, and prompted thousands to return to the streets to challenge their leader.

Critics say the government has mishandled a series of crises from an investigation into the killing

of Italian graduate student Giulio Regeni, 28, in Cairo to a bomb that brought down a Russian airliner in the Sinai Peninsula last October. Torture marks on Regini’s body prompted human rights groups to conclude he died at the hands of security forces, which Egypt denies.

Sisi has made fighting corruption a top priority. But he drew fire last month after sacking Hesham Geneina, Egypt’s top auditor, who had stirred controversy by publicly concluding that state corruption had cost the country billions of dollars.

In a tweet, Geneina described the protests as the “purest, bravest and most noble demonstra-

tion of Egyptians” in decades.

Many Egyptians, eager for an end to the turmoil triggered by the 2011 protests, enthusiastically welcomed Sisi when he took over.

They turned a blind eye as hardliners and other opponents were rounded up.

But a growing number are now losing patience over corruption, poverty and unemployment, the same issues that led to Mubarak’s downfall. “We want the downfall of the regime,” said Abdelrahman Abdellatif, 29, an air conditioning engineer, at the Cairo protest.

“The youth of the revolution are still here... We are experiencing unprecedented fascism and dictatorship.”

There were also Sisi supporters, including a woman wearing a shirt with an image of the former military intelligence chief.

In Alexandria, around 500 people gathered near a railway station. Meanwhile, 300 Sisi supporters holding up photographs of him protested outside a mosque in the port city.

Calls for protests have gathered thousands of supporters on Facebook, including from the outlawed Brotherhood, which accused Sisi of staging a coup when it was ousted and rolling back freedoms won after hundreds of thousands of Egyptians protested five years ago in Cairo’s Tahrir Square against Mubarak. — Reuters

NAT I O N AT WA R

Yemeni forces seize city of Houta from Al Qaeda ADEN: Yemeni forces backed by Apache helicopters from a Saudiled coalition wrested the city of Houta from Al Qaeda fighters after a gun battle on Friday morning, a local military official said.

Hours later, a car bomb detonated outside the foreign ministry in the southern Yemeni city of Aden, causing no casualties, another local official said. IS militant group claimed responsibility in a posting on its Al Amaq news agency website. The recapture of Houta, regional capital of southern Lahj province which has been held by the militants since last summer, is one of the embattled Yemeni government’s most important inroads yet against Al Qaeda forces who have taken advantage of more than a year of war to seize territory.

Government troops began their attack at daybreak and succeeded after several hours of air strikes and heavy combat, the military official told Reuters. “The campaign to control Houta has been completed and it has been cleansed of Al Qaeda and extremist elements,” he said. Several people were killed and injured on both sides and 48 militants were captured, he added.

Saudi Arabia and its mostly Arab allies entered Yemen’s civil war on March 26 last year in support of Yemen’s internationally recognised government after it had been pushed into exile by the Houthi group.

Amid impoverished Yemen’s security chaos, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) seized the port city of Mukalla and extended its area of control and influence about 600km (370 miles) along Yemen’s southern coast toward the government seat at Aden.

Forces loyal to President Abdurabbo Mansour Hadi have been repeatedly attacked by Al Qaeda and IS militants as the embattled administration struggles to secure Aden and the southern provinces where the fighters thrive. — Reuters

J U LY 2 0 1 5 N U C L E A R A G R E E M E N T

Iran calls on US, EU to help it access global financial system WASHINGTON: Iran on Friday called on the United States and the European Union to help it access the global financial system, including assets that Tehran says were supposed to be unfrozen following its historic nuclear deal with major international powers.

“They need to do whatever is needed to honour their commitments,” Iranian central bank Governor Valiollah Seif said at an event on the sidelines of the In-

ternational Monetary Fund and World Bank (IMF) spring meetings in Washington.

“Otherwise the JCPOA (Iran nuclear deal) breaks up under its own terms,” he said.

Meeting Seif met with US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew on Thursday and said they discussed Iran’s expectations under the July 2015 nuclear agreement. Under that deal, Iran

agreed to limit its nuclear program in exchange for improved access to the global economy, including the dropping of certain economic sanctions.

Lew told Seif at that meeting that the United States would keep meeting “its sanctions-related commitments in good faith” as long as Iran continues to uphold its end of the bargain, a Treasury official said in a statement.

Iran is increasingly exacerbat-

ed that few trade deals are going through as foreign banks shy away from processing transactions with the country even after the nuclearrelated sanctions were lifted.

Frozen funds “In general we are not able to use our frozen funds abroad,” Seif said.

Iranian hopes of rapidly ending the country’s economic isolation are fading as European banks in particular, some of which have al-

ready been hit by hit huge US fines for sanctions busting, fear falling afoul of the many other restrictions imposed by Washington that remain in force.

“We want both sides of this agreement, especially the US, to take the required measures to remove the obstacles,” Seif said.

He urged Iran’s partners in the deal to hold more “face-to-face contacts” with international bankers to assure them they won’t be

penalised for working with Tehran. He said the United States needed to make changes to its laws and regulations to give Iran access to the US financial system.

US banks are still forbidden to do business with Iran. While lenders based elsewhere are not covered by this ban, major problems remain, mainly rules prohibiting transactions in dollars from being processed through the US financial system. — Reuters

CHAOTIC COUNTRY

‘EU willing to deploy security personnel to help stabilise Libya if request is made’ BRUSSELS: The European Union is signalling that it will consider moving security personnel into Libya to help stabilise the chaotic country if requested by a new UNbacked Libyan government, according to a draft statement seen

by Reuters.

Impetus for the move comes in part from fears of an uncontrolled new tide of migrants into Italy from Libya unless law and order can be rebuilt soon in the North African state. EU foreign and defence ministers will hold a special dinner on Monday in Luxembourg where they are expected to agree to look into police and border training missions for Libya, initially in Tripoli, where the new government is trying to establish itself.

“The EU stands ready to offer security sector support in response to possible (UN) Government of National Accord requests,” ministers are expected to say, according to a draft statement prepared by diplomats that is still under discussion.

“A possible civilian... mission could support Libyan efforts... through advice and capacity building in the fields of police and criminal justice,” said the draft, referring to counter-terrorism, border management and tackling the smuggling of migrants across the Mediterranean to Europe.

An EU security presence in Libya, which would not involve sol-

STRICT VIGIL: A member of the force assigned to protect Libya’s unity government stands at the entrance to where the government has their offices, in Tripoli, Libya on Thursday. – Reuters

diers, would be Europe’s biggest step in the oil-producing nation since a NATO-backed mission led to the fall of Libya’s long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Diplomats said there had yet to be a detailed discussion with the new UN-brokered Libyan government in defining what kind of assistance they wanted from the EU, and that it keen to avoid the impression of moving into the country uninvited. “It is a delicate balance,” said one senior EU official involved in the plans. “We need to prepare to help Libya, but we cannot jump the gun.”

Libyan officials with the new unity government were not im-

mediately available for comment on the specific document. But they have said any international security cooperation must be Libyan-led and so far have made no detailed request for aid. But inviting in foreign military trainers remains a sensitive subject for the new government, who opponents accuse of being a foreign-imposed body with no legitimacy.

Libyan Prime Minister Fayez Seraj will speak to ministers by video conference at the dinner on Monday.

Talks on a possible EU security mission could give momentum to discussions among Italian, French, British and US

military planners on whether to send troops to Libya to help protect key installations, government buildings, ports and the airport.

The United States is eager to see Europe, not Washington, take the lead in a region on the continent’s doorstep. The separate mission, which includes France, Italy, Britain and the United States and is known as the Libya International Assistance Mission, has already briefed EU diplomats about how it could have a military role in stabilising Libya. It may set up a secretariat based in Rome.

Also under consideration is how the EU’s so-called “Sophia” naval mission operating in international waters near Libya could move into Libyan waters to destroy boats used by people smugglers, catch the traffickers and head off an expected surge in migrants trying to reach Europe by sea from Libya.

While the naval mission has been operating since mid-2015 and has saved more than 8,000 lives, it is unable to move into Libyan waters without a request from the Libyan government and a UN Security Council resolution.

The problem has been finding an effective governing authority in Libya to deal with. Libya has been in anarchy for years, with two competing governments based in Tripoli and the far east and a plethora of militias dominating various regions. — Reuters

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J O I N T S TAT E M E N T

India, US to collaborate on tackling offshore tax evasion WASHINGTON: India and the US have agreed to enhance collaboration on tackling offshore tax evasion and increase cooperation in sharing of cross-border tax information.

“We are committed to continued collaboration and sharing of experience in tackling offshore tax evasion and avoidance, including joint tax audits and tax examination abroad,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said in a joint statement on Thursday.

The statement was issued after Jaitley and Lew co-chaired the 6th US-India Economic and Financial Partnership (EFP) here on the sidelines of the annual Spring Meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

“We look forward to the Competent Authorities of the two countries engaging in bilateral dialogue to move forward cooperation in these areas,” it said, adding the two nations “resolved” a significant portion of bilateral tax disputes.

Jaitley and Lew were joined by other senior officials from both sides including Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan.

During the meeting, Lew is believed to have appreciated Jaitley’s effort to successfully resolve more than half of the concerns related to tax disputes. - PTI

A5

INDIA

‘Operational synergy among forces helps achieve victory’ President Pranab Mukherjee asked the graduating officers to be well versed about the history of various conflicts and latest technology available in the modern world for successful military operations GRADUATION CEREMONY: President Pranab Mukhrjee at the graduation ceremony of 71st Staff Course at Defence Services Staff College at Wellington in Nilgiris on Friday. - PTI

WELLINGTON (Tamil Nadu): President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday stressed on “jointness” among the three armed forces to ensure ultimate victory in conflicts and effectively uphold the sovereignty of the country.

Addressing the convocation of the 71st Staff Course at the prestigious Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) at Wellington in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, he said such a synergy ensured victory in the 1971 war for India as a result of which Bangladesh was liberated.

“Army, Navy and Air Force are the military instruments of state

power. The history of warfare bears testimony that the ultimate victory in war will be achieved through jointness among the three services.”

“The foremost example, in contemporary history, of excellent synergy and jointmanship exhibited in military history was during the 1971 war. No strategic military victory has ever been so precedented by any armed force in the world,such as the liberation of Bangladesh which culminated with the birth of a nation, in termination of the war,” he said.

Mukherjee said, DSSC’s curriculum was institutionalised to empower jointness among the armed forces.

Apart from officers of the three defence services and paramilitary forces, 35 officers from 25 friendly countries also graduated from the portals of the college on Friday.

The president gave away medals and parchments to them. He asked the graduating officers to be well versed about the history of various conflicts and latest technology available in the modern world for successful military operations.

“It is now upon you to ensure that you use this understanding with utmost maturity and prudence to effectively leverage the combat power of your forces when the country requires you as custodians of peace and security to preserve the sovereignty, territorial integrity conforming to our national interests.”

“As your Supreme Commander, I implore you to do this with total loyalty, distinction, steadfastness and patriotic fervour,” he said.

Mukherjee said the degree obtained by the officers at the end

of the 45-week command course should act as a “catalyst” in their implacable pursuit of knowledge.

“You should always remain well informed with the latest in military technology advancements as well as aware of scientific developments for their appropriate application in the armed forces.”

“Study the numerous perceptions of various conflicts that have chronicled and conscientiously study the evolution of potential flashpoints and their evaluated outcomes. It is only when you seek knowledge that you gain wisdom in life to take coherent and timely military decisions which directly affects the lives of the forces under your command,” he said.

He asked the future commanders to articulate their views “with clarity and conviction in accordance with military rules and regulations to obviate ambiguity and ambivalence”.

He also heaped praise on DSSC, calling it “one of the finest” premier establishments that accentuates well orchestrated and synergised employment and integrated functioning of the three services in a multi-spectrum conflict environment.

The president expressed hope that officers from friendly foreign countries who graduated on Friday will have “everlasting ties of brotherhood” with India as they forged deep bonds of friendship, spirit of cooperation and camaraderie with officers from the country during their stay here. - PTI

CURB POLLUTION

Second phase of odd-even begins in Delhi, roads see fewer cars NEW DELHI: Fewer private cars were seen on roads as the second phase of the odd-even scheme was rolled out in Indian capital Delhi on Friday to combat spiralling air pollution with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal appealing to people to join hands to make the initiative a success.

Thousands of policemen and civil defence volunteers were deployed in various areas of the city to enforce the restriction which will run for 15 days, till April 30.

The actual impact of the scheme will be known only on Monday, the

first full working day after the second phase roll out.

“Odd even starts today. Let’s all join hands and resolve to make it a success,” Kejriwal tweeted.

The Delhi government, which has projected the second phase of the road-rationing policy as the “decisive” one, said that 2,000 traffic personnel, 580 enforcement officials and over 5,000 civil defence volunteers are being deployed by it for smooth implementation of the scheme.

Violators will be fined Rs2,000 in accordance with relevant sec-

tion of the Motor Vehicles Act and the scheme will not be implemented on Sundays.

Under the scheme, odd-numbered cars are allowed to run on odd dates while even-numbered cars are allowed on even dates. The first phase of the policy, that was in force between January 1 and 15, did not have its intended affect as it could not lower pollution “as much as expected” but it significantly helped reduce traffic congestion in the city, Kejriwal has said.

However, Kejriwal has also stated that his government is se-

PROTEST

One more youth dies in police firing as Valley remains on boil SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir continued to be on the boil on Saturday with one more youth getting killed and three others being injured in firing by security forces in Kupwara district to disperse stone-pelting mobs who attacked an army camp.

Protests rocked many places in Kupwara and its adjoining areas to mark the fourth day of death of three persons who were killed in firing by security forces in Handwara town of Indian-administered-Kashmir on Tuesday following allegations of molestation of a girl. A police official said, four persons were injured when security forces opened fire on a mob which was pelting stones on an army camp at Kupwara’s Nathnusa area, about 100km from here.

Among the injured, a youth, Arif Ahmad, was hurt critically and succumbed to his wounds later, sources said. With the latest casualty, the death toll has risen to five in the unrest that began on

PATROLLING: Police in action against the members of Tehreek-eHurriyat who were taking out a protest march against the killing of four persons in Handwara, in Srinagar on Friday. - PTI

Tuesday, following allegations of molestation of a girl in Handwara.

An Army official said, the forces opened fire only after the mobs tried to storm the camp.

“A group of protesters was pelting stones at the (Army) camp but the soldiers exercised restraint.

However, the situation started going out of hand as a large number of them tried to storm the camp

from all directions,” the official said. The situation in the north Kashmir district has worsened following fresh casualties as more people are taking to streets against the killings. Reports of protests were also received from parts of south Kashmir and the state capital of Srinagar but there were no casualties in these incidents, the official said. - PTI

riously considering to enforce the measure for a period of fifteen days every month. Sources said any decision in this regard will be taken after analysing impact of the second phase of the odd-even scheme in reducing pollution.

The only change in the blueprint of the policy’s implementation from its first phase is the exemption given to cars carrying children in school uniform apart from those being driven by women, VIPs except ministers in the Aam Aadmi Party government and CNG vehicles with mandatory stickers. -PTI

RATIONING ROAD USE: Traffic police men slap a challan to a commuter for riding with number plate ending with an even digit in New Delhi on Friday on the first day of the second phase of Delhi government’s odd-even road rationing scheme. - PTI

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

INDIA CRUCIAL PHASE

Campaigning for second phase of West Bengal polls ends KOLKATA: The high-voltage campaign for Sunday’s crucial second phase of polls in 56 Assembly constituencies in the east Indian state of West Bengal came to an end on Friday evening.

Altogether, 383 candidates, including 33 women, are fighting for the 56 seats which are spread over seven districts — Alipurduar, Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, Malda and Birbhum. An electorate of over 10.2 million is eligible to exercise their franchise in the crucial phase.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and a host of Union Ministers campaigned for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates in this phase, while the star campaigner for the Congress was Sonia Gandhi. Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee spearheaded her party’s campaign throughout the state.

Left alliance in the state, pointing out the “inevitable discrepancy in the unlikely tie-up”.

WOOING VOTERS: Women supporters of Trinamool Congress during an elections campaign rally for the upcoming Assembly polls at Balurghat in South Dinajpur district of West Bengal on Friday. - PTI

Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) state secretary Surjyakanta Mishra was the most visible face of the Left who led their campaign. CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury also canvassed for votes in this phase.

Corruption, Narada sting operation, Saradha chit fund scam and alleged muzzling of democracy under the present administration were the principal issues highlighted by the opposition parties during their electioneering.

The prime minister, in his poll speeches, attacked Mamata, accusing her of making an “adjustment” with corruption and misleading people with the slogan for change (parivartan) in West Bengal. He also attacked the Congress-

Development work Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee largely concentrated on the development work undertaken by her government. Sonia Gandhi launched a frontal attack on the TMC chief, alleging she did not fulfil her poll promises and likened Mamata and Modi with the two sides of the same coin. Poll analysts will be keenly watching the Siliguri constituency in north Bengal where during the municipal elections last year, the CongressLeft experiment had first started.

The high-profile candidates who will try their luck in this phase include Siliguri Mayor and former minister Ashok Bhattacharya, former captain of the Indian football team Bhaichung Bhutia, Soumitra Ray, singer of popular Bengali band ‘Bhoomi’, actor Locket Chat-

Passport of grounded airlines’ promoter Mallya suspended Industry watchers say trouble for the sitting, independent Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, known for his lavish lifestyle, had begun shortly after he launched Kingfisher Airlines in 2005 as the aviation industry slowly started dwindling

Vijay Mallya, who is wanted by the Enforcement Directorate on charges of misappropriation of Rs90 billion, he received in bank loans, left India on March 2 Vijay Mallya

NEW DELHI: Trouble for beleaguered beverages baron Vijay Mallya, facing charges of misapropriation of bank funds amounting to Rs90 billion, mounted on Friday after the government suspended his diplomatic passport for four weeks.

Warrant sought In a related development, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai asked the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) special court for a non-bailable warrant against Mallya.

The ED plea for non-bailable warrant against Mallya is likely to

come up for hearing on Saturday, sources said. The suspension of his passport would make Mallya’s overseas stay difficult, sources said. Mallya is in Britain since over a month now.

Bank loans Mallya, who is wanted by the ED on charges of misappropriation of Rs90 billion, he received in bank loans, left India on March 2.

On March 11, the business tycoon tweeted that he is not an absconder. Announcing suspension of Mallya’s diplomatic passport, the Ministry of External Affairs

spokesperson said in a statement here: “On the advise of the Enforcement Directorate, the passport issuing authority in the Ministry of External Affairs has today suspended the validity of Vijay Mallya’s diplomatic passport with immediate effect.”

Mallya has been asked to respond within one week as to why his passport should not be impounded or revoked under Section 10(3)(c) of the Passports Act, 1967. “If he fails to respond within the stipulated time, it will be assumed that he has no response to offer and the MEA will go ahead

with the revocation,” the statement said.

Plea for revocation On April 13, the Enforcement Directorate sought revocation of Mallya’s diplomatic passport after he failed to appear before the probe agency. Mallya is alleged by the ED of having skipped as many as three summons issued by the agency for questioning.

Earlier this month, Mallya had informed ED investigators that he will be unable to depose personally as he also had legal proceedings in the Supreme Court over

settlement of a loans case. On March 30, Mallya’s counsel told the Supreme Court that he has offered to pay Rs40 billion to settle outstanding dues against the grounded Kingfisher Airlines on account of loans extended by a consortium of 13 banks headed by the State Bank of India.

The Supreme Court on April 7 directed Mallya to disclose all his assets — movable and immovable and tangible and intangible — and other shareholding and beneficial interests in India and abroad

by April 21.

An apex court bench of Justice Kurien Joseph and Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman asked Mallya to disclose all the assets held by his wife and children also and indicate the date when he can appear before it in person.

Industry watchers say trouble for the sitting, independent Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, known for his lavish lifestyle, had begun shortly after he launched Kingfisher Airlines in 2005 as the aviation industry slowly started dwindling. Mallya first took loans from IDBI bank in 2006 and again in 2009 got loans from a consortium of banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) for airline.

By 2007, he also had spent a huge amount to take over low-cost carrier Air Deccan. But by 2010, the business tycoon had run into rough weather and tentatively had a debt of over Rs.70 billion — which only increased with the passage of time. - IANS

terjee and Joy Banerjee.

State ministers Gautam Deb, Krishnendu Narayan Chowdhury and Sabitri Mitra are also in the poll fray in this phase of election.

Mamata faced the ire of the Election Commission (EC) which slapped a show-cause notice on her for allegedly violating the model code of conduct by making certain remarks during a rally.

TMC’S Birbhum district president Anubrata Mandal has been courting a number of controversies, including allegations that he has been openly intimidating voters. Taking cognizance, the EC said it had started the process of taking urgent legal action against him after a censure failed to control him. In the face of opposition’s allegations, the EC had removed Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar and the Birbhum Superintendent of Police (SP), besides transferring a number of lower level police officers. - PTI ACTING DEBUT

Sachin Tendulkar

‘Facing camera more difficult than playing cricket’ MUMBAI: Sachin Tendulkar says facing the camera for his soon-tobe-released biopic has been more challenging than standing up to the fastest bowlers in the world and scoring runs. The teaser of the film, Sachin: A Billion Dreams, was released on Thursday.

“For so many years, I did whatever I wanted to do and the camera captured that. Suddenly I was asked to do particular things and then the camera captured that, so it was a bit different for me. Believe me, the first option was better,” said Tendulkar.

“Acting is not something that I dreamt of. Without any doubt, acting was more challenging than playing cricket. I enjoyed playing more,” added Tendulkar, who played 200 Test matches before retiring in November, 2013.

Tendulkar, 42, is making his acting debut with the biopic directed by award-winning British director James Erskine. - PTI

SCORCHING SUMMER

Temperatures soar across the country, mercury reaches 40 NEW DELHI: Mercury continued to soar across the country on Friday, mostly in central and peninsular states where several pockets recorded high temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius.

Heatwave has claimed 35 lives in the south Indian state of Telangana, where the government has advanced summer holidays for schools to April 16 from April 24, keeping in view the rising temperatures. The highest maximum temperature of 44 degrees Celsius in the state was recorded in Nizamabad district. In the east Indian state of Odisha too, more than 30 people have died due to heat stroke.

Maximum temperature in capital New Delhi settled at 42.2 degrees Celsius, four notches above normal, a MeT official said. India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, its weather stations at 25 places across the country recorded mercury at over 40 degree Celsius.

Heatwave Heatwave conditions prevailed in west and east Madhya Pradesh, Vidharbha region of Maharashtra, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, east and west Rajasthan, Telangana, Rayalseema region of Andhra Pradesh,

Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, it said. Mercury at several places, majority of them in the south Indian states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, settled between 40 and 45 degrees Celsius. Heatwave conditions are also expected in Marathwada and central parts of the west Indian state of Maharashtra, IMD said.

Highest temperature Wardha in Vidarbha region recorded the highest temperature of 45 degrees Celsius, followed by Chandrapur at 44.6 degrees. In Odisha, the MeT office said, Sonepur recorded the highest temperature of 45.8 degrees Celsius. State capi-

tal Bhubaneswar recorded maximum of 40.2 degress Celsius.

In the north Indian state of Rajasthan, mercury hovered above 40 degrees at most places, with Kota recording the highest of 43.4 degrees Celsius.

Churu, Sriganganagar, Jaisalmer and Jaipur recorded day temperatures of 43.3, 42.3, 42.2 and 41 degree Celsius respectively, the local MeT office said. - PTI

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WEATHER BLUES : An elephant splashes mud to get respite from

the heat on the banks of Yamuna river in New Delhi on Friday. -

PTI

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016 Soon, the plight of women in Gilgit-Baltistan overshadowed my ecstasy and I became convinced that I had to work here for their welfare Tokunaga Tadako, Japanese woman

INVESTMENT

US promises $100m fund to propel SMEs ISLAMABAD: United States has announced that it will provide a fund of over $100 million for investment in small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which provide a large number of jobs and make a significant contribution to the economy, through the Pakistan Private Investment Initiative.

Speaking at the launching ceremony of the Pakistan Private Investment Initiative on Thursday, US Ambassador David Hale revealed that the investment would be made in partnership with the Abraaj Group, Indus Basin Holding and JS Private Equity Management. The initiative comprises three professionally managed investment funds that will provide equity capital for Pakistan’s dynamic and fast growing small and medium businesses. The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has given $24 million for each fund and the Abraaj Group, Indus Basin Holding and JS Private Equity Management will each match or provide more than USAID’s contribution.

“Our hope is that by improving access to credit for first-time borrowers, we will break down barriers for creators and innovators who will find solutions to the development challenges facing Pakistan and the world,” the envoy pointed out, believing that investment in entrepreneurs would pay dividends for the decades to come.

He described the private sector as good for boosting Pakistan’s economy. “Pakistan is making progress in economy and investor confidence is increasing for investment,” he said and called private sector investment essential for the national economy. — Express Tribune

PAKISTAN

All Pakistanis named in Panama Papers face probe The government has been under tremendous pressure since the Panama Papers revealed the names of around 220 Pakistanis

ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to investigate all Pakistanis named in the Panama Papers through a judicial commission headed by a retired judge, TOUGH STAND: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. A statement issued by the Prime Minister House after rebuffing the opposition’s de- the meeting said the PML-N leadership has vowed not to be deterred by the “conspiracies and the mand for a probe into the scandal spate of ridiculous allegations against the prime minister. – Reuters file photograph through a serving judge.

On Thursday, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar after a marathon huddle ened to stage a sit-in outside the commission,” a minister told The ani. A participant at the meeting held at the Prime Minister House with senior leaders of the ruling Sharif family house in Raiwind Express Tribune.

The commission will be set up said the main objective of the party finalised the government’s if the government does not order strategy with three major compo- an impartial investigation by the under the inquiry commission act commission is to determine who and notified in the next few days. amongst the accused infringed nents: legal, political and adminis- country’s top judge.

It will have the power to summon laws and committed illegal acts. trative measures, to deal with the any individual or institution and “The commission will examine Illegality mounting pressure.

The government has been un- The government went ahead with hire the services of any agency to the case of every Pakistani national, whose name has come der tremendous pressure since its stance while finalising the help it investigate the matter.

Some retired judges of the apex up in Panama Papers. This will the Panama Papers revealed the terms of reference (ToRs) for the names of around 220 Pakistanis, judicial inquiry through a former court have already declined the not be only limited to the Sharif including Prime Minister Nawaz judge to establish if any of those government’s offer to head the family alone.”

The government would share Sharif’s immediate family mem- named in the Panama leaks com- new commission. Prominent bers, keeping offshore accounts in mitted any illegality in financial among those are former SC chief the ToRs of its proposed commisjustices Nasirul Mulk and Tas- sion with other political parties transactions. international tax havens. for which it has allocated separate “Since the Supreme Court chief sadiq Hussian Jilani.

While the premier has already Unconfirmed reports claim the teams. Parallel to the legal course ordered an inquiry led by a retired justice has already expressed his judge of the Supreme Court, the intent through his remarks, we government has also approached of action, the meeting also chalked Imran Khan-led PTI has threat- would go for a retired judge-led Justice (retd) Sarmad Jalal Usm- out the government’s strategy to

G I L G I T - B A LT I S TA N

Japanese visitor becomes beacon of light for women GILGIT: Women empowerment was not on Tokunaga Tadako’s mind when she visited GilgitBaltistan in 1974 for the first time.

Engrossed and completely captivated by the beauty of the region, Tadako explored the area and mingled with locals.

“Soon, the plight of women in Gilgit-Baltistan overshadowed my ecstasy and I became convinced that I had to work here for their welfare,” the 72-year-old Japanese woman who speaks fluent Urdu, said.

Over the past 15 years, over 10,000 women have learnt the art of sewing and stitching from vocational training centres that Tadako established in Gilgit. Many marginalised women have been able to earn a living and support their families because of the skills they were taught. In early 1980s, Takado married Samiul Haq, a resident of Gilgit-Baltistan and settled in Gilgit. She also converted to Islam,

A7

changing her name to Laila. “It was after my marriage, that I truly realised how helpless women in the area were. They lacked health, education and civic amenities.”

She said she knew something had to be done about it. Nearly two decades after her marriage, her husband passed away and she moved back to Japan, but her relationship with the region continued to blossom. “My desire to work for women increased especially after the death of my husband,” she said. In 1999, she contacted her relatives in Gilgit and set up a vocational training centre – Nipa Welfare Association (NWA) – for women with their assistance.

The centre not only provided women basic education but also taught them skills such as sewing and stitching to help them become financially independent.

In 2004, the NWA purchased three kanals of land and formally shifted the vocational centre into

a building in 2008. It has over 10 rooms, apart from two training halls, and is supervised by Saiqa Nazir, a relative of her late husband. “Without Nazir’s help, I would not have been able to do all of this,” she said. Apart from the original NWA venue which she set up herself, the 72-yearold manages five other centres in various parts of Gilgit. At present over 100 women are receiving training at six centres in Gilgit.

During special classes, they are also taught about how to maintain health care of newborn babies.

Tadako visits the centre in Gilgit-Baltistan twice a year and has been impressed and overwhelmed by the impact of her work and the warm reception shown by people. “I feel an inner peace whenever I help women whose circumstances are not always promising,” she said and vowed to continue her work till her death. — Express Tribune

deal with the issue politically. Dar would form separate teams to target different political parties with each team tasked to accost a political group to woo them into accepting the proposed ToRs. The administrative task of tackling the protesting parties has been left to Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

The government team later sent its detailed plan to prime minister, who is in London for a medical checkup.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister House after the meeting said the PML-N leadership has vowed not to be deterred by the “conspiracies and the spate of ridiculous allegations against the prime minister,” and to continue with the national development agenda.

Conspiracies Dar said the prime minister, had asked the party leaders not to pay any heed to the conspiracies being hatched against the progressive and development agenda of his government and focus on early completion of the mega-development schemes.

The meeting was attended by the Punjab chief minister, Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid, Safron Minister Abdul Qadir Baloch, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Law Minister Zahid Hamid, Railways Minister Saad Rafique, Senator Mushahidullah Khan and Maryam Nawaz. Former KhyberPakhtunkhwa governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan and the Attorney General of Pakistan also participated. — Express Tribune

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READERS’ FORUM No phone while driving Yesterday while waiting at a traffic signal, looking at the signs put up

by ROP ‘No phone while driving’, my eight year old daughter asked me “Pappa are we to follow that”. Yes 100 per cent I told her. Then why is that uncle not following, see that aunty is also using the phone. I had no answer. This shows that the message has still not reached the hard-core phone users.

What can be done? Naming and shaming will be a good idea, as fine and jail terms have not had any affect. Sill trying to find an answer for my daughter’s question. ‘If they can use why can’t we?’

Scan this QR code — Venu Seshan, Muscat to send letters to the Readers’ Forum, containing not more than 200 words with full name, address and telephone number, may be sent by e-mail (akhtar@ timesofoman.com).

MARK GILBERT

Europe is gearing up for a summer of discontent. There’s the UK referendum on European Union membership, a simmering refugee crisis and an increasingly desperate European Central Bank. Taken together, this list gives reason enough to be fearful about the health of the European project in the coming months.

IPL soft target after BCCI was told to shift matches out of Maharashtra After the Bombay High Court’s order to move Indian Premier League matches out of drought-hit Maharashtra, there has been a call from many quarters not to mix cricket with such a serious issue. Without any long term solution being found how could one think that water will start flowing to drought-hit areas. Cricket being a religion in India, IPL has become a soft target just to showcase the plight of the drought-hit people and the need to save them. — Mahesh Dadlani, Al Amerat

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NELSON MANDELA

What next for refugees from Syria in Lebanon?

T

he Syrian conflict, entering its sixth year, has caused an unprecedented crisis, generating 4.8 million refugees throughout the region and directly affecting 13.5 million people within Syria. The war next door has had a profound impact on Lebanon, with ramifications for the country’s security, economy and society.

The Lebanese people and institutions have generously opened their doors to more than one million Syrian refugees, while responding to their needs and those of the host communities. It is truly a challenge, striving to offer quality public services like education or primary health care for both the Lebanese – especially the most impoverished – and the Syrians whom they host. But Lebanon has done this, with humanity and political courage.

Against this backdrop, and after years in exile, the situation for Syrian refugees in Lebanon is now deteriorating rapidly. With their savings depleted, they have entered a vicious circle of extreme poverty, leaving them barely enough for daily survival.

More than 70 per cent now live below the national poverty line of less than $4 a day, and most have racked up debts of up to $950 per family, just to afford the most basic items, such as food, medicine and rent. The Lebanese, too, have been seriously affected by the Syrian conflict, with their economy depressed and unemployment rising, especially among the young.

The support from the international community has been unwavering; since 2013, more than $3.4 billion has been allocated to Lebanon, and 35,000 refugees have been resettled from Lebanon to other countries. Despite this, the assistance unfortunately remains insufficient when set against stretched resources and growing needs. The Lebanese government and its humanitarian partners have requested $2.48 billion in the 2016 Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP), the main appeal for funding from the international community.

While the cessation of hostilities in Syria -which is mostly holding since 27 February -- and the tortuous path to the negotiating table provide glimmers of hope, only a political settlement will bring peace and security. This will answer the concerns of the Lebanese people, and those of every Syrian refugee. The refugees have just one wish: to go back, safely, to the homeland from which they were torn. This is what I am told every day by the

refugees that I meet: they are fully aware that their stay in Lebanon is temporary – just for the time they need to be protected.

In the meantime, Syrian refugees need to survive in exile and those hosting them must be supported, be they Lebanese families aiding Syrians, or the institutions that are providing the muchneeded basic services. Humanitarian assistance is never sufficient, stabilisation support is also required. The Supporting Syria and the Region Conference, held in London in February, showed that the international community and host countries in the region are mobilizing to tackle the crisis together with additional resources and initiatives.

This offers a rare opportunity, and it should be seized. Support for Lebanon’s economy and infrastructure would help to generate employment for those most in need in impoverished areas, including Syrians in sectors where they have traditionally filled demand and do not compete with Lebanese workers. This would help them meet their basic survival needs and pay their bills. Maintaining their legal residency status in Lebanon is a major concern of refugees. At the moment, many are unable to renew their residency because of the cost and the documents required. They just wish to stay afloat and keep their papers in order.

Beyond immediate survival, what comes next for the refugees? Resettlement to a third country is one solution, and it is ongoing. Last year, countries doubled the number of places available for Syrian refugees to leave Lebanon. Resettlement is a safety net for the most vulnerable, including those who have survived torture or trauma, female heads of households or people with a serious illness that cannot be treated locally. UNHCR is asking the international community to multiply the number of opportunities for refugees outside the region, including through scholarships, work permits and other temporary humanitarian admission schemes. Everyone -- not least the refugees themselves -- agrees that the main solution for refugees will be to return home when conditions allow.

Mireille Girard is United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Representative in Lebanon - Special to Times of Oman

CLIPPINGS FROM OUR ARCHIVES APRIL 2001 Photographic exhibition on human life in Oman MUSCAT: A 15-day long photographic exhibition highlighting the significance of human life in Oman will be opened here tomorrow. The exhibition will be held at Sultan Qaboos University from April 15 to 19 followed by a four-day exhibition at the Hotel Inter-Continental Muscat from April 21 to 24 and a six-day display at the Omani Women’s Association from May 5 to 10. The exhibition will display nearly 65 photographs by Khamis Ali Al Moharbi selected from about 10,000 slides and photographs. Similar exhibitions will be held in Nizwa, Sohar, Salalah, Sur and Bidbid.

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OMAN’S INDUSTRY: WHOLESALE AND RETAIL TRADE Total end of September (Million rials) 2015

2014

1,912.8 1,970.6 3.0%

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

1945: American troops enter Nuremberg, Germany.

1947: A lens which provides zoom effects is demonstrated in New York City.

1968: The Pentagon announces the “Vietnamisation” of the war.

1972: Two giants pandas arrive in the US from China.

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WORLD

Aftershocks rattle Japan as earthquake claims 9 lives More than 130 aftershocks had hit the area around the city of Kumamoto in the wake of the initial 6.4 magnitude quake on Thursday night

TOKYO: Aftershocks rattled southwestern Japan on Friday after a strong quake the night before killed nine people, injured at least 1,000 and cut power and water across the region, forcing the temporary shutdown of several auto and electronics factories.

By afternoon, more than 130 aftershocks had hit the area around the city of Kumamoto in the wake of the initial 6.4 magnitude quake the night before. Officials said the frequency was tapering off but the risk of further strong aftershocks will remain for about a week.

While the magnitude of Thursday’s quake was much lower than that of the 9.0 March 11, 2011 quake that touched off a massive tsunami and nuclear meltdowns at Fukushima, the intensity was similar because it struck on land and at a much shallower depth.

“We managed to huddle into a space, that’s why we were saved,” one man told NHK national television after he and his family were rescued from their collapsed house two hours after the quake hit. “We’re all safe, that’s what counts.”

More than 44,000 people initially fled to schools and community centres, some spending the night outside after the first quake hit around 9:30pm.

DESTROYED: A woman stands in front of her damaged house in Mashiki, Kumamoto prefecture on Friday, after a 6.5-magnitude quake struck the southwestern island of Kyushu on Thursday. – AFP

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Roads cracked, houses crumbled, and tiles cascaded from the roof of the 400-year-old Kumamoto Castle in the centre of the city.

Among those pulled from the wreckage was an eight-monthold baby girl, wrapped in a blanket and passed hand to hand by firefighters. Several hospitals had to evacuate patients.

Japanese stocks ended down 0.4 per cent, with the impact of the quake limited primarily to

regional shares that could experience some direct impact. Regional utility Saibu Gas Co Ltd finished 2.7 per cent lower.

Several companies, including Honda Motor Corp, suspended operations at plants in the area.

More than 3,000 troops, police and firemen were dispatched to the area from around Japan, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said more would be sent if needed.

“We will do everything in our power to ensure the safety of local residents,” Abe told a parliamentary committee.

Most of the dead came from Mashiki, a town of around 34,000 people near the epicentre of the quake, where firefighters battled a blaze late on Thursday. Day-

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light showed splintered houses under tiled roofs and an apartment building whose ground floor was pulverized, where two people died.

“I want to go home, but we couldn’t do anything there,” one boy at an evacuation centre told TBS television as he bounced a baby in his arms.

Though the intensity of Thursday’s quake on the Japanese scale matched that of the March 2011 quake that left nearly 20,000 dead, the absence of a tsunami helped keep the death toll down.

Service on the Shinkansen superfast train in Kyushu was halted after one train derailed, and highways were closed after some sections collapsed.

About 12,200 households were without electricity as of 12pm (0500 GMT), according to Kyushu Electric Power Co Inc, while some 58,000 lacked water.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority said there were no irregularities at three nuclear plants on the southern major island of Kyushu and nearby Shikoku.

Sony Corp, Mitsubishi Electric Corp and tire maker Bridgestone Corp also suspended operations at factories in the area.

The 2011 quake temporarily crippled part of Japan’s auto supply chain, but some companies have since adjusted the industry’s “Just in Time” production philosophy in a bid to limit any repeat of the costly disruption. — Reuters

PHILIPPINES

Militants set deadline to execute foreigners MANILA: Militants in the Philippines on Friday announced a new deadline of April 25 for the execution of three foreign captives and a Filipino, but scaled back their ransom demand in a video posted on social media.

The captives - two Canadian men, a Norwegian man and a Filipino woman - were kidnapped from a beach resort on a southern island last September.

They are believed to be held in the jungle on Jolo island, a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf group, which is known for bombs, beheadings and kidnappings. In the video, the captives, with machetes held to their necks, asked their families and governments to pay a ransom of $6.51 million (300 million pesos) each, down from the figure of a billion pesos each that the militants demanded last year.

“This is already an ultimatum,” the masked militant leader said.

“We will certainly behead one of these four,” he added, setting the execution for 3pm on April 25.

There was no explanation why the ransom was reduced or a new deadline set. A spokesman for the Philippine military declined to comment, saying he had not seen the video.

In the nearly two-minute clip posted on Youtube, the foreigners appealed for the militants’ demands to be met. “I am told to tell you that my ransom is 300 million,” said one man, who identified himself as Robert Hall.

“My specific appeal is to the Canadian government, who, I know, have the capacity to get us out of here. I’m wondering what they’re waiting for.” The other Canadian and the Norwegian also made appeals, but the Filipino woman was not allowed to speak. The video was the fourth such appeal released by the militants. In their third clip last month, they set an April 8 deadline but no ransom was specified. — Reuters

IN DEFIANCE OF UN SANCTIONS

North Korea accused of ‘sabre-rattling’ after failed missile launch SEOUL: North Korea attempted and failed to launch what experts believe was an intermediate-range ballistic missile on Friday in defiance of UN sanctions and in an embarrassing setback for leader Kim Jong Un, drawing criticism from major ally China.

The failed launch, as the reclusive country celebrates the “Day of the Sun” on the birthday of Kim’s grandfather, follows the North’s fourth nuclear test in January and a long-range rocket launch in February, which led to new UN sanctions. But the North has nevertheless pushed ahead with its missile programme, supervised by Kim, in breach of UN Security Council resolutions.

The US-based 38 North website, which specialises in North Korea,

said there has been activity at the country’s nuclear site based on satellite imagery and on Wednesday said the possibility of a fifth nuclear test “could not be ruled out”. A US government source told Reuters on Friday the missile never got off the launch pad, instead bursting into flames on the ground. It was not yet clear what caused the failure but further tests are expected, said the source, who asked not to be named.

Angered China, North Korea’s most important economic and diplomatic backer, has been angered

by Pyongyang’s nuclear tests and rocket launches in the face of UN sanctions that China also has backed.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said the UN Security Council was clear on North Korean rocket launches.

“At present, the situation on the peninsula is complex and sensitive,” he told reporters. “We hope all parties can strictly respect the decisions of the Security Council and avoid taking any steps that could further worsen tensions.”

Chinese state media was more direct. “The firing of a mid-range ballistic missile on Friday by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), though failed, marks the latest in a string of sabre-rattling that, if unchecked, will lead the country to nowhere,” China’s official Xinhua news agency said in an English language commentary.

“... Nuclear weapons will not make Pyongyang safer. On the contrary, its costly military endeavours will keep on suffocating its economy.”

Friday is the anniversary of North Korean founding president Kim Il Sung’s birthday, which is widely celebrated. In 2012, it was marked by a long-range rocket launch attempt that also failed.

The US Defence Department said in a statement the launch at 0533 Korea time (2033 GMT Thursday) was detected and tracked by the US Strategic Command, which also assessed it had failed.

“We call again on North Korea to refrain from actions and rhetoric that further raise tensions in the region and focus instead on taking

concrete steps toward fulfilling its international commitments and obligations,” a US State Department official said.

Musudan The missile likely was a Musudan, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said, an intermediate-range ballistic missile with a design range of more than 3,000km (1,800 miles) that can be fired from a road mobile launcher but which has never been flight-tested.

The United States, which has 28,000 troops stationed in South Korea, said on Thursday it was aware of reports that North Korea was preparing to test intermediate-range missiles and was closely monitoring the Korean peninsula.

“Timing wise, today’s missile

was a cannon salute on the Day of the Sun, leading up to the party congress, but now that it has failed, it is an embarrassment,” said Chang Gwang-il, a retired South Korean army general.

The North is scheduled to hold its ruling party congress in early May, the first such meeting in 36 years.

The North could not completely ignore the sanctions, but considered it the right time to attempt a missile launch to send a message to the world “we don’t surrender to sanctions,” Chang said.

Some experts had said North Korea may choose to test-fire the Musudan as it tries to build an intercontinental ballistic missile designed to put the mainland United States within range. — Reuters

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

WORLD

So from April 17 to May 1, some 150 countries will engage in a synchronised switch to a bivalent, or two-strain, vaccine that contains no type 2 virus but targets types 1 and 3.

Sanders delivers left hook after Brooklyn brawl Donald Trump and Clinton have big leads in state opinion polls heading into the New York contest. Trump needs a win to further his drive toward the 1,237 delegates needed for the nomination, and avoid a contested July convention that could sow Republican chaos.

Clinton leads Sanders by 251 bound delegates to the July Democratic convention, where 2,383 delegates will be needed for the nomination. A democratic socialist, Sanders has gained in support as a champion of the working class vowing to erase economic inequality.

Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton challenged each other’s judgment and experience in New York’s Brooklyn borough on Thursday night in their most bellicose of nine debates

NEW YORK: Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders built on a combative US presidential debate, pressuring frontrunner Hillary Clinton on Friday over her high speaking fees and minimum-wage stance before Tuesday’s crucial New York nominating contest.

Sanders and Clinton challenged each other’s judgment and experience in New York’s Brooklyn borough on Thursday night in their most bellicose of nine debates, laying bare the mounting pressures on them both without seeming to change the dynamics of the race. The Sanders campaign released a television ad on Friday that skewered Clinton, without naming her, as accepting more than $200,000 from Wall Street for a speech while not embracing raising the minimum wage from the current $7.25 to $15.

While far short of the brawls that have characterized RepubB H U TA N

British royals trek to mountain monastery PARO VALLERY (BHUTAN): Britain’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge trekked on Friday to a Buddhist monastery on a mountainside in Bhutan, going one better than the duke’s father, Prince Charles, who on a 1998 trip broke off his hike to paint a watercolour.

Prince William and wife Kate dressed down for the three-hour expedition to the so-called Tiger’s Nest that is perched on a mountainside at 3,000 metres (10,000 feet). Kate’s outfit featured kneelength boots, olive trousers and a leather waistcoat, while William wore an open-necked shirt and beige slacks. The couple stopped along the way to smile for the cameras before the backdrop of the 17th century Taktsang Palphug Monastery across the Paro valley.

“It was amazing,” William said after the climb. “Beautiful scenery as you saw and with the mountains like this, the temples at the top - it was just stunning to walk up there,” he added in a sentiment echoed by Kate. — Reuters

HEATED DEBATE: Democratic Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders debate during the CNN Democratic Presidential Primary Debate at the Duggal Greenhouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard on Thursday in New York City. – AFP

lican debates, the tone reflected a contentious turn in the Democratic contest before Tuesday’s presidential primary in New York.

Clinton and Sanders out-shouted each other while a split crowd roared its approval.

‘Screaming at each other’ “If you’re both screaming at each other, the viewers won’t be able to hear either of you,” moderator Wolf Blitzer of CNN warned during the debate, the latest ahead of the November 8 presidential election.

When the two-hour debate ended, social media analyst Brandwatch said Sanders had more than 173,000 mentions on Twitter, 55 per cent of them positive, while Clinton had more than 191,000 mentions, 54 per cent of them

negative. Clinton mentions were more negative than positive in two out of the three previous debates.

A former US senator from New York, Clinton needs a win to stop a streak of seven victories in the last eight nominating contests by the Brooklyn-born Sanders, a US senator from Vermont, and expand her commanding lead in pledged delegates to her party’s nominating convention in July.

Republicans were gleeful watching the bitter Democratic debate. “Hillary Clinton was supposed to have the nomination locked up by the end of March, but she’s instead lost seven straight states and is having to throw the kitchen sink at a 74-year old Vermont socialist as her once 60-point lead dwindles,” said Reince Priebus, head of the Republi-

can National Committee.

Sanders, 74, takes a quick break from the campaign trail on Friday to fly to the Vatican to give a brief speech at a conference on the world economy and social justice. Sanders, who will be back in New York to campaign on Sunday, has said the trip is not a political appeal for the Catholic vote but a testament to his admiration for Pope Francis.

At the debate, Clinton said she would sign a bill raising the federal minimum wage to $15 if it came from Congress, but she added that her position would be to follow the upstate New York model of raising it gradually. She defended her advocating for a $12 minimum wage by saying that was the first step in ultimately getting it raised to $15.

Both Republican front-runner

Questioned Sanders, who had questioned the former secretary of state’s qualifications to be president, conceded during the debate she was qualified but said she had shown poor judgment by taking money from Wall Street for speeches, by voting as a US senator to back the 2003 Iraq invasion and by supporting free trade deals.

Clinton, 68, responded the charges were also an attack on President Barack Obama, who as a candidate raised money on Wall Street and utilised Super PACS, outside funding groups that can raise unlimited sums of money, but still fought for tough regulations on the financial services industry.

Pressed on what Clinton had done to show she was influenced by the money she had raised on Wall Street or her speaking fees, Sanders said she was too busy giving speeches to Goldman Sachs to break up the big banks.

“He cannot come up with any example because there is no example,” Clinton replied. “I stood up to the behavior of the banks when I was a senator.”

Sanders responded sarcastically: “Secretary Clinton called them out - oh, they must be really crushed by this.” — Reuters

MOCKING ERDOGAN

Merkel under fire for allowing prosecution of comedian BERLIN: Germany’s Angela Merkel agreed on Friday to allow prosecutors to pursue a case against a German comedian who read out a crude poem about Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan, prompting criticism that the chancellor had failed to protect free speech.

Erdogan had demanded that Germany press charges against Jan Boehmermann after he mocked the Turkish leader in a show on German public broadcaster ZDF on March 31.

A section of the German criminal code prohibits insults against foreign leaders but leaves it to the government to decide whether to authorise prosecutors to pursue such cases.

This put Merkel in an awkward position. She has been the driving force behind a controversial European Union deal with Turkey to stem the flow of refugees into Europe and critics have already accused her of ignoring violations of human rights and press freedoms in Turkey to secure its cooperation. The chancellor made clear in a statement that the decision to allow prosecutors to investigate was not a verdict on the merits of the case itself.

But she came under sharp criticism from the Social Democrats (SPD), her centre-left coalition partner, which had wanted the Turkish request to be rejected.

“This was the wrong decision in my view,” said Thomas Oppermann, leader of the SPD in parliament. “Prosecution of satire due to ‘lese majeste’ does not fit with modern democracy.” Anton Hofreiter, parliamentary leader of the opposition Greens, said Merkel must now “live with the accusation that the deal with Turkey is more important to her than defending freedom of the press”.

Sahra Wagenknecht of the farleft Linke accused Merkel of kowtowing to the “Turkish despot” Erdogan. — Reuters

H I G H L E V E L S O F S A LT, S U G A R O R FAT

Go easy on Mars Food pasta sauces, macaroni cheese LONDON: Mars Food plans to tell customers to eat some of its Dolmio pasta sauces and macaroni cheese only once a week to maintain a balanced diet because of the products’ high levels of salt, sugar or fat.

The scheme is part of a larger initiative by the privately owned US food company to encourage healthier eating at a time when large food multinationals, or Big Food, are coming under increasing pressure from public health advocates and regulators struggling to fight a growing obesity epidemic. The plan, however, does not extend to Mars’ chocolate or sweets businesses, whose brands include M&M’s, Snickers and Starburst. Products that are particularly high in salt, sugar or fat, including Dolmio lasagne meal kits and lasagne sauces, will come with a label advising “occasional” consumption, meaning once a week. Products with lower levels of salt, sugar or fat will be considered “everyday” products.

The company said most of its products in the UK would fall into the latter category. However, only

70 per cent of its tomato sauces sold in jars already meet that standard. It did not give details for other countries but plans to introduce the labelling in all markets where those products are sold.

Nearly all packaged food makers are reformulating products as they try to keep up with changing tastes of increasingly health-conscious consumers.

Mars Food, which also produces Uncle Ben’s rice, said it plans to post on its website within the next few months a list of “occasional” products, and “everyday” products, including ones to be reformulated over the next five years to reduce sodium, sugar or fat.

It has also set targets to reduce sodium across its global product range by an average of 20 per cent by 2021, and cut the amount of added sugar in a limited number of sauces and light meals by 2018.

It also plans to boost the use of whole grains and vegetables.

Some countries including Britain, France and Mexico have announced levies on sugar-sweetened drinks, while others are considering them. — Reuters

HEALTH ADVISORY: Dolmio pasta sauces are seen in a store in in London, Britain on Friday. Mars Food, which also produces Uncle Ben’s rice, said it plans to post on its website within the next few months a list of “occasional” products, and “everyday” products, including ones to be reformulated over the next five years to reduce sodium, sugar or fat. – Reuetrs

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

Final push to wipe out polio begins with vast vaccine switch LONDON: In a huge immunisation effort in 150 countries, health teams will on Sunday launch what they hope will be the final push against polio.

Stopping transmission of the contagious viral disease that has infected millions is possible within a year, experts say. And full, official, global eradication could be declared by the end of this decade.

First, however, the vaccine that has successfully fought polio for more than 30 years needs to be switched for one that targets the last few areas of risk.

It won’t be easy, or cheap, but the World Health Organization’s director of polio eradication, Michel Zaffran, says failure now - when there have only been 12 cases worldwide this year, in Pakistan and Afghanistan - means the virus could spread across borders again.

Success would make polio only the second human disease to be eradicated since smallpox was banished in 1980. “Taking our foot off the pedal now could mean polio will within a few years spread straight back into large parts of the world and create 100,000 or 200,000 cases,” Zaffran told Reuters. “The job has not been done and will not be done until we have fully eradicated the virus.”

Endgame For the endgame in polio to succeed, a coordinated and complex vaccine switch is crucial. Until now, many countries have been using a shot that protects against the three types of wild polio virus - type 1, type 2 and type 3 - but type 2 polio transmission has been stopped since 1999, meaning immunising against it now makes no

sense. In rare cases it also poses a risk that the weakened type 2 virus in the vaccine can seep into circulation and cause “vaccine-derived” polio infections.

So from April 17 to May 1, some 150 countries will engage in a synchronised switch to a bivalent, or two-strain, vaccine that contains no type 2 virus but targets types 1 and 3. It’s a massive undertaking and a major step towards eradication, says Zaffran. “We’re entering into uncharted territory. This has never been done before. But there’s no going back now.”

That’s partly because polio vaccine manufacturers - among them France’s Sanofi Pasteur - have moved production to the bivalent shot and would find it tricky, costly, and time-consuming to reverse that move. Anil Dutta, a vaccine expert at British drugmaker Glax-

oSmithKline, which also makes polio shots, is looking beyond eradication to 2019 or 2020, when all “live” oral polio vaccines need to be discontinued.

Then the world will switch again, to “inactivated” polio vaccine, or IPV, to further reduce any risk of causing disease through immunisation. Scaling up IPV production to meet the needs of the entire world takes years, he warns, and work must start now to avoid potential supply concerns.

But prediction has never been easy in the fight to wipe out polio, and health authorities have missed targets along the way. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative, launched in 1988, originally aimed to end all transmission of the disease by 2000.

And while there has been a 99 percent reduction in cases world-

wide since the GPEI launch, fighting the last 1 percent of polio has been far tougher than expected.

Funding In 2013, the GPEI said the global fight against polio would require $5.5 billion in funding, and more will be needed beyond that to keep a lid on the disease. The virus, which invades the nervous system and can cause irreversible paralysis within hours, spreads rapidly among children, especially in unsanitary conditions in war-torn regions, refugee camps and areas where healthcare is limited.

In Pakistan and Afghanistan, the last two countries where polio currently remains endemic, conflict and propaganda have hampered progress, and in the past posed risks to others. The campaign to eliminate polio in Pakistan is

fraught with risk, with militants attacking health teams they accuse of being Western spies. A polio worker was shot and wounded in February and in January a suicide bomber killed 15 people outside a polio eradication centre in the city of Quetta. In 2011, a polio virus from Pakistan re-infected China, which had been polio free for more than a decade. In 2013, the disease re-emerged in Syria after a 14-year absence, prompting the need for a vast and expensive regional emergency vaccination campaign.

And last year, cases of type 2 vaccine-derived polio posed new threats in Ukraine and Mali. David Salisbury, an immunisation specialist and associate fellow at Britain’s Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security, says the last 1 per cent is a “very long tail” on a stubborn epidemic. — Reuters

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

S P O R S

Bengaluru to host IPL final; Pune, Mumbai given options n a meeting between

Mishra steals show as Delhi win

IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and representatives of the Rising Pune Supergiants and Mumbai Indians, it was decided to allot IPL’s final and the first Qualifier to Bengaluru

NEW DELHI: Its schedule thrown haywire after the Bombay High Court ordered the shifting of 13 IPL matches out of drought-hit Maharashtra, the cash-rich league picked Bengaluru as the venue for its finale and offered four alternate home options to the state’s affected franchises.

In a meeting between IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and representatives of the Rising Pune Supergiants and Mumbai Indians, it was decided to allot IPL’s final and the first Qualifier to Bengaluru.

The second Qualifier and the Eliminator, on the other hand, have been proposed to be moved to Kolkata to implement the Bombay high court’s order that asked the BCCI to shift all the IPL matches after April 30 from Maharashtra due to the acute water crisis in the state.

In Friday’s meeting, the two affected franchises were asked to pick from Raipur, Jaipur, Visakhapatnam and Kanpur as their

HOCKEY

NEW DELHI: Leg-spinner Amit Mishra’s 4/11 proved crucial as Delhi Daredevils thrashed Kings XI Punjab by eight wickets in an Indian Premier League (IPL) contest at the Ferozeshah Kotla here on Friday. After Delhi won the toss and opted to field, Mishra, coming in to bowl in the seventh over, rocked Punjab’s boat.

When he started his spell, they were 37 for one in six overs, and at the end of his three-over haul, the visiting side was 59 for five in 11 overs.

His victims included Shaun Marsh (13), David Miller (9), Glenn Maxwell (0) and Manan Vohra (32).Punjab batsmen showed lack of intent and discipline and fell one after another. Opening batsman Vohra was the only one who showed the will for a fight even as his team was restricted to 111/9 in 20 overs. In pursuit of the low total, Delhi were led by South African opener Quinton de

alternate home base. While Pune opted for Visakhapatnam, Mumbai Indians sought two days’ time to choose their new base. “We will propose before the Governing Council that Final and Qualifier 1 be shifted to Bengaluru, while Qualifier 2 and Eliminator to Kolkata,” Shukla told reporters.

“After speaking to the franchises, we have given them four options: Raipur, Jaipur, Kanpur and Visakhapatnam. Mumbai Indians have asked for time till day after tomorrow (to give their preference),”

MATCH HERO: Amit Mishra. – PTI

Kock (59 not out), who shared a 91-run stand for the second wicket with Sanju Samson (33) in 10.4 overs, as the hosts overhauled the target with 6.3 overs and eight wickets to spare.

De Kock milked nine fours and a six of the 42 deliveries he faced. It was Delhi’s first win in two matches, while Punjab suffered their second loss on the trot. n the match between the teams who have lost their first

he added. “Pune has given Visakhapatnam as its preference. We will put the proposal of Pune team before the Governing Council.”

The logistical crisis was triggered despite the BCCI assurance to the high court that IPL franchises of Mumbai and Pune had agreed to contribute Rs five crore each to CM’s drought relief fund.

“As far as giving Rs50 million is concerned, it will be as per the directive of the high court. They (the franchises) are supposed to get a written order on this,” Shukla said.

matches, Punjab failed to gather any momentum right from the start. In the second over bowled by left-arm spinner Pawan Negi, Zaheer Khan dropped Vohra’s catch at the point and as the ball neared towards the boundary, the openers decided to take three runs.

But Murali Vijay was found to be short of the crease as the relay throw between Zaheer and Karun Nair reached wicketkeeper de Kock in time for the stumps to be dislodged, leaving the team at eight for one in 1.3 overs.

Even though Zaheer seemed to be lethargic while dropping the catch, the veteran left-arm seamer maintained a tight line and length. The captain conceded only 14 runs in his four overs, taking a wicket.

Khan 1/14) lost to Delhi Daredevils: 113 for 2 in 13.3 overs (Quinton de Kock not out 59, Sanju Samson 33; Sandeep Sharma 1/6). - IANS

Shukla also stated that the BCCI will plead before the HC to allow the May 1 clash between Mumbai and Pune to go ahead in Pune as the home franchise will be playing a game in the city on April 29.

“We will request the Honourable court to allow us to hold this match,” he said.

The Rajasthan Cricket Association has been banned by the BCCI for factionalism but Shukla said the venue will be available for IPL as the offer to host has come from the state government. - PTI

All-Madrid final still possible

India outplay Malaysia to enter Azlan Shah final IPOH: India produced an inspiring performance to outplay hosts Malaysia 6-1 in a must-win match and secure their seventh appearance in the final of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament, here on Friday.

Needing a victory in their last round-robin league fixture to qualify for Saturday’s title clash, five-time winners India stamped their authority on the hosts to finish ahead of defending champions New Zealand in the standings.

India’s opponents in the title encounter on Saturday will be reigning world champions Australia, who on Friday prevailed 3-0 over Canada to complete an all-win record in the preliminary league.

Australia finished with the maximum 18 points from six outings, followed by India on 12 points and

New Zealand on 11 points.

Australia have won this title a record eight times and were losing finalists to the Black Sticks last year, when India earned a bronze.

S.V. Sunil (2nd minute), Harjeet Singh (7th), Ramandeep Singh (25th and 39th), Danish Mujtaba (27th) and Talwinder Singh (50th) scored for India, while Shahril Saabah (46th) scored a consolation goal for Malaysia.

India’s last appearance in the final of the Azlan Shah Cup was in 2010, when they shared the title with South Korea after torrential showers flooded the ground.

Watching the India-Malaysia contest from the sidelines were New Zealand, who will now face hosts Malaysia for the bronze medal match on Saturday. — PTI

CUP DRAW: Uefa vice-president Angel Maria Villar Llona of Spain, left, gives the trophy to Giuliano Pisapia Mayor of Milano and Carlo Tavecchio Chairman of the Italian Football Association after the draw of Champions League semifinals in Nyon. – Reuters

scored a hat-trick to win the quarterfinal against Vfl Wolfsburg, it will be another return to Manchester, where he spent six years with United before moving to Spain in 2009. The Madrid manager at that time was Manuel Pellegrini, now in charge at City until Guardiola replaces him. The Chilean was sacked

by Real after only one season.

Emilio Butragueno, Real’s head of public relations, said that in Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne, City had players to win a game on their own. “It’s their first semifinal and they are anxious to do something big in Europe,” he added. “We’ll have to be at our best.

Holders Sevilla to meet Shakhtar in Europa semis LONDON: Sevilla, winners of the Europa League for the past two years, will play Shakhtar Donetsk in this season’s semifinal. In the other semifinal Villareal will be at home to Liverpool in the first leg The first legs are on April 28 with the return games on May 5. Basle stages the final on May 18.

Federer knocked out by Tsonga in Monte Carlo MONTE CARLO: Roger Federer was knocked out of the Monte Carlo Masters when he slumped to a 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 defeat by local favourite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals on Friday.Earlier, there were glimpses of the formidable Rafa Nadal as the eight-times champions swept aside French Open champion Stan Wawrinka 6-1, 6-4. World number two Andy Murray raced into last four with a 6-2, 6-0 demolition of Canadian Milos Raonic.

Brief scores: Kings XI Punjab: 111 for 9 (Manan Vohra 32; Amit Mishra 4/11, Zaheer

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

LONDON: A repeat of the 2014 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid is still possible after Friday’s semifinal draw. Real, who won that game 4-1 after extra-time, will play first-time semifinalists Manchester City, with the first leg in northwest England.

Atletico, who beat holders Barcelona in the last eight, host Bayern Munich in their first leg.

Bayern manager Pep Guardiola misses what would have been a difficult semifinal for him personally against City, the Premier League side he will take charge of next season. “It’s a great tie against the team that has won the competition the most times,” Txiki Begiristain, Manchester City’s sporting director, told reporters.

“But we have got this far and we want to keep dreaming. “I think that Madrid are the favourites.

They have been in the semifinals 27 times, six in a row. But Paris (St Germain)were also a great team and we were able to knock them out.”

Real, record 10-times champions, are unbeaten in their last eight games against English clubs. Their only previous tie against City came in 2012 when the Spanish side won 3-2 at home before drawing 1-1 in Manchester.

For Cristiano Ronaldo, who

BRIEFS

Last year also people said we were lucky when we got Juventus and we were knocked out. The two games are going to be very tight.”

The only time Atletico have met Bayern was in the 1974 final, when the German side won 4-0 in a replay after a 1-1 draw. Jose Luis Caminero, Atletico’s sporting director and former player, described the tie as “complicated” but promised the Spanish side would “compete to our maximum as we always do”.

City will host Real on April 26 and Atletico face Bayern the following evening. The final is in Milan on May 28. - Reuters

Raikkonen leads way as Ferrari dominate SHANGHAI: Kimi Raikkonen set the pace ahead of Sebastian Vettel in Friday practice for the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix as the Ferrari pair dislodged the dominant Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. Finn Raikkonen, a former winner for Ferrari in China, jumped to the top of the order with a one minute 36.896 second lap in the second session, beating German team mate Vettel by 0.109 seconds.

Infantino to visit World Cup host Russia, Qatar ZURICH: Newly elected FIFA President Gianni Infantino will visit the next two hosts of the World Cup, Russia and Qatar, next week, the global soccer body said on Friday. He leaves on April 20 for Doha, where he will meet senior board members of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy and officials of the Qatari government, it added. Swiss authorities are probing whether bribery played a role in awarding the hosting rights for the World Cup to Russia and Qatar. Both have denied wrongdoing.

Griffith, Hick Aussie coaches for ODI series MELBOURNE: Western Australia bowling coach Adam Griffith and former England batsman Graham Hick will join the Australian side temporarily for their oneday triangular series in the West Indies in June, Cricket Australia said on Friday. Justin Langer will take the side to the Caribbean to give regular head coach Darren Lehmann a break before their tour of Sri Lanka in July and August. — Agencies

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WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM S ATU RDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

MARKE

MICROSOFT, APPLE’S FIGHT FOR DATA-PRIVACY TO LAST LONGG It’s a debate that is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon as Microsoft and Apple argue the very future of mobile and cloud computing is at stake if customers can’t trust that their data will remain private. >B3

GOOGLE-LIKE MODEL

Apple pursuing new search features for busy App Store

– Bloomberg file picture

SAN FRANCISCO: Apple has set up a secret team to explore changes to the App Store, including a new strategy for charging developers to have their apps more prominently displayed, according to people familiar with the plans.

Among the ideas being pursued, Apple is considering paid search, a Google-like model in which companies would pay to have their app shown at the top of search results based on what a customer is seeking. For instance, a game developer could pay to have its programme shown when somebody looks for “football game,” “word puzzle” or “blackjack.”

Paid search, which Google turned into a multibillion-dollar business, would give Apple a new

way to make money from the App Store. The growing marketing budgets of app developers such as “Clash of Clans” maker Supercell Oy have proven to be lucrative sources of revenue for Internet companies, including Facebook and Twitter.

About 100 employees are working on the project, including many engineers from Apple’s advertising group iAd that’s being scaled back, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans are private. The effort is being spearheaded by Apple Vice President Todd Teresi, who led iAd. If Apple goes through with the idea, “it’s going to be huge,” said Krishna Subramanian, the cofounder of Captiv8, which helps

brands market using social media.

“Anything that you can do to help drive more awareness to your app, to get organic downloads, is critical.”

In addition to paid search, the team is trying to improve the way customers browse in the App Store.

The new search team hasn’t been working long and it’s unclear when any new changes will be introduced. Apple declined to comment.

Vital part The App Store is a vital part of the Cupertino, California-based company’s business. The more software that customers download, the more likely they are to keep buying Apple’s products rather than switch to a phone or tablet

made by another manufacturer.

The store’s success was a key reason the iPhone and iPad became so popular with consumers and is central to Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook’s strategy of getting more sales from online services.

Apple currently gets about 30 per cent of each app sale, which is part of the $20 billion in services revenue the firm generated last fiscal.

The attempt to improve search is a sign that Apple knows the App Store has become harder for customers to navigate. First introduced in 2008, the store now has more than 1.5 million apps, with customers downloading more than 100 billion since its debut.

App developers have for years urged the iPhone maker to add

Producers head for Doha to reach deal on oil freeze The oil slump started in November 2014 when the Opec decided to fight for market share — and bury US producers — rather than cut production to support prices as it had done in the past. The policy sent Brent crude to an average of just $35 so far this year

The 18 nations set to gather in Doha on Sunday to discuss a production freeze have spent $315 billion of their foreign-exchange reserves — about a fifth of their total — since the crude oil slump started in November 2014 Qatar Energy Minister Mohammed Al Sada. — Bloomberg file picture

LONDON: World’s top oil exporters are burning through their petrodollar assets at an accelerating pace, increasing the pressure to reach a deal to freeze production to bolster prices.

The 18 nations set to gather in Doha on Sunday to discuss a production freeze have spent $315 billion of their foreign-exchange reserves — about a fifth of their total — since the oil slump started in November 2014, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In the last three months of 2015, reserves fell nearly $54 billion, the largest quarterly drop since the crisis started.

The petrodollar burn has con-

sequences beyond the oil nations, affecting international fund managers like Aberdeen Asset Management and global currencies markets. Oil nations have traditionally held their reserves in US Treasuries and other liquid securities. Nonetheless, the impact in credit markets has been muted as central banks continue to buy debt. “We expect 2016 to be yet another painful year for most of the oil states,” said Abhishek Deshpande, oil analyst at Natixis in London.

The gathering in Doha will comprise both Opec and non-Opec states, though any deal to boost prices will probably be largely

cosmetic as countries are already pumping nearly at record levels.

In a letter inviting countries to the Doha meeting, Qatar Energy Minister Mohammed Al Sada said oil countries need to stabilise the market in “the interest of a healthier world economy as the present low price is seen to be benefiting no one.”

Burned through Saudi Arabia accounts for nearly half of the decline in foreign-exchange reserves among oil producers, with $138 billion — or 23 per cent of its total — followed

by Russia, Algeria, Libya and Nigeria. In the final three months

of last year, Saudi Arabia burned through $38.1 billion, the biggest quarterly reduction in data going back to 1962.

The oil slump started in November 2014 when the Opec, led by the Saudis, decided to fight for market share — and bury US producers — rather than cut production to support prices as it had done in the past. The policy sent Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, down from an annual average of $111 a barrel in 2013 to an average of just $35 so far this year.

The plunge forced producers to tap their rainy day funds.

Fitch Ratings on Tuesday lowered the credit rating of Saudi

Arabia to AA-, following similar steps already taken by Standard & Poor’s as well as Moody’s Investors Service. Fitch said that Riyadh would face large fiscal deficits this year and a “large share of the government’s financing needs will be funded by disposing of foreign financial assets.”

IMF forecast The IMF forecast that Saudi Arabia’s current-account shortfall will equal 10.2 per cent of its gross domestic product this year, the most since 1998, when oil prices tumbled to $10 a barrel. Likewise, the United Arab Emirates is facing a balance of payments deficit this year for the first time since reliable statistics start in 1980, according to the IMF. The total drop in petrodollar assets isn’t possible to calculate as some Middle East countries, including Kuwait and the UAE, don’t disclose timely data about their sovereign wealth funds.

Brent crude futures, which sank to a 12-year low in January, have climbed 30 per cent since Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and Venezuela reached a preliminary agreement to freeze output in February. This week, Russia said it sees a deal to freeze oil output as possible when it meets other producers, regardless of whether Iran — which has said it plan to boost output — joins the deal. — Bloomberg News

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FINANCIAL POLICYMAKERS

Leaders fret as storm clouds gather over world economy WASHINGTON: World financial leaders sounded a sour note on the global economy on Thursday, pointing to Britain’s possible exit from the European Union as a serious threat alongside China’s bumpy growth path and dissent over interest rates in the euro zone.

Concern that British voters are edging closer to leaving the EU in a June 23 referendum has spooked finance ministers, central bankers and other officials gathered here for the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde signalled policymakers’ heightened fears that a “Brexit” could derail Europe’s shaky economic recovery and reverberate further afield.

“We have clearly elevated ‘Brexit’ as one of the serious downside risks on the horizon of global growth,” Lagarde said in a press conference just two days after the IMF cut its 2016 global growth forecasts for the fourth time in less than a year.

Lagarde, who said it was her personal hope that Britain remain

in the EU, predicted a divorce would lead to years of financial uncertainty.

EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici chimed in at a separate event, describing the political repercussions of a British vote to leave the bloc as “very bad news.”

Their comments followed the Bank of England’s clearest warning yet that Britain’s economy would likely suffer and its currency slide if it bolted from the EU. Moscovici added that the nearterm European growth outlook was already worsening.

“Overall, we now expect GDP growth in the first quarter of this year to have been positive but slower than we had expected,” Moscovici said in a speech at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

China’s shadow Lagarde also said the IMF was “concerned” about China following through on the restructuring of its struggling state-owned enterprises as the country shifts to slower, more sustainable growth driven by consumer spending.

Christine Lagarde. — Bloomberg News

China’s economic slowdown has slashed demand for commodities and components worldwide, causing spillovers to emerging markets and advanced economies alike. A shock devaluation of the yuan last August and further declines earlier this year sparked financial market turmoil and worries about further devaluations.

People’s Bank of China Deputy Governor Yi Gang offered some reassuring words that China’s growth would be in line with IMF estimates.

“I’m pretty confident that we are going to have between 6.5 and 7 per cent growth this year,” Yi said at a Brookings Institution event in Washington.

He also said that China’s central bank did not want to see an “overshoot” in its currency, without being specific about the direction.

Earlier on Thursday, Lagarde unveiled the IMF’s policy agenda, which pledged to provide more resources to help the Fund’s 188 member countries boost growth and protect those vulnerable to a global slowdown and low commodity prices.

The IMF also vowed to ensure it had adequate funds to back its lending programmes, and examine reforms including strengthening its lending toolkit and ties to regional lending institutions.

But differences over the European Central Bank’s negative interest rate policy continued as Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who chairs the group of European finance ministers, warned that the measure was reaching its limits.

“Expansionary monetary policy ... supports the economy in the short run, but the limitations are

imminent and negative side-effects are becoming stronger,” Dijsselbloem said in a speech to the Peterson Institute.

Negotiations over Greece’s bailout programme, officially on hold during the Washington meetings, also bubbled to the surface, with Lagarde promising the IMF would not walk away from the lending ‘troika’ that also includes the ECB and European Commission.

Lagarde has been pushing the idea of extending debt relief to Greece’s government in exchange for fiscal reductions.

Argentine Finance Minister Alfonso Prat-Gay presented what may have been the one bright bit of news, saying the country’s impending debt issue, its first in more than a decade, was seeing “awesome” demand from investors. Argentina’s new right-ofcentre government is pursuing a host of business-friendly economic reforms as it attempts to attract investors and reestablish itself in international markets.

Prat-Gay added that the government is making the curbing of the country’s double-digit inflation rate a top priority.— Bloomberg New

fresh discovery tools for users, arguing the crowded market makes it increasingly hard for people to discover new apps or build sustainable businesses.

Apple has taken steps to improve search in the past. In 2012, Apple acquired an app search-engine company named Chomp to help address the problem. In December, Cook changed the leadership of the App Store. He moved responsibility to Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing, and away from Eddy Cue, the senior vice president for Internet, software and services, whose portfolio has expanded as Apple has built out new online services such as Apple Pay and Apple Music. — Bloomberg News OIL SUPPLIES

Iran to boost crude supply only modestly TEHRAN: Iran’s oil production will rise only modestly this year and next, but it will be enough to stop global crude supply and demand from rebalancing in 2016, according to a Reuters poll of oil analysts’ forecasts.

Even with an output deal, rising supply from Iran, which is the third-largest producer within Opec, will prevent the market from rebalancing this year, the analysts said. “Without additional Iranian crude exports, the oil market would even have turned into a deficit by the end of 2016. That’s probably not the case now,” Hannes Loacker of Raiffeisen Capital Management said.

Since the prospect of a freeze first surfaced in February, oil prices have risen by 35 per cent to around $43 a barrel , having hit their lowest in over a decade in January. Many higher-cost producers, such as shale oil drillers in the United States, have been forced to cut output and overall global supply is expected to fall further.

But this is against a backdrop of a deteriorating global economy.

This week, the International Monetary Fund cut its global growth forecast for the fourth time in a year to just 3.2 per cent.

And the IEA said in its monthly report it does not expect the market to rebalance before 2017, and any deal on output would have a limited impact on overall supply, while Opec itself forecast a drop in global demand growth this year.

No rapid rise in exports Iranian exports, which until January had been limited by international sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear programme, are expected to rise at a modest pace.

The poll showed exports are expected to reach 1.6 million bpd by the middle of this year, before edging up to 1.7 million bpd by the end of 2016 and to 2 million bpd by the end of 2017.

“We believe that the amount of oil supplied by Iran would not be more than the supply cuts in the global market, mainly by the production disruptions in the highcost producers,” Serkhan Sahin, analyst at Thomson Reuters’ Oil Research and Forecasts said.

The analysts polled all said Iran will not take part in any output deal until it recaptures its pre-sanctions market share and returns to a production target of about 4 million bpd, something Iranian oil officials have already made clear.

Iran has ruled out freezing its output at January levels, which sources have estimated to be around 2.93 million bpd.

Iran is likely to struggle to reach this 4 million bpd target because of a lack of investment and availability of technology to upgrade and develop its oil fields.

“Longer term, Iran has the underlying resource potential to achieve organic production growth... This would require substantial increases in investment, including foreign investment, which is out of the question at anything close to current oil prices,” Raymond James analyst Luana Siegfried said. — Reuters

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SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

MARKET Chinese economic growth shows signals of ‘debt-fuelled recovery’ Industrial output growth leapt up to 6.8 per cent from 5.4 per cent, surprising analysts who expected a rise of 5.9 per cent on an annual basis.

But many worry it marks a return to the old playbook used during the financial crisis, when Beijing hand-cranked its economy out of a slowdown through massive stimulus, rather than structural reform

DEMAND SLOWS: A worker carries a piece of steel at a construction site in Beijing on Friday. China’s economy grew 6.7 per cent in the three months of 2016, its slowest quarterly expansion in seven years, the government said, but indicators for March improved. - AFP

BEIJING: China posted its slowest economic growth since 2009 but a surge of new debt appears to be fueling a recovery in factory activity, investment and household spending in the world’s second largest economy.

That’s good news in the nearterm, economists say, but many worry it marks a return to the old playbook used during the financial crisis, when Beijing hand-cranked its economy out of a slowdown through massive stimulus, rather than structural reform.

Official data on Friday showed China’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an annual rate of 6.7 per cent in the first quarter of the

year, easing slightly from 6.8 per cent in the fourth quarter as expected. However, other indicators released showed new loans, retail sales, industrial output and fixed asset investment were all better than forecast.

While analysts say the data is evidence of a bottoming out in the economy’s slowdown, some warn that the first quarter of 2015 got off to a similarly glowing start before a stock market crash later that year.

“What this shows is a stabilisation of the old economy,” said Raymond Yeung of ANZ, pointing to recovery in industrial production and fixed asset investment.

“I would still be a bit cautious

about headline growth... last year’s 6.9 per cent figure was underpinned by a massive contribution from financial services, and the strong loan and credit growth recently and the recent resumption of IPO activity suggests this could still be a big contribution.”

The National Bureau of Statistics said in a press conference in Beijing on Friday that while main economic indicators showed positive changes, “downward pressure cannot be underestimated.”

It did not distribute quarterly GDP figures as it has in the past, saying it needed more time to calculate the figure.

Global financial markets took

EURO ZONE LENDERS

Recovering demand Beijing hopes a recovery — even a credit-fuelled one — can be sustained to avoid the need for more aggressive stimulus that could reinflate asset bubbles and make it

more difficult to retrain Chinese firms to move up the value chain.

Chinese banks extended 1.37 trillion yuan ($211.23 billion) in net new yuan loans in March, nearly double the previous month’s lending of 726.6 billion yuan, suggesting renewed appetite for investment among wary Chinese corporates.

China’s retail sales growth quickened to 10.5 per cent in March from 10.2 per cent, slightly above forecasts, while fixedasset investment growth rose to 10.7 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter from 10.2 per cent, beating market expectations of 10.3 per cent.

EUROPEAN UNION

Greek debt breakthrough this week unlikely: EU executive WASHINGTON: There will be no breakthrough on unlocking new loans for Greece in Washington this week, but euro zone ministers will seek a deal next week in Amsterdam that could pave the way for debt relief talks, a top euro zone official said on Thursday.

“In Amsterdam we will have more time, everyone around the table and try to really get somewhere,” the chairman of euro zone finance ministers, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, told reporters on the sidelines of International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings in Washington.

He said euro zone lenders were adamant that the key to a deal was sticking to the assumption that Greece’s government had to reach a 3.5 per cent of GDP primary surplus in 2018.

“I don’t see any flexibility on the 3.5 per cent in 2018 because it was one of the anchors of the agreement of last summer. So that’s going to take a huge effort on the part of Greece but I think it can be

the data in stride, but domestic stocks fell slightly, as analysts said the strong data implied the likelihood of a slower pace of monetary easing.

The CSI300 index of the largest listed firms in Shanghai and Shenzhen closed 0.1 per cent lower.

Forex markets were largely flat with the offshore rate and the onshore rate trading around 6.5 per dollar.

Low unemployment The NBS also noted that official unemployment remained low in March, around 5.2 per cent, despite moves to cut capacity in bloated industries like coal and steel.

Critics, however, point out that many laid-off workers from oldeconomy sectors have been shifted into lower-paying government jobs, cleaning up offices — good for political stability but bad for wage growth and consumer spending.

At the same time official retail spending figures capture a lot of government purchases; elsewhere in the economy there are signs that ordinary consumption remains weak.

March export figures released earlier this week also staged an unexpected recovery, although some economists caution that seasonal effects from last year’s late Lunar New Year holiday could be a factor.

“Today’s released data ought not to distract from the fact that the structural issues facing China’s economy remain unresolved,” wrote Economist Intelligence Unit economist Tom Rafferty in a research note.

“It has taken considerable monetary and fiscal policy loosening to stabilise economic growth at this level and this effort has distracted from the reform agenda that is fundamental to long-term economic sustainability.” — Reuters

Jeroen Dijsselbloem.

— Bloomberg file picture

done,” Dijsselbloem said.

The IMF, one of the lenders to Greece, believes that asking Athens to maintain a surplus of that size for decades after 2018 — an assumption of the euro zone programme — is unrealistic.

The Fund believes the target for the surplus — the budget balance before debt servicing — should be lowered and that euro zone gov-

ernments, who are Greece’s main creditors, should offer the country deeper debt relief to compensate.

“I think the IMF is right, it (the surplus target) is courageous, so the question is how to deal with the uncertainty around that, what do we do ‘if’,” Dijsselbloem said.

He noted that no-one knew exactly how quickly Greece’s economy would grow in the coming years and what its rate of inflation would be, yet those indicators were crucial to assess the ability to repay loans.

He said euro zone lenders and the IMF would eventually align their views on where Greece stood now, what fiscal effects would materialise from reforms that Greece was implementing and what the most likely scenario was for the future. “We will try to close these differences and baseline assessments and then we will go to the political level, because in the end it is up to the ministers to decide if Greece has done enough,” Dijsselbloem further said. — Bloomberg News

Steady oil prices offer hope to struggling EU economies FRANKFURT: Is the spectre of deflation finally being lifted from Europe’s economy, still struggling to get on its feet after the economic crisis?

Consumer prices in the 19-member euro zone halted their slide in March, the EU’s statistics agency said on Thursday.

Add to that an emerging consensus that oil prices may have bottomed out and could even rise further — a prospect that would in turn help the European Central Bank (ECB) in its efforts to push inflation up to more normal levels and kickstart recovery with negative interest rates and mass stimulus.

Even if oil prices simply hold steady at $44 a barrel, 60 per cent above a 12-year low near $27 level reached in January, that would gradually offset the dampening effect of energy on inflation and by year-end gently lift the yearon-year figure.

Some euro zone central bankers hope the scale of recent ECB action and the promise of gradual economic improvement will relieve the ECB of any need to move again for at least several months, people familiar with the matter have said.

“The pendulum is swinging away from any need for further action,” said one source familiar with central bank thinking, noting any extra steps would only have a muted impact, after a 1.7-trillioneuro-plus money printing scheme and rock-bottom borrowing costs.

Oil producers are to discuss a plan to freeze output on Sunday in Doha. Despite doubts whether it is enough to tackle a supply glut, many oil trading executives think

MIXED SIGNALS: When calculating future inflation, the ECB has factored in a price of just under $35 per barrel this year and roughly $41 in 2017. - Bloomberg file picture

prices have probably bottomed out and will rise.

Stubbornly low prices Some of the ECB’s governors remain worried nonetheless about stubbornly low prices because they fear that should the cost of, say, cars or fridges fall, it will depress spending as consumers hold off in the hope of bigger discounts.

The euro zone slipped into deflation — defined as when prices fall for a protracted period — at the end of 2014 before making a limp recovery. Thursday’s tiny upward revision of March figures puts inflation at zero, up from an earlier estimate of a 0.1 per cent decline. It nonetheless remains far off the ECB’s target of close to two per cent, a level last seen in early 2013.

Deflation is one of the biggest worries of central banks because, should it take hold, the economy gets locked in a spiral of falling wages and spending that is hard to reverse.

The phenomenon risks taking hold in Spain, where prices have been falling since the middle of 2014, as well as Greece, where the slump has been most pronounced.

The price of energy makes up roughly one tenth of the inflation calculation. When calculating future inflation, the ECB has factored in a price of just under $35 per barrel this year and roughly $41 in 2017.

If oil prices hold steady and rise, that will filter through to prices in the real economy and even start to push up headline annual inflation once the price rises above its year-ago level.

“When we get the base effect from oil prices in the second half of the year the whole debate around the ECB may change,” said Anatoli Annenkov, an economist at Societe Generale.

“It will become easier for the ECB... to argue its actions are having some effect.” Some economists, however, believe that regardless of the outcome, the ECB is bound to do more. — Bloomberg News

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

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MARKET PERFORMANCE

Microsoft and Apple’s fight for data-privacy to last long ing in two public lawsuits — the one filed on Thursday and another awaiting an appeals court ruling on whether the US government has the right to Microsoft customer data stored in Ireland.

It’s a debate that – Bloomberg file picture

is unlikely to be

Carrefour first quarter sales reach $22b

resolved anytime

PARIS: Carrefour, France’s largest retailer, reported stronger first-quarter revenue, boosted by growth in southern Europe and Latin America, and improving sales in China.

Revenue reached 20.1 billion euros ($22.6 billion), BoulogneBillancourt, France-based Carrefour said on Friday in a statement.

Analysts expected 20 billion euros, according to the median of 13 estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Growth was 3.1 per cent excluding calendar effects and gasoline sales.

With its shares trading at about the same level as seven years ago, Carrefour needs a boost. The company is grappling with a shift towards convenience in China, while seeking to reduce losses at Dia discount stores in its largest market, France. Declines in those markets are being offset by growth in countries such as Brazil, Italy and Spain. Sales were “reassuring,” said John Kershaw, an analyst at Exane BNP Paribas, who has an outperform rating on the stock.

“Expect a share that has been under some pressure to rally today.”

The stock rose 2.3 per cent to 25.74 euros as of 9am in Paris.

Quarterly growth was strongest in Latin America, where sales in Brazil rose 9.9 per cent on a likefor-like basis, beating estimates, as all formats expanded in the country, Carrefour said. Spain and Italy, meanwhile, buoyed European sales, with both markets also exceeding estimates. French hypermarket sales fell 0.6 per cent and China declined 8.4 per cent.

While China remains challenging, the decline has halved since last year, Kershaw said. “Brazil continues to power ahead” and the strong performance in Italy and Spain also bodes well the analyst said, adding he expects French hypermarket sales to improve through 2016. — Bloomberg News

mobile and cloud

soon as Microsoft and Apple argue the very future of computing is at stake

SAN FRANCISCO: The technology industry’s data-privacy battle with the US government started before the fight over a killer’s iPhone, and it’s going to last long after. Microsoft sued the Justice Department on Thursday to block authorities from taking customers’ e-mails and other data stored by Microsoft without ever having to let them know, an escalation of a two-year tussle with the government over privacy and cloud computing.

On Friday, Apple will continue its fight to keep the government out of another iPhone — this one seized from a drug dealer in a Brooklyn case, just weeks after the FBI dropped its effort to force Apple to help it break into one used by a terrorist who with his wife killed 14 people last year in San Bernardino, California.

While these high-profile legal cases have added momentum, the industry’s push against government intrusion into their customers’ private information began at least two years ago, in the wake of Edward Snowden’s disclosures about covert data collection that put them all on the defensive.

Meanwhile, some US lawmakers want to require companies to give investigators access to data even when it’s protected by encryption.

It’s a debate that is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon as Microsoft and Apple argue the very future of mobile and cloud computing is at stake if customers can’t trust that their data will remain private, while investigators seek digital tools to help them fight increasingly sophisticated criminals and terrorists savvy at using

FISCAL YEAR

New contracts Spending on artificial intelligence, adding new contracts and keeping hold of staff underpin Chief Executive Officer Vishal Sikka’s drive to boost sales at the company.

That strategy has been bolstered by acquisitions as Infosys seeks to deepen its relationship with customers at a time global IT spending is flattening.

“Their client interactions have increased and their ability to bring in deals in traditional service streams has also improved,” said Sudin Apte, Chief Executive and Research Director at Pune-based Offshore Insights. “It is too early to say the tide has turned but clearly they have made good progress.”

In constant currency terms, Infosys forecast sales to rise 11.5 per cent to 13.5 per cent.

The company also reported

technology to communicate and hide their tracks.

“The companies are trying to find a way forward in a world in which the law is not very good,” said Greg Nojeim, senior counsel at the Centre for Democracy & Technology. “It doesn’t provide in the digital world the same protections it provides in the physical world. Securing those protections is good for both their users and their bottom line.”

In Brooklyn federal court on Friday, Apple is expected to make the case for preserving a favourable ruling from a magistrate judge who refused the government’s request for an order forcing the company to extract data from a drug dealer’s phone. A decision on the matter could help establish who has the current law on their side in future courtroom battles over privacy and encryption.

Apple’s response The technology company is slated to file its response to the government’s appeal of the magistrate’s ruling. The Justice Department said this month that it would move forward with that proceeding, even though it had dropped its demand for the company to help unlock the shooter’s phone in Cal-

ifornia, after an unidentified third party came forward with a method to hack it. FBI Director James Comey has said that method only works on limited categories of phones, and Apple has said that its continuing technology improvements are likely to make any tool the government has for unlocking phones short-lived.

While the companies dig in against the government’s efforts, US senators this week released draft legislation that would grant the courts greater power to demand companies let investigators access secure information. The proposal has been denounced by civil liberties advocates as a ban on encryption, which they argue is needed to protect data from the growing threat of hackers.

Microsoft’s lawsuit, which names the Justice Department and Attorney General Loretta Lynch as defendants, is the most aggressive step yet by Microsoft in its feud with the US over customer privacy and its ability to disclose what it’s been asked to turn over to investigators — issues that echo Apple’s fight to preserve the encryption built into its iPhones.

The software maker called part of the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act unconstitu-

tional, citing its own First Amendment free speech rights and its customers’ Fourth Amendment right to know if the government has searched or seized their property. The law essentially places the company under an unlimited gag order, according to the complaint in federal court in Seattle.

The road to the lawsuit started in December 2013. Roiled by disclosures by Snowden, a former NSA contractor, about US government surveillance — which implicated Microsoft and other technology companies for collaborating — Microsoft issued a blog post pledging new privacy protections for customers.

The company promised to expand the use of encryption and said it would go to court to protect customer data privacy.

Specifically, Microsoft said it would notify enterprise customers when the government requested their data and put up a legal fight against any gag orders that stood in the way. It also pledged to fight back when governments seek customer data stored in other countries that Microsoft doesn’t think they have the right to see.

Those two steps have put the company on a collision course with the US government, result-

N E W S T R AT E G Y

Infosys forecast of sales exceeds estimates after major deal wins BANGALORE: Infosys forecast better-than-expected sales growth this fiscal year, as India’s second largest software exporter captures new contracts for information technology services.

Sales will rise between 11.8 per cent and 13.8 per cent in US dollar terms for the 12 months ending March, the Bangalore-based company said on Friday. That compares with the 10.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent median growth estimate of four analysts surveyed

by Bloomberg News. Infosys is the first of India’s IT giants to report earnings and is seen as a bellwether for the industry.

James Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). - Bloomberg file picture

Unfamiliar role It has also created a spectacle one isn’t accustomed to seeing — Microsoft and its President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith winning the admiration of privacy advocates and leading the charge of technology companies fighting back.

Bill Fitzpatrick, the district attorney in Onondaga County New York, endorsed legislation proposed in the Senate and questioned whether Microsoft and Apple truly understand what it takes to investigate a murder or prevent a terrorist attack Without the tools offered only through secrecy, the country’s law enforcement would fail to prevent another domestic, mass casualty attack, he said.

“The government doesn’t want to be in your phone, it wants to be in the phones of people plotting against our communities,” he said.

“There needs to be that understanding and I don’t think these corporations are anywhere close to that.”

Microsoft, which vigorously supported Apple during its skirmish over the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone, said it expects broad support from other technology companies in its own efforts.

Already, cloud-file sharing service Box Inc. spoke out in favor of Microsoft, a partner and rival.

“The concerns we are articulating are shared broadly in the tech sector,” Microsoft’s Smith said. “We felt that we had the right facts to bring the right case at the right time to address an issue that has been recurring and therefore needs to be resolved but I fully expect we will hear from a number of other tech companies.”

Neither the proposed legislation nor the companies’ legal tactics are aimed at finding a compromise to benefit the American public, said DJ Rosenthal, a former White House counterterrorism and cybersecurity expert in the Obama administration.

“These issues are both just further manifestation of the gulf that now exists between the two sides,” he said in an interview. — Bloomberg News

Vishal Sikka. — Bloomberg file picture

fourth-quarter earnings, with net income rising 16 per cent to Rs36 billion ($540 million) in the three months ended March, the company said. That compares with the Rs35.2 billion average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Sales in the quarter climbed 23 per cent to Rs165.5 billion compared with analyst projections for Rs164.8 billion.

Global spending on IT has stalled, with Gartner last week cutting its forecast for this year to $3.49 trillion, which is 0.5 per cent below 2015. But Infosys touted several major contract wins in the current quarter, including a deal with food packaging company ConAgra Foods.

“The momentum of large deal wins continued this quarter and bookings were strong,” Chief Operating Officer U B Pravin Rao said. — Bloomberg News

IKEA’s senior executives finalising firm’s biggest overhaul in decades DELFT (Netherlands): In two medieval Dutch cities, IKEA’s most senior executives are finalising the biggest overhaul at the Swedish-born furniture empire in over 30 years.

The aim is to help the world’s largest furniture seller better adapt to changing consumer tastes, manage its increasing size and avoid the fate of other dominant retailers overtaken by new market entrants.

However, some academics say the changes, which effectively involve breaking up the IKEA Group, could also disrupt the smooth running that makes IKEA so efficient. The IKEA Group announced the plan to transfer ownership of some operating entities to a small Delft-based company which owns the IKEA brand last June. However, the 250-word statement attracted little attention. The decision to rip up an organisational blueprint drawn up by founder Ingvar Kamprad in the 1980s was taken at a secret meeting just outside Copenhagen in late 2014.

The meeting gathered the board of Inter IKEA, which is chaired by Kamprad’s youngest son Mathias and owned by a Liechtenstein foundation. The little known company currently plays a small operational role in the IKEA universe, employing 1,500 people, compared to 160,000 at the IKEA Group, which is technically a Leiden-based company called INGKA Holding.

INGKA currently manages almost everything that most customers see as IKEA — the stores, furniture design, manufacturing, procurement and logistics. But

EFFECTIVE SUPPLY MANAGEMENT: An interior view of the IKEA Concept Centre, a furniture store and headquarters of the IKEA brand owner Inter IKEA, in Delft, the Netherlands. — Reuters

Inter IKEA owns the rights to the IKEA brand, patents and business processes — collectively considered to be the IKEA ‘concept’.

It is responsible for developing the concept but its leaders acknowledge this hasn’t changed much in decades and former executives said the unit’s main role was to reduce the overall IKEA tax bill by charging INGKA for the use of the IKEA brand.

At their 2014 meeting, the directors of Inter IKEA unanimously agreed to massively expand its role and take control of design, manufacturing, procurement and logistics from INGKA. Since it owned the rights to the IKEA concept, it could do this. The aim,

it says, is to protect IKEA for the future.

“It has been a pretty static concept,” said Torbjorn Loof, Chief Executive of Inter IKEA Systems B.V., the unit that will, in September this year, take on the design and other functions. “(There) is always also the risk that you keep that concept, you protect that and make it better and better and better, and things in the world around you happen, and suddenly you stand and say, you know what, this is maybe not relevant,” the Swedish-Italian executive told Reuters as his boss, Inter IKEA Group CEO, Soren Hansen looked on, nodding.

The executives were speaking

at the IKEA “Concept Centre” in Delft which combines an office wing housing Inter IKEA’S headquarters, and an IKEA store, all clad in familiar blue and yellow corrugated metal sheeting. Inter IKEA uses the store, the only one its runs, to test new ideas such as the high-end bakery recently installed at the exit.

But the IKEA concept needs to change more fundamentally if it is to satisfy the growing number of customers who are requesting IKEA stores in city centres and the ability to buy online and pick up from drop-off points. Loof says he can’t redesign the business concept without control over key functions like logistics. — Reuters

B4

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

FEATURE A freeze at recent production levels will not accelerate the rebalancing of the oil market, Goldman Sachs analysts wrote in a report that argued the meeting would be more likely to lead to a price drop than a hike.

O

n Sunday, major oil-producing nations will meet in Qatar to discuss capping their output. Yet even if they decide to do that, the purpose of the meeting probably has little to do with balancing global supplies.

Crude market fundamentals are set for many months to come; the oil producers are more interested in finding a way to manage financial markets' expectations, which have a greater effect on prices.

And indeed, output levels are close to all-time records for the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) (above 33 million barrels a day) and near the historic high for Russia, a participant in the Doha meeting (above 11.2 million barrels a day).

Oil prices Besides, some Opec members are increasing output ahead of the meeting. Iraq, for example, hit its production record — 4.55 million barrels a day — in March.

US producers are heading in the opposite direction. Their output is down to late 2014 levels: Following the production decline, bloated US oil inventories appear to be starting to slide, too. Though they're still near all-time records, on April 6 the US government reported an almost 5 million barrel drop.

The surprising resilience of US oil production is by now a market meme. Yet there is nothing miraculous about the oil industry. Producers can rely on crutches like price hedges or technological advances, but at the end of the day, it is all about how much smelly dark liquid they can extract from the ground at the right cost. US frackers may have been better than anyone else at using these crutches, but now their impact is exhausted or receding. In the relatively free US market, profit potential drives investment and output. And on both these fronts US producers are feeling the strain.

On the other hand, Gulf states and Russia need to pump oil at any price because that is how they fund their budgets, so when the price is low, they need to pump more. This is how it's going to be at least for the next few years: The traditional producers are going to win back some lost market share. The biggest problem they face has nothing to do with the physical demand-supply balance of oil.

They need to keep prices as high as possible, but low enough to prevent US investment and output from rising again.

The only way to do that is to manage expectations. Domenico Favoino and Georg Zachmann of the Brussels think tank Bruegel recently estimated that 73 per cent of the oil price decrease in the last three years could be attributed to expectations about the physical demand-supply balance, not the balance itself. According to the researchers, the role expectations play in price setting has increased dramatically since 2008.

This is a world in which you have to convince traders that the balance is going to move this way or that, not to actually change it. That explains, at least in part, the mini-rally since the largely meaningless February agreement between two of the world's biggest producers, Russia and Saudi Arabia, as well as Qatar and Venezuela, to freeze production at January levels. The price of Brent crude is up about $10 per barrel.

Everyone, including traders, understands that such deals are iffy, that the parties would not necessarily stick to them, and that freezing production at record levels may just signify an inability to pump much more oil in the near future. Yet it is still something to trade on. If the talks in Doha on April 17 end in an agreement, even a symbolic one, that will send the market a signal to drive up the price.

That signal, however, will not be credible or lasting enough to spur an increase in US oil investment. Investors and creditors are more cautious than traders. The former are scared off by high volatility; the latter are energised by it. In February, the implied volatility of the Brent crude price was the highest since 2009, at 70 per cent; now it's down to about 50 per cent — still a scary level for people looking at energy industry business plans.

The Saudis and the Russians, however, do not care about the volatility all that much: They're still going to keep production as high as they can, because their populations' standards of living and their regimes' stability depend on it. So if they can send prices higher without signaling a real change of trend, that's the best they can do until they solidify their market share gains. Holding a meeting where production caps and cuts are discussed is one way of achieving that. News of the meeting can combine with shrinking US output to produce temporary price rises.

It's important to produce such news regularly. It's less important to be bound by any output-limiting agreements, as Opec has proven time and again by not sticking to its output targets. — Bloomberg News

B

SECTION

LIFESTYLE

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

Family WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

1

SET MEASURABLE SHORT TERM GOALS

Motivation is all about goal setting.

Teaching your children or students to evaluate their habits and make changes that will improve their well being helps them learn the importance of living a healthy lifestyle. Setting goals can be a fun project that teachers, parents and students can work on collaboratively, just be sure the goals are measurable, timely, and realistically achievable.

3

MAKE SURE THEY KNOW THE “WHY” AND “HOW”

2

For students to excel athletically, they need to understand the “how,” “why” and “feel” behind the skill in their activity.

If a child gets involved in a sport simply because their parents pushed them to, they likely won’t be motivated to improve or continue playing. It’s important to help your children find activities that boost their selfesteem.

USE TECHNOLOGY TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND

Research shows children in the US are spending more than 7.5 hours a day using technology. Alarming as it may sound, we see leveraging technology as an opportunity to help kids get and stay active, Ohlson says. “Having worked with Adidas to develop Adidas Zone for IHT Spirit, the first wristbased heart rate monitoring device built specifically for PE, we’re using wearable technology to motivate students to work out to their own individual potential. Harnessing the power of heart rate zone training, these young athletes can reach their goals by running around, jumping, dancing, really any activity that raises their heart rate, no longer needing to race against their classmates or shoot a certain number of baskets.”

FROM SCHOOL TO HOME

FIVE STEPS TO KEEP CHILDREN ACTIVE N

4

BE A MODEL FOR ACTIVE BEHAVIOURS

Show your children how important staying active is by setting a good example. Younger children tend to follow the lead of their parents, so make sure you’re looking after your own health. Make the physical health of your entire family a priority.

early one in six of all children and adolescents in the US are obese, according to the US Centre for Disease Control. The situation is no different in other parts of the world. And with some struggling schools forgoing traditional physical education classes, health experts view this issue as a growing concern. The regular physical activity encouraged in PE classes not only helps build and maintain healthy bones and muscle, it has also been shown to improve students’ academic performance.

Research shows that school is one of the first places where children establish health habits, says Jen Ohlson, co-founder of Interactive Health Technologies LLC (IHT), a company pioneering customised P.E. curricula through the use of heart rate monitoring. “As a solution, many health advocates are turning to physical education to positively impact adolescents’ overall health. With the right tools and resources available in school that can extend to home, teachers and parents alike can reach students on an individual level, helping them achieve their own fitness goals.”

Ohlson offers her top five tips for teachers, parents and caregivers looking to help their kids get more active.

5

GET INVOLVED IN GROUP ACTIVITIES

Children are more likely to be motivated when they receive support from a group of peers. Whether it’s sports or dance team, running club or an active play date, encourage your kids to get out and be active with their friends.

While rising obesity rates and dwindling physical education classes continue to be a concern, the right approach and resources can help teachers and parents take matters into their own hands. Tools like the IHT Spirit System, a wrist based heart rate technology, are certainly a big step forward, and following these tips can also play a part in helping every child get their health on track. -BPT

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

B6

PRAYER TIMINGS

FIND-IT-ALL @AZAIBA

@ MGM

SUR Fan (Hindi, Thriller) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi, Mariola Jaworska 12:15, 3:15, 8:15, 11:15 PM

@ SHATTI

CITY CINEMA Contact (10 am to 6PM) 24567664 | 68 www.citycinemaoman.net facebook.com/citycinemaoman

The Jungle Book (3D) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley.

1:00, 3:00, 5:00, 6:15 PM

SHATTI Fan (Hindi| Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 2:30, 5:30, 8:30, 10:00 & 11:30PM

Theri (Tamil) (Action) (12+) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth Prabhu 7:00 PM

The Jungle Book - (3D) Adventure | Drama| Family) (PG) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 3:15, 5:15 & 7:15PM

The Jungle Book – 3D (PG) Adventure Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 12:15, 2:15, 4:15, 6:15 PM Gold Class – 6:15 PM

Criminal (Action|Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 2:45, 7:45, 9:15 & 11:30PM Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (3D) (Action, Adventure) (PG12) Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams 5:00PM

Theri (Tamil) (2D) (Comedy | Action) (12+) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth, Prabhu 12:30, 7:00, 8:55 PM

The Jungle Book (MX4D) (Adventure | Drama| Family) (PG) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 3:30, 5:30, 7:30 & 9:30PM

MUSCAT GRAND MALL The Jungle Book – 3D (PG) Adventure Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 12:15, 2:15, 4:15, 6:15 PM Gold Class – 6:15 PM

Fan (Hindi) (2D) (Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 12:00, 2:45, 3:45, 5:40, 8.30, 10:00, 11:30 PM

Criminal (Action|Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 2:30, 8:45 & 11:15PM

Criminal – 2D (15+) Action|Crime | Drama Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 1:00, 9:30, 11:45 PM

Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (3D) (Action, Adventure) (PG12) Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams 9:00 & 11:30PM

PANORAMA MALL Fan - (Hindi| Thriller) - VIP LOUNGE (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 2:30, 5:30, 8:30 & 11:30PM

The Squad (2D) (Action, Drama) (15+) Cast: Jean Reno, Alban Lenoir, Caterina Murino 11:45PM

Fan (Hindi| Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 3:00, 4:30, 6:00, 7:30 & 10:30PM

AZAIBA Batman vs Superman:Dawn of Justice (3D) (Action |Adventure | Fantasy) (PG12)

Criminal– 2D (Action, Crime, Drama) (15+) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 3:00, 5:15, 9:30, 11:45 PM

Rocky Handsome (2D) (Action) (12+) Cast: John Abraham, Shruti Hassan 11:45 PM

Screen 2 Theri (Action) - Tamil –12+ Cast: Vijay, Samantha, Amy Jackson, Prabhu 12.45, 6.45, 9.45 PM

Darvinte Parinamam (Mal) (2D) (Action | Comedy) (PG12) Cast: Prithviraj Sukumaran 9:00 PM

The Jungle Book (2D) (Adventure) –PG Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Idris Elba 3.45 PM

The Dead Room – 2D (Horror, Thriller) (15+) Cast: Jacob Tremblay, Thomas Jane, Kate Bosworth 10:00, 11:55 PM The Squad – 2D (Fantasy, Horror, Thriller) (15+) Cast: Jean Reno, Alban Lenoir, Caterina Murino 5:15, 11:45PM The Jungle Book – 3D (Adventure, Drama, Family) (PG) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 1:00, 3:15, 6:00, 7:30PM

Screen 3 The Jungle Book (2D) (Adventure) –PG Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Idris Elba 1.00, 6.45 PM

Sardar Gabbar Singh (2D) (Comedy|Action) (PG12) Cast: Pawan Kalyan, Kajal Agarwal 6:10 PM Theri (Tamil) (2D) (Comedy | Action) (12+) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth Prabhu 12:30, 7:00, 8:55 PM The Jungle Book (3D) (Adventure) (PG) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 12:45, 3:00, 5:00, 7:00 PM

TO MUSCAT (RUWI) Arrival Operating time days

Dept time

Destination

Arrival Operating time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

TEMPERATURE

05:30 05:30 05:30

Maximum

Daily Daily Daily

Sur Quriyat Ruwi

06:45 08:30 10:00

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

06:30 06:30 08:00 13:00 13:00 16.00 16.00

07:00 07:00 13:30 13:00 13:00 13:00 17:00

Sohar Buraimi Buraimi Sohar Buraimi Sohar Buraimi

08:50 Daily 11:00 Daily 14:30 Daily via Ibri 15:45 Daily 17:40 Daily 18.35 Daily 20:20 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52) 17:30

Sinaw

Theri (Action) - Tamil –12+ Cast: Vijay, Samantha, Amy Jackson, Prabhu 3.45 PM

Fan-2D (Crime, Drama, Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi, Mariola Jaworska 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, 8:00, 11:00PM

Rocky Handsome (Action/ Thriller) –12+ Cast: John Abraham, Shruti Haasan 9.45 PM

Theri – 2D (Romance, Comedy) (12+) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Amy

Mr. Right (Action / Comedy / Romance) Cast: Anna Kendrick, Sam Rockwell, Tim Roth 6.00 PM CP No : 1094 (15+)

Theri (Tamil) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Amy Jackson 8:45PM

STAR CINEMA

Nizwa Yanqul

20:50

Daily

16:50 19:30

Daily Daily

SALALAH The Jungle Book (3D) (PG) (Adventure | Drama| Family) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 12:30, 2:30, 4:30, 6:30PM

Nizwa Al Araqi

07:00

Ruwi

10:25

Daily

06:00 06:00

Nizwa Ruwi

08:40 11:00

Daily Daily

36 26

Daily Daily

15:40 15:40

Nizwa Ruwi

17:55 20:20

Daily Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55) 12:00 18:45

Daily Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62) 06:30 06:30

Fahud Yibal

Salalah Marmul Salalah Salalah

20:00 20:30 23:30 07:40

Daily Daily

Marmul

Dubai

16:50

Daily

Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai Sohar Dubai

Daily Daily

12:30 12:30

Fahud Ruwi

13:15 17:30

Daily Daily

07:00 10:00 10:00 19:00

Ruwi Marmul Ruwi Ruwi

19:50 13:15 22:30 07:30

06:00

Marmul

16:30

Daily

Daily

08:30 11:30 15:30 18:30 17:35 20:55

Daily Daily Wed,Thur Wed,Thur Daily Daily

15:00

Salalah

07:00

Daily

10:50 13:40 16:15 19:10 18:45 21:35

Daily Daily Thur-Fri Thur-Fri Daily Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201) 07:30 07:30 13:00 13:00 15:30 15:30

Sohar Ruwi Sohar Ruwi Sohar Ruwi

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH/SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

07:00 07:00 07:00

16:00 16.00 16.00

Fujairah Sharjah Dubai

11.45 13.30 14.00

Sardaar Gabbar Singh ( Telugu) ( Action) Cast: Pawan Kaltan & Kajal Aggarwal 3:45 PM Cinema -4

Anti-Squad (2D) (15+) (Action | Drama) Cast: Jean Reno, Alban Lenoir, Caterina Murino 5:00, 11:55PM

Maheshinte Prathikaram (Mal) (Comedy) Cast: Fahad Faasil & Anusree 6:45 & 9:45 PM Cinema -4

Theri (2D) (12+) (Tamil) (Action) Cast: Vijay, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Amy Jackson 8:30PM

Next Change: Kali (Mal) Sarrainodo (Telugu) Programmes are Subject to Change

Minimum

0

RELATIVE HUMIDITY

80-40%

CHRIS JOSHI April 16, 2006 Send us a colour photograph of the child (below 17 years) whose birthday you are celebrating, along with his/her full name, date of birth, address, telephone number and parents’/your name to Times of Oman, With Love, PO Box 770, PC 112, Ruwi or through e-mail to lifestyle@timesofoman.com

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DUBAI TO SALALAH (ROUTE 102)

07:00

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201) 06:00 06:00 13:00 13:00 15:00 15:00

10:45 19:00

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102) 15:00

Ruwi Ruwi

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (ROUTE 100) Daily Daily Daily Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101) 06:00

06:00 14:30

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (ROUTE 62)

10:30 11:15

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (ROUTE 100) 07:00 10:00 10:00 19:00

Darvinte Parinamam (Mal) (Comedy \ Drama) Cast: Privthviraj & Chandini Sreedharan 3:45 & 6:45 PM Cinema -3

Criminal (2D) (15+) (Action| Crime | Drama) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 12:15, 2:45, 6:50, 9:00, 11:30PM

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

10:20 12:30

TO SUR (ROUTE 55) Sur Sur

Fan (Hindi) (Action\Thriller) Cast: Shahrukh Khan & Ileana D’Cruz 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30PM Cinema -2; 9:45 PM Cinema -3

SHAHAMA IRFAN HUSSAIN April 16, 2012

ROYAL OMAN POLICE 07:30 14:30

Theri (Tamil) (Action & Drama) Cast: Vijay & Samantha 3:00, 6:30 & 10:00 PM Cinema Main

Fan (2D) (PG12) (Thriller) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi, Mariola Jaworska 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, 9:00, 11:15PM

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

Film information 24791641 / 24786776 Website: www.isurf.co.om

0

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54) 14:30 14:30

Sohar Ruwi Ruwi Sohar Ruwi Sohar Ruwi

Daily Daily Daily

Criminal (Action / Crime / Drama) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 2.00, 4.00, 8.00, 10.00 & 11.55 PM CP No : 1101 (15+)

WEATHER

15:00 15:00 15:00

16:30 18:00 19:30

Fan (Hindi, Thriller) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi, Mariola Jaworska, Ileana D’Cruz, Vaani Kapoor 1.00, 3.45, 6.30, 9.15 & 11.45 PM CP No : 1100 (PG12)

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QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36) Quriyat Sur Jaalan

Film information 24540856 / Advance Booking 24540855 Website: www.albahjacinemaoman.com

Criminal Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot 3:00, 6:45, 9:30, 11.45PM

LONG DISTANCE BUS TIMINGS (OMAN NATIONAL TRANSPORT COMPANY SAOC) *SUBJECT TO CHANGE

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

BAHJA CINEMA

BURAIMI The Squad Aka (ANTI GANG) -2D (Action) Cast: JeanReno, AlbanLenoir, Caterina Murino.

5:00, 11:30PM

The Jungle Book (3D) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley.

3:30, 5:30, 7:30PM

SOHAR Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice– 2D (Action, Adventure, Fantasy) (PG12) Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams 3:15PM

RUWI Screen 1 Fan (Thriller) –PG12 Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 12.30, 3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PM

Jackson 12:00, 7:00, 9:00PM

Fan (Hindi, Thriller) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi, Mariola Jaworska 2:30, 5:30, 8:20, 11:15PM

Criminal (Action | Crime | Drama) (15+) Cast: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot.

9:55, 11:55 PM

Fan (Hindi| Thriller) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 2:30, 5:30, 8:30, 10:00 & 11:30PM

Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams 3:15, 11:45 PM

The Jungle Book - (3D) Adventure | Drama| Family) (PG) Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley 2:45, 4:45 & 6:45PM

Fan – 2D (PG12) Hindi| Thriller Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Joelle Koissi 3:30, 6:30, 8:15, 11:15 PM Gold Class – 3:15, 8:15, 11:15 PM

Destination

12.12pm 3.39pm 6.33pm 7.46pm 4.27am

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 International Hospital, Al Ghubra 22004000, 94267068/97049520 Al Hayat Clinic, Al Hail 22009455

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

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

FACT FILE

B7

LIFESTYLE Fascinating World of Ants

(Exploring History, Science, and Nature)

Ants can be found almost everywhere and there are more than 12,000 known species of ant.

Scientists estimate that there are 10,000 to 20,000 more species yet to be discovered.

Abundantly found in warm climates, deserts, and tropical forests, these social insects build underground tunnels with special rooms for storing food and nesting.

Others make nests in mounds of earth or in the hollows of trees or plants. Some ants build homes made of leaves, and some do not construct permanent nests at all.

Ants are related to bees and wasps, and like these cousins, they are social insects that live in colonies.

The Life Cycle Ants develop in four stages: Egg, larva, pupa, and adult. After mating, the female seals the entrance to her nest and begins laying thousands of eggs.

Types of Ants Leafcutter Ants Found on the edges of tropical forests, leafcutter ants build huge underground nests, some can be up to 29.5 feet (9m) deep and cover an entire acre. The nests are so deep that the ants must build ventilation shafts for fresh air.

Red Harvester Ants This species can be found in many

places around the world. It prefers dry, desert like regions. Red harvester ants will travel miles to collect seeds, which they grind into a kind of bread and store in their nests. Some horned lizards depend on harvester ants as a main food source.

Weaver Ants Nesting in trees, these aggressive and territorial ants’ farm small insects as a honeydew source. To make a nest, a chain of ants joins together to bend leaves into a tent shape that is stitched together with secreted silk.

Fire Ants There are more than 280 species of fire ants. This invasive species originated in South America, but is now found in many countries.

They are aggressive and nest in grassy areas.

Honeypot Ants There are about 34 species of honey pot ants. They tend to live in hot, dry regions. Honeypots store large amounts of nutritious liquid in the larger workers, called repletes.

They are a good food source for many animals, even people.

Worker Ants The smallest and most common ant found in any colony. These sterile females do most of the work, looking after the queen and

brood, building and maintaining the nest, and finding food. Workers can live for a few months or up to five years.

Soldier Ants They are only found among certain ant species. Larger and stronger than typical workers, these sterile females protect the colony and use their strength and large jaws, or mandibles, to cut and carry larger objects.

A Princess Ant She has wings, and when the weather is right, she will take to the skies to mate. Once mated, she quickly finds a nesting place for her eggs. She nips off her wings and often uses them to feed her babies.

Do You Know?

• The study of ants is called myrmecology.

• Ants have two stomachs; one is for themselves, and the other is to store food for other ants.

• Ants follow scent trails laid by scout ants to gather food.

• Ants can carry objects 50 times their own body weight.

• Ants lived some 130 million years ago, similar to dinosaurs.

• Ants follow scent trails to gather food.

• The average life expectancy of an ant is 45-60 days.

—lifestyle@timesofoman.com

Questions & Answers When I’m in doubt...

I ask my cousin Harsh

I go crazy when...

My brother touches my things

One thing that puts me off...

When I get a shouting

If I win a lottery...

I will donate to the needy

One movie/book I can watch/ read over and over again...

Happy New Year

Crossword Puzzle

If I met an alien I would...

Ask about the galaxy

The scariest thing that I have done...

Seeing horror film

One skill I would like to learn...

Medical science

CDUR

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE

It’s better not to argue with...

Any one

If I could go back in history, I would like to meet Subhas Chandra Bose

KARTIKEYA VARDHAN SINGH If I had treasures I would hide them...

In the ocean

If I have to describe myself as a flavour it would be...

Chocolate

One person I would trade places with (real or fictional) My cousin Harsh

The best way to my heart is...

Behave properly with every one

Send your contributions to lifestyle@timesofoman.com. A good quality photo is compulsory. Lifestyle reserves the right to publish the contributions.

DOWN

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Camper, maybe Seine moorage Dartboard wood Tinting — -a-brac Dawn deity Peru’s cont.

Unrumples Liked better Stuffed animal Tummy muscles, in the gym 16 Piece of turf

18 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 28 31 35

Quick lunch Fence openings Writer — Zola Ruminates Unpleasantly involving Played charades Shake awake Goes to the bottom Undulations Brash songster Cleared for

37 38 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 49

takeoff ?

— Wiedersehen Salary limit Rome wreckers “Murder, — Wrote” Wheels Cato’s 102 Oklahoma town Nieces and cousins Startled cry Per

ACROSS 1 Contended 5 First lady for Harry 9 Harper Valley org.

12 Treaty member 13 Travel far and wide 14 Hold up 15 Batman, to the Joker 17 Is a good dog 19 Gold Medal org.

20 Tiger’s game 21 Make changes to 24 Counts 27 Bean for sprouting 28 Escorted by 29 Louis XIV, e.g.

30 Tenet 31 Outlaw Jesse — 32 Make tracks 33 Film director Spike — 34 Wide sts.

35 Classroom fixture 36 Tried 38 Yields territory 39 Centres 40 Yes, in Kyoto 41 Heinlein’s genre (hyph.)

43 Frosted treat 47 “Star Wars” rogue 48 Curb 50 Peter Gunn’s girl 51 Joule fraction 52 Lectern’s place 53 Clammy

B8

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2016

LIFESTYLE

Children up to the age of 16 who would like to have their art considered for inclusion in “Art for the Ages” can e-mail their drawings or paintings (in jpeg or tiff format) to lifestyle@timesofoman.com

Art for the Ages

Children’s Poetry

Who is a teacher?

Abhijit Prasad Nair Grade VIII Indian School Wadi Kabir From an age of four, To the life of my core.

They sculptured the life in me, And let my soul discover free.

They took my hands to the world of colours, To the aroma of letters and the numbers’ powers.

They encrypted my soul to what being I am, Pouring never ending oil to my knowledge of lamp.

Jeni Magdalene, Grade 6, ISS

Sidharth Krishna, Grade 4, ISD

Alfred Benoy, Grade 2, ISM

Each degree they twisted my ears, Each cross marks, the taste of cane, Is a pictured image as a souvenir, As they shouted to bring me up all near.

Is a teacher only my schoolteacher, Or some other creature?

Is my teacher only the person who frames me to the texts, Or do all have hands, those who claim?

My teacher is all those souls that filled in me divine, And taught the values for the victory of mine.

A teacher is a person who enlightens the knowledge in me, It is a soul that teaches me without any fee.

Arjun Satish, Grade 4, ISWK

Amber Kabir Khan, Grade 6, ABA

Sudoku How to play Fill empty cells with the numbers 1 to 9, so that each number appears once in each row, column and area.

SOLUTION Answer to previous puzzle

The walls taught me the golden silence, The sun taught me unity when equally it shines.

The ants taught me to be hard working without any plea, The world taught me, a human to be.

Teleword All the words below appear in the puzzle - horizontally, vertically, diagonally, even backward. Find them and circle their letters.

The leftover word spells the Teleword.

J A I I N O R A H C A Z R Y G

B R O B D H Y A C D A I M T I A L M L A E R M A U S R E O O

E M R E Y L N C MA I S S V D N N S I A M I NM S R T S DM

CLUE: ‘BONES’ (TV SERIES)

E N N N I M I F AW I S Y N A T E D G R A N GM E D YM A N

Y A E I S O E O I I O D T G O

H T N O L L T N SW O R H L A S S I T R A N F L A P O T S H

R S E E E N I V E Y E E E T P

A N H I E M E R E G L F D L E

H A C C T N I L N O C L F I S

A S H S I M S A S R C G U O A L E O R H U T B O I O E B O J

SOLUTION: 7 LETTERS

Adams, Addy, Angela, Billy, Body, Booth, Brennan, Bureau, Camille, Case, Conlin, David, Emily, Eric, Forensic, Goodman, Gottlieb, Hanson, Hart, Hodgins, Holograms, Identity, Jeffersonian, John, Josephson, Maria, Michelle, Mind, Missing, Motive, Mystery, Red Tape, Reichs, Russ, Scientific, Show, Solve, Sweets, Tamara, Team, Thyne, Zacharoni, Zman.

Answer: Remains

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M S AT U R DAY, A P R I L 1 6, 2 0 1 6

SECTION

CONNEC T H E D A I LY G U I D E

VACANCY

C2

C4

CARGO

C7

QUALITY OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT ͻ DƵƩƌĂŚ ŽƌŶŝƐŚ͘ ͻ ͕ D ͘ ͻ YƵƌƵŵ͕ ů <ŚƵǁĂŝƌ͘ ;ĚŝŵĞŶƐŝŽŶ ďĞƚǁĞĞŶ ϱϬƐƋ͘ŵƚƌ ƚŽ ϰϬϬ ƐƋ͘ŵƚƌƐ͘Ϳ FŽƌ ĞŶƋƵŝƌĞƐ ƉůĞĂƐĞ cŽŶƚĂĐƚ ͗ Ϯϰ ϳϬϮ ϲϲϲ͕

FĂdž͗ ϮϰͲϳϬϯϲϲϲ͘ ŵĂŝů͗ ŵĂŶũƵΛĂůŚĂďŝď͘Žŵ

FOR RENT Contact : 95399988, 24942600 Email - property@ikhtiar.om Showroom 2 Side Facing I CBD OPP. B.M. Showroom Space I CBD OPP. B.M. Office With Partition I CBD OPP. B.M. Flat 3 BHK I MBD Nr.Sheraton Flat 2 BHK With Terrace I MBD Nr.Sheraton Flat 1 BHK - 2 BHK I MBD Nr.Sheraton Small Offices With Partition I MBD Nr.Sheraton Villa 4 BHK+M.Room+S.Pool I Qurum 29 Nr. MSQ Flat 2 BHK I Khwair 33 Nr. Maya New building - Maintenance company provided- Caretaker Cleaner - A.C.- Multiple Elevators- Central settelite system Good Parking Space

COMEX 2016 VISIT US AT STALL

N.O: 1629 Printers, Laptops & PC’s, CD’s, DVD’s & Flash Drives & Cartridges

All HP, Epson, Canon, Lexmark, Samsung Cartridges also available.

Ruwi: 24 792 792 Sohar: 2684 2420

GOOD PRICE!!!

GOOD PRICE!!!

GOOD PRICE!!!

Available on very GOOD prices

GOOD PRICE!!!

GOOD PRICE!!!

GOOD PRICE!!!

RENT

GOOD PRICE!!!

C

GOOD PRICE!!!

C2

S AT U R D AY, A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 6 Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

DAILY GUIDE FOR RENT

Top Finish New- Res-5 apartments- 2 bhk/maid room 550/450, 3 bhk- 550, 1 BHK-350 2. Al Kuwair New 3 bhk, posh. Kit.fur,s.pool-700, 3 bhk +maid,ind.villa-650/3. Wadi Kabir 1/2 bhk-250/300/350 4. Al Kodh Villa 5 Bhk- Compounded 550/5. Qurum(Comm) Sama Center-Brand New 114/122/129 sq.mt 6. Azaiba (Comm) 'h dĞĐŚ ďůĚŶŐͲ ͘ ͬ͘ŇŽŽƌŝŶŐͬĐĞŝůŝŶŐ

FOR RENT

1. Qurum

Tel: 24571962/63 Mob: 94289050/ 95495281 Email: samain009@yahoo.com

OFFICES FOR RENT AT AZAIBA Prime location on service road (previously occupied by A'Saffa Foods) near Al Turky and Mazda showroom.

- 2 BHK flat available directly from the owner, at Azaiba.

Contact: 99229263, 93221054, 95215289

DĂĚŝŶĂƚ ^ƵůƚĂŶ YĂƐ ͗^ŚŽǁƌŽŽŵͬKĸĐĞ Ăƚ 'ƌŽƵŶĚ &ůŽŽƌ͕ ϯϰϬ ^Ƌ Mtr. Facing main Road HAR Complex MSQ : 2,3-BHK Flats and 2 & 3 BHK villas with

ͬ ͕ĐĂƌ ƉĂƌŬŝŶŐ͕ ^ǁŝŵŵŝŶŐ WŽŽů ;'ĂƚĞĚ ŽŵƉůĞdžͿ Qurum : 6 BHK villa with garden, split Acs, shaded car parks, servant rooms DĂďĞůůĂ ͗ Ϯ ,< &ůĂƚƐ ǁŝƚŚ ;ďƌĂŶĚ ŶĞǁ ďƵŝůĚŝŶŐͿ Darsait : 1 & 2-BHK Flats with AC & Shop Ruwi : 2-BHK & 3-BHK Flats and shops Al Amerat : 2 & 3-BHK Flat , 3 & 4-BHK Villa with A/C

For viewing please call 99466729, 99316410, 92841690, 91313271, 24694088 or email us on :hartc@omantel.net.om

FOR RENT IN RUWI 1 BHK – SPILT A/C, BUILT IN WARDROBE &CENTRALIZED GAS. SPACIOUS 2 BHK.

FOR RENT

Store space in Al Wattayah.

*Tourist visa arranged

Contact 99382489 / 99263443

Contact : 990 49 722 New flat at Al Wadi Al Kabir. Contact: 96130797 / 92130703 1000 sq mtrs industrial land for rent in Ghala suitable for warehouse workshop etc. Contact 24700120 / 92584715 2bed rooms flat with hall, 2 bathrooms in Darsait near Muscat Municipality. contact 92584715 / 24700120

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

1BHK Mumtaz. Contact: 92144045 1 BHK M.B.D R.O 250/-. Contact: 92144045 1BHK Ghubra R.O 275/-. #92144045

Office & 2B/R with 3 toilets directly from owner, near Dolphin Complex Bausher. Contact 92158031 Flat in Wadi Al Kabir 2 bedrooms, 1 living room, 1 family hall, kitchen & 3 bathrooms. Contact: 99277787 Room for rent in Al Khuwair near Ibis hotel, very big. R.O 180/-. Contact: 95724975 Flat for rent 2 BHK 2 split A/C, 2 toilets, Wadi Kabir near Kuwaiti Masjid. Contact – 97007934 / 92609232 Flat for rent in Wadi Kabeer near India Primary School 2B & 1K. Contact: 92222922 1BHK at Hamriya near Muscat Pharmacy & 2 BHK at Mawaleh near Mosque Sadiq Al Amin. Contact: 99224748 / 99332297

2 BHK Ghubra R.O 325/-. Contact: 92144045 1&2 BHK Darsait. #92144045 2& 3 BHK in Al Khuwair RO 375/-, RO 400/-. Contact: 92144045 1BHK at Al Falaj R.O 190/-. Contact: 92144045

Ware houses in Hay Aseem Barka, 11000 m2 near round about new Beach road at Al Khoud location open store with office. #92959129 Warehouse for rent at Ghala Ind. Area. 800 & 2500 approx sqms Near Hotel Al-Madinah Holiday, Ghala. Container can enter. Immediate access to roads & highways.

Contact : 94583320 Office space small in Azaiba. Contact: 99428143 Flats in Qurum. Contact 94051789 / 97201688 Flats in Darsait. Contact 94051789 / 97201688

Single room for rent 50/RO water & electricity near Khimji Mart Muttrah. Contact: 97477670

Flats in Wadi Kabir. Contact 94051789 / 97201688

1 BHK in Azaiba. Contact: 99385835 / 99428143

Fully Furnished apartments in Boucher (35)#94051789 / 97201688

2BHK flat near Wadi Adai signal R.O 280/- negotiable. #97645436

Flats in Muttrah. Contact 94051789 / 97201688

Flat for rent in Ruwi, Mumtaz area 2 bedrooms. Contact: 24291500 / 91409667

Flat for Rent 2 bed room Near ISM muscat Indian Scoole Dar sate Tel : 00 968 95158570

Offices in Ghala. Contact 94051789 / 97201688 Brand new villas in Al Ansab. Contact 94051789 / 97201688 Offices & Showrooms in Mutrah.

Contact 94051789 / 97201688 Duplex villa in QURUM 29. Contact 94051789 / 97201688 Offices & Showrooms in Al Khoud.

Contact 94051789 / 97201688 2BHK with split / AC in W.K behind Sana Fashion. Contact: 96635026 Villa for rent Ghubra 5 rooms, 5 bathroom, kitchen & hall. Contact: 91153933 Flat for rent Al Khoud room 3, hall, kitchen & bathroom. contact 91153933 Villa for rent 6 rooms, hall, living room, kitchen, 7 Bathroom in Al Khoud. Contact: 91153933 One room, bathroom for rent Bousher. Contact: 91153933 Furniture flat for rent Bousher 1 room, 1 bath room, Kitchen & hall.

Contact: 91153933 Shops / flats available in Honda Road, Ruwi & Mabellah Industrial area. Contact 24833972/ 24833974/ 99367448

Flat for rent Bousher, 2 rooms, 1 hall, dining hall, 2 bathrooms & Kitchen. Contact: 91153933 Flat in Al Khuwair opp grand mall 4 room 3 toilet + hall kitchen in 3 floor 400. Contact 99420346 2 BR, 2 bath, a kitchen, a yard , with AC, separate enterance, AlKhuwair near Ibis hotel. PDC. RO 250 .. Call 97056443

Available - Fully furnished labor camp and executive accommodation - ready for occupation-location near Sohar Port - Contact 94532131 Flats, shops and store for rent in Ruwi, MBD & Mumtaz. Contact: 97293708 / 92433127 2BHK flat shops / ware house space available for rent behind new ROP building at Honda road. Contact: 91165807

Readymade office space for rent (240sm) in Bank Melli Iran Building, MBD area, Ruwi, opposite Center point. Contact: 99011352

2 BHK / 1BHK near Machi Market Ruwi. R.O 200/- & 225/-. Contact: 99354771

2BHK Ghala, new bldg with A/C, 325/- R.O. Contact: 99024730

2 BHK available in Ghubrah North for rent. Contact: 92253080

1+2+3 BHK Al Khuwair. Contact: 99024730

Furnished office (61M2) for sale / rent Al Khuwair near Zawawi Mosque. Contact: 95611569

Available - fully furnished 2 bedroom apartment ( 12 nos) & fully furnished studio flats (10 nos) -location near Sohar Port - Contact : 94532131 2BHK available Mumtaz area Ruwi.

Contact: 99269751

2BHK Wadi Kabir R.O 300/-. Contact: 92144045 Flat for rent in South AlGhubrah 3 rooms, hall and 3 toilets, kitchen rent 450/-. Contact: 99335580

S AT U R DAY, A P R I L 1 6, 2 0 1 6

C3

DAILY GUIDE

FOR RENT

FOR SALE

2,200 sq mtr factory area & 800 sq mtr store with 8 accommodation rooms and 10 office cabins available for rent in Barka industrial area. Contact 91398381 / 80 / 78, email - agsan2005@gmail.com

Show room for sale in Ruwi main rood big space around 200 sqm. Contact: 93333951 / 93333957

Single room non cooking bachelor, near Darsait round about.

Contact: 92120626

An excellent condition portacabin 1 x 40’ for sale in Ghala. Rate negotiable contact 99509460

Sharing Accommodation available for working ladies opposite Al Nadhah Hospital. Preferably Indians. Room with seperate toilet and sharing kitchen.RO.90. contact 96524717

02 BHK residential flat opposite to Al Nahdha hospital.

Contact: 99342733 /99795241 Two bedrooms flat in Al Ghobrah near Oman Oil of 18 November Street.

OMR 330 Monthly.#99333479 or 95215360 or 97509955.

1 Bed room, sharing K& T, R.O 100, 2 bedrooms , sharing K& T R.O 200/- in AL Khuwair. #95154331 Flat for rent 2 BHK 2 split A/C, 2 toilets, Wadi Kabir near Kuwaiti Masjid. #97007934 / 92629232

Coffee shop for sale in Al Khuwair 33.

Contact: 92994415 Villas in Al Khoud.#95056808 / 97201688 Luxury Apartments in Boucher (35).

Contact 95056808 / 97201688 Single colorful Bed and Sofa for Sale at Al Khuwair.#92881849 /What`s up No 97290565 Furniture and other treatment items for Ayurvedic clinic. #97986525

Warehouse at Wadikabir - total area 3500 sqm - covered warehouse (500sqm), office, accommodation (1000sqm), open area (2000sqm) please contact: 99273774 - 99202278

Steel Scrap materials for immediate sale # 99273774/ 99202278

3BHK in Qurum P.D.O high 350/Monthly. Contact: 99342661

A well running pharmacy for sale at prime location. Contact- 99627621, 93240949

2BHK split A/C 200/- Monthly & 1BHK spilt A/C 150/- monthly new building good location Barka Market. contact 99342661 New building Wattayah main road, showroom & office space. contact 94300909 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 For rent and investment Land industrial shops in Rusayl.

Contact: 99323957 / 95490842

Almost new beach/ garden lounge chairs /bar stools/ counter. Photos can be sent 95865457

400 sq mtrs Commercial/Residential land in Mabela Phase 5 Block 2. OMR 165 Thousand. CONTACT 99333479 or 95215360 or 97509955 Space for printing press available at wadikabir with or without machinery. Contact 99328430 Shop for sale near Oman House, Muttrah. Contact 99024362.

Urgent sale of steel scrap only serious buyers kindly #+968 96725423 for viewing the items.

cat, Wadi Kabir. Near ISWK. 97826454, 24815012.

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

New flats for rent at Darsait near to Ministry of Sports, Mumtaz area the flats includes, 1 living room, 2 bedroom, kitchen, 3 toilets, every rooms with split A/C high quality finishing rent per flat is R.O 340/- .

Interested candidates please #00968 92225523

Separate entrance furnished bedroom with attached bath and kitchen for Executive bachelor in a villa opp. Star Cinema. Contact: 99314807

2BHK Big Size Flat Behind Bank Mus-

FOR SALE

Furnished apartment for rent, two rooms, majlis, hall, kitchen.

Near Carrefour al-mawalah. #99336776 Small old house for rent in Al Ghoubra. Contact : 97165972 Sharing for Executive females at Mumtaz area. Contact: 97094797 Room available for Executive bachelor at Al Hail.#96234708 Room for rent with furniture.

Al Bustan village.#93687466 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 for a family in Wadi Kabir. #97167857 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 pleasecontact 92680041 Mr. Altaf

DRIVING

Single room B/K sharing Mumtaz area. Contact: 95212017 Available single room in Wadi Kabir. Contact: 92177850

Paver, ABG Titan - 4732, Bitelli tandom roller, bitelli - PTR roller, Bomag combination roller, shovel SDLG. Contact: 92964673

Room + bathroom furnished for Executives, Wadi Kabir. contact 99336206 Room with attached bathroom available in Ruwi for Executive bachelors.

Contact 95527969

MATRIMONIAL

NRI

LOST

Tamil Hindu Brahmin Iyer Boy. Parents invite proposal for their only son 25 yrs / 6.1 ht / B.Tech (NIT), MBA (IIM), EX- ISM student, employed MNC Bangalore Star Uttirathdhi seeks suitable alliance fom Iyer/Iyenger families. Parents in Oman #98288925 / 92264915

ACC. AVAILABLE

Restaurant for sale (Indian, Chinese, Arabic food ). #91181765 / 95411354

Dental Clinic for sale in Seeb. Contact: 96373097 / 92882209

ACC. AVAILABLE

GOOD NEWS Ayurvedic treatment for backache, paralysis, arthritis etc & massage, All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact:24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980 www.siddhayur.com FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know more about Islam, please call: 99425598, 99250777, 99353988, 99253818, 99341395, and 99379133. For ladies: 99415818, 99321360, 99730723 Orvisit:www.islamfact.com

30 yrs, Kottayam working in Saud Bahwan Automotive L.L.C Oman.

Contact: 93049433 / 99613914 Malankara Catholic Male Nurse (28) from Thiruvalla working in Nizwa Private Co. Alliance invites parents/nurses working in Oman. #968 98267338, 0091 9287215726 Indian male Roman Catholic 40yrs divorcee working in Muscat.

Seeks suitable alliance from widow/ divorcee/ single.contact 96059801.

Latif Atif Abdul Latif has lost Pakistani Passport No. AM 8482822.

Finder please handover to ROP Aamir Khan has lost Pakistani Passport No. CX 100993. Finder please handover to ROP

2 Acres of land for sale in Tamil Nadu, Tirunelveli District , Kondanagaram , near Suthamalli, 7 KM from Tirunelveli Town , off Cheranmahadevi Road . Contact: 0091 7358518439

Mohammed Jolal has lost Pakistani Passport No. AG 4509248. Finder please handover to ROP Dhar Minder Virdi has lost Indian Passport No. K1186765. Finder please handover to ROP

FOR HIRE For rent Backhoe Loader Volvo BL71 long term. Contact: 99257975 Grader, roller, bobcat, JCB 3CX, JCB 4CX with breaker & water tanker for rent. #93218705 / 24478450

Quality concept trading LLC Crane rental daily monthly cranes available for rent at attractive prizes .

Contact: 92870992

C4

S AT U R D AY, A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 6 Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED SIT.WANTED

SITUATION SITUATION WANTED VACANT ARCOP & Partners

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

DESIGNER/DRAUGHTSMAN

ENGG. / TECH./MECH.

(Middle East)

Engineering Consultants LLC Accountant 8 Years experience with D/L and NOC. Contact 97712084

looking to hire minimum 3 years experienced Omani Civil Engineer, for upcoming building projects in Ibri & Buraimi. The candidate must be capable of independently handling the works, as a consultant. Resident engineer stationed at site.

Interested candidates to forward their CV’s with all the details to careers@arcop.co.om or fax to 24493446.

ACCA finalist with 2 years of experience in a Construction Company as an Accountant in United Kingdom here on visit visa for 3 weeks from 12 April - 3 May. Contact: 99171627 Part time accountant, up to finalization, looking for job after 5 pm (location prefer - MSQ to Al Hail). #95694737

REQUIRED ELECTRICAL ENGINEER Having B.E. in Electrical Engineering Min. 5 Years Experience in Oman With Driving License and Valid C.E.P License Contact : 95697401 Send CV to: cemec@omantel.net.om ACCOUNT. & FINANCE Required urgently an experienced Accountant having 2-3 years experience. Send your resume by e-mail : sasiram@seehsarya.com

BEAUTICIAN Very urgently required a Gulf experienced professional Hair dresser cum beautician (lady) for a reputed beauty salon. Immediate appointment visa available.

Contact: 99816262 /98557585 Fax: 24796211 Email: skin.hair. makeup@gmail.com

DRIVER Required driver for building & electrical material Company in Ghala with valid Oman driving license.

Contact 99345044 / 91480682 Wanted driver. Contact: 91025698

ENGINEER/MECHANIC. Required Hydraulic Mechanic. Contact 95251213

MANAGER Required urgently, experienced Supervisor, Graduate with oil & gas experience as Site Supervisor with valid D/L. Contact: 94027279 Email: hrmuscat2016@gmail.com

MEDICAL Urgently required female Staff Nurse (two) with or without M.O.H license, good package. Contact after 5:00 P.M on Mobile: 99253650 or send C.V on dr.kamalsaqib@ yahoo.com Wanted B-Pharmacist (lady) for Sohar. Contact 99767605 Required Gynecologist, Lab technician, X Ray technician. contact 99030773 Email: kunoozghala@ gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING Required experienced Estimation Executives, Sales Engineers / Sales Executives, with Local release for Reputed Electrical Trading Company.

Interested please send detailed CV to: mctjobvacancy@gmail.com Required marketing / PR manager for a modern restaurant group in Oman , proficient in illustrator & Photoshop charismatic , proactive , creative & flexible excellent writing / Editing skills degree in relevant area fluent in English.

Send CV to marketingpr2016@ gmail.com Salesman for a printing press.

Contact: 99498949 Required Salesman cum driver for spare parts shop in Ghala. Contact: 99410172 A leading management consulting firm in Muscat requires specialist in Qualitative & Quantitative Market / Consumer research to lead the division. Kindly send your resumes to advance@omatel. net.om or Fax us at +968-24792175 Looking for Salesman with experience in vegetable and fruits sales, good conduct, fluent in English.

Should have driving license. Email CV on: info@eigllcoman.com Contact - 96339339 Required indoor Salesman for building material shop with 3 years.

Contact: 96374344 Email: sandeepvalapad@gmail.com Urgently required Sales Executives, Operations Executive import & export, for a reputed freight forwarding company in Muscat candidates with Oman D/L and minimum 2 yrs experience in similar field preferred. Interested candidates may send C.V to r ecruitment.oman@yahoo.com

SITUATION WANTSIT.WANTED ACCOUNT. & FINANCE 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

Wanted Staff Nurse for a dermatology clinic in Muscat .

Must have MOH license and NOC. Attractive salary offered. Email: clinicvacancy2015@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

GP doctor needed for reputed clinic. Preferably with MOH license or with Dataflow & Paramatics pass Contact: 95388934

Indian male, 24 yrs, Graduated with specialization in Accounting 2 years experienced C.A.CPT completed. #94628086 / 97315091

Urgently required female Gynecologist D.G.O or M.C.P.S with minimum 3 years of experience, with or without M.O.H license, very good package. Contact after 5.00 P.M on Mobile: 99253650 or Send C.V dr.kamalsaqib@yahoo.com

Indian male 34 years MBA finance & marketing 7 years experience in Indian accounts / Administration currently in Muscat on family visa. #98104991 Email: sureshkr01@gmail.com

SKILLED LABOUR

MISCELLANEOUS Required candidates for following posts: Accountant, Storekeeper, Foreman Building Maintenance, Vansalesman (water), Helpers. Candidates with Omani driving license preferred. contact 99273774/99202278

ACCA Qualified, 26 female with 3 years work experience looking for suitable position in Accounting / finance. Contact: 91322423 Filipino Male, 24 Years Old.. looking for job, have experience in Cargo & Logistics/ Rent a Car/ Real Estate/ Finance & Accounts/ customer service and as Travel Agent. Hard working and with good computer and communication skills having Omani driving license. GSM: 95370052 Indian male 26 years B.Com, having 4 years experience in Accounts with valid driving license & NOC available on visit visa looking for suitable job in Accounts. Contact 90311936

Filipino Senior Revit/AutoCAD Draftsman with 20 years professional experience is looking for suitable job in Oman. Please contact 96489798, (+974) 66653780.

ADMIN DRIVER Indian, 20 years experience in Oman as personal assistant / office manager / administrator seeks change of job with release 99168054, mbkishore@hotmail.com Indian male – MBA (HR) & Engineering graduation with total 10 years of experience in HR & Admin ( 3 yrs of Oman Exp.) along with hands on experience in technical bid submission for all Government & PDO tenders ready to join immediately with NOC. # 91240251/ Email; kvaradhan@hotmail.com Indian female with nearly 10 years experience in administration & HR, seeking for a suitable placement.

NOC available. Contact: 99242841

94375896

Light duty driver 4 years Oman exp seeks placement. Contact: 98726383

Driver, exp 1.5 years, Language English, Arabic & Urdu, license light. Contact: 96011572 / 94484181 Experience driver looking for job.

Contact: 95113612

Light vehicle driver with 5 years exp looking for job. Contact: 92171166

Driver want job. #95892363 Jordanian Graduate with experience in Administrator jobs available for immediate placement. Contact : 94662712 / 94770990

Indian female (MBA/CIPD), having more than 6 years of experience, working in Oman as HR Manager looking for job. Contact hrjoboman@ gmail.com 97288278.

MBA Finance Indian male, Fresher seeking opportunity in financial sector. Immediately available. Contact 93990638 sachu0318@gmail.com

UAE/UK/Oman Experienced Graduate Male33 seeking administration Job. Diplomas in IT & Finance too.

Driving licenseTel:94496642

Indian male well experienced in Accounts ERP, TALLY 9 & Admin NOC available looking for a suitable job.

Contact: 92650835 Part-time Accounting up to finalization, Auditing, Taxation and Project Finance assistance - 91044655 Male Accountant M.Com (finance & accounts) having 3 years experience in accounts looking for available job on visit visa. Contact: 94648575 CMA & CIA qualified finance professional with 13 years of me experience in FMCG industries as well as various other industries available for immediate permanent job openings. #94543660

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, 5 yrs Oman, 12 Yrs UAE experience in Manufacturing & construction companies Valid D/L Immediately available. Email: Irfan_syed2000@hotmail.com, Call: 95389018 22 years B.Com with 1 year exp in accounting, auditing with good working knowledge in Tally ERP-9 looking for a suitable placement now on visit visa. Contact: 97189500 Male CA finalist B.Com having 5 years experience with big four audit firms looking for suitable job on visit. Contact: 92230543 Email: m.naveednaseer@gmail.com Indian male: B.Com. with 4 years experience in Tally ERP Accounts, Ready to join immediately for Accounts, Store & Sales. Contact: 94813962, Email:rajeshkumawat166@gmail.com Jordanian Senior Accountant 15 yrs experience in Oman finance & accounts. Contact : 92881223 CA finalist Indian with 7 years experience having D/L & NOC looking for Senior Accountant / Chief Accountant position. contact 98097009 Email: rameesnm@gmail. com ACCA member with 6 yrs of experience in Oman looking for a suitable job in finance. contact 99284193 Fresher 24, ACCA Affiliate, Advanced diploma in Accounting and Business seeking suitable placement in Accounts, Finance or Audit with Oman driving license. #- 92430152 Email - raju.rd619@ gmail.com Indian, Executive with 5+ years experience in HSBC etc, done with MBA, M.Com, DMM, M. Phil seeks a suitable position. Contact: 90369540 Email: abilashraji@gmail. com 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 Accountant available with NOC, 7 years experience in Oman.

Ready to join immediately. contact 98263394

Electrical Engineer 6 years experience in Oman experience in MEDC / projects valid D/L. Contact: 91249329

Light driver Pakistani wanted job.

Contact: 94182695

B.Tech Mechanical Engineer, on visit visa looking for job, who has done certification courses in quality control, basic pipeline engineering, ASNT NDT Level II, also good knowledge in HVAC. Contact:94743373 email:akasharavind1@gmail.com B.E Mechanical Engineer, 24, one year experience as Production Shift Engineer, achieved training on HVAC Engineering design and has good hands on software like AutoCAD and HAP, presently in Oman on visit visa, looking for a suitable placement. Contact:95065955 Email: mjs. jazeb@gmail.com Mechanical Engineer (B Tech) Indian male with 1 year experience on visit visa looking for suitable job.

Contact : 90510800, Email : muhammedjaseem07@gmail.com

8 years experience in Oman. ConHR Manager (Indian Male – 41 Yrs) PG in HR, working for MNC having 12 years of experience in Oman.

Handling SAP-HR, Talent Acquisition, IR, Payroll, Visas & allied administration. Holding Valid Omani D/L & car. Seeks suitable placement.

Contact 96792103

Indian male 25, 4 years experience & Arabic speaking with D/L seeking suitable opportunity interested in Sales & Marketing also. Contact: 91266733 Email: safvank.k9@gmail. com

Qualified and experienced MBA post graduate with proven work exposure in Middle East & India, having more than 5.5 years of rich experience in accounts , project coordination and administration in (3.5 years UAE experience) oil and gas projects is currently looking for suitable job. contact 93953613 , Email allen.mathew83@ gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer is looking for a job vacancy Graduate of Malaysia, 7 years of work experience in oil & Gas fluent in both Arabic & English.

Contact: 95569430

Need job for Driving. Contract:

tact: 95587206

Light duty driver, 3 yrs Oman experience seeks placement. Contact: 91362475 Light driver looking for job 4 yrs Exp in Oman. Contact :92681457 Driver with Oman experience 11 yrs available. Contact: 92374955

with 3 yrs experience. Contact: 95776320

Light Duty Driver seeks job. Contact: 94182497

B.Com 3 years business process outsourcing. Contact: 94657273

exp 16 years need job. Contact: 99165961

A young dynamic post graduate with 2 years work experience in business operations looking for suitable placement. Contact 98564880 or maccmuscat@gmail. com

Light Duty Driver with 2 yrs exp. in

Indian male, 25, 4+ years of experience as an Office Administrator looking for a suitable placement.

Contact: 92600859 Email: sm24blue@gmail.com Teacher female 27 yrs, MCA 5 yrs experience in teaching in India currently on visit visa seeking for a suitable placement. Contact: 96709509 Email: viyannifd@gmail.com Filipino HRD especialist / material controller supervisor with 18 yrs experience looking for suitable job in Oman. Contact: (+968) 98037142 / (+968) 92659817 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 Young Omani male have experience 12 years as P.R.O, CLERK Helper Supervisor Admin Supervisor, H.R Manager have diploma in H.S.E, IT and P.D.O license, looking for H.R position or P.R.O part time or full time. Contact: 95933288 Indian male, MBA with 3 years GCC experience seeks job in Muscat. Posses Valid Oman D/L. Currently under visit visa and can join immediately.

E mail : tssavad@gmail.com contact: 00968 98896847

ARCHITECT

Electrical and Electronics Engineer looking for a job & interested in any available role Nationality Sudanese have valid visa for 2 years. Contact 97304565 Graduation, tool and die engineering & tool designer, have two and half years experience in pess tool and moulding , I know CAD, CATIA , PROE software’s now in Oman. Contact: 95287978

Pakistani looking for driving job

Bangladeshi male light driver

Required gynecologist GEN: practitioner lady lab Technician and pharmacologist immediately for a clinic in Suwaiq. contact 95081010 Email: umchealthcare@ gmail.com

Required A/C Technicians, Carpenters, Electricians, Plumbers, Painters, General Helpers. #94147874 / 24504281.

Email : globalaccessunited@gmail.com

MBA finance from Pakistan with 4 years experience in Accounts & finance department currently in Muscat on family visit visa, 27 yrs.

Contact: 90590037 Email: numanaslamcfo@gmail.com, nouman_aslam2006@yahoo.com

10 yrs of Oman experience capable of handling large accounts, looking for suitable placement in senior sales / business development position. Contact : 98987654

Muscat seeks placement. Contact: 91659265

Driver 3/6 years experience, I have 2 years experience out door sales man in led light, Pakistani, Oman experience 6 years. Contact: 94565993 / 92627855

Family driver available. contact 92943094

EDUCATION/TRAINING Female B. Ed English teacher, 7 yrs exp seeking suitable placement.

Contact : 99739415 / 92091528

ENGG. / TECH./MECH. Indian female 23 years Engineering Electronics and communications, well knowledge in C and JAVA, presently in Muscat seeking suitable placement. Contact: 90320846 Email: kavyahiremath499@gmail. com Electrical Engineer having 8 years experience in Gulf seeking suitable placement can join immediately, have knowledge all kind of MEP project. Contact: 96535204 Indian male 22, Chemical Engineer residing in Oman looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92379181 Civil Engineer, 6 yrs experience with Omani driving license, local release available. #91693008 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

Architect exp.7 years, 4 years in

GCC Architectural design interior sites 3D Max AutoCAD, Photoshop.

Contact: 93238813 Email: mohammedbardab@gmail.com

Indian male, Mechanical Engineer having 1year experience, on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact:97416564, Email:jovinmathias@gmail.com

DESIGNER/DRAUGHTSMAN

HSE officer, Indian male 27, 1.5 years exp call: 90649152, 98205818

Electrical Engineer Indian male 30 years, having 5 years of experience in industrial automation & utility maintenance in Indian (MRF Tyres) holding valid Oman D/L. Contact: 92789995 Email: akhilabrahamlktr@ gmail.com Electrical Engineer (B.E) 8+ yrs experience, NOC & release available with valid D/L. Contact 968 94374735 Mechanical Engineer with 15 yrs Exp in steel fabrication, quality, design, material estimation, sales engineering. Contact: 97093241, Email: abdelmuhssin@gmail.com Diploma in Civil Engineer having 8 years experience in Oman with driving license, internal release available urgently. Contact: 95387537 / 90524700 Civil Engineer (B.Tech) Indian male 24 yrs having 1+ year experience in Industrial construction with good communication skills and software knowledge, looking for suitable position available on visit visa. Contact: 968 - 99779538 / 98694939 Email: arunsathyan92@gmail.com Sudanese Civil Structure Engineer 3 years looking for job in reputable company AutoCAD, Etabs, Staad Pro Omani driving license available.

Contact: 97906770 Engineer with 4 years experience in Oman in telecom operations looking for a suitable opportunity have valid driving license interested in marketing also. Contact: 98513495 Civil Engineer, bachelor degree driving license & experience in Oman.

Contact: 91102892 B.Tech Civil Engineer 7 yrs exp having valid Oman driving license need suitable replacement. #98052924 Email: imdadulsayor@gmail.com 25 yrs, male, B.Tech Electronic & Communication Electrical design Engineer, 2+ years in Multinational company industrial automation course + Electronic AutoCAD looking for suitable placement. #99586317 Email: info.anishantony@gmail.com Electrical Engineer, Indian male 24 years, BE (Electrical & Electronics) having 3 years of experience, seeking for suitable placement. #91917369 Road Engineer 10 years experience in Oman. Contact: 91274706

Supervisor / Cad Draftsman with Oman light driving license 10 years experience in carpentry field. Contact: 95962384

Piping designer with 14 years experience working with PDO, OXY for 10 years NOC available. Contact: 92582356

Revit autocad d/man , diploma cert attsd. exp salary 200-acco. ph: 9227 9784

Revit, Autocad D/man, expected salary 200 OMR PH :92279784

Indian Mechanical Engineer (B.tech)23. With qualification in Qa-QC,HVAC and Piping.1 year experience. Ready to join immediately.

Contact: 92365040

Civil Engineer 14 years of experience 8 years at GCC at Dar Al Handasah Consultant, Al Raghi Construction building & infrastructure culverts, bridges & road. #93068195 Email: hamadamans2007@yahoo.com

Civil Engineer 8 years experience in Oman as a project engineer for governmental & private projects.

Contact – 90164912

Civil Engineer diploma, 4 yrsexp seeks suitable position ina reputed company. NOC available. #96789711

Building Site Supervisor since 2010 in Oman with Omani D/L looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 91507828

Civil Engineer 8 years experience Structural buildings marine. Available NOC release. Contact: 92451323.

Email: zubairali134@yahoo.com

S AT U R DAY, A P R I L 1 6, 2 0 1 6

C5

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED Indian male, 25 yrs, Accountant, 2.5 yrs in Finance & Accounts, MBA Finance & HR, exposure in SAP, Tally, ERP 9 on visit visa.

Contact 96715420 / 91265020, Email : jijosrgo@gmail.com, simonjosephjc@gmail.com

ENGG. / TECH./MECH. 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 Male QC inspector Mechanical, NDT 20 years experience valid Oman D/L , release available. conrtact 91001104 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 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 Indian female Quantity Surveyor Civil 11 years experience, local release available NOC.contact 95719108 Email: jishashibunair@ gmail.com Engineer Civil & M. Arch (RED) Indian (F) 25 yrs, B.Tech (Civil), now pursuing M. Arch - RED (Real Estate Development final semester thesis) completing

by June 2016, now available till 15th of April on visit visa seeks suitable placement in Oman. Contact: 968- 92743004 Email: tina.navya199ann@gmail.com Structural Engineer, ME, with 2 yrs exp proficient in ETABS, STAD, SAFE & Prokon, seeks job.

Contact: 050-9984535 NDT / QA / QC Supervisor / Radiographer DAE Mechanical pipingvessel LPG Bozer Storage tank inspection experience 10 years. #96954202 Email: nasirarain86@ yahoo.com Site Supervisor, Diploma in Civil Engg (cert attested) knows autocad revit, salary exp: 250 ph : 9227 9784 BE Mechanical Engineer, 6 years experience in piping & structural work release available. Contact: 96115463 Email: jijoraju085@yahoo.com 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 Indian male B-tech 8 years experience as senior electrical project engineer / QC engineer on visit visa seeks suitable placement. contact 94094543 Email: anwar425@gmail.com Indian female Project Engineer 15 yrs experience in Project Management Quality database management data analytics marketing business development haying Omani driving license seeks suitable placement presently on family visa having Omani experience. Contact : 95783792 Indian female (M. Tech, Power system) having Gulf experience seeking suitable placement in Oman currently in family visa. Contact: 94306164 / 91001194 An Electrical engineer with 4+ yrs of experience in Electrical network (MT, LT) with professional computer skills seeking for work.

Contact: 99841736 / 93955381/ +149922698343 Email: e.kmmh@hotmail.com Civil Engineer 6 years experience.

Contact: 90183630 Pakistani male Diploma Civil Engineer 4yrs exp in Oman bulling & mega projects, valid license Oman. contact:98921022 Electrical & electronics Engr, knows autocad & revit. PH:93837973 Sr. Electrical Engineer with17+ yrs of exceptional exp in spear heading strategic planning and project management initiatives & executing various high rise residential & commercial building as well as roads and highway project with proficiency in installation, seeking a challenging position in a dynamic organization. contact 96570891

Sales & Marketing specialist with 16 yrs experience in Oman in MNC retails telecom lubes construction related industry handled various projects, holding valid Oman driving license, release available.

Contact 96960991 IT INDIAN FEMALE, 23 years, BSCCS Diploma in IAD graphics, well knowledge in computer applications 6 months experience presently in Sohar seeking suitable placement. Contact: 96670907.

Email: ammuch.4@gmail.com 9 years of Software Test Consulting and business analysis experience in various CBS (Core Banking Solutions) and other Banking related solution implementations with deep understanding of Islamic Banking.

Completed CDIF - CIMA Diploma in Islamic Finance and ADIF - Advanced Diploma in Islamic Finance conducted

by CIMA, UK. NOC available. Contact: manivannanbalaji@gmail.com GSM: 9393 8086 B.Tech (IT) experience in Networking server & desktop management in corporate environment looking for suitable placement. Contact: 92954613 Indian male 25 yrs B.Sc Computers Science, 3 yrs work experience in Computer hardware & networking & CCTV, security system looking for job (NOC) available. Contact: 93243372 Indian male, B. Sc Computer Science, CCNA, MCP, 8 years exp. in system & networking now on visit visa, seeking suitable position. Contact: 91751472, rajeshr131@gmail.com Omani 26 (M) Seeks placement 6 yrs experience IT specialist. #99025044 IT Support Engineer, Exp 3 years in Oman 2 years in India. contact 94672759 Female 24 yrs, 3 years in IT programmer now in Oman looking for suitable job. Contact: 96350234

MANAGER Purchase/Planning & Logistics Manager, MBA (Finance), 14yrs. Oman Exp. with D/L, NOC available, looking for suitable position. Contact : 93826090, jskanchan01@gmail.com Egyptian male 36 years Warehouse Manager, 7 years in Sultanate of Oman, 1 year in UAE, and 3 years in Egypt. Contact: +968 97200468 Email: ayman_mano1979@yahoo.com General/Divisional Manager MEP & Civil, MBA Operation, BE Electrical, 10 years experience in Oman & 10 years in India. Valid DL, release available. GSM. 92447102

MISCELLANEOUS Qualified and experienced MBA post graduate with proven work exposure in Middle East & India, having more than 5.5 years of rich experience in accounts, project coordination and administration in (3.5 years UAE experience) oil and gas projects is currently looking for suitable job. Contact 93953613, Email allen.mathew83@gmail.com Indian male, 28, post graduate, 6+ yrs exp in Oman in sales (back office) & credit control with valid Oman D/L looking for suitable placements. NOC available. Contact: 920 66 523 BS in Electrical Engineering, Experience: 5 years(Power Plants).

Contact: 92475206 Email: zahaibzafar007@gmail.com

MEDICAL Female Indian MOH licensed dentist looking out for job opportunities in Nizwa. Has 14 yrs experience as dentist after graduation.

Can be contacted on 93329964 Indian female (MSC – Microbiologist) seeking suitable job. contact 96791162 / 90618567 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. #94744900, 94742834, jincyalphonese@gmail.com

SKILLED/ UNSKILLED LABOUR Electrician with plumber and A/C tech, with D/L. Contact: 95600418 S.T.P Operator 20 years experience in Oman. Contact: 93089468

Indian male, MCA (Post Graduate) fresher

seeking suitable placement anywhere in Oman, now on visit visa.

Contact 92319677, Email : ismabsc@gmail.com

An experienced Chartered Accountant with over 25 years in varied industries, presently working with a reputed group in Muscat, looking out for a suitable change.

96491030

SALES / MARKETING

MISCELLANEOUS

35 years male, Lebanese holding British passport, 10 years of experience in procurement, Omani Government tenders, setup marketing plans & strategies, importing, Organizing events, management, have car, NOC available. #94123939 Email: 002015r@gmail.com

Indian, 32 years, passed M.A. English M.Sc Psychology, DHM & B.Ed in English with 4 years experience seeking for part time or full time job. Contact: 99869535 Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com

Indian male (25) MBA / MMS (Marketing) on visit visa valid UAE driving license exp 2 yrs sales / marketing. Contact: 98089262 Indian male, 29 years BSc, Graduate, with Omani driving license and 7 years of sales experience in home appliances, IT products, mobile and traffic safety equipments currently working on employment visa, NOC available seeking for suitable placement immediately. Contact: 97890607 Email: ashrafambar@ gmail.com BE (Mech) MBA (UK) 32 yrs male having 7 yrs exp in Oil & Gas product / project Marketing looking for suitable placement in GCC. Contact: + 968 91104381 26 yrs Indian male MBA Marketing Sales / Marketing Executive, 3 yrs experience now available in Muscat on visit visa seeking placement for immediate joining. Contact: 95978874 Email: ansariafsar550@ gmail.com Male 13 yrs exp in Sales & Marketing looking for a post of Senior Sales Manager in Oman presently working in UAE in consumer appliances company, having D/L GCC. Interested can Contact: 00971 561096660 Email: saairavi@rediffmail.com Indian male 10 yrs experience in Sales, marketing manager field with D/L seeks suitable placement. Contact: 97205114 5 yrs experience in software and 2 yr in administration/accountant, looking for any part time or work from home official jobs contact no: 91711326 Indian male 37 years MBA graduate in marketing with 9yrs of experience in UAE in field of brand promotions & marketing with UAE D/L on a visit seeking suitable position. conatct 95792820

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE 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 Lady Secretary / Sales Co-coordinator 12 years experience in Oman in reputed companies, seek immediate Employment. Call: 95244761

HOSPITALITY Indian male, 28 yrs B.Sc Hospitality Science with 5 yrs experience in Hospitality & banking Sectors in Oman & India seeks suitable placement, NOC available. #91383167

MISCELLANEOUS Tea boy looking for job Name: Man Bahadar Contact No. 97859837 Indian Female on a visit visa having master degree seeking suitable placement in any field, 1 ,5 year experience in HR .#+968 91467576.

9 yrs exp Site Engineer in Civil & Shade Structure. 2d, 3d draughtsman (HOLDING OMANI DRIVING LICENSE) seeking job. #93790601 LAND SURVEYOR: Male, more than 12 years’ experience in land/pipe line surveying in Oman and UAE. Looking for suitable placement.

NOC available. #91215843 Marketing Communications Coordinator Indian, 25 years GCC experience in Media, Advertising & Marketing ATL + BTL branding. Contact: 93031168 Email: arn14256@gmail.com Indian male physiotherapist with 3 years of experience, with (moh license and NOC available. seeking suitable placement. contact 99767528, 91317863

MISCELLANEOUS Electrical diploma Engineer Indian male 22 years, 2 years experience in control panel contact 93047707 adilm89@gmail.com IT System Administrator 6 yrs experience, male, Filipino Desktop, Laptop and printer Support, Backup administrator, Router and switch Network, Server Administrator. +968 94134295 Female dentist with MOH license and NOC ready to join 7 years experience 2 of them in Oman.

Contact 97401243

Indian male Kerala, B.com & B.PE. Currently on visit visa, looking for a suitable job in Accounts, Store keeper etc. Ready to join as early as possible. Contact:-93301023, email:sajith3969@gmail.com

Indian male 28 years B.com, MBA 4 yrs experience in accounts / finance currently in Oman on visit visa looking for suitable placement. Contact: 93460277 Email: shineraj786@gmail.com

Female Dentist with MOH license and NOC, 7 years experience 2 yrs out of them in Oman looking for a job.

Contact 97401243

Having 10 years exp. in Admin & HR in reputed companies. Presently working in Muscat and seeking for suitable placement. Contact No.: 97693456. email : muralimahdav77@gmail.com

27 years old Indian male looking hospitality jobs in Hotel. Experience in customer service, front desk, housekeeping supervisor, captain, cashier,guest relation manager.

Contact. +968-90351742Email. samubaid6@gmail.com 27 yearsold Indianmale looking Jobs in documents Collection executive.

Experience in collection executive.

Contact. +968-90358068Email wasimsaif04@gmail.com Indian male, 26 years old BA Graduate having 1 year experience in accounts finance field. Looking for suitable Job On visit visa immediately available. Contact 9565 9415 Anishkhan991867@gmail. Com ELECTRONICS ENGINEER Indian/male/24Yrs,Bsc.Electronics & Communications,ITI,1.7 Years experience as Service Technician in India.

On visit Visa, Looking For a Suitable Placement. Contact :92794176, Email:prathyushkp9@gmail.com B.Tech, MBA currently working in India in Bank. Contact: +918939857146 Email: sebimathew87@gmail.com Accountant cum cashier available.

Contact: 98002428 Pharmacist M. Pharm working in Oman for 2 years with MOH license Data flow completed. #98399415 Pakistani male 23 years old experience in travel agency - ticketing looking for a suitable job, NOC available.

Contact: 93253759 Pakistani male having 7 years experience in General Salesman having valid D/L Looking for suitable placement. Contact: 97216830 Email: asim-samb5@yahoo.com Indian with 3 years for experience in sales and marketing fluency in English, Arabic, Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam looking for suitable job. Also hold valid Driving License, currently in oman Mob : +968-93451439 HSE Engineer, Indian male, 4 Plus years exp. in Oil & Gas, Working in Shclumberger, NEBOSH, IOSH, & NDT Certified, M Tech in HSE. #krish.569@ gmail.com, Mobile- +91 9867016808 Indian male Physiotherapist with MOH license and NOC looking for suitable job. Contact: 92617235 Indian Male, 40 Years, B. Com, having 10 years experience in Oman, Tally &ERP- looking for suitable placement ( Local release and Oman driving license available.

Tel- 92469789 Indian Male 42 year’s, MBA, Sr. Material controller having 12 years experience in Oman with reputed companies. Having Oman driving License, Seeks suitable replacement immediately. Available NOC. Cont. 00968-92944026, Email – charanjeet35@yahoo.co.in ELECTRONICS TECHNICIAN Indian/male/24Yrs,Bsc.Electronics & Comm,1.7 Years experience as Service Engineer in India. On visit Visa, Looking For a suitable placement. Contact : 92794176 E-mail:prathyushkp9@gmail.com Indian male Executive Secretary having vast experience in admin, logistics & procurement well versed with computer seeks suitable placement. #99514286 ELECTRONICS ENGINEER Indian/ male/24Yrs,Bsc.Electronics & Communications,ITI,1.7 Years experience as Service Technician in India, on visit Visa, looking For a Suitable Placement. #:92794176 ,Email: prathyushkp9@gmail.com

Indian Male 42 year’s, MBA, Sr. Material controller having 12 years experience in Oman with reputed companies. Having Oman driving License, Seeks suitable replacement immediately. Available NOC. Cont. 00968-92944026, Email – charanjeet35@yahoo.co.in NOC available, Indian Male - MBA (HR) and B.E (E.I.E) with total 9 years of experience in HR & Admin and Business Development (3 yrs of Gulf exp.) can join immediately - 91240251 / kvaradhan@hotmail.com M. Sc Computer Science – 2 year Experience – in India, looking suitable Placement. Email:-elvisgt6@ gmail.com, Mob:-+91 9497482305 (INDIA), Oman:-98291626.

Indian, 30 years, B. Com with 2 years Oman experience in Tally ERP-9 available in Muscat seeking suitable positions. # on 95186652 Indian male B.Tceh (ECE) MBA (HR) 2 years experience CCNA, CCNP, MCSE looking for suitable job , presently on employment visa release available. #95584814 Email: syedllizarat7@gmail.com Indian civil Engineer BE, with 16 years of Industry experience in design , Quantity surveying , billing looking for suitable job. #90302823 Email: prince.n@engineer.com ELECTRONICS TECHNICIAN Indian/male/24Yrs,Bsc.Electronics & Comm, 1.7 Years experience as Service Engineer in India, On visit Visa, looking for a suitable placement. Contact : 92794176, Email:prathyushkp9@gmail.com B-tech Civil with honours, Civil Engineer (structures) Experience more than six years. #91431483. Email mohsinyousuf86@rediffmail.com HSE Engineer,Indian male, 4 Plus years experience in Oil & Gas .Working in Shclumberger NEBOSH, IOSH, & NDT Certified, M Tech in HSE. CONTACT-krish.569@ gmail.com #+91 9867016808 Indian male Network cabling technician ( 19-years gulf experience) seeking for suitable placement.

Contact : 0091-8089909265 (India), Email: mohithavp@gmail.com 14 years experienced light driver with valid Oman license looking for suitable job. Contact 99442481 Indian Pediatric consultant, md with 20 years experience and wife gynecologist md with 15 years plus experience seeking opportunities with reputed hospitals in Muscat. deemaild@gmail.com PROCUREMENT OFFICER, IndianMale 34yrs,M.Com with 14 yrs work Exp.(8 yrs in Oman) working in Construction Co LLC( for ROAD,CIVIL,ELECTRO-MECHANICAL & Others Projects ) and having valid LT D/L, NOC available & ready to join within a month-M:94064650,Email: nagauae@gmail.com Indian male: 24 years, diploma in computer science and B.E(CSE) having experience in hardware and networking seeking for the suitable job. Contact: 91170912, Email id: sales2@witoman.com Indian male auto cad draughtsman (civil) 8 years experience, seeking for part time job. mobile no: 0096899070584. email: remluvp@gmail.com Sudanese male, 5 years experience in warehouse management and logistics services #90644186

Civil Engineer (roads and structures) Education B. Tech Civil Engineering with honours experience more than six years.

Contact no 91431483 ,Email mohsinyousuf86@rediffmail.com Indian male 6 years exp in different field, with valid Oman driving license. Languages known Hindi, English, looking for any job(Driver for executives). Contact 98696795 HSE Engineer,Indian male, 4 Plus years Experience in Oil & Gas .Working in Shclumberger.

NEBOSH,IOSH, & NDT Certified, M Tech in HSE, contact krish.569@gmail.com Mobile- +91 9867016808 Experienced B.Com graduate + IATA Diploma holder looking for Accounts/Admin/Travels related job. Mob. 91142997. NOC available .

Indian male B.A degree & diploma in hotel management with 16 years experience as restaurant & catering manager in Oman & Saudi with V/L Oman D/L seeks suitable placement. Contact : 92100141 MBA Graduate (Indian male 26 years) having 2 years experience in Qatar as admin assistant looking for suitable placement. contact 93041141 Email: mahinmehboob@ gmail.com Indian female, MBA with 9 yrs of experience in finance & procurement currently on family visa looking for suitable position in finance & supply chain. Contact 95622568 Draughtsman, 15 years’ experience, Indian male currently in Oman looking for suitable position.

Gsm – 95358115, 96977289, Email : pillairp41@gmail.com Indian Female living in Ghubra Muscat near Emirates Shopping Center. 20 years of experience in Teaching. Able to handle all subjects till grade 6. Need suitable job.

Contact- 94406552 PART TIME ACCOUNTANT available, well experienced in accounting up to finalization. knowledge in tally also. contact. 92643875 Chief Accountant 25 years experienced looking for part/ full time accountant job. Contact: 95598477 / 98803439 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.

Bangladeshi Male, University MA, Working as Store In-charge cum Logistic Manager in Muscat; searching better job.

Phone:91997605. email: mohamednazrulislam2@gmail. com 8 plus years of experience in Events /Marketing Communication /conferences / Trainings / Media representation. Having UAE D/L. seeking Suitable Placement: Contact: 95792820. suheal.ma@ outlook.com Indian Male,Kerala,B.COM & B.PE having 13Years of Physical Education Teacher experience. Currently on visit visa Looking for a suitable job. Contact:- 968 94106834. email:-akhilrajkj@gmail.com.

14 years experience in 5 star hotel as sales manager in UAE & INDIA on tourist visa looking for suitable opportunity please contact mobile contact 91305978 Admin Assistant. Having 5 years experience in admin department in reputed companies, presently working in Muscat (NOC Available). GSM. 00968-98404122, Email - panduru.jeevankumar@ gmail.com Indian Female on a visit visa having master degree seeking suitable placement in any field, 1 and half year experience in HR .Contact : +968 91467576 .

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, 8.5 yrs experience, B.Com Graduate with GCC exp & valid driving license looking for better job opening in Muscat.

Contact: 92609935 / 94771365

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DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED EDUCATION/CLASSES/COMP./WEB.

Spoken Arabic class for Non Arabic Speakers & English class for Malayalam Speakers

in Azaiba and Ruwi • Learn in two months • Satisfaction guaranteed

Tel: 95244310 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

SITUATION WANTED SERVICES

WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

SITUATION WANTED SERVICES

PALEST CONTROL TABA SERVICE LLC 100% Professional Aīordable Rate !!!

Ants, Rodent, & cleaning On monthly,

Pest control & Building cleaning all kinds of pest control building. Cleaning tiles / Marble polishing monthly/ Yearly contracts available.

Contact: 98814733 /98814740 Al Husn Cleaning L.L.C

Harmless & Odourless

CALL - 91464586 CATERING SERVICES

SERVICES

We do industrial catering service, Canteen / mess, 3 times packed meals and all types of catering events.

We Provide Cleaners, Office boys, Cleaning Contracts, General cleaning etc.

Al Mudakhir National Est. LLC Contact : 94277020

Contact: 92188777 / 99249899

Al farzdaq Al Fedi Trad and Cont Maintenance services electric, plumbing and A/C. Contact: 96524904 /94285064

MANPOWER

SITUATION WANTED SIT.WANTED

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles polishing, carpet shampooing, maintenance. Contact ABU QABAS- 99320217 /24788722

MISCELLANEOUS 2 years experienced male seeking job related to safety. M. Tech in HSE, MSc in Environmental Science and IOSH certified. #94653264 Sri Lankan Male 34 BSc. (Physics) 5 years experience as a site manager and administration supervisor in Oman with valid D/L looking for a suitable position. contact 99153061 or v.chandramohan@ yahoo.co.uk Female Junior Architect Graduated from School of Planning & Architecture, Vijayawada. Excellence in Autocad, Sketching & Modelling. Internship - KHAM Designs, Bangalore. Presently with Atulya Architects & Associates. Email saatvika.frozenmusic@gmail.com #00968-94057427.

Mechanical Engineering 6 years experience. contact 00968-998907110091 9841867534 Email: sayed.fortuner88@gmail.con Indian male 37 YEARS, BSC COMPUTER SCIENCE having More than 8yrs of experience with well exposure in PDO, DALEEL & OXY as IT SUPPORT / DESKTOP SUPPORT ENGINEER. Seeking suitable placement. Contact rangaraj_vck@ yahoo.co.in / 968-99758320 B.Com Graduate with 4 year experience as an Accountant in Oman. Also have Oman Driving License. Best fluency in English, Arabic, Hindi& Malayalam. Looking for Job. Currently in Oman. contact +968 93943448, murshid4u@ gmail.com

Indian Female Electronics System Eng. UK Graduate. Programmer Micro Controller Robot, Eng. Analysis, Instrumentation & Control, Eng. Projects, Integrated Circuit Eng., Electrical and Fluid Drives, Analogue Electronics, Wireless Systems. Seeking suitable post. Contact: 97848075, s.dinesh1508@ gmail.com Diploma(Electrical Engineering) From Government polytechnic.

Age 27years, 6 years Experiance in Maintenance, troubleshooting and managing and Technical in substation as a Electrical Engineer.Seek suitable placement. Contact GSM92995899,(a.abbas31@gmail.com) MBA Indian male 2 years experience in firefighting & security systems sales & marketing. Seeking suitable job. Contact – 90634050 Sr Material controller, having 13 years experience in material controlling in reputed companies. Presently working in Muscat (NOC Available). # 00968-92944026, Email charanjeet35@yahoo.co.in Indian/male (25)/ MBA/2 years experience in channel sales and distribution management. on visit visa. available for immediate joining. Contact: 96914068, E mail: mailanasap@gmail.com 32year Indian Male MSC,MBAHR having 8yrs Exp(HR / Payroll / Admin) with Oman valid DL. Seeking suitable opening in Human Resource, Payroll & Admin/ backend jobs. Contact:00968-99322978

All MEP & Civil shop drawings.

Contact : 93070771 Email : designjob2014@gmail.com

6 YEARS EXPERIENCE HR/Finance Indian female[29Years] MBA. On family visa, Seeking suitable placement-93908191, email:aswathi.wnd@gmail.com Indian, BE Mechanical Engineering with 1 yr exp as service Engineer, looking for suitable positions. Contact-90637918, E mail: aquasharath@gmail.com Senior Accountant, 5 yrs Oman, 10 yrs UAE experience in manufacturing & construction valid D/L immediately available. Email: irfan_syed2000@ hotmail.com, call: 95389018 Indian male with 1 yr exp looking for job in I.T as Web developer, presently in Muscat on visit visa. #92312978 Commercial or Operation Manager 18 yrs in Oman – finance, purchase, sales, HR & Admin exp. contact 99044724.

E mail: srjobsinoman@yahoo.com Male ,MBA Finance & Marketing 28 yrs,6+ Exp, with oman D/L & NOC, Hospital ,Pharma ,Herbal ,FMCG, F&B Markeing ,construction A/c & sales , 93379044 HSE Engineer, Indian male, 4 plus years experience in oil & gas, working in shclumberger Nebosh, ISOH & NDT certified, M. Tech in HSE. contact-krish.569@gmail. com mobile- +91 9867016808 BE Mechanical Engineering with one year experience now on visit visa, looking for suitable positions. #90637918 / 99335742,email: aquasharath@gmail.com

CHANGE OF NAME Al Ajmi Group, company for Petroleum and Gas Services L.L.C- which is registered at the Commerce and Industry Directorate in South Al Sharqiyah Governorate under the number 1219341, the above mentioned company is intending to amend its trade name to NUSOOR JABAL TIWI FOR TRADING L.L.C Therefore those who have objection against this amendment, can submit reasons for their objection to the General Directorate of Commerce and Industry in South Al Sharqiyah Governorate

Cleaning Services, Sofa, carpet shampoo old house or new house.

Contact: 92179395 Split & window A/c installation & maintenance specialist package & ducted units. Contact 98667326 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 Marble crystallization & grinding, Ocean center LLC contact 99344723

Window & split unit A.C servicing & repairing. Contact: 99557080 Split & window unit A.C servicing & maintenance. contact 96236476 Split & widow unit A.C servicing & maintenance.#93769089 / 95323517 Split & window A/c servicing & maintenance. # 93769089 / 95323517 GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing, Contact 99314807/24792998 A/C maintenance & servicing, fridge, washing machine & dish washer repairing, painting & cleaning services, electrical & plumbing. #99447257 / 97014234 / 24504281 Water proofing ABUQABASContact 99320217/24788722

Zuhoor Al Buwaruq for Trad & Cont ASTD company which is recorded under the commercial register number 1089239 is going to change its legally shape from ASTD company to L.L.C company And in accordance with Article 13 of the Commercial Companies Law No. 4/74 . And change name to Astoorat Al Tamir Al wataneya L.L.C Company. This is to inform anybody who concerns about that to 2 months from the date publishing this advertising

AVAILABLE

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

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

Pest control treatments, Ocean center LLC #99344723

SITUATION WANTSIT.WANTED

WANTED

Indian/male (25)/ MBA /2 years experience in channel sales and distribution management. on visit visa. available for immediate joining. #96914068, email: mailanasap@gmail.com

IELTS Coaching (academic) required nearby wadi Kabir area. Please call on mobile or msg on Whats up. Mobile no: 92927880/99012165

House shifting. contact 99708138 CAD drawings Archi/ MEP CAD – comply BIM. Contact: 91233975 MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your marble. #24793614/ 99314807 Marble crystallization & grinding, cleaning & carpet shampooing.

Ocean center LLC.#99344723 Split A/C servicing R.O 10 only.

Contact: 94217681 /99210141

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DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED CARGO

KTT&CO LLC Customs Clearance thru Bayan System ( AIR & SEA CARGO) Freight Forwarding (both import & export) by giving best freight rates to Customers. Road Transportation, Delivery of all types of goods (within Oman). Contact : Tel : 24713288 & 24711071 ; GSM : (99597129 (MR. KISHORE

TOURS

TOURS

Moon Travel L.L.C

Saudi Arabian Government approved agent

Umrah Package by Road & Air Bus Departures- Apr 19, May 03, 17 & 31.2016 Ramadan Schedule - Jun 06, 10, 14, 18, 22, 26 & 30.2016 Contact: Tariq Al Balushi - 99218069 Ahmed Maseehuddin - 99353611, Oĸce: 24790746/24706217 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 WANTED BUSINESS Investment Required Minimum OMR 500,000 to transfer 5 Excavators big + 5 Tippers 2015 Astra, working on good profitable Excavation projects. Assured income 36 %.

98867530 / 99120532 engrfaheem@hotmail.com

RENT A CAR

RENT A CAR 25 - 50 seater bus with PDO & BP specification for monthly rent & small car with driver. #99839898

MV SALE GMC Sierra 4-Door Pick-up 2010 Model, 177,000 Kms - RO.8,000/-.

Contact: 92564199 Toyota Corolla 1.6 cc automatic selling. Contact: 98504279 Hyundai Veracruz 2011 model for sale, 4 WD color black 7 seater with engine capacity 3775CC, automatic – Steptronic with GPS. Contact 97203784

TRANSPORTATION Transportation available on rent 10 ton Hiap Trailers. #94207475 / 95649231/ 97982842

Transportation required from Qurum to WadiKabir at afternoon only 1 PM. Contact 99012165

BUYING

Transportation. #99508282 Transportation. contact 92015894 Transportation available Ruwi to Al Khuwair, Ghubra & Azaiba.

Contact: 91103909 Transportation. contact 94087276

Nissan Sunny, White, 1.6, Automatic 2010, 76,750 KM, excellent condition, regular service at Nissan Service center for RO 2300 contact – 96530052

ACC WANTED Looking for a villa in Amerat area.

Contact : 95405033

Buying cars for cash.#90202090 Bobcat available for rent. contact 97623299

RENT A CAR Best Rates for Saloon Contact: 97869042 / 95730550 sales@modernreem.com

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DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

SITUATION WANTED DINING DELIGHTS

SITUATION WANTED DINING DELIGHTS