Times of Oman - June 16, 2015

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BIG RESPONSE TO OMAN’S TOURISM CAMPAIGN

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There was an unprecedented response from nationals as well as residents to the three-day tourism campaign launched by the Ministry of Tourism in association with leading hospitality players in the Sultanate. >A5

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TUESDAY, June 16, 2015 / 28 Sha’aban 1436 AH

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Eat in public in Ramadan and face jail

MILESTONE

Royal Oman Police warned that many were arrested last STATE-OF-THE-ART AIRPORT: Oman Air’s flight WY-903 became the first scheduled flight to land at

Salalah’s brand new airport. – ONA

MUSCAT: Oman Air’s flight WY903 became the first scheduled flight to land at Salalah’s brand new airport on Monday, marking the beginning of operations.

The flight arrived at 9:25a.m.

While operations at the newly constructed Salalah Airport and the shifting of air traffic from the old airport started on Monday, the official opening will be held in November to coincide with the Sultanate’s celebrations of the 45th National Day. Dr Mohammed bin Nasser Al Za’abi, chairman of the Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA), said the new airport is

one of the landmarks of the Governorate of Dhofar.

“It is also a valuable addition to the economic and tourism development projects carried out all over the Sultanate,” he said.

He added that the new airport, which is one of the most modern airports in the world, has the latest facilities and equipment.

It includes 30 counters and 10 check-out gates.

The project includes a passenger terminal of more than 65,000 square metres, and will accommodate two million passengers per annum in the first stage and has a 4-kilometre long and 75-metre wide main runway, which can receive the biggest air-

craft including the Airbus A380.

The airport has the latest air navigation and auto landing systems as per international standards and regulations.

The project also has a 57-metre high control tower equipped with modern systems and technologies. It includes 27 new buildings, the most important of which is the air traffic control building that has been provided with the latest world class system, an information systems centre, and a luggage-handling unit at the passenger terminal which includes three conveyors for transferring the luggage of passengers boarding domestic and international flights. >A6

TOP THREE INSIDE STORIES

OMAN

Mobiles, the centre of our universe

1

Our mobiles are probably the centre of our universe.

It’s not just a phone; it’s your camera, GPS, photo store, window to your world. It’s indispensable really, that’s why when you get half way to work and realise you’ve left your phone at home, you get a bit ‘lost’. >A2

Yemen talks start; Saudi-led strike continues

OMAN

Two rescued from Ruwi building fire

2

rahuldas@timesofoman.com

1977 1

Yearly average

During Ashobaa storm (2015) 9 23 .8 91 .4 57 50 .2 46 .2 12

h ira as M ba Ju r Su at dd a h al H Q l n sA ai Ra a nt dy ou y Bi M tr ar un of Co ion Dh ire reg t r En rio te In

MUSCAT: In 48 hours, Masirah Island in Al Sharqiyah governorate got rain which it generally does in 24 or 36 months.

It recorded a maximum 239 mm of rainfall last week, according to a senior official of the Directorate General of Meteorology and Air Navigation (DGMAN), at the Civil Aviation Affairs in the Transport and Communications Ministry.

Masirah was followed by Juba with 91.8mm and Sur with 57.4mm. The cyclone Ashobaa, which hit the Sultanate last weekend, has caused damages that run into thousands of rials.

In the Muscat Governorate, Quriyat received some rainfall, which resulted in the overflowing of wadis.

According to an expert, 239mm of rainfall in Masirah could be the highest-ever on record since 1977.

“The yearly average rainfall in the Sultanate is around 117mm,” said Dr Andy Yaw Kwarteng, director, Remote Sensing and GIS Centre, at the Sultan Qaboos University.

Dr Andy, along with a group of researchers from the centre, has analysed the characteristics of 27

RAINFALL IN OMAN Amount of rain in mm

1.9

Dhofar is set to welcome the Khareef season, said Sheikh Salem Al Shanfari, chairman of Dhofar Municipality in Salalah. At an event held to announce Dhofar’s readiness for Khareef, Al Shanfari said that he is reviewing designs for the Sultan Qaboos Street. >A5

RAHUL DAS

.9 76

3

Masirah receives record rainfall

7.4 11

Dhofar set to get Khareef tourists

ASHOBAA EFFECT

18

OMAN

A14

43

Two people were rescued by the Public Authority of Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) Oman on Monday morning after a fire broke out in their apartment in Ruwi. The injured were hospitalised after being rescued from the third floor of their building in Ruwi. >A3

year, expatriates and nationals alike,

First Oman Air flight lands at new airport in Salalah Times News Service

ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company

Source: Remote Sensing and GIS Center, SQU

Graphics

years of rainfall data in the country. According to the researchers, the highest daily maximum rainfall of 431mm was recorded in Masirah Island in 1977.

“The 431mm of rainfall on Masirah Island occurred when it was hit by a similar type of tropical cyclone in 1977,” he told the Times of Oman.

When Ashobaa hit Masirah Island everything came to a standstill. >A6

during the Holy Month of Ramadan Ramadan, the much-awaited month in the Muslim calendar.

FAHAD AL GHADHANI

fahadnews@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Eat and drink in public during daylight hours in the Holy Month of Ramadan and you could be fined or face up to 10 days in prison, authorities have warned.

Quoting the Omani Penal Code Article 312/10 A, a Royal Oman Police (ROP) official said, a person may be imprisoned between one and 10 days and a fine ranging from OMR1 to OMR5, or any one of these punishments, if a person eats or drinks in public without a reason during the Holy Month.

The police official also revealed that many nationals and expatri-

ates were arrested for breaking the rule last year.

Ramadan, the much-awaited month in the Muslim calendar, is a time when Muslims across the world dip into an ocean of spirituality. For 30 days, Muslims abstain from food and water from dawn to dusk and embark on a spiritual journey.

A non-Muslim, Dr Sathish Nambiar, chairman, Indian Social Club, who had fasted for 18 years in the past to keep with the spirit of the season, says all nonMuslims must respect and follow the tradition.

“Though I had done it continuously for 18 years, I took a break for health reasons. I plan to start

it again,” he said, adding, “We live among our local brothers; why we should not respect their tradition?”

Highlighting the virtues of fasting, he said, “It is advisable for everybody’s well-being.”

Advising the fellow community, Dr Nambiar said, “This is the rule of the land and my advice to all of them is to follow the custom.”

Sufyaan Khalifa, an authorised preacher by Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs in Bausher district and member of the Australian National Imam Council (ANIC), said, “Our fellow nonMuslims are exempt from the laws of Islam; it all goes back to them to eat or not. However, out of respect to their fellow Muslims, they shouldn’t do it publicly.”

He added, “If we refer back to the time of the Prophet (PBUH), there were no rules as to whether they (non-Muslims) could eat in public or not.”

However, Khalifa said, “My call to my fellow non-fasting Muslims who eat openly without any valid reason, I call them to fear Allah the Almighty and to just remember the coming moment when you stand by yourself before Allah tomorrow.”

Meanwhile, an official at the Muscat Municipality clarified that all restaurants and cafés should remain closed during Ramadan. >A6

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015 Many accidents occur due to reckless driving, speeding and neglect of road safety. Some also occur due to exhaustion while people are returning home from work Faisal Al Farsi, Organiser of ‘Private Sector’s Message for Traffic Safety’ competition >A3

OMAN MINISTRY OF MANPOWER

C O M M E N TA RY

338 illegal workers held MUSCAT: A total 338 expatriate workers were found violating the Labour Law from June 7 to 13, including 286 commercial workers, 27 farm workers and 25 housemaids and their equivalents, a joint inspection team of the Ministry of Manpower informed.

The inspection teams arrested 329 workers, including 116 absconding workers, 199 astray

Making the right mobile decision

workers and 14 workers for other violations. Dhofar had the highest number of workers violating the law with 119 cases, followed by Muscat with 86 workers.

Deported Meanwhile, the Manpower Ministry statistics show that 319 expatriate workers were deported for violating the law.–ONA

It’s important that you make the right decision and one which is ultimately based on whether you want the functionality or the bling SIMON BALDWIN

C

ome on, admit it, our mobiles are probably the centre of our universe. It’s not just a phone; it’s your camera, GPS, photo store, window to your world and, for good measure, where you keep all your music.

It’s indispensable really, that’s why when you get half way to work and realise you’ve left your phone at home, you get a bit ‘lost’. Should I turn the car around and be late for work or should I get to work on time and spend the rest of the day bewildered and unapproachable?

You’d think, being as tied to our mobiles as we are, that we’d spend a bit more time choosing the right phone. I just had a think about how much of the functionality I use on my phone. Not much it turns out.

I had a look at its website (it has its own) and a quick check found that I’m not using, and didn’t know about, 22 features.

That’s a lot, yet I was quite happy to pay top dollar for it.

I’m not sure what made me buy it now, perhaps the millions of dollars spent marketing it and I was sucked in. Marketing can be so invasive sometimes!

So, what phone should I buy next and how do I make the choice? I guess it all depends on what I want it to do and how resistant to the marketing activities of Apple and Samsung I am. My needs, it seems, are not a million miles from the rest of mankind when it comes to our mobiles. I like a long battery life, I like 4G for fast internet, I like a great camera as my SLR is heavy, I like a phone which has clear voice quality, I like one which has GPS because Oman is a fascinating country and I like to explore without getting lost and I like apps. Pretty standard stuff. Yes, but the problem is that isn’t just one phone out there that is brilliant at each of these. The manufacturers, as they try to keep down their costs, pick a few features to be brilliant, a few to be good, and a few to be mediocre. If one of these things is a ‘must have’ you should make your expensive purchasing decision based on that and not the marketing machines of the mobile giants.

So, with all this in mind what phone do I need? Before you pick a mobile you need to decide what OS you like. If the rest of your gadgets are based on Apple’s iOS, then you’ll

probably want an iPhone as the ability to link devices is super easy. If not, both Android and Windows have amazing interfaces and usability so you may want to head there. All the major apps are available on all of the app stores, so if all you want to do is WhatsApp, you have an excellent range of mobiles available to you at every price range. Android and iOS have a similar number of apps so if it’s quantity you’re after, these two have the biggest app stores.

Once you’ve decided upon your OS decide whether you want a 4G or a 3G phone.

The prices reflect the technology, and as 4G is a newer technology, expect to pay more.

However, there are now plenty of 4G devices at the OMR50 level if you look hard enough and are willing to compromise on other aspects such as camera quality. Battery life is a big choice. The phones with the best battery life are generally the most expensive as this is such an important buying decision and therefore, manufacturers ensure that the best batteries are in their flagship phones. Cameras too are right up there in terms of decision making, so expect to see the

best cameras on the flagship phones. And if its music that rocks your world (literally) you have a big choice as there are plenty of streaming platforms that are not tied to one particular OS. With mobiles now costing upwards of OMR200or OMR300 for one of the leading models, it’s important that you make the right decision and one which is ultimately based on whether you want the functionality or the bling.

Whatever you choose I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun finding and using those 22 features that the manufacturer of my phone helpfully gave to me.

Simon Baldwin is the Director of Consumer Marketing at Ooredoo.

He has plenty of useful insights and tips that are easy to understand and essential in today’s mobile connected world. This columns series provides some tips and tricks for all telecoms users; whether browsing or streaming, using apps or travelling and more. If you want to control costs, get a better picture of how things work or even need tips on security and safeguarding, these columns are for you.

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

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Consumer body to tackle shortages

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P U B L I C AWA R E N E S S

The PACP will ensure that the supermarkets SAFE DRIVING: The organisers started this competition for the private sector to see who could come up with the best awareness message that would appeal to the public.– Talib Al Wahaibi/TIMES OF OMAN

abide by the rules and keep the prices of goods under control

Traffic contest to raise awareness

Times News Service

TARIQ AL HAREMI tariqh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Availability of all necessary commodities at normal prices will be ensured during the holy month of Ramadan in coordination with different departments and shopping malls, the Public Authority of Consumer Protection (PACP) has said.

Omar bin Faisal Al Jahdhami, vice-chairman of PACP for consumer services and monitoring markets, said that PACP teams would ensure that the supermarkets and hypermarkets abide by the rules.

He added that the PACP used to provide a Ramadan basket each year in stores at reasonable prices, and this practice will continue.

The basket contains 19 basic food

MONITORING MARKETS: The PACP teams will undertake roundthe-clock field visits in the markets during Ramadan to ensure that there is no shortage of goods.–TIMES OF OMAN

commodities. He noted that the chairman held meetings with vegetables and fruit vendors in the central market to coordinate with them on ensuring an uninterrupted supply of items.

The PACP teams will undertake round-the-clock field visits in the markets during Ramadan. This is being done to ensure, in coordination with importers, distributors, hypermarkets and supermarkets, that there is no shortage of goods.

The PACP will take action on any communication or complaints received from the public.

BRIEFS

GLOBAL HONOUR: Oman’s pavilion at the World Tourism Fair, which was held at the Exhibition Centre in the South Korean capital Seoul, got the best pavilion management award. Mohammed bin Salim Al Harthy, Sultanate’s ambassador to the Republic of Korea, received the award.-ONA

Two rescued from Ruwi fire MUSCAT: Two people were rescued by the Public Authority of Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) on Monday morning after a fire broke out in their apartment in Ruwi. The injured people were hospitalised after being rescued from the flat in the third floor of the building in Ruwi, a tweet by the Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulances (PACDA) said. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. The firemen of PACDA’s Darsait unit controlled the blaze which was reported by residents of the locality. -TNS

Ban order clamped on trucks MUSCAT: To ensure smooth traffic flow in Muscat Governorate during the holy month of Ramadan, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has decided to ban heavy trucks with a total load of more than 10 metric tonnes from moving on all Muscat governorate roads during the following times throughout the holy month: From Sunday to Thursday between 7am and 9.30am and from 1pm to 3pm. The Royal Oman Police has urged all heavy truck operators to follow the restrictions. -ONA

The authorities would strictly enforce the rules laid down during Ramadan as is done throughout the year in all governorates, he added.

Al Jahdhami stressed that there is a new law under Royal Decree no. 66/2014 which regulates punishment for offenders in addition to the six resolutions issued by the PACP on raising prices without justification and without obtaining approval from the authority.

He added that as much as OMR800 could be imposed as a penalty in some cases.

MUSCAT: In an effort to raise awareness about safe driving, the ‘Private Sector’s Message for Traffic Safety’ competition, was launched under the auspices of Sayyid Khalid bin Hamad Al Busaidi, chairman of Oman Football Association, on Monday.

The initiative was started on October 18, 2009, following a speech by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, on the need for the community to unite in reducing and preventing accidents.

Faisal Al Farsi, head of organising committee of the competition, said, “Many accidents occur due to reckless driving, speeding and neglect of road safety. Some also occur due to exhaustion while

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people are returning home from work. Other accidents are caused by reckless truck drivers.”

The Public Authority for Social Insurance (PASI) organised this competition for private sector establishments to see who could come up with the best awareness message that would appeal most to the public.

Muzna Al Hadi, a member of the organising committee said, “Competitors are chosen based on the number of Omani employees that are registered with PASI, after personally persuading them to compete.”

Fourteen companies were competing when stage one kicked-off last Monday. The contest will conclude on the seventh day on June 21. A panel of judges will rate these messages, which account for 60 per cent of the final score, while 40 per cent will be voted on by peers via the PASI social network accounts, of which only five companies will go through to the second stage.

Stage two will commence on the eighth day on June 22 and conclude at The Wave Muscat on June 24. Judging will solely depend on the audience’s votes for the three best awareness messages.

The teams will drive through Muttrah, Qurm Heights and Al Khuwair before concluding their campaign at the Wave Muscat.

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

OMAN

It was never meant to be about the art. ‘Voices from Within” was a statement about life’s journeys, about perseverance, and the human spirit and the courage of the participants to display those stories to all.

Ibrahim Gailani, Art Retreat founder

Dubai looks to attract tourists from Oman with summer events This year’s exciting festival and events calendar will give residents and visitors many more reasons to enjoy Dubai during the summer, firmly positioning the emirate as a year-round tourism destination

SARAH MACDONALD

sarah@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Dubai aims to be the destination of choice for people in Oman this summer with a variety of events from Ramadan through till Eid Al Adha, said Saeed Mohammed Al Falasi, from the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, at a press conference in Muscat on Monday.

Al Falasi highlighted the many special events, festivities and promotions planned from June until September, which include Ramadan in Dubai (19 June – 17 July), Eid in Dubai – Eid Al Fitr (18 July – 22 July), Modhesh World (9 July –29 August), Dubai Summer Surprises (23 July – 5 September) and Eid in Dubai – Eid Al Adha (24

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FAMILY TOURISM DESTINATION: Dubai has always been a popular destination for tourists from Oman. – AR Rajkumar/ Times of Oman

September– 2 October).

“Hopefully we have something exciting for the families. As you can see, summer in Dubai is quite interesting,” Al Falasi said.

Lot to attract He said Dubai has a lot to attract Omanis and expats who call Oman home. During Ramadan there will be a range of attractions such as the Holy Quran recitation contest and night markets during, to three days of exciting celebrations during Eid Al Fitr which will include three chances to win 500,000 Dirhams.

“Obviously you can’t shop in

Dubai without the chance to win something incredible,” said Al Falasi. After Eid Al Fitr the summer events in Dubai will continue with Dubai Summer Surprises, which will have numerous familyfriend events featuring entertainment and edutainment, shopping and leisure activities.

This year Dubai will have its biggest-ever edition of Modhesh World with the theme “Every Step is a New Adventure”. Modhesh World 2015 will be occupying over 34,000 square metres at the Dubai

World Trade Center.

Dubai Summer Surprises will include Arabic concerts featuring stars including Hussain Al Jasmi and Kadim Al Sahir, in-mall events and celebrity concerts and appearances, and a range of children’s entertainment with Looney Tunes characters, the Cartoon Network Fiesta (featuring Ben 10 and The Powerpuff Girls), Power Rangers Live, Gumball, Dora the Explorer and Diego Live and much more.

Another highlight of DSS is the Spa & Leisure Promotions featur-

ing discounts, special deals and packages at a host of leading spas and leisure venues.

Arabian Nights The summer events will conclude with Eid in Dubai – Eid Al Adha which will feature Arabian Nights, an edutainment puppet theatre show, fireworks and in-mall events. “This year’s exciting festival and events calendar will give residents and visitors many more great reasons to enjoy Dubai during the summer, firmly positioning

the emirate as a year-round family tourism destination,” Al Falasi concluded.

Dubai has always been a popular destination for tourists from Oman, Al Falasi said, and the numbers are increasing year after year.

In 2013 there were 290,826 people who travelled from Oman to Dubai for tourism purposes, while in 2014 that number rose to 345,565.

“That’s almost up by 18 percent,” Al Falasi noted, adding he expected the numbers to grow again this year.

WORKSHOP

NEW JEWELLERY COLLECTION FOR RAMADAN In collaboration with Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC), Kidani for Jewellery launched its new product collection Karam. The jewellery, designed by Muna Al Khusaibi, owner of Kidani, is a new line inspired by the spirit of Ramadan and the resonating values of generosity and richness of the Omani culture. -Cio Datan/ Times of Oman

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National Innovation Strategy focus on preparatory phases Times News Service MUSCAT: Preparatory phases of the National Innovation Strategy (NIS) and the completion of the initial technical frameworks of its technical teams were the focus of second workshop of the Supervisory National Committee of the NIS held on Monday.

Participants at the workshop, which was held at the College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS) in Bausher, deliberated on the preparation phases for the NIS and the completion of the

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initial technical frameworks of its technical teams.

The workshop involved members of both the national and the technical committees of the NIS. Dr Sharifa bint Hamoud Al Harthiyah, director of the NIS project at The Research Council (TRC), delivered a presentation

on the procedural plan and progress report.

Technical teams Gathering in groups, each of the technical teams of the supervisory committee discussed one of the four pillars of the NIS. These are intellectual property (IP) and knowledge transfer, human resources and the development of talent, the diversification of economy, and activating the institutional communication among the public, private and academic sectors.

C U LT U R E

Gailani Art Retreat Exhibition evokes enthusiastic response Times News Service MUSCAT: Visitors were enthralled by something unique in the form of an art exhibition that made a visual statement. There were moving lights, performance art with morphed dancers, and curated stories of emotions rather than art technique.

City Seasons Hotel Muscat was packed on Saturday, June 13, with more than 400 art enthusiasts, all aiming to glimpse pieces of art produced at the Gailani Art Retreat over the past year titled “Voices from Within”.

“It was never meant to be about the art. ‘Voices from Within” was a statement about life’s journeys, about perseverance, and the human spirit and the courage of the participants to display those stories to all. Tonight, the real stars are the participants of the Gailani Art Retreat, stars that shine brighter and are layered with more beautiful colours than the art in this room it is about,” stated Ibrahim Gailani, founder of the Art Retreat and curator of the show.

Carefully selected The event featured 65 paintings that were carefully selected over the past one year and featured a mix of established artists and first-timers. Each painting ware curated in detail by Gailani giving the viewers an insight on the professional background of each artist, the number of times they attended the art retreat, and the topic/theme to which the painting was interpreted and the ‘artist’s statement’ capturing the sentiments they were going through while creating the piece.

“Getting the curation right was

UNIQUE SHOW: The art exhibition made a unique visual statement with moving lights, performance art, morphed dancers, and curated stories of emotions rather than art technique. – Supplied photo

the key to making this exhibition a success. We wanted the audience to feel as if they were there at the retreat during the creation of that piece. It was important that a personal connection was made between the viewer and the artist, because that is the essence of the retreat. And I am so glad that everyone has paused and read the write-ups in detail. In fact, we have had people take pictures of the curated placards and post them on social media right here from the show,” said Huma, wife of Gailani, and the manager of the Gailani Art Retreat.

Other twist The other twist the show had was that instead of one guest of honour or the chief guest, all the different participants and artists who had attended the art retreat in the past season were invited on stage to cut the ribbon.

“It was like a gathering of old

friends, seeing them, their paintings, and their stories of what they visualised during the painting process. It is incredible to see it all come together under one roof.

I would not have missed it for the world and even changed my flight plan to Sweden to attend this,” said Viki Padersaon, a Swedish art retreat participant who had attended over 10 such retreats.

“It was quite emotional and overwhelming. We felt so special, as if this was our moment and we were the shining stars. It was really a night I will not forget,” were the words of Abdullah Al Busaidi who had three pieces displayed at the exhibition. He had attended over 22 retreats and was one of the first few artists to sell a piece in the exhibition. Although the art on display was there to make a statement and not really to be sold, a price-list was available on request and a good number of paintings were sold to enthusiasts.

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NATURAL ATTRACTIONS: New public parks are being planned in Dhofar in the next few years and ornamental trees are also being planted throughout Salalah.–Cio Datan/TIMES OF OMAN

Dhofar gears up for Khareef season rush Roundabout and the conversion of Aoukd and Itien Roundabouts into bridges with all the necessary entrances and exits.

Al Shanfari said that the total funds approved during the previous four years for special municipal projects of roads and bridges in the Dhofar governorate, in addition to the projects that will be implemented soon, is estimated at about OMR200 million.

The chairman said that new public parks are being planned throughout Dhofar in the next few years, and added that ornamental trees are being planted throughout Salalah. He spoke about the new building being built for the Dhofar municipality at a cost of over OMR13 million.

Times News Service

World-class hotels, villas, furnished apartments and accommodations are ready to receive the growing number of tourists visiting the governorate during the tourist season

DHOFAR: Dhofar is set to welcome the Khareef season tourists, Sheikh Salem Al Shanfari, chairman of Dhofar Municipality, said at a press conference in Salalah.

At a media event held to announce Dhofar’s readiness for Khareef, Al Shanfari said that he is currently reviewing designs and final plans for the Sultan Qaboos Street, as it is one of the main streets in Salalah.

He also added that the municipality has completed the preparation of the plans and designs for a number of projects to be developed during the next phase including the development of Al Nahdha tower, Al Nahdha

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport and Communications is also making vigorous efforts to develop and maintain the main and sub roads in all wilayats of the governorate.

The Ministry of Health is also making considerable efforts to meet the health needs of citizens, residents and visitors in the different wilayats. It established a health corner at the Municipality Recreation Centre to provide health services to visitors at the Salalah Tourism Festival.

World-class hotels, villas, furnished apartments and accommodation areas are also ready to receive the growing number of tourists visiting the governorate during the tourist season.

S U M M E R PAC K AG E S

Tourism drive eyes local market Times News Service MUSCAT: In a bid to attract more tourists, a three-day campaign organised by the Ministry of Tourism (MoT), in association with leading hospitality players in the Sultanate to promote domestic summer tourism, created an unprecedented response from nationals as well as residents.

The tourism promotion drive at the Muscat City Centre last weekend was a huge success with as many as 38 properties and service providers from across the Sultanate participating and offering good deals for nationals and residents.

The campaign was inaugurated

by Ahmed bin Nasser bin Hamad Al Mehrzi, minister of tourism, in the presence of Maitha al Mahrouqi, undersecretary at the ministry.

Tourism properties and service providers that participated in the campaign included five, four and three-star hotels, resorts and hotel apartments, as well as the flagship national carrier Oman Air and Oman Sail. Summer is a lean period for hotels in the Sultanate, and it has become a routine affair for them to offer special summer and Ramadan rates.

This year the Ministry of Tourism stepped in with an innovative idea where a select group of hotels were invited to showcase their facilities and promote their offers.

The objective was to inspire local tourists to explore the rich tourist potential of Oman during summer which is generally a low season for tourism due to the shrinking number of inbound foreign tourists to Oman, commented an official at the ministry.

Working with the ministry, the Al Bustan Palace Hotel offered a special summer promotion room rate of OMR70 including buffet breakfast for two adults and two children till September 23. Bookings for this are closed. However, its Palatial Day Experience package is valid till September 15, and offers deluxe garden/lagoon rooms at OMR70/90 with OMR10 food credit. Under its Ramadan Nights package, an iftar buffet is available at OMR18, while an overnight stay in a deluxe room for two costs OMR129 including iftar and inroom dining, or buffet breakfast and dinner. The Al Bustan Palace Hotel Ramadan offer is valid

NEW AVENUES: The campaign was inaugurated by Minister of Tourism Ahmed bin Nasser bin Hamad Al Mehrzi, in the presence

Summer tourism promotion Hotels Cost

Figures in OMR Offers

129

Al Bustan

Overnight stay

100

Six Senses Zighy Bay

99

Hail Al Shas

Valid Till June 17 - July 16 August 31

2nd night stay for free

The Chedi Muscat

80

September 30

Alila Jabal Akhdar

75

September 15

Millennium Resort Mussanah

70

May 1- September 30

Al Bustan

70

September 23

Shangri-La Barr al Jissah

65

June 18 to July 16

Grand Hyatt Muscat

60

September 15

55

InterContinental Muscat Millennium Resort Mussanah

53

Crown Plaza

50 50

Jebel Shams Resort

August 31 September 15

45

Holiday Inn Muscat

Sur Plaza

per night with third night free

45

Park Inn

Golden Tulip Nizwa

May 1- September 30

39

The Marriott

28 27

Al Wadi Hotel

25

Al Madinah, Ras al Hadd Holiday and Resort Sur Beach

25

Ruwi Hotel

23

Source: Ministry of Tourism

from June 17 to July 16.

This summer is a golden opportunity for those who have never visited Masirah islands. The Masirah Island Resort and the Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve are offering booking facilities at rock bottom prices, which are valid till September.

Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah resort offers a Ramadan Special room rate of OMR65 (Al Waha supe-

August 30 Turtle watching tickets

September 30 July 15

September 30

Graphics

rior room) from June 18 to July 16 which includes breakfast for two, which can be exchanged for Iftar. Apart from this, the resort has come up with special rates for locals and residents from June 11 to September 30 with rates ranging from OMR70 to OMR105, with conditions.

Alila Jabal Akhdar has a special Escape the Heat offer till Septem-

ber 15 extending stay options at OMR75 that exclude weekends and Eid holidays. Free breakfast and 30 per cent off on spa services are included.

Holiday Hotels and Resorts, which operates Hotel Muscat Holiday, Hotel Al Madinah Holiday, Resort Ras Al Hadd Holiday and Resort Sur Beach Holiday, has a special promotion valid till September 30, with room rates starting from as low as OMR25. There are special rates for gymnasium and swimming pool usage and swimming lessons for the entire family.

Golden Tulip Nizwa offers a special stay and food rates till August 30. A standard double room with breakfast starts at OMR39 net, while a three-course set menu starts from OMR5 net. There is 30 per cent off on an la carte food and beverage order. Golden Tulip Dibba Resort is offering exclusive vouchers at OMR50 entitling guests to a two-night stay in a deluxe sea view room. Vouchers are valid till September 30.

The View Hail Al Shas has on offer a special Book@OMR99 deal where a guest gets the second night stay for free. There is an irresistible Family Adventure scheme as well at an amazing price of OMR65 which includes buffet breakfast and dinner.

Guests at Park Inn by Radisson at Muscat and Duqm can enjoy a special summer residential package of OMR45 net for a standard room which includes breakfast and other freebies, which is valid till September 15.

Six Senses Zighy Bay has an amazing summer privilege for guests to explore the Hajar Mountains, with a pool villa available at OMR100++ inclusive of breakfast for two. Stay period is up to August 31. The summer getaway package at Atana Musandam and Khasab hotels offers rooms at OMR20 and 25 per cent off on food and beverages, apart from complimentary airport/ferry transfers till September 15. The InterContinental Hotels Group has come up with irresistible summer offers for its Omani guests, with rooms at OMR50 net at Crowne Plaza (Muscat, Sohar, Duqm, and Salalah), and OMR55 net at InterContinental Muscat.

Rooms at Holiday Inn Muscat cost just OMR45 net.

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015 There suffering is continuing for the past 67 years. But we hope one day we will be celebrating the return of the refugees back to their homeland and properties in Palestine Ahmad Abbas Ramadan, Palestine’s ambassador to Oman

OMAN

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Palestinian community in Oman marks Nakba regime in South Africa as a sign of hope for their future.

“The Palestinian struggle and the Palestinian cause is our cause, for the South African people. It’s important that we make a clarion call.

Enough is enough,” Pepani said.

For Palestinian residents of Oman, the event was a chance to share their personal experiences, too. Mohammed Tayyem, a petroleum engineer from Jerusalem, spoke about the difficulties his family faces such as water shortages in the West Bank due to Israel diverting water from Palestinian lands to its settlements and the socalled Apartheid Wall or security fence that Israel is building.

The suffering of Palestinians is continuing for the past 67 years. But we hope one day we will be celebrating the return of the refugees back to their homeland, said the Palestinian envoy

SARAH MACDONALD

sarah@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Palestine’s ambassador to Oman, Ahmad Abbas Ramadan, hosted an event on Sunday evening to commemorate the 1948 Nakba and 1967 Arab-Israeli War. At the event, which was attended by ambassadors, government officials, Palestinian residents of Oman, and other guests, Ramadan spoke about the impacts the Nakba (catastrophe) and 1967 war on the Palestinian people, the effects of which are still felt to this day by the more than 5 million

SUPPORTING THE PALESTINIAN CAUSE: A number of ambassadors, including those from Jordan, Senegal, South Africa and Mauritania, spoke in support of the Palestinian cause. - Photo: O K Mohammed Ali

refugees who were displaced.

“There suffering is continuing for the past 67 years. But we hope one day we will be celebrating the return of the refugees back to their homeland and properties in Palestine,” Ramadan said.

The Nakba occurred in May, 1948 when Israel unilaterally declared independence following the British withdrawal from Palestine. Israel used military means to expand its territory, destroying hundreds of towns and villages and causing 700,000 Palestinians to flee their homes.

The Palestinian lands were reduced to just 22 per cent.

On June 5, 1967, Israel launched

attacks on Egypt, prompting a sixday war with Egypt, Syria, Jordan.

It expanded its control of Palestinian lands and thereafter began establishing illegal settlements in Gaza, the West Bank and the Golan Heights. Ramadan said the Israeli government and its allies hoped that over the years the Palestinian refugees would give up their desire to return to Palestine, but this hasn’t been the case.

“Refugees held their ground for over four generations. It remains a deep wound in the conscience of the world and the hearts of Palestinians. Our people and our leadership will never lose hope,” Ramadan said.

I NAUG U R AT E D

Support for Palestine Maj. Gen. Lungile Chris Pepani, ambassador of South Africa to Oman, said he was proud, on behalf of his government, to publicly declare support for Palestine and urged the Palestinian people to look at the fall of the Apartheid

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

STORM

Life coming back to A1 normal in Masirah < FROM

“Roads and hotels were closed, and there was no power for 18 hours. But now things are coming back to normal,” said Vijay Handa, general manager of the Masirah Island Resort.

Another area which reported a lot of rain is the region from Juba where a year’s total was recorded.

Average yearly rainfall The Sultan Qaboos University research also shows the average yearly rainfall varies from a low of 76.9mm in the interiors to a high of 181.9mm in the Dhofar Mountains, with an average of 117.4mm for the entire country.

“In northern Oman, the main rainfall season is between December and April. The Dhofar Mountains and surrounding areas in southern Oman are dominated by the khareef season from July to August,” said the study.

Excess rainfall The study also shows that rainfall in excess of 50mm per day is rare in Oman.

“However, when it does occur it can result in serious consequences such as flash flooding, human catastrophes and land degradation,” added the report.

The data is divided into six geomorphic compartments to represent the various topographic regions in the Sultanate of Oman.

HONOUR FOR PENSIONERS

A1 State-of-the-art airport < FROM

The airport is designed to provide high quality services to passengers from their arrival to final boarding. The new airport has 29 lifts, 13 escalators and 8 tubes for passengers to board the aircraft.

A number of other ambassadors, including those from Jordan, Senegal, South Africa and Mauritania, spoke in support of the Palestinian cause, too. Zuhair Al Nsour, ambassador of Jordan to Oman, said both the Nakba and 1967 war had profound effects on his country, which is home to nearly approximately 2.8 million Palestinians.

Demographic situation “It divides Palestine lands and cutting people from each other so the demographic situation is really destroyed. In East Jerusalem people can’t reach their shops. My family can’t actually go from the house to East Jerusalem. These are a few crimes and there are a many other crimes,” Tayyem said Ambassador Ramadan said it’s time for the international community to find a solution to the problem and put an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, enabling Palestinians to return home and live freely, peacefully, and with dignity.

“The State of Palestine is yearning to get rid of the occupation and end the problem of the refugees,” he concluded.

VIDEO

It also includes a VIP lounge, in addition to a car parking area that accommodates 2,200 vehicles including VIP and taxi parking lots.

The last flight from the exist-

ing Salalah Airport took off on Monday for Doha. The flight, operated by Qatar Airways at 5.20 am, marks the closure of the airport after 38 years of its operations that started in 1977. -With inputs from ONA RAMADAN ORDER

< FROM

Deliver food

A1 at work site

“Restaurants and cafés should start preparing food only from the afternoon,” he said.

The source, however, added that for the benefit of the nonMuslim labourers who completely depend on restaurants for their meals, the Muscat Municipality has issued licences to a number of restaurants to serve food to these groups during the day in Ramadan.

“But customers will not be allowed to enter the restaurants but the restaurants would have to deliver meals at the work sites,” he said. These meals should be consumed inside and not in the public. “The Municipality has a number of food inspection teams deployed in various areas in Muscat working in three shifts starting from eight o’clock in the morning until midnight,” said the source. He added that these teams monitor all the restaurants in Muscat.

-With inputs from Tariq Al Haremi

More than 7,000 jobs for Omanis in PDO this year Times News Service MUSCAT: More than 500 Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) pensioners have been honoured at events across Oman to celebrate their achievements and update them on company developments.

Raoul Restucci, PDO’s managing director and Abdul-Amir Al Ajmi, external affairs director reported progress on key objectives, including the creation of more than 7,000 jobs for Omanis this year, the drive to raise the oil production plateau to 600,000 barrels per day by 2019 and intensified business efficiency efforts.

Gatherings were held in Muscat, Fahud and Marmul covering various topics including medical and financial support for the company’s 2,300 retirees and their spouses.

Restucci said, “The annual pensioner parties provide an excellent platform for us to engage with our pensioners who have done so much to build PDO into the thriving business it is today.”

“Even though they no longer work with us, our pensioners are still proud to be associated with PDO and have a wealth of experience and wisdom which can assist us as we move forward. We value their loyalty, and we take

FELICITATED FOR ACHIEVEMENTS: More than 500 PDO pensioners were honoured at events across the Sultanate to celebrate their achievements. -Supplied photo

our responsibility to our pensioners very seriously, and we also provide help where we can to ensure they continue to lead happy and healthy lives,” he added.

Benefits Among the benefits available to retirees is a scheme providing no-cost, interest-free loans and greater access to primary healthcare. From October, this will be provided at a new medical centre at Mina Al Fahal, which will have an accident and emergency department, two outpatient clinics, laboratory, pharmacy, and physiotherapy departments, along with

two for occupational health and safety, respectively.

The company is also looking at enhancing medical support in the Block 6 Concession by supporting and better leveraging key Ministry of Health, PDO and contractor clinics.

Network for pensioners The Petroleum Development Oman is set to establish a new network for pensioners enabling them to communicate their views, queries and issues of importance, as well as to stay in touch with their friends and colleagues on a more frequent basis.

REMAIN CONNECTED

500bz emergency credit for Omantel users and wherever they are.”

“Subscribers can use this advanced credit to make local or International phone calls, send SMSs or even surf the Internet,” she added.

Times News Service MUSCAT: Omantel, the leading telecommunications service provider in the Sultanate, has announced the launch of its latest service which aims to keep its customers always connected.

This unique service offers Hayyak customers emergency credit to use when they do not have sufficient credit until they manage to recharge their credit again.

Advance credit Hayyak customers, whose credit reaches 39 baisas or less, will receive an SMS informing them to benefit from the advance credit of 500bz.

Upon accepting the credit by simply sending ‘y’ to 91224, customers will receive the credit advance instantly.

This advance credit will later be deducted from their balance on their next recharge.

Offer validity This operation will be charged 50bz per message, which will be deducted from the next top up.

The offer will remain valid up to August 8, 2015.

NEW PLAN: Sahar Khalfan Al Asmi, manager of applications and data services at the Omantel Consumer Unit. –Supplied photo

Commenting on this new service, Sahar Khalfan Al Asmi, manager of applications and data services at the Omantel Consumer Unit said, “Sometimes, our cus-

tomers run out of credit and are not able to recharge instantly for various reasons. Therefore, we introduced this service to make sure they stay connected whenever

Pioneer provider Omantel is the pioneer provider of leading edge telecommunications services in the Sultanate connecting individuals, enterprises and government across the country through a state-of-the-art network.

Omantel is listed on the Muscat Stock Market and trades under the name OTL.OM. For more information, please visit their website www.omantel.om, meet them in one of their shops or call 1234.

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

REGION

The national guard attempted to ambush at dawn two terrorists on a motocycle in Sidi Ali Ben Aoun after obtaining information that (they) were about to launch an operation Mohamed Ali Aroui, Interior ministry spokesman

Mastermind of Algeria gas plant siege ‘killed’ Al Qaeda-linked militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar killed in American jest air strike in Libya

BENGHAZI: Al Qaeda-linked militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who allegedly masterminded the siege of an Algerian gas plant in which 38 hostages died, has been killed in a US air strike, Libya’s internationally recognised government said.

“American jets conducted an operation which resulted in the deaths of Mokhtar Belmokhtar and a group of Libyans belonging to a terrorist organisation in eastern Libya,” said a statement posted on Facebook. The Pentagon said Belmokhtar had been the target but did not confirm his death, which has been reported many times in the past.

Hatem El Ouraybi, spokesman for the recognised government,

THE TARGET: This undated picture released on May 24, 2012 by the Mauritanian news website Alakhbar shows Mokhtar Belmokhtar. – AFP/AlAkhbar.imfo

said on Monday: “Coordination with the US will continue in fighting these terrorist groups.”

International support The strike came as part of “the international support that we have always asked for in order to fight terrorist groups in Libya,” Ouraybi said. Hardline commander Belmokhtar, nicknamed variously as “The Uncatchable”, “Mr Marlboro” and “The One-Eyed”, was leader of the North African Al Murabitoun militant group and a former chief of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

He allegedly masterminded the 2013 siege of an Algerian gas plant in which 38 hostages, mostly Westerners, were killed.

“I can confirm that the target of last night’s counterterrorism strike in Libya was Mokhtar Belmokhtar,” Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said in a statement on Sunday.

“The strike was carried out by US aircraft. We are continuing to assess the results of the operation and will provide more details as appropriate.”

Washington has previously used drones against targets in North Africa, but the New York Times reported this was the first US air strike of any kind in Libya since Muammar Gaddafi’s regime fell in 2011.

The last US operation in Libya was in 2014, when special forces captured Ahmed Abu Khattala, an alleged organiser of the attack against the US consulate in Benghazi in 2012 that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. Libya’s statement said the operation came “after consultation with the Libyan transitional government” based in the east.

Prime Minister Abdullah Al Thani called the operation “part

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of international aid that has long been sought in the fight against terrorism”.

Libya’s Lana news agency cited an official from the internationally recognised government as saying the strikes targeted a farm south of Ajdabiya, some 160 kilometres (100 miles) west of Benghazi, as Belmokhtar met leaders from other extremist groups including Ansar Al Sharia, listed by Washington as a “terrorist” organisation. Belmokhtar was previously thought to have been killed in Mali, but security sources said last year he had moved into Libya.

Born in 1972 in Algeria, he said in a rare 2007 interview he had been fascinated with the exploits of the mujahedeen combating the Soviet invaders of Afghanistan, and joined them in 1991 when he was barely 19. It was in Afghanistan that he said he lost his eye to shrapnel and where he had his first contact with Al Qaeda.

He returned to Algeria in 1993, eventually joining the group that became Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. But he was pushed out as one of AQIM’s top two leaders in northern Mali for what one regional security official said were his “continued divisive activities despite several warnings”. — AFP

ENCOUNTER

Three policemen, militant killed in Tunisia clashes TUNIS: Three Tunisian policemen and a suspected militants were killed in clashes on Monday in the centre of the country, the interior ministry said, blaming an Al-Qaeda-linked militant group for the violence.

“The national guard attempted to ambush at dawn two terrorists on a motocycle in Sidi Ali Ben Aoun after obtaining information that (they) were about to launch an operation,” ministry spokesman Mohamed Ali Aroui said.

He said two officers were killed in the ensuing shoot-out, and that the militants fled before killing a third policeman who had been going to work.

They were pursued by an elite unit of the national guard, Aroui said. “One of the terrorists was exterminated, the second was wounded and arrested. He is in a serious condition,” he added.

Twelve people were wounded, including three members of the security forces, a soldier and eight bystanders, an official at the nearby Sidi Bouzid hospital said.

One civilian was in a critical condition, the official added.

The interior ministry blamed the violence on Tunisia’s main jihadist group, the Al-Qaeda-linked Okba Ibn Nafaa Brigades which it has accused of being behind several recent attacks. — AFP

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

INDIA

Lalit Modi not only had a direct association as also client-counsel with Swaraj family but also appears to have a long-standing relationship with prime minister and BJP president as facts available in public domain establish Randeep Surjewala, Congress spokesman

Lalit was helped with tacit approval of PM: Congress Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala posed nine questions to the prime minister to answer whether there was any quid pro quo in helping Lalit Modi, who has been accused of money laundering, match-fixing and betting in the country

NEW DELHI: Escalating its attack, Congress on Monday charged the entire Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the government with “aiding and abetting” Lalit Modi, a fugitive, with “tacit approval” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demanded explanation from him.

The party also contended that a criminal case has been made out against External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in helping the former IPL boss get travel documents to go out of the UK and sought an FIR registered against her.

Addressing a press conference, Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala posed nine questions to the prime minister to answer whether there was any quid pro quo in helping Modi, who has been accused salting away Rs700 crores out of the country and was facing charges of money laundering, match-fixing and betting.

Examined He said it should also be examined whether Swaraj was acting at the instance of the prime minister and whether he was “a party in helping a fugitive and moneylaunderer”.

“There are serious doubts about the role, knowledge and complicity of the prime minister. He

PROTEST: Youth Congress members being stopped by the police during their protest against External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at her residence in New Delhi on Monday. - PTI

has maintained a studied silence while he tweets on everything everyday,” Surjewala said.

“Incontrovertible facts, documents and details of the ‘Modigate’ emerging since yesterday clearly reflect active complicity of not only the external affairs minister but also point towards the entire BJP government aiding and abetting a fugitive of Indian law with tacit approval of the prime minister,” he said.

The Congress spokesperson said Lalit Modi was directly in touch with Swaraj, who admits to have acquaintance with him and speaking to him on phone on a number of occasions.

Making a video presentation at the AICC briefing, the party displayed three photographs of Lalit Modi with the prime minister and BJP chief Amit Shah before the two leaders assumed their present offices to make a point about his association with them.

However, the party said it was not demanding the prime minister’s resignation, saying all the questions raised by it should be first examined. If allegations are

proved, then he has no moral right to continue, he said, adding then he will have to resign.

“For a prime minister who single-handedly runs the foreign ministry with the external affairs minister playing a second fiddle, Narendra Modi’s complicity in providing favours to a legally established offender and absconderLalit Modi- is nothing but open to negative interpretation.

“Lalit Modi not only had a direct association as also client-counsel with Swaraj family but also appears to have a long-standing relationship with prime minister and BJP president as facts available in public domain establish,” Surjewala said in a statement.

He alleged that Swaraj overturned and overruled existing government communications to a foreign country. These communications of the previous UPA government not only denied travel documents to Modi but also sought his arrest to hold him accountable to law and repatriate “black money laundered by him”.

“Shockingly, it is unheard of that the foreign minister of a country

calls up the envoy of a foreign nation as also head of foreign parliament’s ‘Commons Home Affairs Select Committee’ for a criminal.

It’s also unprecedented that written communication establish quid pro quo in the past between Lalit Modi and Swaraj,” Surjewala said.

Alleged violations He referred to various notices issued by the Enforcement Directorate for alleged violations of FEMA, Money Laundering Act and other offences and Income Tax authorities between 2010 and 2012 and the assumption of office

by BJP in 2014.

The party also pointed to various communication, including exchange of letters between Keith Vaz, who was Chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Committee, to Sarah Rapson, Director of UK Visas and Immigration Department, over travel documents to Modi for attending a family marriage and accompanying his wife for cancer treatment.

Accusing the government and BJP of evading the questions put to them on Sunday, Congress

wanted to know the relationship between Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Lalit Modi and whether Swaraj could withdraw the written communication of the Government of India without consent from the finance minister and prime minister to help him get travel documents.

“Is tacit approval of the Prime Minister not writ large,” Surjewala said and asked why Swaraj did not insist on a conditionality that Modi will present himself before authorities in India after his visit to Portugal.

Surjewala asked whether by facilitating Modi “escape” the bluecorner notice and prosecution in India has she not abetted a crime and is consequently liable to be punished under various section of the IPC. Conflict of interests He also asked whether it was not a fact there is a clear cut case of conflict of interests made out against Swaraj after her daughter Bansuri Swaraj appear for Modi in passport case in Delhi and the minister’s husband. - PTI

THIRD INCREASE

Petrol price raised by 64 paise per litre NEW DELHI: Petrol price was on Monday hiked by 64 paise a litre, but diesel price was cut by Rs1.35 per litre in line with trend in global oil rates.

This is the third increase in petrol price since May. However, in case of diesel, the reduction has halted two consecutive increases during last month.

The revision in rates will be effective from midnight on Tuesday.

Petrol in Delhi will cost Rs66.93 per litre from Tuesday instead of Rs66.29 at present.

A litre of diesel will cost Rs50.93 per litre as opposed to Rs52.28, Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the nation’s largest oil company, said.

On May 16, petrol price was hiked by Rs3.13 a litre and diesel

by Rs2.71 per litre.

However, on June 1, companies skipped raising rates by 30-40 paise that had become necessary due to rise in international rates.

“Since last price change, there has been an increase in international prices of petrol while international prices of Diesel have shown a downward trend.

“Indian rupee-US dollar exchange rate has depreciated during this period. Combined impact of these factors warrant an upward revision in prices of petrol and a downward revision in prices of diesel, the impact of which is being passed on to the consumers with this price change,” IOC said in a statement.

The three hikes in petrol rates have wiped away more than onethird of the gains that had accrued to consumers when global rates began to fall in August. In case of diesel, the reduction has partly restored the gains taken away in May. State-owned fuel retailers IOC, Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) revise petrol and diesel prices on 1st and 16th of every month based on average imported cost and rupee-dollar exchange rate in the previous fortnight.

Prior to the Rs3.13 increase in petrol price on May 16, rates of the fuel was raised by Rs3.96 on May 1.

In case of diesel, rates were hiked

by Rs2.37 (on May 1) and by Rs2.71 (on May 16). Petrol prices have been cumulatively cut by Rs17.11 a litre in 10 reductions between August and February and diesel by Rs12.96 a litre in six cuts between October and February. - PTI

S T R AT E G Y

Taxman to seek children’s help to fight the menace of black money NEW DELHI: After undertaking a slew of measures to combat black money instances in the national and international arena, the Indian Income Tax department has decided to catch the imagination of school-going children for creating awareness on the issue and building a social deterrence against such crimes.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex policy making body of the I-T department, has asked its field officers to visit schools and educational institutes and address students on the onerous responsibility of a good citizen to pay his or her due taxes to the government and inform them about the ills of black money either during their morning assembly or while taking lessons in classroom.

A strategy paper notified by the CBDT for the working of the department during the financial year 2015-16 has asked I-T regional heads to depute “young and dynamic officers/officials to visit schools to talk to children during morning assemblies or otherwise, may be with Powerpoint presentation, and using historical stories to show how the concept of taxation is a very old one and also how/why it is relevant even today.”

“The officers should emphasise how a rupee gained or collected by way of taxes is utilised towards development of the country leading to nation building. The officers should discuss the importance of taxation and menace of black money or the parallel economy,” the latest directive to the I-T officials said.

A senior official said the directives are meant to be “seriously” undertaken by the department and a compliance report in this

AGENTS OF CHANGE: Students celebrate their success after declaration of Maharashtra State Board of Secondary School Certificate SSC examination results in Mumbai. Income Tax department has decided to catch the imagination of school-going children for creating awareness on black money issue and building a social deterrence against such crimes. -PTI

regard will also be sought from them by the CBDT. “While we undertake a number of steps on the policy side, it is also essential to tell the generation next about the evils of black economy and at the same time their and their near and dear ones’ responsibilities as citizens of the country to pay taxes.

“A young invigorated mind will go a long way in addressing the issue of tax evasion in the country and they will be instrumental in setting the moral compass of the society in this regard,” the official explained.

The CBDT has asked the taxman to target school going children and college freshers between the age of 16-18 and even invite them for lectures or awareness sessions in tax department offices. The Board has also instructed

I-T field offices to include all kinds of schools in their area of responsibility - government, private and convent - under this drive which is aimed to cover students from “all strata of society”.

“The ‘catch them young’ mantra will give rich dividends to the country on this subject. As the agency tasked to enforce tax laws in the country, the Income Tax department is the most suitable agency to take the message of creating a good tax regime to its young citizens,” the official added.

The issue of black money generation and the challenge of curbing it has been one of the priority areas for the government which has recently passed a new law on the issue and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted by the Supreme Court to deal with such cases. - PTI

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INDIA

Lalu dares BJP to declare CM candidate for Bihar election Attacking the saffron party, RJD chief Lalu Prasad said he was now sure that the BJP would not declare any chief ministerial candidate for the state polls to serve its ‘selfish interests’ and indulge in divisive caste

IN FULL CONTROL: Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and other senior leaders at a meeting at the party’s office in Patna on Monday. - PTI

politics in the state

PATNA: RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Monday dared the BJP to declare its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections scheduled in September-October this year, or accept that it was ‘nirvansh’ (childless).

“I am demanding from the BJP to either show the face of its chief ministerial candidate or accept that there is nobody in its dynasty and it is ‘nirvansh’ (childless),” RJD chief said.

Attacking the saffron party,

Lalu said he was now sure that the BJP would not declare any chief ministerial candidate for the state polls to serve its “selfish interests” and indulge in divisive caste politics in the state.

‘Gimmicks’ “Just like the last Lok Sabha polls, the BJP will rely on its divisive gimmicks. It will go among the Yadavs and tell them that Hukumdeo Narayan Yadav will be the Chief Minister. It will go to Patna City and tell the people there that their MLA Nand Kishore Yadav, who is opposed to Sushil Kumar Modi,

will become the chief minister,” Lalu said. Yadav claimed that in the same manner, the BJP will go among the Bhumihars and tell them that C. P. Thakur will be the chief minister. Likewise, it will go to the Rajputs and tell that Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh will become the chief minister, and will tell the Brahmins that somebody from their caste will be the Chief Minister.

“There is ‘khot’ (bad intention) in the mind of BJP. It should clear its stand before the polls without trying to cheat people, or accept that it is a childless party,” he said.

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The RJD chief was speaking to media persons after holding a meeting of MLAs, MLCs, leaders, party officials and workers of Patna division to chalk out a strategy for upcoming state polls.

The division consists of six districts - Patna, Nalanda, Bhojpur, Buxar, Rohtas and Kaimur.

In view of the approaching state polls, he has embarked on an exercise to meet party workers and leaders from all nine divisions in the state consisting of 38 districts.

Lalu hit out at the BJP for continuously calling the 15-year-long RJD rule in the state as ‘jungleraj’

and warned the saffron party that by doing so it was portraying a community as “criminals”.

“I am warning the BJP leaders to speak with restraint. By calling RJD rule as ‘jungle raj’, they are portraying a community as criminals,” he added.

He also warned the BJP government at the Centre for continuously neglecting Bihar’s interests and said his party will not tolerate the injustice meted out to the state. Pooh-poohing the Ayodhya Ram temple issue, Prasad pointed out that the BJP was remembering it again after realising that it was losing ground across the country.

The RJD president rebutted any indications of cracks in the ‘secular alliance’ consisting of his party, JD(U), Congress and NCP and added, “We all are one after Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav announced the alliance. The BJP is trying to play games by spreading talks of differences among us.”

Reacting to questions about the number of seats RJD will contest in the assembly elections, Prasad said it has not been yet decided, and it will be declared later after all alliance parties sit and deliberate over the issue.

“I have asked all our party workers to stay united and loyal towards the alliance. We all — Congress, NCP, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and I — are together in it.

This is our government and it will be renewed in the coming elections,” Prasad asserted. -PTI

NO ONE HURT

Tyre of Air India plane bursts while landing in Srinagar SRINAGAR: Flight operations at the Srinagar Airport have been suspended after an Air India plane from Jammu with 149 passengers onboard suffered a tyre burst, damaging a portion of the runway, which led to cancelling of at least 17 flights from across airlines.

The tyre of the flight AI-821, from Jammu, burst when the plane made a landing at Srinagar International Airport on Monday afternoon.

“Air India fight AI-821 suffered a tyre burst on landing at Srinagar today. The flight had 149 passengers on board. All passengers are safe,” Air India said in a statement.

The runway suffered some damage and the plane got stuck in the middle resulting in the suspension of the flight operations at the airport. “Air India is working to clear the runway at the earliest,” the airline said.

Meanwhile Srinagar Airport authorities said the runway repair work was being carried out but remain non-committal on the resumption of the operations.

“We are working to make the runway functional. But as of now, it cannot be said as to when the operations would resume,” an airport official said.

As many as 17 flights have been cancelled due to the blocking of the runway, the official added.

Meanwhile, the passengers have been taken to the terminal building and their baggage was delivered to them, Air India said in the statement. - PTI

ONE RANK ONE PENSION

Ex-servicemen begin hunger strike over pension scheme delay NEW DELHI: Determined to mount further pressure on the Modi government, ex-servicemen have decided to hold a huge rally in Bihar ahead of the Assembly elections to demand the “promised one-rank-one-pension (OROP)”.

The decision came even as groups of ex-servicemen went on a relay hunger strike in about 20 cities across the country.

“We will hold our next maha sangram rally in Bihar. We will continue our protest till our legitimate and promised due of OROP is

met,” Col Anil Kaul (Retd), media advisor to Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM) said.

Assembly polls in Bihar are likely in September or October this year. BJP has a tough fight on hand against the Janata Dal (U)-Rahtriya Janata Dal combine, which is likely to have a poll pact with Congress in the state.

Besides Bihar, the veterans think they are a strong constituency also in Punjab where Assembly elections are slated next year.

The Modi government has said

it is committed to OROP, a key promise made during Lok Sabha poll. It has, however, not implemented it till now.

Assured In his recent ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio talk, Modi had assured ex-servicemen that his government would soon resolve the OROP issue, but that has not happened, the former soldiers lamented.

Asked if the government has ditched them, IESM Chairman Maj Gen Satbir Singh (Retd) said,

TECHNOLOGY

India to test reusable launch vehicle next month: ISRO NEW DELHI: In a technology that can bring down costs significantly of launching satellites, India will test reusable launch vehicle next month, the government on Monday said.

The Indian Space Research (ISRO) will also launch Astrosat, India’s first dedicated satellite for astronomy by September this year.

“This is in its initial stages.

There are multiple experiments which need to be completed. The first launch is in July and this will help improve cost effectiveness. It will reduce the cost by one-tenth.

“The launch vehicle will be landing first time in the ocean and the ultimate attempt is to make it land at an air-strip at Sriharikota,” ISRO chairman A. S. Kiran Kumar said.

Addressing a news conference to highlight the landmark of the first anniversary of the NDA government in the arena of space, Minister for State in Prime Minister’s Office, under which the Department of Space falls, Jitendra Singh said, India will complete the launch of two satellites of Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) series next year and three satellites, in the subsequent year.

The minister said over the past one year, the space department has launched 11 satellites.

Test in progress “The satellite (Astrosat) was delayed because one of the payloads had a component and there was an issue with respect to that. Now the satellite is fully integrated and the environmental test is fully in progress and it will be launched in September this year,” Kumar said.

Kumar, who is also the Space secretary, said that the country’s lunar mission will take three

FORGING AHEAD: Minister for State in Prime Minister’s Office, Jitendra Singh, centre, launches ‘Sakaar’ an augmented reality application at a press conference in New Delhi on Monday. The Andriod based application can help users gain a better understanding of the Indian space agency ISRO’s projects- PTI

more years for the satellite to launch. Speaking about the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), Kumar said of the images it has received from the mission, it is in process of making the validating and analysing the discoveries it has made before making it public.

“We have a working arrangement with NASA. We are also in discussion with CNES (French space agency).

“Recently we had a discussion with the United Arab Emirates .

It wants to have a Mars Mission for 2020. So they are interested in making use of the expertise available here,” he said.

The minister also launched an Andriod based application ‘Sakaar’ which can help get a better understanding of ISRO’s projects. The application consists of three-dimesional models of MOM and its orbit insertion, Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle

(PSLV), Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GLSV) Mark III, videos of INSAT 3D predicting cyclones.

Free distribution “We will be distributing this in schools and other institutes for free so that students can get a better understanding of our space working,” Singh said. Kumar said that the space agency will also launch UK’s Disaster Monitoring Constellation satellite next month. Responding to a question on space debris, Kumar said India is not generating much of it and it ensures that ISRO’s expeditions do not lead to its creation.

“Debris issue is important, but it has still not reached a level where it can be termed as a catastrophic. But with more and more small satellites being launched, the problem is expected to increase,” Kumar said. -PTI

“The question is about honouring the assurances and so far those have been not implemented on the ground. That’s why we feel the government has not lived up to what they promised us.”

Even though the government has said it is committed to implementing OROP, there has been no official word on why the scheme is getting delayed. Defence ministry sources said the OROP file is with the Finance Ministry for a final budgetary approval.

Close to 2.2 million ex-service-

men and over 600,000 war widows stand to be the immediate beneficiaries of the scheme,which envisages a uniform pension for the defence personnel who retire in the same rank with the same length of service,irrespective of their date of retirement. Currently, the pension for retired personnel is based on the Pay Commission recommendations at the time of retirement.

So, a Major General who retired in 1996 draws a lower pension than a Lieutenant Colonel who retired after 1996. - PTI

PROTEST: Ex-armymen protest over one-rank-one-pension at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Monday. - PTI

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

PAKISTAN

We have no communication, we have the same information which has been published in today’s newspapers. We welcome these news stories Saeed Ahmad, Save the Children spokesman

GEO-POLITICS

Raheel in Russia for crucial talks

MURAL PAINTING IN LAHORE Pakistani women walk past a mural painted along a street in Lahore on Monday. — AFP

ISLAMABAD: Army chief General Raheel Sharif reached Moscow on a three-day official visit to Russia against the backdrop of realignments taking place in the region.

The chief military spokesperson, who is also accompanying the army chief, said General Raheel was given an “elegant guard of honour” at a ceremony held at Kremlin on Monday.

“Wreath laying at tomb of unknown soldier. Heart warming to see Russian band play Pakistan anthem perfectly,” Major General Asim Bajwa tweeted.

During his three-day stay in Moscow, the army chief is expected to meet the top Russian civil and military leadership.

Warming ties This is the first visit by Raheel as the army chief to Russia, and is seen as sign of warming ties between the former cold-war rivals.

The visit comes against the backdrop of rising tensions between Pakistan and India. Sources said the army chief would brief Russian authorities on the current regional situation.

His visit is also seen as part of proactive diplomacy launched by Pakistan to reach out to regional countries in the wake of realignments in the region.

Relations between Pakistan and Russia have improved in recent years as the two countries are willing to bury their bitter past and open a new chapter in their relationship. — Express Tribune

Pakistan wins its first-ever JF-17 order at Paris Air Show is powered by a single Klimov RD93 engine.

An addition of Block III configuration with 50 aircraft and 46 aircraft delivered in the Block II configuration is expected to push Pakistan’s fleet to 150 examples, aiming to be delivered by the end of 2018.

“Though the aircraft’s developers are still working out the specifications of the Block III aircraft, upgrades are likely to include an active electronically scanned array (AESA) or Passive electronically scanned array (PESA) radar”, Mahmood said.

Air Commodore and Pakistan Air Force officer dealing in sales and marketing, Khalid Mahmood said ‘A contract has been signed with an Asian country’.

However, the name of the country was not disclosed and deliveries are likely to begin in 2017

HISTORIC SALE: A Pakistan-made Catic Thunder JF17 performs at Le Bourget airport, near Paris, France, on Monday during the International Paris Airshow. — AFP

PARIS: After high expectations for a deal to pull through, Pakistan was successful in securing its first ever export order for its JF-17 Thunder fighter on Monday on the first day of the International Paris Air Show.

Air Commodore and Pakistan Air Force officer dealing in sales and marketing, Khalid Mahmood said “A contract has been signed with an Asian country.” However the name of the country was not disclosed and deliveries are likely to begin in 2017.

Due to security concerns and client sensitivities, Mahmood chose not to specify the name of the customer and the number of aircraft it will obtain from Pakistan.

Further, speaking to AFP from the Paris Air Show by phone, Air Commodore Syed Muhammad Ali said an order for the plane had been finalised but declined to give details.

“That’s the case, we’ve finalised the order,” he said, citing sensitivities for not naming the client, the number of aircraft or the date of delivery.

Mahmood further stated that the sales for the JF-17 had been delayed due to the political turmoil in numerous countries in the

Marketing push The report added that 80 people were promoting the JF-17 in Paris this year, reflecting a significant marketing push.

Middle East and North Africa.

Three aircraft have been brought to the show this year, one of them will make its flying debut.

Commenting on the success of the show, Mahmood said the choice of venue in terms of meeting prospective customers from French speaking countries is a good one.

Selling point Analysts believe the major selling point of the JF-17 is its cost, which is likely to be substantially less than the $16-18 million cost of US-made F-16.

The latest models of the jets, which are locally produced in cooperation with China, are lightweight multi-role aircraft capable

of Mach 2.0 (twice the speed of sound) with an operational ceiling of 55,000 feet.

With a total 11 countries including Pakistan, China also markets the aircraft.

Updating the guests and media on Pakistan’s induction of the type, he claimed that a total of 54 examples of JF-17 have been delivered till date. Out of which the first 50 were delivered in a Block I configuration and an update of these to a Block II standard is underway.

Improved avionics The Block II configuration features improved avionics and better software, and adds a fixed airto-air refuelling probe. The JF-17

Precision weapons Further, the configuration could also include an infrared search and track (IRST) sensor, stations under the forward fuselage for various pods, and expanded precision weapons capabilities.

With the aim to serve mainly as a trainer, a two-seat variant is also planned by the developers. Pakistan produces 58 per cent of the airframe and China 42 per cent.

Pakistan was eager to secure its first-ever order for the JF-17 at the international event as Canada’s Bombardier is particularly hungry for sales, after its new C Series aircraft struggled through development delays and difficult market conditions.

The Paris Air Show brings together some 315,000 visitors and 2,260 exhibitors from 47 countries, with much of the attention focused on which big manufacturers, particularly Airbus and Boeing, will land the most orders.

Pakistan’s large and well-funded military has long been a major importer of defence equipment, particularly from China.

The Paris Air show runs from June 15 to 21, with the final three days open to the public. — Agencies

CONTROVERSY

Save the Children offices still closed ISLAMABAD: Save the Children said its offices in Pakistan remained closed and its operations suspended on Monday, despite media reports the government had reversed an order halting its work in the country.

The authorities sealed Save the Children’s offices last week, saying the charity was “working against the country”, and threatened to expel more foreign aid groups for supposedly undermining Pakistan. Pakistan has toughened its policies towards international aid groups in recent years, accusing them of covering for spying operations.

Local media reports suggested the interior ministry had suspended its own order to halt the operations of the British-based international charity.

The reports were based on a document circulating on social media which appeared to be a confidential interior ministry memorandum.

But interior ministry officials were unable to confirm the authenticity of the document, which was dated Friday, and Save the Children’s offices in Islamabad remained under lock and key on Monday.

An armed police officer guarding the offices told AFP they were still officially sealed.

Same information Save the Children spokesman Saeed Ahmad said they had received no word from the government about being allowed to resume their activities.

“We have no communication, we have the same information which has been published in today’s newspapers.

“We welcome these news stories,” Ahmad said. — AFP

W O R L D W I D E F U N D F O R NAT U R E S T U D Y

Tuna gill-net operations kill 12,000 dolphins every year KARACHI: Pakistani waters can no longer be deemed safe for dolphins as a staggering 12,000 of the marine animals die annually because of tuna gill-net operations along the coast.

A recent study conducted by the World Wide Fund for NaturePakistan (WWF-P) and funded by the Australian Marine Mammal Centre, found that dolphins were frequently getting enmeshed in

tuna gill-nets due to Pakistan’s fishing practices.

The study — An Assessment of Cetacean Mortality in the Tuna Fisheries of Pakistan — found that the use of tuna gillnets in fishing practice was marred with high by-catch of dolphins, turtles and other cateceans; due to operations which are non compliant to United Nations General Assembly regulations which prohibit the use of

large scale driftnets on high seas.

Tuna fishing in Pakistan is based on large scale gill-nets which increases the interaction between dolphins and the gill-net. Between Iran and Pakistan, it is estimated that there are more than 7,000 operational gill-nets.

With approximately 500 vessels dedicated to catching tuna along the coast, the length of the gill-net was observed to be longer

than 2.5 kilometres — much higher than the average — and large scale gill-netting is more harmful to non-target species especially cetaceans.

Although it has proven difficult to ascertain the number of dolphins killed each year, it has been estimated that between 25 and 35 dolphins are killed every month in such operations and on average one to four dolphins are entangled

in each fishing trip. A higher rate of dolphin morality was found along the coast of Sindh, while fewer were recorded along the Balochistan coast. In almost all cases, dolphins entangled in the tuna gillnet operations die and are later discarded.

With a large number of the species unidentifiable by Pakistani fishermen, WWF have offered to prepare a guide for dolphins to

help the stakeholders to improve the recording and reporting of each cetacean by-catch.

After a year-long observation on the affects on the different species of dolphins in Pakistan, the entanglement of some protected species brings into question whether the increasing use of large gillnets should be a point of concern for fisheries scientists and managers. — Express Tribune

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

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WORLD

Russia vows response to US weapons plan The United States is offering to store military equipment on allies’ territory in Eastern Europe, a proposal aimed at reassuring governments worried that after the conflict in Ukraine,

RAISING THE HEAT: This November 21, 2014 handout photo shows M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles of the US Army preparing to start a live-fire training at Adazi Training Area in Latvia as part of the Operation Atlantic Resolve land force assurance training exercise. — AFP/US Army/Staff Sgt. Kenneth C. Upsall file photo

they could be the Kremlin’s next target

MOSCOW/WARSAW: A plan by Washington to station tanks and heavy weapons in NATO states on Russia’s border would be the most aggressive US act since the Cold War, and Moscow would retaliate by beefing up its own forces, a Russian defence official said on Monday.

The United States is offering to store military equipment on allies’ territory in Eastern Europe, a proposal aimed at reassuring governments worried that after the conflict in Ukraine, they could be the Kremlin’s next target.

Poland and the Baltic states, where officials say privately they have been frustrated the NATO alliance has not taken more decisive steps to deter Russia, welcomed the decision by Washington to take the lead.

But others in the region were more cautious, fearing their countries could be caught in the middle of a new arms race between Russia and the United States.

Most aggressive step “If heavy US military equipment, including tanks, artillery batteries and other equipment really does turn up in countries in eastern Europe and the Baltics, that will be the most aggressive step by the Pentagon and NATO since

the Cold War,” Russian defence ministry official General Yuri Yakubov said.

“Russia will have no option but to build up its forces and resources on the Western strategic front,” Interfax news agency quoted him as saying.

He said the Russian response was likely to include speeding up the deployment of Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave bordered by Poland and Lithuania, and beefing up Russian forces in ex-Soviet Belarus.

“Our hands are completely free to organise retaliatory steps to strengthen our Western frontiers,” Yakubov said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the Pentagon plan, citing the lack of any official announcements from the US government.

US officials said their proposal envisages storing a company’s worth of equipment, enough for 150 soldiers, in each of the three Baltic nations: Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

Enough equipment for a company or possibly a battalion, or about 750 soldiers, would also be located in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and possibly Hungary.

The idea was that, in the event of an attack on NATO’s eastern border, the United States could quickly fly in troops who would use the equipment, cutting out the weeks or months it would take to transport convoys of gear over-

land across Europe. However, the US proposal could cause tensions within NATO, an alliance that often struggles to accommodate more hawkish members such as Poland or Lithuania alongside other states that want to avoid a military stand-off with Russia at any cost.

Permanent US presence Speaking after talks in Warsaw with the US Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, Polish Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said he expected a final US decision on the equipment within a few weeks.

“They know how important this is to us, because we want to build a permanent US presence, the allied army here on the Polish territory,” Siemoniak told reporters.

“It seems to me that such enterprises, that is equipment warehouses, are a very crucial step when it comes to building such a presence.”

A spokesman for Lithuania’s foreign ministry, Kestutis Vaskelevicius, said any increased NATO presence was intended to improve the security of the Baltic states. “(It) is not directed against anyone, and it does not threaten anyone,” he said.

Since Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula and a rebellion by Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic states - countries with a history of Russian

D E B T TA L K S

Germany hardens line on Greece after talks collapse BERLIN: German politicians from across the political spectrum backed Chancellor Angela Merkel’s firm line in aid talks with Athens on Monday despite the growing risk of a Greek default that could push it out of the euro zone.

A day after negotiations between Greece and its euro zone creditors broke down, members of Angela’s conservative party accused Athens of losing touch with reality.

But some of the toughest rhetoric came from her left-wing coalition partners, the Social Democrats (SPD), who have traditionally favoured a softer line with Greece.

The reaction reduces the chances that Angela might flinch and make eleventh-hour concessions as the standoff with Greece enters a critical phase. Without a deal in the coming days, a default will begin to look inevitable.

“In our view, the Greek government is behaving increasingly irresponsibly, including towards its own country,” said Yasmin Fahimi, general secretary of the SPD and a politician who has not shied away from criticising the government in the past.

“Solidarity is not a one-way street,” she added. “It is clear that we will not allow ourselves to be blackmailed.”

Volker Kauder, leader of Angela’s conservative bloc in parliament, said the government’s goal remained to keep Greece in the euro zone. “But it won’t work that Greece sets the terms and says ‘everyone else has to dance to our tune’. Greece needs to get back to reality,” Kauder said.

Conservative lawmakers who spoke to Reuters on condition

Greece, for its part, has been trying to bypass its creditors — the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund — by urging Angela Merkel and other leaders to strike a ‘political deal’ to unlock financial aid of anonymity said that although there was a general consensus that a Greek exit from the euro zone should be avoided, there was also a firm belief that concessions to Athens could create problems for other governments like Spain and Portugal.

Signal to Spanish voters One lawmaker said bending to the wishes of Greece’s ruling Syriza party would be a signal to Spanish voters to back the left-wing protest party Podemos in elections later this year.

Even Claudia Roth of the Greens party said the Greek government had to move, saying in an interview on Deutschlandfunk radio that it could make more savings in defence.

Greece, for its part, has been trying to bypass its creditors -the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund -by urging Angela and other lead-

ers to strike a “political deal” to unlock aid.

But Angela signalled at a closed-door meeting of conservative party leaders on Monday that no further negotiations could take place until Athens and the creditors had reached a deal on the reforms needed for the aid to flow.

That means that there is little chance that euro zone finance ministers can break the deadlock at their meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday, unless a deal with the creditors is clinched before then.

Time is running short. Even if Greece were to clinch a deal in the coming days, it would have to be approved by euro zone finance minister, the Greek parliament and several European parliaments, including the Bundestag.

All these steps must be completed

by June 30 to avoid the risk of Athens defaulting on loans it received from the IMF. The Bundestag lower house is in session this week, and again in the week of June 29July 3 before breaking up for the summer recess.

Michael Fuchs, a senior CDU lawmaker, described Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his Finance Minister Yannis Varoufakis as unprofessional and appeared to have accepted the idea that German taxpayers may take a hit on the loans to Athens.

“The danger that we’ll have to write off part of the loans is quite considerable,” he said. The warnings from Angela’s conservatives were echoed by SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel, who warned in a column for Bild newspaper on Monday that patience with Greece was wearing thin. — Reuters

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occupation - have pushed NATO for a muscular response.

But proposals for a permanent NATO combat presence in eastern Europe were blocked by Germany and some other alliance members. Instead, NATO intensified exercises, rotating troops through the region and set up a command headquarters for a rapid reaction force in northwest Poland. Sources close to the government in Poland, and other states in the region, said that response persuaded them they could not fully rely on NATO, and that their best bet in the event of an attack was that the US military would come to their aid.

At a NATO summit in Wales last year, agreement was reached on “pre-positioning” military equipment in eastern Europe, but the Pentagon’s plan appeared to go further and faster than measures envisaged by the alliance.

The initiative could force some former Warsaw Pact countries now in NATO to make uncomfortable choices.

Bulgaria and Hungary both say they are committed members of the alliance, but they have maintained close cultural and commercial ties to Moscow, and may not want to jeopardise those links by storing US military equipment on their soil.

Rosen Plevneliev, the Bulgarian President, said it was too early to say if his country would join the Pentagon’s initiative. — Reuters

SPY LEAK

Journalist rebuts report on access to Snowden files WASHINGTON: A journalist who published the first reports from Edward Snowden’s leaked documents offered a detailed rebuttal on Monday to allegations that Russian and Chinese spies accessed the former intelligence contractor’s files.

Glenn Greenwald, writing on online news website The Intercept, said the reports by the Sunday Times and BBC were based on the false premise that Snowden kept possession of the files he took from the US National Security Agency.

Greenwald, part of a team of journalists who met Snowden in Hong Kong before publishing the explosive articles about vast surveillance programs, said Snowden had kept no files with him when he travelled to Moscow.

“Snowden has said unequivocally that when he left Hong Kong, he took no files with him, having given them to the journalists with whom he worked, and then destroying his copy precisely so that it wouldn’t be vulnerable,” Greenwald said.

“How, then, could Russia have obtained Snowden’s files as the story claims... if he did not even have physical possession of them?

The only way this smear works is if they claim Snowden lied, and that he did in fact have files with him after he left Hong Kong.”

The Times also reported that Greenwald’s colleague, David Miranda, had some 58,000 intelligence documents when he was detained at London’s Heathrow Airport after visiting Snowden in Moscow.

But Greenwald claimed this was “an utter lie” and that “as of the time he was detained in Heathrow, David had never been to Moscow and had never met Snowden.”

Quietly deleted The American journalist said the Sunday Times had “quietly deleted” from its online report the claim that Miranda had met with Snowden in Moscow before being detained. Greenwald also said the Sunday Times “mindlessly” repeated a claim that Snowden downloaded 1.7 million documents when there is no evidence to support the number.

“The NSA has repeatedly said that it has no idea how many docu-

Glenn Greenwald, writing on online news website The Intercept, said the reports by the ‘Sunday Times’ and BBC were based on the false premise that Snowden kept possession of the files he took from the American National Security Agency

ments Snowden downloaded and has no way to find out,” Greenwald wrote. “As the NSA itself admits, the 1.7 million number is not the number the NSA claims Snowden downloaded -- they admit they don’t and can’t know that number -- but merely the amount of documents he interacted with in his years of working at NSA.” Asylum in Russia Snowden, who has been granted asylum in Russia, is being sought

by Washington which has branded him a hacker and a traitor who endangered lives by revealing the extent of the NSA spying program.

The weekend reports said Britain has been forced to remove some of its spies after Russia and China accessed the raft of top-secret documents.

The Sunday Times said other government sources claimed China had also accessed the documents, which reveal US and British intelligence techniques, leading to fears that their spies could be identified. — AFP

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Subscription: RO70 per year.

Blocking illegal firearms made by 3-D printers

I

n the 1993 thriller In the Line of Fire, a would-be assassin painstakingly builds a plastic gun that he could slip past magnetometers — and into a room with the president. Nowadays, all he would have to do is press “print.”

Manufacturing plastic guns is no longer the stuff of Hollywood; it’s an easy and inexpensive process. The ever-wider availability of 3-D printers allows all sorts of people to create all sorts of objects, including firearms, given the right schematics. Defense Distributed, an early innovator in this field, created and distributed blueprints for a plastic handgun in 2013, before the federal government ordered the group to take them down. By that time, the information had already been copied, and it remains accessible. Since 2013, enthusiasts have created plastic revolvers and plastic rifles, and they have used 3-D printers to fashion gun parts that turn semiautomatic guns into fully automatic weapons. The 1988 Undetectable Firearms Act banned the production, transfer and possession of guns that magnetometers can’t detect, requiring at least 3.7 ounces of steel to be in every firearm created or carried in the United States. Congress reauthorised the law in 2013.

That’s better than nothing, but it’s not enough. Legislators should have made the law stronger, as Representative Steve Israel, Democrat-New York, proposed doing last week.

Israel argues that the act contains a large loophole. A professional or amateur gun-maker can legally produce a plastic weapon with a removable chunk of steel in it and legally sell or give it to someone else, who could easily discard the metal element and carry a deadly weapon anywhere. Israel wants to require producers and sellers of plastic guns to include a metal piece that can’t be removed. If outfits such as Defense Distributed wanted to enable people to build legal firearms, they would have to create schematics for weapons that contain critical, functional elements made of steel.

If, that is, the State Department lets them. State has moved to restrict online publication of “technical data” that can be used to construct weapons, demanding that federal officials give their approval first. The government claims that distributing, say, plastic gun schematics online is essentially an export of sensitive weapons information to foreign countries, and State has the authority to regulate arms exports under a Cold War-era law aimed at preventing weapons information from falling into Soviet hands. Keeping plastic gun schematics away from foreign terrorist organisations is a worthy national security goal now. Worthy, but near-impossibly hard. We can’t blame State for trying, but we put more hope in Israel’s initiative to restrict the production of undetectable plastic weapons.

His policy wouldn’t end the threat; the determined would still be able to work around it. But it would help reduce the number of undetectable guns in circulation. — The Washington Post

The death of a fly

T

he pre-monsoon heat feeds into the political heat in Karachi, ramping it up a notch or two, with a range of players all applying the Bunsen burner to sensitive parts in pursuit of their notnecessarily parallel or complementary motives. First up to the plate is Major General Bilal Akbar, the DG Rangers, who briefed the apex committee which has oversight of the implementation of the National Action Plan. What he had to say was not new news to anybody who has lived and worked in Karachi for the last quarter-century. An ‘evil nexus’ of political leaders, bureaucrats, gang lords and sundry mafias is deeply involved in organised crime in Karachi. They preside over an empire worth an estimated Rs230 billion a year and are seemingly completely anonymous, faceless and nameless. Without the evidence, without arrests, without fleshing out the bones of the report, any ‘counterterrorism operations’ are utterly worthless. The time is long past when ‘sensitivities’ had to be considered. If these criminal elements, political or otherwise, have the city by the throat then don’t come teasing us, Major General Bilal Akbar. Exercise your legitimate powers. Which brings us to the visit to Karachi by Prime Minister Nawaz sharif on June 12. He condemned the culture of strikes that so often paralyse the principal commercial hub of the nation. Even the “death of a fly” provokes a shutterdown, observed the PM, going on to say that he wished to see the mafias smashed and their patrons unmasked. Well, really? Perhaps he should make a call to the aforementioned, Major General Bilal Akbar, who appears to be in possession of some key information regarding these mafias and their patrons. Could it be that these two very powerful men are in reality beholden to the very mafias, crooks, murderers and extortionists that they profess a desire to take down? Actions speak louder than words. — Express Tribune

Fund-raising events give big boost to development This refers to the news story, University, college students raise funds for Dar Al Ataa’a’, (June 11). It is indeed a novel idea to host the ‘Big Give Competition’ for young and bright Omani students as they help raise funds for the organisation.

These funds not only support the less privileged in Oman but also contribute to humanitarian causes all around the world. Among the many noble tasks that the association performs, one is to encourage young people to become involved in philanthropy and volunteer to contribute in such causes.

Teams are not only crucial for profit organisations but also for all organisations — even for families.

It was a great event and it made the people happy to see how Omani students interacted in the event.

Such programmes are essential for the development and progress of countries and bring love and affection to keep the societies alive.

Munnawar Hameed Muscat

New Salalah Airport is a blessing for travellers This refers to the news story, First scheduled flight lands at new Salalah Airport (June 15). The opening of the new airport in Salalah is yet another big step towards development in the Sultanate. With the approaching holidays and the Khareef season, the newly opened facilities at the airport would be a blessing for travellers from Oman and abroad. The increasing number of domestic and international flights is a most encouraging news for the travel community. The new

BACK TO TRADITIONS

Democrats in a bid to become Democrats PAUL KRUGMAN

The Democratic Party is becoming more assertive about its traditional values, a point driven home by Hillary’s decision to speak on Roosevelt Island. You could say that Democrats are moving left. But the story is more complicated and interesting than this simple statement can convey

O

n Friday, House Democrats shocked almost everyone by rejecting key provisions needed to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership, an agreement the White House wants but much of the party doesn’t. On Saturday Hillary Clinton formally began her campaign for president, and surprised most observers with an unapologetically liberal and populist speech.

These are, of course, related events. The Democratic Party is becoming more assertive about its traditional values, a point driven home by Hillary’s decision to speak on Roosevelt Island. You could say that Democrats are moving left. But the story is more complicated and interesting than this simple statement can convey.

You see, ever since Ronald Reagan’s election in 1980, Democrats have been on the ideological defensive. Even when they won elections they seemed afraid to endorse clearly progressive positions, eager to demonstrate their centrism by supporting policies like cuts to Social Security that their base hated. But that era appears to be over. Why? Part of the answer is that Democrats, despite defeats in midterm elections, believe - rightly or wrongly - that the political wind is at their backs. Growing ethnic diversity is producing what should be a more favourable electorate; growing tolerance is turning social issues, once a source of Republican strength, into a Democratic advantage instead.

At the same time, Democrats

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Eighty percent of success is showing up WOODY ALLEN

seem finally to have taken on board something political scientists have been telling us for years: Adopting “centrist” positions in an attempt to attract swing voters is a mug’s game, because such voters don’t exist. Most supposed independents are in fact strongly aligned with one party or the other, and the handful who aren’t are mainly just confused.

So you might as well take a stand for what you believe in. But the party’s change isn’t just about politics, it’s also about policy.

On one side, the success of Obamacare and related policies - millions covered for substantially less than expected, surprisingly effective cost control for Medicare have helped to inoculate the party against blanket assertions that government programmes never work. And on the other side, the Davos Democrats who used to be a powerful force arguing against progressive policies have lost much of their credibility.

I’m referring to the kind of people — many, though not all, from Wall Street — who go to lots of international meetings where they assure each other that prosperity is all about competing in the global economy, and that this means supporting trade agreements and cutting social spending. Such people have influence in part because of their campaign contributions, but also because of the belief that they really know how the world works.

As it turns out, however, they don’t. In the 1990s the purported wise men blithely assured us that we had nothing to fear from financial deregulation; we did. After crisis struck, thanks in large part to that very deregulation,

they warned us that we should be very afraid of bond investors, who would punish America for its budget deficits; they didn’t. So why believe them when they insist that we must approve an unpopular trade deal? And this loss of credibility means that if Hillary makes it to the White House she’ll govern very differently from the way her husband did in the 1990s.

As I said, you can describe all of this as a move to the left, but there’s more to it than that - and it’s not at all symmetric to the Republican move right. Democrats are adopting ideas that work and rejecting ideas that don’t, whereas Republicans are doing the opposite.

And no, I’m not being unfair.

Obamacare, which was once a conservative idea, is working better than even supporters expected; so Democrats are committed to defending its achievements, while Republicans are more fanatical than ever in their efforts to destroy it. Modestly higher taxes on the wealthy haven’t hurt the economy, while promises that tax cuts will have magical effects have proved disastrously wrong; so Democrats have become more comfortable with a modest tax-and-spend agenda, while Republicans are more firmly in the grip of tax-cutting cranks than ever. And so on down the line. Of course, changes in ideology matter only to the extent that they can influence policy.

And while the electoral odds probably favour cranks, and Democrats could retake the Senate, they have very little chance of retaking the House. So changes in the Democratic Party may take a while to change America as a whole. — The New York Times

airport is bound to add value and provide much better facilities for the passenger, who can now avail themselves of the added benefits of the holiday season.

Ramachandran Nair Ruwi

erred in a manner that is naive. It is well known that Lalit is a fugitive from Indian law. His passport has been revoked and he will be arrested if he lands on Indian soil on the charges of money laundering. How can Sushma make a unilateral ‘humanitarian’ decision in favour of a man who is being pursued by India’s law enforcement agencies?

Mohammad Osama Rawat Muscat

Sushma’s view on Lalit Modi is not acceptable This refers the news story, Sushma in row over travel documents of Lalit Modi (June 15). The whole episode is really shocking. I personally dislike the BJP as a political party , but until now I have admired Sushma Swaraj as a political leader of high moral values as she had led an impeccable public life.

She is a rare BJP politician who enjoys cross-party acceptability.

However, in this case, her defence is indeed weak and she has clearly

I agree on the proposal of banning pop corn eating I fully concur with the view to ban pop corn inside the cinema hall.

It is too distracting . The whole purpose is to have an undisturbed attention on the movie.

Aruna R. Ruwi

Letters, containing not more than 200 words with full name, address and telephone number, may be sent by mail (Times of Oman, P.O. Box 770, P.C. 112, Ruwi), by fax (24813153) or by e-mail (akhtar@timesofoman.com)

T I M E S OF OMAN

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

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PERSPEC IVE Why Beijing should Obamanomics, turn to Islamabad sidetracked P

akistan’s economic managers have not succeeded in reducing dependence on external capital flows. While the country will continue to receive significant amounts of capital from multilateral banks and continue to get help from the IMF, it is not likely to receive much financial assistance from the United States, its largest benefactor in the past. This is largely because of a fundamental change in America’s strategic interests.

Pakistan mattered for Washington when, during the period of president Ayub Khan, it saw Islamabad as one part of a chain to hold back the advance of Communism. This was, again, the motivation during the period of president Ziaul Haq the Soviet Union arrived on Pakistan’s borders to invade Afghanistan. During the early years of president Pervez Musharraf, the ability of Al Qaeda terrorists to hit two places in America’s heartland was enough to persuade Washington that Pakistan was a critical for its strategic needs.

The world has changed since then. The Soviet Union has collapsed, the spread of Communism is no longer a threat, and Al Qaeda is no longer a powerful presence in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. America took its revenge and Osama bin Laden, the main sponsor of the 9/11 attacks, was killed in 2011. The IS in Iraq and Syria (possibly spreading to Libya) could threaten America. It may get involved in beating it back in these countries.

In this new geo-political situation, Pakistan is no longer of much strategic significance for the United States. In these altered circumstances, it makes sense for Islamabad to look at China as a source of external finance and Beijing is willing to oblige.

During the April visit of China’s President Xi Jinping to Islamabad, Pakistan was promised $46 billion equivalent of capital, most of it in the form of project assistance.

Nations forge relations seldom for sentimental reasons. They do so for strategic reasons. Notwithstanding the hyperbolic pronouncements of the leaders of China and Pakistan about the nature of their relations – they have called these higher than the highest mountains, deeper than the deepest ocean – the two countries have strictly followed their interests. Pakistan’s reasons for drawing close to China are less complex than those of China. For Islamabad, transfer of defence technology acquired considerable importance after it was subjected to repeated sanctions by the United States. Ac-

SHAHID JAVED BURKI

Nations forge relations seldom for sentimental reasons. They do so for strategic reasons.

Notwithstanding the hyperbolic pronouncements of the leaders of China and Pakistan about the nature of their relations the two countries have strictly followed their interests

cording to the detailed account provided by Feroz Hasan Khan in his book ‘Eating Grass’, it is clear that China’s help was critical for the deavlopment of nuclear weapons by Pakistan. The need for capital has been added as the motivating factor. Some analysts have suggested that the attempt to balance India’s growing military might may be the third reason for Pakistan to get close to China. However, China was of no particular help during Pakistan’s two recent wars with India, one in 1965 and the second in 1971. It is unlikely that Beijing will intervene if for some reason there is another conflict involving India and Pakistan. China has begun to look to Pakistan as an important player in its strategy to create space for itself in the region around its borders. Using its growing economic strength, China is spending more than ever on its military. Gwadar could become an important staging area for its rapidly expanding and modernising submarine fleet.

The reason for giving the navy so much attention is to protect some of the sea-lanes critical to Chinese trade. The narrow Strait of Malacca through which nearly all of its commerce passes, is of great importance as it could easily be blocked during a period of hostility. A strong naval presence in these oceans will serve as deterrence.

The proposed China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), will connect the port of Gwadar with the western provinces of China, a land-locked region, through road, rail and fiber-optic links. Some of the trade that passes through Malacca could use the CPEC as an alternative route. China is looking also at the rich energy and mineral resources available to be exploited in Central Asia. A United States investigation in 2010 estimated that Afghanistan was sitting atop mineral wealth valued at $1 trillion.

Some of these mineral veins spread into Pakistan’s Balochistan province. The CPEC could be used to transport these minerals as well as oil and gas.

The large investment planned by China in Pakistan also serves to maintain the country’s faltering rate of economic growth. For the last 35 years, the Chines economy increased at the rate of about 10 per cent a year. It is now 32 times larger in size than in 1979 when the economy was opened and the period of high growth began. That expansion was made possible by the export of cheap manufactures to western markets. But cheap labour is no longer available and the markets in the West are saturated. — Express Tribune

Focussing on the study of humanities

B

ol, the Pakistani movie, was peculiar to say the least.

The sights were too familiar — too relatable. The movie adds numerous problems to the growing plethora of observable socio-economic and political issues — disgust towards daughters, child abuse, treatment of marginised communities, lack of social justice, honour, and spousal abuse to mention a few. A dear friend calls these issues “swamps” that have to be drained out from the society at any cost, for the development of the country. In an already precarious status quo, where the mere existence of Pakistan remains doubtful in the coming decades, it is absolutely essential to target these swamps as quickly as possible.

It seems hard to even question these socio-economic inequalities and inefficiencies in a society where discussing norms and values is itself blasphemous. A thinly-veiled hypocrisy is supposed to be followed by each and every Pakistani. Who should tell us that having daughters is not a punishment?

That social justice is not synonymous with enforcing dishonourable practices and that liberty

HAMMAD ASLAM

is essential for all human beings.

A few days ago, Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy wrote about the limitations of education and teachers in Pakistan. Hoodbhoy commands immense respect as a brilliant academic but many, including I, disagree with his overly-liberalistic ideals. However, his discussion of unqualified teachers and the unfortunate lack of conceptual knowledge in education systems were astute. The propagation of education to identify and counter these decades-old swamps in our society becomes more than just a necessity. Education is not acquired merely for the sake of employment or for passing a competitive exam.

Education is vital to understanding the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen of a liberal society, where basic human rights and civil liberties are guaranteed for all, regardless of gender, creed, religion or economic status. These are traits that a liberal arts schooling can give you.

There is no solution to the persecution of religious and ethnolinguistic minorities without making sure that there are is a sufficient number of people in society who are capable enough to

understand the necessity of basic civil liberties for the existence of a nation. In the history of Pakistan, very few wealthy Pakistanis have committed their wealth and power for development of education in Pakistan. It is no wonder that we are still stuck in a quagmire of incompetent teachers teaching a bunch of students who wish to memorise rather than understand. Rockefellers’ donations were instrumental to the formation of the world’s leading universities in the United States including but not limited to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, The Rockefeller University and the University of Pennsylvania.

Unfortunately, Pakistan has not benefited from its equivalent of the Rockefellers. Had any of the Pakistan’s elite established a solid liberal arts institution with strong focus on philosophy, social sciences and policy studies, the landscape of our country’s society and politics would have been a lot different.

Furthermore, the arts and the humanities are never considered to be ‘high-earning’ subjects and hence, are often neglected in the mainstream education models of Pakistan. — Express Tribune

FRED HIATT

I

t’s not only on trade that President Barack Obama seems to be losing his party. With inequality rising and wages flat, Democrats are pushing Hillary Clinton to move beyond Obamanomics and offer something more dramatic and more radical.

But before repudiating Obama’s entire programme, it’s worth recalling this: Obamanomics has not failed.

It just has not been tried.

True, Congress approved a major stimulus bill along the lines Obama wanted in the early days of his presidency.

That, along with actions by the Federal Reserve, probably saved the nation from total financial meltdown. He also pried Obamacare out of the legislature before losing his Democratic majorities.

Since then, Obama and congressional Republicans have played to a draw, and the president’s economic proposals have languished. Because those proposals are rooted in a very different vision of the economy than is emerging from his party’s left, it’s worth reviewing them — and remembering that they have yet to be fully tested.

The emerging view, stated simply, is that inequality is rooted in the malign behaviour of corporations and their overpaid executives. Government’s job is to redistribute wealth by taxing those executives and demanding they double the wages of their lowest-earning employees.

Meanwhile the state should expand its role, not just for the poor but for the middle class as well, with more Social Security, free tuition regardless of income and so forth.

The Obama view, again simplified, would be that executives and hedge fund managers are indeed overpaid, but cutting their salaries won’t solve the country’s problems.

Globalisation and technological change are pressing on the middle class, and the only hope is to encourage economic growth — in part by keeping the government from squelching such growth — and positioning working people to share in it.

How to do this? By spending

Before repudiating Obama’s entire programme, it’s worth recalling this: Obamanomics has not failed. It just has not been tried

more on education, research and infrastructure. Obama has made this point so many times that we tend not to hear it. But that doesn’t make it wrong.

You can argue about the president’s specifics. Why make community college free, for example, while seeking to destroy for-profit colleges, the best of which are serving the same underserved, undereducated working adults? Infrastructure with no rational basis — high-speed rail in regions where no one wants to ride trains, say — will not spur economic growth. But all three areas of investment would create jobs in the shortterm and encourage economic growth in the long run. Improving education would allow more people to participate in that growth.

Why, more than six years into the Obama presidency, have we not implemented this oft-touted economic plan?

First, because entitlement payments are gobbling up more and more of the budget, leaving less for all other spending. That’s a challenge Obama and Republicans both promised to tackle and both gave up on.

Second, because Republicans will not agree to raise sufficient revenue to sustain the kinds of investment the nation needs.

Nor is investment the only element of Obamanomics sitting on the shelf. The president has his own, smarter version of taxing the rich: A cap on deductions that would not only reduce inequality but also redirect economic activity from overpriced vacation homes and gold-plated health insurance plans into more productive endeavours. He has a targeted version of the left’s beloved financial transactions tax, too: A levy on the largest banks proportional to the riskiness of their liabilities. And, of course, he hopes — or hoped — to negotiate wide-ranging trade agreements in Asia and Europe that would open export opportunities for US businesses.

At her opening rally on Saturday on Roosevelt Island in New York City, Hillary did not dare restate her support for the trade policy she championed as Obama’s secretary of state, and she peppered her address with some stunning statistics on executive overpay. But in a key line, she signaled her support for the moderate essence of Obamanomics: “Growth and fairness go together,” she said. “For lasting prosperity, you can’t have one without the other.”

Just as Obama has lost his party on trade, Hillary may have difficulty keeping Democrats on board for an inclusive, pro-growth platform. She understands, though, that a campaign based on grievance and anti-corporate anger could be a liability in the general election. — The Washington Post

Who’s running for US President in 2016?

DEMOCRATIC PARTY (OFFICIALLY RUNNING)

REPUBLICAN PARTY Jeb Bush Former governor of Florida

Hillary Clinton Former US secretary of state Bernie Sanders US Senator for Vermont

Rand Paul US senator for Kentucky

Ted Cruz US senator for Texas

Marco Rubio US senator for Florida

Ben Carson Retired neurosurgeon

Martin O’Malley Former governor of Maryland Lincoln Chafee Former governor of Rhode Island

Mike Huckabee Former Governor of Arkansas

Rick Santorum US senator, Pennsylvania

George Pataki Former governor of New York

Lindsey Graham US senator for South Carolina

Rick Perry Former governor of Texas

LIKELY TO RUN EXPRESSED INTEREST Joe Biden Current Vice President

Source: 2016 Election Central

FROM OUR ARCHIVES

1389

Ottoman Turks crush Serbia in the Battle of Kosovo.

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Benjamin Franklin and his son test the relationship between electricity and lightning by flying a kite in a thunder storm.

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Great Britain and the United States agree on a joint occupation of Oregon Territory..

SEMINAR ON INDUSTRIAL HANDLING HELD Carly Fiorina Former CEO of Hewlett Packard

LIKELY TO RUN Jim Webb Former US senator for Virginia

TODAY IN HISTORY

(OFFICIALLY RUNNING)

Bobby Jindal

Scott Walker

Chris Christie

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MUSCAT: Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, commerce and industry minister, said that the years of the Sixth Five-Year Plan—2001-2005—will witness tangible progress in development and transformation of industry and aspects related to industrial handling.

He said this in an address while opening a seminar entitled ‘Industrial handling in the Sultanate’ at Radisson SAS Hotel yesterday. He said that the holding of the seminar coincided with the preparations for the Sixth Five-Year Plan, the strategic planning for the industry sector and the laying down of required mechanism to assist it overcome the challenges and achieve targeted growth rates by increasing investment in industrial activities. Maqbool said the Ministry of Commerce and Industry was keen to look into the industrial handling status and its practice in the Sultanate, besides the potential prospects to promote this activity during forthcoming period.

1944 US Marines begin the invasion of Saipan in Pacific.

1964

The last French troops leave Algeria.

John Kasich

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ILO OFFICIAL

‘Migrant workers still lack basic rights in Arab region’ REJIMON K

reji@timesofoman.com

FOCUS ON MIGRANTS’ ISSUES: From left to right: Rothana Begum from Human Rights Watch, Mustafa Qadri, Gulf Migrant Rights Researcher at Amnesty International, and Mustapha Said, senior workers’ specialist, International Labour Organisation (ILO), at the opening of the ILO workshop on fair migration in Beirut, Lebanon, on Monday. – Times of Oman

DEFIANCE

Bashir defies court order, flies out of South Africa JOHANNESBURG: Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir flew out of South Africa on Monday, dodging a court order for him to stay as judges weighed up whether he should be arrested over alleged war crimes and genocide.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) said it was “disappointed” at the failure to arrest Bashir, who had been in Johannesburg for an African Union summit overshadowed by the ICC’s demand for his detention on longstanding arrest warrants over the Darfur conflict. Even as his plane took off from Waterkloof military airport outside Pretoria, the local high court heard legal arguments over the urgent application to force the authorities to arrest him.

The ICC’s chief deputy prosecutor James Stewart said the international court was “disappointed that he was not arrested. Our position has always been that South Africa’s obligation is clear and unequivocal. It had an obligation to arrest him,” he said.

After Bashir had departed, South African Judge Dunstan Mlambo also issued a harsh criticism of the government for ignoring Sunday’s court order that authorities must stop the president from exiting the country. “The conduct of the respondents -- to the extent that they have failed to take steps to arrest and detain (Bashir) -- is inconsistent with the constitution of the Republic of South Africa,” Mlambo said.

President Bashir’s hurried exit on the final day of the summit sparked anger from rights groups.

“By allowing this shameful flight, the South African government has disregarded not only its international legal obligations, but its own courts,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement. “When (Bashir) took off from South Africa today, he took with him the hopes of thousands of victims of grave crimes in Darfur who wish at last to see justice done.” — AFP

BEIRUT: Even after decades of promoting international labour standards, the working conditions of migrant workers in the Arab region lack basic rights, a senior International Labour Organisation (ILO) official said.

“ILO has been promoting for decent working conditions and better labour laws for workers for decades. But unfortunately, the reality is that much more has to be done for the betterment of the migrant workers. The conditions are same when compared to that of decades back,” Mustapha Said, senior workers specialist at the ILO, said.

Mustapha was speaking at the opening of the ILO workshop on fair migration in Beirut. “ILO’s Constitution of 1919 calls for the “protection of the interests of workers when employed in countries other than their own. However, majority of the migrant workers, especially domestic workers,

in the region are denied basic rights unfortunately. A lot has to be done in this area. In the region, migrant workers don’t have rights to form associations or unionise. It’s a sad situation,” Mustapha said.

“The labour laws formulated by the host countries most often fall short in protecting migrant workers rights. Moreover, the trade unions are excluded while the laws are formulated,” Mustapha added.

No positive changes While talking about the ground realities, Rothana Begum from Human Rights Watch said that in abolishing Kafala, the system meant to sponsor and monitor the migrant workers, the reforms announced during the last few years have not brought any positive changes.

Meanwhile, Mustafa Qadri, Gulf Migrant Rights Researcher at Amnesty International, said that when compared to the past, migrant rights are discussed more and that itself is a positive sign.

However, Mustapha from the

ILO said that there are not much positive changes related to migration issues. “Changes will come only if migrant workers form themselves into a pressure group,” Mustapha stressed.

Labour migration has received renewed impetus recently through the United Nations declaration on international migration and development, which acknowledged the important contribution of migration in realising the Millennium Development Goals, and recognised that human mobility is a key factor for sustainable development.

At the International Labour Conference in June 2014, in his second report as Director-General, Guy Ryder chose the subject of migration, “a key feature of today’s world of work and one which raises complex policy challenges”. The paper had called for “constructing an agenda for fair migration which not only respects the fundamental rights of migrant workers but also offers them real opportunities for decent work”.

UN calls for humanitarian truce as planes bomb Sanaa Ban Ki-moon said the truce should last for at least two weeks to allow life-saving supplies into Yemen

GENEVA: UN Chief Ban Kimoon launched Yemen peace talks in Geneva on Monday with a call for a humanitarian truce as warplanes from a Saudi-led Arab coalition pounded the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa overnight.

More than 2,600 people have been killed since the coalition began military operations in March to stop the Houthi militia moving on Aden and to shore up embattled President Abdrabbo Mansour Hadi, then in the southern city.

Ban said the truce, called to mark the start of the Holy Month of Ramadan later this week, should last for at least two weeks to allow life-saving supplies into the country. “Today Yemen’s very existence hangs in the balance.

While the parties bicker, Yemen burns,” he told reporters.

Yemeni Foreign Minister Reyad Yassin Abdulla dismissed the possibility of any ceasefire soon.

“A ceasefire, for what? If they are still occupying Yemen, they are still killing innocent people, if they are still destroying everything, what kind of ceasefire?,” Abdulla told reporters in Geneva.

But he said his exiled government might consider a “limited” truce if the Houthis agreed to withdraw from cities, including Aden and Taiz, and free more than 6,000 prisoners.

Representatives of Hadi’s government were in Geneva for the talks, but a plane carrying mem-

PEACE NEGOTIATIONS: UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon, right, speaks with Yemeni Foreign Minister Riad Yassin, left, on Monday at the UN offices in Geneva at the opening of Yemen peace talks. – AFP

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bers of the Houthi’s Ansarullah group and Saleh’s General People’s Congress party had to land in Djibouti after what Yemeni political sources said was Egypt’s refusal to give the plane overflight rights. The plane was later allowed to leave for Geneva.

Two-day talk The Geneva talks are expected to last two to three days, with the UN special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, shuttling between the delegations.

Analysts have said there is little sign so far that either the Houthis and their ally Saleh or the Riyadhbased Hadi are ready to compro-

mise after nearly three months of fighting. Saudi Arabia’s cabinet welcomed United Nations efforts to convene the talks and said it supported Hadi’s government demands that talks focus on implementing a Security Council resolution demanding the Houthis leave cities they have seized since last year.

Ban also called for the withdrawal of armed forces from the cities, saying the fighting was bolstering hardline militants.

“The region simply cannot sustain another open wound like Syria and Libya,” he said.

While Western countries largely backed the air campaign as a way of pushing the Houthis to the negotiating table, they have more recently started to press Saudi Arabia to agree to a humanitarian pause to allow aid in, and to negotiate.

The crisis began when Houthis

seized Sanaa last September to little resistance, saying they were trying to root out corruption and discrimination. Hadi fled to Aden in February then escaped to Saudi Arabia as Houthi forces closed in on the southern port city.

Although the conflict is rooted in local rivalries, it has also become part of a wider regional struggle.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Middle East affairs will discuss the conflict on Tuesday at a meeting of the pan-Islamic Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) hosted by Saudi Arabia in Jeddah, the Iranian Mehr news agency reported.

The crisis has also forced the United States to withdraw its military personnel from Yemen, seen

by Washington as a frontline in its war against hardline militants.

Fighting raged throughout Yemen’s south and centre on Mon-

day, in clashes pitting tribesmen and pro-Hadi militiamen against the Houthis and their army allies.

Air strikes hit Houthi positions in Saana on Monday and in the nearby province of Al Dhalea to back up local armed fighters, who exchanged heavy artillery salvos with the Houthis.

A humanitarian crisis has worsened due to an air and sea blockade imposed to stop arms supplies to the Houthis and Saleh, but which also cut off access to food, medicine and fuel for many citizens. More than 3,000 cases of dengue fever have been recorded in five provinces since the conflict began, with three confirmed deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.

Medical sources in Aden say dozens have died from the illness, which has spread from mounting piles of uncollected rubbish and intense summer heat. — Reuters

DELUGE

20 people missing, animals still on loose after Georgia floods

NEUTRALISED: Rescue workers drag a dead tiger at the zoo in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Monday. – Reuters

TBILISI: Up to 20 people are still missing after devastating floods killed at least a dozen people in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, with escaped zoo animals still on the loose on Monday.

The government of the ex-Soviet republic said the death toll after the Vere river burst its banks on Sunday following hours of torrential rain stood at 12 on Monday morning.

Twenty people were missing as of Monday morning, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili’s spokeswoman, Manana Tokmajishvili, told AFP, with the death toll expected to rise following Georgia’s worst flood in decades.

The torrents ravaged a zoo in the Georgian capital, with many animals including penguins drowning in the muddy waters.

Other animals such as lions, ti-

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gers and even a hippopotamus escaped and were either recaptured or shot dead by police.

The hunt was still going on for the animals Monday, Tbilisi zoo spokeswoman Mzia Sharashidze told journalists.

Search continues “The search for animals is still underway,” she said, adding that some 300 animals had died.

Some animals including two bear cubs were found kilometres away from the zoo and returned to their enclosures on Monday.

Locals were advised to use cau-

tion and call an emergency number if they came across any bears, tigers, lions or leopards that might still be at large. “It’s difficult to say how many animals are still roaming the streets,” Tbilisi zoo director Zurab Gurielidze told reporters.

The disaster left dozens of families without homes, wiped out several roads in central Tbilisi and seriously disrupted traffic.

Some homes were swept away along with cars by the torrents, with the floods even washing coffins out of the ground in the city cemetery.

Scores of Tbilisi residents volunteered to join a clean-up operation which could take weeks, mayor David Narmania said.

“Material damage is some $15 million (13.3 million euros), Finance Minister Nodar Khaduri told a cabinet meeting. — Agencies

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

15,000

WORLD

people have died since Boko Haram has been waging a six-year campaign of violence in northeastern Nigeria

23 people killed in suicide attacks on Chad police Paris condemned Monday’s blasts, with a foreign ministry spokesman saying France ‘stands alongside Chad and its partners in the fight against terrorism’

N’DJAMENA/BAUCHI (Nigeria): Twenty-three people were killed on Monday in suicide bombings targeting police in the Chadian capital that the government said was the work of Boko Haram militants.

They were the first such attacks in the capital of the Central African nation, which has been on the frontline of the regional fight against the Nigerian extremist group.

“Boko Haram chose the wrong target. These lawless and faithless terrorists will be flushed out and neutralised wherever they are,” the government said in a statement.

It said 23 people were killed and another 101 wounded in the simultaneous bombings outside the police headquarters and police academy in N’Djamena.

It said four “terrorists” were also killed, but did not give details. Earlier, a police official had told AFP that two suicide bombers carried out the attacks, which came as police cadets were attending a training course at the academy.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Situation under control The government said the situation was quickly brought under control, but the unprecedented assault on the capital prompted the creation of a “crisis cell” and vehicles with darkened windows were banned from N’Djamena.

Large numbers of members of Chad’s security forces were also

SITE OF ATTACK: Security officers stand at the site of a suicide bombing in Ndjamena, Chad, on Monday. - Reuters

seen taking up positions on the streets. President Idriss Deby was expected to return home during the day from an African Union summit in Johannesburg, an official said.

In his absence, government ministers held a crisis meeting to discuss the bombings.

The former French colony is part of a four-nation coalition also including Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger that was created to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency after the group stepped up crossborder attacks.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau has on several occasions threatened to attack Chad and other countries in the coalition.

Paris condemned Monday’s blasts, with a foreign ministry spokesman saying France “stands alongside Chad and its partners in the fight against terrorism”.

Chad is a close ally of France in its counter-terrorism Operation Barkhane in five countries in the Sahel region and the French army has set up its headquarters for the campaign in N’Djamena.

Last week, Abuja hosted a summit where Nigeria and fellow coalition members plus Benin rubber-stamped an 8,700-strong regional force to replace the current four-nation grouping.

The long-awaited Multi-National Joint Task Force, which had originally been due to become operational in November, has its headquarters in N’Djamena, under a senior Nigerian officer.

Boko Haram has been waging a six-year campaign of violence in northeastern Nigeria that has left at least 15,000 people dead and increasingly spilled across borders.

Chad’s involvement in the fight against Boko Haram began in January when Deby sent troops to assist neighbouring Cameroon, whose far northern region was coming under attack from the rebels. More than 70 Chadian soldiers have died in operations against the extremists, including attacks around Lake Chad where the borders of Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger meet.

Nigeria’s new President Muhammadu Buhari, who has vowed to make crushing Boko Haram the

UNPRECEDENTED STEP

‘Find Your Equal’ to pair young Iranians shunning marriage TEHRAN: An alarming rise in the number of young Iranians who are shunning marriage prompted an unprecedented step from the government on Monday — the launch of a matchmaking website.

At pains to point out it was not an online dating service, officials said the “Find Your Equal” website hoped to reverse a surge in numbers, currently 11 million, of young single adults.

It will use a network of matchmakers — clerics and professionals of good standing in their communities, such as doctors and teachers -- to try to pair people off.

Having trialled the system, which will be free, for a year in which officials said 130 intermediaries introduced 3,000 men and women — with 100 couples getting married — it will now launch fully. The aim is for 100,000 marriages over the next 12 months.

“We face a family crisis in Iran,” Mahmoud Golzari, a deputy minister for sport and youth, told reporters at the unveiling of hamsan.tebyan.net in Tehran.

“There are many people who are single, and when that happens it means no families and no children,” he said, defending the need for the website.

“This should have happened a long time ago,” he added.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who wants Iran’s population of 80 million to nearly double to 150 million by 2050, last year urged officials to take new steps to improve the birth rate. The government has since reversed past policies to control population growth, with legislation to cancel subsidies for birth control and eliminate free other medical help.

The matchmaking website is another step: people register online

FACING A FAMILY CRISIS: Iranians walk on a street in the capital Tehran in this file photograph taken on November 25, 2014. The move to launch a matchmaking website has been triggered by deep unease in the country that family as a unit is facing erosion and that population could fall. – AFP/Files

and the matchmaker tries to come up with a suitable partner from its database.

Users must state their age, height, weight and build, eye colour, education level and languages spoken, whether they smoke and list their hobbies and interests.

Both males and females are also asked their religion and their level of faith, and whether they would like to live abroad.

If a potential match is found, family meetings and psychological testing to try to ensure the two are compatible will follow.

Economic factors, such as high youth unemployment, are blamed for rising marriage ages — the national average is 28.1 for men and 23.4 for women. In Tehran it is higher, at 30.6 and 26.7, respectively.

Many young Iranians also cite the country’s strict social mores and pressure to get mar-

ried as a heavy burden, but religious families blame a Western cultural invasion for eroding traditional values.

Although online dating sites are banned in Iran, around 350 operate illegally. Millions of young adults also use Facebook and social media to hook up despite such sites being prohibited.

Zohre Hosseini, project manager for the matchmaking site, acknowledged that young people faced difficulties.

“We don’t claim that we are solving all the problems,” she said.

“But the problem we are tackling here is that of finding a partner.”

Hitting the planned number of marriages could be a tall order, said Fatemeh, a single 24-yearold middle class engineer from Tehran who said she would be perturbed at submitting personal information online.” — AFP

A15

priority of his rule, visited Chad as well as Niger earlier this month to build up the regional coalition against the extremists.

“Boko Haram declared that they are in alliance with IS, so terrorism has gone international.

They are in Mali, they are in Nigeria, they are in Syria, they are in Iraq, they are in Yemen,” he said at the summit in South Africa on Monday.

“It’s an international problem now,” he said.

Boko Haram, whose name roughly translates as “Western education is forbidden”, aims to create an obscurantist state in the territories it controls and earlier this month declared allegiance to the IS. Some of the 1.5 million people made homeless by the violence have fled to Chad, a poor, largely desert landlocked country.

Meanwhile, in Nigeria two bomb attacks in the northeastern

city of Potiskum killed 10 people on Monday, eyewitnesses and a hospital source said.

The first bomb exploded at around 1 pm (1200 GMT) in the office of a group set up to defend local people against such attacks, eyewitnesses said. A suicide bomber detonated a device at an outdoor tea drinking area a few minutes later.

“I heard a loud sound... It shook the whole of the area,” said Babagana Aminu, a shopkeeper based near the first bomb site, told Reuters by telephone.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the bombings bear the hallmarks of attacks by Boko Haram.

A source in Potiskum hospital said a total of 10 people — eight males and two females — were killed in the attack in the explosions in northern Nigeria.

At the start of this year the militants controlled an area of northeast Nigeria around the size of Belgium but the military said it had pushed them out of most of those areas, at times with the help of troops from neighbouring countries. A spate of bombings in the northeast has marked an apparent resurgence of Boko Haram that has seen around 100 deaths in the last few weeks. - Agencies

WA R C R I M E S

Serbian president postpones Bosnia visit over arrest of Muslim ex-fighter BELGRADE: Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic Monday called off a visit to Bosnia after a member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency opposed his trip over the arrest of a former Bosnian Muslim fighter on Serbian war crimes charges.

Nikolic had been set to arrive in Sarajevo on Tuesday, on his first official visit since 2012.

Announcing that he had been forced to change his plans the president’s office said: “Unfortunately, instead of easing the tensions in the region through a dialogue there was a demand to postpone the visit.”

Nikolic would only visit Bosnia “when all three members of the presidency will show unity and readiness,” the statement added.

Bakir Izetbegovic, the Muslim member of Bosnia’s presidency, had earlier on Monday called for Nikolic to delay his visit over the arrest in Switzerland of Naser Oric, commander of Bosnian Muslims in Srebenica during the country’s 1992-1995 inter-ethnic war.

Srebrenica is the town where Bosnian Serb forces slaughtered almost 8,000 Muslim men and boys in mid-July 1995 in the worst massacre on European soil since World War II. Oric was arrested on June 11 in the Geneva region, where he was to attend events commemorating the 20th anniversary of the massacre. Serbia accuses Oric and four other people of committing war crimes in July 1992 in Zalazje near Sarajevo, where nine ethnic Serbs were killed.

Extradition procedure Izetbegovic said Nikolic’s visit to Sarajevo should be “postponed until the extradition procedure for Naser Oric...is over and he returns to Bosnia-Hercegovina.”

Serbia has 18 days from the day of Oric’s arrest to submit an official extradition request.

Relations between Serbia and Bosnia have been strained since the Bosnian War, during which Belgrade took the side of Bosnian Serb forces.

After the war Bosnia was divided into two semi-autonomous entities — the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation. The two are linked by weak central institutions, including the tripartite presidency. -AFP

B

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM TU ES DAY, JUNE 16, 2015

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Muscat 6,494.39 + 5.57 + 0.09%

Dubai 4,117.57 + 19.28 + 0.47%

Abu Dhabi 4,549.03 + 6.70 + 0.15%

Saudi Arabia

9,561.70 - 82.87 - 0.86%

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Bahrain 1,364.68 - 2.63 - 0.19%

Qatar 11,903.23 + 44.91 + 0.38%

CRUDE OIL PRICE

CURRENCY RATES*

DRAFT RATES (OMR1)*

GOLD PRICES*

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

Forex rates vs OMR1* US Dollar ................................. 2.58 Euro ............................................ 2.29 Pound ...........................................1.66 Indian Rs ..............................166.14 Pak Rs ....................................259.74 Bangla Taka.......................199.28

Indian Rs .................................. 166.50 Pakistan Rs ............................ 263.00 Sri Lanka Rs .......................... 344.25 Bangla Taka.............................201.70 Phil Peso .................................... 116.40

Muscat 24ct per gm (OMR) ........15.15

Oman Crude............. (Spot) .........$62.13 Dubai Crude ............. (Spot) ......... $61.73 Murban Crude ........ (Spot) ........$64.06 Arabian Light ......... (Spot) .........$61.33 N.Sea Brent............... (Spot) ........ $62.79

* Rates are as of June 15 Source: Bank Muscat

West Texas Int ....... (Spot) ........$59.30

* Rates as of June 15 Source: Oman UAE Exchange

Muscat 22ct per gm (OMR) .......14.55 Dubai 24ct per gm (Dh) ............ 142.75 Dubai 22ct per gm (Dh) .............135.50 * Rates as of June 15 Source: Malabar Gold & Diamonds

STOCK MARKET

Arab world’s biggest bourse opens to foreigners in Saudi RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange allowed foreign investors to trade shares for the first time on Monday, boosting efforts by the world’s top oil exporter to become a major global capital market.

In a notice issued on Sunday, the exchange confirmed that “as of Monday...Qualified Foreign Inves-

tors (QFIs) can commence dealing in listed shares”.

Foreign banks, brokerage houses, fund managers and insurance companies based outside the Gulf can now invest directly provided they meet the requirements.

The measures “could be seen as the first step in a broader liberali-

– Times file picture

EHC to go ahead with subsidiary stake sale State-owned Electricity Holding Company plans to sell stake in its subsidiary firm Muscat Electricity Distribution Co. in a move to mop up funds A E JAMES

businesseditor@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: State-owned Electricity Holding Company (EHC) plans to proceed with its plans to divest stakes in its subsidiary Muscat Electricity Distribution Company (MEDC) by way of an initial public offering.

Initial discussions with the Capital Market Authority has already been started, it was reliably learnt. However, it is not clear when the issue will be floated.

If everything goes well, the offer will be the first primary issue from a state-owned electricity firm and first in the proposed disinvestment programme of Oman government announced almost two years ago.

A consultant appointed by EHC earlier must have recommended for the privatisation programme.

The public issue of MEDC will have two objectives — allow public participation in government firms and raise funds for meeting the capital expenditure of the utility.

With the oil prices plunging this year, Oman government will find it difficult to fund capital expenditure of state-owned power firms, which are subsidiaries of EHC. So, the proceeds of the fund can be used for meeting the capi-

tal expenditure, which will ease pressure on government funds.

Besides, this will allow EHC to reduce size of its borrowing from overseas markets.

MEDC recently said that it plans to invest OMR150 million in the next three years, until 2017.

The company will invest OMR50 million per year as part of an ambitious investment plan from 2015 to 2017 to support a growing grid load and to reach out to more customers.

The additional investments are required for enhancing the distribution network to meet the power demand from additional customers in newly developed residential areas and to meet the increasing demand due to higher intensity of consumption. The MEDC has a customer base of 260,000 and the number of customers is growing by 8 to 10 per cent per annum.

Several state-owned companies, including Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Co (Orpic), are expected to float shares to the public. The government will divest its stakes in these companies either by way of an initial public offering or selling ownership to strategic partners or a combination of both.

The planned privatisation programme of a number of stateowned firms is under preparation and would be carried out in the next three years, after getting necessary approvals.

Although the government owns more than 60 companies, the state entities will be identified for divestment after taking into account various factors like the benefits to the economy, benefits to investors and the trend on the Muscat Securities Market (MSM).

In 2013, Oman government said the plan was to divest stakes in as many as eleven state-owned companies via initial public offerings in an apparent move to spur stock market trading and pass on the benefits of corporate earnings to the nationals. However, the authorities did not proceed with the plan as the state budget was in surplus.

sation” of the economy in a country traditionally cautious about foreign political and economic influence, the Capital Economics research group wrote.

Opening of the Tadawul AllShares Index (TASI) coincides with falling revenues for the kingdom which, despite efforts at di-

versification, still counts on oil for more than 90 percent of public income. The IMF projects a budget deficit of 20 per cent of gross domestic product for Saudi Arabia in 2015 after global oil prices collapsed over the past year.

At the same time, government spending is forecast to remain

strong, leaving it facing a deficit of $130 billion.

Stocks retreat Saudi stocks retreated 0.6 per cent, the most since June 9, to 9,584.51 as of 2:49pm in Riyadh, trimming its rally this year to 15 per cent.

The country now depends on

foreign currency to fund domestic spending, meaning “an influx of foreign capital on the back of the stock market opening up would help to plug some of the external shortfall and slow the pace at which Saudi Arabia is drawing down its reserves”, Capital Economics said. - Agencies

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

MARKET INVESTORS’ MEETING

C O M M E N TA RY

Welcoming the golden age

CHRISTOS PAPADOPOULOS*

A

s China embarks on its ‘one belt, one road’ initiative, with President Xi concluding his visits to Egypt, Saudi, Pakistan and Indonesia recently,a Chinese superpower is highlighting the rise and importance of Islamic countries across the world.

Muslim population Muslims are the fastest growing demography in the whole world. It is estimated that by 2050, there will be 2.9 billion Muslims in the world, up from today’s 1.6 billion Muslims. Across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, where 36 per cent of the population are Muslims, more

than 50 per cent of the average population age is below 25. With the demography and demand, this has led some to proclaim that the golden age of this century will firmly be entrenched across the Muslim world. By extension, the world will need more halal food, more infrastructure for Muslim dominated cities, more planes travelling to Makkah for Hajj and Umrah and more funds houses and financial institutions capable of handling Sharia- compliant funds.

Today, some countries have realised this opportunity and are preparing for the golden age. More ports are being built in the Middle East to handle increase transshipment and trade, including halal trade.

According to the Global Islamic Economy 2014-2015 report by Thomson Reuters and Dinar Standard, the Islamic clothing and footwear industry alone will increase 82 per cent

to $484 billion by 2019 from 2013.

Airports too are being expanded to handle increased traffic. More planes are on order, including the jumbo A380s to be used for Makkah shuttles. As it stands today, the Hajj sees 3 million pilgrims annually and the Umrah sees 7 million pilgrims annually. This is the equivalent of 13 times the attendance of the 2012 London Olympics.

Saudi Arabia is expanding Medina’s holy Masjid an-Nabawi mosque to hold 1.6 million pilgrims simultaneously up from the current maximum capacity of one million pilgrims.

This is in anticipation of the increase in pilgrims to 17 million a year by 2025.

As of 2014, global financial institutions which are Sharia-compliant represented approximately 1 per cent of the world’s total asset, highlighting the disproportionate value against the global Islamic population demography. The

financial infrastructure is gradually being prepared – Malaysia continues to grow and lead in the domestic Islamic finance space, while sovereigns such as the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Luxembourg have raised debt through Sukuk for the first time last year. Dubai has to be highlighted for being the city with the most ambitious plans – to tie up all of these by becoming the capital of the Islamic economy.

Constraints The big constraint to all these is the lack of institutions educating the Muslim populace on how to deliver for such services and develop such industries. Take for example the banking sector. Banks compete for an extremely small pool of talent. Right at the top, there are less than 500 chief executive officers who have Islamic banking experience at the highest level.

Across all levels, the industry needs more staff as well. This lack

of talent pipeline will impact the ability of product innovation, organic expansion and at the very base level providing of services to an expanded populace.

The industry needs to come together to set up various international qualification boards to tackle this issue. We can perhaps set up a Masters of Islamic Financial Engineering programme to solve our dearth of trained talent in the banking and innovation space.

As the Muslim world says Assalamu-alykum (May peace be upon you) to us, the world should reply with Waalaykum-asalum (And upon you may peace be) and Ahlan wa Salan (Welcome).

During the holiest month of the year, may I wish all Muslims out there, Ramadan Kareem! *The author is chairman of Standard Chartered Saadiq - the global Islamic banking brand of the bank

Shareholders of NBO approve capital increase Times News Service MUSCAT: Shareholders have approved an increase in National Bank of Oman’s (NBO) capital following the conclusion of an extraordinary general meeting at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Muscat.

Shareholders approved the board’s proposal to issue up to $300 million in additional perpetual Tier 1 Capital Securities. Interest pricing is to be determined at the time of issue, based on market conditions.

Shareholders also sanctioned increasing the limit of the bank’s existing Euro Medium Term Notes (EMTN) programme from $600 million to $1.5 billion over the next four years, subject to ap-

plicable regulatory approvals.

In 2014, a $500 million bond issued under the EMTN programme was oversubscribed more than three times following a highly successful international investor roadshow.

Mohammed bin Mahfoudh Al Ardhi, chairman of the National Bank of Oman, said: “We thank our shareholders for fully supporting National Bank of Oman’s strategy to diversify our funding base and maintain a strong capital position.

Investors both in Oman and overseas have demonstrated a clear appetite for recent National Bank of Oman debt issues and we are delighted to have the backing of our shareholders for future increases in our capital base.”

ENERGY BID

ENOC to buy Dragon Oil for $2.6 billion DUBAI: Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) agreed to buy Dragon Oil for £1.7 billion ($2.6 billion), gaining control over wells in Turkmenistan and exploration projects from Algeria to Iraq.

ENOC, which already holds 54 per cent of Dubai-based Dragon, will pay 750 pence a share for the rest, it said on Monday in a statement. That’s a 47 per cent premium to Dragon’s closing price on March 13, the business day before their talks were initially disclosed, and 15 pence more than it proposed in May. While focused mostly on Turkmenistan, Dragon is working to expand outside Central Asia in a bid to raise oil production to 100,000 barrels a day by next year from almost 79,000 barrels a day in 2014.

The company also won consent from the Egyptian authorities last year. - Bloomberg News

FLYING HIGH: Airbus raised its 20-year forecast for jet demand by nearly 4 per cent to 32,600, driven by growth from Middle East and Asian countries. - Reuters

Orders galore on Middle East, Asia airlines’ demand Airbus signed up Saudi Arabian Airlines to be the launch customer of its new A330-300 Regional aircraft, with the carrier committing to 20 of the planes as well as 30 A320neo jets

PARIS: Airbus and Boeing opened the Paris air show with a flurry of multi-billion-dollar plane deals on Monday as demand from Middle Eastern and Asian airlines swelled their already bulging order books.

Airbus signed up Saudi Arabian Airlines to be the launch customer of its new A330-300 Regional aircraft, with the carrier committing to 20 of the planes as well as 30 A320neo jets in a deal worth about $8.2 billion at list prices.

The European planemaker also said Garuda Indonesia had signed a letter of intent to buy 30 A350 XWB jets, potentially worth around $9 billion. The same airline, meanwhile, committed to buy up to 30 of Boeing’s 787-9 Dreamliners and 30 737 MAX 8 jets in a deal that could be worth about $10.9 billion.

Despite the activity, analysts

Unlike Boeing, Airbus sounded upbeat about prospects for fourengined superjumbos, including its A380 — the world’s biggest passenger plane, which has so far failed to live up to sales expectations

expect this year’s aerospace industry meeting to produce fewer blockbuster deals than in the recent past, with the focus turning to the task of producing the $1.8 trillion of jets already sold.

Nonetheless, demand remains robust, particularly from fastgrowing Middle Eastern and Asian airlines.

Airbus on Monday raised its 20-year forecast for jet demand by nearly 4 percent to 32,600, driven by growth from these regions. That broadly echoed Boeing’s assessment of the market last week.

Unlike Boeing, Airbus sounded upbeat about prospects for fourengined superjumbos, including its A380 — the world’s biggest passenger plane, which has so far failed to live up to sales expectations. “Very large aircraft are required over the next 20 years, we

can’t just increase efficiency,” Airbus sales chief John Leahy told a news conference, pointing to airport congestion as a reason to use larger planes.

In a bid to revive interest in the A380, Airbus is in talks with customers about possibly putting new engines on the jet or making a version with about 50 more seats.

Backlog Boeing said on the eve of the air show that it was exploring a potential market of more than 1,000 jets in a niche between its singleaisle 737 and wide-body 787, but had not decided whether to invest in a new plane.

Many in the industry, however, are increasingly wary of an order backlog stretching out over almost a decade and of manufacturers’ plans to keep pushing up output levels.

GE Aviation said on Monday it wanted to secure a record increase in production of engines for Airbus and Boeing single-aisle aircraft before deciding whether it could guarantee going even higher. Heading into the air show, Airbus had a lead over Boeing in plane orders this year, with 247 versus Boeing’s 175.

Adding to Monday’s flurry of deals, Qatar Airways ordered 10 Boeing 777-8X jets and four 777 freighters, valued at a total of $4.8 billion at list prices, while GE Capital Aviation Services ordered 60 Airbus A320neo aircraft valued at around $6.4 billion. - Reuters

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

B3

MARKET BRIEFS

Impact of royalty hike in third quarter, says Oman Chromite MUSCAT: Oman Chromite said that the financial implication of a recent government decision to raise royalty to 10 per cent from 5 per cent will be clear in the third quarter results, after realising actual sales for the period. The Public Authority for Mining raised royaltywith effect from July 1, 2015.

The company management is working on the required adjustments on the budgets, according to a disclosure posted on MSM website.

Galfar bags tender to upgrade plant

Oman, Japan expected to ink investment agreement framework for ensuring smooth dispute resolution on tax matters between the tax authorities of the two countries, and provisions to implement the exchange of information regarding tax matters between Japan and Oman’s tax authorities.

Expected in the second quarter of this year, the agreement will boost bilateral trade

MUSCAT: Galfar Engineering and Contracting Company has bagged a tender to upgrade Duqm desalination plant from the Rural Areas Electricity Company. The value of the contract is OMR729,970 and it will be completed within one year.

by attracting more

Treasury bills worth OMR60m allotted by CBO

ELHAM POURMOHAMMADI

MUSCAT: A tender of Government Treasury Bills, issue number 546, was held at the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) this week. The total value of the allotted Treasury bills amounted to OMR60 million for a maturity period of 364 days from June 17, 2015 to June 15, 2016. The average accepted price reached 99.573 for every OMR100 while the minimum accepted price arrived at 99.400 per OMR100.

The average discount rate and the average yield reached 0.42867 per cent and 0.43095 per cent respectively. Treasury Bills are short-term highly secured financial instruments issued by the CBO on behalf of the government, which helps the licensed commercial banks to gainfully invest their surplus funds with added advantage of ready liquidity through discounting and repurchase facilities (Repo) offered by CBO. The interest rate on the Repo operations with CBO is 1 per cent for the period from 17 June to June 23, while the discount rate on the Treasury Bills Discounting Facility with CBO is 1.35 per cent for the same period. – Times News Service/ONA

MUSCAT: Oman and Japan will witness a significant growth in bilateral trade and investment with the signing of an investment agreement between the two countries, which is expected in the second quarter of this year, said Japan’s ambassador to the Sultanate.

“The signing of the JapanOman Investment Agreement is expected to boost bilateral trade by attracting increased Japanese investment as a result of minimised conditions for investment in Oman as well as setting clear rules for cases of deterioration in the investment environment,”ambassador George Hisaeda told Times of Oman in an exclusive interview.

and more Japanese investments, says the ambassador

elham@timesofoman.com

Investment protection The ambassador believes that the already strong economic ties between Japan and Oman, which are built upon a solid foundation of a ‘trusted trade partnership’, will benefit from this agreement that focuses on protecting the investment and investors.

“The agreement ensures the investors in the contracting parties will not be treated less favourably than those in the other contracting party. Investors should also not be treated less favourably than those from non-contracting parties,” said Hisaeda.

He said the agreement sets rules that neither contracting par-

UPBEAT: George Hisaeda, Japan’s ambassador to Oman, believes that the already strong economic ties between Japan and Oman will benefit from this agreement. - O. K. MOHAMMAD ALI/Times of Oman

ty shall expropriate or nationalise investments in its area of investors of the other contracting party except for a public purpose.

“This would apply to taxation measures as well, to avoid the abuse of the right of taxation by the authorities concerned,” he said, adding thatthe agreement also sets rules of compensation, namely that the compensation should be paid without delay and shall include interest at a commercially reasonable rate.

Types of agreements According to the ambassador, there are two types of bilateral investment agreements which Japan has with other countries.

“The first mainly focuses on protecting the investment and investors. The second is to protect the investment and investors and at the same time liberalise investment between each country. The Japan-Oman Investment Agreement will be similar to the former,” Hisaeda noted.

In total, Japan has 21 investment agreements and 13 economic partnership agreements (EPA) in effect. In addition to these, five Investment agreements and one EPA have recently been signed, and are expected to come into effect soon. The Middle Eastern and African countries which presently have investment agreements with Japan in effect are Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Turkey and Mozambique. An investment agreement with Saudi Arabia has already been signed.

Double taxation The ambassador said that the Japan-Oman Investment Agreement will follow on from the signing of the Japan-Oman Tax Agreement, which entered into force on September 1, 2014. The tax agreement adjusts the taxation rights between Japan and Oman to avoid international double taxation arising from economic and human exchanges, added Hisaeda.

“Reflecting the strengthened economic relations between the two countries, and to promote mutual investment, this agreement clarifies the limit of withholding tax rates imposed by the source state on dividends, interest and royalties. The agreement is expected to further strengthen the economic relations and human exchanges between Japan and Oman, and contribute to the prevention of fiscal evasion,” the ambassador stated.

Key points The ambassador explained that key points of the agreement include the clarification of taxable scope in the source country on business profit resulting from the business activities of enterprises, reduction of taxation on investment income in the source country to 5 per cent dividends (10 per cent shareholding requirement) and 10 per cent others, interest exemption for the government etc and 10 per cent others, and 10 per cent royalties.

The agreement also involves a

SHIFTING FOCUS

Dubai’s financial hub to shift focus DUBAI: The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) spent the first 10 years of its existence looking to banks in the West. It’s planning to spend the next decade looking East.

DIFC, as the tax-free business park is called, became the Middle East’s biggest financial hub by attracting the regional offices of western banks such as Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. The 110-acre center is now seeking to triple the number of its financial firms to 1,000 by 2024, relying mainly on Asian and African institutions using Dubai as a hub to expand, Governor Essa Kazim said in the city last week.

The centre is pivoting East as the Western banking industry grapples with rising capital requirements, regulatory scrutiny and fines and slower growth in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. HSBC last week announced plans to cut 25,000 jobs globally and sell businesses in

Brazil and Turkey, while Standard Chartered and Deutsche Bank have both replaced their leadership this year.

Financial crisis “The western financial institutions are in retreat since the financial crisis, so if you are going to have growth it has to come from the East,” from Asia and Africa, Nasser Saidi, an adviser and former chief economist at the DIFC, said by phone. “You have to be the hub for emerging markets.”

DIFC, set up in 2004, is also aiming to increase overall workforce to 50,000 from 17,860 and boost assets under management to $250 billion from $10.4 billion.

Half the new growth is expected to come from financial institutions from developing countries using Dubai as a gateway to tap markets in South Asia, the Middle East and Africa, which has a combined gross domestic product of $7.9 trillion. - Bloomberg News

SEND US YOUR VIEWS AND COMMENTS editor@timesofoman.com webeditor@timesofoman.com

Current trade value Asked about the value of annual trade between Japan and Oman, Hisaeda said that it stood at around $7.34 billion in 2014. “In 2014, imports from Oman to Japan were around $3.84 billion and exports from Japan to Oman were around $3.50 billion,” he added.

Commenting on the main imports and exports, the ambassador stated, “Japan is one of Oman’s largest importers of oil and natural gas, but we also import vegetables, aluminum, and fishery products, like cuttlefish or white fish fillet, from Oman.”

One Japanese trading company is involved in the export of Omani green beans to Japan, he said, adding, “In winter, 90 per cent of fresh green beans on our supermarket shelves are labelled ‘From Oman’.”

Automobile, auto parts Hisaeda further noted that more than 90 per cent of Japan’s exports to Oman are automobile and auto parts, expressing delight at the fact that he sees so many off-road, four-wheel drive vehicles, such as Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Isuzu and Subaru in different parts of the Sultanate.

He added that Japanese stateof-the-art, reliable machinery and electronic appliances are also in demand in Oman.

Hisaeda also explained how the value of annual trade between the two countries has changed compared to previous years.

According to him, exports from Japan to Oman were around $2.96 billion in 2012, $3.13 billion in 2013, and $3.50 billion in 2014.

Imports from Oman to Japan were around $5.60 billion in 2012, $5.63billion in 2013 and $3.84 billion in 2014.

The Japanese ambassdor said that 90 per cent of imports from Oman to Japan are crude oil and LNG, and in 2014,the volume dropped by around 30 per cent.

“According to reports from Japanese research centers and think

tanks, this drop is mainly due to the weak yen, which has pushed up the cost of imports,” he noted.

Eco-friendly initiatives “In addition, the number of ‘ecofriendly’ vehicles in Japan, which require less gasoline,is on the rise.

Japan is depending more on thermal power generation rather than nuclear power following the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011.

Thermal power plants use LNG for electricity generation, but according to a report, LNG imports for these did not increase in 2014 and remained almost at the same level as 2013,” he added.

The ambassador says that there is huge potential for further cooperation between the two friendly countries.

Untapped potential “The Japan-Oman economic relationship has been advanced in recent years with the diversification of Oman’s economy, presenting opportunities for Japanese companies to participate in a wider range of economic activities,” he said. Infrastructure development is one of the areas where Oman and Japan can cooperate given the growth of this sector in Oman and Japan’s extensive experience in this area, he noted.

Japan’s major achievements in this field include an urban transportation system, which the country has itself developed from the north to the south of Japan, with a world-class reliable, safe and punctual operating system.

“Oman may experience similar growth issues that Japan did, such as environmental protection, energy conservation, and treatment for diseases related to modern lifestyle. As Japan struggled in the past to resolve these issues, and subsequently developed successful high technologies and systems, we can share our experiences in areas such as eco-friendly plant technology, for example waste heat reuse, and our medical checkup scheme for diabetes and metabolic syndrome,” Hisaeda said.

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B4

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

MARKET

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OMAN STOCKS

MUSCAT SECURITIES MARKET

INDICES Index .................................................High .................Low..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff % MSM30 Index ....................................... 6,494.40 ...............6,484.16 ...................6,494.39 ...................6,488.82.................... 5.57 ...................0.09 Financial Index .....................................7,907.46 ...............7,868.96 ....................7,907.46 ................... 7,871.80..................35.66 ................... 0.45 Industrial Index ....................................8,421.79 .............. 8,393.20 ...................8,420.66 ...................8,405.72................. 14.94 ................... 0.18 Services Index .......................................3,513.20 ...............3,507.34 ................... 3,508.25 ................... 3,513.20..................-4.95 .................. -0.14 MSM SHARIAH INDEX....................... 997.81 .................. 997.48 ....................... 997.81 .......................997.48....................0.33 ...................0.03 Trading Summary Volume ................Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded 17,216,331 ..................3,260,224 .....................779 ...............15,024,844,635 ................ 17 ........................6 .................... 18 .........................41

MSM index ends higher

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR MONDAY, JUNE 15 ISIN ..................................................SECURITY NAME ...............................................................................................VOLUME ..............TURNOVER...................TRADES ...........OPEN PRICE............. HIGH....................LOW...............CLOSE PR. ..........PREV. CLOSE..........DIFF (RO) .................DIFF %......................LAST PR...............LAST BID.....................LAST OFFER .................MARKET CAP ........PAR VALUE

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

OM0000003661 ............VOLTAMP ENERGY ................................................... 512,257 ..........218,187......................12 ............0.414 ...........0.430 ...........0.414 ........... 0.426 .............0.412.............0.014 ............. 3.398 ................0.430..............0.426...................0.432...................25,773,000 .........0.100 OM0000001772 ............AL ANWAR HOLDING............................................... 1,497,639.......389,502................... 121 ........... 0.255 ...........0.264 ...........0.255........... 0.260 .............0.253 ........... 0.007............. 2.767 ................0.262..............0.261...................0.262 ..................33,930,000.........0.100 OM0000001822............UNITED POWER .............................................................5,000 ............... 7,850........................3 ............1.570 ........... 1.570 ...........1.570 ............1.570 ............. 1.530............ 0.040............. 2.614 ................1.570 ..............1.520...................1.560....................3,140,000 ..........1.000 OM0000001483............NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ................................. 330,513........... 111,108......................17 ........... 0.330 ........... 0.338 ...........0.330........... 0.336 .............0.330 ........... 0.006..............1.818.................0.338..............0.330...................0.338..................450,478,644 .......0.100 OM0000001681 ............OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING........... 7,067,983 .......815,612....................181 ............0.114 ........... 0.117............0.113 ............0.115 ............. 0.113 ............ 0.002............. 1.770 ................0.116 .............. 0.116................... 0.117 ................... 14,015,625 .........0.100 OM0000002820 ...........GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ......................... 797,500 ......... 112,227..................... 30 ............0.141 ........... 0.142 ...........0.140............0.141 ............. 0.139............ 0.002............. 1.439 ................0.140.............. 0.139...................0.140....................8,296,894 ..........0.100

As many as 779 trades were executed on Monday’s trading session generating

OM0000002374............UNITED FINANCE .......................................................68,150 .............10,225......................15 ............0.150 ........... 0.151............0.150 ........... 0.150 .............0.148............ 0.002..............1.351.................0.150 ..............0.148...................0.150................... 46,614,741 .........0.100 OM0000001517 ............HSBC BANK OMAN ......................................................46,955 ...............6,339........................2 ............0.135 ........... 0.135 ...........0.135 ............0.135 .............0.134.............0.001 ............. 0.746 ................0.135 ...............0.131...................0.135 ................. 270,042,227 .......0.100 OM0000002440 ...........AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING ........... 188,207 ............26,197..................... 30 ............0.140 ........... 0.140 ...........0.138 ............0.139 ............. 0.138.............0.001 ............. 0.725 ................0.138 .............. 0.138...................0.139...................12,510,000 .........0.100 OM0000004933 ...........AL SUWADI POWER ...................................................... 5,043 ...............1,044........................2 ........... 0.207 ...........0.207 ...........0.207........... 0.207 .............0.206 ............0.001 ............. 0.485 ................0.207............. 0.200...................0.206 ................. 147,882,112 ........0.100 OM0000001525 ............OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE.............. 447,021.......... 107,389..................... 68 ........... 0.240........... 0.241 ...........0.239........... 0.240 .............0.239 ............0.001 ............. 0.418 ................0.240 .............0.239...................0.240 ................. 48,000,000 ........0.100

turnover of OMR3.26 million.

OM0000005005 ...........ALMAHA CERAMICS .....................................................6,168 ............... 3,313......................15 ........... 0.530 ...........0.540 ...........0.530........... 0.538 .............0.536 ........... 0.002............. 0.373 ................0.540..............0.540...................0.550...................28,245,000.........0.100 OM0000001087............OMAN UNITED INSURANCE ................................ 50,000 ............ 14,500........................1 ........... 0.290...........0.290 ...........0.290 .......... 0.290 .............0.290 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.290............. 0.290...................0.304 ..................29,000,000 ........0.100 OM0000001160 ............NATIONAL GAS .............................................................12,000 ...............4,730........................2 ........... 0.390 ...........0.400 ...........0.390........... 0.394 .............0.394 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.400..............0.394...................0.410...................19,700,000 .........0.100 OM0000001749 ............OMAN CEMENT .......................................................... 120,000 ........... 66,100........................6 ........... 0.550 ........... 0.552 ...........0.550........... 0.550 .............0.550 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.552..............0.552...................0.560 ................. 181,979,991 ........0.100 OM0000001962............AL MADINA INVESTMENT ................................... 758,327 ............59,709..................... 27 ........... 0.078 ........... 0.079 ...........0.078........... 0.079 .............0.079 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.079..............0.078...................0.079...................16,364,959 .........0.100

MUSCAT: Oman’s general index, MSM30 Index increased 0.09 per cent and closed at 6,494.39 points. The MSM Sharia Index closed at 997.81 points, up by 0.03 per cent. Oman & Emirates Holding was the most active in terms of volume and turnover.

Voltamp Energy, up by 3.40 per cent, was Monday’s top gainer, while Global Finance & Investment, down by 3.23 per cent, was the day’s top loser.

17 shares advance As many as 779 trades were executed during the day’s trading session generating turnover of OMR3.26 million with over 17.2 million shares changing hands.

Out of 41 traded securities, 17 advanced, six declined and 18 remained unchanged. Omani Investors were net buyers for OMR107,000 while Foreign Investors were net sellers for OMR55,000 followed by GCC & Arab Investors for OMR52,000 worth of shares. Financial Index was the top sub-index today, closing at 7,907.46 points, up by 0.45

per cent. Al Anwar Holding, NBO, Oman & Emirates Holding, Gulf Investment Services and Bank Nizwa gained 2.77 per cent, 1.82 per cent, 1.77 per cent, 1.44 per cent and 1.39 per cent respectively. Global Finance & Investment, Al Omaniya Financial and Bank Sohar declined 3.23 per cent, 1.23 per cent and 0.53 per cent, respectively.

Industrial Index gained 0.18 per cent to end at 8,420.66 points. Voltamp Energy, Oman Fisheries, Oman Flour Mills and Al Maha Ceramics increased 3.40 per cent, 1.72 per cent, 0.40 per cent and 0.37 per cent respectively. Al Hassan Engineering and Raysut Cement declined 1.96 per cent and 0.32 per cent respectively.

Services Sector Index closed the session at 3,508.25 points, down by 0.14 per cent. United Power, Al Suwadi Power and OIFC increased 2.61 per cent, 0.49 per cent and 0.42 per cent respectively. Renaissance Services, down by 2.52 per cent, was the only sector loser. — United Securities

OM0000002200 ...........AHLI BANK .................................................................... 228,721.............47,881........................7 ........... 0.209........... 0.210 ...........0.209 .......... 0.209 .............0.209 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.210............. 0.209...................0.210..................297,832,554........0.100 OM0000002226 ...........AL JAZEERA SERVICES ..............................................4,000 ............... 1,456........................1 ........... 0.364 ...........0.364 ...........0.364........... 0.366 .............0.366 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.364..............0.364...................0.374...................22,400,764.........0.100 OM0000002275 ...........SHELL OMAN MARKETING .........................................417 .................. 834........................2 ........... 2.000...........2.000 ...........2.000 .......... 2.000 .............2.000 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................2.000 ............ 0.000...................2.090 ................ 190,000,000 .......0.100 OM0000002366 ...........AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ..........................3,000 .................. 384........................2 ............0.128 ........... 0.128 ...........0.128............0.127 ............. 0.127............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.128 .............. 0.125...................0.128.................... 3,810,000 ..........0.100 OM0000002796 ...........BANK MUSCAT ............................................................ 357,009 ......... 198,454......................14 ............0.556 ........... 0.556 ...........0.552........... 0.556 .............0.556 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.552..............0.550...................0.556................1,274,253,364 ......0.100 OM0000002846 ...........GULF INV. SER. PREF SHARES .............................. 11,000 ...............1,320........................2 ............0.120 ........... 0.120 ...........0.120........... 0.120 .............0.120 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.120.............. 0.118...................0.120...................10,966,894 .........0.100 OM0000003026 ...........OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ............................4,230 ...............7,360........................5 ............1.740 ........... 1.740............1.740 ............1.745 ............. 1.745 ............ 0.000.............0.000 ................1.740 .............. 1.740................... 1.750 ................1,308,750,000 ......0.100 OM0000003521 ............GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. .................. 709,923 ........... 92,993.....................60 ............0.129 ........... 0.133 ...........0.129............0.131 ............. 0.131 ............ 0.000.............0.000 ................0.130 ..............0.130................... 0.131 ................... 37,987,463 .........0.100 OM0000003968 ...........OOREDOO....................................................................... 206,978 ......... 161,443......................17 ............0.780 ........... 0.780 ...........0.780........... 0.780 .............0.780 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.780..............0.780...................0.784..................507,736,499 ........0.100 OM0000004735 ...........SEMBCORP SALALAH............................................... 25,000 .............66,125........................8 ........... 2.645 ...........2.645 ...........2.645........... 2.645 .............2.645 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................2.645............. 2.400...................2.645..................252,484,281 .......1.000 OM0000004768 ...........AL MADINA TAKAFUL............................................. 273,237 ............24,591......................19 ........... 0.090 ........... 0.091 ...........0.089........... 0.090 .............0.090 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.089..............0.089...................0.090 ..................15,750,000 .........0.100 OM0000004925 ...........AL BATINAH POWER................................................ 104,320 ............21,593........................6 ........... 0.207 ...........0.207 ...........0.206 .......... 0.207 .............0.207 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.206............. 0.000...................0.206 ................. 139,701,698 ........0.100 OM0000001418 ............RAYSUT CEMENT ........................................................14,500 ............ 22,475........................5 ............1.550 ........... 1.550 ...........1.550 ............1.550 ............. 1.555............-0.005 ........... -0.322 ...............1.550 .............. 1.535...................1.555 ................. 310,000,000 .......0.100 OM0000003398 ...........BANK SOHAR................................................................ 100,093 ............ 18,817........................4 ............0.188 ........... 0.188 ...........0.188 ........... 0.188 ............. 0.189............-0.001 ........... -0.529 ...............0.188 .............. 0.187...................0.188..................270,990,720 .......0.100 OM0000003224 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES ..................................... 429,216 ......... 133,057......................16 ............0.310 ........... 0.310 ...........0.310........... 0.310 ............. 0.318............-0.008 ........... -2.516................0.310 ..............0.306...................0.310................... 87,449,281 .........0.100 OM0000003125 ............GLOBAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT ................ 1,072,596 ......128,649........................4 ............0.120 ........... 0.120 ...........0.119 ........... 0.120 .............0.124 ...........-0.004 ........... -3.226 ...............0.119 .............. 0.119...................0.120.................. 24,000,000 ........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 15,457,003 .2,881,463...................704 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......32........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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

OM0000001566 ............OMAN FISHERIES .......................................................21,694 ...............1,280........................6 ........... 0.059 ...........0.059 ...........0.059........... 0.059 .............0.058 ............0.001 ............. 1.724 ................0.059..............0.059...................0.060 ................... 7,375,000 ..........0.100 OM0000004420 ...........BANK NIZWA ................................................................ 285,967 ........... 20,870..................... 27 ........... 0.073 ........... 0.073 ...........0.072........... 0.073 .............0.072 ............0.001 ............. 1.389 ................0.073..............0.072...................0.073..................109,500,000 .......0.100 OM0000001400 ...........OMAN FLOUR MILLS .................................................31,560 .............15,924......................11 ........... 0.506 ...........0.506 ...........0.500........... 0.504 .............0.502 ........... 0.002............. 0.398 ................0.500............. 0.000...................0.500 ..................79,380,000.........0.100 OM0000002077 ...........AL OMANIYA FINANCIAL SER. ........................... 860,000.........275,200........................3 ........... 0.320 ...........0.320 ...........0.320........... 0.320 .............0.324 ...........-0.004 ............-1.235................0.320............. 0.000...................0.320 .................. 78,616,168 .........0.100 OM0000002564 ...........AL HASSAN ENGINEERING....................................48,570 ...............4,867........................5 ............0.101 ........... 0.101............0.100........... 0.100 .............0.102 ...........-0.002 ............-1.961................0.100..............0.100...................0.103....................7,520,800 ..........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 1,247,791 ........318,141..................... 52 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........ 5........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BONDS MARKET ........................................................................................................................................................................................

OM0000004487 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES BONDS3.75 ............ 212,426 ........... 30,802........................4 ............0.145 ........... 0.145 ...........0.145 ............0.145 .............0.126.............0.019 ............ 15.079 ...............0.145 ..............0.130...................0.145...................61,355,543 .........0.100 OM0000004867 ...........BANK MUSCAT C C B 4.5 ...........................................43,732 .............. 4,442........................4 ............0.102 ........... 0.102 ...........0.101 ........... 0.102 ............. 0.101.............0.001 .............0.990 ................0.101 .............. 0.101...................0.000 ..................32,603,553 .........0.100 OM0000004602 ...........BANK MUSCAT CONV. BONDS 4.5 ........................24,764 ...............2,575........................1 ............0.104 ........... 0.104 ...........0.104........... 0.104 .............0.104 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.104..............0.104...................0.108...................31,485,908 .........0.100 OM0000005971 ............B.MUSCAT COMPL. CONVR. B.B.3.5 ................... 230,615............22,800......................14 ........... 0.099 ...........0.099 ...........0.098........... 0.099 .............0.099 ........... 0.000.............0.000 ................0.098..............0.098...................0.100...................32,092,000 ........0.100 .............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 511,537 .............60,619..................... 23 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........4........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

INDIAN MARKETS

Don’t litter a beautiful country like OMAN. Ensure proper disposal of garbage.

BETTER SENTIMENT: Sensex added 0.6 per cent to 26,586.55 at the close. — Bloomberg file picture

Sensex climbs; rupee falls MUMBAI: Indian stocks advanced for a second day on optimism above-average monsoon rain may improve the odds for further monetary policy easing.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, India’s most valuable drugmaker, was the best performer on the S&P BSE Sensex. Reliance Industries, owner of the world’s largest refining complex, rose for the second day. Bajaj Auto and Mahindra & Mahindra, a tractor maker, advanced at least two per cent. Housing Development Finance Corp. climbed to a oneweek high.

The Sensex added 0.6 per cent to 26,586.55 at the close. Rainfall since June 1 has been 11 per cent above normal, the weather office said on Monday. The monsoon and its impact on food costs will be key to further rate cuts, the central bank said on June 2 after cutting rates for a third time this year.

“The progress of the monsoon has eased some concerns,” Alex Mathews, the head of research at Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services, said by phone from Kol-

lam in Kerala state. “The positive macroeconomic data on consumer inflation and industrial production are also supporting the market.”

Official data on Friday showed consumer prices rose 5.01 per cent in May from a year ago, after a 4.87 per cent increase in April.

A separate report the same day showed industrial production grew 4.1 per cent in March compared with an estimated 1.5 per cent increase.

The wholesale inflation rate declined less than estimated, data showed on Monday. Wholesale prices fell 2.36 per cent in May from a year earlier after a 2.65 percent decline in April, the government said. The median of 31 estimates in a Bloomberg survey had been for a 2.5 per cent drop.

International investors sold a net $91.5 million of Indian stocks on Thursday, June 11, paring this year’s inflows to $6.6 billion, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

The Sensex has dropped 3.3 per cent this year and trades at 14.7 times projected 12-month profits, compared with the five- year av-

erage of 14.3. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is valued at a multiple of 11.8.

Rupee decline continues The rupee continued to fall against the American currency for the third day, by slipping another 10 paise to close at 64.16 per dollar on persistent dollar demand from banks and importers on the back of strong dollar in the global market.

Sustained capital outflows also weighed on the rupee sentiment, dealer said. However, strong rise in the equity market restricted the rupee’s fall to some extent, a forex dealer said. The Sensex rose by 161.25 points of 0.61 per cent in view of low inflation and arrival of monsoon.

The domestic unit opened lower at 64.15 from its previous close of 64.06 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market and hovered in a range of 63.9925 and 64.1750 before finishing at 64.16, disclosing a loss of 10 paise or 0.16 per cent. The rupee has gained by 32 paise or 0.50 per cent in three days. — Agencies

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ROUND-UP

Nissan SUV range now available with unlimited Ramadan benefits SBA designed the Ramadan scheme to add to the pleasure and convenience of owning a Nissan model and ensure hassle and worry-free driving at all times

MUSCAT: Owning a Nissan vehicle has never been more rewarding.

In the spirit of the holy month, Nissan Oman from the house of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles (SBA) has announced a unique ‘Big Jackpot Offer’ when purchasing any new Nissan vehicle during Ramadan. The offer will last till July 31, says a press release.

SUV range benefits • Scratch & Win (two assured gifts): Customers buying any Nissan vehicle will receive a ‘Scratch & Win’ card which will entitle them to two assured gifts comprising free service up to lifetime of the car (Minimum assured

one year/10,000km PMS) and free fuel up to OMR1000 (minimum assured of OMR50).

• Cash gifts: Customers will also walk away with assured cash gifts up to OMR1,000 (minimum assured of OMR500) on purchasing any vehicle from the Nissan SUVs. • Unlimited benefits: Nissan assures customers free insurance, free registration, six years’ extended warranty on all SUV models, easy financing options, a loan term up to eight years and attractive interest rates.

• Additional Ramadan highlight of 2015: This year Nissan has introduced another exciting line-up of Ramadan benefit for their valued customers. Customers who already own a Nissan model and want to buy a second one will receive additional incentives from SBA where customers enjoy 10,000km additional service, they will receive special interest privilege card and also be eligible for any trade-in benefits.

• Special EMI rate on each of the SUV model Grand raffle draw The grand raffle draw from Nissan is being held in association with Al Wisal and Merge FM where participants can enter the draw to wina sleek Nissan Altima (2 vehicles to be won); just SMS <NISSAN ALTIMA> to 90448. The lucky winner can walk away with a brand new Nissan Altima.

age and passionate following in the Middle East that dates back to the 1950s. The Patrol is available with an EMI starting from OMR269.

With refreshed styling enhancements of the region’s iconic SUV, the all-new Nissan Patrol adds more style to its already impressive ‘go anywhere’ versatility, technology and comfort.

Easy financing options SBA designed the Ramadan scheme to add to the pleasure and convenience of owning a Nissan model and ensure hassle and worry-free driving at all times.

Nissan customers can also avail easy financing option of a loan term up to eight years with attractive interest rates from Bank Muscat. Flexible EMI’s can also be tailor made for any individual requirement from in-house Auto Finance team.The Nissan SUV range provides customers with a comprehensive product lineup and an opportunity to choose from. Nissan Oman’s world-class service facilities, equipped with state-ofthe-art diagnostic tools and trained manpower enable them to fulfil the promise of ultimate ownership experience towards their valued customers. Nissan’s lineup of SUV range comprises the mighty Nissan X-terra, Nissan Classic Pathfinder, Nissan Armada and Nissan Patrol.

Nissan X-Terra With an EMI starting from

OMR192 X-Terra’s signature exterior styling features include large flared fenders, a versatile roof rack with latchable lid and a rear bumper design with side steps for easy access to the roof rack. It also offers a large, powerful looking hood and headlights and Nissan SUV-style angled strut grille.

The vehicle also features Chrome ORVM and Fr. fog lamps. The new X-Terra looks good on the road with its enhanced styling that includes a roof rail with attachments and side step.

Nissan Pathfinder With a powerful V6 engine, a rugged truck frame underneath and available four-wheel drive, the classic Pathfinder lives up to its reputation as an authentic, rugged adventure vehicle. Now the Nissan Pathfinder is available with an EMI starting from OMR197, which has maintained an iconic exterior design, while also remaining fresh and dynamic. The exterior is defined by its unique combination of sophistication and rugged, go-

STRENGTHENING BONDS

anywhere looks.

Nissan Armada With an EMI starting from OMR295, the vehicle combining unbridled power, premium interior comfort and a wide range of available technology, the Nissan Armada continues to stand out in the full-size SUV segment.

The Armada model is equipped with a standard 5.6-litre Endurance V8 engine rated at 320 horsepower and 54.3kg/m of torque, along with an advanced 5-speed automatic transmission, heavyduty fully boxed ladder frame and comfortable double-wishbone suspension. Armada has a towing capacity of up to 4,000 pounds (when properly equipped).

The vehicle is perfect for a big sized family and a perfect option for family getaways, off-road outings etc.

Nissan Patrol Meticulously engineered for over 60 years, the Patrol is Nissan’s flagship SUV model with a rich herit-

A decade of promise Suhail Bahwan Automobiles is largely committed to supporting Nissan’s growth in the Sultanate through major emphasis on customer satisfaction and by providing world-class after-sales services in Oman.

With a national network of more than 19 showrooms, 22 service centres and 35 spare parts outlets, SBA has further built upon its legacy of trust, excellent customer service and providing value for money to each of its customers.

For every customer purchasing a Nissan vehicle, it is the beginning of a fulfilling experience as Nissan’s top class after sales service makes sure every customer is happy and satisfied. Nissan’s after sales service provider for all Nissan cars in Oman ensures customers get the advantage of factory trained expertise and genuine Nissan replacement parts always.

Customers can expect reliability and assistance, which will help retain Nissan’s performance and resale value for years to come.

F U N D AY

Top Rinnai official visits Al Hashar MUSCAT: Yuzo Yoshida, managing executive officer, Rinnai Corporation Japan, visited Al Hashar Group, along with a delegation of senior officials.

“The maiden visit of Yuzo Yoshida, along with a delegation of senior officials, is an indicator of the importance of Omani customers and their evident satisfaction with our customer care. It is an honour and a privilege to be able to welcome them to our beautiful land – Oman,” said an Al Hashar official.

“Al Hashar Electronics attaches more significance to his visit owing to its long standing association with Rinnai. This visit is going to further consolidate our association with the expansion and distribution of Rinnai products to other GCC countries,” explained Rajeev Sharma, general manager, Al Hashar Electronics.

Rinnai products especially table top cookers are well known for their superior quality, safety, technology and sophisticated control system. Rinnai continues

to be the number one choice and its sale is the best in Oman among the GCC countries.

Already the market leader in kitchen appliances, Rinnai has also introduced its entire range of gas and solar-based water heaters for commercial and residential use.

A $3 billion global conglomerate, based in Nagoya, Japan, Rinnai Corporation believes in serving

the local society. Rinnai products are designed for local needs to fit the climate, and lifestyles. Incorporated in 1920 Rinnai has 20 branches, 22 production facilities including 6 in Japan and 16 in various other countries and regions including the US, Australia, Korea, China, Indonesia, Brazil and Italy.

There are currently 86 sales offices globally including Australia, Brazil, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy,

Malaysia, New Zealand, China, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom, Vietnam and the United States.

Japan’s advanced manufacturing technology makes Rinnai products highly valued across many countries, in fact they are rated as No.1 brand for their safety, environment-friendliness, energy conservation, convenience, comfort and most importantly their highly reliable quality. Rinnai table top cookers with double burner are a breakthrough in design with high heat efficiency, saving both gas consumption and cooking time.

Adorned with a plethora of top world-class brands in its portfolio, Al Hashar Electronics continues to serve in Oman market. The ever growing range of products find enthusiastic response from satisfied customers who value the quality, the performance and value-formoney from these brands. Built with leading technology and ably supported by expert after care of fully trained professionals.

FOCUS ON CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Nominations open for Dossier Construction Awards MUSCAT: The time for submission of applications for Dossier Construction Awards & Summit 2015 has come. The awards will be organised on September 9 at InterContinental Muscat.

Targeted at the construction, infrastructure and real estate industries in Oman, the event will highlight industry performers, best practices, and technologies and felicitate excellence through an awards ceremony. It will also drive the exchange of knowledge within the industry through an intellectual forum in the form of a summit.

Interested companies and individuals could nominate themselves for the awards on www.dossiero-

man.com, says a press release.

The prestigious event is held under the auspices of Ministry of Transport and Communications and Public Authority for Electricity and Water and endorsed by Muscat Municipality, Omran, Duqm Special Economic Zone Authority and Oman Rail. The leading industry players are supporting the event.

Doka is the platinum sponsor and Mercedes-Benz is the gold sponsor.

The event is being organised in association with leading consultants Atkins, Renardet and KEO. Oman Society of Contractors is the support partner. Advantage Austria is the supporting organisation.

Sharq Sohar Group, Azaiba Furni-

ture Factory, Oman Cables Industry, BEC Group, Voltamp Energy, Carrier, NBO and Taylor Woodrow Oman are the silver sponsors. Falcon Insurance Company, Al Hassan Group & Shamel International are support partners. Times of Oman and Al Shabiba are the media partners of the event. The event is instituted by Dossier-Construction magazine, Oman’s first and only business-to-business magazine on the construction sector, published

by United Media Services.

The summit will be attended by the key ministers and senior officials in the government, senior-tomid level executives from the public and private sectors, and leaders

of relevant industry bodies. The summit will feature impactful and compelling educational sessions from senior-level international and local leaders of consulting and construction companies who bring to the forefront new insights on the business opportunities in today’s construction market.

In a gala award function in the evening, the best performers from the industry will be presented with the coveted trophy in over 15 different award categories. The winners of the awards will be selected by an independent panel of eminent industry experts; the selection process will be validated by an independent agency.

National Gas holds annual get-together MUSCAT: To celebrate the company’s performance and success for the financial year 2014, National Gas Company (NGC) organised its annual get together recently at Hotel Hormuz Grand, Al Seeb. The employees’ contribution towards NGC’s success was commended by the management.

The event was attended by over 120 employees who came from NGC offices in Oman, UAE and Saudi Arabia. An evening filled with music, games and entertainment followed by sumptuous dinner was organised, says a press release.

The evening saw exciting competition and fun filled activities including a high energy game of tug-of-war that had teams pitting their strength against each other.

An Omani dance performance by the employees specially choreographed for the evening added to the variety and entertainment.

In the welcome address Nalin Chandna, general manager dedicated the progress to the employees and thanked them for all the efforts and contributions towards NGC’s success.

“With the dedication, support and untiring efforts of the NGC team, we were more than successful in not only exceeding

the expectations of the various stakeholders but also in taking various initiatives which have helped in further strengthening the key fundamentals that this company has always been proud of,” Nalin said.

The department heads jointly honoured the outstanding performers for the year 2014-15. The ambience was vibrant and filled with excitement as employees mingled freely with each other and enjoyed a sumptuous buffet.

Sanjeev Sinha, deputy general manager, Operations, gave the vote of thanks and thanked the employees for their valuable contributions and the event managers Maniar International for the wonderful event and wished everybody the very best for the year ahead.

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Female space pioneer inspires young Omanis at NBO Chairman’s Series

Dr Anousheh Ansari shares experience of being first Muslim woman in space

MUSCAT: The first Muslim woman and private female explorer in space, Dr Anousheh Ansari, was in Muscat for the latest event in the National Bank of Oman Chairman’s Speaker Series.

Addressing an audience of public officials, business leaders, bank customers and students at the Grand Hyatt Muscat, Dr Ansari shared stories about her pioneering career in both business and space exploration.

Dr. Ansari is a successful serial entrepreneur and is a co-founder, chairwoman and chief executive officer of Prodea Systems, the first company to provide seamless access to a broad range of services.

In 2006, she was part of an eight-

day expedition aboard the International Space Station, which captured headlines around the world for being the first trip into space by a Muslim woman, says a press release.

She along with her family also provided the title sponsorship for the Ansari X Prize, a $10 million cash award for the first nongovernmental organisation to launch a reusable manned spacecraft into space twice within two weeks, a feat accomplished in 2004 by legendary aerospace designer Burt Rutan.

Mohammed Mahfoodh Al Ardhi, chairman of National Bank of Oman, said: “Dr Anousheh Ansari has inspired a generation of women through her pioneering achievements in space exploration. She is also a visionary businesswoman with a track record of successful tech startups. Dr Ansari is a wonderful role model for any aspiring Omani entrepreneur and as the world’s first space ambassador, Dr Anousheh acts as a messenger to create public awareness and stimulate grassroots enthusiasm about the virtues of space exploration. Dr Ansari wants to inspire the

Dr Anousheh Ansari has inspired a generation of women through her pioneering achievements in space exploration. She is also a visionary businesswoman with a track record of successful tech startups. Dr Ansari is a wonderful role model for any aspiring Omani entrepreneur and as the world’s first space ambassador, Dr Anousheh acts as a messenger to create public awareness and stimulate grassroots enthusiasm about the virtues of space exploration Mohammed Mahfoodh Al Ardhi Chairman of National Bank of Oman

youth, especially girls, around the world to pursue their dreams and promote peace and understanding amongst nations and we thank her for sharing her remarkable story with our delegates in Muscat.”

The National Bank of Oman Chairman’s Speaker Series was created in 2014 as a platform to harness collective wisdom and foster creative thinking about the critical issues affecting the world through dialogue and networking.

It was designed to bridge the gap between Oman’s hopeful youth and more seasoned professionals, allowing them an interactive platform to learn and share experiences, ideas and aspirations.

Each quarter, one of the world’s leading influencers is invited to share their expertise, knowledge and best practice at an exclusive evening event in Oman. Previous speakers have included Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, group chief executive officer and managing director of Mubadala, and Sir Terence Clark, renowned author and former British ambassador to Oman. The fourth edition of the Chairman’s Speaker Series event will be held on September 20.

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New Infiniti Q70 makes Oman debut The new 2016 Infiniti Q70 continues to deliver evocative design, invigorating performance, innovative technology and superior craftsmanship

MUSCAT: Suhail Bahwan Automobiles unveiled the new Q70 sedan recently.

With a fresh new exterior, the latest evolution of the Infiniti Q70 takes the emotion-packed character of the performance sedan up another level. The new 2016 Infiniti Q70 continues to deliver evocative design, invigorating performance, innovative technology and superior craftsmanship, says a press release.

“We pride ourselves in being able to offer our discerning customers premium vehicles that feature the best in design, performance, safety and technology. The new Infiniti Q70 is a sedan that delivers just that,” commented senior officials at Infiniti, SBA. “The new Q70 further raises the bar in the segment with a host of new improvements that is sure to offer a drive that is both exhilarating and rewarding every time. We are confident that the Q70 will offer a powerful alternative to our customers in the region.”

The Q70 is launched with the excellence and luxury grade that features the premium body design.

As an added alternative, the sport grade is available with the sport body design. The sport body design features a specially designed front bumper that gives an even lower and wider stance. The trapezoidal bumper intake and apron shape inspired from race car splitters give an athletic presence and bold impression. Black painted turn and fog finishers as well as the rear bumper finished in high-gloss black paint reinforce the sporty appearance.

The refined elegance of the Q70 takes on a new dramatic design which gives the premium sedan an even more upscale image. Its flowing, emotional lines evoke premium sleekness. Infiniti’s signature LED headlights imply inner intelligence and human insight, leaving an unforgettable impression. The distinctive design accentuates the new double arch grille, which now takes on a more three-dimensional look due to the elaborate detail of

We pride ourselves in being able to offer our discerning customers premium vehicles that feature the best in design, performance, safety and technology.

The new Infiniti Q70 is a sedan that delivers just that the high-quality waved mesh finish and chrome surround.

At the rear, the new design of the tail lights creates a horizontal flow in motion while the high-quality lighting signature evokes a fresh and classy image. The top line of the trunk lid has been flattened while the rear bumper has been slimmed down to create a longer and lower visual impression, further emphasising the luxury sedan’s sporty and powerful styling.

Reflecting the sensuous lines of the exterior, the new Infiniti Q70 continues to serve up a wellappointed and inviting interior with high-quality materials such as handcrafted wood accents and custom leather appointments, meticulous craftsmanship and attention to detail, as well as usercentred technologies.

Important controls and switches are so intuitively located that

the driver does not have to change driving posture to access them.

The instrument panel consists of fine vision gauges and a 7-inch full colour vehicle information display, while the driver and front passenger’s seats are leather and feature 10-way power adjustment, including 2-way lumbar support.

Contributing to the cultivated in-car atmosphere, the Active Noise Control feature monitors cabin noise levels and generates ‘cancelling’ sound from four door speakers to reduce noise, so it’s easier to hold conversations in the car or to better enjoy the music.

Premium audio systems include the Bose Studio Surround sound system with digital 5.1-channel decoding and 16 speakers, two of which are mounted in the shoulders of each front seat. Other additional options include the bluetooth hands-free phone system,

dual-zone automatic temperature control, and available next-generation Infiniti hard drive navigation system with 8-inch WVGA colour touch-screen display.

Promising performance, the new Q70 is equipped with the 3.7-litte V6 engine, rated at 329 hp @ 7,000 rpm and 363 Nm of torque. The refined aluminiumalloy DOHC 24-valve engine is equipped with Variable Valve Event & Lift (VVEL) that combines hydraulic-controlled variable valve timing and electronically controlled variable valve lift on the intake side to help improve performance and response. Also available is the 5.6-litre V8 engine that delivers 402hp @ 6,000 rpm and 550 Nm of torque.

All the engines are matched to an advanced 7-speed automatic transmission, which allows for sportier shifts during spirited

Senior officials at Infiniti, SBA

driving. Solid magnesium paddle shifters are also available.

Further customisation is obtained from the unique Infiniti Drive Mode Selector that allows drivers to select from varied driving modes – Standard, Eco or Sport – and the integrated control system will adjust throttle sensitivity and transmission mapping to help optimise performance.

The new Infiniti Q70, also comes equipped with the latest in safety advancements that help drivers avoid a collision and further help protect the vehicle occupants if one occurs.

The Q70 offers a segment first with Predictive Forward Colli-

sion Warning, that anticipates the speed and distance of two vehicles in front to ensure that in the event of an emergency, the vehicle comes to a safe stop. Other safety features such as Intelligent Cruise Control and Distance Control Assist take the stress out of driving so the driver can arrive at his destination relaxed.

Yet another first for this segment is the innovative Around View® Monitor system shows a birds-eye view of the vehicle in relation to parking lines, creating a 360-degree surrounding view. This system also includes Moving Object Detection and Backup Collision Intervention which alerts the driver to moving objects around the vehicle when pulling out of a parking space or backing up.

Both the Lane Departure Warning and Lane Departure Prevention (LDP) systems help keep the Q70 from unintentionally drifting into an adjacent lane in case the driver is distracted. Blind Spot Warning helps alert the driver to vehicles detected in the blind spot area, while Blind Spot Intervention® actively intervenes by selectively braking if the driver ignores both visual and audible warnings and attempts to steer into the path of the vehicle in the blind spot.

SBA commitment SBA is largely committed to supporting Infiniti Oman’s growth in the Sultanate through major emphasis on customer satisfaction and by providing world-class after-sales services in Oman.

With a national network of more than 40 showrooms, service centres and parts outlets, SBA has further built upon its legacy of trust, excellent customer service and providing value for money to each of its customers.

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Much-awaited Grand Indo-Pak Mushairah to be held on July 31 Mushairah is being held to mark the celebrations of the 45th anniversary of the Renaissance in Oman. A dedicated team of Pakistanis and Indians with expertise in organising poetry evenings is working together to provide a unique evening

Times News Service MUSCAT: A galaxy of leading poets from India and Pakistan will feature in a star-studded, longoverdue Grand Indo-Pak Mushairah, scheduled to be held on July 31 at Al Bahja Hall in Qurum.

Organisers Gold Events are holding the Mushairah to mark the celebrations of the 45th anniversary of the blessed Renaissance in Oman.

According to Abdullah Al Saigh, an Omani national who owns the Gold Events, legendary Pakistani poets Amjad Islam Amjad, Rasa Chughtai, Sahar Ansari, Aqeel Abbas Jafri, Ambreen Haseeb and Kashif Ghayer will participate in what promises to be a memorable event.

Leading Indian poets such as Waseem Barelvi, Manzer Bhopali, Popular Meeruthi, Nusrat Mehdi and Surendra Shajar will also

B E T T E R FA C I L I T I E S

feature in the Grand Indo-Pak Mushaira, which the organisers claim is happening in Oman first time in about 20 years, allowing legendary poets from India and Pakistan to come together on one platform in Oman.

Abdullah who has interest in different languages, specially Urdu with special inclination towards Urdu poetry, hopes this unique gathering of leading Urdu poets is sure to attract a full house.

A dedicated team from Pakistan and India with expertise in organising poetry evenings is working together to provide a unique evening of poetry and entertainment to the audience. The team is led by the chief coordinator Arif Anwarul Haqq, an Indian businessman and a poet himself, serving Urdu poetry in Oman for about 38 years. He was the first person to start Mushairah events in Sultanate of Oman.

Another coordinator is Rafique

Khan from Pakistan, who has organised a number of successful concerts and live shows featuring Abida Parveen, Munni Begum, Umar Sharif and Moin Akhter, to name a few.

The Mushairah carries an open invitation to poetry lovers as entry to the event is free and the organisers have welcomed people from all Urdu-loving communities in Oman to attend the event with families.

RECOGNITION

MEDC opens new offices in Seeb Bank Sohar honoured for MUSCAT: Muscat Electricity Distribution Company (MEDC), part of Nama Group, has officially opened its new building in the wilayat of Seeb. The office facility was opened by Dr Khalid bin Abdullah Al Abri, deputy wali of the wilayat of Seeb. The new office will provide customers in the Seeb region higher standard of service and quality as the new location is equipped with the latest technology, says a press release.

“The new office move is a milestone for MEDC as the new facility is equipped to give high levels of service to the customers, which will help us serve the gradual electricity demand in wilayat of Seeb.

its support to Dar Al Atta’a

The employees of this facility aim to make this an exemplary branch in all its aspects so that we achieve the highest levels of customers satisfaction,” stated Eng. Nabeel bin Qahtan Al Barawani, manager of MEDC’s Seeb Office. He

added that the building has been designed in a modern way which will provide an excellent level of service to the customers by careful management of the spaces in the building and complementing the spaces with colour design.

MUSCAT: In recognition of its continual support of Dar Al Atta’a association and its various activities across the Sultanate, Bank Sohar received a token of appreciation from the organisation at its recently held annual charity gala dinner at the Al Bustan Palace – A Ritz Carlton Hotel.

The event was held under the patronage of Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry, and also marked the launch of the association’s ‘My Home, My Security’ campaign, which seeks to repair and maintain 100 homes. Receiving the token of appreciation from the chief guest on behalf of the bank was Rashad bin Ali Al Musafir, acting CEO, Bank Sohar, says a press release.

On receiving the token of appreciation, Al Musafir said: “It is truly an honour to be recognised and appreciated by Dar Al Atta’a association for bank’s support towards the association campaigns and initiatives raised last year.

We believe it isn’t our, but rather their efforts that should be commended. Their contributions to the community over the years have been invaluable, touching the lives of thousands in Oman. In

light of their efforts towards supporting those in need, the Bank has and will always be a strong supporter of the association, their principles and their initiatives.”

Bank Sohar’s CSR initiatives have always been central to its operational strategy; with carefully planned and evaluated contributions ensuring positive support capable of making a meaningful change in the lives of those in most need of it. In recognition of its contributions, Bank Sohar has received numerous accolades for its CSR efforts locally, regionally, and internationally.

“We have always striven to ensure that we diversify our care-

fully evaluated contributions to associations and their initiatives in order to reach out to the maximum number of people possible.

Such regular contributions ensure that we continue in our efforts towards fulfilling our corporate obligations as well as contribute towards spreading the CSR culture in Oman’s corporate world,” added Munira Abdulnabi Macki, DGM of Human Resource and Corporate Support at Bank Sohar.

Dar Al Atta’a is a non-profit volunteer- based charity that was formed in 2002 and was formally registered as a charity organization in 2006 with the Ministry of Social Development.

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EXTRA BOWLER THE WAY FORWARD FOR KOHLI The biggest change made by India captain Kohli since taking over from MS Dhoni is the inclusion of an extra bowler, and while it is too early to judge if the strategy will pay off in the long run, he intends to give it every chance. >C3

Sri Lanka to face Pakistan again with prime focus on Sangakkara Sangakkara may retire after first Test against India

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have already played six series in as many years, the last of which also took place on the island a year ago. The hosts won both Tests, leaving Pakistan without a win in Sri Lanka since 2006

GALLE: Kumar Sangakkara will get a chance to build on his prolific Test record before retirement when familiar foes Sri Lanka and Pakistan contest their fourth series in two years from Wednesday.

The 37-year-old has not responded to media speculation that he will play three more home Tests -- two of the three matches against Pakistan and one against India in August — before ending his 15-year-career.

The left-hander is head and shoulders above other current Test batsmen. His 12,203 runs and 38 centuries far exceed second-placed Alastair Cook of England, who has 9,000 runs and 27 hundreds. Sangakkara is unlikely to catch up with record-holder Sachin Tendulkar’s Test tally of 15,921 runs and 51 hundreds, but his 11 scores of 200-plus are just one short of Australian legend Don Bradman’s record of 12.

In Sri Lanka’s previous Test, against New Zealand in Wellington in January, Sangakkara hammered 203 to continue a prolific streak that saw him make 221 against Pakistan and 319

READY FOR ANOTHER BATTLE: Pakistan captain Misbah-ul Haq, right, and Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews pose with the Test series trophy in Colombo. – AP/PTI

against Bangladesh last year.

Sangakkara, who has already quit one-day and Twenty20 cricket, will meet Sri Lanka Cricket officials this week to decide how many more Tests he will play in the home season.

Pakistan and Sri Lanka have already played six series in as many years, the last of which also took place on the island a year ago. The hosts won both Tests, leaving Pakistan without a win in Sri Lanka since 2006.

Pakistani captain Misbah-ul Haq, who turned 41 last month, hopes to rectify that record and build on a commendable 2-0 win over Australia in the United Arab

Emirates last year, followed by a 1-0 triumph in Bangladesh this May. “It is always interesting to play Sri Lanka because both sides know each other’s game well,” said Misbah. “Pakistan has done well in Tests recently and that has given us a lot of confidence.”

Sri Lanka’s coach Marvan Atapattu said Pakistan will miss spin spearhead Saeed Ajmal, who was not selected after struggling with a remodelled bowling action on the Bangladesh tour last month.

“Ajmal at his peak gave a lot of batsmen sleepless nights,” Atapattu told the Colombo-based Nation newspaper. “Now that he is not there gives us a psychological ad-

vantage. “I believe Pakistan have got bowlers who could win games, but they have not done it yet. But we’ve still got to respect the good ball and put away the bad ones.”

The opening match at the Galle International Stadium will be followed by the second Test at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo from June 25 and the third in Pallekele from July 3.

The Tests will be followed by five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 matches.

Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Azhar Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Shan Masood, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Haris Sohail, Sarfraz

COLOMBO: Veteran Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara is likely to retire from international cricket after the first Test against India in Galle later this year.

Sangakkara has had a talk with Sri Lanka Cricket officials regarding his swansong Test and his willingness to play two Tests against Pakistan and the opening game versus India besides his county commitments with Surrey, reported ‘ESPNcricinfo’.

The India series, which is slated for an August 18 start in Galle, was already supposed to be Sangakkara’s final hurrah, but the left-handed batsman was expected to play all the three Tests against India.

This means that Sangakkara will not be able to bid

Ahmed, Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Imran Khan, Ehsan Adil.

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne, Kaushal Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kumar Sangakkara, Dinesh Chandi-

adieu in Kandy, but there is a chance that his farewell Test could be moved to his hometown.

The 37-year-old former captain had originally intended to retire from all formats following the World Cup, but was convinced to stay on for two more series by the former selectors and captain Angelo Mathews, among others.

With 12,203 Test runs, 38 Test hundreds and an average of 58.66, Sangakkara will retire as Sri Lanka’s most successful Test batsman.

Incidentally, another Sri Lankan great, Muttiah Muralitharan, had called time on his career after playing only the first Test of the series in Galle, in which the off-spinner completed a Test haul of record 800 wickets. - PTI

mal, Kithruwan Vithanage, Jehan Mubarak, Kusal Perera, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Tharindu Kaushal, Nuwan Pradeep, Dhammika Prasad, Dushmantha Chameera, Suranga Lakmal (subject to fitness). - AFP

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No longer boring, boring England New Zealand’s Williamson happy to play his way

AGGRESSIVE TEAM: England’s captain Eoin Morgan walks off the pitch after New Zealand win the match by three wickets at Southampton. – AFP

The natural fear and caution that has permeated the soul of English cricket and left the team off the pace in the one-day arena for much of the past 40 years has given way to a new belligerent, uninhibited style of play

LONDON: Once viewed as the perennial whipping boys of oneday cricket, New Zealand have not only reinvented themselves but have also helped inspire a remarkable transformation in England’s approach. The natural fear and caution that has permeated the soul of English cricket and left the team off the pace in the one-day arena for much of the past 40 years has given way to a new belligerent, uninhibited style of play.

They trail New Zealand 2-1 in a five-match series after three action-packed games and the turnaround can probably be traced back to the humiliating defeat suffered at the hands of the Kiwis a few months ago. At the start of this year Eoin Morgan’s team were the laughing stock of the 50-over World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

While teams such as Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa regularly posted scores of 350-400, England played a mind-numbingly boring style as they nudged and nurdled the ball around for 40 overs before launching a desperate late assault.

England reached the lowest of lows when they lost to the co-hosts by eight wickets in a Pool A match in Wellington in February.

New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum showed them how the modern game should be played,

smashing 77 in 25 balls as the eventual runners-up to Australia sprinted to a meagre target of 124 in just 12.2 overs.

McCullum is one of the most destructive hitters in the game and has given his side real energy since taking over as skipper in all forms of cricket in 2012.

He encourages the other batsmen to follow his swashbuckling lead and the rest of the team have complete freedom to express themselves, secure in the knowledge there will be no recriminations if the tactics backfire.

As far as England are concerned, it was never all doom and gloom as they reached the World Cup final in 1979, 1987 and 1992. But their failure to grasp the difference between test and one-day cricket was summed up when Geoff Boycott took 17 overs to reach double figures in the 1979 World Cup final against West Indies during a painstaking opening stand of 129 which put too much pressure on the rest of the side to reach a target of 287.

Off the pace England won the Twenty20 World Cup in 2010 but in recent 50-over tournaments they have been way off the pace. With Ashes victories over Australia mixed in with other bright moments in the test arena, they rarely seemed to consider re-

evaluating their approach to the longer format of the limited-over game. The shake-up, though, has been stunning against New Zealand and England are winning new friends and admirers with a fearless approach to the art of batting.

England have bludgeoned their way to totals of 408, 365 and 302 and critics have been forced to eat their words among the torrent of sixes and fours pouring from the flailing bats of Morgan, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Joe Root et al.

Former captain Ian Botham, who flourished a flashing blade of his own in the 1970s and 1980s, hailed “new England” after they cracked an ODI record 408 for nine in the first match of the series.

“It was magnificent,” said Botham, now a Sky Sports pundit. “It’s probably the best I’ve seen any England one-day side bat. They came out with nothing but positive thoughts with the bat and the ball so it could be a really exciting time in a format that England have really under-performed in.

“If you’re going to compete with the best in this format of cricket these are the kind of scores you’ve got to be thinking of,” added the great all-rounder. “You can’t do it every time, and there will be times when you attack and it goes wrong, but if you have that attitude and belief ... you can go far. This is something I haven’t seen from England in ODIs for a very long time.”

The 50-over World Cup was launched in 1975. England have never won the trophy and captain Morgan has a four-year plan in mind to prepare for the 2019 edition on home soil. “We’ve come a long way in the last three games, scoring 300-plus in each of them which is a huge achievement and a big turnaround,” he said.

“We are trying to change our process. I want the guys to continue with that mindset.” - Reuters

SOUTHAMPTON: New Zealand’s Kane Williamson was happy to prove elegance and timing still had a place when batting in one-day international cricket with a brilliant century in a three-wicket win over England on Sunday.

Victory at the Rose Bowl saw World Cup finalists New Zealand go 2-1 up in the five-match series. The Black Caps, chasing 303 for victory, were wobbling at 36 for two.

But a New Zealand record third-wicket stand of 206 between Williamson (118) and Ross Taylor (110), ultimately proved decisive.

There have long been anguished debates about whether advances in bat technology and modern-day power-hitting are making ODI cricket too much of a batsmen’s game.

But the 24-year-old Williamson proved the traditional virtues of touch and timing remain effective in white-ball cricket. Indeed his final scoring shot, in a sublime 113-ball innings which included 12 fours, was a seemingly effortless straight six off David Willey.

“I don’t think aggressive has to mean slogging or hitting the ball 150 metres,” said man-ofthe-match Williamson, who also bowled England captain Eoin Morgan for 71 with his off-spin.

“I think the style of play is what you want to achieve in an

innings and the runs you want to get and that dictates who’s picked,” added Williamson following his seventh hundred in 77 matches at this level.

“Most teams have a balance of players who contribute to that and we’re no different.”

New Zealand suffered a setback before this match when in-form paceman Trent Boult was ruled out of the rest of the tour with a back injury.

Key wickets But replacement Ben Wheeler, like Boult a brisk left-armer, marked his ODI debut with an impressive return of three for 63 in 10 overs.

“He came in and bowled really well, swung it a little bit and bowled with good pace,” said Williamson of the 23-year-old Central Districts bowler.

“I think he just enjoyed himself really. He picked up some key wickets as well.”

Such is the changing nature of 50-over cricket that New Zealand did well to hold England, who won the toss, to a total of 302 all out.

England lost their last five wickets for just 14 runs, with 28 balls left when the innings ended. “It was nice to pick up those late wickets that restricted them -- you don’t usually use that in the same sentence as 300 but with the way scores have been recently

it was a good effort,” said Williamson.

Meanwhile, Morgan was not worried by the fact England failed to bat out their overs, saying it was a consequence of a new approach that saw them score a national record 408 for nine in their 210-run win in the series opener at Edgbaston.

By making 302, Morgan’s side became the first England team to pass 300 in three successive ODIs and the former Ireland international was keen for them to retain their attacking intent “We’re trying to change our process and mind-set with the bat -- which may take time,” said Morgan, also England’s captain when they suffered a humiliating first-round exit at this year’s World Cup. “We’ve come a long way in the last three games, scoring 300 plus in each of them -which is a huge achievement and a big turnaround.

“I want the guys to continue with that mind-set, and not worry about batting 50 overs,” added the former Ireland international, who top-scored in an England innings where both Ben Stokes (68) and Joe Root (54) also passed fifty.

“I think that makes guys hesitate and question their natural way of playing. I don’t want that to happen.” The series continues at Trent Bridge on Wednesday. - Reuters

VINTAGE MAN: New Zealand’s Kane Williamson plays a classic shot during the third ODI. – AFP

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Australia’s Henriques on the mend after sickening collision LONDON: Australia’s Moises Henriques and Surrey team-mate Rory Burns were said to be in “decent shape” Monday following their sickening collision when they ran into each other trying to take a catch in a county match.

Henriques and Burns were knocked unconscious as they collided while going for a chance in a Twenty20 match away to Sussex at Arundel on England’s south coast on Sunday.

All-rounder Henriques broke his jaw in three places after he was struck by Burns’s knee. Burns sustained head and facial injuries.

Both players needed oxygen treatment and three ambulances were called on to the outfield before the pair, who regained con-

sciousness before leaving the ground and gave a thumbs-up sign to concerned spectators, were taken to St Richard’s Hospital in nearby Chichester for further assessment.

A Surrey statement issued Monday said both players were making a good recovery. “Latest news on the two boys..Both Rory and Moises are in decent shape following their operations overnight..further updates later in the day” Director of cricket Alec Stewart, the former Surrey and England wicketkeeper-batsman, posted a picture of Burns smiling in his hospital bed, alongside a member of medical staff giving a thumbsup gesture.

Stewart subsequently said on

Extra bowler the way forward India have, in the past, preferred to play six frontline batsmen in their Test side but brought in an extra bowler for the match against Bangladesh

MUMBAI: The biggest change made by India captain Virat Kohli since taking over from Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the inclusion of an extra bowler, and while it is too early to judge if the strategy will pay off in the long run, he intends to give it every chance.

Kohli was named captain after Dhoni retired from the five-day format during the series in Australia last year, and India’s oneoff match in Bangladesh, which ended in a draw on Sunday, was their first full test series under the 26-year-old.

India have, in the past, preferred to play six frontline batsmen in their Test side but brought in an extra bowler for the match against Bangladesh.

While it was difficult to gauge the impact of the switch given that rain washed away a chunk of the match, Kohli seems set to stick with five bowlers for tests in Sri Lanka and at home to South Africa later in the year.

“I am a big fan of playing five bowlers,” Kohli told reporters after the match in Fatullah on Sunday. “I would want someone like R. Ashwin, who is averaging 40 with the bat in Test matches — you really can’t ask for more from an allrounder — and someone like Harbhajan Singh to step up with the bat, and (Wriddhiman) Saha too.

“If those three start clicking, you literally have eight batsmen, and you can’t really ask for more as a captain. It’s basically up to the first six to take more responsibility and we are confident of doing that.”

India bundled Bangladesh out in under 66 overs in batting friendly conditions and the captain was impressed with the offspin duo of Ashwin and Harbhajan, who was making a comeback for his country after over two years. Ashwin took his 10th five-

I am a big fan of playing five bowlers Virat Kohli Indian Test skipper

wicket haul, while the 34-year-old Harbhajan grabbed three wickets.

“I would like to have players who can win us games in the bowling unit. And both of them have that ability,” Kohli said.

“Especially now that we have a prolonged season in the subcontinent, we need to look at how we can strengthen our team for that as of now.

“Watching them bowl together in a pair was really exciting as a captain. And I think both of them enjoyed bowling together as well — if one put pressure, the other took a wicket and vice versa.”

Not having Dhoni, who played 90 tests, around for the longer format was still a unfamiliar feeling for the new captain.

“It’s obviously strange,” Kohli said. “The same thing happened when Sachin Tendulkar retired.

A few games after that it was a very strange feeling.” - Reuters

his Twitter account that Bruns would be discharged from hospital later on Monday, although Henriques would require further observation.

“More good news @roryburns17 will be leaving hospital this afternoon. @Mozzie21 (Henriques) will stay in for another 24 hours but is bearing up well,” Stewart said. Henriques, who took an impressive three for 23 in his maximum four overs on Sunday before the accident, still faces dental surgery following the clash.

Umpires Alex Wharf and Jeremy Lloyds abandoned the match after the frightening clash, with Sussex 141 for seven in the 19th over. Sussex physiotherapist John Marrale, one of the first to attend CRICKET

Overton joins twin brother in England squad LONDON: Fast bowler Jamie Overton has been called up to England’s squad for the remaining two one-day internationals against New Zealand, it was announced on Monday.

He was selected after Yorkshire fast-medium bowler Liam Plunkett was ruled out with a thigh strain after the second ODI. Overton’s inclusion comes after twin brother Craig, an all-rounder, was called into the squad on Saturday after Chris Jordan was ruled out of the rest of the series with a side injury.

Both of the 21-year-old Overtons, who play for Somerset, are uncapped at international level.

Jamie Overton has appeared in just 14 senior one-day or List A county matches, where his 20 wickets have come at a respectable average of 27 apiece.

Craig Overton has played 15 List A matches and while his figures may not be that impressive. - AFP

to Burns and Henriques, said: “Both were unconscious after the collision.

“Henriques was caught by Burns’ knee and Burns had lacerations on the top of his head and below his eye.

“They were given oxygen and pain relief was administered by an intravenous drip before they went to hospital.”

Surrey were back in action on Monday, against Glamorgan at Guildford, south of London, in the Second Division of the County Championship Henriques, 28, has represented Australia 13 times across all three international formats, most recently in a one-dayer against England at Hobart in January. - AFP

RECOVERING: Moises Henriques (in picture) and Rory Burns were knocked unconscious after an onfield collision. – File photo

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SPORTS Pakistan hockey team look to seal Rio Olympics berth

FOOTBALL

REST IN PEACE: Zito

The three-time

Brazil great Zito dies

Olympic and four-time world champions have suffered a phenomenal slump in the sport, missing out on last year’s World Cup for the first time

KARACHI: Pakistan’s field hockey team set off for Belgium on Monday, hoping to secure a spot in next year’s Olympics and revive the country’s past glories in the sport.

The three-time Olympic and four-time world champions have suffered a phenomenal slump in the sport, missing out on last year’s World Cup for the first time since the event was introduced in 1971.

Pakistan finished 12th and last — their worst showing — when

they featured in the 2010 World Cup held in India, while they were seventh in the last Olympics in London in 2012.

Captain Mohammad Imran said the team were pinning great hopes on the World Hockey League second semifinal in Antwerp, Belgium, from June 20 to July 5.

“We know that a lot depends on our performance in the Olympic qualifying rounds and we badly

need a place in the Olympics,” he said on the team’s departure.

Pakistan have competed in all Olympic Games hockey competitions since independence in 1947.

Twelve teams will feature in next year’s Rio de Janeiro Olympics with hosts Brazil and five Continental champions (Asia, Americas, Europe, Africa and Oceania) given direct entries.

India have already secured an

Olympic spot by winning last year’s Asian Games in South Korea but will still feature in the qualifying rounds to gain experience. The four other Continental champions will be decided later this year.

The remaining six places in the 2016 Olympics are filled through qualifying rounds which include two World Hockey League semifinals and the final.

Reigning Olympic champions

Germany, Argentina and the Netherlands have already qualified for the final qualifying round — to be held in India in December this year.

In Belgium, Pakistan are placed in Pool A alongside Poland whom they will face on June 20, Australia (June 24), India (June 26) and France (June 28).

Great Britain, Belgium, Malaysia, Ireland and China are placed in Pool B. - AFP

SAO PAULO: Central defender Zito, who won two World Cups with Brazil, has died aged 82, the Brazilian Football Confederation said on Monday.

Zito, who had been unwell since suffering a stroke last year, played alongside Pele when Brazil won the World Cup in 1958 and 1962 and scored in the 3-1 victory over Czechoslovakia in the 1962 final.

He worked for Santos after he retired as a player and was a key figure in developing young players at the club, including Neymar.

“I have no words to describe that guy, I simply thank him for all he did for me, for having believed in me and helped me at the start of my career,” Barcelona striker Neymar wrote on Instagram, alongside a picture of the two together. “Rest in peace, he did so much for us here....Thank you ZITO!” - Agencies

CRICKET

Friends CC clinch Beatrice cricket title

OFA, DIRECTORATE OF MILITARY SPORTS HOLD MEETING Within the existing cooperation between Oman Football Association (OFA) and the Directorate of Military Sports (DMS), the third coordination meeting between the OFA and the DMS was held at the Sultan’s Armed Force (SAF) Headquarters. OFA chief Sayyid Khalid bin Hamad Al Busaidi chaired the meeting in the presence of Ahmed Al Mayasi, OFA board member, and Paul Le Guen, Oman national team coach. The meeting was also attended by Colonel Hamad bin Saif Al Jahwari, Director of Military Sports, Lt. Col. Said bin Saleh Al Balushi, coach of the military national team, and captain Ali bin Rashid Al Ghaithi, supervisor of the military national team. The meeting discussed the schedules of the camps, the coming external participation of the military national team and the coordination between OFA and the military departments among other issues. — Supplied photo

MUSCAT: Friends Cricket Club (FCC) defeated Team Arrows by 36 runs to lift the title at the inhouse Champions Trophy cricket tournament organised by Beatrice Sports in Al Amerat recently.

The tournament was organised in memory of three founder of

members of Beatrice Sports, one of the oldest sports clubs of south Indian state of Kerala, APM Moidu, Macky and Hussain. In the final, Friends CC scored 135 for the loss of four wickets in 15 overs. Then they restricted Arrows to 99 for nine wickets in 15 overs. Melvin

Mathew and Kimberley G Bentick bagged man of the match and man of the series awards respectively.

Dawood bin Ahmed Al Raisi , former chairman of Oman Hockey Association, presided over the ceremony while SAS Naqvi, former technical adviser of Oman Olym-

pic Committee, was guest of honor.

The event was sponsored by Afsal Adiraja of Faisal Al Naimi Company, Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, Abdul Rasheed TM, Beatrice Sports Secretary, announced the plans to organise hockey and basketball tournaments in the coming days.

TRAINING STUDENTS

ISM basketball coaching camp concludes MUSCAT: Sixty-one students successfully completed their training as the Indian School Muscat (ISM) basketball coaching camp concluded here on Monday.

The coaching camp was conducted visiting Indian coach Ramkumar Gahlawat.

Assad Mubarak Obaid Al Hasni, General Secretary of Oman Basketball Association, presided over the concluding ceremony.

Riyasuddin Kuttery, chairman of the Sports Committee at SMC, Indian School Muscat, and ISM Principal Srinivas K Naidu also graced the occasion.

In his speech, Assad Al Hasni lauded the school for giving ‘its due importance to sports and training’.

The Oman Basketball Associa-

tion official then presented Certificates of Excellence to sixty-one students who had successfully completed the training.

Coach Ramkumar Gahlawat

thanked the school for inviting him to coach the students and praised the students for their hard work and practice.

Coach Ramkumar concluded

his speech with a few motivating words and wishing the students to grow up as not just famous basketball players but also as good human beings.

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SPORTS

Oman girl golfers attract attention of Arab world

CRICKET

A TV channel, headquartered in

CHAMPIONS: Al Faisal

Al Faisal beat Master XI to clinch Cheers Cup MUSCAT: Al Faisal defeated Master XI team by 44 runs lift the title at the Cheers Cup cricket tournament organised by the Cheers Cricket Club Muscat at the Al Ghubra Power Plant here recently.

After electing to bat first, Al Faisal posted 112 runs in eight overs with Ifrat top scoring with an unbeaten 69 off 22 balls. Then they bundled out Master XI for 68 runs.

Earlier in the semifinals, Masters XI defeated BHR by nine wickets and Al Faisal beat the Mangalore United by 29 runs.

Ifrat of Al Faisal was declared man of the final and the best batsman of the tournament. The best bowler award went to Rajesh of Mangalore United and player of the tournament went to Adnan-ul Haq of Al Faisal.

The tournament was sponsored by Alfajar Insurance, Meezaan Building Material, Zamzam Hypermarket, New Jabal Muscat, Prestige Project & Eng LLC, Muscat Pharmacy, Al Bustan Printers, Shivanad Kotain and Santosh Shetty.

RUNNERS-UP: Master XI. – Supplied photos

Doha, focussed on OGC’s fast-evolving women’s programme and especially highlighted two golfers in particular — Asma Al Rashdi and Huwaida Al Barwani IN FOCUS: Asma Al Rashdi and Huwaida Al Barwani with coach Milo Breitenwischer. – Supplied photo

MUSCAT: In a major milestone for the women’s sports circuit in Oman, a leading Arabian sports television channel has decided to air a detailed show on the success story of the girl golfers in the Sultanate.

Al Kass Sports TV, which is based out of the Qatari capital of Doha, is the Arab world’s second most popular sports channel, after Al Jazeera Sports.

A crew from Al Kass Sports recently arrived in Muscat to interview the Omani girl golfers, who are being groomed by Oman Golf Committee (OGC).

The TV channel focussed on OGC’s fast-evolving women’s programme and especially highlighted two golfers in particular

— Asma Al Rashdi and Huwaida Al Barwani. The duo made their presence felt with an impressive third-place finish in the GCC Cup Golf Championship 2015 at the Sahara Kuwait Golf Club in Kuwait City in April this year.

The tournament had marked the debut appearance of Omani girl golfers in an international competition. The Al Kass Sports crew spent a long day with Asma, Huwaida and the other Omani girl golfers at the Ghala Golf Club course.

They filmed the young players practicing at the course and conducted their interviews, charting their rise on the women’s sports horizon in Oman.

F E S T I VA L S O C C E R

Oman and Dubai Tellicherrians share honours at Muscat Football Fiesta

MUSCAT: Oman Tellicherrians and Dubai Tellicherrians shared the honours as Tellicherry Cricketers, in association with United Thalassery Sports Club (UTSC), successfully organised the Muscat Football Fiesta here recently.

While Dubai Tellicherrians won the honours in the under-10 and under-13 categories, Oman Tellicherrians won the under-15 and senior categories.

Dubai team’s Danish and Abdullah and Oman team’s Mizfal Fazal won the best player awards in under-10, under-13 and under-15 categories respectively while Dubai team’s Ghallib, Aman and Oman team’s Shamil took the best goalkeeper awards in the under-10, under-13 and under-25 categories.

Earlier, the event was inaugurated by former Oman coach and Oman Olympic Committee Tech-

nical Advisor SAS Naqvi. During the day, the organisers also conducted sports quiz as well as cultural progammes. Former Kerala state cricketers CTK Mashood, Naufal Pilakandy and Shajil Balan as well as AP Abdullah, a famous sports personality of Tellicherry, were also honoured during the day.

Dr. V. Prashobh, Student Counsellor of ISM, was the chief guest, and Riyaz Kuttery, General Man-

ager of Jet Airways, was the guest of honour. The event was sponsored by Times of Oman and Gulf Madhyamam (media sponsors), Ramee Guestline Hotel (Hospitality Sponsors), Foodlands Restaurant (Food sponsors), FAP, Malabar Gold, Sea Pearls, Al Nahla Solutions, Lynix, Nahda Happiness, Madina Hypermarket, Zam Zam Hyper Market and Tellicherry Fans.

The Doha-based channel is expected to air the show sometime in the coming days, focusing on the new heights being achieved by the young Omani girls and how the phenomenon could further inspire other girl athletes in the Sultanate to take up sports and outdoor activities.

Mundhir Al Barwani, the OGC Chairman, sees this development as a positive sign for Oman as well as the Gulf region.

“These girls first made us proud with their fantastic show on their international debut in Kuwait earlier this summer. And now, to find that the Arab world is taking note of Oman’s golf scene through

our successful girl golfers, it’s really heartening,” said Al Barwani.

Al Barwani also said: “I am sure once the programme is aired, the entire Arab world will realize that Oman is quite a force to reckon with in terms of women’s sports activities. I wish our girl golfers good luck in their coming endeavors. We at OGC will make sure we produce more such talent.”

The OGC had started its women’s programme a year ago and this year marked the girls’ team’s entry into the competitive circuit. The training and grooming of the current batch of girl golfers is taken care of by PGA Pro Milo Breitenwischer.

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Blatter could still perform a U-turn and stand again said, citing an anonymous source close to him. Africa’s soccer confederation (Caf ) said on Monday that it had not heard of any of its members asking Blatter to stay on.

“At Caf level we are not aware of any African countries who have written to ask Blatter to stay on,” Kalusha Bwalya, a Caf executive committee member and president of the Football Association of Zambia, said.

“We feel it is better to get on with our own work in the meantime and see what everyone has to say in the next months. Everybody is waiting for clarity.”

“At the moment there are a lot of rumours floating about and everyone is rushing to turn the smallest piece of information into a story.”

Former adviser Stoehlker said Blatter could still perform a U-turn on his promise to stand down as Fifa president

ZURICH: Sepp Blatter could still perform a U-turn on his promise to stand down as Fifa president, a former adviser said on Monday, while Fifa did not directly deny the possibility.

Klaus Stoehlker, who advised Blatter during the recent election campaign, told Sky News that Blatter could remain head of world soccer’s governing body if a “convincing candidate” to replace him did not emerge.

Fifa said in a statement that Stoehlker, who was in a meeting when contacted and unable to comment, was no longer working with Blatter.

“Klaus Stoehlker’s mandate from the Fifa President ended on 31 May 2015. The Fifa President would like to point to his remarks from 2 June,” it said, referring to Blatter’s announcement that he would call a new election in which he would not be a candidate.

English Football Association chairman Greg Dyke does not think Blatter will have a change of heart.

“I think it (a U-turn) is extremely unlikely. I think it would be very controversial,” Dyke said.

“There would be a rebellion amongst a lot of people (if he did).”

However, Blatter has changed his mind in the past. In 2011, he said his fourth mandate would be his last but he stood again this year.

Blatter was re-elected for a fifth

CONTROVERSIAL: A Brazil fan wears a mask of Fifa chief Sepp Blatter during Brazil’s Copa America match against Peru in Temuco, Chile, on Sunday. – Reuters

term as Fifa president on May 29 when his opponent Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein withdrew after Blatter had won the first round of voting by 133 to 73.

Four days later, as corruption allegations continued to batter Fifa, Blatter said he would stand down and call a new election, due to be held between December and February.

The FBI is investigating bribery and corruption at Fifa, including scrutiny of how soccer’s governing body awarded World Cup hosting rights to Russia and Qatar.

U.S. Assistant Attorney General

Leslie Caldwell noted on Monday that the investigation into Fifa is not shouldered solely by the United States and is instead shared by international law enforcement partners.

The U.S. Justice Department “has worked closely with the lead Fifa prosecutors to obtain evidence from numerous countries across the globe,” Caldwell said at the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners conference in Baltimore.

“Far from acting as the world’s corruption police, the United States is part of a formidable and growing coalition of international enforce-

ment partners who together combat corruption around the world.”

The confusion surrounding Fifa’s leadership took a new twist on Sunday when the Schweiz am Sonntag newspaper reported that Blatter, 79, may seek to stay on as president.

The report said Blatter had received messages of support from African and Asian football associations, who voted for him at the election and want him to reconsider his decision.

Blatter was honoured by the support and had not ruled out remaining in office, the newspaper

Uefa perplexed Uefa insiders that European soccer’s governing body was left perplexed by the reports that Blatter would stand again and that the plot would be too outrageous even for a Hollywood script.

Officially, European soccer’s governing body did not want to comment but the German football association (DFB) called on Blatter, who is staying on until the election, to leave quickly.

“We only know the media reports which strengthen our clear position,” spokesman Ralf Koettker said. “Blatter’s announced resignation must be formally completed as soon as possible.”

Germany coach Joachim Loew said: “As far as I can speak as a coach, Fifa must have a new structure and there has to be a certain new start because all of this has damaged football, and that was dangerous. I think resigning from a resignation should normally not happen.”

However, Domenico Scala, the official overseeing the process of choosing a new president, said on Sunday that Blatter’s departure was an “indispensable” part of planned reforms to soccer’s governing body. - Reuters

AT H L E T I C S

Pearson ruled out of worlds SYDNEY: Olympic 100 metres hurdles champion Sally Pearson has been ruled out of this year’s world championships after shattering her left arm in a “traumatic” fall at the Rome Diamond League meeting earlier this month.

The 28-year-old Australian, who won the sprint hurdle world title in 2011 and finished second behind American Brianna Rollins in Moscow two years later, had surgery on the injury in Italy but will require another operation on Tuesday.

Pearson feared she might even have to have her lower arm amputated when it turned blue soon after she sustained the injury, which doctor’s described as a “bone explosion” in her wrist.

“I’ve never broken a bone, I’ve never had stitches or surgery before,” Pearson told reporters on the Gold Coast on Monday.

“Doing all of that in one, in a different country, was very traumatic for me.

“But I do put things into perspective and think I am very lucky with what happened.

“If it had been the ankle, it would be a completely different story right now and I’d be telling you something different.”

Pearson said she was disappointed to miss out on the Aug. 22-30 world championships in Beijing, where she won silver at the 2008 Olympics, but thought the enforced rest might help her bid to retain her Olympic title in Rio de Janeiro.

“I guess I haven’t had a break since 2003, my first Australian team,” she added.

“I think this will be a very good mental and physical break for me leading into the Olympics next year.”

Australia’s head coach Craig Hilliard said it was a major blow to lose the country’s most successful active track and field athlete from the team.

“Sally’s our team captain and she gives great leadership and gets on really well with all the athletes,” he said.

“It will be a big loss but the critical thing is that she needs time mentally and physically to get over this.” - Reuters FOOTBALL

Rodrigo makes Valencia move permanent MADRID: Spanish international striker Rodrigo has joined Valencia on a permanent basis after spending last season on loan at the Mestalla from Benfica.

Valencia confirmed on Monday that the Brazil-born forward had signed a deal through to 2019, with Spanish press reports putting the fee at 30 million euros ($33.6m).

“Valencia have reached an agreement with Benfica for the purchase of Rodrigo Moreno, who has signed a four-year contract,” a club statement said.

The 24-year-old scored three goals in 31 appearances last season for Valencia, who finished fourth in La Liga to qualify for the Champions League play-offs.

He won his first cap for Spain in a Euro 2016 qualifier against Luxembourg in the autumn.

Rodrigo is Valencia’s third signing of the summer after they made Portuguese midfielder Andre Gomes’s loan from Benfica permanent and signed Brazilian midfielder Rodrigo Caio from Sao Paulo. - Agencies

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LIFE & STYLE

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t a time when hotels are turning their lobbies into banquets and game rooms to court millennials, it seems as if sleeping is the last reason to check in.

And it’s not as if hotels didn’t already provide nighttime soundtracks: the slamming of hallway doors, the thump of music in the ballroom, the din of children or a television in the next room.

“It’s one of the most reported problems,” said Rick Garlick, head of the travel and hospitality practice at J.D. Power, the market research company. Noise is also one of the most daunting challenges.

A hotel that’s too quiet or too empty is a turnoff, Garlick said. And while it may end up receiving high guest satisfaction scores, he said it was likely to lose out on revenue. Rather than risk such prospects, many brands are choosing to appeal to travellers and locals who want high-energy scenes like those at the W hotels in New York where, as Garlick put it, “You don’t go there to sleep.”

And so the quest for a silent night has proved elusive.

Some companies are trying to change that.

This year, Knowledge Centre Sound Insulation, a network of acoustics and sound insulation specialists based in the Netherlands, began bestowing a “Quiet Room” label to hotels to alert travellers that one or more rooms will meet certain standards.

And chains like Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, part of the InterContinental Hotels Group, are rolling out new padded headboards to help reduce noise while also continuing to offer separate “quiet zones” in their hotels for travellers who want similarly muted neighbours.

To find a quiet hotel room travellers generally have to rely on word-of-mouth or search reviews on sites such as Expedia.com and TripAdvisor. (Hint: Do a Google search for “quiet hotel room in London,” or whatever your desired destination, and TripAdvisor reviews for the 30 best quiet hotels in that city will appear.)

Yet that method is hardly a guarantee of peace. It comes down to luck of the draw: who has the room next to you, for instance, or whether you happen to be assigned a room by an elevator bank. By now most travellers know to ask for a room far from the elevators, on a high floor and away from bustling streets. And they know to steer clear of what Garlick referred to as large urban hotels and convention hotels because they’re typically full and noisy. What’s left to try?

Knowledge Centre Sound Insulation is attempting to make things more transparent by testing hotel rooms and offering its own sound insulation services to those that are not up to snuff. They don’t promise absolute silence, but rather, classify rooms into one of three silence tiers — Category III (in which the maximum allowed sound level is 54 decibels, or the approximate volume of a refrigerator hum); Category II (up to 48 decibels); and Category I (up to 43 decibels) — based on measurements of different types of sound.

Quiet Room certificate In March, Lucas Keizer, the chief executive of Knowledge Centre Sound Insulation, announced that the Doubletree Hilton in Amsterdam had acquired a Quiet Room label, followed by the Hilton Paris Orly Airport, the first French hotel to get the certificate.

Apollo Hotels and Resorts and Golden Tulip hotels also carry Quiet Room labels. And Keizer wrote in an e-mail that he is also speaking with the Accor hotel brand and Van der Valk Hotels & Restaurants, which has the bulk of its hotels in the Netherlands and Germany.

Hotels that qualify can use a Quiet Room logo in their advertising and promotions, post a “Quiet Rooms Available” sign at their entrance, and display a Quiet Room certificate at the reception desk.

Some choose to submit documentation of their own soundproofing measures (information including blueprints and photos) and be certified at the Category III Quiet Room tier.

“Soundproofing could potentially get you the best of both worlds,” said Garlick. It allows for bustling public spaces while also allowing guests to retreat to the relative quiet of their rooms. Many hotel brands, such as the Four Seasons, have their own soundproofing methods, offering insulated walls.

It seems the most foolproof thing to do is to cluster guests who want quiet rooms. And for that one can turn to any number of Crowne Plaza Hotels in places as varied as Los Angeles, Toronto and Helsinki, where the brand has introduced designated quiet zone floors, part of its Sleep Advantage programme.

-Stephanie Rosenbloom/The New York Times News Service

Is there such a thing as a quiet hotel room anymore?

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EXTRA A fusion of fashion and architecture is implicit in footwear — and the naming of shoe components betrays both worlds

T

Silk-satin shoes with wedgwood heels by Rayne

Architect Zaha Hadid's vinyl and carbon-fibre creations

Ginas patriotic 'Drew' shoes

Julian Hakes' 3-D printed 'Mojito' shoe

here is little in the canon of fashion that compares to shoes. Sleeves inflated and deflated to glovelike tightness, hats grew to gargantuan proportions, shrank and then disappeared entirely, but shoes are a constant They are arguably, the wonders of the fashion world: smallscale architectural feats, for your feet. “A shoe is a very engineered element of the woman’s wardrobe, that’s for sure,” says Christian Louboutin, the designer whose signature red soles are objects of lust, litigation and a multi-million-pound counterfeiting industry. But it isn’t just high-end designers who espouse the engineering acumen required to create footwear: Jacqui Markham, the global design director of the high-street behemoth Topshop, says, “For me, a shoe can be likened to a piece of sculpture – a 360-degree art form requiring both an artist’s eye and an inherent technical awareness.”

That combination nets a pretty penny: Topshop won’t release specific figures, but its business must account for a significant swathe of the $740 million revenue generated by footwear in the United Kingdom. Globally, the industry turnover — high-end and mass-market — sits at around $189 billion, according to research analysts at IBISWorld. Individual designers can make millions: the aforementioned Monsieur Louboutin’s annual turnover was estimated at $241 million in 2010, after selling 600-700,000 pairs of shoes that year. And this was before the addition of a cosmetics line, based on the idea of “polish” for the toenails exposed by several signature Louboutin styles; the same polish Louboutin once used to paint the arch of a pair of high heels, later spanning it into a global trademark. Launched last July, said polish is projected to net another $2.95 million annually. Louboutin has famously fought tooth and nail over those lacquered soles. (In 2012, a New York court ruled in his case against YSL that the red-sole trademark was only valid against contrasting uppers). Yet arch aesthetics are the tiniest part of the challenge of shoemaking. “A pair of shoes has to be ergonomically sound to function,” says John Miller, the clerk of the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers, the London shoemaking guild founded in 1272. “A garment doesn’t. A single millimetre can make the difference between a good and an ordinary shoe.” Brian Atwood, who used to design gravity-defying platforms for Versace before establishing his own brand in 2001 agrees: “I always compare it to building a house — because, like with a house, you need a great foundation.” This isn’t just jingoistic linguistics, but reflects the fusion of fashion and architecture implicit in footwear — and the naming of shoes’ components betrays both worlds.

This odd mangling of the terminology of architecture and anatomy is present, I’d argue, only in shoes. And certainly, it’s no accident that such noted architects as Zaha Hadid, Jean Nouvel and Oscar Niemeyer have lent a hand to footwear.

They’ve also rarely restrained said hand to pure aesthetic — because, if properly designed, shoes can make an outfit; if not, they can break your ankle.

“You have to have both,” says Helen Persson, curator of the exhibition Shoes: Pleasure and Pain. She isn’t talking about matching shoes, but the pairing of aesthetic lust with architectural know-how. “You can make really fantastic looking shoes, but if they’re not engineered properly, they’re not shoes.

They have to stay on your feet.” Not only stay, but support and shield. Shoes started as a practical consideration, first and foremost, protecting the foot from the elements above and from whatever was underfoot. The earliest known — or, rather, found — examples are from the Neolithic period, around 7,000-8,000BC. (They’re recognisably sandals — of twined fibres, with a rope still attached that wraps the ankle – and still a pair.) But scholars think there were probably much older shoes than this. Unfortunately, highly perishable objects as they are, they probably fell apart, in much the same way as over-worn pairs of trainers. The earliest known leather shoes — lace-ups, constructed from single pieces of cowhide — were unearthed in Armenia in 2008 and date back to 3,500BC That’s a while in shoe history, you may think – but Persson argues that, in bespoke footwear, “nothing has really changed since the medieval period — in ready-to-wear shoes, too, it’s just been mechanised”. It’s in the Middle Ages that one starts to see fashion’s influence on the architecture of shoes — such as the crakow, a unisex shoe whose etymological origin can be traced to the city of Krakow, Poland, where it emerged in the 1300s.

Shoes were entirely custom-made until the 20th century, when “modern” designers emerged — the first being Pietro Yanturni, who in the 1920s demanded deposits of around $1,000 to undertake a pair of shoes for a client. (Today, that would equate to roughly $11,641) Said shoes, crafted from antique velvets and brocades, took on average two years to finish — but one noted client, New York socialite Rita de Acosta Lydig, commissioned several hundred pairs and reputedly had her shoe trees crafted from antique violins for the featherweight quality of their wood. Was Lydig a foot fetishist? Not in the way that we understand the term — for which a synonym is “Retifism”. This honours Nicolas-Edme Rétif, an 18th-century French noble who was one of the first to write on the subject — and more than a century ahead of the psychological establishment in recognising it. But by then, you couldn’t miss it. In the late 19th century, shoemakers began to realise elaborate fantasies, such as boots with 28 centimetres heels, longer than the soles. This footwear was created for lying down — or at least sitting — given that standing or walking were impossibilities.

Today, however, perhaps they can engineer it. Certainly, the likes of Louboutin and Atwood are proposing everyday heels higher high than ever — outside of 19th-century Viennese Retifist club — that still allow women to walk.

Julian Hakes is an architect (another) who has turned his Ju hand from bridge building in the Middle East, Russia and the USA to shoe-making. And his “mojito” shoe entirely dispenses with the middle part of the shoe, the foot bed. “When you study the loads in the foot there is very little transferred in this part l of the th foot. Ninety per cent of the body weight goes to the front of the th shoe,” he says. -Alexander Fury/The Independent

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

C9

ENTERTAINMENT CINEMA SCHEDULE

BAHJA CINEMA Jurassic World (Action / Adventure) Cast: Chris Pratt, Judy Greer, Ty Simkins 3:00, 5:15, 7:30, 9:45 & 11:55 pm CP No: 1495 (PG12)

Jurassic World (Act, Adv) (3D) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins 9:15, 11:45 pm Jurassic World (Act, Adv) (2D) (PG12) Cast : Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 2:00, 6:45 pm Spy (Action, Comedy) (18+) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi, 7:15, 9:30 pm Dil Dhadakne Do (Drama, Rom) (TBC) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shetty, Priyanka Chopra 5:00, 8:15 pm Insidious Chapter 3 (Horror) (15+) Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, Angus Sampson 3:00, 11:30 pm Better Living Through Chemistry (Comedy, Drama) (15+) Cast: Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde 5:30 pm San Andreas (Act, Adv) (3D) PG Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino 4:30, 11:45 pm A Mouse Tale (Animation) (PG) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell, Miranda Cosgrove 2:00, 3:45 pm

Hamara Adhuri Kahani (2D)(Dra) (PG) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan 9:00pm San Andreas (3D) (Act) (PG) Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario 12:15 & 5:00pm Jurassic World (3D) (Act/Adv) (PG12)

Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard 9:30 & 11:45pm Gold Class: 8:45 & 11:15 pm Jurassic World (2D) (Act/Adv) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard 10:30am; Gold Class: 12:45pm Spy (2D) (Action/Comedy) (18+) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi, Melissa McCarthy 2:45 & 7:15pm; Gold Class: 3:15 pm Insidious Chapter 3 (2D) (Horror) (15+) Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott 11:45 pm Dil Dhadakne Do (2D) (Dra) (PG12) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shetty, Priyanka Chopra 6:00 pm; Gold Class: 5:30 pm A Mouse Tale (2D) (Animation) (PG) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell, 10:30 am, 12:45 & 2:30 pm Better Living Through Chemistry (2D) (Comedy/Drama) (15+) Cast: Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde, Michelle Monaghan 4:15 pm

SCREEN 1 Hamari Adhori Kahani (Rom/Drama) – PG Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan and Rajkummar Rao 3:30, 9.45 pm Dil Dhadakne Do (Rom/Dra ) – PG12 Cast: Anil Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Shefali Shetty, Anushka Sharma, Priyanka Chopra 6:45 pm SCREEN 2 Dil Dhadakne Do (Rom/Dra ) – PG12 3:30, 9:45 pm Hamari Adhori Kahani (Rom/Dra) – PG Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan and Rajkummar Rao 6:45 pm

SCREEN 3 Tanu Weds Manu Returns (Romance/Drama/Comedy ) – PG Cast: Kangana Ranaut, R. Madhavan, Jimmy Shergill, Deepak Dobriyal 3.45, 6.45, 9.45 pm

San Andreas - 3D (PG) (Action | Drama) Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario 9:15, 11:30 pm Spy - 2D (18+) (Action | Comedy) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi, Melissa McCarthy 6:30, 11:45 pm Dil Dhadakne Do - 2D (PG12) (Drama) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shetty, Priyanka Chopra 3:00 pm Jurassic World - 2D (PG12) (Action) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins 2:40 pm Jurassic World - 3D (PG12) (Act | Sci- ) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 6:45, 9:15, 11:45 pm Better Living Through Chemistry 2D (15+) (Comedy| Drama) Cast: Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde 3:00, 7:25pm Preservation - 2D (15+) (Horror) Cast: Wrenn Schmidt, Pablo Schreiber, Aaron Staton 5:00, 11:50pm A Mouse Tale - 2D (PG) (Animation) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell, Miranda 3:00, 4:45pm Hamari Adhuri Kahaani - 2D (PG) (Drama | Romance) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajkummar Rao, Sara Khan 4:45, 9:10 pm

Premam - 2D (M) (TBC) (Com | Romance) Cast: Nivin Pauly, Anupama Parameshwaran 8:45 pm Romeo Juliet - 2D (T) (PG) (Com) Cast: Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Vamsi Krishna, 6:15 pm

Jurassic World - 2D (Act/Adv) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Ty Simpkins 3:00 pm Jurassic World - 3D (Act/ Fi) (PG12) 4:45, 9:15, 11:30 pm A Mouse Tale – 2D (Animation) (PG) 3:00, 5:05pm San Andreas – 3D (PG) (Act, Dr) 6:45, 11:45pm Premam – 2D (Com, Romance) (TBC) Cast: Nivin Pauly, Anupama Parameshwaran; 8:45pm Dil Dhadakne Do – 2D (PG12) (Drama) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Priyanka Chopra 3:30pm Romeo Juliet – 2D (Tamil) (Dr) (PG) Cast: Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Vamsi Krishna 6:30pm Hamari Adhuri Kahaani - 2D (Drama) (TBC) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan 9:15 pm Spy - 2D (18+) (Action, Comedy) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi 7:00, 11:45pm

Jurassic World (3D) (Action) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins, 4:15, 9:30, 11:45 pm Jurassic World (2D) (Act | Adv) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins 2:45pm

A Mouse Tale (Animation) (PG) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell 11:30 AM, 5:00 pm Spy (Action | Comedy) (18+) Cast: Jason Statham, Jude Law, Melissa McCarthy 6:45pm Hamari Adhuri Kahaani (Hindi) (Drama | Romance) (PG); 9:00 pm Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan Dil Dhadakne Do (Hindi) (Dra) (TBC) 01:15pm Premam (Mal) (Com| Rom) (TBC) 11:45 AM, 6:30 pm

San Andreas (3D) (12+) (Act, Dra, ) Cast: Dwayne Johnson, 5:15, 11:55pm Spy (2D) (18+) (Action, Comedy) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi, 12:30, 11:30 pm Insidious: Chapter 3 (2D) (15+) (Hor) Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, 2:00, 10:05pm Dil Dhadakne Do (2D) (PG12) (Dra) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra; 2:15pm Jurassic World (3D) (PG12) (Sci-Fi ) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 7:15, 9:30, 11:45pm Jurassic World (2D) (PG12) (Sci-Fi ) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 12:00 pm Romeo Juliet (2D) (PG) (Com) Cast: Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Vamsi Krishna, 5:45pm Hamari Adhuri Kahaani (2D) (PG) (Drama, Romance) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, 7:30pm Better Living Through Chemistry (2D) (15+) (Comedy, Drama) Cast: Sam Rockwell, 5:45pm A Mouse Tale (2D) (PG) (Animation) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell, 12:15, 4:00 pm

Preservation ( Horror /Thriller) Cast: Wren Schimidth, Pablo Schrieber, Aron Staton 1:15 & 11:55 pm CP No: 1496 (15+) San Andreas (Action / Thriller) Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Alexandra Deddario, Carla Gugino 1:00 & 5:15 pm CP No: 1381 (PG) Hamara Adhuri Kahani (Romance) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajkumar Rao 3:00, 7:15 & 9:30 pm CP No: 1497 (PG)

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

STARS CINEMA Film information 24791641 / 24786776

Premam (Mal) (Com) Cast: Nivin Pauly, Anupama Parameshwaran & Sai Pallavi 3:30, 6:30, 9:00 pm at Cinema Main Romeo & Juliet (Tamil) (Act/Rom) Cast: Jayam Ravi & Hansika Motwani 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30pm at Cinema -2 Hamari Adhuri Kahani (Hindi) (Rom) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajkummar Rao, Sara Khan 3:45, 6:45 & 9:45 pm at Cinema-3 Chandrettan Evideya (Mal) (Rom/Com) Cast: Dileep, Namitha and Anu Sree 3:45, 6:45, 9:45 pm Cinema -4 Next Change: Laila O Laila ( Mal ) Eli (Tamil) Kakka (Tamil) (Subject to change)

For More Information 24789032, 24786776 Website: www.isurf.co.om

ACES ON BRIDGE

WITH LOVE

From a 5-3 fit to a 4-4 fit RICHARD Branson, of Virgin Atlantic Airways fame, said, “I think it’s quite great to set yourself a big challenge, and then you’ve got another reason for keeping fit.”

That reminds me of the joke about the man who goes to his doctor for his annual checkup.

After all of the tests, the doctor says that the man seems healthy, but asks what he does. “I play bridge.”

“What else do you do?”

“Nothing; I only play bridge.”

“What do you do for exercise?”

“I always sit EastWest.”

It is almost always better to play in the 4-4 fit, not the 5-3 fit, because you have a good chance to get an extra trump trick by roughing a loser in one hand or the other. And the 5-3 fit will usually deliver two discards. A 4-4 side suit can never provide a pitch.

Here, four hearts looks in trouble, given the bad trump break, but it can be made if declarer is careful after West starts the defense with three rounds of diamonds.

How?

It would be easy to get careless after roughing the third diamond by assuming a 3-2 trump break. If declarer immediately draws two rounds of trumps, here he goes down.

South should see these 10 tricks: five spades, three hearts, one club and the diamond ruff. At trick four, he should run the heart 10. Yes it loses, but East has no answer.

Even if he tries the fourth diamond, South ruffs with his heart nine, draws trumps, and claims.

— By Phillip Alder

MARMADUKE

CROSSWORD

B I G NAT E

Answer to previous puzzle

ACROSS 1 Superman, incognito 5 Perchance 9 LP spinners 12 Frankenstein’s gofer 13 Boulevard liners 14 Debt memo 15 Kinetic art forms 17 Bobby of Indy fame 19 In honor of 20 Arrogant person 21 Cashmere and angora 24 Most frugal 27 Rent, as a limo 28 Salon offering 29 Wood ash product

30 31 32 33 34 35 36 38 39 40 41 43 47 48 50 51 52 53

Foreman foe Red Sea peninsula Umbrage Piano support Housefly, to us Miner’s find Skyscraper Davenports Renoir model On the — vive Windy City airport Chomped Brewery tank Costa — Loosen, as a grip Passport datum Made a remark Cut into cubes

DOWN 1 One of the Kardashian sisters 2 It’s easily deflated 3 San Francisco hill 4 No big thing 5 Sly glance 6 Raised railways 7 Not med.

8 Tidal wave 9 Skepticism 10 Diner coffee 11 California’s Big — 16 — Angeles 18 Mail-motto word 20 No-fat Jack 21 Moby Dick, e.g.

22 Fixed a squeak 23 Start 24 Feel

25 Where Damascus is 26 New drivers, mostly 28 Gun, in a cop show 31 Web masters?

35 Expressed 37 Cat hair 38 Grab some rays 40 View from the dorm 41 Future fish 42 Crone 43 1101, in old Rome 44 Shogun’s affirmative 45 PC key 46 Aberdeen’s river 49 Corn Belt st.

BORN LOSER

NOOR June 15

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

KIDSPOT

H E A LT H C A P S U L E

C1 0

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

FIND-IT-ALL Y O U R B I R T H D AY

BORN today, you are not the kind to live in someone else’s shadow!

You insist on being recognised for your own unique contributions to the world. Because of this, you’re sure to start making such contributions at a surprisingly early age. Like so many Gemini natives, you want to be on your own, to be allowed to manoeuvre according to your own desires, needs and even whims, to pursue success on your own terms. And so you will, provided you are always true to yourself and avoid coming under the influence of anyone who might overshadow you. You must therefore step out on your own at the first opportunity — and indeed, again and again.

You do not respond well to criticism, but you realise that to accept criticism is to learn from it — and learning, in all its forms, no matter what prompts it, is essential to you and your way of life. You may not be highly educated, but you are likely to be quite street smart, having let experience shape your mind.

Also born on this date are: Tupac Shakur, rapper; Phil Mickelson, golfer; Stan Laurel, actor and comedian; Geronimo, Native American leader; Joan Van Ark, actress; Joyce Carol Oates, author; Jack Albertson, actor; Erich Segal, author.

W E AT H E R

P

WORLD

Max 40 Min 34 Max 27 Min 19

Max 38 Min 25

Max 35 Min 29 Max 27 Min 17

Max 33 Min 30

Max 19 Min 10

Max 41 Min 28

Max 42 Min 30

Max 38 Min 28

Max 32 Min 28

Max 35 Min 29

[MAY 21-JUNE 20] Max 33 Min 29

Max 29 Min 16

Max 35 Min 27 Max 18 Min 16

—www.met.gov.om

GULF Abu Dhabi Doha Dubai Kuwait Manama Riyadh

39 43 39 42 39 42

29 28 27 30 30 26

WORLD Athens Baghdad Beijing Berlin Boston Cairo Colombo Frankfurt Hong Kong Istanbul Johannesburg Kuala Lumpur Lisbon Paris Perth Singapore Tokyo Toronto

35 42 34 16 24 38 29 21 31 28 19 30 24 22 21 30 26 25

21 22 21 11 16 18 27 10 26 20 2 25 15 14 12 28 19 15

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

[JUNE 21-JULY 22]

LEO [JULY 23-AUG. 22] It’s up to you to do what you can to prevent someone from making a mistake. If you do not, it will eventually involve you as well.

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (Route 36) Dept Destination Arrival Time Time 15:00 Quriyat 16:30 15:00 Sur 18:00 15:00 Jaalan 19:30 TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41) 06:30 Sohar 06:30 Buraimi 08:00 Buraimi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Buraimi 16.00 Sohar 16.00 Buraimi TO SINAW (Route 52) 17:30 Sinaw

Operating Days Daily Daily Daily

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (Route 36) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily 05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily 05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

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

Daily Daily Daily via Ibri Daily Daily Daily Daily

20:50

Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41) 07:00 Sohar 07:00 Ruwi 13:30 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 17:00 Ruwi TO SINAW (Route 52) 07:00 Ruwi

08:55 11:40 20:20 14:55 17:40 19:20 22:15

Daily Daily Daily via Ibri Daily Daily Daily Daily

10:25

Daily

08:40 11:00

Daily Daily

VIRGO [AUG. 23-SEPT. 22] You can change course and, by so doing, prove to someone that nothing is certain or inevitable. There are always options!

LIBRA L [[SEPT. [S S 23-OCT. 22] You may not agree with another’s motives, but you understand exactly what he or she is trying to do. Perhaps it’s time to lend a hand.

SCORPIO S [[OCT. 23-NOV. 21] You may not be quite as connected as you had assumed. You’ll have to make do with an old-fashioned approach.

SAGITTARIUS S [[NOV. 22-DEC. 21] You’re waiting for someone to make you an offer, but it is up to you to pursue opportunities more aggressively.

CAPRICORN [DEC. 22-JAN 19] You may feel as though you are being pushed to the brink by someone who doesn’t understand where all this is going. Speak up!

To Yanqul (Route 54) 14:30 Nizwa 14:30 Yanqul

16:50 19:30

Daily Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54) 06:00 Nizwa 06:00 Ruwi

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54) 08:00 Nizwa 08:00 Al Araqi

10:20 12:30

Daily Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54) 15:40 Nizwa 15:40 Ruwi

17:55 20:20

Daily Daily

TO SUR (Route 55) 07:30 Sur 14:30 Sur

12:00 18:45

Daily Daily

TO SUR (Route 55) 06:00 Ruwi 14:30 Ruwi

10:45 19:00

Daily Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (Route 62) 06:30 Fahud 06:30 Yibal

10:30 11:15

Daily Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (Route 62) 12:30 Fahud 12:30 Ruwi

13:15 17:30

Daily Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (Route 100) 07:00 Salalah 20:00 10:00 Marmul 20:30 10:00 Salalah 23:30 19:00 Salalah 07:40

Daily Daily Daily Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (Route 100) 07:00 Ruwi 19:50 10:00 Marmul 13:15 10:00 Ruwi 22:30 19:00 Ruwi 07:30

Daily Daily Daily Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101) 06:00 Marmul

Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101) 06:00 Marmul

16:30

Daily

Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (Route 102) 15:00 Salalah 07:00

Daily

16:50

SALALAH TO DUBAI (Route 102) 15:00 Dubai 07:00 TO DUBAI (Route 201) 06:00 Sohar 06:00 Dubai 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Dubai 15:00 Sohar 15:00 Dubai

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

Daily Daily Wed,Thur Wed,Thur Daily Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily 07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily 07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201) 07:30 Sohar 07:30 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Ruwi 15:30 Sohar 15:30 Ruwi

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

Daily Daily Thur-Fri Thur-Fri Daily Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily 16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily 16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

LISTINGS

AQUARIUS [JAN. 20-FEB. 18] After a long period of experimentation, you’re likely to hit on a course of action that you feel you can adopt as your own — permanently.

PISCES [Feb. 19-March 20] Before you can have what you want, you’re going to have to give someone else what he or she needs.

ARIES [March 21-APRIL 19] It’s up to you to see that those in your care do what you know is best for them; you can’t leave them to their own devices just yet.

TAURUS [APRIL 20-MAY 20] You’re not getting the answers you want or need, perhaps because you’re not asking the right questions.

Rethink your approach.

Sunset Sunrise (Tomorrow)

6.55pm 5.20am

High tide Low tide

8:05pm 3:01am

PHARMACIES Round the clock Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24783334; Appolo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24782666; Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24702542, Salalah: 23291635; Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra: 24503585; Ruwi 24811715 Muscat Region Apollo, Al Hamriya. Tel: 24787766 Muscat, A Seeb Market. Tel: 24421691 Muscat, Al Khuwair. Tel: 24485740 Muscat, Al Hail South. Tel: 4537080 Dhofar Region Muscat, Al Nahdha Road, Salalah.

Tel: 23291635 HOSPITALS Al Amal Medical & Health Care Centre: 24485052 Atlas Hospital: Ruwi: 24811743/ Ghubra: 24504000 Al Musafir Specialised Medical Clinic: 24706453 Hatat Polyclinic LLC, Ruwi: 24563641, Azaiba: 24499269, Sohar: 2683006 Al Raffah Hospital: 24618900/1/2 Al Massaraat Clinic & Laboratory: 24566435 Al Makook Medical Coordinance Centre: 24499434 Apollo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24787766, 24787780 Capital Polyclinic: 24707549 Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic, Ruwi: 24799760/1/2 Capital Clinic, Seeb: 24420740 Ceregem National Raak: 24485633 Dr Harub’s Clinic: 24563217 Elixir Health Centre: 24565802 Emirates Medical Centre: 24604540 1st Chiropractic Centre: 24472274 Hamdan Hospital: 23212340 International Medical Centre LLC: 24794501/2/3/4/5 Kims Oman Hospital: 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency: 24760123 Lama Polyclinic, Sohar: 26751128, MBD: 24799077, Al Khuwair: 24478818 Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital: 24568870 Muscat Private Hospital: 24583600 Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair: 24477666 Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC: 22004000 ROYAL OMAN POLICE Emergencies and inquiries: 9999 General Directorate of Passport and Residence: 24569603 Directorate General of Customs: 24521109 Traffic violations inquiries: 24510228 Public Relations Admin: 24560099 ACCOMMODATION Al Bahjah Hotel: 24424400 Al Bustan Palace: 24764000 Al Khuwair Hotel Apartments: 24478171 Al Madina Holiday Inn: 24596400 Al Maha International Hotel: 24494949 Al Fanar Hotel: 24712385 Al Falaj Hotel: 24702311 Al Qurum Resort: 24605945 Azaiba Hotel Apartments: 24490979 Beach Hotel: 24696601 Bowshar Hotel: 24491105 Coral Hotel Muscat: 24692121 Crowne Plaza Muscat: 24660660 Crystal Suites: 24826100 Golden Tulip Seeb: 24510300 Grand Hyatt Muscat: 24641234 Haffa House Hotel: 24707207 Hotel Muscat Holiday: 24487123 InterContinental Muscat: 24680000 Majan Continental Hotel: 24592900 Marina Hotel: 24711711 Midan Hotel Suites: 24499565 Mina Hotel: 24711828 Muttrah Hotel: 24798401

Nuzha Hotel Apartments: 24789199 Oman Dive Centre: 24824240 Park Inn: 24507888 Qurum Beach House Hotel: 24564070 Radisson Blu Hotel: 24487777 Ramee Dream Resort Seeb: 24453399 Ramee Guestline Hotel: 24564443 Ruwi Hotel: 24704244 Safeer Hotel Suites: 24691200 Sheraton Oman Hotel: 24772772 Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa: 24776666 The Chedi Muscat: 24524400 The Treasurebox Muscat Hotel: 24502570 Sifawy Hotel +968 24749111 Juweira Hotel +968 23239600 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

TUESDAY

Min

L O N G D I S TA N C E B U S T I M I N G S ( O M A N N AT I O N A L T R A N S P O R T C O M PA N Y S A O C ) * S U B J E C T T O C H A N G E

What you seek is likely right around the corner, but your view of it may be obscured by a past experience that has turned sour.

12.12pm 3.30pm 6.35pm 7.00pm 8.22am

9:12am 2:49pm

southeasterly to easterly light to moderate.

SEA STATE: Rough along southeastern coast with a maximum wave height of 3.5 metres and slight along the rest of Oman’s coast with a maximum wave height 1.0 metre.

HORIZONTAL VISIBILITY: Good over most of the Sultanate becoming poor during fog patches.

THE NEXT 48 HOURS OUTLOOK: Partly cloudy to cloudy skies over governorates of south Al-Sharqiya, Al-Wusta and Dhofar with chances of isolated rain. Chances of convective clouds developments over Al-Hajar mountains and adjoining areas during evening.

Max

OMAN

CANCER

Dhuhr Asr Maghrib Isha Fajr (Tomorrow)

AIRLINES

artly cloudy skies over the governorates of south Al-Sharqiya, AlWusta and Dhofar with chances of isolated rain and clear skies over rest of the Sultanate with chances of convective clouds development over Al-Hajar mountains and adjoining areas during evening. Chances of late night to early morning low level cloud or fog patches over the governorates of south Al-Sharqiya, Al-Wusta and Al-Dakhiliyah.

EXPECTED WIND: Along the coastal areas of Dhofar and Al-Wusta governorates wind will be southwesterly moderate to fresh, while it will be northeasterly slight to moderate during day becoming variable light at night along the Oman Sea and over rest of the Sultanate it will be

GEMINI There are ways to sort out a crisis that you have not yet considered.

Today, you’ll have the time and inclination to look for answers.

PRAYER TIMINGS

Airlines: 24791233, Shaheen Air: 24816565, SriLankan Airlines: 24784545, Swiss International Airlines: 24796692, Thai Airways: 24705934, Turkish Airlines: 24703033 MUSEUMS Bait Al Baranda: Corniche (seafront opp fish market), Open from Saturday to Thursday 9am to 1pm and 4 to 6pm Natural History Museum: Al Khuwair, Tel: 24604957, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm; Thursday: 9am to 1pm Museum of Omani Heritage: (former Omani Museum), Madinat Al Alam, Sat-Wed 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday 9am to 1pm, Tel: 24600946 Armed Forces Museum: Bait Al Falaj, Tel: 24312651, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm; Thurs 9-12pm and 3-6pm; Fri 9-11am and 3-6pm. Al Hoota Caves 24498258; Turtle Beach 96550606/96550707 Children’s Science Museum: Shatti Al Qurum, Tel: 24605368, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pm Oman-French Museum: near Muscat Police Station, Tel: 24736613, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pm Bait Al Zubair, Muscat: Tel: 24736688, Al Saidiya St., Muscat museum@baitalzubairmuseum.com Open from Sat to Thurs: 9:30am to 6pm.

National Museum Ruwi: Tel: 24701289, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pm Sohar Fort Museum: Tel: 26844758, Open from Saturday to Wed: 8 to 1:30pm Thurs: 9am to 1pm Muscat Gate Museum: at Al Bahri Road, Muscat open from Sat to Wed 8am to 2pm

FLT NO

ARRIVALS FROM

WY406 WY648 WY676 WY682 WY914 BG021 WY916 NL768 TK774 4H583 PK281 GF560 QR1132 EK866 ET624 EY384 FZ041 WY114 WY412 WY658 WY638 4H562 WY902 WY644 WY326 WY686 WY154 WY144 WY678 WY668 WY132 WY674 WY102 FZ043 WY432 WY602 WY346 WY342 WY272 WY202 G9841 WY236 G9114 WY282 EK862 WY242 WY252 QR1128 IX817 EY382 9W530 WY3302 WY604 WY918 WY652 GF562 FZ037 WY372 IX337 WY384 WY822 WY705 WY904 WY634 WY818 BG023 WY670 WY324 WY332 PA950 PK191 WY606 WY906 WY920 FZ045 WY632 WY656 QR1126 WY3304 WY204 WY292 WY264 WY664 WY216 EK864 WY232 WY246 WY610 WY694 GF564 TG507 SV534 G9116 WY374 WY646 FZ047 WY908 RG125 WY386 WY224 WY614 WY338 FZ049 WY124 9W534 AI973 6.00E+81 WY254 BA073 WY624 UL205 AI907 WY312 LX242 QR1134 GF566 LH616 EY388 WY910 9W540 AI985 WY662 WY654 WY636 WY928 WY816 WY696 WY612

WEDNESDAY ETA

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ARRIVALS FROM

CAIRO 0005 KUWAIT 0005 JEDDAH 0005 RIYADH 0010 SALALAH 0020 DACCA 0100 SALALAH 0120 LAHORE 0130 ISTANBUL 0135 DACCA 0200 ISLAM ABBAD-SIALKOT 0300 BAHRAIN 0325 DOHA 0345 DUBAI 0350 ADDIS ABABA 0350 ABU DHABI 0400 DUBAI 0415 FRANKFURT 0515 AMMAN 0515 BAHRAIN 0635 ABU DHABI 0640 JEDDAH 0645 SALALAH 0645 KUWAIT 0650 KARACHI 0650 RIYADH 0655 ZURICH 0700 MALPENSA 0705 MEDINA 0710 DOHA 0715 PARIS 0735 JEDDAH 0735 LONDON HEATHROW 0740 DUBAI 0800 TEHRAN 0805 DUBAI 0805 ISLAM ABBAD 0815 LAHORE 0825 JAIPUR 0830 BOMBAY 0835 RAS AL KHAIMA 0855 HYDERABAD 0900 SHARJAH 0905 BANGALORE 0910 DUBAI 0930 DELHI 0935 MADRAS 0955 DOHA 1000 MANGALORE 1010 ABU DHABI 1010 TRIVANDRUM 1045 MUKHAIZNA 1050 DUBAI 1115 KHASAB 1115 BAHRAIN 1125 BAHRAIN 1130 DUBAI 1140 COLOMBO 1140 CALICUT 1155 MALE 1210 KUALA LUMPUR-SINGAPORE 1215 DARESSLAM-ZANZIBAR 1215 SALALAH 1220 ABU DHABI 1220 BANGKOK 1220 DACCA-CHITTAGONG 1230 DOHA 1250 KARACHI 1300 KATHMANDU 1305 SIALKOT 1310 GWADUR 1320 DUBAI 1340 SALALAH 1440 KHASAB 1445 DUBAI 1535 ABU DHABI 1605 BAHRAIN 1610 DOHA 1650 MUKHAIZNA 1650 BOMBAY 1655 CALICUT 1710 LUCKNOW 1740 DOHA 1745 TRIVANDRUM 1745 DUBAI 1745 HYDERABAD 1750 DELHI 1750 DUBAI 1800 DAMMAM 1805 BAHRAIN 1810 BANGKOK-KARACHI 1900 RIYADH 1900 SHARJAH 1905 COLOMBO 1915 KUWAIT 1920 DUBAI 1940 SALALAH 2000 ABU DHABI 2005 MALE 2020 COCHIN 2025 DUBAI 2025 KATHMANDU 2040 DUBAI 2100 MUNICH 2105 COCHIN 2115 DELHI 2125 BOMBAY 2130 MADRAS 2135 LONDON HEATHROW-ABU DHABI 2140 DUBAI 2150 COLOMBO 2155 MADRAS 2200 CHITTAGONG 2210 ZURICH-DUBAI 2225 DOHA 2225 BAHRAIN 2240 FRANKFURT-DOHA 2245 ABU DHABI 2300 SALALAH 2310 BOMBAY 2315 BOMBAY 2325 DOHA 2335 BAHRAIN 2340 ABU DHABI 2340 SALALAH 2345 BANGKOK 2350 DAMMAM 2355 DUBAI 2355

WY648 WY406 WY676 WY672 WY682 WY914 WY916 TK774 4H583 PK229 GF560 FZ035 QR1132 EK866 ET624 EY384 WY114 WY412 WY658 WY638 WY902 WY644 WY686 G9841 WY144 WY668 WY674 WY132 WY102 FZ043 WY432 WY422 WY602 WY342 NL768 WY202 WY236 G9114 WY282 WY226 EK862 WY242 IX549 WY252 QR1128 EY382 IX443 QR8550 WY3922 WY652 9W530 WY918 WY604 WY3302 GF562 FZ037 WY372 IX337 PA450 WY822 WY818 WY634 WY904 WY670 WY324 WY332 WY606 WY906 WY920 WY348 G9119 FZ045 WY3304 WY656 QR1126 WY204 WY292 WY264 WY664 EK864 WY232 WY246 WY254 WY610 GF564 WY216 G9116 WY274 WY646 FZ047 WY908 RG125 WY632 WY386 WY614 WY848 WY338 FZ049 AI977 KL441 WY124 9W534 AI973 6.00E+81 BA073 WY624 AI907 WY312 LX242 QR1134 GF566 LH616 WY717 WY328 EY388 WY414 WY910 9W540 AI985 WY662 WY636 WY654 WY928 WY816 WY612 WY696

KUWAIT 0005 CAIRO 0005 JEDDAH 0005 MEDINA 0005 RIYADH 0010 SALALAH 0020 SALALAH 0120 ISTANBUL 0135 DACCA 0200 LAHORE 0215 BAHRAIN 0325 DUBAI 0340 DOHA 0345 DUBAI 0350 ADDIS ABABA 0350 ABU DHABI 0400 FRANKFURT 0515 AMMAN 0635 BAHRAIN 0635 ABU DHABI 0640 SALALAH 0645 KUWAIT 0650 RIYADH 0655 RAS AL KHAIMA 0655 MALPENSA 0705 DOHA 0715 JEDDAH 0735 PARIS 0735 LONDON HEATHROW 0740 DUBAI 0800 TEHRAN 0805 BEIRUT 0805 DUBAI 0805 LAHORE 0825 LAHORE 0830 BOMBAY 0835 HYDERABAD 0900 SHARJAH 0905 BANGALORE 0910 COCHIN 0920 DUBAI 0930 DELHI 0935 TRIVANDRUM 0955 MADRAS 0955 DOHA 1000 ABU DHABI 1010 COCHIN 1020 DOHA 1035 DUQUM OMAN 1035 BAHRAIN 1040 TRIVANDRUM 1045 KHASAB 1115 DUBAI 1115 MUKHAIZNA 1120 BAHRAIN 1130 DUBAI 1140 COLOMBO 1140 CALICUT 1155 LAHORE 1215 KUALA LUMPUR-SINGAPORE 1215 BANGKOK 1220 ABU DHABI 1220 SALALAH 1230 DOHA 1250 KARACHI 1300 KATHMANDU 1305 DUBAI 1340 SALALAH 1440 KHASAB 1445 ISLAM ABBAD 1515 SHARJAH 1525 DUBAI 1535 MUKHAIZNA 1550 BAHRAIN 1610 DOHA 1650 BOMBAY 1655 CALICUT 1710 LUCKNOW 1740 DOHA 1745 DUBAI 1745 HYDERABAD 1750 DELHI 1750 MADRAS 1750 DUBAI 1800 BAHRAIN 1810 TRIVANDRUM 1820 SHARJAH 1905 JAIPUR 1910 KUWAIT 1920 DUBAI 1940 SALALAH 2000 ABU DHABI 2005 ABU DHABI 2005 MALE 2020 DUBAI 2025 JAKARTA 2035 KATHMANDU 2040 DUBAI 2100 BANGALORE-HYDERABAD 2105 AMSTERDAM-DOHA 2105 MUNICH 2105 COCHIN 2115 DELHI 2125 BOMBAY 2130 LONDON HEATHROW-ABU DHABI 2140 DUBAI 2150 MADRAS 2200 CHITTAGONG 2210 ZURICH-DUBAI 2225 DOHA 2225 BAHRAIN 2240 FRANKFURT-DOHA 2245 ZANZIBAR-DARESSLAM 2250 KARACHI 2250 ABU DHABI 2300 AMMAN 2300 SALALAH 2310 BOMBAY 2315 BOMBAY 2325 DOHA 2335 ABU DHABI 2340 BAHRAIN 2340 SALALAH 2345 BANGKOK 2350 DUBAI 2355 DAMMAM 2355

FLT NO

DEPARTURES TO

FLT NO

DEPARTURES TO

AI986 9W539 SG062 WY657 WY637 WY235 WY281 WY685 WY201 WY643 WY251 WY345 WY271 WY601 WY341 WY431 WY371 WY123 WY325 WY901 WY241 WY667 WY383 BG022 NL769 TK775 4H584 WY331 PK282 EK867 ET625 EY385 FZ042 QR1133 GF561 WY651 WY3301 WY903 4H562 WY603 WY917 WY323 WY669 FZ044 WY633 WY373 WY215 WY815 WY291 WY263 WY385 G9842 WY821 G9115 WY231 WY905 WY605 WY203 WY245 EK863 WY337 IX818 QR1129 EY383 WY311 WY919 9W533 GF563 WY223 WY655 FZ038 WY631 IX350 WY253 WY113 WY693 WY3303 WY663 WY131 WY143 WY645 WY101 BG024 PK192 PA951 WY927 WY405 WY609 WY907 WY675 FZ046 WY671 WY613 QR1127 WY623 WY681 WY647 WY909 GF565 EK865 WY695 WY661 WY653 G9117 SV535 WY913 TG508 WY635 FZ048 WY611 RG126 WY915 FZ050 WY411 WY421 WY817 9W529 6.00E+82 AI908 UL206 AI974 GF567 LX243 BA072 QR1135 WY673 LH617 EY381

BOMBAY 0020 BOMBAY 0020 AHMEDABAD 0030 BAHRAIN 0055 ABU DHABI 0105 HYDERABAD 0110 BANGALORE 0110 RIYADH 0115 BOMBAY 0115 KUWAIT 0120 MADRAS 0120 ISLAM ABBAD 0125 JAIPUR 0135 DUBAI 0145 LAHORE 0145 TEHRAN 0155 COLOMBO 0155 MUNICH 0200 KARACHI 0210 SALALAH 0215 DELHI 0215 DOHA 0225 MALE 0230 CHITTAGONG-DACCA 0230 LAHORE 0230 ISTANBUL 0230 DACCA 0300 KATHMANDU 0350 SIALKOT 0400 DUBAI 0450 ADDIS ABABA 0450 ABU DHABI 0500 DUBAI 0510 DOHA 0515 BAHRAIN 0715 BAHRAIN 0730 MUKHAIZNA 0730 SALALAH 0740 DACCA 0745 DUBAI 0750 KHASAB 0815 KARACHI 0835 DOHA 0835 DUBAI 0845 ABU DHABI 0900 COLOMBO 0900 TRIVANDRUM 0900 BANGKOK 0905 CALICUT 0915 LUCKNOW 0940 MALE 0945 RAS AL KHAIMA 0945 SINGAPORE-KUALA LUMPUR 0945 SHARJAH 0955 HYDERABAD 1000 SALALAH 1020 DUBAI 1020 BOMBAY 1025 DELHI 1040 DUBAI 1045 KATHMANDU 1050 MANGALORE 1100 DOHA 1100 ABU DHABI 1105 CHITTAGONG 1140 KHASAB 1145 COCHIN 1145 BAHRAIN 1215 COCHIN 1215 BAHRAIN 1215 DUBAI 1225 ABU DHABI 1240 CALICUT 1255 MADRAS 1255 FRANKFURT 1320 DAMMAM 1330 MUKHAIZNA 1330 DOHA 1330 PARIS 1345 MALPENSA 1350 KUWAIT 1350 LONDON HEATHROW 1400 DACCA 1400 GWADUR-TURBAT 1405 SIALKOT 1430 SALALAH 1430 CAIRO 1440 DUBAI 1445 SALALAH 1540 JEDDAH 1615 DUBAI 1620 MEDINA 1705 DUBAI 1710 DOHA 1750 DUBAI 1840 RIYADH 1840 KUWAIT 1845 SALALAH 1850 BAHRAIN 1855 DUBAI 1910 DAMMAM 1915 DOHA 1920 BAHRAIN 1920 SHARJAH 1955 RIYADH 2000 SALALAH 2000 KARACHI-BANGKOK 2005 ABU DHABI 2015 DUBAI 2025 DUBAI 2035 ABU DHABI 2045 SALALAH 2100 DUBAI 2145 AMMAN 2205 BEIRUT 2215 BANGKOK 2225 TRIVANDRUM 2230 BOMBAY 2245 MADRAS 2300 COLOMBO 2305 DELHI 2310 BAHRAIN 2325 DUBAI-ZURICH 2325 ABU DHABI-LONDON HEATHROW 2330 DOHA 2330 JEDDAH 2350 DOHA-FRANKFURT 2355 ABU DHABI 2355

9W539 AI986 WY657 WY637 WY235 WY281 WY201 WY685 WY643 WY251 WY341 WY601 WY431 WY371 WY123 WY847 WY241 WY901 WY667 TK775 4H584 PK230 WY331 EK867 ET625 EY385 FZ036 QR1133 WY651 GF561 WY3921 G9842 WY603 WY903 WY3301 WY917 WY347 WY669 WY323 FZ044 WY633 WY815 WY291 WY215 WY253 NL769 WY717 WY263 WY385 WY821 WY843 G9115 WY231 WY905 WY605 WY203 WY245 EK863 IX554 WY337 QR1129 EY383 IX442 WY311 9W533 WY919 QR8550 WY655 GF563 WY273 FZ038 WY3303 IX350 PA451 WY113 WY663 WY143 WY645 WY101 WY423 WY153 WY927 WY413 WY405 WY609 WY907 WY675 G9110 FZ046 WY631 WY613 QR1127 WY327 WY623 WY681 WY647 WY909 GF565 EK865 WY695 WY661 WY653 G9117 WY913 WY635 FZ048 WY611 RG126 WY915 FZ050 AI978 KL442 WY817 9W529 6.00E+82 AI908 AI974 WY677 GF567 LX243 BA072 QR1135 WY673 EY381 LH617

BOMBAY 0020 BOMBAY 0020 BAHRAIN 0055 ABU DHABI 0105 HYDERABAD 0110 BANGALORE 0110 BOMBAY 0115 RIYADH 0115 KUWAIT 0120 MADRAS 0120 LAHORE 0145 DUBAI 0145 TEHRAN 0155 COLOMBO 0155 MUNICH 0200 JAKARTA 0215 DELHI 0215 SALALAH 0215 DOHA 0225 ISTANBUL 0230 DACCA 0300 LAHORE 0315 KATHMANDU 0350 DUBAI 0450 ADDIS ABABA 0450 ABU DHABI 0500 DUBAI 0510 DOHA 0515 BAHRAIN 0645 BAHRAIN 0715 DUQUM OMAN 0740 RAS AL KHAIMA 0745 DUBAI 0750 SALALAH 0750 MUKHAIZNA 0800 KHASAB 0815 ISLAM ABBAD 0830 DOHA 0835 KARACHI 0835 DUBAI 0845 ABU DHABI 0900 BANGKOK 0905 CALICUT 0915 TRIVANDRUM 0915 MADRAS 0915 LAHORE 0930 ZANZIBAR-DARESSLAM 0940 LUCKNOW 0940 MALE 0945 SINGAPORE-KUALA LUMPUR 0945 MANILA 0955 SHARJAH 0955 HYDERABAD 1000 SALALAH 1020 DUBAI 1020 BOMBAY 1025 DELHI 1040 DUBAI 1045 TRIVANDRUM 1045 KATHMANDU 1050 DOHA 1100 ABU DHABI 1105 COCHIN 1120 CHITTAGONG 1140 COCHIN 1145 KHASAB 1145 DUBAI WORLD CENTRE-DOHA 1205 BAHRAIN 1215 BAHRAIN 1215 JAIPUR 1220 DUBAI 1225 MUKHAIZNA 1230 CALICUT 1255 LAHORE 1315 FRANKFURT 1320 DOHA 1330 MALPENSA 1350 KUWAIT 1350 LONDON HEATHROW 1400 BEIRUT 1415 ZURICH 1420 SALALAH 1430 AMMAN 1440 CAIRO 1440 DUBAI 1445 SALALAH 1540 JEDDAH 1615 SHARJAH 1615 DUBAI 1620 ABU DHABI 1640 DUBAI 1710 DOHA 1750 KARACHI 1810 DUBAI 1840 RIYADH 1840 KUWAIT 1845 SALALAH 1850 BAHRAIN 1855 DUBAI 1910 DAMMAM 1915 DOHA 1920 BAHRAIN 1920 SHARJAH 1955 SALALAH 2000 ABU DHABI 2015 DUBAI 2025 DUBAI 2035 ABU DHABI 2045 SALALAH 2100 DUBAI 2145 HYDERABAD-BANGALORE 2200 DOHA-AMSTERDAM 2220 BANGKOK 2225 TRIVANDRUM 2230 BOMBAY 2245 MADRAS 2300 DELHI 2310 MEDINA 2310 BAHRAIN 2325 DUBAI-ZURICH 2325 ABU DHABI-LONDON HEATHROW 2330 DOHA 2330 JEDDAH 2350 ABU DHABI 2355 DOHA-FRANKFURT 2355

ETD

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

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EXTRA BRIEFS

Poor sleep may double heart attack risk WHEN IT comes to health of your heart, a bad night’s sleep could be as bad as smoking. Researchers have found that sleep disturbances may double the risk of heart attack and stroke in men. “Sleep is not a trivial issue. In our study it was associated with double the risk of a heart attack and up to four times the risk of stroke,” said professor Valery Gafarov of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

“Poor sleep should be considered a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease along with smoking, lack of exercise and poor diet. Guidelines should add sleep as a risk factor to recommendations for preventing cardiovascular disease.”

New app being developed to reduce post-quake stress A NEW mental health app is designed to help quake victims recover from trauma and promote general well being. The app, which works by setting self-care goals, is the latest tool from All Right?, a public health campaign in New Zealand set up to help people recover from the emotional effects of earthquakes, reported The Press.

Own a cat? You could get schizophrenia, says research OWNING A cat might be your pastime. But growing up with a cat is linked with developing schizophrenia, new research shows. The current study corroborates two previous researches. The parasite toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii), which can be passed from cats to humans, could play a role in the development of schizophrenia, said researchers. “T. gondii gets into the brain and forms microscopic cysts,” Edwin Torrey of the Stanley Medical Research Institute was quoted as telling the Huffington Post. App users would be offered easy “mini missions” each day to improve mental health and well-being. “We think it then becomes activated in late adolescence and causes disease, probably by affecting the neurotransmitters,” Torrey noted. -IANS

Three simple rules of eating seafood How do you make rules for our oceans and freshwater ecosystems, whose vast production is, even in this increasingly mechanised world, still more than half wild?

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early a decade ago, the writer Michael Pollan advised: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Ever since, a certain kind of progressive supermarket aisle has emerged — “Real” foods, calorie-limited portions and vegetarianism (or at least Meatless Mondays) have become culinary aspirations for millennials and boomers alike.

Pollan’s advice is sound. But what about the 71 per cent of the Earth’s surface that provides humans with 350 billion pounds of food every year? How do you make rules for our oceans and freshwater ecosystems, whose vast production is, even in this increasingly mechanised world, still more than half wild?

Since I first read Pollan’s haiku-like dictum, I have been trying to be like Mike — i.e., to work out a seafood three-liner that would be as concise, elegant and free from exceptions as his. I can’t say that I have been entirely successful. No sooner do I present a draft idea at a local seafood forum than I get shouted down by a New England dragger captain whose cod doesn’t fill the bill.

But rules are useful no matter the exceptions. And since World Oceans Day was this month, I thought I would offer up my own, admittedly clunky, variation: Eat American seafood.

A much greater variety than we currently do.

Mostly farmed filter feeders.

Some explanations are in order.

To begin with, why American?

Is there something intrinsically better about fish and shellfish caught in our waters? No. But there is something better about the way the United States and just a handful of nations manage wild fish.

In a 2009 analysis in the journal Nature, which ranked nations by the level of compliance with the United Nations code of conduct for fisheries, only the United States, Norway, Iceland, Australia, Canada and Namibia had “overall compliance scores whose confidence limits overlap with 60 per cent.” De-wonkified, that means that the United States and this handful of nations have done the best to apply science-

based fish management, but even they have room for improvement.

In the case of the United States, that has meant the imposition of quota systems and legal statutes that mandate overfishing’s end within a defined time frame. Another recent analysis of fishery governance commissioned by The Economist showed a similar cluster of nations with the United States at the top.

Yet despite these better ways of doing business with the ocean, up to 90 per cent of the seafood Americans eat is imported, much of it from Asia, where regulation is markedly poorer than in the United States. According to a recent study published in the journal Marine Policy, as much as 32 per cent of the wild fish we import may come to us via illegal or unreported fishing.

But it’s not as if we don’t have a lot of American fish. The United States exports about 3 billion pounds of what we catch. Which brings me to seafood rule No. 2 — If we are going to default to eating American fish and shellfish, we will need to eat a much greater variety of it.

The top three seafoods on American plates are shrimp, tuna and salmon, together more than half of what we eat from the sea. Each is largely imported, and each comes with significant complications.

Shrimp aquaculture in Southeast Asia has caused significant damage to coastal mangrove forests, which are only now starting to receive much-needed attention after the explosion in shrimp farming in the 1980s and ’90s.

Moreover, recent investigations

by The Associated Press and The Guardian reported human rights abuses, including forced labour, in the Thai seafood industry, one of the largest providers of shrimp to the United States.

Canned tuna, meanwhile, has been cited by Consumer Reports as “the most common source of mercury in our diet.”

And salmon, often well managed in the wild, mostly comes to us in its farmed form, which is reliant on huge amounts of wild fish as part of its feed.

But there are alternatives to

Shrimp aquaculture in Southeast Asia has caused significant damage to coastal mangrove forests, which are only now starting to receive muchneeded attention after the explosion in shrimp farming in the 1980s and 1990s

shrimp, tuna and salmon. More than 30 wild fish stocks in the United States have been rebuilt from previous depletion in the last quarter-century. The problem is that many of these stocks — like Atlantic porgy, Acadian redfish and Pacific sablefish - are unknown to many American consumers, which is one reason so much American fish is exported.

Still, no matter how much we change our eating habits, there is probably not enough wild American seafood to meet our country’s yearly demands, which are currently about 4.5 billion pounds (the third largest seafood consumption in the world, after China and Japan). In our country, a nation that ranks 15th in farmed seafood production, behind Egypt and Myanmar, a more significant investment in aquaculture is clearly necessary.

Which brings me to my last rule — We should eat more farmed filter feeders — animals like oysters and mussels that don’t need feed because they strain their sustenance from the water.

As I noted earlier, farmed carnivorous fish like salmon require wild fish as part of their diets on

the farm. And though the salmon industry has made epic improvements in efficiency on a per-fish basis in the last decade, aquaculture is growing so fast that the overall removal of wild fish for farming remains high.

For the time being, we would be much better off eating filterfeeding organisms like oysters.

Farmed oysters live off microscopic phytoplankton that naturally occur in marine environments, and in the process clean the water; a single oyster filters about 30 to 50 gallons of water a day.

And it’s not just oysters that work this kind of magic. Mussels filter many gallons of water as well, and provide habitat for fish. Mussels also have levels of omega-3s similar to most canned tuna, without the mercury burden those predators can carry.

And other efficient biological filters also exist. Ocean farmers are finding that edible kelp grows miraculously fast, can be high in omega-3s and extracts huge amounts of excess nutrients from the water column. Grown together with mussels and other bivalves, kelp represents a real bright spot for making a better American seafood supply.

It’s exactly this kind of farming that we should be doing along our coasts: a kind of ocean farming that supports clean water, gives us nutritious food and creates habitat for other fish.

Of course within these food rules, contradictions abound.

Not all American fish is equal; New England cod is still overfished, and threatened by climate change. Some foreign fisheries are improving — Russia and Namibia, for example, have made assiduous efforts toward sustainable harvesting. Not all filter feeders are sustainable. Baleen whales, for example, are not a good choice.

But food rules are meant to be aspirational, even if they’re not always realistic. We are what we eat, in both our hearts and our minds. And if we’re going to take the time to follow rules on land, it seems only fitting that we do the same when out at sea. -Paul Greenberg/ The New York Times News Service

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2015

EXTRA

‘THE CRYSTAL MAZE’ MAKES A COMEBACK

Host Richard O’Brien confirmed to return in the reboot format that promises to be interactive and immersive

C

rystal Maze presenter Richard O’Brien will be involved in the reboot of the popular Nineties show when it returns as a live immersive experience in central London later this year.

The TV show was confirmed to make a return — but not exactly as we remember it — last week, with few details given about how the

live experience would work.

Now, producers have given fans a greater insight into what they can expect — and how to book tickets — on the project’s Indiegogo page.

The fundraising page states The Crystal Maze set will be “lovingly recreated” as it was on the original show in a secret location in central London for fans to play in themselves at $77

a pop. The show’s Aztec, Medieval, Industrial and Futuristic and Crystal Dome zones (but not the Ocean Zone — due to “health and safety”) will be reassembled for ticket holders to enjoy in a one hour and 45 minute immersive experience.

O’Brien’s involvement remains cryptic. He will no longer ‘host’ the show as such, or run around the maze, but instead will be “welcoming guests in a time honoured fashion”.

Crystal Maze producers are hoping to raise $777,000 to help fund the project. Rewards for pledgers include early bird tickets, a ticket to the opening party

and an exclusive crystal. The team behind the new immersive experience said they have been “approached by venture capitalists and angel investors” to fund the rebooted show, but said their preferred business partner was “the British public”.

Explaining their decision not to bring back The Crystal Maze as a TV show, artistic director Tom Lionetti-Maguire and executive producers Ben Hodges, Dean Rodgers and Malcolm Heyworth said: “Modern audiences want to do, no watch.

“In recent years, there has been a cultural shift towards entertainment that audiences can

engage with in a more active way.

The Crystal Maze represents the perfect opportunity to do something for this new audience on a grand scale. “The same audience who want more active entertainment are the ones who watched The Crystal Maze growing up – make this not just an innovative idea, but a dream come true for many people, including us!”

While the team state their aim is to “create a live immersive experience, not a TV show,” when asked if they could be tempted they said “we’ll have to see”.

Crystal Maze fans who would prefer to watch the show than pay to take part in it, you may

just be in luck — if you pay $77 to make the immersive experience a success first.

The Crystal Maze website is calling for people to register their interest to take part and their Twitter account promises: “The legendary game show is back! But this time we all get to play!” which is quite a claim.

In its heyday the series was viewed by around 6 million people and was the most-watched show during its time. The broadcaster (Channel 4) described the show at the time as “a highly ambitious, high risk show that paid off handsomely”, and it ran from 1990 to 1995. -Daisy Wyatt/The Independent

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Basement Store, 146 SQM, Wadikhabeer, Opposit Al-Hassan.

99441193, 93004802 We have 2BHK flats in Ghubra North 18th November Street new Mars Hypermarket flats with 2 rooms, 3bathrooms large sitting hall & kitchen. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033 Furnished room for rent at Al Khuwair R.O 225/- for family only.

Contact: 99251975 We have offices in Ghala, Ghubra, Bousher & Ruwi different type of available, open space, 2 BHK, 3 BHK. Contact 93782735 / 99208033 We have 230 sq metre show room in Ghubra main road very nice location suitable for banks, showroom, Retail shop or any business Golden opportunity. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033 We have 1 BHK, 2 BHK flats in Mabela + brand new building very nice finishing on the main road, 1BHK 175/- OMR , 2BHK 200/- OMR. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033 Shop /Comn /Resi building 1 & 2 bed flat available in Wadi Kabir (near Lulu). Contact: 99451168 One bed rooms flat RO 200/Wadi Al Kabir. Contact: 99451168 Misfa land for rent 1000 SQM. Contact: 99451168 1 BHK flat in Al Khuwair, 2 months only. Contact 99792181 3 BHK Flat in Azaiba.

Contact 99792181 Labour Camp for Rent in Wadi Kabir.

Contact 99792181 2 BHK Flat in Al Khuwair. Contact 99792181 4 BHK single villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158 4 & 5 BHK villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact 99792181

We have small building commercial for staff accommodation in Bowsher.

There are 4 flats & 1 shop can be used for store or staff accommodation. Contact 93782735 / 99208033 5BHK villa available for rent, near Hamriya roundabout.

Contact-99366191 We have 1 BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK flats in Ghala very nice building on main road outside the building lot of parking available. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033 5 BHK Villa with parking & backyard garden in Al Khuwair (House No. 1110 & Way No. 3914 ), near Radisson hotel, is available for rent @ RO. 1000/- p.m. Contact : 99024087 / 92620773

Deluxe 3 Room Penthouse with Seaview, ideal for office / residence at Qurum near PDO. Contact: 9772 1313 / 9507 0421 3BHK & 2BHK in Darsait.

Contact 94268564 We have 5 BHK villa in Al Khuwair 33, 5 rooms, 6 bathrooms, sitting hall, Majlis & large kitchen suitable for office or families. Contact: 93782735 / 99208033 Villa for rent villa at Al Fay Housing Complex near Al Khodh main police station 4 bedrooms, servant quarter.

Contact: 96419690 2 bedroom flat at Hamriya, main road with A/C. Contact 99331448

Independent rooms in Qurum /Al Hail. Contact 95529970

Flat in South Al Hail, 2 bedrooms, Majlis, 2 bathrooms, kitchen RO 250/-. Contact 93221474

Office / shop near Oman house Muttrah. Contact: 99233116

Flat in Ruwi Mumtaz 2 BHK RO 300 or 1 BHK 250 RO. Contact 98588240

3 Bedroom flat with 3 attached toilets, split A/C, brand new available, behind Kims Hospital.

Contact 95225662 1,000 sq mtrs industrial land in Misfah Industrial area near to Khanco.

OMR 1,500 Monthly. It has Electricity and boundary wall. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 Tent for wedding Iftar party for rent.

Contact: 97380496/ 96242910/ 94029752 3BHK special apartment at Al Khuwair with wardrobe and A/C. Contact : 94232344 Villa for rent (family residence) : New 4 bedroom villa with majlis, family hall and outside kitchen. With split AC in Al Khoudh phase 7 close to Seeb polyclinic. Call 99332525 (owner).

Deluxe 1, 2 BHK flats in Darsait, AL Khuwair 1deal for office & residence. Contact 99369081 /99142314 1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK new flat available at Mabela in front of Modern English School Contact: 96239126 Furnished flats for rent in Al Buraimi, daily, weekly, monthly.

Contact 97819981 / 93593336 Shop/Office, 56 SQM, Wadikabeer, Opposite Al-Hassan.

Contact 99441193, 93004802 500 sq mtrs office space on mezzanine floor near Royal Hospital. OMR 6.500 per sq mtr. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

3000 sq mtrs Industrial landß, in Barka Sanaiya, with electricity 400KW, shed, staff accommodation and office. Ready to start any kind of factory. Contact 99384255.

1BHK Ghubra R.O 275/-.

Contact 92144045 3 rooms with attached bath room, hall Brand new in Mabelah near Sharahe Noor. Contact 99663905/ 99415119 For rent 3 industrial land.

Contact 92702891/ 95490842 1BHK Mumtaz R.O 250/-.

Contact: 97799175 Flats shops and store for rent in Ruwi, MBD Honda road.

Contact 97293708 / 92433127 Bath attached room for rent Al Khuwair. Contact 99743569

Flats for rent behind Indian School.

Contact 99777122

Luxury 3 BHK flat in Al Wattaya with split A/C & private parking.

RO.500/- Contact – 93191111

Labor camp available with all facilities at Sohar Falaij (Near Sohar Sea port) - Contact – 92982172

3BHK 8 Nos flats in Ghobrah.

Contact: 97616158

Villa of 5 BHK in Al Ansab with split A/C. RO.650/- Contact – 93191111

2 BHK apartments AL Khuwair with Balcony 350/- & 4 BHK villa Al Khuwair with Garden 800/-.

Contact: 95178930

2 BHK flat in Al Ansab with split A/C. RO.250/- Contact – 93191111

Villa for rent in Al Khuwair 33, 8 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms with parking area near Taimur Mosque.

Contact: 99366624

2BHK flat for rent near Muscat Municipality, Darsait, big terrace, nice location, rent OMR 325/-.

Contact: 96241707 Two air-condition flats in excellent condition behind City Center Carrefour Al Seeb no 1: 4 bedrooms & family hall No 2, 2 bedroom & family hall. Contact: 93366421 1BHK flats at Muttrah near Oman House. Contact: 93231403

2BHK flats in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158

Shop/Office 68 SQM, Wadi kabeer, Opposite Al-Hassan. Contact 99441193, 93004802

Deluxe 4 bedrooms, living, dining 4 bathrooms with split AC in Ghubra.

Contact: 95282986 / 24707340

2 BHK, 2 baths, Split A/C, Wadi kabeer, Near Indian Elementary School.

Contact 99441193, 93004802

3 bedroom at Al Khuwair 33. House No. 866, Way No. 4712. Contact Mohamed : 99580484, Ahmed : 99486805, Awadh 95525509

Flats for rent in Muttrah near Oman house 2 BHK. Contact: 97009734 / 92629232 For rent in Darsait new flats.

Contact: 99777351 For rent in Darsait, new flats.

Contact: 99311525

Commercial 3 BHK flat in Al Ghobra 18 Nov Street. RO 700/Contact 93191111

Flats/villas owned by ROP pension fund available for rent in Muscat. Contact 99349526

2 BHK flat in Al Azaiba near sea, with split A/C. RO.340/Contact – 93191111

Villa for rent : 4 bedroom villa with kitchen available in Azaiba. Sharing / Family. Contact : 98048207/99261773

Brand new 6 BHK villa in Al Azaiba with split A/C & lift. RO.1200/Contact – 93191111 4 Ware house at Barka Falaij.

Contact: 99337857

AVAILABLE

Flat at Darsait. Contact 99326879

Flat in Amerat, Phase 5, 4 rooms, 3 bathrooms, kitchen with A/C. Contact : 95522405

Flats for rent Al Ansab (Ghala) 2 bedrooms, 2 toilets, 1sitting room & kitchen. Contact: 94229023

2BHK Darsait R.O 325/-, 300/-.

Contact: 92144045

Villa for rent - Al Seeb/Al Mawelah - Block 5 - 4 bedrooms with attached bathrooms, Majlis, 2 halls, kitchen and storeroom. split Ac and carpark.

Contact 99564616

Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting, Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crockery, Glassware, Chafing Dishes, Ice Sculptures, to Large Sound Systems and spectacular lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222 for Catering and Croyden 9623 5555 for Sound & Light. www.tunesoman.com, E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

FOR SALE Clinic for sale in al amerat.

Contact:93753655 Used & refurbished Porta cabins, Toilets unit available for sales. Contact: 99215560 Email:omegaunitedoman@gmail. com 4000 sqm building ware house area for sale or rent next to Express highway also used 40 ft seaworthy container for sale in very good condition. Contact 99771466 2,560 sq mtrs industrial land in Wadi Kabir main road, First line on way to Al Bustan hotel. Possible to make petrol station or hotel. OMR 990 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 60,000 Sq Mtrs Agriculture Land in Misfah, can be changed to Industrial Land. OMR 29 Per Square Meter.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 5 Flats of 1 bedroom for Sale in Boushar: OMR 35 Thousand each.

Monthly income OMR 270 Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 3 floor commercial building in Muttrah behind Police. Generating income of OMR 18 Thousand annually. Neat and well maintained. Built on 197 sq mtrs land. 2 tailor shops on ground floor and 6 flats. OMR 207 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

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D3

DAILY GUIDE

FOR SALE

ACC. WANTED

MOTOR VEHICLE FOR SALE NRI

23,886 Sq Mtrs Agriculture land with water well in Al Salwa, Barka.

OMR 260 Thousand. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 Ice cream & juices shop in Ruwi, good location for sale, 1.5 mt fish display machine for sale.

Contact 92150455 Well running Bricks Factory for Lease in Seeb. Contact. 99711003

Required a room or studio flat in Darsait / WadiKabir /Ruwi area.

Contact : 95405033

ACC. AVAILABLE Excellent big room, with A/C kitchen available near Ontc busstation (Ruwi). Conatct 95569740

Beauty parlor for sale near Muscat Palace monthly rent 350/- OMR serious buyers. Contact: 91902154

Semi furnished room with attached bathroom for Executive bachelors at CBD area behind chamber of commerce. Contact: 96389375/93554942

Ford Explorer 4WD, 2010 XLT, automatic km 72000, 4 yrs old, under warranty. Agent serviced. Owned by one owner (expat) white colour, very good condition. Contact 92824047

2 Prime Movers Man 2008 with 40 ton petrol tank each working at the moment in Al Maha. Price OMR 35 Thousand each. Contact 97000155 or 92688692

Training center with license.

Contact: 91121277

Sharing flat in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 99335057

TATA bus make model 2012 & Peugeot boxer van make model 2013.

Contact: 93895941

Land Cruiser 2012.

Contact GSM- 99336093

Indian restaurant fully furnished and equipped with banquet hall and spacious parking opposite Naseem Garden for sale. Contact Eng: 99771466 Arabic: 99454415

Spacious bedroom, toilet & kitchen in Wadi Kabir. Contact : 96098443

Commercial land for sale 3000 m in quriyat road main high way can use as a petrol station license available asking price 350,000 For more information please call on 99070701 with out name Super market in (Hairoon Hairithi) Thamrith road. Contact 98189810 / 99675190.

Shop for sale in Ibra and Bid Bid. Contact: 95304693 We have planned industrial lands in a prime location (Bowshar / Al Misfah) the space 8575 SQ. M for each plot, meter price 120/- OMR only. Contact: 99883338

Peugeot 206-2007 Model, expat driven. Contact 99209285

Furnished single rooms available for Executive bachelors at Ruwi.

Contact: 98049288 Family sharing villa room available at Al Khuwair. Contact: 99382008 Semi furnished single room for Executive bachelors behind Kamat Restaurant Al Khuwair.

Contact 94271085

Ready / under construction apartments / villas. Near guruvayur.

Contact: 00919846877773

MATRIMONIAL RC girl (28 yrs) hailing from kanjirappally dioces working in Royal Hospital looks for suitable alliances. Contact: 92801093 / 97498373

Furnished room attached bath for lady in Wadikabir (Mars Hypermarket) – 95941515

Muslim family seeking alliance for our son interested families. Contact 97664009

2 Rooms with separate bathroom & kitchen for executive bachelors.

Gsm 942-888-63

Hindu Ezhava family, settled in Muscat looking for suitable groom working within Oman for their daughter 25 yrs (MBA) working with a reputed company in Muscat.

Contact : 98689663

Available Duplex flat 1900 sqmt with 3 bedroom and complete POP made at Manipal (Indrali) also fittings and accessories are branded from Gulf. Contact: 96440811 / 93804434

MATRIMONIAL Kerala Nair girl, B.Com, 22 yrs, 5.2” very fair, slim, (Star Uthrattathi) Presently working in infosis, Chennai. Financially sound, from parents of nair boys from Trissur, Palakkad and Eranakulam & Calicut dist. .

Contact :0091 8301865688 email: raveendrandr@yahoo.com

TRANSPORTATION Transportation. Contact: 98505294 Transportation. Contact: 98244078 Transportation. Contact: 95190627 Pick & Drop anytime Contact: 91653903 Pick & Drop any time. Contact: 97014786 Pick & drop with car & driver available any time. Contact: 9615828/ 96502406/92218001

Hyundai Accent 2004, fully automatic. Contact: 99045803

LOST Mohammed Rohim has lost Bangladeshi Passport No. BA 0787176.

Finder please handover to ROP. Mohammed Abu Al Keer Mohammed Fazal Kareem has lost Bangladeshi Passport No. AB 9489863.

Finder please handover to ROP. Hab Mohammad Zia Gazi has lost Bangladeshi Passport No. AF 5339070.

Finder please handover to ROP

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

D4

T U E S D AY, J U N E 1 6 , 2 0 1 5 Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.com Tel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION SITUATION WANTED VACANT

SITUATION WANTED SIT. WANTED ACCOUNT. & FINANCE Male 24, B.Com /PGD having 2 years experience in accounts and inventory field looking for suitable job on visit visa. Contact: 94129550 Indian male, well experienced in Accounts & Admin looking for a suitable vacancy. NOC available.

Contact 98717938

MISCELLANEOUS Urgently required: (1) female dermatologist with minimum 3 years experience (2) female Omani reception coordinator for a medical center in Qurum. Contact: 96062933

SKILLED Urgently required a silk Screen printer with good knowledge and release letter or NOC. Contact: 93280288 or send CV to albayanstamps@gmail.com

ACCOUNTANT SECRETARIAL & OFFICE A leading excellent grade company at Muscat looking for Junior Accountant with min.1 year Gulf experience. Please send CV to pmjino@gmail.com

Required Office Assistant 160+25+Acc, Contact 99454425

SALES / MARKETING

Urgently required Senior Accountant 1 no. atleast 5 yrs experience.

Interested candidates may Email their CV’s at findjobs2015@hotmail. com Urgently required Junior Accountant.

Please send CV: hr.azatllc@gmail.com

BEAUTICIAN Urgently required Indian experience Beautician (good package) in Al Hail, visa available.

Contact : 92139922 / 92284899 Required Beautician visa available, salary accommodation.

Contact: 91902154

CATERING Chinese shawarma cook & helper wanted. Contact 95529970 Family in Muscat seeking to hire an experienced butler. Hotel experience is preferred. Candidate must hold a valid driver’s license. Please send CV’s on vacancyinmuscat@gmail.com

DOMESTIC HELPER Required looking for full time Housemaid for Omani family at Mabela, visa available. Contact 92454170

DRIVER Driver & Business co coordinator speaking English urgently required.

Contact : 95327813

EDUCATION Teachers required: Teachers for KG, Grade I to IV class in English, Maths, Science, Computer & Art. Qualification: Degree in relevant subjects & B Ed; IELTS or TOFEL plus two years experience preferred. Please apply to: burj@alhakkim.com Required professional Teachers for teaching Science, Mathematics, Accountancy, Business Studies & English IELTS/ TOFEL in schools & Universities. Contact 99674870

Urgently required Sales & Marketing Executive for Electrical & lighting products with Oman driving license. Send CV at Email : albasilinternational@gmail.com

ENGINEER A well reputed company is looking for experienced digital Signage Technicians & Managers. Send CV to hr.oman@yahoo.com A leading Civil construction co. in Muscat requires the following: - Construction Manager, Project Manager, Site Engineer. Please send CV : hr.azatllc@gmail.com Leading Construction company requires HSE Officer with minimum 4 to 5 years experience in building construction line. Send your CV : hseoman2015@gmail.com (NOC require).

Urgently required for a first grade construction company Graduate Civil Engineer (5 years experienced) shuttering carpenter mason (Block, Plaster, Tile Fixing) Civil Foreman building work.

Contact: 24700373/ 99427674 Fax: 24701368 Email: rajma@omantel.net.om Mechanical / Civil Site Supervisor; diploma / ITI fitter; 3-4 year’s exp in supervision of Erection work of sheds, customer coordination, and project execution. Omani D/L is must. Contact: hr@khancogroup.com / 99102383

ENGINEER Required swimming pool Engineer/ civil /M& P / Draughtsman with D/L, Preferred gulf experience.

Email: jvacancy05@gmail.com

HOSPITALITY Chef for Yacht. International cuisine.

Minimum 15 years chef experience. alibadawy@gmail.com

MEDICAL Urgently required G.P doctor with or without MOH license for one month from 01/07/2015.

Contact: 93824902 Required full time Nurse for a residence. Contact: 99014435 Required Gynecology, General Physician, Dentist, Staff Nurses, Lab technicians, Pharmacists, X Ray technicians.

Contact : 95133572 / 96064925 Email: kunoozghala@gmail.com Wanted Staff Nurse for a polyclinic in Sohar. Contact :93457270

MISCELLANEOUS

Construction Company in Oman urgently requires following candidates: BE Civil Engineer, minimum 3-5 years gulf experience & Civil site foreman, minimum 5 years gulf experience, diploma not required.

Email: applyforoman@gmail.com

Well established and premier music Educational Group in Oman invites teachers in drawing , karnatic vocals, piano and drums interested can candidates can mail their portfolio CV to musicjoboman@gmail.com

Construction Company in Oman urgently requires the following: B.Sc Civil Engineer, minimum 3-5 yrs Gulf experience.

Civil Site Foreman, minimum 5 yrs experience with operating knowledge of Tally.

Please Email CV ; applyforoman@gmail.com

A company from UAE require 2 merchandisers in retail food supply, store keeper with English and invoicing experience. Email: yesterdaysun@hotmail.com Mason, C.C.T.V, Technician, Electrician cum Plumber.

Contact: 99383044

Marketing Executive for digital painting company. Contact: 94356769 / 96936564 Required sale people with local experience & Omani driving license ready with NOC. Send CV to: nationalbluesky@yahoo.com Urgently required Sales Executive atleast 3 yrs experience in the field & having Oman driving license. Interested candidates may Email their CV’s at findjobs2015@hotmail.com Looking for Outdoor Salesman for heavy equipment spare parts.

Contact - 93292015, Email: mail.om@gulfcenter.co Required male or female candidate with 5 years experience in renting of properties. Interested candidates may please mail to alqurumprop@gmail.com Urgently required outdoor Sales Executive for furnishing company with valid Oman D/L and minimum 3 years experience. Contact 93231403 / rainbowfurnishing156@gmail.com Sales Coordinator : Mechanical Diploma holder with 3-4 yrs exp. in sales department preferably in Metal fabrication Company. Omani D/L is must. Contact: 99102383 hr@khancogroup.com

Accounts part time, up to finalization of monthly accounts. Handled by a CA. contact 96293120 Indian male, with B.Com 1 year experience in Accounts or Sales, on visit visa, Cont... 98295101 Indian male M.Com 6 yrs experience in accounts up to finalization in Oman co having Oman D/L, available to join immediately with NOC. Contact: 98363897 Email: prince9496@hotmail.com Senior Document Controller MCA Indian male 9+ year’s total experience 5+ years experience in Gulf in oil & gas sector and construction field on visit visa in Oman.

Contact: 95388197 Email: rojanchristopher@gmail.com Indian male, B.Com, well experienced in Accounts & Admin, knowledge of Tally ERP 9 experience in Oman with valid Oman driving license. NOC available, looking for suitable job in Oman, join immediately.

Contact 94245039 Accounts & finance Indian male B.com M.B.A (F) Tally ERP9, 35 years, 8 years experience 1.5 years Oman family visa N.O.C available.

Contact: 93257426 Email: sibigeorp@gmail.com Senior Accountant 13 years experience FMCG & retail Noc available.

Contact: 93473942 Indian male B.Com Accountant 10 years in Oman experience in accounts (upto finalization) & Admin knowledge of tally ERP9, focus RT. Having NOC & D/L looking for suitable job in Muscat.

Contact: 93086105 Indian female 25 years married, MBA Finance, Diploma in foreign accounting 3 months experience in a CA firm on family visa.

Contact: 95916769 Email: sikhapadoor@gmail.com MBA Indian male looking for suitable position having 2 years working experience as an accountant now in Oman a visiting visa.

Contact: 99424803 Young, energetic 24 yrs, ACCA finalist, Advanced diploma in Accounting and business, seeking suitable placement in accounts, finance or audit. Contact : 92430152, Email: rau_dey@yahoo.com

Urgently required Advertising & Media Sales Executives with Oman D/L. Trainee positions available for Freshers. Email: jobs@interacoman.com

Indian Female 25 MBA looking for a suitable opening in Accounts, Admin/ Hr. Contact 97013375

Required Sales man - 1 Person Qualification. Gulf Experienced - Minimum 5 Years with Oman Driving Licence Language - English Education:- Any Degree Further Contact :Mr. Abdul Hameed Nashabat - Mobile No: 97414307 and -92807399 amn@yaqeeneng.com

Indian / Keralite – CMA (US) , CAInter , M.Com, total 20 years experience with 11 years M/ East experience as Finance / A/ Cs Manager, seeks suitable offers from reputed companies in Oman. Sunil V.S. Contact : +91-9526756488 Email: sunil_ramanin@yahoo.co.in

Urgently required Sales and Marketing Executive for Graphic designing company. Contact: 96727631 mail: smartgraphic518@gmail.com

Sudanese Accountant seeking job in Nizwa state experience 10 years 3 years in Saudi Arabia, 7 yrs in Sudan.

Contact : 97796394 / 94003247

Indian male 22 yrs B. Com Graduate 1 year exp in Accounts, currently on visit visa. Looking for suitable job.

Contact 94341848 / Email – mohdhaji7272@gmail.com ACCA & B.Com with Noc more than 5 years of experience in accounts & finance looking for a suitable job can join immediately. # 97012146 B.com graduate with NOC more than 4 years of experience in Oman with valid Oman driving license for a suitable job ready to join immediately. Contact: 98976252 Indian male, B.Com, 1 year Exp in Accounts/ Sales, on Visit Visa,..

Contact – 98295101 MBA Graduate with 6 yrs exp in finance/accounts/ auditing. Specialized in accounts payable dept, Oracle app user, proficient in Sap (fico) end user & tally 9.0. lean &six sigma certified trainer on visit visa.

Contact – 91967213 / 99064780 Accounts part time works up to finalization on monthly basis. Profit & loss A/C and financial statements, MS Reports Etc. Contact: 96247295 ACCA affiliate , BSc Honors in applied Accountancy advance diploma in Accounting and Business, CAT Affiliate 1 year hand on working experience of Oman, with Oman driving license looking for a suitable placement in Audit firm. Having NOC can join immediately.

Contact : 98989970 Indian male, 32 years, M. Com. 7 out of 9 years experience in Oman in Accounts/finance. Having NOC and valid Oman D/L. Contact 98277143, Email: anzarks@gmail.com Indian male 25 yrs B.com having experience in accounts for 3 yrs currently on visit looking to job.

Contact: 97937868 Email: rehman.naseer999@gmail.com Finance Manager, CPA, with more than 15 yrs. of experience in GCC. Fully knowledgeable in Finance, General & Management Accounting .

NOC available. Contact 96209331 Indian male with total 5 year experience (2 years experience in Accountant cum sales co ordinator in a FMCG Company in Oman) in accounts field and NOC available.

Looking for suitable job Contact 92130188 Indian Accountant: Male, M com, 7 Yrs experience in Accounts up to finalization, having knowledge of ERP, Tally, seeks suitable placment. contact 93950138 Email: lijinrajan123@gmail.com Tanzanian male, 25 yrs Accountant successful experience in Tanzania looking for suitable placement in any field. Contact : 96710154 M.Com, CA (Article ship), 15 years Gulf experience looking for suitable position in finance & accounts on visit visa valid up to 10/7/2015.

Contact: 97767828, knowledge of quickbooks, Tally 9, Focus V.5 Email: altabhossain2008@hotmail.com An Indian lady Chartered Accountant with five years experience (including article ship) on family visa in Oman looking for a suitable job. Please Contact 9621 0347 / 9943 5346, shincycrajan@gmail.com

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D5

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED

ADMIN

DRAUGHTSMAN

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

Indian Female M.C.A 4 years of experience looking for suitable position as as programmer/lecturer/Web Designer/Admin.

Contact No: 99486374.

Indian female 23 yrs, Autocad Civil Draftsman with 3ds max & rivet, 3 yrs exp. looking for suitable vacancy in Muscat now on visit visa.

Contact: 95601266.

Quantity Surveyor with 5 Years experience (one year in Oman) looking for job. Contact 91090036

Experienced, competent, English teacher for high school and college.

Contact: 91954541

Mechanical Engineer, Indian, 24 years with Piping Engineering, Autocad, Ansys NX- Cad, pro-e, Catia & PDMS now on visiting visa seek suitable placement. Contact: 99168054 / 96684345 Email: : mbkishore@hotmail.com

Indian female MCA, Three years experience in teaching field, seeks placement currently on visit visa.

Contact: 93431567 Email: fivona.mel@gmail.com

Indian male 2+yrs oman exp in HR. joing immediatly. release available.

Contact :93671437 Over 14 years of gulf experience in Admin /HR /Logistics, fluent in Arabic & English with D/L looking for suitable position.Contact 95824598 Indian female 29 MBA (HR) BSc, 4 yrs exp in HR& Admin looking suitable placement. Contact : 95619537 Indian female with 10 yrs of experience in HR/Banking/Operations seeks a suitable placement.

Can be contacted on 98919015 or sherianne.coelho@gmail.com MBA (international business) from London, 4 years of UK experience in operations with D/L, looking for suitable position. Contact 91710075 Indian female MBA – HR 1 and half years experience seeking suitable job. Contact : 99257214

BEAUTICIAN Beautician exp Gulf, looking job from India. Contact 99531802

DRIVER Driver with car 3 years experience looking for job.

Contact: 92041902 Driver available with car and without car. Contact 96771598 Pakistani male light vehicle driver with 2 yrs exp looking for job.

Contact : 96342684 2 years experience driver looking for job in companies or residence, release available.

Contact: 98051400 Pakistani, male light vehicle driver looking for job. Contact 97943750 Driver light with 5 yrs experience, knowing English, Arabic, Hindi, education B.A. Contact 98522914 Light driver valid GCC license looking for job. Contact 99531802 Indian male, 3 yrs exp. as Driver in Oman looking for job.

Contact 98238043 Light duty driver looking for job.

Contact: 94040926 Light duty driver looking for vacancy NOC available.

Contact: 97319564 Driver with car. Contact: 97705694/98988208 Looking for job driving Bangladeshi. Contact : 94077119 Bangladeshi Driver seeks suitable job K. S.A 12 years Oman 3 years 42 yrs. Contact 95796030 Looking for job driving Bangladeshi.

Contact: 97418036 Pick up and drop anytime.

Contact: 96748967 Light driver for job. Contact: 95779594 Driver light. Contact: 91020999 Pakistani driving available.

Contact : 96913836 Driver looking for job with visa, release available, 5 yrs driving experience. Contact: 96261895 Faruqu.

Light Driver needs Job. Contact: 93284327

DOMESTIC HELPER Looking for job for House maid.

Contact : 93599302 Laundry Housekeeping professional looking for a opening in Oman with 18 years experience.

Contact : 91957861

DESIGNER Architect and Interior Designer 8 years experience design and execution working with 3D max, AutoCAD, photo shop, BOQ, NOV available looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 95273166 Graphics Designer/ prepress C.T.P Pagination 3 yrs exp. in Muscat Photoshop Illustrator, Indesign, CorelDraw autocad premier preps appoge Indian male now on visit visa.

Contact 97436606

ENGG. / TECHNICAL Omani Mechanical Engineer, has 3 years experience ,has HSE, H2S, Riggers/Banks men Permit, Drawing / cad, SCBA, Safety Leadership and Initial Fire Response Courses. good with computer and English language looking for suitable job. Contact 99224319-98454500 Indian male 22 Mechanical Diploma holder Engg with HVAC certified, having 1 year exp. seeking suitable position. Currently available on visit visa. Contact - 92835952 BE (Electrical), MBA, certified PMP and Chartered Engineer with 10 years experience in EPC Project management for substation construction (onshore/offshore) GCC employed Indian, seeking opportunity to lead challenging projects, position in managerial role.

Email ID: jacobmval@gmail.com Sr Manager, B.Tech, MBA, PRINCE-2, British National. 24 yrs exp in EPC Project Management of Oil & Gas, Pipelines, Refineries & Power Plants. Seeking job immediately/on visit/Contact- 0096891263952/ josececy25@gmail.com Interior Architecture Engineer, 7 years experience (5 years in Oman) expert in exterior & interior architecture designs presented by 3D MAX- V ray AutoCAD Photoshop, fluent in Arabic & English.

Contact: 96519172 Email: eng.interiorarchitect@gmail.com Structural Engineer 4 years experience Indian, will handle projects independently, able to get Municipality approvals easily.

Contact: 91668044 Indian male 29 years Civil Engineer diploma 4 years Oman experience, 2 years road construction looking placement. Contact: 93298395 N.O.C available Sudanese Industrial Engineering & Management, experience 12 years in QA/QC and production. Contact: 94041960 / 94044784, Email: mekkimedani@hotmail.com / mekkimedani78@gmail.com Indian Male, IT Support Engineer, 2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experience. Contact 97311847 Indian male, B.Tech Mechanical having 4 years experience with QA/ QC / CSWIP looking for a suitable position. Contact: 99447106 Email: dhanubhasi87@gmail.com Btech computer science graduate 2015 passout.. Android application marketing.. Having good communication skills and mindset to work in a team. Contact 91024385 Electrical Eng. Degree (MEP) need suitable job of construction 12 yrs exp.

Email: mohd.ateeq.khan@gmail.com Engineer with 3 yrs experience in Indian in MEP, HVAC& mechanical maintained field on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact 99191535 Email: fareed029@gmail.com Indian female, B.Tech biotechnology with strong computer skills and 2 years experience as associate research analyst (Media Monitoring) in Nasdaq Oman seeking growth oriented jobs. Contact 92044603 /918056169148 or angeline.babithac@gmail.com.

BE Mechanical Engineer 2 years experience in fabrication and erection of heavy structures as project Engineer in India, now on visiting visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 92151818 B.Tech Civil Engineer Indian male 13 year’s exp seeking suitable job.

Contact 0091 9640973798 Email: firozbakhtiar2@gmail.com Civil Engineer, Expatriate Female, 3 yrs experience, on visit visa seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 99195433 Iraqi Engineer specialized in telecommunication net working & PC experience in nuking network and security systems. Contact: 92898329 / 99249124 Electronics & communications Indian male, 2 years experience seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 99456725 / 94678625 D.A.E Civil 4 years exp in land surveyor and building work worked on AutoCAD, T.S and G.P.S 1 year exp in Oman looking for placement.

Contact: 92140890 / 98780156 Email: engrsafiullah91@gmail.com Indian male 24 yrs B. Tech (Mech.

Eng) on visit 1 yr experience in production field looking for suitable placement. Contact: 98925685 Indian male, 28 yrs, Electronics & Instrumentation Engineer with 4 yrs experience in Industrial Automation (SCADA) seeking suitable job.

Contact 93154156 / 98416190 Indian male 23 yrs B.Tech Civil having 2 years exp, currently on visit visa looking for suitable job.

Contact: 98031034 Email: musheer786.mm@gmail.com B.Tech in Electronics Engineering, Indian male 26 years with around 5 years of experience (Including work experience in Japan) looking for a job in any field & can join immediately. Contact: 91902646 Email: ajumalmajeed@gmail.com Indian male Diploma in Mechanical Engineer with 14 years Gulf experience in heavy equipments and vehicles valid Oman driving license.

NOC available looking for a suitable placement. Contact: 91985028 / 95463430 Indian male 47 years DM Civil, PG PGDMM, I& M, having 25 years of experience Manager in Civil, Stores Purchase, Inventory, cargo, transports, Admin , looking for best job in Muscat.

Currently on visit visa. Contact: 91170749 / 97672647 Email: gdp4767@gmail.com Site Engineer(Civil) Diploma in Civil Engineering / Supervisor 6 years experience (with N.O.C).

Contact : 99512416.

Indian M 25 yrs B.E Mechanical, 3 yrs exp in Oil & Gas project Engineer now on visit visa.

Contact 96487013 Email: riarun.007@gmail.com B.Tech Mechanical Engineer Indian 1 year experience HVAC (MEP) available in Muscat on visit visa seeking suitable job. Contact : 93670280 Email: jinv.avm@gmail.com Electrical Engineer Pakistani male 4 years B. Tech & 3 years’ diploma seeking a suitable placement.

Contact: 96752080 Email: ilyasoader97@gmail.com

EDUCATION English Teacher female (M. A. B. Ed) Having 14 years experience with 11 years experience in Oman with reputed institute and school.

Contact: 92289080 / 99318276 Email: babujosev@yahoo.com

EDUCATION

MEDICAL Indian male Nurse, 31 years Oman prometric passed 6 yrs ICU experience. Contact : 94195150 / 92758895

Indian Male, M.B.A. (U.K) 10 Yrs of Experience, looking for suitable position in Sales/Marketing/Retail/ H.R/ Admin. Contact No: 99271903.

Lab Technician, Civil (8yrs Gulf experience) looking for a suitable job (NOC available) Contact-93344378

Indian male MBA 7 years experience in Hospitality industry, operation, sales & marketing looking for suitable vacancy. Contact 92115860 Email vibin.py@gmail.com

HOSPITALITY

MISCELLANEOUS

4 yrs exp (Money Exch. Services & hospitality services in Oman& India) Indian male 27, Graduate in Hospitality Science, fluent in English, Hindi & Arabic seeks job.

Contact 91383167

MCA, BCA with 2 yrs relevant experience seeking suitable opportunity.

Contact: 96377039

Indian male fresher BCA young and energetic, seeking good opportunites.email: jlaxmimenon@gmail. com, Contact 00919567722270

IT Indian male, B.E ( computer science engineer), MBA (finance), OCA certified, having 5 years of experience in oracle Dba/ oracle apps Dba, seeks a suitable position in the field of IT. Contact: 96212062 email: zubairkhan11@gmail.com Omani Citizen searching a job in the field of computer especially in data base professional in operating Oracle SQL, PL/ SQL, form6i, Report 6i. Contact 96977368 Email: talaloml@yahoo.com Indian male, completed diploma in Computer technology fresher, seeking suitable position, currently on visit visa. Contact : 93596096

Looking for job building maintenance electric and plumbing.

Contact: 99365092 Ware house In charge or store keeper 27 yrs Gulf experience 4 yrs in Oman NOC available.

Contact: 97657823 Email: rusaikmzm_2009@yahoo.com Indian Female with over 9 yrs experience with good communication skills seeks jobs in customer service or sales field. Contact : 96108289, shijipaul84@gmail.com Part- Time Accountant, well experience senior accountant ,doing all type of accounting works, Finalization, Budgeting available.

Contact 98803439 13 Years UAE experienced in MNC & reputed firms logistics distribution looking for a suitable placement, on visit visa contact 99838743, gani.dawood@gmail.com

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

M.Sc 3+ years exp from France & India in IT Support Engineer / Hardware & Networking / Server support / scientific system support looking for suitable position. Indian, male on visit visa, contact 98898781/ anoopys@gmail.com

Sr Manager, B.Tech, MBA, Prince -2 from UK. 24 yrs exp in EPC project management of oil & gas pipelines, refineries & power plants. Seeking job immediately / on visit/ Contact: + 00968912639 Email: josececy25@gmail.com

M.C.A Indian male 36 yrs experience in IT Support/ customer serving support with 5 yrs experience seeking suitable position.

Contact: 92041909

B.Com Diploma in Material management having 12 years experience in local / overseas prelease, logistics, ware house. NOC available.

Contact: 96477638

Male 26 completed MBA and have 1.5 years experience, good knowledge of computer, software’s, looking for job in procurement / warehousing. On visit visa till 5th Sep /2015. Contact: 00968 91795092 Email: jameel6345@gmail.com

Project / Construction ManagerElectrical 15++in OMAN and UAE,45 yrs, married,D/L Oman, Qatar & UAE),Manage with Arabic, Good Knowledge in Metro Viaduct, UG & OG stations, Live airport projects, multi cuisine hospital project (Cleveland clinic Abu Dhabi,). Holding of FEWA, ADCC and OMAN electrical license. Contact Venkatesh on +97477394707/ geetvenkat2002@gmail.com

Computer Networking/Facility Mgmt 5 Yrs of Exp Holds B.E(ECE), CCNA Looking for Good Opportunity, Indian - Visit Visa. Contact 91911792/ arafakdnl@gmail.com IT Desktop Support Engineer 2 years Oman 3 years in Indian Exp. Contact 91937060 IT & Media Sales specialist looking for job opportunities also decent exposure to H.R & customer relations currently in Muscat on visit visa kindly. Contact : 96238199 or 99874205 Email Id: m_cadri@rediffmail.com Network system Engineer B.E / ECE + CCNA & Ms certified with 4+ yrs exp looking for a job. Currently in Oman on visit visa. Contact: 92589502 Email: careersjegan@gmail.com

LOGISTICS 10 yrs exp in Oman in logisticshave Oman D/L-looking for suitable placement-contact 96410767 .

Contact email: harishkts@yahoo.com

MEDICAL Well experienced MOH Licensed Indian GP Doctor looking for locum / permanent position in the Capital area.

Contact 98140024 email:drgpoman@yahoo.com Indian female Dentist MOH Oman passed seeking a suitable placement in capital region. Contact– 91377681 hashimsarawat@gmail.com Indian female looking for suitable position 2nd rank in MSC microbiology, fresher now on visiting visa.

Contact : 91633089 Email: mansytk4@gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING

Indian male, with 8 yrs exp. in Oman (BA- Graduate) working as a project Sales Coordinator, with Oman D/L, looking for suitable job, ready to join immediately with NOC. Contact 95245057

SALES / MARKETING 8 years purchase experienced Indian male looking for job. N.O.C. available. Contact: 98161323 Indian male, B.Sc (Mathematics) PGDBM (Marketing). 9 yrs of Oman experience in sales in midlevel management, NOC available.

Valid Oman D/L. Contact: 95278838 Email: anup2p4p@yahoo.com

Omani female exp in PRO with Oman D/L. Contact: 91161736 Looking for good job 2 years experience Oman sales marketing valid driving license Indian Kerala.

Contact : 98626682 Graduate having 6 yrs experience Lubricant sales looking for sales job with D/L. Contact : 93410723 Indian male, MBA with 5 yrs of experience as a Lecturer in Department of Marketing & Business Management, looking for suitable position. Contact 93126770 Sales & marketing professional having 5 yrs exp with D/L. Contact 92262680 Outdoor salesman with car looking for job. Contact 91615715 Indian male, 34 yrs, 10 yrs exp. in UAE in sales & merchandise with valid GCC license, looking for suitable position. Contact 93438747 / 93033252 Indian male, 39 yrs having 15 yrs Gulf experience (UAE, Qatar, Oman) in sales & marketing looking for a suitable position with NOC. Contact 94054730 M.B.S (Management) looking for suitable Marketing job.

Contact: 96487152 Indian male over 5 years experience in media marketing sales collection looking for suitable job.

Contact : 95064202 Indian male, 27 yrs, Post Graduate, 5+ yrs exp in Oman in Sales & Credit Control, with valid Oman driving License, NOC available, looking for suitable placements. Ph: 91993376 Sales man looking for a opening in Oman with 18 years Gulf experience.

Contact: 91957861 8 years store experience Indian male looking for placement. N.O.C available. Contact: 98456535 Indian 23 years B.Com Graduate, 2 years experience in Sales knowledge of TALLY, ERP & MS Office.

Contact: 93134643 Email : syedismailnoor@gmail.com

SKILLED/UNSKILLED Experience skilled candidate with driver license seeks position in sales in Salalah. Contact: 98579382 Mason, sh/carpenter, steel fitter, looking job. Contact 95175192 Electrician, Plumber, Welder , exp gulf and india looking job.

Contact 99531802 Helper /cleaner looking for job.

Contact 95175192

SECRETARIAL/OFFICE Indian Male, B.Com Graduate, 23, with experience in Sales looking for suitable placements.

Contact 98371144 Pakistani Female Bachelor of Information Technology with 8 years’ experience in Banking, Sales, business development, retail & customer service seeking for a suitable placement. Having valid D/L& NOC available. Contact 94699970 shehla. chohan@gmail.com Indian male 45+ yrs , 20 yrs exp as sales supervisor in India looking for indoor sales /stores /cashier or any suitable placement can speak Hindi , English, Malayalam, Tamil, kannada can join immediately on visit visa.

Contact 93086105/33016546 Pakistani male 34 yrs Intermediate 2 yrs exp in sales & marketing in Oman. Looking for suitable job.

Contact - 92146864

Indian female completed computer literacy program (patiently fundamental, MS Office, word processing) and offset printing, seeking suitable job in Muscat. Contact : 97236545 Email: sun2giri@gmail.com

TOURS & TRAVELS 25 Indian female B.S.C. Fashion Technology. 5 years experience in textile industry as a merchandiser and good in fashion marketing.

Currently available on visit visa, seeking for a suitable job.

Contact 96990368.

Email: simmy.missy@gmail.com

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

D6

T U E S D AY, J U N E 1 6 , 2 0 1 5

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED MISCELLANEOUS B.Sc. Mechanical Engineer Sudanese 3 yrs of exp. In industrial field available in Muscat on visit visa seeking suitable job .

Contact: 95868922, Email: almouthanaosman@yahoo.com Indian Male MBA with two year experience in H.R as a H.R Assistant, Now in India, Seeking for an urgent suitable position.

Contact:-98620260 / 93895992 , Email:-deepakmb4@gmail.com 8 years successful experience.

Senior Accountant, Indian male,29 years, presently working in oman as a senior accountant with oman driving license. NOC available. seek suitable opportunity. gsm: 97705854 Sudanese male (B.Sc Computer science) (diploma computer engineering) 6 yrs. experience DBA Oracle plsql, MS sql-server ,ms visual studio vba, network. Contact :91415886 Indian male with 8 yrs experience in FMCG in Oman as Sales Supervisor looking for suitable placement.

NOC available. Gsm: 96495206 B.Sc. Mechanical Engineer Sudanese 3 yrs of exp. In industrial field available in muscat on vist visa seeking suitable job . Contact: 95868922, Email: almouthanaosman@yahoo.com IT system and Printer engineer ME, 5Years bank IT Management exp in India looking for full time job visit visa contact 94462150 24 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 3yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat, currently on visit visa & ready to join immediately. Contact him on 98201476 or email at lokeshkaluri@gmail.com MCA IT Professional Indian Female seek placement in Teaching/ Non Teaching field. Presently on visit visa. 9588 7051, ashwininakod@gmail.com ACCA Affiliate, Indian, 2.5Years experience in Audit/ Finance in Big 6 Audit Firm and Oil Accounting in PDO, For Permanent Placement for Finance or Accounts or Audit. Release NOC Available on hand.

Contact #95140445, a.saran891@gmail.com Finance ACCA Affiliate, Worked as an Auditor with 2.5 Years Experience in reputed firm, Handled independent audit/finance assignments, Looking for permanent placement, NOC available. #95140445. a.saran891@gmail.com Piping Design Engineer, Indian male 27, looking for suitable placement in Piping Design & Engineering. Having 7 years of experience in AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS (11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact : 97351786 / 96143708, E-mail : mohammednazeer07@gmail.com Indian Male, Graduate, 11 years Sales experience in Lighting / Industrial products, ready to join immediately. GSM: 9710 5356 Indian heavy duty driver with 8 years experience in oman available with NOC. GSM : 93601943 GSM : 94496457 Over 15 years experience in Gulf.

Interior Architect, Lebanese Nationality, on visit visa seeking a suitable Placement. 96268005.

Indian male, 28 yrs MBA (HR/M) 2 years experience in Indian Oman in HR & admin seeks suitable placements. NOC available.

Contact 97484159 Email: rameshkapa86@gmail.com

M.Sc 3+ years exp from France & India in IT Support Engineer / Hardware & Networking / Server support / scientific system support looking for suitable positions. Indian, male on visit visa, contact 98898781/ anoopys@gmail.com Indian male, 34years having 10 years of experience in Sales, Sales Coordination and Administration.

Experienced in SAP and MS Office.

NOC available. Contact # 94686594 British Beauty Therapist looking for suitable position. please contact :97175240 Indian Male MBA Marketing/HRM 3 year experience with Omani D/L, seeking suitable jobs.

Contact: 97424188 email: dharwesh@gmail.com Indian, Male, 23 years, BE Electrical, having 2 years experience in Electrical Works-H.T. cabling etc, & Construction, looking for a suitable placement. # +968 96927880 (Oman), +91 9765376109 (India), Email: rahulrevi6@gmail.com Indian Female M.Com with Computer Skills and Four Month Experience as Accountant ,Currently On Family Visa Looking for a Suitable Placement, Available Immediately.

Contact : 95846642, Email : dhanyashree91@yahoo.com ACCA Affiliate, Experience in audit/ finance of 2.5 years in Big 6 Firm and Oil industry, looking for suitable permanent placement, Release NOC available. Contact: #95140445 a.saran891@gmail.com B.Tech Computer Engineer Wanted job to work on(IT/Banking/Administrator/Technical/Office works) having NOC with the limited time from (04/06/2015 to 13/06/2015).

Mobile:98402389 email:naresh6672@gmail.com Indian male Executive Secretary having vast experience in admin, logistics & procurement well versed with computer .seek suitable placement. Contact : 99514286 Highly Qualified & Experienced Finance Manager Pakistani with USA , UK & Canadian Degrees , CPA ,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA ,IFA- Financial Consultants Canada , Corporate Analyst USA Professional of Banking , Audits ,ERPs & Profit Maximizations ( NOC available ) call 94 504505 – 94403270 27 year Indian female who has 4 years of experience with logistics function in distribution of spares for both heavy machinery & wind turbine parts. Kindly contact me on +91 9790769104 E-mail: joemohana@yahoo.co.in Looking for managerial post (full time ), More than Ten years of experience in Team Development ,Training, planning, Administration, Sales & Marketing, Advertisement and Credit Control and Logistics. Contact 91076608 / 99322748. RELEASE & NOC AVAILABLE

7 and half years experience working accounts / inventory manager looking suitable job. Contact: 96991782 Email: srinivasu.sp@gmail.com Indian female , MCA BCA, certification PL SQL , 6months training PHP, date warehouse looking for suitable placement. Contact : 95694330 Email: mondkashyapodl@gmail.com B.Com with more than 5 yrs exp. looking for an accounts part tome job work. know with tally.

Email-shilpa_62@yahoo.com Part- time accountant, well experience senior accountant , doing all type of accounting works, finalization, budgeting available.

Contact : 98803439 Indian male, looking for a part time accounting job. Having additional knowledge & experience in HR admin & purchase.

Contact 99196621 HSE Advisor, NEBOSH IGC, Indian male, 4 years experience in construction and oil fields, seeking suitable jobs. Gsm: 97458900, Mail: miroshbabu@gmail.com Highly Experienced Finance Manager, CPA ,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA , Professional of Banking, Audits , ERPs Sap , Management as Team Leader and Problem Solver call 94 504505 / 94403270 Indian male MBA Finance presently OMAN IN visit visa, 26 years, looking for an accountant job.

Contact 95240641, email Id mohammadabdulazharuddin@ gmail.com Admin Executive, 31, Indian Male, having 9+ years exp. in reputed companies. Seeking suitable placement in any gulf region. Contact +968 99276601 & 97693456. email : muralimahdav77@gmail.com Indian Female, 24yrs, M.COM (Accounts) having 3yrs experience in Accounts, HR, Administration, Customer Service. Good Computer Proficiency. Seeking Suitable Position. Visa Transfer/NOC Available.

Contact: 99654913 MEP Quantity Surveyor-Estimation-Project, 10 Years Experience (3 years in Oman). Having NOC & Oman D/L, looking for suitable job, Contact - 98291626 Indian house maid looking full time job. Contact : 98254909 B.E. Civil Engineer age 27, total 3 years of experience in Mumbai looking for placement asap in oman now on visit visa of 1 month ph 9571 3441 Email. Khatrialeem@gmail.com Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP, MCITP having Bachelor degree and 6 years of experience in Networking looking for job. 96760618 / varghese.manthara@gmail.com

Indian male MBA (U.K), 10 Years of experience in Admin, Sales, HR, stores and logistics seeks suitable placement. Contact 99271903.

ACCA affiliate, with 2.5 years experience in Big6 audit firm and Oil industry, looking for permanent placement in Accounts/Audit.

Release available Contact :95140445 a.saran891@gmail.com

Indian Female MCA, 4 plus Years of experience in Web designing, Admin, P.A, seeks suitable placement.

Contact 99486374

Sudanese male, 31 year old, have 3 year Diploma in electrical engineer, 5 years experience in different activities . Mobile No ; +96894549609

8 Years successful experience, SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian male,29 years. Presently working in Oman as a Senior Accountant with oman Driving license seeks suitable opportunity.

GSM: 97705854

Indian Female, Commerce Graduate, Total 9 yrs of experience in India. worked as Accounts Assistant and Business executive seeking for suitable placement.

Tel : 96173533/24222457 Email : topranidivya@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ED 8 yrs exp Site supervisor cum 2d, 3d Draughtsman (holding Omani driving license) seeking job.

Contact : 93790601 Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP, MCITP having Bachelor degree and 6 years of experience in Networking looking for job. 96760618 / varghese.manthara@gmail.com B.E. Civil Engineer from India with 3 years of experience looking for suitable vacancy in oman now on visit visa. Contact 9571 3441, Email . Khatrialeem@gmail.com Indian male 21 IT Eng. networking & computer hardware diploma, 1 year experience, currently on visit visa looking for a suitable job.

Contact 96036273 email: faizanfarooqui23@gmail.com Indian, 32 years, completed M.A. English, M.Sc. Psychology and B.Ed in English. Searching for suitable job in the field of teaching. To Contact: 00968 99869535 Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com Iraqi Pharmacist with 15 years experience as regulatory affairs and Marketing Manager seeking job in pharmaceutical co.

Mobile 96720441 Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a Suitable Job in Telecom / Networking. 1 year sales experience. MSc. Communications Engineering & Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com Female Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary with 27+ experience, worked with top management/ Board in financial services with shorthand skills & Omani driving license, seeks suitable placement. call 95941515 26 years Indian male with MBA & PGDFM, Total 3.8 years experience in Administration, seeking suitable placement in any gulf region.

Holding Oman valid driving license.

Contact :94501423 24 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 3yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat, currently on visit visa & ready to join immediately. Contact him on 98201476 or email at lokeshkaluri@gmail.com

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

T U E S DAY, J U N E 1 6, 2 0 1 5

D7

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED CARGO

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain Marine Tours Contact- 98029602, 92808636

TOURS

RENT A CAR

RENT A CAR

Butter cup rent a car presents fantastic offers all vehicles are model 2016.

Contact : 97249449

GOOD NEWS Ayurvedic massage backache, joint pain & neck pain etc.

Contact: 98254909 Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain, backache, paralysis massage, steam bath, obesity, spondylitis IDEAL , CARE Ayurvedic Clinic 18 November street, Azaiba. Contact 99639695 / 99117987 Available car with driver daily, weekly and monthly basis.

Contact : 95518612

Taimour Ayurvedic Clinic, Ruwi offers genuine & effective treatment for back pain, paralysis, cervical and lumbar spondylitis, osteoarthritis, joint pains, sinusitis, migraine, allergic problems, varicose vein and all other health related problems.

Kerala massage and rejuvenation package available. For details please Contact 92197920/ 24799689

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know more about Islam, please call: 99425598, 96050000, 99353988, 99253818, 99341395, and 99379133.

For ladies: 99415818, 99321360, 99730723 Orvisit: www.islamfact.com Ayurvedic treatment for backache, paralysis, arthritis etc & massage, All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact 24475280 / 95371554 / 92504980 www.siddhayur.com Genuine Ayurvedic treatments & massage, Ayurvedic clinic at Al Khuwair.

Contact 24478618 / 97263637 /93309131

D8

T U E S D AY, J U N E 1 6 , 2 0 1 5

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTSERVICES

SITUATION WANTED SERVICES WEBSITE

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ED

BUSINESS

Finance ACCA Affiliate, 2.5 years experience in audit/finance and oil company in reputed firms. Looking for suitable permanent placement. Release available. Contact 95140445, a.saran891@gmail.com B.E Biomedical Engineer, having 5 years of experience in Diagnostics division seeking suitable position.

94151658

ACCOUNTANTS AND CONSULTANTS

WE ARE PROVIDING ACCOUNTING/ AUDITING TAX/ CONSULTING CONTACT: 24 567 251 / 95 498 033

Indian Male 34 years Mechanical Engineer 3 years of Experience seeking suitable placement immediately Contact: 91991435, 93310821 Electronics and instrumentation Engineer 28 year Indian male, electrical, electronic, industrial, building & automation exp of 4+ yrs in India.

Contact - 93154156 CCNP Network Professional with 6 years experience having Bachelors degree on visit visa looking for suitable job. #96760618 email: varghese.manthara@gmail.com

General Investors. Contact 99674870

CLASSES

Indian female with MBA (Finance) on visit visa, seeks immediate placement. Phone: 968-98430089 Civil Engineer, Diploma, Male 25, 3 years experience in site, CAD, 3d, MS Project, Seeking job in Oman.

Contact 92875345, jubincivileng@gmail.com

WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

Indian male, Engineer, BE Mechanical, having with 21 years of experience in India and 13 years in Oman, In production, project management, quality control and assurance and MR for ISO and API Standards looking out for a suitable placement in Oman. GSM: 00968 97311616.

E-MAIL: fahazasa@yahoo.com Indian female B.ED & BCA looking for a suitable placement in school or admin office, having 5 yrs exp in same field. Contact – 97384206 / rani_sweet786@live.com Indian female, B.Com. knowledge of MS Office & Tally, 4yrs experience in Accounts &admin dept. looking for good placement in any field.

Contact.98928220

COMPUTER GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing, Contact 99314807/24792998 MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your marble. #24793614/ 99314807 Learn Cup cakes, exotic cakes, Icing decorations, handicrafts.

Contact 95941515

House shifting. Contact 99708138 Specialist available for explosive growth in term of restructuring all modules of businesses with over 30 years of experience across continents with a decade in Oman.

Contact 96733578 Email : profitoman@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTMANPOWER

Indian female, IATA, Bsc, Looking for suitable placement.

Contact-95514305, email idraveendranmala@gmail.com CCNP Network Professional with 6 years experience having Bachelors degree on visit visa looking for suitable job. Contact: 96 76 06 18 Indian male, total experience is 5 years in Retail industry. Currently supervisor in Sun and sand sports Muscat City centre. Contact : 96994345.

Email : jsp.jsr85@gmail.com

Split & window A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact 93769089 / 95323517 House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422 Available for longer period : Mig Welder 5 nos, General worker with PDO pass 10 nos, Helper 10 nos, Mason 8 nos. Contact 99610703

Carpet & sofa cleaning, house cleaning. Contact 99542979 / 98855815

SITUATION WANTSIT. WANTED ED

Window & split unit A.C servicing & repairing. Contact 99557080

Indian male, post graduate, currently in Oman on visit visa.

Seeks suitable placement.

Contact 92388346

Sudanese male, 31 year old, have 3 year Diploma in electrical engineer, 5 year experience in different activities. Contact; +96894549609

Indian male 60 years old have 30 years Muscat experience in all office works with Omani driving license.

Contact: 99024055

More than Ten years of experience in Sales & Marketing, Advertisement and Credit Control and Logistics& Administration.

Contact; 91076608 / 99322748

Male, 30 years Accountant, 1 year Oman experience in accountants, finance. Seeking suitable position in Muscat .Can join immediately, NOC available. Email: lalitbls1@gmail. com Call: 97903175

MCA IT Professional Indian Female seek placement in Teaching/ Non Teaching field. Presently on visit visa. Contact 9588 7051, Email: ashwininakod@gmail

Split & window A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact: 96236476

DRIVING

Split & window A.C servicing & maintenance. Contact 93769089/95323517 Air condition maintenance split and window services AC specialist ducted and package type unites.

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