Founded 1975 . Volume 40 No. | Pages . Baisas 200 . Subscription OMR63 | ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company | Chairman/Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al Zadjali | Printed & Published by Muscat Media Group

February 14, 2016 5 Jumada Al Ula 1437 AH

SUNDAY

302 40

FROM THE WORDS OF HIS MAJESTYTHE SULTAN

We always call for the development of human resources, their scientific capabilities, technical skills and technological expertise in order to meet society’s urgent requirements and needs, and to provide opportunities for those resources to fully contribute to the Blessed Renaissance witnessed by Oman in all walks of life.

‘His Majesty’s Wisdom’

Before The Council of Oman, 2002

MORNING MINUTE

DEEBA HASANdeeba@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: At 31, Awatif Malik Abdullah Al Harthy has achieved what many others can only dream of.

Though married and having three children, Al Harthy still managed to obtain three degrees and show a lot more exemplary achievements on the way.

She just got her Masters de-gree in Business Administration (MBA-Executive) from the Wal-jat College of Applied Sciences (WCAS) in Oman, stood first in her major, and obtained a gold medal for it.

“I now have three degrees, I started with a degree in English language and literature from the Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in 2006, then I pursued my post graduate diploma in translation in 2010 and now I have got my Execu-tive MBA from WCAS, and I feel great about it.”

This young and ambitious lady has been working for a dec-ade now. She started working

just before graduating from the SQU, when she was able to se-cure a job as an instructor at the same university.

Later, she helped establish the Oman Medical Speciality Board (OMSB) with Dr. Abdullah Al Fu-taisi (now the Minister of Trans-port and Communications).

Great opportunity“Dr. Abdullah Al Futaisi was the first one to pay for my career and I worked with him, it was the very beginning, and I was the first em-ployee. I established the entire or-ganisation with help from Dr. Ab-dullah, so that was my first great opportunity,” Al Harthy said.

When asked what had moti-vated her to study all these years, she said, “I enjoy studying. For me, a degree is not about getting a cer-tificate. People are mistaken that you need a certificate to secure a job. Instead of thinking about it that way, you have to pursue your studies. You have to be thirsty for knowledge and information and that will change your way of

looking at things.”Al Harthy thinks that the Om-

ani female society has undergone tremendous changes for the bet-ter. “Our culture has changed. We have moved from small villages and come to Muscat. In this city, people think in a different way, women are not viewed as peo-ple sitting at home, so they have more opportunities for education,

more opportunities to go outside and see the world. In fact, that has made females brave and they have dared to do things that they wouldn’t have even thought of them in the past.”

Biggest inspirationOriginally from Al Qabil in the Sharqiyah region, Al Harthy was born and raised in Muscat. Her biggest inspiration in life is her father and her MBA degree is a way of expressing her gratitude towards him.

“He is the one who fostered my mind, made me the woman that I am today. Since my childhood, he encouraged me to read and read as much as I could, he didn’t have those typical male thoughts and never told me that just be-cause I was a female, I shouldn’t be doing this or that. He just let me free to do whatever I wanted under his guidance.”

After this big step in life, Al Harthy is now planning to pursue a PhD and is also planning to read more and more. >A6

W A N T S T O P U R S U E P H D

ACHIEVER: Awatif Malik Abdullah Al Harthy has managed to obtain three degrees and has exemplary achievements.

Eight Indian sailors rescued as dhow capsizes off Oman coastREJIMON Kreji@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: Eight Indian sailors were rescued from their sinking dhow near the Seeb sea coast in Oman by the Royal Oman Police (ROP), which tweeted about the incident.

“All the eight sailors were res-cued from their sinking dhow near Oman coast. All are in good health,” the ROP posted on its official Twitter account on Sat-urday afternoon.

The dhow was on its way to So-malia from Sharjah with goods, in-cluding electronic items.

“We noticed the problem by around 3 pm on Friday. We in-formed the shipping agent and

they alerted the ROP. As water started entering the dhow, we moved to our own rescue boat and waited for help,” Gaffar Siddique, the captain of the dhow, told the Times of Oman. “The rescue team came fast and we were saved. However, we couldn’t salvage the sinking dhow,” Gaffar added.

All the sailors hail from the western Indian state of Gujarat.

Preparations for return“Indian embassy officials are help-ing us to return to India. By tomor-row we may leave Oman if the pa-pers are ready,” Gaffar added.

Last year in May, an Indian dhow had sunk off the Salalah coast. The news of capsizing boat was revealed by another dhow,

which was headed to Salalah Port. The ill-fated dhow, which sank,

had 11 sailors on board. They were rescued by another dhow nearby.

Noore Garibe, the dhow which sank about 30 nautical miles off the Salalah coast, was on its way to Bossaso from Dubai.

The possible cause of sink-ing was water ingress through leakages in planking. No floating wreckage has been found.

Meanwhile, in March, a car-go vessel bound for the United Arab Emirates with around 350 cattle on board had sunk off the south coast of Oman due to strong winds. The ship was on its way from Somalia when it sank off Sur in the province of A’Sharqiyah.

B O U N D F O R S O M A L I A

Protect your children from cyber stalkers

HASAN SHABAN AL LAWATIhassan@timesofoman.com

Muscat: In the light of a ‘large’ number of online harassment cas-es involving adults targeting chil-dren in Oman through social me-dia, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has called upon parents to take better control of their children’s electronic devices.

Captain Ghassan Al Zadjali of the ROP economic crimes depart-ment told the Times of Oman that criminals mainly target female children, but there are cases of male children being victimised as well.

Captain Al Zadjali was talking to the Times of Oman on the sidelines

of the Telecom Laws and Regula-tions Forum 2016, organised by the Telecommunication Regula-tory Authority (TRA) recently.

According to the official, in cer-tain cases, offenders asked some children to meet them at a certain place in order to abuse them later.

“Rape cases have also been re-ported,” Al Zadjali confirmed.

“Parents must talk to their lit-tle ones when they suspect any suspicious behaviour because children are afraid of explaining such threats to their parents,” Al Zadjali explained.

Cyber-crimesIn a world with fast-paced tech-nology, adopting modern devices with free Internet accessibility at an early age is one of the main

causes of cyber-crimes in the Sul-tanate, according to Al Zadjali.

Al Zadjali said that banning children from using new technolo-gy is not the right solution. Howev-er, they should be educated on how to use the devices in a secure way under the supervision of adults.

“Parents must make sure that no unnecessary mobile apps are installed in their children’s elec-tronic devices,” he stressed.

He also said that family plays an important role in curbing cyber-crimes. “Supervision is not meant to restrain a child’s freedom; it is to protect them,” said Al Zadjali.

Asked about what action should be taken if a child has al-ready been harassed, Al Zadjali advised parents to consult official health authorities for therapy.

ROP has advised

parents to monitor

the electronic devices

of children regularly

to keep them safe

from the online

stalkers

A6Nozouh is famous for archaeological discoveries

OMANUnable to get the right liver, ailing girl returns

1It was a journey many in her home country Pakistan, country of residence Oman,

and destination country India, anxiously followed. >A3

OMANProjects must reflect economic realities

2With banks taking the leading role to finance new government projects,

business ventures on the anvil must reflect the financial realities.>A5

MARKETBorrowing aimed at supporting growth

3Oman’s plan to borrow a higher amount from markets abroad indicates

that government expenditure will be maintained. >B1

T O P T H R E E I N S I D E S T O R I E S

Studies are meant to acquire knowledge, not just getting degrees, says Al Harthy

His Majesty to visitGermany today for medical check-upsMUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said will be leaving today for Germany for the pe-riodic medical examinations, according to a statement of the Diwan of Royal Court.

The medical check-ups will

take a short time, the Diwan of Royal Court statement added, praying to the Almighty Allah to protect His Majesty the Sul-tan within the Sultanate and away for his sincere and loyal people. —ONA

S H O R T P E R I O D

CURTAINS ON MUSCAT FESTIVAL The month-long Muscat Festival 2016 concluded yesterday amidst appreciable presence of foreign and local visitors. Among the attractions at this year’s fes-tival were several activities, sports contests, Heritage Village and Family Village. — ONA See also >A4

A2 S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

OMANHAITHAM OPENS ARABIAN CAMEL RACE TRACKHis Highness Sayyid

Haitham bin Tariq Al

Said presided over the

opening of the Arabian

camel race track of Al

Bashair, Al Dakhiliyah

Governorate, in the

presence of His

Highness Sayyid

Asaad bin Tariq Al

Said, Sheikh Sultan

bin Hamdan Al

Nahyan, advisor to

president of the UAE

and chairman of

the GCC camel race

organising committee

and chairman of the

UAE Camel Race

Association. — ONA

GCC-level seminar to begin todayMUSCAT: Development of health and biostatistics frame-works and the health indicators will be discussed at a seminar beginning here today.

The seminar is being organ-ised by the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf (GCC-Stat), in collaboration with the Executive Office of the GCC Health Ministers.

The two-day seminar, which will be opened under the aus-pices of Dr. Ahmed bin Mo-hammed Al Sa’eedi, Minister of Health, will cover several themes including the GCC sta-tistical systems, the develop-ment of health and biostatistics frameworks and the health in-dicators required for the devel-opment goals for (2015-2030).

The seminar aims at develop-ing the practical knowledge re-lated to developing and aligning the health indicators and statis-tics in the GCC states. -ONA

HEALTH

A3

OMANS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

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Unable to get the right liver, ailing girl is back

RAHUL DASrahuldas@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: It was a journey many in her home country Pakistan, country of residence Oman, and destination country India, anx-iously followed and prayed for to become successful.

However, for the five-year-old ailing Basma, the travel ended without achieving the desired result.

First came the floods in Chen-nai and she and her family had to be rescued by boats from the hospital, and then came the bad news that her father could not donate his liver, which made things difficult. Then began the hunt for another liver in India.

“Despite hunting for two months, we couldn’t find any liver that would suit her. So we came back to Oman on Thurs-day without undergoing the liver transplantation,” her father, Mo-hammad Faisal Raza, a Pakistani expatriate based in Oman, told the Times of Oman.

The child needed to undergo

a liver transplant as she has a cirrhotic liver.

“The child needed two surger-ies—one in the liver and the other one in pancreas in India. But we managed to undergo only the pan-creas surgery,” Raza said.

Raza, a Pakistani national, took Basma to India for a liver trans-plant as such facility was not available in Oman or back home in Pakistan.

On the look outAn official from the Global Hospital in India said the Raza family had been registered for a transplant in case the hospital got a liver of the kind that would suit her.

“Meanwhile, the child was giv-en medicines for a few months,” the hospital officials said.

The official also said the patient was admitted for complications and had undergone a few treat-ment procedures.

“The father of the baby was un-fit as a donor. So they tried to ar-range for a donor but could not,” the official said.

Raza’s elder daughter, Asfa Mo-hammed Faisal had died in De-cember 6, 2004 and was also suf-fering from liver cirrhosis.

“At that time also, the doctors suggested a liver transplant, but we could not afford her treat-ment and she died,” Raza, who

have been working in Sultanate of Oman since November 1991, said.

Basma has another elder sister, Aneeqa and elder brother, Mo-hammed Fawad, all students of Pakistan School, Nizwa. “But she is yet to start her studies because of her illness,” Raza said.

Despite hunting for two months, we couldn’t

find any liver that would suit her. So we

came back to Oman on Thursday without

undergoing the liver transplantation, said

the five-year old Basma’s father

Focus on governanceMUSCAT: A conference on Gov-ernment Excellence will kick off at Muscat InterContinental Hotel today under the patronage of Mo-hammed bin Al Zubair, Advisor of H.M. the Sultan for Economic Planning Affairs.

It will discuss the excellence in government sector at the GCC level and present international models on improving the quality of the government sector. It will also

discuss the digital government, improving human resources in the government sector and other top-ics on work improvement.

It will involve experts, govern-ment and private sector officials from Oman and abroad. It is con-sidered one of the important con-ferences that provides an oppor-tunity for the participants from various countries to exchange in-formation and expertise. -ONA

C O N F E R E N C E

HARD LUCK: The child needed liver as well as pancreas surgery

in India. But we managed to undergo only the latter, said five year

old Basma’s father Mohammad Faisal Raza, a Pakistani expatriate

based in Oman. – File photo

UK accreditation for SQU chemistry master’s course

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Masters in Science (MSc) programme in Chemis-try offered by the Department of Chemistry at the College of Sci-ence at Sultan Qaboos Universi-ty (SQU) has secured academic accreditation from the United Kingdom-based Royal Society of Chemistry.

Accreditation is an effective way that can be used to measure confidence in the quality of grad-uates from a given programme. It allows universities and students to be assured about the quality of their education.

The Royal Society of Chem-istry (RSC) was established in 1841 and is a leading society and a professional body for chemi-cal scientists. The RSC has had a respected system of degree ac-creditation for many years.

Commenting on the RSC ac-creditation for the MSc pro-gramme in Chemistry, Dr. Haider Ahmed Al Lawati, head of the Department of Chemistry at SQU, said the department, in its efforts to assess the quality of its programmes had invited the RSC to evaluate its MSc pro-gramme last year.

“Following an application submitted by the Department of Chemistry and supported by SQU’s administration, the RSC appointed and sent a team of re-viewers, who evaluated the de-partment’s application and later

visited the department in No-vember. The team evaluated the curriculum, the examinations and the facilities at the depart-ment. Also, the team met with the staff and the students of the de-partment, as well as with senior administrators at SQU. The RSC then conferred accreditation to the MSc in December 2015 after it found that the degree is of a very high standard,” he said.

The Department of Chemistry was established in 1986, since then it has grown considerably and is known as one the sig-nificant pillars at the College of Science at SQU. Currently, the department offers a five-year Bachelors in Science de-gree in Chemistry and Applied Chemistry and a two-year MSc programme, along with the re-cently initiated doctoral (PhD) degree programme.

R O Y A L S O C I E T Y O F C H E M I S T R Y

WORLD STANDARD: A team from the United Kingdom-based

Royal Society of Chemistry evaluated the curriculum, the

examinations and the facilities at the department. -Supplied photo

Dr. Haider Ahmed Al Lawati,

head of the Department of

Chemistry at SQU

A4 S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

For detailed coverage log on to www.timesofoman.com

Turkish dance enthrals visitors

ERIK PRINSErik@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Visitors at the Mus-cat Festival in Naseem Garden were amazed by the colourful performance of a dancing group from Turkey.

Omar Al Sawafi, from Oman, said he very much enjoyed the dance.

“It was amazing. For me it was the first time seeing a Turkish dance”, he said.

His friend Said Al Saidi agreed. “I found it very interesting. I think it is one of the best attractions of the Muscat Festival, as you get to know other cultures,” he said.

Murat Erdem, from the Turkish capital of Ankara and choreogra-pher of the dance told the Times of Oman that the group had enjoyed performing in Oman.

“We really like the Muscat Fes-tival. It’s so big and diverse. And, thanks to the Muscat Municipal-ity, we got all the facilities that made it easy for us to come and stay here. It’s cool,” he said.

Erdem explained that the danc-es they performed at Naseem Gar-den are very old and represent the diverse culture of Turkey.

He further said the dances

include the Zeybek dance from Afyon, a city in the middle of Turkey, and is hundreds of years old; a Sufi Derwish dance; Artvin, named after a city on the Black sea coast and is a Georgian-inspired dance; and Trabzon, named after the city on the Black sea coast. The Trabzon dance comes from the ancient Greek re-gion of Pontos and is about farm-ing and fishing.

Hamza Humaid Al Maerki, from Oman, hailed the dancing group. “It was very nice to see and a great opportunity to be introduced to this rich culture,” he stated.

We enjoyed

performing in Oman,

said Murat Erdem,

who choreographed

of the dance who

is from the Turkish

capital of Ankara

CULTURE CONNECT: The

ancient dances include those

from different regions of Turkey

and some even inspired by

other regional countries like

Georgia and Greece. – Jun Estrada

MUSCAT FESTIVAL COMES TO A CLOSEMuscat Festival

2016 came to an

end yesterday. The

festival began one

month ago, amid a

significant turnout

of visitors from

inside and outside

the Sultanate.

Photos by Jun Estrada and Taleb Al Wahibi

A5

OMANS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

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With banks taking a lead-ing role in fi-nancing new government

projects, business ventures on the anvil must reflect on the financial realities to serve the country in its moment of need.

Local banks are being syn-dicated and foreign financial institutions are stepping in to give the economy a shot in the arm by providing attractive packages for project financing. However, the government can-not afford to have standalone projects anymore that take months to plan and complete. Departments in charge of such projects, stretching from real estate to tourism and mining, must do it right the first time.

These projects must be designed to have a faster turnaround process. In the past, repetitive processes have killed off projects in their infancy. The longer they take to implement, the costlier they will prove to be. The balance of decision making must change and so the attitudes of those, who make such decisions. There is also growing concern that projects that are deemed important lack a competitive edge. The time lapse to make them fruitful is

another challenge.The good news at the moment

is that though the government can no longer rely on its finan-cial reserves, banks are willing to provide the funds as long as the mindset in the corridors of power is going to change for the better. Another positive for gov-ernment’s projects is that inter-est rates at the moment are very low. It means borrowing money is easier and cheaper. This can work well for the government.

Financing is one thing, but to work with the private sector in an environment that is condu-cive for the economy has always been a major challenge. The fist that controls the business

regulations must lose its grip to allow innovation.

If new projects underway are to succeed, there should not be any unpredictability. The government must learn from the past. It now needs to work with partners by protecting the interests of investors, creditors and contractors. It is not the time now to dictate rigorous business terms. Flexibility is the key because potential partners now have the choice of whom to strike a deal with.

Most of the countries in the world have their backs to the ropes under the current situ-ation. Oman is no exception, and is not among the worse

off. However, having said that, Oman has greater potential of steering its economy towards private entrepreneurship from its untapped natural resources.

But it needs a more refined process of change management. These processes must be on the fast track than they have ever been before. A notable example is the process of privatisation that has not lived up to its full potential. In 1996, the govern-ment kicked off its privatisation process when the Manah power project was developed on a build, operate, own, transfer (BOOT) basis by the United Power Com-pany. However, the privatisation process has rarely caught up with other areas outside the power generation sector. Even in the electricity sector, the process is at a standstill for the moment. It shows how the government is reluctant to give up its hold on its assets. Oman Air’s private shareholding was sold back to government after the privatisa-tion bid failed. It proves how the government shies away from effective business collaboration with the private sector.

If privatisation remains to be a complex issue in the last three decades, then the government can vigorously pursue partners to implement projects already identified in the industrial areas and free zones. Manufacturing and logistics projects which are still not implemented, may interest private partners if the government start looking for them. The reality of the current economic scenario favours the private sector. It is no longer the case companies have to queue up to beg the govern-ment to sign a partnership deal. Entrepreneurs need to be lured and convinced that certain businesses are beneficial if they partner with the State. In other words, the government must do the chasing and not the other way round.

New government projects must take the economic realities into account

C O M M E N T A R Y

SALEH AL SHAIBANY

SUNDAYBEAT

H AV E YOU R SAY AT T W I T T E R.CO M /T I M ES O F O M A N O R S CA N T H E CO D E TO I N STA N T LY P O ST YOU R T H O U G H TS .

New system to help investors launchedMUSCAT: A new system to enable investors develop a business ac-tion plan has been inaugurated at the Ministry of Commerce and In-dustry. Abdullah bin Ali Al Kalbani, Head of Licences Team at “Invest Easily” project said that the Li-cences Emulator System helps the investor to get a lot of information, requirements and regulations.

He confirmed that the data cur-rently available in the licences em-ulator system are only the licences data of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

He added that the system will be provided later with data of other

business licences issued by other government agencies.

He pointed out that the system is the first of its kind in the e-gov-ernment services provided to the public and will save a lot of time, cost and efforts to the investor and helps him/her to provide the re-quirements required before apply-ing for a licence.

The system enables investors, sitting in their offices, to develop a business action plan by identify-ing the types of licenses needed, as well as documents and procedures for obtaining them before proceed-ing to apply for licences. -ONA

M I N I S T R Y O F C O M M E R C E A N D I N D U S T R Y

Ensure proper disposal of garbage.

Don’t litter a beautiful country like OMAN.

A6

OMANS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

I am planning to get projects in any case, either from the tender board or through sub-consulting with some international company to support myself and my 14 staffersJokha Al Husaini, CEO of Shumookh Engineering Consulting

Nozouh village in Rustaq famous for archaeological discoveries

RUSTAQ: Located in the Wadi Bani Hinai in the Wilayat of Rustaq in the Governorate of South Al Batinah, the Nozouh vil-lage is famous for its plantations of various types of date palms, sea-sonal crops, oats, wheat, barleys,

legumes and fruits.Nozouh village is situated at

a strategic location on the road connecting Wadi Bani Ghafir and the Niyabat of Al Houqain. It is also connected to the Wilayat of Rustaq and the Wilayat of Suwaiq. It is about 30 km from the centre of the Wilayat of Rustaq.

The village gained great impor-tance due to its ancient archaeo-logical discoveries that date back to 3000 BC. Archaeological tombs were discovered on the road lead-

ing to the Niyabat of Al Houqain. The history of these tombs dates

back to the period before Islam. Ancient archaeological inscrip-

tions were also discovered and those concerned believe that they might be related to the inscrip-tions found in Wadi A’Sahtan. These inscriptions date back to 3000 BC, whereas some of them to 1000 BC.

Such inscriptions are scattered across different places in the vil-lage. They represent littering and

drawings that depict the events and environment experienced at that time.

Citizens said that foreign ex-perts accompanied by a team from the Ministry of Heritage and Cul-ture frequently come to the village. The ministry has registered these discoveries as part of its records. A visitor to the village can view such inscriptions and tombs.

Ya’aqoub bin Humaid Al Miqba-li said the major archaeological landmark in Nozouh village is the

“Al Sharaf Fort,” which is located on the top of the village and over-looks it from the mountain peak.

He added that caves, archaeo-logical tombs, inscriptions and engravings on stones affirmed the importance of this historic village.

The caves are now used by the farmers as stores for preserving agricultural crops, citizens also stay in these caves during the day-time in the Holy Month of Rama-dan and during summer as these caves have cooler temperatures

due to the water flowing from the rocks that form the three springs, which are used for drinking, irriga-tion and remedies.

Nozouh village, as is the case with other villages and towns in different governorates and wilay-ats in the Sultanate, has during the prosperous reign of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said enjoyed a good portion of services, such as electricity, telecommunications, education, health and transport, as well as several schools. -ONA

I M P O R T A N T I N S C R I P T I O N S

STRATEGICALLY LOCATED: Nozouh village is situated at a strategic location on the road connecting Wadi Bani Ghafir and the Niyabat of Al Houqain. It is also connected to the Wilayat of Rustaq and the Wilayat of Suwaiq. It is about 30 km from the centre of the Wilayat of Rustaq. – ONA

‘2016 to be challenging for entrepreneurs’

BABA UMARbabaumar@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: With Oman introduc-ing major economic reforms to make up for a huge budget deficit, the small and medium enterprises are also feeling the heat.

“The year 2016 is going to be very challenging,” entrepreneur Ayesha Al Shoily told the Times of Oman (TOO) on the sidelines of an informal monthly chat event (or Caribou Chats series), organ-ised recently by Startup Oman - the Sultanate’s only online plat-form developed by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs.

“It is going to be very challeng-ing,” she said, adding, “People have to be very creative. They will have to stand on their own feet. It is not going to be better,” she said.

Al Shoily, a personality devel-opment expert and alternate ther-apist, plans to launch her business in March, and says the venture is going to be “very testing.”

She said she has been meeting many upcoming women entrepre-neurs who were concerned about the economic situation in the Sul-

tanate and who often asked, “Do you think it is the right time to start a business? Do you think it will work?”

She said that a bigger problem in the country is “people like to copy and paste business ideas or strategies.”

“If someone has opened a cupcake business, we will have hundreds of people starting cup-cake businesses the next day. If a woman opens an Abbaya shop, everyone races to start the same business,” she said.

Creative“I am not joking. Once upon a time it was a normal thing to have Karak tea (or Indian spiced tea). Then suddenly, it became a brand, and in just a few weeks, everyone was selling Karak tea. We have to be creative and sustain whatever we do,” she said.

To Jokha Al Husaini, CEO of Shumookh Engineering Consult-ing, current year is difficult for her firm, too.

“2016 is a big challenge because the market is slow,” she told TOO.

“I am planning to get projects

in any case, either from the tender board or through sub-consulting with some international company to support myself and my 14 staff-ers,” Al Husaini, who also works as quantity and land surveyor with the justice ministry, said.

SME awarenessBesides the economic challenges, the knowledge among entrepre-neurs about programmes related to the Small and Medium Enter-prises (SME’s) remains dismal, Sherry Colbourne of Startup Oman told the TOO.

She cited a recent survey that showed the highest ranking pro-gramme in Oman from an aware-ness standpoint was Intilaaqah, which was recognised by only 43 per cent of the study group.

Intilaaqah is one of Shell’s so-cial investment initiatives aimed at encouraging the development of SMEs in the Sultanate by of-fering professional training, guid-ance and business development services.

The study, conducted by the Na-tional Poll Centre in March 2015 in support of the Entrepreneurs’

Conclave, challenged the percep-tions of entrepreneurs in Oman regarding their overall awareness of programs related to the SMEs.

The study was conducted via an online insight community in which 206 people participated in various activities. The highest number of participants in any one activity were 75.

Only 37 per cent of the respond-ents were found to be aware of the entrepreneur programmes of the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Develop-ment, also called Riyada.

Barely 22 per cent of the partic-ipants were aware of Bank Mus-cat’s al Wathbah programme that offers diverse financing and bank-ing services to targeted sectors.

Regarding the entrepreneurs’ programme in Sultan Qaboos University, only 8 per cent of re-spondents were aware of it, while a mere 2 per cent of the partici-pants were aware of the entre-preneurs programme available at Caledonian College of Engineering in Muscat.

“We believe these numbers demonstrate the gap that we (Startup Oman) anecdotally heard exists in Oman’s entrepreneurial ecosystem,” Colbourne said.

She added, “Startup Oman aims to close this awareness gap for the benefit of Omani SMEs and create a cohesive community of support.”

About predictions for 2016, she said, “Collectively, we need to be creative in terms of the support provided to SMEs.”

She said her group will work closely with SMEs to identify the challenges they face and de-velop plans, in co-operation with the various stakeholders, to con-structively adapt solutions to their issues.

“Lastly, we will continue to bring international content to Oman SMEs in order to develop a mind-set of innovation and re-source allocation in order to im-prove market reach,” she added.

Besides the

economic

challenges, the

knowledge among

entrepreneurs about

programmes related

to SMEs remains

dismal, says Sherry

Colbourne of

Startup OmanDIFFICULT TIMES: Ayesha Al Shoily, personality development expert and Jokha Al Husaini, CEO of Shumookh Engineering Consulting, at Startup Oman function. -Baba Umar

‘Gain knowledge’She advises young people to be thirsty for knowledge rather than just wanting to obtain a de-gree. “Anyone can obtain a certif-icate, but not everyone can have that knowledge and that open-mindedness.”

Many problemsAnother thing that Al Harthy wants to highlight is the proper use of time, “I am married with three children. I used to go to work, used to take care of my children and husband during the time I was pursuing my Masters Degree. Un-fortunately, at the same time, my brother had a surgery, my sister had health issues and my mother

used to depend on me, yet I man-aged to do everything. So don’t say that you couldn’t do this or that be-cause you didn’t have time. When-ever you have support and are seri-ous about your studies and want to attain something, you can do it and I am proof of that. My children are doing great at school.”

She concludes, “The only way for you is to be open minded, keep reading and working hard. You are not working because of the salary, but because God created us to work, not to just enjoy and this is not the life of enjoyment. The more you work and struggle, the better you feel about yourself.”

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REGIONS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

‘Syria army plans move into IS-bastion Raqqa’

BEIRUT: The Syrian army in-tends to advance into IS-held Raqqa province having captured positions at the provincial bor-der of the extremists’ strong-hold, a Syrian military source said on Saturday. A move into Raqqa province would reestablish a foothold for Damascus in a region where it has had no presence since August 2014. The military source who was briefed on the matter said the operation had been going on for a number days.

The army had captured several positions from IS at the provincial border between Hama and Raqqa in the last two days.

“It is an indication of the direc-tion of coming operations towards Raqqa. In general, the Raqqa front is open... starting in the direction of the Tabqa area,” the source said.

Tabqa is the location of an air base captured by IS in 2014.

The army had moved to within 35 km (20 miles) of the base.

The Syrian Observatory for Hu-man Rights, which monitors the war, earlier reported the army’s had advanced to the provincial borders of Raqqa.

Ceasefire dealMeanwhile, Russia said on Sat-urday a ceasefire deal for Syria agreed by major powers was more likely to fail than succeed while Syrian government forces backed by further Russian air strikes gained more ground against re-bels near Aleppo.

International divisions over

Syria surfaced anew at a Munich conference where Russia rejected French charges that it was bomb-ing civilians, just a day after world powers agreed on the “cessation of hostilities” due to begin in a week’s time.

The cessation of hostilities deal falls short of a formal cease-fire, since it was not signed by the warring parties — the govern-ment and rebels seeking to top-ple President Bashar Al Assad in a five-year-old war that has killed 250,000 people.

If its forces retake Aleppo and seal the Turkish border, Damas-cus would deal a crushing blow to the insurgents who were on the march until Russia intervened, shoring up Assad’s rule and pav-ing the way to the current reversal of rebel fortunes.

Russia has said it will keep bombing IS and the Al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, which in many areas of western Syria fights government forces in close prox-imity to insurgents deemed mod-erates by Western states.

Russian Foreign Minister Ser-gei Lavrov, asked at a security conference in Munich on Satur-day to assess the chances of the

cessation of hostilities deal suc-ceeding, replied: “49 per cent.”

Asked the same question, his German counterpart Frank-Wal-ter Steinmeier put the odds at 51 per cent.

The complex, multi-sided civil war in Syria, raging since 2011, has drawn in most regional and global powers, caused the world’s worst humanitarian emergency and attracted recruits to Islamist militancy from around the world.

Assad, backed on the ground by allied combatants and Hezbollah in addition to big power ally Rus-sia, is showing no appetite for a negotiated ceasefire.

He declared this week that the government’s goal was to recap-ture all of Syria, though he said this could take time.

The US government said Assad was “deluded” if he thought there was a military solution to the con-flict. Syrian state television an-nounced the army and allied mi-litia had on Saturday captured the village of Al Tamura overlooking rebel terrain northwest of Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Hu-man Rights reported advances in the same area, adding that Rus-sian jets had hit three rebel-held

towns near the Turkish border.Government offensives around

Aleppo have sent tens of thou-sands of people fleeing towards the Turkish border.

Speaking at the same confer-ence, French Prime Minister Ma-nuel Valls called on Russia to stop bombing civilians in Syria, say-ing this was crucial to achieving peace there.

“France respects Russia and its interests...But we know that to find the path to peace again, the Russian bombing of civilians has to stop,” Valls said.

Russian Prime Minister Medve-dev said that was simply not true.

“There is no evidence of our bombing civilians, even though everyone is accusing us of this,” he said. “Russia is not trying to achieve some secret goals in Syria.We are simply trying to protect our national interests,” he said, adding that Moscow wanted to prevent extremist militants get-ting to Russia.

US Secretary of State John Kerry, however, accused Russia of dropping so-called “dumb bombs” in Syria that do not have a precise target, saying this has led to the killing of civilians. — Reuters

Government forces

have captured

several positions

from the IS militants

at the provincial

border between

Hama and Raqqa in

last two days

MUCH-NEEDED AID: A Red Crescent aid convoy enters Wafideen Camp, which is controlled by Syrian government forces, to deliver aid into the rebel held besieged city of Douma, Damascus suburbs, Syria on Saturdau. — Reuters

Turkey forces shell Syrian air base held by Kurd rebelsBEIRUT/ISTANBUL: Turkish forces on Saturday shelled a Syr-ian air base and a village captured by Kurdish fighters from insur-gents in recent days in northern Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

A Kurdish official confirmed the shelling of Menagh air base in the northern Aleppo countryside, which he said had been captured by the Kurdish-allied Jaysh Al-Thuwwar group rather than the Kurdish YPG militia.

Both are part of the Syria Demo-cratic Forces alliance.

There was no immediate com-ment from Turkey.

Saudi planesMeanwhile, Turkish Foreign Min-ister Mevlut Cavusoglu was re-ported as saying on Saturday that Saudi Arabia will send aircraft to NATO-member Turkey’s Incir-lik air base for the fight against IS militants in Syria..

Saudi Arabia has resumed its participation in air strikes against IS in recent weeks and US De-fence Secretary Ash Carter on Thursday welcomed its commit-ment to expand its role.

“Saudi Arabia is now sending planes to Turkey, to Incirlik.

They came and carried out in-spections at the base,” Cavuso-glu told the Yeni Safak newspaper, adding it was unclear how many planes would come and that the Saudis might also send soldiers.

Saudi officials could not imme-diately be reached for comment on Cavusoglu’s remarks.

No US ground troopsUS President Barack Obama has ruled out sending US ground troops to Syria.

But Saudi Arabia this month of-fered ground forces to fight IS and Cavusoglu said Turkey and the Saudis would support a coalition ground operation.

“We said that if there is such a strategy, Turkey and Saudi Arabia can join a ground operation,” he told the Yeni Safak paper on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich.

A wish Asked if Saudi troops could en-ter Syria from Turkey, Cavuso-glu said: “This is a wish, not a planned thing.

Saudi Arabia is sending planes and says, ‘I can send soldiers for a ground operation when it is necessary’”. — Reuters

H E I G H T E N I N G T E N S I O N S

Powerful cleric Sadr calls for technocrat government in Iraq BAGHDAD: Powerful Iraqi cler-ic Moqtada Al Sadr said on Satur-day the country needed a techno-cratic government, threatening to quit politics if Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi failed to carry out promised reforms.

RemarksThe remarks by Sadr, whose Al Ahrar bloc holds 34 seats in par-liament and three cabinet posts, were the first high-level reaction to the premier’s call for politically appointed ministers to be re-placed with technocrats.

Struggling to show results from reforms he announced six months ago, Abadi said this week he want-ed to make the replacements in a cabinet reshuffle, a shake-up that would alter the delicate balance of government in place since the US-led invasion in 2003.

Abadi provided few details of the planned reshuffle but he is expected to move forward with changes this week after returning to Iraq from a European trip.

Sadr called for “forming a technocrat government away from partisanship that should include all.” He added that withdrawing from politics would become “a duty” if the government did not make swift progress to implement reforms such as purging the judiciary and curbing corruption. “There is no room for slacking off,” he said in a televised address.

Sadr’s opinion holds sway over tens of thousands of support-ers, including fighters who once controlled parts of Baghdad and helped defend the capital after Is-lamic State swept across the Syr-ian border in June 2014.

A few hundred followers gath-ered in central Baghdad following his speech to show their support.

Corruption and mismanage-ment in Iraq’s political system have made the country nearly impossible to govern and under-mined the fight against IS mili-tants controlling swathes of terri-tory in the north and west.

Public demonstrations and calls by another prominent cleric last summer spurred Abadi to start dismantling the country’s patronage system and root out corruption. Sadr endorsed those

reforms at the time.Abadi’s drive, however, got

bogged down by legal challenges and opposition from sectors re-sisting change.

He has since been criticised for failing to take decisive action.

The proposed reshuffle is expected to face resistance from major political blocs and could end up costing Abadi his job, politicians and diplomats say. — Reuters

P R I M E M I N I S T E R W A R N E D

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INDIAS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Make in India has become the biggest brand India

ever created. It has captured the imagination of people,

business, institutions, political leaders and media

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Modi woos global investors at ‘Make in India’ week

MUMBAI: Unfolding the red carpet for domestic and foreign investors, Prime Minister Nar-endra Modi opened the “Make in India Week” here on Saturday, showcased as the largest event of its kind in the country to project it as the preferred global hub for manufacturing.

The prime minister also listed a number of initiatives taken by his government to make it eas-ier for doing business in India, along with enabling policy deci-sions and corrections.”I repeat, we also decided there will be no retrospective taxation,” he said at the inaugural.

“Make in India has become the biggest brand India ever created. It has captured the imagination of people, business, institutions, political leaders and media,” he said at the National Sports Club of India’s indoor stadium that was packed beyond its 5,000 capacity.

Modi said the efforts were showing. “Our foreign direct in-vestment inflow has gone by 48 per cent since the day my govern-ment came into office,” the prime minister said.

Intellectual propertyHe also said concerns over intel-lectual property and bankruptcy laws were also being addressed.

“Almost on a daily basis we are trying to remove the bottlenecks that were affecting business,” he said. It was, therefore, not sur-prising that a host of multilateral institutions have said India will log even better growth that the present 7.5 per cent in the coming years, he added.

“In 2014-15, India contributed 12.5 per cent to global growth. It’s contribution to the global growth is 68 per cent higher than its

share of world economy,” he said, amid applause from the audience, which included chief ministers, ambassadors, industrialists and policy-makers.

Modi said India was particular-ly keen on scaling up investments in infrastructure — from roads and railways to digital networks and clean energy. Towards this, he said, interest-free bonds were the next on the agenda.

“Do not wait. Do not relax. You should take advantage of the im-mense opportunities in India.”

The event also saw the Time In-dia award conferred on Tata Steel for best in class manufacturing, Hero MotoCorp for innovator of the year and Yogesh and Rajesh Agarwal of Ajanta Pharma for young maker of the year.

Earlier, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India

was ready as a global manufac-turing hub.

“The idea of the Make in India plan was to make the environment in the country from the regulated to a facilitator,” said Sitharaman, adding this has resulted in a vast improvement in ease of doing business in the country. “This is a moment India is cherishing.”

In his maiden Independence Day address on August 15, 2014, the prime minister had said India must become a global manufac-turing hub, with “zero defect” in product quality and “zero affect” in its impact on environment.

The “Make in India” campaign was launched a month later on September 25.

Earlier, Modi inaugurated the Make In India Centre at the Mum-bai Metropolitan Region Develop-ment Authority Grounds with

his Swedish and Finnish coun-terparts, Kjell Stefan Lofven and Juha Petri Sipila, respectively.

The two dignitaries also ad-dressed the inaugural event.

Attract investmentThemed on innovation, design and sustainability, the centre showcases some of the country’s most trendsetting products and manufacturing processes before the world for the first time after the global launch of the Make In India initiative 17 months ago, commerce ministry officials said.

Those showcasing their respec-tive strengths include corporate houses like the Tatas and Reliance groups, four top oil companies, as also institutions like the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Defence Research and Devel-opment Organisation.

Make in India Centre includes sector-specific pavilions show-casing 11 focus sectors of the six-day event, 17 state exhibitions and several country pavilions.

The area covered is some 220,000 square metres and ac-commodates 27 halls for 190 com-panies to show their prowess.

Officials said the Make in In-dia Week is an enabling event to showcase India and attract invest-ment, while also providing oppor-tunities to the states.

Also planned are some 20 sec-tor-specific seminars in areas like policy, business climate and intel-lectual property.

The programmes will see the participation of central and state ministers, chief ministers, senior government officials, top indus-trialists and businesspeople from India and overseas, and several government and business delega-tions from abroad. Government delegations from 49 nations and business teams from 68 countries have converged here. - IANS

Prime Minister

Narendra Modi

listed a number of

initiatives taken by

his government to

make it easier for

doing business in

India, along with

enabling policy

decisions and

corrections

PARLEYS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding in bilateral talks with the Prime Minister of Fin-

land Juha Sipila at the Make in India Centre in Mumbai on Saturday. — PTI

India summons US ambassador, over move to sell F-16 jets

NEW DELHI: Reacting strongly, India on Saturday summoned US Ambassador Richard Verma to convey its “displeasure and disap-pointment” over Obama admin-istration’s decision to sell F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan.

Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar summoned US ambasssador to the South Block and during the 45-minute meeting told him about India’s concerns over United States military aid to Pakistan which New Delhi believes goes into anti-India activities.

According to sources, such mili-tary aids will embolden Pakistan.

External Affairs Ministry also issued a strong statement express-ing its “disappointment” over the US decision. It said it disagrees with the rationale that these arms transfer to Pakistan will help in combating terrorism.

“We are disappointed at the decision of the Obama adminis-tration to notify the sale of F-16 aircraft to Pakistan. We disagree with their rationale that such arms transfers help to combat terror-ism. The record of the last many years in this regard speaks for it-self,” the Ministry of External Af-fairs statement said.

The Obama administration Sat-urday said it has decided to sell eight nuclear-capable F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan worth nearly $700 million. The proposal has now gone to the US Congress, which has 30 days to take a decision on it.

There is a feeling in official cir-cles here that India has turned out be the victim whenever any mili-tary aid has been given to Pakistan in past. - PTI

M I L I T A R Y A I D

DMK, Congress join hands for Tamil Nadu assembly pollsCHENNAI: Burying the Lankan Tamils issue that had rocked their nine-year-old alliance in 2013, Congress and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Saturday came together to fight the upcom-ing Assembly polls in the south Indian state.

The national party described the regional outfit as the “most dependable partner” as senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad formalised the alliance with DMK President M. Karu-nanidhi here, three years after the latter snapped ties accusing the Congress of betraying the Sri Lankan Tamils.

“The party had decided at our national level and also at Karuna-nidhi ji’s level and other esteemed leaders of the DMK that we will be fighting this election together; we will have an alliance,” Azad told reporters after meeting the DMK chief at his residence.

The leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha heaped praises on Karunanidhi and DMK, calling him an “esteemed leader” and describing the the party as “most dependable.”

Karunanidhi was an “esteemed leader” since the times of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, he said, adding that “DMK has always been and shall remain a most de-pendable partner”.

Asked what had changed be-tween 2013 and 2016 for the two to join hands again, Azad said

there were political “compulsions and pressures”.

“It is not the first time we have gone with DMK. We’ve had part-nerships on earlier occasions. Sometimes in politics there are compulsions and pressures,” he said while expressing confidence that the DMK-led coalition would emerge victorious in the state elections, where it takes on the Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK.

Congress and DMK and other possible allies that join the coali-tion will form a “formidable com-bination”, he said. Asked if the “other allies” referred to actor-politician Vijayakant’s DMDK,

actively being wooed by both DMK and BJP, the Congress lead-er said that decision was for DMK to take. “DMK is the principal ally under whose leadership the polls will be fought and they will de-cide,” said Azad.

Since Congress and DMK have joined hands, more parties could come into the alliance, he added.

In 2013, DMK had pulled out of UPA after its demand for strong amendments to a US-sponsored resolution in a UN body against Sri Lanka for alleged war crimes and a resolution in the Indian Parliament were not heeded to by Congress. - PTI

P A R T N E R S H I P

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Jaitley hits back at Manmohan; asks him to be ‘non-partisan’NEW DELHI: Tearing into for-mer prime minister Manmohan Singh’s criticism of Modi govern-ment, Finance Minister Arun Jait-ley on Saturday said the transition from UPA to NDA government has been from “policy-paralysis” to a global “bright-spot” while Con-gress’ stand on the crucial Good and Services Tax Bill has been mo-tivated by “real politics”.

In a Facebook post titled ‘What Dr Manmohan Singh should ad-vise his Party’, Jaitley said unlike in the UPA regime when poli-

cies were framed from Congress headquarters at 24, Akbar Road, in the National Democratic Alli-ance (NDA) government Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the last word.

“Former presidents and prime Ministers rarely speak, but when they do, the nation should listen to them with rapt attention. They rep-resent the wisdom of the nation.

“They are expected to be non-partisan, render constructive ad-vice and at times send a powerful message even to their own politi-

cal party to act in broader national interest,” he said.

Stating that he had consistently held Singh in high respect, he ex-pected the same from him.

Referring to Singh’s interview to a periodical over Modi not reach-ing out to the opposition and gov-ernment not doing enough to move up the country’s economy, he said, “I am sure if Dr Singh would dis-passionately analyse the present government, he would really real-ize India has a government where the prime minister has the last

word, where natural resources are allocated without corruption through transparent process...

“... where industrialists no long-er visit North Block to push files/decisions, where environmental clearances are dealt with in rou-tine and not stalled on sadistic or corrupt considerations.”

Work culturePosing a question if there was any change in the work culture, the finance minister said the public sector banks were hardly run by

their own Boards or even by North Block during the United Progres-sive Alliance (UPA) government.

“They were run from 24, Akbar Road. In power and infrastructure areas, sectoral challenges were not addressed during the UPA. It is the present government which is clearing up these accumulated challenges,” he said.

On consultations with the oppo-sition, he said almost all political parties except the Congress, sup-port the GST.

“The Congress has done a volte

face. Both the Parliamentary Af-fairs Minister and myself have dis-cussed the GST with every senior Congress leader in Parliament,” he said. He asked if the Congress’ po-sition on “Constitutional cap” on GST rates not “motivated by real politics?”

“The economist in Dr Singh should advice his party that tariffs are not provided for in the Consti-tution. This is what nation expects from the senior leaders and states-men like former prime ministers,” he added. - PTI

C R I T I C I S M O F G O V E R N M E N T

BRIEFING: Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mukul

Wasnik addressing media after meeting with Dravida Munnetra

Kazhagam Chief M. Karunanidhi at his residence in Chennai on

Saturday. - PTI

A9

INDIAS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

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Divisive politics return as Modi eyes make-or-break state voteMUZAFFARNAGAR (Uttar Pradesh): A year before Uttar Pradesh holds a state election that could make or break Modi’s chances of a second term, political opponents, analysts and commen-tators say his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is re-testing a divisive formula at a by-election on Satur-day in a troubled corner of India’s most populous state.

It was here in Muzaffarnagar, in 2013, that at least 65 people were killed in communal clashes.Around 12,000 people were driv-en from their homes in the sur-rounding villages where farmers grow sugarcane.

The following year, the BJP won 71 of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh in a general election, handing Modi In-dia’s biggest parliamentary major-ity in three decades.

Despite two major state poll de-feats since, the BJP recently re-ap-pointed Amit Shah as its campaign manager, counting on him to win again in the 2017 regional vote.

Shah, who holds the rank of party president, was banned by the Election Commission of In-dia from campaigning in 2014 for statements promoting “hatred and ill will” between religions.

A senior aide to Shah said the Muzaffarnagar campaign raised legitimate issues to expose the flaws of the state government, led by the left-wing Samajwadi Party that is widely supported by Muslim voters.

“It’s not illegal to voice the con-cerns of Hindus,” said the aide, who did not want to be named.

“To assume that we will only win elections by polarisation is ridiculous. Our work will prove a point and Modi’s image will work the best for us.”

At the BJP rally in Muzaffar-nagar, a town of 300,000 people, a businessman chants a prayer and, to cheers, says girls should not fall for Muslim boys waging a “Love Jihad” against his community. As the party worker totters off the wobbly podium, he gets a pat on the back from Sanjeev Balyan, a federal agriculture minister who was elected as the local member of parliament in the 2014 landslide.

Balyan, 42, is being tried in a Muzaffarnagar court for rioting, disturbing the peace and unlawful assembly during the 2013 clashes, his lawyer said.

He spent 12 days in prison be-fore being granted bail. Further

hearings are pending, and Balyan has pleaded his innocence. With this reporter present, Balyan gives no speech; only expressing grati-tude to his voters. Asked later by Reuters about the broader signifi-cance of the Muzaffarnagar by-election for Hindu unity and for

Uttar Pradesh, he described it as a prelude to “an all-out final attempt to protect Hindus.”

Modi must win in UP, India’s biggest electoral prize, to sustain his hope of one day gaining full control of parliament, where he lacks a majority in the upper house

that represents the federal states.A victory there would help the

65-year-old leader advance his de-velopment agenda by passing land, tax and labour reforms that have been thwarted by the opposition.

Defeat could turn his govern-ment into a lame duck ahead of the

2019 general election. With Modi’s promise of growth and jobs yet to materialise, the temptation to shore up his political base is grow-ing, say political analysts.

“The party has nothing to boast about on the economic or development front,” said Sanjay Kumar, director of the Centre for the Study of Developing Socie-ties, a New Delhi think-tank spe-cialising in social sciences and opinion research.

“If polarisation works, then they will be tempted to replicate it in the 2017 state elections.”

Party leaders say the BJP is determined to keep its base in-tact with a message of Hindutva. “Many people are taken aback by the directness of the BJP’s Hin-dutva messaging in the Muzaf-farnagar by-election, but we are only speaking the truth,” Chan-dra Mohan, a BJP spokesman in state capital Lucknow, told Reu-ters by telephone.

Hindus make up nearly 80 per cent of India’s 1.3 billion people. Uttar Pradesh, home to one in six of the population, is also predomi-nantly Hindu. But, in the west of the state, Muslims are in a slight majority. - Reuters

M U Z A F F A R N A G A R B Y - E L E C T I O N

WOOING VOTERS: Sanjeev Balyan, centre, a federal agriculture minister and a member of ruling

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), addresses a by-election campaign rally in Muzaffarnagar district in the

northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, on Tuesday. - Reuters

Five militants killed in KupwaraSRINAGAR: In a major suc-cess, army killed five suspected Laskhar-e-Taiba (LeT) mili-tants while losing two soldiers during an overnight encounter that ended on Saturday in Kup-wara district of Indian-adminis-tered-Kashmir.

The encounter in Zonreshi village started on Friday when army launched a search opera-tion following information about presence of some terrorists there, Defence spokesman said on Sat-urday. He said as the Army com-menced the search of a suspect house, the hiding militants re-sorted to a “heavy volume of fire” and threw grenades.

“Despite the disadvantage of being fired upon by terrorists from the upper floor of the house, the soldiers immediately retali-ated the fire,” he said.

“As the soldiers engaged the terrorists, additional reinforce-ment effectively cordoned off the house to prevent escape of the terrorists,” he said.

The operation, which concluded on Saturday, led to elimination of five terrorists, the spokesman said, terming it as “yet another major blow to the terror outfits”.

“Two Army soldiers also at-tained martyrdom”, he said.

They were Naik Shinde Shankar and Gunner Sahadev Maruti More.

Police said four army per-sonnel including a Major, were injured in the operation. The injured have been admitted to a military hospital in Drugmulla.

The defence spokesman did not spell out the identity or group affiliation of the slain militants

but police sources said they were likely from LeT.

Five AK-47 rifles and a cache of ammunition and other war like stores have been recovered from the site.

The Army spokesman said the force “lost two of its gallant sol-diers who were the leading scouts and despite bearing the brunt of the initial volley of fire, stood their ground for each other and the rest of the search team”. -PTI

E N C O U N T E R

Rahul Gandhi accuses NDA of suppressing students voice

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused NDA govern-ment of “suppressing” students’ voice as he visited the JNU cam-pus in the national capital to ex-press solidarity with them, a day after the arrest of its students’ un-ion president Kanhaiya Kumar in a sedition case.

The Congress Vice President, who had on Friday accused the Modi government of “bullying” the institution, scaled up the at-

tack saying “most anti-national are people, who are suppressing the voice of students in this insti-tution”. Accompanied by Delhi PCC chief and former union min-ister Anand Sharma, Rahul inter-acted with the agitating students and lauded the university for rep-resenting free voice.

Drawing parallel between the actions against students in Jawa-harlal Nehru University and events leading to the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad University, he said the question is why a student is “not allowed to say what he believes in”.

Noting that India is progressing

because more and more people are raising their voice, Rahul said that everybody has a right to disagree.

TargetingMaking repeated reference to Ve-mula’s suicide and targeting the government especially Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani on the issue, he said, “A youngster expresses his views and the government says he is anti-national. Later the minister turns around and say you are not even a Dalit.”

In his speech marked by fre-quent disruptions, Rahul said that he will be happy to see even peo-

ple from Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) express their opinion.

“We respect voices that are raised in front of our voice. We also respect what is raised behind our back,” he said.

Training his guns on the gov-ernment, he said, “They will not understand that in crushing you, they are making you stronger.”

The Congress Vice President had on Friday tweeted “Modi Govt & ABVP bullying an institu-tion like JNU simply because it won’t toe their line is completely condemnable.

“While Anti-India sentiment is

unquestionably unacceptable, the right to dissent & debate is an es-sential ingredient of democracy.”

Kumar was arrested over an event at the JNU campus against hanging of Parliament attack con-vict Afzal Guru, sparking massive outrage among students and criti-cism from non-BJP parties which dubbed it as an “Emergency-like” situation. His visit was opposed by members of ABVP, who waved black flags when he spoke.

Taking note of it, he said, “Peo-ple who showed black flags on my face, I feel proud that in my coun-try they have the right to show black flags.”

Earlier in the day, a batch of ex-servicemen, alumni of the univer-sity, threatened to return their de-grees as they found it “difficult” to be associated with an institution that has become a “hub of anti-national activities”.

Meanwhile, the HRD ministry has sought a status report from the university on the issue. However, the varsity administration main-tained that it has not received any such communication so far.

The university’s alumni asso-ciation also came out in support of the agitating students saying they are pained to see the “attack on university’s image” which stands for its democratic culture.

Facing criticism for allowing police inside the campus, the var-sity administration said the secu-ritymen have been removed from the premises and there are no restrictions on the movement of students. - PTI

Drawing parallel

between the actions

against students in

Jawaharlal Nehru

University and

events leading to

the suicide of Dalit

scholar in Hyderabad

University, Rahul

said the question is

why a student is ‘not

allowed to say what

he believes in’

Eminent poet O. N. V. Kurup passes awayTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Jnanpith awardee and eminent Malayalam poet, lyricist and en-vironmentalist O. N. V. Kurup on Saturday passed away at a private hospital here following a cardiac arrest.

He was 84 and is survived by wife, a son and daughter.

Kurup, who was ailing for some time, was admitted to a private hospital here two days ago and was on ventilator support.

He breathed his last at 4:49pm, hospital sources said. In addition to his valuable contributions to Malayalam literature, he is one of the leading lyricists in Malayalam film, drama and album industry.

He was part of many dramas by Kerala People’s Arts Club (KPAC), which has made a major mark in the revolutionary move-ments of Kerala.

Kalam Marunnu (1956) was his first film which was also the first film by famous Malayalam com-poser G. Devarajan. Kurup also contributed to progressive move-ments in the state through his the-atre songs and writings.

He has penned over 900 songs in over 200 films, besides numerous songs for plays and albums.

A recipient of several awards, the nation honoured him with Jnanpith in 2007 and also con-ferred on him the Padma Vib-hushan in 2011.

Kurup was the fifth recipient of the country’s highest literary hon-our for Malayalam language, after G. Sankara Kurup, S. K. Pottekkat, Thakazhi Shivashankara Pillai and M. T. Vasudevan Nair. - PTI

J N A N P I T H A W A R D E E

TAKING POSITION: Army personnel take positions near the house

where militants were hiding during an encounter in Kupwara

district of Indian-administered-Kashmir on Saturday. - PTI

PROTEST: Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) activists protest against an event at Jawaharlal

Nehru University supporting Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru in New Delhi on Friday. - PTI

A10

PAKISTAN S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Pakistan-born scholar’s part in gravitational waves findingKARACHI: Pakistani-born as-trophysicist Dr Nergis Mavalvala was among the team of eagled-eyed scientists who, for the first time, observed ripples in the fab-ric of spacetime called gravita-tional waves.

The detection – announced only on Thursday – confirms a major prediction of Albert Einstein’s 1915 general theory of relativity and opens an unprecedented new window onto the cosmos.

Professor Mavalvala worked with researchers at the US-based underground detectors Laser In-terferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) Laboratory to build sophisticated sensors to detect gravitational ripples cre-ated from the collision of two black holes some 1.3 billion years ago and had been hurtling through space to reach Earth on September 14, 2015.

Dr Mavalvala, 47, was born to a Parsi family in Karachi where she did her primary schooling.

She attended the Convent of Jesus and Mary before going to the US as a teenager where she

graduated with a BA in physics and astronomy from the Wellesley College in 1990.

During her graduation at the Massachusetts Institute of Tech-nology (MIT) she started working on gravitational waves – which would lead her to one of the biggest discoveries of the century. But the tale was not so simple.

“I started graduate school work-ing in cosmic microwave back-ground, which is another area of astrophysics,” she told the Kavli Foundation in 2010 after receiving

the coveted McArthur Fellowship.“The group I was working in was

moving to another university, and so I was kind of shopping around and bumped into Rai Weiss.”

Weiss and Robert Forward had in the early 1970s proposed designs based on which LIGO was formed.

Deeper into researchSince meeting Weiss in 1991, Dr Mavalvala went deeper into re-search on gravitational waves. By the time she received her PhD in 1997, she was already working on building LIGO.

She focused on instrument de-velopment for LIGO during her post-doctoral work at California Institute of Technology (CalTech) before joining LIGO as a staff sci-entist in 2000. She also joined MIT’s physics department as an assistant professor in 2002, rising to become the department’s asso-ciate head in February 2015.

In essence, her work on gravi-tational waves has spanned for over 20 years leading up to the discovery. — Express Tribune

O N E O F T H E B I G G E S T D I S C O V E R I E S O F T H E C E N T U R Y

EINSTEIN’S PREDICTION CONFIRMED: Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO)

technicians work on optics in this undated photo released by Caltech/MIT/LIGO Laboratory on

February 8, 2016. — Reuters/Caltech/MIT/LIGO Laboratory/Handout via Reuters

Dr Nergis Mavalvala

Afghan Taliban leaders in ‘secret visit’ plan agenda for peace dialogueISLAMABAD: A two-member Afghan Taliban delegation, led by the head of the group’s political of-fice in Qatar, paid a secret visit to Pakistan last week as part of prep-arations for the formal resumption of direct talks with the Afghan gov-ernment, official sources revealed to The Express Tribune on Friday.

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, who is heading the Tali-ban’s political office in Qatar, and Qari Din Muhammad travelled to Islamabad the same day when senior officials from Pakistan, Af-ghanistan, China and the United States held talks to finalise the roadmap for the Afghan reconcili-ation process.

The meeting of the Quadrilat-eral Coordination Group (QCG) was held on February 6 during which a tentative date was picked for the resumption of talks be-tween the Afghan government and the Taliban.

The Taliban team, according to sources, held informal discus-sions with senior officials of the four countries, which are part of the quadrilateral process. How-ever, there was no official confir-mation of the Taliban delegation’s visit by either side.

One source claimed that the Af-ghan Taliban reportedly shared a list of their representatives who would attend the formal talks. They also discussed confidence-building measures for creating an environment conducive to the re-sumption of talks. This is the first time that Taliban’s Qatar office is taking part in the peace initiative backed by both China and the US.

When first-ever direct talks be-tween the Afghan Taliban and the Afghan government took place in July last year in Pakistan, the Tali-ban’s political office in Qatar dis-tanced itself from the process.

Brokered by PakistanIt was because the then head of Taliban’s political office Sayed Tayab Agha was against the peace process brokered by Pakistan.

Tayab Agha, however, resigned after Mullah Akhtar Mansoor took over as head of the insurgent group following the confirmation of the death of Mullah Omar.

Mansoor then appointed Ab-

bas Stanekzai to succeed Tayab Agha. Since Stanekazi is in favour of peace talks, his appointment means that now the Taliban’s Qa-tar office will have a central role in the peace talks.

A Pakistani official with knowl-edge of back channel activities said the visit of the Taliban del-egation is clear proof that “we are walking the talk.”

The official, who asked to re-main anonymous, said formal talks between the Afghan govern-ment and the Taliban are likely to resume within days. Officials from Pakistan, China and the US will also attend the crucial parleys.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s new ambassador to Pakistan, Dr Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal, met army chief General Raheel Sharif at the Gen-eral Headquarters in Rawalpindi on Friday.

According to a statement re-leased by the Inter-Services Pub-lic Relations, “matters of mutual interest including measures to improve security along the Paki-stan-Afghanistan border were dis-cussed” at the meeting. — Express Tribune

D I R E C T T A L K S W I T H K A B U L

Sher Mohammad Abbas

Stanekzai, who is

heading the Taliban’s

political office in Qatar,

and Qari Din Muhammad

travelled to Islamabad

the same day when

senior officials from

Pakistan, Afghanistan,

China and the United

States held talks to

finalise the roadmap for

Afghan reconciliation

Rebels using IS’ name to gain momentum: Nisar

ISLAMABAD: The country’s top security czar Chaudry Nisar on Saturday reiterated that IS had no presence in Pakistan, saying ter-ror outfits already functioning in the country were using the outfit’s name to further their activities.

“I have said this time and again that Daesh [IS] is a Middle East-ern organisation … Daesh does not exist in the country the way it is perceived,” he said.

The statement comes following a rare admission from Director General Intelligence Bureau Aft-ab Sultan who claimed IS’ pres-ence is growing in Pakistan.

The interior minister said the country has to remain upbeat about its pledge to defeat terror-ism. Further, Nisar said those us-ing Islam’s name to foment more terrorism in the country should be treated like enemies.

Nisar said there is already a

consensus on the registration of seminaries in Pakistan.

“We will summon a meeting of Wifaqul Madaris while also invit-ing the Army chief [General Ra-heel Sharif ],” he said.

Nisar also said: “I am speaking on the basis of facts and will not

give up relying upon the fact that the seminaries are in fact an ob-struction in the way of terrorism.”

In a veiled jibe at Pakistan Peo-ple’s Party (PPP), he said the op-position should at least commend the development works that the government has undertaken and

should not resort to criticism for the sake of criticism.

“I am doing everything in my constituency to build it and will continue to do so despite the fact that doctors have asked me to take some rest,” he added.— Express Tribune

The interior minister

said the country has

to remain upbeat

about its pledge to

defeat terrorism

TERRORISM: Pakistani policemen search a vehicle at a checkpoint in Karachi on June 16, 2014.

Interior Minister Chaudry Nisar’s statement comes following a rare admission from Director General

Intelligence Bureau Aftab Sultan who claimed IS’ presence is growing in Pakistan. — AFP files

Jamaat leader warns government against execution of ex-governor’s killerPESHAWAR: Jamaat-e-Islami former provincial ameer Profes-sor Ibrahim on Friday threatened the government to not execute Mumtaz Qadri and release him immediately.

Demanding the release of for-mer Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer’s killer, Professor Ibra-him warned President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to protect them-selves from the wrath of people.

In a statement issued from Markaz-e-Islami on Friday, Ibra-him said Milli Yakjehti Council

would raise its voice for Qadri from every nook and corner of the country.

“The fire that would engulf the nation after the execution of Qadri would be out of con-trol,” Ibrahim threatened the government.

In the statement, he appealed to all prayer leaders to raise their voice from mosques. Ibrahim claimed Qadri would have never taken the law into his own hands and similar incidents would never happen if the government imple-mented laws. — Express Tribune

M U M T A Z Q A D R I

DEMAND: Pakistani supporters of former police bodyguard

Mumtaz Qadri hold posters bearing his image as they gather

opposite a police cordon outside the High Court in Islamabad on

March 9, 2015. — AFP

A11

WORLDS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Stay ahead of the curve with

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SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY INSTALL WHATSNEWS

KAZAKHSTAN TOWER GOES UP IN FLAMESSmoke rises from the Abu

Dhabi Plaza in Astana,

Kazakhstan, February

13, 2016. A fire broke

out on Saturday at a

construction site where

Central Asia’s tallest

tower is being built in the

Kazakh capital Astana,

the Kazakh interior

ministry said. The blaze

at the Abu Dhabi Plaza,

being built by United Arab

Emirates developer Aldar

Properties and contractor

Arabtec, started early

in the morning and

took six hours to put

out, the ministry said.

Photographs on the

ministry’s website

showed flames leaping

from several different

floors of the skeleton

girder structure of the

building that has been

built so far. When

firefighters arrived,

floors 11 to 25 were on

fire, it said. The ministry

reported no injuries,

saying 150 workers had

left the construction site,

and the extent of damage

was unclear.

— Reuters/Stringer

Burundians rally against Rwanda, gunmen kill two

NAIROBI: Unidentified gunmen shot dead two people in an appar-ent targeted killing late on Friday in Burundi, where months of vio-lence linked to the president’s dis-puted re-election have left more than 400 people dead.

The central African nation has been in turmoil since April 2015 when President Pierre Nkurun-ziza vowed to run for a third term, sparking protests by the opposi-

tion who said his bid was un-constitutional. His government foiled a coup in May and won re-election in July, but the poll was disputed and clashes and gun at-tacks have continued.

Celestin Singirankabo, the re-gional administrator of Gisozi commune in Mwaro province some 60 km (37 miles) east of the capital, Bujumbura, said one of

the people killed on Friday was a village administrator.

“Five people came around 9.30 p.m. and called the elected admin-istrator by name and ordered him out of his house.

They shot at him and he died,” he told Reuters by phone on Saturday.

“After that they moved to an-other nearby house and also shot another person,” he said, add-

ing that three of the unidentified gunmen wore either police or army uniforms.

While it was not immediately clear who the gunmen were, ac-tivists and authorities have in the past reported a number of appar-ently targeted killings.

Nearly quarter of a million people have fled the violence in Burundi, with more than 70,000

seeking refuge in neighbouring Rwanda, according to the U.N. refugee agency.

Burundi accused Rwanda in De-cember of supporting a rebel group that was recruiting Burundian refugees on Rwandan soil, a charge dismissed by Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

Ousting NkurunzizaA confidential report to the UN Se-curity Council accuses Rwanda of recruiting and training Burundian refugees with the aim of ousting Nkurunziza.

In a sign of the tensions, thou-sands of demonstrators mainly from Nkurunziza’s ruling CNDD-FDD party and its UPRONA ally held peaceful marches against Rwanda on Saturday.

Demonstrators rallied in Bu-jumbura and elsewhere, waving placards saying “We denounce Rwanda’s open aggression against Burundi.”

“All Burundians denounce Rwanda and its president Paul Kagame for the bad plans they have been carrying out since May 2015 in training and recruiting for criminal groups some of the Bu-rundians who are in refugee camps in that country,” Bujumbura mayor Freddy Mbonimpa, a member of Nkurunziza’s party, told demon-strators in the capital. — Reuters

Burundi accused

Rwanda in December

of supporting a

rebel group that

was recruiting

Burundian refugees

on Rwandan soil, a

charge dismissed by

Rwandan President

Paul Kagame

Illegal banks in China did $152 billion in transactions, says regulatorBEIJING: Underground banks in China did more than 1 trillion yuan ($152 billion) in transac-tions last year and the govern-ment will step up efforts to com-bat the problem this year, state media said on Saturday citing the foreign exchange regulator.

China’s economic slowdown and market volatility have sparked a wave of capital out-flows running into hundreds of billions this year, triggering alarms for China’s foreign ex-change management system.

CrackdownZhang Shenghui, head of the State Administration of For-eign Exchange’s inspection di-vision, told the official Xinhua news agency his department last year had participated in breaking up more than 60 un-derground banks suspected of doing more than 1 trillion yuan in transactions.

The regulator will also de-mand that above-board banks increase their oversight of any suspicious activities, and will also look more closely at securi-ties, insurance and third-party payments providers, Zhang added. — Reuters

F I S C A L W O E S

North Korea to halt search for Japanese abducteesTOKYO: North Korea has de-clared void an agreement to reopen a probe into the fate of abducted Japanese citizens af-ter Japan imposed sanctions in the wake of Pyongyang’s rocket launch, according to North Ko-rea’s official KCNA news agency.

“The Abe regime has to hold full responsibility for causing such a grave consequence,” it said.

Japan said on Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on North Korea after a satellite launch seen by Washington and allies, includ-ing Tokyo, as cover for develop-ment of ballistic missile technol-ogy that could be used to deliver a nuclear weapon.

Kidnapping admittedPyongyang admitted in 2002 to kidnapping 13 Japanese citizens decades ago.

Five abductees and their fam-ilies later returned to Japan but Tokyo wants to know the fate of the remaining eight, who Pyong-

yang has said are dead, and oth-ers that Japan believes were also kidnapped.

Signature pledgeThe government of Prime Min-ister Shinzo Abe, who has made resolving the emotive abduct-ees issues a signature pledge of his political career, had stressed it hoped to keep the door to dialogue open.

Japanese Foreign Minister

Fumio Kishida said on Friday it was deplorable for North Korea to unilaterally disband the commit-tee, Kyodo news agency reported.

He also said Japan was not go-ing to scrap the agreement made by the two countries.

Japan eased some sanctions on North Korea in July 2014 in re-turn for the North reopening its probe into the status of the abduc-tion issues, but little progress has been made. — Reuters

H E I G H T E N E D T E N S I O N S

FURIOUS: Residents participate in a rally against the Rwandan government in Burundi’s capital

Bujumbura, on Saturday. — Reuters

North Korea planned to disband a committee set up in 2014 to look into the whereabouts of Japanese abductees, North Korea’s official KCNA news agency said, adding that Japan’s ‘provocative acts of hostility’ would ensure further countermeasures

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Emerging-market countries lose lustreAnders Åslund

It is time to put the rise of the emerging econ-omies in perspective. The rapid economic growth in much of the developing world since

the beginning of the century was fuelled by a com-modity boom and an overextension of credit. But, because the emerging-market boom was not ac-companied by sufficient structural reforms, it was not sustainable.

Today, most of the major emerging economies have experienced a severe reversal of fortune. Rus-sia and Brazil have plunged into severe crises, with double-digit inflation accompanying a 4 per cent contraction in GDP last year. South Africa is bare-ly growing. China’s phenomenal rate of expan-sion has slowed to below 7 per cent. Unsurpris-ingly, Goldman Sachs has closed its money-losing BRIC fund for investment in Brazil, Russia, India, and China. Indeed, the future of the BRICS (in-cluding South Africa) – and that of other emerging markets – looks gloomy.

Outside of Asia, most developing economies are principally commodity exporters, and thus are highly exposed to price shocks. Plunging oil prices have cut the value of the Russian ruble by more than half against the US dollar, and further de-clines appear likely – especially if the US Federal Reserve continues to hike interest rates.

Commodity prices are likely to stay low for one or two decades, as they did in the 1980s and 1990s. When it comes to oil, for example, shale gas, tight oil, liquefied natural gas, and increasingly com-petitive solar and wind energy are boosting energy supply, even as a decade of high prices has spurred conservation and reduced demand.

The commodity crunch is likely to prove painful to people in emerging markets, who often measure their income in US dollars. As exchange rates fall, they will quickly feel much poorer. Governments will suffer, too, as their foreign debt – boosted by fiscal and monetary expansion that yielded little growth – becomes much more burdensome, while the export stimulus from lower exchange rates will be small, owing to the absence of new capac-ity outside the commodity sectors. As countries come under pressure to make payments, multiple emerging-market debt crises are likely.

In the short term, Brazil arouses the most wor-ry, given its large public debt and its vast budget deficit. In the medium term, however, China ap-

pears even more frightening. As a rule of thumb, an emerging economy’s total private- and public-sector debt should not exceed 100 per cent of GDP. China’s total debt is now more than 250 per cent of GDP. The BRICS countries’ critical shortcoming is poor governance. On its corruption perception in-dex of 175 countries, Transparency International ranks South Africa 61st, Brazil and India 76th, China 83rd, and Russia 119th.

Poor governance limits a country’s ability to cre-ate lasting wealth and productive capacity – even if the shortcomings become evident and damaging only when booms turn to busts. To combat corrup-tion effectively, people need to oust corrupt lead-ers, which is why democracy is vital. The regime changes in Ukraine and Argentina, and the opposi-tion’s victory in Venezuela’s recent parliamentary election, are harbingers of what is to come. Brazil may be next. The emerging markets may rise again, if and when improved governance and struc-tural reforms are implemented to boost potential growth. But that will take time. We should not be surprised to see two decades of slow global growth.

The West cannot afford to be complacent. After having focused too much on demand management, Europe should be trying to reduce the fiscal and regulatory burden of the state, so that its econo-mies can start growing again. It should also open up stunted markets for labour, services, capital, and digital products. The West needs to work to-gether to set global standards while it still can. De-mocracy, the rule of law, and market-based econo-mies are all worth fighting for. Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and the wars in North Africa and the Middle East have demonstrated why NATO should be strengthened, and that Europe must become se-rious about defending itself – rather than simply continuing to depend on the United States.

In coordinating Western sanctions against Russia, the G7 has already achieved renewed sig-nificance. This should be followed by efforts to manage the coming stagnation. The Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and In-vestment Partnership are both important initia-tives in this regard.

Western-led organisations and institutional ar-rangements will become especially important as international organisations struggle to remain rel-evant. The United Nations, in particular, will likely be crippled by Russian and Chinese vetoes in the Security Council. – Project Syndicate

China, North Korea working to boost each other This refers to the story China urges UNSC resolution to make North Korea ‘pay price’ (February 12). This statement lays bare the hypoc-risy of the Beijing regime. China is the sole backer of Kim Jong-un’s

isolated government and yet it has the guts to issue such a statement. The Chinese, instead was using their dominant position to put Kim in place, are simply using this ploy to give the North more time to rachet up the tensions in the region. Most likely this is all about reducing the hue and cry over China’s belligerence in the South China Sea. — Ramesh Nawan, Ruwi

Greek farmers right in not agreeing to talks with TsiprasThis refers to the story Farmers rebuff Greek premier’s offer for talks on pension reform(February 10). The agricultural sector workers are right in rebuffing Alexis Tsipras’ invitation for dialogue as he can-not be trusted anymore. Initially he had vowed not to agree to the debt terms, however, he later agreed to even harsher

terms. The farmers along with pensioners have been badly let down by his inadequate leadership. In the wake of the overflowing migrant inflow, it is unlikely that Athens will be able to afford to give in to their own citizens demands . — Mureed Dawood, Seeb

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Educational delegation leaves for Doha meetMUSCAT: Sheikh Salim bin Mustahail bin Ahmed Al Mashani, un-dersecretary of the Higher Education Ministry, left for Doha yester-day, heading a delegation to the sixth preparatory meeting for higher education and scientific research undersecretaries in the AGCC coun-tries. The two-day meeting which begins today will discuss several topics of interest to the AGCC joint march in the higher education and scientific research sector and ways of boosting cooperation among these countries. The undersecretary is accompanied by the directors general of education colleges and scholarships and assistant dean of higher studies and scientific research at Sultan Qaboos University.

1939: Germany launches the battleship Bismark.

1940: Britain announces that all merchant ships will be armed.

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The outbreak of the Zika virus, like Ebola before it, has highlighted the

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It has long been said that we know more about the Moon than we do

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France rejects permanent quota system for refugees

M U N I C H / B R A T I S L AVA : French Prime Minister Manuel Valls rejected on Saturday the idea of a permanent quota sys-tem for distributing refugees across Europe, putting Paris at odds with Germany ahead of a summit to discuss the EU crisis over migration.

Speaking to reporters at a se-curity conference in Munich, Valls said France would stick to its pledge to take on 30,000 of the 160,000 refugees European coun-tries have agreed to divide among themselves, but would not accept additional numbers.

“We won’t take any more,” Valls said. He expressed admiration for Germany’s readiness to take on more refugees, but added: “France never said ‘come to France’.”

Merkel is expected to push European partners to accept so-called “contingents” of refugees at a meeting on Thursday in Brus-sels, shortly before European Union leaders come together for their summit.

Cobbling together a coali-tion of countries that is ready to accept more asylum seekers over time is crucial to Merkel’s efforts to convince Turkey to stem the tide of refugees fleeing countries in the Middle East, notably Syria.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will attend the pre-summit meeting.

“France rejects this,” Valls said of the permanent quota mechanism.

He said France had already received 80,000 asylum applica-

tions last year and was struggling with youth radicalisation and high unemployment.

In another sign of Europe’s deep divisions over the influx of migrants and refugees, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico said Germany had protested against plans by eastern European lead-ers to help Macedonia and Bul-garia seal their border with

Greece, the entry point into the EU for many migrants.

Leaders of Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Repub-lic, known as the Visegrad Group, meet on Monday in Prague with their Macedonian and Bulgarian counterparts and could offer them manpower and other aid, diplo-mats said on Friday.

Closure of Greece’s northern

borders could strand migrants in Greece, which has been struggling to protect its sea borders as the huge influx of migrants and refu-gees arrive via Turkey.

“We want an agreement among the Visegrad Four countries that if Greece is not working, and it’s not working, it makes more sense to invest money into the protec-tion of borders between Greece and Macedonia, Bulgaria and other countries,” Fico said.

Berlin, however, has said the countries should seek a differ-ent solution.

“We received a demarche (say-ing) how do we dare as V4, Bul-garia and Macedonia to discuss protection of external borders.

Germany has filed a protest with our deputy foreign affairs minister because of this summit, saying we need to seek another way,” he said.

As the European Union gave

notice to Athens on Friday that its failure to control hundreds of thousands of refugees land-ing via Turkey over the past year will see a long-term suspension of some passport-free travel in Europe, EU officials said they ex-pected more border tightening by Greece’s Balkan neighbours.

Concern at a “domino effect” of border closures rippling down the Balkan peninsula to Greece and leaving large numbers of Syr-ians, Iraqis and others stranded in some of Europe’s poorest countries, has prompted the EU to offer aid and cooperation to those states, all of them candi-dates to join the bloc. — Reuters

French Prime

Minister Manuel

Valls expressed

admiration for

Germany’s readiness

to take on more

refugees, but added:

France never said

‘come to France’

SAFE HAVEN: Migrant children attend a lesson in a makeshift school on Wednesday, in the so-called “Jungle” migrant camp in Calais. Inaugurated early February, the makeshift structure, which can only welcome daily a twenty children of parents coming from Iraq, Syria or Afghanistan, was installed next to the adult classroom opened in July. — AFP

Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico said Germany had protested against plans by eastern European leaders to help Macedonia and Bulgaria seal their border with Greece, the entry point into the EU for many migrants

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Northeast US temperatures fall below zeroBOSTON: A dangerous cold snap seized the northeastern United States on Saturday with tem-peratures in some areas set to fall below zero and Boston facing its coldest Valentine’s Day in almost four decades.

Officials warned people to stay indoors away from what the Na-tional Weather Service described as “life threatening” cold.

Wind chill advisories were in effect over parts of nine states extending from northern Penn-sylvania to western Maine, with forecasters expecting gusts up to 45 miles per hour (72 kph).

“Wind chills will be getting colder and colder as the day goes on,” said Alan Dunham, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Taunton, Massachusetts.

The temperature in Boston was expected to drop to -21.7°C, but feel as cold as -34.4°C with the wind chill.

That would be below the record low of -19.4°C set in 1979.

“That one looks quite break-able,” Dunham said.

New York City was bracing for its coldest night in 20 years.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said offi-cials had put on extra staff to help respond to residents who had lost their heat and had expanded ef-forts to bring homeless people into shelters.

“It’s so important to take this seriously, to stay indoors to the maximum extent possible, go out for as little time as possible. Do not have skin exposed. These are tough conditions,” de Blasio told reporters.”Be really careful.”

He ordered construction crews to put cranes into secure positions following the collapse of a huge crane in high winds earlier this month, which killed one person and injured three.

The lower-than-average tem-peratures for mid-February come after a mostly mild winter and higher-than-average tem-peratures in the US Northeast and Midwest.

In Boston, some were hurrying through their mornings to get out-door chores done before the worst cold set in.

“Right now I’m going to drink a coffee” to stay warm, said Carmen Pichente, 40, en route to her at a Boston restaurant.

“Tomorrow, I’m going to stay at home all day.” — Reuters

D A N G E R O U S C O L D S N A P

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Myanmar army chief Hlaing to get five year extension

YANGON: Myanmar’s powerful army chief Min Aung Hlaing and his deputy are slated to extend their terms for another five years, a local newspaper said on Satur-day, as the military and democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi nego-tiate the terms of transition.

The move means Min Aung Hla-ing has consolidated his power base among the military leader-ship and would allow the army to avoid a top-level reshuffle at this sensitive period.

It will also boost Min Aung Hla-

ing’s position in talks with Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi’s National League for

Democracy (NLD) defeated army-backed Union Solidarity and De-velopment Party (USDP) in the November election, kicking off a lengthy transition that will end on April 1 when the new govern-ment’s term begins.

The NLD’s massive election

win means it will be able to push through its presidential candidate during a vote in parliament on March 17.

Still, it has to deal with the mili-tary, which is guaranteed 25 per cent of seats in parliament and three security ministries under the junta-drafted constitution.

Details of the talks between the

NLD and the army remain murky. “Senior General Min Aung Hla-

ing, who is turning 60 soon, will take the duty of the commander-in-chief for five more years,” said the Voice newspaper, citing a military source based in the capi-tal Naypyitaw. It added that Min Aung Hlaing’s deputy, Soe Win, will also get a five year extension.

“The decisions were announced at the recent quarterly meeting of top-level military officials,” said the paper citing the same source.

The Voice is typically correct when it comes to news on Myan-mar’s military.

Military sources contacted by Reuters were not immediately available for comment.

The newspaper did not clarify the legal basis for the move and it did not explain whether the deci-sion would require an approval by the president.

Need permissionMyanmar’s opaque and impre-cise constitution has confused lawmakers and experts over whether the army chief would need permission from the presi-dent, or a change of law, to obtain an extension.

Current regulations stipulate that the army chief has to retire at 60.

On Thursday, Myanmar’s out-going President Thein Sein has at the last minute cancelled plans to attend the US-ASEAN summit in California next week, giving no reasons for the decision.

After two busy weeks after the NLD-dominated parliament opened on February 1, Myanmar’s lawmakers are in for a quieter week from Monday, as they under-go induction and training organ-ised by the parliament and inter-national organisations supporting the development of democracy in Myanmar. — Reuters

The military and

democracy champion

Aung San Suu Kyi are

negotiating the terms

of transition that will

end on April 1 when

the new government’s

term beginsREMEMBRANCE: Myanmar people stand next to a banner show-

ing a portrait of independence hero Aung San, responsible for the

country’s independence from British rule and father of Aung San

Suu Kyi, during a ceremony to mark his 101th birth anniversary at

the National League for Democracy’s (NLD) headquarters in Yangon

on February 13, 2016. — AFP

The National League for

Democracy’s massive

poll win means it will be

able to push through its

presidential candidate

during a vote in

parliament on March 17

ALL FOR LOVE Agents with US Customs and Border Protection

inspect flowers that arrived to the US for Valentine’s

Day, in the cargo area of the Miami International

Airport on Thursday, in this picture released on

Saturday. In the weeks before Valentine’s Day, Miami

receives hundreds of million of flowers mainly from

South America, and the inspectors have to make sure

they are pest and disease free. — AFP

Extremist rebels claim attack on UN base in MaliDAKAR: Malian extremist mili-tant group Ansar Dine said it carried out a suicide and rocket attack on a UN base in Kidal, north Mali on Friday that killed six peacekeepers, the SITE Intel-ligence Group said.

Ansar Dine, led by Tuareg com-mander Iyad Ag Ghali, briefly seized the desert in the north alongside Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in 2012 and the two groups are involved in an in-tensifying insurgency that has spilled over Mali’s borders.

Ansar Dine named the suicide bomber who blew himself up with a truck bomb as Muhammad Abdullah bin Hudhayfa Al Hosni from Mauritania.

Heavy weapons fire ensued. It was not immediately clear if

Ansar Dine was also responsible for an ambush on Malian soldiers near Timbuktu on Friday that killed three.

“The (Kidal) operation is a message to the Crusader invad-ers and all those who support them and promise to send their soldiers to us, like the German President said in his current visit to Bamako,” according to the statement sent late on Friday.

Germany has pledged to send 650 soldiers to help support a UN peacekeeping mission (MI-NUSMA) and President Joachim Gauck visited Mali’s southern capital Bamako on Friday.

As well as UN peacekeepers, militant strikes have targeted hotels popular with Western-ers, killing 30 in Ouagadougou

in January, and Malian army checkpoints.

MINUSMA has the highest rate of casualties among ac-tive UN missions and many of the dead are Africans who oc-cupy some of the most dangerous front-line positions in the north.

The six dead peacekeepers in the Kidal attack were all from neighbouring Guinea, the UN Se-curity Council said.

French troops, which ousted extremist militants from north-ern towns in 2013, are still fight-ing them in north Mali and neighbouring Sahel countries but casualties are rare due to supe-rior training and equipment.

Sean Smith, Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, said that the threat of attacks would remain extremely high unless France expands its force or MINUSMA changes its mandate to include anti-terror operations. — Reuters

A N S A R D I N E

Ansar Dine, led by Tuareg

commander Iyad Ag Ghali,

briefly seized the desert

in the north alongside

Al Qaeda in the Islamic

Maghreb in 2012 and the

two groups are involved in

an intensifying insurgency

No victimsas magnitude 6.5 quake hits Indonesia isleJAKARTA: A strong earth-quake near an eastern Indo-nesian island knocked out telephone, radio communica-tions and roads late on Friday, but there were no reported casualties, local residents and a government official said on Saturday.

The US Geological Survey said a 6.5 magnitude earthquake at a depth of 30 kms (18 miles) was reported about 3 kms (2 miles) from Andekantor, a town on Sumba island in East Nusa Tenggara province.

“Not yet,” Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, told Reuters on Satur-day when asked whether there were any casualties.

Roads had suffered the most damage local residents said.

Nugroho said his agency would continue to monitor the situation. No tsunami warning was issued. — Reuters

S U M B A I S L A N D

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6.4 magnitude quake struck at early dawn on February

6 at the beginning of the Lunar New Year holiday,

with almost all of the dead found in Tainan’s

toppled Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building

Taiwan building collapse death toll reaches 114 as rescue efforts endTAIPEI: The death toll at a building that collapsed from a strong earthquake in southern Taiwan reached 114 as rescue ef-forts came to an end on Saturday, a week after the temblor hit.

“The search and rescue has come to an end,” said Tainan Mayor William Lai, in remarks carried live on local television, identifying the last individual to be pulled out from the rubble as Hsieh Chen-yu, who was part of the fallen building’s manage-ment committee.

All of those believed missing in the building have now been ac-counted for, city officials said.

The 6.4-magnitude quake struck at early dawn on Febru-ary 6 at the beginning of the Lunar New Year holiday, with almost all of the dead found in Tainan’s toppled Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building.

Rescue work has focused on the wreckage of the 17-storey building.

The building had 256 regis-tered residents but when more than that number were pulled out in the initial days after the quake, it became clear more people were in the building when it toppled.

Of a total 289 people pulled out, 175 were alive with 96 of them taken to the hospital, Lai said.

No survivors had been brought out since Monday even-ing, when more than 100 were still reported missing.

PancakedThe Wei-guan was the only major high-rise building in the city of two million people to have com-pletely collapsed. Its lower sto-reys, filled with arcades of shops, pancaked on top of each other be-fore the entire U-shaped complex toppled in on itself.

Local authorities are investi-gating the reasons for the build-ing’s collapse and earlier this week took into custody three individuals. — Reuters

E A R T H Q U A K E

DISASTER: In this file photograph taken on February 7, 2016,

this general view shows the Wei-kuan apartment complex on

the second day of rescue operations following a 6.4 magnitude

earthquake in southern Taiwan’s city of Tainan. — AFP files

Aussie hospital refuses to release refugee baby

PERTH: Doctors at an Australian hospital are refusing to release a baby girl facing repatriation to an offshore immigration detention camp, after she was treated for serious burns, adding to pressure on the government over its tough asylum seekers policy.

The one-year-old girl will not be released from Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital in the city of Brisbane until a “suitable home environment is identified”, a hospital spokesman told Reuters on Saturday.

The girl and her parents face being returned to a camp on the tiny South Pacific island of Nauru, about 3,000 km northeast of Aus-tralia. The detention centre, which houses more than 500 people, has been widely criticised for harsh conditions and reports of systemic child abuse.

Earlier this month the High Court rejected a legal test case that challenged Australia’s right to deport 267 refugee children and their families who had been brought to Australia from Nauru for medical treatment.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turn-bull has said the asylum seekers will be treated “with compassion” and deportation will be decided “on a case by case basis.” Immigra-tion Minister Peter Dutton’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the hospitals’ stance on Saturday.

Protesters opposed to the deten-tion of asylum seekers gathered outside the hospital late on Friday

in support of medical staff and called for the closure of the off-shore detention centres.

Further protests were planned for Saturday.

The baby girl was flown from Nauru to Brisbane for treatment for serious burns last month.

“All decisions relating to a pa-tient’s treatment and discharge are made by qualified clinical staff, based on a thorough assessment

of the individual patient’s clinical condition and circumstances,” the hospital said in a statement.

The decision to only release the child to a suitable environment “is the case with every child who pre-sents at the hospital,” it said.

Sent by boatThe hospital stance, although not political, adds to pressure on the Australian government and its policy of sending asylum seek-ers who attempt to reach the country by boat to camps on Nauru or on Manus island in Papua New Guinea.

They are not offered resettle-ment in Australia.

The government says the poli-cies are necessary to stop asylum seekers drowning aboard the un-seaworthy vessels used by people smugglers to ship them from Indo-nesia to Australia. — Reuters

The girl is facing

repatriation to an

offshore immigration

detention camp in

Nauru. The medical

centre’s decision is

adding to pressure

on the government

over its tough asylum

seekers policy

UP IN ARMS: Activists hold placards and chant slogans as they protest outside the offices of the

Australian Immigration Department in Sydney, Australia on February 4, 2016. — Reuters files

Earlier this month the High Court rejected a legal test case that challenged Australia’s right to deport 267 refugee children and their families who had been brought to Australia from Nauru for medical treatment

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Colombia Zika infections rise to more than 31,000

BOGOTA: More than 5,000 preg-nant Colombian women are in-fected with the mosquito-borne Zika virus, the country’s national health institute said on Saturday, as the disease continues its rapid spread across the Americas.

Cases of the virus total 31,555, the institute said in a epidemiol-ogy bulletin, among them 5,013 pregnant women.

Zika, which has spread to more than 30 countries, has been linked to birth defect microcephaly and to neurological disease Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Total reported Zika cases in-creased by 23 per cent over last week’s figures, while the number of pregnant women with the virus was up 57.8 per cent.

Much remains unknown about Zika, including whether the virus actually causes microcephaly.

Brazil is investigating the po-tential link between Zika infec-tions and more than 4,300 sus-pected cases of the birth defect, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can result in developmental problems.

Researchers have confirmed more than 460 of these cases as microcephaly and identified evi-dence of Zika infection in 41 of these cases, but have not proven the virus can cause microcephaly.

There are so far no recorded cases of Zika-linked microceph-aly in Colombia, the government has said.

No vaccine, treatmentOfficials are still examining fig-ures from countries such as Bra-zil, but say Colombia can expect between 500 and 600 cases this year. There is no vaccine or treat-ment for Zika, which causes mild fever, rash and red eyes. An esti-

mated 80 per cent of people in-fected have no symptoms.

The institute said 29.4 per cent of pregnant women with Zika live in Norte de Santander province, along the eastern border with Venezuela.

Colombia’s Caribbean region,

which includes popular tour-ist destinations Cartagena and Santa Marta, had more than 12,488 cases of the virus, the bulletin showed.

Colombian authorities have urged women to delay pregnancy for six to eight months. — Reuters

Zika, which has

spread to more than

30 countries, has

been linked to birth

defect microcephaly

and to neurological

disease Guillain-

Barre syndromeCONTROL MEASURES: A Brazilian Army soldier inspects a house for ‘Aedes aegypti’ mosquitoes during the National Day of Mo-bilization Zika Zero at Sao Sebastiao neighbourhood in Brasilia, Brazil, on Saturday. — Reuters

Kabul seeks Pakistan help as ex-official kidnappedISLAMABAD/KABUL: Afgha-nistan’s government on Satur-day appealed to Pakistan to take action to find and free a former provincial governor who has been kidnapped in Islamabad.

Fazlullah Wahidi, former gov-ernor of Afghanistan’s western Herat province, was abducted on Friday afternoon in the Paki-stani capital, the Afghan foreign ministry said.

The motive for the kidnap-ping was not clear, but the Afghan government asked Pa-kistani authorities “to use all their tools and possiblities to identify the group of kidnap-pers and take action to free Wa-hidi immediately”, the foreign ministry said.

The former Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, who is reported-ly close to Wahidi, issued a sep-arate statement on Facebook about the “respectable elder”, who he said had travelled to Pa-kistan to apply for a visa to the United Kingdom.

The UK does not issue visas to Afghans in Kabul.

An official in Pakistan’s for-eign ministry said on Saturday that the Afghan embassy had reported Wahidi missing, and local police were investigating. — Reuters

F O R M E R G O V E R N O R

UK needs nuclear arms for ‘outsized’ world role: CarterLONDON: Britain must renew its submarine-borne Trident nuclear weapons system if it is to main-tain its “outsized” role in world affairs, US Defence Secretary Ash Carter said in comments pub-lished on Saturday.

A decision on replacing the age-ing fleet of four submarines which carry nuclear warheads is due to be made this year and while Prime Minister David Cameron is com-mitted to renewal, the issue has caused deep divisions in the oppo-sition Labour Party.

The government has said re-placing the submarines will cost 31 billion pounds while Reuters has puts the overall cost of renew-ing and maintaining a successor to Trident at more than $234 billion over 32 years.

Carter said the submarine fleet helped the “special relationship” Britain enjoyed with the United States, the BBC said on its website.

The deterrent allowed Britain

to “continue to play that outsized role on the global stage that it does because of its moral stand-ing and its historical standing. It’s important that the military power matches that standing and so we’re very supportive of it,” he was quoted as saying.

While most lawmakers in Cameron’s party support keep-ing nuclear weapons, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, a veteran

left-wing and anti-war activist, supports unilateral disarmament and is holding a review of the party’s policy.

Deep divisionsThat has led to deep divisions among its lawmakers and earlier this week Labour’s home affairs spokesman Andy Burnham said it might be impossible for the party to agree a position. — Reuters

T R I D E N T N U C L E A R W E A P O N S S Y S T E M

A decision on replacing the ageing fleet of four submarines which carry nuclear warheads is due to be made this year and while Prime Minister David Cameron is committed to renewal, the issue has caused deep divisions in the opposition Labour Party

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A E JAMESbusinesseditor@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Oman’s plan to borrow a higher amount from markets abroad indicates that government expenditure will be maintained to support econom-ic growth this year.

Earlier last week, Central Bank of Oman (CBO) Executive President, Hamoud Sangour Al Zadjali had told Al Arabiya tel-evision that the country plans to borrow anywhere between $5 billion and $10 billion from abroad to help finance the budg-et deficit. This is against an ini-tial budget proposal of merely OMR900 million ($2.32 billion) foreign borrowing.

“Funds are needed to contin-ue development projects. There may not be a big cut on govern-ment expenditure. There are a lot of big projects that are either in the planning stage or the de-velopment phase,” said Suresh Kumar, head of research at Al Maha Financial Services.

Suresh Kumar also noted that higher borrowing is needed in view of the fact that the current crude price is lower than the oil price considered for estimating budget revenue early this year, which was $45 per barrel.

Oman Crude was hovering at $27 a barrel last week.

The major projects that are either in implementation phase or the design stage include the Duqm Refinery ($6 billion), Oman National Railway ($15 billion), the Sohar refinery im-provement project ($2.1 bil-lion), the Liwa Plastics Project ($3.6 billion), the Batinah Ex-pressway ($3.9 billion), the Bid-Bid-Sur dual carriageway ($1 billion), Sohar port’s expansion ($600 million) and the Muscat-Sohar pipeline ($300 million)

for carrying refined petroleum products.

While some of the companies (like Orpic), which is building these projects, have reached financial closure, major infra-structure projects are being funded by the government.

Market analysts said over-seas borrowing would ease pressure on both domestic li-quidity and interest rates in the country.

Oman’s central bank chief added that the government plans to issue OMR600 million worth of domestic bonds this year, which is about OMR100 million every two months. Of late, the central bank has floated an OMR100 million-bond issue, which fetched a coupon of 3.5 per cent.

Also, Oman’s debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio (a common parameter used for measuring the indebtedness of a country) is around 4 per cent, which is quite low when com-pared to most economies in the world, Anil Kumar N, senior vice-president, Asset Manage-ment, the Financial Corpora-tion (FinCorp), had earlier told the Times of Oman.

The country is in a comforta-ble position to raise funds from overseas markets. The govern-ment will be in a better position to borrow funds from wherever it is cheaper and available.

Muscat Electricity Distribution raises capital to OMR72mA E JAMESbusinesseditor@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Muscat Electric-ity Distribution Company (MEDC), a member of Nama Group (Electricity Holding Company), has raised its capital base to OMR72 million by issu-ing OMR71.5 million in rights shares. The shares were issued to existing shareholders by con-verting their retained earnings/shareholder loans to equity.

“MEDC restructured its bal-ance sheet during 2015 to en-able its long-term borrowing, as per the strategic financial plan,” Electricity Holding Company (EHC) said in response to Times of Oman queries.

Meanwhile, a study into the readiness of MEDC to be pri-vatised is continuing. However, there is no link between the company’s capital enhance-ment programme and the study on privatisation.

The decision to identify more companies for privatisation lies with the government and not with EHC, the company added.

According to an earlier press statement, the purpose of the study is to explore privatisation options and assess the readiness of Muscat Electricity Distribu-tion Company to be privatised.

C A P I T A L B A S E

Oman’s higher borrowing plans from abroad to support spending

E C O N O M I C G R O W T H

Central Bank of Oman.— Times file picture

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US consumer spending counters recession fearsWASHINGTON: United States consumer spending regained mo-mentum in January as households ramped up purchases of a vari-ety of goods, in a hopeful sign that economic growth was picking up after slowing to a crawl at the end of 2015.

But the outlook for consumer spending was tempered by anoth-er report on Friday showing senti-ment among households ebbed in early February. Still, the increase in consumer spending last month underscored the economy’s resil-ience and challenged the view that a recession was looming.

“The markets may have decided that the U.S. is headed for reces-sion, but obviously no one told US consumers,” said Paul Ashworth,

chief economist at Capital Eco-nomics in Toronto. The Com-merce Department said retail sales excluding automobiles, gasoline, building materials and food ser-vices increased 0.6 per cent last month after an unrevised 0.3 per cent decline in December.

These so-called core retail sales correspond most closely with the consumer spending component of gross domestic product.

Economists had forecast core retail sales increasing 0.3 per cent last month. US stocks, which had been aggressively sold this week on concerns the economy was heading into recession, rallied on the data. Market sentiment was also buoyed by a rebound in oil prices from 12-year lows.

US Treasury debtPrices for US Treasury debt fell, while the dollar rose against a bas-ket of currencies. Though signs of firming consumer spending are likely to be welcomed by Federal Reserve officials, the stock market turmoil and tame inflation envi-ronment make it unlikely the US central bank will raise interest rates next month. Rate hike pros-pects for the rest of the year have also diminished. The Fed raised its short-term interest rate in De-cember, the first increase in nearly a decade.

“From the Fed’s perspective, any further evidence of the US econo-my weathering the market turmoil at the start of the year is confir-mation the Fed should continue

to focus on the longer run and ig-nore short-term disruptions,” said Lindsey Piegza, chief economist at Stifel Fixed Income in Chicago.

Consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity and is being supported by a tightening labour market, which is starting to lift wages. Savings, which hit a three-year high in 2015, are seen boost-ing future spending.

Growth in consumer spending moderated in the fourth quarter. That, together with weak export growth due to the strong dollar, ef-forts by businesses to sell invento-ry and cuts in capital goods spend-ing by energy firms, restrained GDP growth to a 0.7 per cent an-nual pace. - Reuters

E C O N O M Y

ON RECOVERY PATH: Consumer spending accounts for more than

two-thirds of US economic activity and is being supported by a

tightening labour market, which is starting to lift wages. - Reuters

W J Towell, Blue Starform jointventure

Times News Service

MUSCAT: India’s Blue Star and Oman’s W J Towell group have officially announced the forma-tion of a joint venture — Blue Star Oman Electro-Mechanical Com-pany. The joint venture offers me-chanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) contracting services in the Sultanate of Oman.

“Blue Star has 51 per cent stake in the joint venture and 49 per cent holding is with W J Towell. The chairman of the company is from W J Towell,” Vir S. Advani, executive director of Blue Star, told Times of Oman.

He said that the company has started operation (as a joint venture) in September 2015. “We have four MEP projects running right now. These are residential projects.”

W J Towell, a renowned busi-ness group that is in operation for 150 years, has several businesses such as real estate, construction, consumer goods, automotive, en-gineering and services. Blue Star is one of India’s leading engineering conglomerates with core business-es of air-conditioning, commercial refrigeration, MEP contracting and after-sales service.

Advani said that his company’s equipment business (air-condi-tioners and refrigeration prod-ucts) is not part of the joint ven-ture’s business portfolio.

“The investment in the joint venture is very small, it is more of an operating cost-intensive busi-ness than capital intensive one. That is the nature of the busi-ness,” added Advani.

“We are building up a small base. We feel that the strength of our local partner and our technical capability will help us grow in our business. We hope to take some market share,” noted Advani.

Apart from Oman, Blue Star runs international projects busi-ness through its joint ventures in Qatar and Malaysia. “In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, we have joint ventures in Qatar and Oman.” But the air-conditioning products are sold in all GCC states, except Saudi Ara-bia. The company has distributes its products in 15 countries.

The international business is poised to grow multifold through new joint ventures for projects. “Our total annual revenue is esti-mated at $500 million and 10 per cent of this revenue comes from our international operations,” added Advani.

Ivor Braganza, chief executive officer of Towell Property, also addressed the launch event. Sev-eral board members from W J Towell and its group companies and top-level officials from Blue Star also attended the event.

India’s Blue Star has

51 per cent stake in

the joint venture and

49 per cent holding

is with W J Towell

PARTNERS IN PROGRESS: Apart from Oman, Blue Star runs inter-

national projects business through its joint ventures in Qatar and

Malaysia. - SHABIN E./Times of Oman

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Interior design, and furniture exhibition from Monday

MUSCAT: Third edition of In-terior Design, Décor and Fur-niture Exhibition will start on Monday at Oman International Exhibition Centre under the auspices of Ahmed bin Nasser Al Meherzi, minister of tourism.

The three-day event is organ-ised by Al Nimr International Exhibition Organiaers, with the participation of more than 105 local and international compa-nies. The participating global and local companies will showcase latest products in the interior de-sign, decor and furniture sector,

The various sections of the exhibition will focus on acces-sories, kitchen, bath, design of house furniture, upholstery, interior and exterior design, décor, lighting, luxury style of life, surfaces and finishes, tex-tiles, and carpets. There will be many specialised exhibitors in the field of construction and building materials.

Salim bin Omar Al Hashmi, chairman of Al Nimr Interna-tional Exhibition Organisers, said that the exhibition has seen an annual large turnout of local and international companies as the number of participating companies has grown this year by a large margin. - ONA

A N N U A L E V E N T

B3S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

MARKETSultanate’s inflation rises

MUSCAT: Oman’s CPI based in-flation registered an increase of 0.10 per cent in January com-pared to the previous month (December 2015) while it showed a rise of 0.20 per cent on a year-on-year basis, according to the data released by the Na-tional Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels subset carrying a weightage of 26.47 per cent in the CPI basket rose by 0.01 while transport (weightage of over 19 per cent) prices went up 2.39 per cent in January against December 2015 figures.

Foods and non-alcoholic bev-erages saw a price fall of 1.68 per

cent in January compared to De-cember, driven primarily by a drop of 4.25 per cent and 9.94 per cent respectively in the fruits and veg-etables groups, as well as decline of 0.15 per cent in meat and 0.24 per cent in fish and seafood prices.

Bread and cerealsBread and cereals went up 0.14 per cent, while milk, cheese and eggs rose 0.20 per cent. Prices of oil and fats group, and sugar, jam, honey and confectionary group increased by 0.13 per cent and 0.06 per cent in order.

Other food products and non-alcoholic beverages posted a price rise of 0.12 per cent and 0.17 per cent, data revealed.

Clothing and footwear prices went up 0.18 per cent while fur-nishings, household equipment and routine household mainte-nance subset registered a price

rise of 0.81 per cent in January compared to December figures.

Health, and restaurants and hotels groups too recorded a price rise of 0.58 per cent and 0.19 per

cent respectively. Education and communication

groups, on the other hand, main-tained price stability over the last two months. — ONA

Sultanate’s CPI based inflation registered

an increase of 0.10 per cent in January

compared to December 2015

LPG stores licences issued by ministry touch 420MUSCAT: Ya’aqoub bin Shayekh Al Dhab’ouni, head of Oil Prod-ucts Licences at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said that the ministry is revising the new executive regulation for the oil gas sale licences.

He pointed out that the number of licences granted by the Min-istry of Commerce and Industry to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stores in 2015 (wholesale and

retail) stood at seven including two licences in the Governorate of Muscat, 4 stores in the Gover-norate of South Al Sharqiyah and two stores in the Governorate of Al Dakhiliyah.

Al Dhab’ouni explained that the number of final licences pro-vided to LPG stores as of the end of 2015 stood at 420 including 41 in Muscat, 30 in Musandam, 19 in Al Buraimi, 67 in Al Dakhili-

yah, 82 in North Al Batainh, 47 in South Al Batinah, 46 in South Al Sharqiyah, 37 in North Al Sharqi-yah, 37 in Al Dhahirah and 14 in Al Wusta.

He added that the Governorate of North Al Batinah topped the list of the number of licences with 82. “Fifteen applications for LPG warehouses are still under pro-cessing by the relevant authori-ties,” he said. — ONA

N E W R E G U L A T I O N

DROP IN PRICES: Foods and non-alcoholic beverages saw a price fall of 1.68 per cent in January compared to December, driven primarily by a drop of 4.25 per cent and 9.94 per cent respectively in the fruits and vegetables groups. – Times file

Raysut Cement’s net profit drops by 24%Times News Service

MUSCAT: Raysut Cement Com- pany, the Sultanate’s biggest cement producer, said its net profit fell by 23.62 per cent to OMR20.95 million for 2015, against OMR27.43 million for the previous year.

The company’s total sales revenue stood slightly higher at OMR94.68 million for 2015, against OMR94.29 million for the previous year, the company said in a disclosure statement

posted on Thursday. Cost of sales was higher at

OMR59.18 million compared to OMR54.87 million. There was a marked decline in investment in-come last year.

Raysut Cement Company’s ba-sic and diluted earnings per share stood lower at 105 baisas by end-2015, against 137 baisas for the same period of 2014.

The results are un-audited and are subject to the audit and ap-proval from the audit committee and board of directors.

F U L L Y E A R

COOKING GAS: Number of licences granted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stores in 2015 stood at seven. – ONA

SALES RISE: Raysut Cement’s total sales revenue stood slightly higher at OMR94.68 million for 2015, against OMR94.29 million for the previous year. - File photo

Twitter awards more stock to executives SAN FRANCISCO: Twitter chief executive officer Jack Dors-ey is rewarding some of his depu-ties with more equity after giving them more responsibilities, as he seeks to turn around the compa-ny and retain top executives.

Adam Bain, the head of rev-enue recently promoted to chief operating officer with new re-sponsibilities heading up me-dia and human resources, was awarded 1.9 million restricted stock units. They will vest over four years, the company said in a filing. - Bloomberg News

C O R P O R A T E

RSM achieves 6 per cent fee income growthTimes News Service

MUSCAT: RSM, the adviser of choice to entrepreneurial growth-focused organisations globally, has announced a six per cent increase in global fee income, to $4.64 bil-lion, for 2015.

RSM has also moved up one place in the global ranking and is now the sixth largest global network of inde-pendent audit, tax and consulting firm, said a company release.

Fee income was up 10 per cent in the US, 10 per cent in Europe (based on fee income in local cur-rencies), 6 per cent in Middle East and North Africa, one per cent in Asia Pacific, and 9 per cent in Latin America. Audit and account-ancy fees increased by 4 per cent to $2.27 billion, tax grew by 7 per cent to more than $1.35 billion, and consulting/advisory was up 6.9 per cent to $1.02 billion.

RSM member firms globally adopted the brand and trading.

C O R P O R A T E

B4

MARKETS U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Thanks to Omantel, Oman now has 13th fastest LTE speed Times News Service

MUSCAT: Sultanate of Oman has the 13th fastest 4G LTE in the world, a recent report by Open Signal, a leading source of insight into the coverage and per-formance of Mobile Operators worldwide, has said.

Oman’s ranking moved 10 posi-tions upwards in three months and surpassed even advanced nations.

Oman’s ranking is attributed solely to Omantel, the Sultanate’s leading provider of telecommuni-cations solutions which also pro-vides the widest Long-Term Evo-lution (LTE) network coverage in the country.

The results were based on data

collected from over 15 million devices around the world that constantly monitors the cover-age and performance of mobile connections.

4G LTE networkOmantel became the first provider in the Sultanate to introduce 4G LTE network in 2012.

The 4G Long-Term Evolution network now reaches over 80 per cent of the population in Oman, According to the report, the net-work has an average speed of 20mbps. In 2015, Omantel’s total network investments reached over OMR120 million.

In addition, 4.5G technology, introduced in April 2015, enables

speeds of up to 200mbps.Commenting on the achieve-

ment, Omantel spokesperson Samy Ahmed Al Ghassany, COO Omantel, said, “It is deeply pleas-ing to see Oman achieve such an excellent global ranking, a fact that underscores our commitment to provide the latest and most inno-vative technology to our subscrib-ers. It is very satisfying to witness the significant investments in the 4G LTE network come to frui-tion and benefit the Sultanate as a whole. Oman ranked above na-tions such as US, France, Sweden and Japan in terms of 4G LTE net-work speed. This is something we should all be proud of and really goes to show that we are capable

of being global leaders across mul-tiple sectors with the right invest-ment, strategy and commitment to innovate.”

“Our efforts are derived from our new strategy, ‘Omantel 3.0,’ which empowers us to lead Oman’s digitalisation through the technology we provide and inno-vate in our offerings. We will con-tinue to invest in expanding and enhancing our networks as they are a key elements in delivering an unmatched customer experience,” Samy added.

Investing in the future of the na-tion, Omantel connects even the most remote communities of the Sultanate to each other and with the rest of the world. Omantel is

Oman’s first and leading integrat-ed telecommunications services provider, enabling the digital soci-ety to flourish, allowing new ways of doing business and delivering a world of information, news and entertainment.

Today, Omantel boldly inno-vates to deliver the highest lev-els of customer satisfaction, the broadest and most reliable nation-wide network while investing in Oman’s future development.

N E T W O R K C O V E R A G E

Samy Ahmed Al Ghassany.

— Supplied picture

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

Oman real estate sales reported to top OMR4b

MUSCAT: Total traded value of real estate activity in the Sultan-ate of Oman reached OMR4.14 billion in 2015, representing a 43.7 per cent increase compared to

2014, data from the National Cen-tre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) revealed.

Additionally, fees collected from all legal transactions reached

OMR48.60 million, an increase of 21.2 per cent. The traded value of selling contracts also rose 17.3 per cent to a record OMR1.36 billion.

At the same time, the num-ber of selling contracts fell by 1.1 per cent to 79,613 contracts, compared with 80,470 contracts during 2014.

The traded value of mortgage contracts jumped 61.7 per cent to record OMR2.76 billion, com-pared with OMR1.70 billion dur-ing 2014. Also, the number of mortgage contracts rose by 17.8 per cent to reach 22,414 contract, compared with 19,033 contracts in 2014.

The traded value of exchange contracts was OMR18.5 million during 2015, with a significant

hike of 21.4 per cent, compared with OMR15.2 million in 2014.

The number of exchange con-tracts also recorded an increase of 21.8 per cent to reach 1,367 contracts in 2014, compared with 1,122 contracts recorded during 2014.

Further, data revealed 244,617 title deeds being issued by the end of 2015, reflecting a 9.3 per cent increase, compared with the data record in 2014, which was 223,713 title deeds.

Meanwhile, the number of title deeds issued for Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ nation-als witnessed a 26.5 per cent fall at the end of 2015 to reach 2,288 title deeds, compared with 3,113 title deeds recorded during 2014. — ONA

Fees collected from all legal transactions

reached OMR48.60 million, an increase of

21.2 per cent. The traded value of selling

contracts also rose 17.3 per cent to a record

OMR1.36 billion.

ROBUST DEMAND: The traded value of mortgage contracts jumped 61.7 per cent to record OMR2.76 billion, compared

with OMR1.70 billion during 2014.— ONA

Sensex, Nifty fall, rupee also declinesMUMBAI: Markets continued to fall for the second consecu-tive week due to persistent sell-ing from operators and investors on concerns over global economy and weak results from banks.

“Relentless selling in the stock market is coming from redemp-tion pressures, margin calls, crude slumping to multi-year lows, depreciating rupee against dollar and disappointing earn-ings,” said Gaurav Jain, Director of Hem Securities.

Weak earnings from public and private sectors banks on account of higher provisioning for bad loans mainly affected the market sentiment, a broker said.

Putting the blame for the fall on global factors, the government sought to put a brave face saying the fall in market benchmarks this year has been just about 10 per cent as against much higher declines in other markets.

SBI reported a plunge of over 61.67 per cent in its third-quar-ter net profits while number of other banks have also reported weak results on worsening bad loan scenario.

Asian markets also traded weak following US Federal Re-serve Janet Yellen’s testimony which suggested that the bank is likely to continue on the gradual rate hike path.

The Sensex resumed slightly higher at 24,637.41 and moved up 24,698.85 on initial buy-ing. But, tumbled afterwards

to 22,600.39 before concluding at 21-month low of 22,986.12, showing a sharp fall of 1,630.85 points or 6.62 per cent.

The Sensex had last quoted at 22,344.04 on May 9,2014. The Sensex has dropped by 1,884.57 points or 7.57 per cent in two weeks.

The NSE 50-share Nifty also tumbled by 508.15 points or 6.79 per cent to close at 21-month low at 6,980.95. The Nifty had last quoted at 6,858.80 on May 9, 2014. The Nifty has also lost 582.60 or 7.70 per cent in two weeks.

ForexThe rupee failed to maintain its last week’s gains against the American currency, tumbling sharply by 59 paise to end the week at 68.23 on fresh dollar demand from banks and im-porters in view of sharp fall in equities amid sustained foreign capital outflows.

The domestic unit resumed lower at 67.85 per dollar as against the last weekend’s level of 67.64 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market and fell further to fresh 29-month low of 68.4750 before finishing at 68.23 per dollar, disclosing a loss of 59 paise or 0.87 per cent.

The rupee had gained by 14 pai-se or 0.21 per cent last weekend. The domestic currency hovered in a range of 67.7775 and 68.4750 per dollar during the week. — PTI

I N D I A N M A R K E T S W E E K L Y R E V I E W

Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in Mumbai, India. - Bloomberg file picture

Alibaba acquires 5.6% stake in GrouponSEATTLE: Alibaba Group Hold-ing bought 33 million shares of Groupon, making it the fourth-largest shareholder in the online deals website that has lost 86 per cent of its value since going public more than four years ago.

The Chinese e-commerce giant owned 5.6 per cent of Chicago-based Groupon as of December 31, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. Alibaba has also accumu-lated stakes in online retailer Jet.com, augmented-reality provider Magic Leap and car-booking com-pany Lyft. The purchases are part of the Chinese company’s strategy to learn more about the US mar-ket as it expands internationally, said Gil Luria, an analyst at Wed-bush Securities.

“They don’t want to have their own operations, so they are in-vesting in other companies to help them learn and pave the way for more robust activity down the road,” Luria said.

A spokesman for Hangzhou, China-based Alibaba declined to immediately comment on the filing. Bill Roberts, a Groupon spokesman, said the company

hadn’t been aware of Alibaba’s stake until Friday’s filing.

“Alibaba has a reputation as a long-term holder, and we’re pleased that they take the same view of Groupon’s opportunity and execution as we do,” Roberts said.

Results boostAlibaba’s stake was reported hours after Groupon had its best day with investors in more than four years. Groupon surged 29 per cent to $2.89 at the close Friday in

New York, the biggest single-day increase since November 4, 2011 — the day after its initial public of-fering at $20 a share.

Groupon on Thursday reported fourth-quarter results that beat analysts’ estimates, driven by purchases in North America. The company said profit excluding some costs was four cents a share, compared with the average analyst estimate for a break-even quarter.

Having struggled since its IPO to spur growth and profits, Groupon

replaced Chief Executive Officer Eric Lefkofsky in November. Since Williams took over, he increased the marketing budget in an effort to revive and reinvent the former Internet darling. Williams said his efforts are starting to bear fruit.

“If we do our jobs really well, we’ll beat our plan,” CEO Rich Wil-liams said in an interview.

“The reality is we have a lot of work to do,” he added.

Even with Friday’s gains, the shares are down 61 percent over the past 12 months. On Bloomb-erg Television on Friday, Williams said his company’s stock was un-dervalued, but that it wasn’t look-ing to make any deals.

“Our focus as a team just isn’t on things like acquisitions, or being acquired,” Williams said. “Our fo-cus is on building a great business.”

“One of the things you saw in the fourth quarter was faster-than-expected progress on the restruc-turing side,” Williams said on the conference call.

Groupon has exited 17 countries and now operates in 28 as it con-tinues to streamline its operations internationally. — Bloomberg News

e - C O M M E R C E G I A N T

STRATEGIC BUY: Alibaba’s stake was reported hours after Groupon

had its best day in more than four years. — Bloomberg News

Deutsche Bank buyback

poised to spark backlash

NEW YORK: Investors who scooped up bonds sold by Deutsche Bank last month are pushing for better terms in the bank’s $5.4 billion debt buyback plan, saying they were misled because the German lender failed to disclose its true finan-cial position before the sale, ac-cording to people with knowl-edge of the matter.

Some of the bondholders who participated in the $1.75 billion, two-part offering say the bank, which announced a fourth-quar-ter earnings loss less than two weeks after the sale, should’ve made that disclosure before sell-ing the bonds, the people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are private. Some in-vestors are so upset that they may raise the issue with regulators, the people said.

The money managers are plan-ning to hold discussions next week to explore their options on how best to challenge the bank, the people said. In addition to raising concern about disclosure,

the bondholders are pushing for greater priority and better terms in the bank’s buyback offer an-nounced on Friday.

Kerrie McHugh, a spokeswom-an for Deutsche Bank in New York, declined to comment.

Deutsche Bank’s buyback comes as the lender attempts to reassure investors who dumped European bank bonds and shares this week amid concerns over declining earnings and slowing global growth. The lender’s debt in a Bloomberg investment-grade bond index have dropped 2.7 per cent in the past month compared with a 0.4 per cent decline for all bank debt. The $750 million of 4.1 per cent notes sold in January fell 5.7 per cent. The firms that bought the biggest piece of the January offering at 100 cents on the dollar are now getting an offer to sell them back to the bank at 97.3 cents, according to calcula-tions by Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Arnold Kakuda. The se-curities traded at 95.6 cents on Thursday. — Bloomberg News

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Refreshed enhancements add more style to Patrol

MUSCAT: Meticulously engi-neered for over 60 years, the Patrol is Nissan’s flagship SUV model with a rich heritage and passion-ate following in the Middle East that dates back to the 1950s.

Housed under Suhail Bahwan Automobiles in Oman, the Nissan Patrol comes with refreshed styl-ing enhancements that add more style to its already impressive ‘go anywhere’ versatility, technology and comfort, says a press release.

EnhancementsThe Nissan Patrol comes with a new front bumper and new vig-orous and muscular front grille pattern with chrome. New 20” machining cut alloy wheels, LED headlamps with day time running light and pop-up headlamp washer with new LED rear combination lamp and roof rails add to the range of new features. It also possesses a 3rd generation around view moni-tor with parking assist display and back-up collision intervention which alerts the driver when a moving object is detected behind the vehicle when in reverse mode.

Mighty Patrol The Nissan Patrol is now available with new exterior colours — grey metallic and pure white pearl — as

well as a new tan interior colour.There are great options on

board the new Nissan Patrol with all grades featuring an array of standard features including 8-way power driver’s seat, cruise control, 7-inch LCD screen, dual-zone cli-mate control, 18-inch alloy wheels with full-size spare, side steps, front and rear parking sensors with rear view camera and keyless entry and start.

Leading performance The Nissan Patrol features the world’s-first variable 4x4 mode select switch, which allows driv-ers to effortlessly switch between sand, on-road and rock drive modes. The Patrol is remarkably capable in sand mode, enabling safe driving options, quickly and skilfully, as compared to profes-sional rally drivers.

The Patrol also employs the world’s-first advanced hydrau-lic body motion control system (HBMC) with 4-wheel independ-ent suspension. Along with a new chassis and body frame, it gives the vehicle superb stability on rugged arid sandy terrain, while deliver-ing a comfortable ride in the city. The Patrol boasts of power OVRM and body coloured with LED turn lamps and puddle lamp. It also features front fog lamp, rear view camera, audio AM/ FM / CD / MP3 + Aux Input + 6 speakers. The interiors feature leather steering and shift knob, driver seat – power with 8 ways - slide, lift (2 ways), re-cline, and lumber. It also has front dual airbags and rear diff lock (Std) + ISO Fix, ABS, VDC, LSD, HAS, HDC and immobiliser.

Expression of luxury The vehicle is an expression of richly crafted luxury truly wor-thy of a flagship. If the unmistak-ably bold exterior design invites you with its powerful and modern lines, the super cockpit design of the well-appointed interior pro-vides drivers with a reinvigorating driving atmosphere.

World-class technologyThe class-leading navigation sys-tem features a high-resolution WVGA 8-inch touch screen that displays the destination in com-pass mode. It also supports Ara-bic language and Qiblah compass. With the category’s first ‘Music Box’, valued customers can record up to 200-300 CDs of music or 2,900 songs. It connects to iPod, USB flash drive and other compat-ible devices. A Nissan first, the off-road monitor provides real-time information such as tire condi-tions - steer angle, slip, pressure - and compass, to ensure the driver is always in control.

The Nissan Intelligent Key with a tap of a button allows unlocking the doors and trunk of the Nissan Patrol, while the keys stay inside a pocket or purse.

The multi-screen, multi-func-tional individual DVD entertain-ment system boasts 3 displays, a dashboard screen and two rear-facing TVs; one 7-inch monitor embedded into each front seat headrest that can connect to the various source of music, video and entertainment, such as the DVD, I-Pod and game player.

Yet another impressive Patrol feature is the cool box mounted

in the centre console between the front seats.

Impeccable safety features The Patrol includes Nissan’s world-renowned Safety Shield concept that ‘vehicles help protect people’. The revised brake system, along with state-of-the-art safety technologies make it the safest-ever SUV in its class.

Incorporated in the Nissan world-renowned safety shield, the safety systems include lane de-parture warning and prevention, which assists the driver avoid un-intended lane departure.

In addition, the Patrol also offers a hill start assist and hill descent control which can also be selected easily with the touch of a button.

The Intelligent Cruise Control reduces the driver’s burden to keep the speed or distance constant.

If the forward collision warning system senses there is a risk of a collision ahead, it warns the driv-er with an alarm and an indicator to brake.

The automated hazard warning signal has been added to assist in the event of a collision, where the signal comes on automatically. The Patrol also has blind spot warning and prevention, adding further driver confidence when changing lanes.

Vehicle dynamic control com-bines with traction control sys-tem, helical brake LSD (Limited Slip Differential) and mechanical differential lock functions to auto-matically prevent the Patrol from sliding sideways on slippery road surfaces when changing lanes or negotiating a curve.

The third world-first is the tyre pressure monitor system with tyre inflation indicator.

The Patrol employs this system which beeps the horn softly to in-form drivers that a suitable tyre pressure has been reached.

The Patrol is available with an advanced six-airbag configura-tion. SBA is largely committed to supporting Nissan’s growth in the Sultanate through major emphasis on customer satisfaction and by providing world-class after-sales services in Oman.

The Nissan Patrol

comes with

refreshed styling

enhancements

that add more

style to its already

impressive ‘go

anywhere’ versatility,

technology and

comfort

Souqalmal’s Fintech

event on February 25

DUBAI: As many as 34 percent of UAE respondents would rec-ommend their bank as a first choice to friends or colleagues. In Saudi Arabia, the number is only slightly higher at 38%, accord-ing to the latest NPS Survey by Souqalmal.com, the UAE’s No.1 financial comparison website.

The NPS Survey, the most in-depth one conducted by Souqal-mal, evaluates various aspects of the overall banking experience. The parameters covered include customer service, product offer-ing and financial education, says a press release.

The results of the survey have been used to conceptualise the inaugural Souqalmal Bank Satis-faction Index. However, the rip-ple effect from the findings will be discussed in greater detail at a high-profile Souqalmal Fin-tech event being held in collabo-ration with Google in the UAE on February 25.

Souqalmal.com will also be factoring in data from the NPS Survey to award the Most Rec-ommended Bank in KSA and UAE at the event. The nominees in the UAE are Abu Dhabi Com-mercial Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Emirates NBD. In KSA, the nominees are National Commercial Bank, the Saudi British Bank and Alinma Bank.

Awards will also be given out for the Most Popular UAE Bank-ing products in major five retail product categories: Credit Cards, Personal Loans, Car Loans, Home Loans and Accounts. The winners are based on the consumer por-tal’s viewership statistics for the period January 1 2015 to Decem-ber 31 2015. When asked about areas of improvement, 36 percent of respondents in the UAE and 32 percent of respondents in KSA pointed out better customer ser-vice as the main area when deal-ing with their banks.

Founder and CEO of Souqal-mal.com Ambareen Musa be-lieves the situation isn’t all grim and it is noteworthy that overall bank satisfaction index at 34 percent is still visibly on the rise from 27 percent in 2014 and 15 percent in 2013 in the UAE. In her opinion, these in-depth statistics

need to be analysed and seen as impetus for further movement in the right direction.

“The need of the hour seems to be a seamless experience across all channels and customer touch-points - branches, ATMs, call cen-tres, online banking and mobile banking. It is, therefore, essential for banks to understand what is important to their customers and what drives their satisfaction and loyalty,” she said.

The in-depth indicators point at the need for better branch experience, clearer product in-formation from call centre ex-ecutives and faster complaint resolution. All of these features being the most common service-related concerns voiced by bank customers. “Banks need to take a closer look at their CRM process-es, because only a happy custom-er is likely to stick around and recommend their bank to others,” recommends Musa.

Going deeper into the findings the numbers indicate that 25 per-cent of customers in the UAE and 22 percent of customers in KSA would like to see better and more custom product offering from their bank.

“Banks are moving away from the ‘one-size-fits-all’ product strategy, with newer products and promotions being intro-duced, targeted at specific cus-tomer segments. For example, fit-ness app-linked accounts for the fitness enthusiast, credit cards for frequent travellers, shoppers or parents, loans for new resi-dents, to name a few. These are all positive steps in the right direc-tion,” she said.

“At Souqalmal.com we have al-ways endeavoured to understand specific customer needs and the results of our Bank Satisfaction Index are a great tool to provide feedback to our partner banks."

B A N K S A T I S F A C T I O N I N D E X

Golden Spoon Group offers free desserts for Valentine’s DayMUSCAT: Valentine’s Day is the most indulgent time of the year and the Golden Spoon Group is making it even sweeter this year.

From February 14-16, spend OMR14 or more at select Golden Spoon Group restaurants, and get

a complimentary dessert, says a press release.

Najeeb Al Balushi, chairman, Golden Spoon Group, commented: “Valentine’s Day is a lovely time of year to remind your loved ones how much they mean to you. At Golden

Spoon Group, we are delighted to make our customers’ celebrations even more special by giving them desserts on the house when they spend OMR14 or more. We look forward to welcoming anyone cel-ebrating the occasion to our restau-

rants, and will be honoured to be a part of their festivities.”

This sweet Valentine’s offer is valid at Manhattan Fish Market, Golden Spoon, China Town, and the Asian.

The Golden Spoon Group was es-

tablished in the year 1993, opening its first branch in Seeb. It is engaged in activities related to the hospital-ity industry with a core focus on de-livering maximum value for money, providing food made with the fin-est ingredients. Over the years, the

company has grown to include the following in its roster: The Asian, The Golden Spoon restaurant, Tropical juices and ice creams, China Town restaurant, Sidewalk bistro and health cafe, Manhattan Fish Market and Subway.

P R O M O T I O N

KR gives customers a taste of variety at Muscat FestivalMUSCAT: As part of continuous drives to give customers a wide choice in snacks and cereals, the KR Group has introduced the newest varieties for one of its best-selling brands – Pringles.

Visitors to the Muscat Festival at Al Amerat were given a taste of three new Pringles flavours – Jala-peno, Pizza and Indian Curry, says a press release.

Rajesh George, general manag-er, Kelloggs, said: “We are witness-ing over 500 footfalls to our tasting booth for both the Kelloggs and Pringles varieties. And from what we see, these are one of the best tasting, quality products loved by

the people of Oman.” At the stall customers get a host

of free gifts for every OMR2 worth of Kelloggs purchased.

This season Pringles is offer-ing consumers limited edition packs on some of the most loved foods in the region - Mexican Jalapeno, Italian Pizza and Indian Curry flavours.

The KR Group, which is the sole distributor for Kelloggs in Oman, has been assisting the global brand’s efforts to serve the world a better breakfast.

The brand’s success in Oman is the result of KR’s state-of-the-art logistics capabilities combined

with strong customer business development resources covering vast multi-channels such as mod-ern trade, groceries, mini markets, petrol stations, caterers, hotels and wholesalers. Khimji Ramdas is also one of the global distribu-tors globally to jointly develop Kellogg’s Distributor Engagement Transformation (DET) software for real time data sharing.

Kelloggs brands - represented by KR - include Kellogg’s corn flakes, Coco pops, Chocos, Froot loops, Honey smacks, All bran, Rasin Bran, Rice krispies, Tresor, Special K, Nutri Grain, Miel pops, Pringles, etc.

P R I N G L E S F L A V O U R S

MEC students deliver branding

package for MoHC Science Club

MUSCAT: A team of four stu-dents specialised in Multimedia Technology from Middle East College (MEC) designed and delivered the corporate brand-ing package for Science Club of Ministry of Heritage and Culture (MoHC).

The main highlight of the pro-ject is an Omani character named ‘Nabhan’, in addition to designs for brochures, handbook and other publications. The Science Club would use the project for promoting their upcoming events and programmes. Students sub-mitted the project in the presence of Huda Al Riyami, the president of Science Club and many others, says a press release.

Manal Al Hassani, one of the team members expressed her happiness of this new experience: “We are happy to complete this

project which taught us a lot of new things and gave us a sense of real life projects. It was an honour to work with the Ministry of Her-itage and Culture to design a mul-timedia project for their Science Club. The project was full of chal-lenges and the team worked to-gether to overcome all the hurdles with the help of project adviser and other staff members who supported us and the outcomes were really worth it and that was appreciated by our peers.”

“I am proud to be a member of this team that worked hard to de-velop a project for Oman Science Club in MoHC,” Ahmed Al Farsi,

a member of the team said: “Ap-plying what I have learned during the previous semesters at MEC in this project was really the key. I would like to thank the MEC for providing proper opportunities and infrastructures like the mul-timedia studio and the lab which is well equipped.”

MEC stands hand in hand with its students in all the educational stages that they go through and help them throughout all the challenges they may face. In ad-dition, MEC always encourages students to make use of all the opportunities and enhance their skills and knowledge.

C O R P O R A T E P A C K A G E

The Science Club

would use the project

for promoting their

upcoming events and

programmes

B6 S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

ROUND-UP2016 Kia Optima named International Car of Year

MUSCAT: In conjunction with the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show, Road & Travel Magazine (RTM) has named the 2016 Kia Optima: ‘International Car of the Year’.

RTM jurors praised the all-new edition of Kia’s perennial best-seller for its aggressive design, long list of available features, im-pressive powertrain options and great value, says a press release.

“The Optima is one of Kia’s best-selling vehicles and was in-strumental in the transforma-tion of the brand,” said Michael

Sprague, chief operating officer and EVP, KMA. “To win the pres-tigious ICOTY award four years in a row is a clear indication that our products continue to offer a world-class balance of design, amenities, craftsmanship, safety and value for today’s savvy consumers.”

2015 marks the 20th anniver-sary for RTM’s annual ‘Of the Year’ judging, which includes three awards: International Car, Inter-national SUV, and International Family Vehicle of the Year. In ad-dition to product attributes such as style, comfort and performance, award criteria also factor in how well each brand connects emo-tionally with consumers through its marketing efforts. The win-ner is chosen by the ICOTY jury, which consists of nationally renowned automotive journal-ists from respected publications such as Consumer Guide Auto-motive, MSN Autos, New Car News Syndicate and RTM.

“The new Kia Optima’s head-turning design, driving dynamics, and value have and will continue to ‘make the mark’,” remarked an independent automotive expert upon hearing the news that the recently introduced Optima was already creating waves.

The all-new Kia Optima is the fourth-generation of Kia’s popular D-segment sedan, launched glob-ally this year after its international premiere at the 2015 New York In-ternational Auto Show.

The all-new Optima features a modern, new exterior, a bold inte-rior design with more space for all occupants, an array of new tech-nologies and a wide choice of effi-cient powertrains.

Conceived under the watch-ful eye of Peter Schreyer, presi-dent and chief design officer of Kia Motors, the all-new Optima offers more road presence than ever, with its contemporary sur-face detailing, sharp body lines

and creases, and a more elongated sedan silhouette.

The all-new Optima integrates the brand’s hallmark ‘tiger-nose’ grille with the longer, wider, wrap-around headlamps, pulled taut over the blistered wheel arches. The bumpers swells into bold right angles around the front fog lamps, adding greater volume to the lower part of the ‘face’ and giving the car a more stable, wider look.

The new GT model – boasting higher power and a sportier drive than the standard Optima range – features a more purposeful look, in line with its dynamic intent. Dif-ferences include a bolder, more ag-gressive front bumper design; black high gloss side sills; a subtle rear air diffuser with integrated dual tail-pipes and special GT badging.

The all-new Optima features a uniquely engineered body which combines more high-strength ma-terials than ever before, resulting in even higher standards of crash safety. The bodyshell of the all-new Optima is stronger than ever thanks to the more extensive use of Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS). 50 per cent of the body is now made up of AHSS. As stand-ard, the all-new Optima is fitted with a 3.8-inch mono TFT LCD audio display at the centre of the dashboard, with bluetooth hands-free connectivity and aux-in and USB ports.

Reliable International Automo-tive (RIA), the distributor for Kia in Oman provides a rewarding owner-ship experience for customers.

Road & Travel

Magazine jurors

praised the

all-new edition

of Kia’s perennial

best-seller for its

aggressive design,

long list of available

features, impressive

powertrain options

and great value

Mass International

organises staff,

family get-together

MUSCAT: Mass International, exclusive distributors of Schin-dler elevators and escalators in Oman organised staff and fam-ily get together day at Safeer Ball Room recently.

The staff from all branches of Muscat, Dhofar and Sohar along with families and their kids en-joyed light moments which was mixed with singing, music games and various other entertaining activities, says a press release.

The experience shared by some old staff during thanks giving ceremony touched every one’s

emotions. The function was fol-lowed with rewards and gifts for employees. The day also marked 42 years of the company in Oman.

Schindler elevators and escala-tors are commonly used in Oman in ministries, hotels, residential and commercial buildings, com-mercial shopping centres, hyper markets and villas along with in-dustrial sectors.

The event was presided over by Lateef Shahdad, company’s general manager and attended by senior staff Binod Kumar Jha, Sa-thish Nair and Manoj Zacharia.

F U N D A Y

Celebrate Valentine’s Day in style with Khimji’s WatchesMUSCAT: Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to pamper a loved one with an everlasting token.

This month, Khimji’s Watches makes it easy to find the ideal piece with its vast array of beautifully crafted luxury watches, jewellery, accessories, and writing instru-ments, says a press release.

Mudhursinh Jesrani, general manager, Khimji’s Watches, com-

mented: “Valentine’s Day is one of our favourite times of the year as it gives us the opportunity to pamper our customers and make their experience a memorable one. This year, we continue to provide a spectacular variety of luxury items which are sure to make any-one feel special.”

Representing some of the most exclusive and revered time-keep-

ing brands, Khimji’s Watches has become the premier choice for exquisite gifting.

Glittering collectionsIts luxurious showroom in Shatti Al Qurum is the perfect place to escape to in order to browse its glittering collections and find the piece that perfectly articulates ones sentiments.

L U X U R Y W A T C H E S

New Jaguar F-Type SVR to make global debut at GenevaMUSCAT: The new Jaguar F-Type SVR will make its global de-but at the Geneva Motor Show and will go on sale in summer 2016.

Capable of 322kmph, the new F- Type SVR is the first Jaguar SVR and is developed to exploit the two-seat aluminium sports car’s full potential while retaining its day-to-day usability. Lighter, faster and more powerful, the new F-Type SVR takes performance, dynamics and driver involvement to a new level yet retains the comfort and duality of character inherent to all Jaguar cars, says a press release.

“The new F-Type SVR is the first series production Jaguar to be developed by Special Vehicle

Operations and benefits from eve-rything we know about precision engineering, performance and design. The result is a 322kmph, all-weather supercar that you can drive every day – we even made a

convertible version so that enthu-siasts can revel in the sound from the new titanium exhaust sys-tem,” said John Edwards, manag-ing director, Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations.

S P O R T S C A R

Intra-School Na’at Competition held at PSMMUSCAT: Pakistan School Mus-cat (PSM) organised an Intra-School Na’at competition at Dr. A. Q. Khan Hall, recently.

Ayaz Hussain, ambassador of Pakistan to Oman, attended the event as the chief guest whereas the embassy officers, social dig-nitaries, Adnan Shahzad, the Chairman BoDs, members BoDs, Ata Ullah Niazi, the senior prin-cipal - Pakistan School System, Khalid Jadoon, principal of PSM, Munnaza Ghafoor, principal of PSM (Junior Block), faculty members and members of Paki-stan community marked the oc-casion with their presence, says a press release.

The ceremony started in the name of Allah with the recitation of the Holy Quran by Hafiz Bilal Faisal. Khalid Jadoon welcomed the guests, participants and the audience. Students from Musan-nah branch, Nizwa branch, Sohar branch, Seeb branch and Muscat branch participated in the compe-

tition. Naeem Shahzad, Hafiz Me-hboob Ahmad and Rahat Hussain Qadri formed the jury.

On the individual basis of jun-ior level, Rubab Ather (Pakistan School Seeb) and Laiba Ali (Pa-kistan School Muscat) bagged the second prize whereas Faizan (Pakistan School Sohar) bagged the first position. For the Senior Students’ category, Hudiya Ali of PSM won the second position while Shabib ur Rehman was commended as the winner of Nasheed Khawani. Over all, Paki-stan School Sohar was the winner of the competition.

The results of Fareeha Pervez Shaheed Science, Art and IT Ex-hibition were also announced. Pa-kistan School Sohar was awarded for the best stall.

The title of the best art and craft stall was won by Pakistan School Seeb and PSM and over and above, PSM was brought for-ward as the winner for display-ing the best IT stall. The trophies were given away to all the winners by the chief guest.

Ayaz Hussain presented the check of OMR5,000 for the de-velopment of Special Education Centre of the school.

A N N U A L E V E N T

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New Mazda CX-9 now comes with cash gift

MUSCAT: This month, Mazda enthusiasts have a huge reason to celebrate. With the purchase of an all-new Mazda CX-9, customers will receive a massive cash gift of OMR2,501.

With this offer, the CX-9 Clas-sic now has a starting price of OMR9,999, while the best-in-class CX-9 luxury will be available from just OMR12,699. The offer begins today, and will be valid till April 13, says a press release.

A senior spokesperson of Tow-ell Auto Centre (TAC), the sole distributors of Mazda in Oman, explains: “The CX-9 has become the seminal Mazda model. The Mazda CX-9 has been enhanced with features that make it the ideal vehicle for a family. Driving should be a luxurious and fun time

for the entire family. With this in mind, we have launched the offer of OMR2,501 cash gift. It is a small gesture from our side to make our customers feel special.”

The Mazda CX-9’s strengths are its artfully crafted spacious interior; KODO: soul of motion design; state-of-the-art features such as its Bose audio system; 20’’ inch alloy wheels Blind Spot Monitoring and Daytime running lights; cruise control; and for-ward obstruction warning system amongst others.

With these integrations, the Mazda CX-9 provides a purely luxurious driving experience.

“To avail of this cash gift offer, buy a Mazda during the offer pe-riod and also drive home with free 24 hours AAA roadside assistance that will be valid for the first three years from the date of purchase. You can also book a test drive sit-ting at home or get more details about any of these models using the Mazda Oman mobile app for Apple, Android and BB10,” the TAC spokesperson adds.

Offering the trendiest of Japa-nese cars, Mazda has brought in a lot of excitement in Oman’s auto-mobile industry with their ‘stylish, spirited, and insightful’ branding. These three unique qualities lie at

the core of each Mazda you spot on the streets and form the brand’s DNA and TAC makes owning a Mazda extra pleasant with its effi-cient after sales service and quick response time.

With a network of 13 service outlets and 10 parts outlets spread across Oman, TAC is the only Mazda distributor in the world to win the Mazda Customer Service award five years in a row.

With 98.2 per cent parts deliv-erability, TAC also offers quick, ef-ficient service with genuine parts available for all models and has highly trained staff who pride in their quality of service.

With the purchase

of an all-new Mazda

CX-9, customers will

receive a massive

cash gift of OMR2,501

HJB celebrates 41st anniversary in style

MUSCAT: Hasan Juma Backer (HJB) celebrated its 41st anniver-sary at their Musannah Farms re-cently, attended by the company’s staff, clients and dignitaries.

The event was presided over by Krishnakumar Taori, group man-aging director and Nagesh Vat-syayan, general manager, says a press release.

Sports and games irrespective of age enthralled the guests who participated in the events with great enthusiasm. Face painting, horse and camel rides were a treat to the children, who were seen swaying in joy, and carrying home with them the golden memories of

the day. Hourly prizes were given to the guests and HJB staff by the way of lucky dip. The aroma of delicacies in the form of lip smack-ing dishes erased the hunger of the guests and staff present.

Watches were presented to the HJB employees who completed 5, 10, 25 years of meritorious service in the company.

The day concluded with the distribution of prizes to the winners of various sports events and a concluding speech delivered by Nagesh.

He thanked the guests who at-tended the event and the staff who made the event memorable.

M E M O R A B L E E V E N T

Al Hashar’s 3S facility in Sohar offers a variety of services under one roof

MUSCAT: Located just across the bows of the flyover in Al Wuqaiba, Sohar, Al Hashar’s 3S facility offers a host of services under one roof.

The well laid out sales area of-fers customers a choice of pas-senger cars, 15-16 seater buses, single and double cabin pickups, 3 ton to 100 ton capacity trucks, forklifts, cranes, shovels and exca-vators. The after sales service area is packed with a range of sophisti-cated equipment and trained staff, says a press release.

“Our well-equipped facility of-fers many advantages,” an official informed, “For example, we have five post hydraulic lifts for under-body inspection; Celette bench for accident repair; Pneumatic tools to carry out quick service and five hydraulic lifts for light vehicle under body inspection.

The official further said: “We

are proud to say that we now have one of the biggest workshops in Sohar with 30 bays for inspec-tion, maintenance and body shop. These are operated by qualified factory trained technicians and supervisors. We also have a dedi-cated heavy vehicle inspection bay and quick service bays.

“A total of 10 bays are reserved exclusively for heavy vehicles. Similarly, for light vehicle inspec-tion and servicing, there are 10 service and hydraulic bays. An-other 10 bays for body shop and fabrication work.”

The 3S facility also has a so-phisticated body-shop with dust-free paint booth for superior fin-ish. This allows accident repair jobs on premium range of vehi-cles that demand highest qual-ity of fit/finish. A well-equipped water service centre is employed for both light and heavy vehicles

- with under body wash facilities. Customised body fabrication

works are carried out on trucks as per customers’ choice, with warranty. The facility provides annual maintenance contracts for all range of light and heavy ve-hicles and service at site facility for equipment.

Ensuring a prompt supply of genuine parts is the warehous-ing operations that have a ready stock of genuine spare parts. The lubricants available are Atlantic, Petromin & Liqui Moly. The bat-teries brand is Koba from Korea. The tyre centre offers a range of leading brands including Fire-stone, Marshal, Radar, Apollo, Solideal – in various sizes for pas-senger cars, trucks, forklifts and shovels. The facility is equipped with latest machines to provide wheel balancing and alignment.

The official pointed out that the

3S facility has tied up with insur-ance companies to undertake all sort of accident repair jobs and to carry out accident jobs on lump sum. The facility also offers cus-tomised packages for mainte-nance services of fleet vehicles.

Yet another dimension to the fa-cility is the Global Rent A Car and Leasing operations that provide rental and leasing of cars and SUV’s, pickups, 15 to 66-seater buses for short and long term contracts.

The facility is open from 8am – 1pm and 3.30pm – 7pm (Sunday to Thursday). A mobile unit offers break down service in Batinah re-gion through a single call number.

Al Hashar Group, as one of the most progressive and diversified corporations of beautiful Oman, welcomes customers to visit the facility and experience a quality of services that will exceed their expectations.

O N E - S T O P S H O P

MUSCAT: The Nissan X-Trail from Suhail Bahwan Automobiles is a compact SUV that comes with a 2.5-litre 4 cylinder engine, mated to a Continuously Variable Trans-mission (CVT) is all set to offer class-leading comfort, thoughtful technology and a rewarding driv-ing experience with a completely refurbished interior and exterior styling, says a press release.

The X-Trail is one of the most advanced cars on the road. Fully connected, the X-Trail is equipped with the latest generation Nissan Connect in-car navigation, infor-mation and entertainment system. Drivers will also benefit from a comprehensive suite of assistance features that make up the X-Trail’s Nissan Safety Shield system.

The Nissan Connect is one of the foremost examples of Nissan’s en-gineering innovation. In its latest form, Nissan Connect has evolved to offer smartphone connectiv-ity, to keep owners connected to the outside world wherever their journey takes them. With access to a projected range of apps cover-ing music, social networking and 7-inch colour touch screen, the new Nissan Connect is the perfect fit for new X-Trail. The system in-cludes bluetooth audio streaming and mobile phone integration as well as Aux-in and USB slots.

In addition to mobile phone in-tegration, the system also includes bluetooth audio streaming. The driver also benefits from one of the most advanced meter displays developed. Featuring a 5 inch TFT colour display incorporating sev-eral graphic displays accessible on rotation, offering advice and warnings covering such things as; average and actual speeds, navi-gation turn-by-turn instructions, audio content, eco driving advice and torque distribution settings in

4WD mode.The design brief behind the new

X-Trail was to blend the sleek and stylish lines of a modern crosso-ver with the robust appeal of a typical SUV. In place of the rugged, squared off lines of the previous generation, the X-Trail has a pre-mium and dynamic appearance.

Sculptured muscular lines cre-ate a distinctive silhouette framed by elegant curves and high wheel arches. Its features include a num-ber of Nissan signature cues such as the ‘boomerang’ rear lights, structured headlights with LED daytime running lamps and the characteristic D-pillar shape.

During the X-Trail’s develop-ment; refinement, environment and economy targets were to be best in-class.

This has been achieved on all counts by reducing weight wher-ever possible, even though new X-Trail has a larger surface area than the previous model. The tailgate, for example, is largely plastic, sav-ing seven kilograms.

Standard features in the new Nissan X-Trail include power windows, power steering, electric mirrors, fabric seats, keyless entry with central locking, manual A/C, AM/FM radio with CD/USB/AUX

and alloy wheels. Optional features include push-

engine start, better entertainment system with more speakers, bigger alloy wheels, parking sensors and automatic A/C. Standard safety features include driver and pas-senger airbags, tire pressure moni-toring system, ABS brakes, elec-tronic brake distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA). The vehicle comes in two separate variants -

5-seater and 7-seater respectively. The 5-seater comes with 4x2 and 4x4 with only S Grades and the 7-seater comes only in 4x4 that has three grades comprising S, SV and SL.

SBA is largely committed to supporting Nissan’s growth in the Sultanate through major emphasis on customer satisfaction and by providing world-class after-sales services in Oman.

B8

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Meethaq to provide home finance for Dhalia project

MUSCAT: Meethaq, the pioneer of Islamic banking in Oman from Bank Muscat, and Badr Group signed a memorandum of under-standing (MoU) to facilitate at-tractive Meethaq home finance for Dhalia project in Al Qurum.

Sulaiman Al Harthy, deputy chief executive officer – Islamic Banking, and Yasir Abdul Karim Al Lawati, CEO of Badr Develop-ment company, signed the MoU at the bank’s head office, says a press release.

Sulaiman Al Harthy said: “Com-mitted to sustainable social and economic development, Meethaq is happy to be associated with Dhalia project to provide innova-tive home finance in line with Sha-ria principles.

“The real estate sector is a major component of the national econo-my and Meethaq Islamic Banking is committed to extending a help-ing hand for easy access to Shari’a based home finance.”

Yasir Abdul Karim Al Lawati said: “Badr Group is proud to join hands with Meethaq Islamic Banking in extending attractive home deals. The cooperation be-tween the two institutions will benefit citizens to fulfil their dream homes in Dahlia project comprising 72 residential units. The project is scheduled for com-pletion in 2017.”

Meethaq offers Shara based home finance to suit everyone’s needs with simplified documen-

tation and processing across the network of branches in Oman. The residential segment of the real estate sector in Oman is witness-ing buoyant trends in light of the growth in population as well as the developing economy. The deregula-tion granting property ownership rights to GCC nationals and expa-triates has also attracted Oman as an investment destination.

Meethaq offers a full suite of Islamic banking products and ser-vices, including savings account, current account, home finance, auto finance, credit card, mobile banking and internet banking. Presently, Meethaq has 17 branch-es across the Sultanate and plans to expand the network as well as

launch new products and services to complement the unique Islamic banking experience.

The bank has invested in staff, systems and controls to ensure the service is delivered in a profes-sional, segregated and fully Sharia compliant manner.

Meethaq has adopted the best practices in Islamic banking and finance worldwide to combine a robust model which protects customers and complements the Islamic banking industry. Every Meethaq product goes through the process of Sharia compliance certification by the Sharia Super-visory Board and is created in line with the guidelines of the Central Bank of Oman.

Sulaiman Al Harthy,

deputy chief

executive officer –

Islamic Banking, and

Yasir Abdul Karim

Al Lawati, CEO of

Badr Development

company, signed the

MoU at the bank’s

head office

A’Saffa delivers fresh, protein rich chickenMUSCAT: A’Saffa Foods, Sul-tanate’s largest fully integrated poultry and food producer, since establishment has worked on the core principle that the qual-ity, taste, hygiene and nutrition of its chicken products is only as good as the way its chickens are naturally fed, bred and cared for in its state-of-the-art poultry fa-cility at Thumrait in the south of the Sultanate.

One of the unique factors for A’Saffa has been its long standing commitment to providing pure natural feed to its chickens – a mix of specially produced yellow corn and soya that delivers the nutrition the chickens need and helps to ensure the final product for the consumer is tasty, fresh and packed full of nutritious pro-tein, says a press release.

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

“At A’Saffa we also ensure that the birds are kept without thirst, hunger or malnutrition, free from discomfort, pain, in-jury or disease to ensure pure and healthy product, maintain-ing animal welfare at all times. As with our core principles of

following religious, healthy and ethical practices, the company also prohibits use of chicken/animal byproducts and substitutes for feeding the birds as happens in some other poultry companies.”

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

“Customers who purchase A’Saffa chicken products – frozen or fresh – can be assured that in our production processes, no hor-mones, no steroids, no preserva-tives or colours or flavours are added and never inject the birds with water to artificially increase their weight,” added Lenka.

In conclusion, Lenka said: “Chicks from A’Saffa Foods, parent farms and hatchery are delivered to A’ Saffa farms and are raised cage free houses in clean and environment con-trolled sheds. Once the chickens reach the desired weight they are moved from the farms to the processing plant where they are processed, cleaned, chilled and packed. After passing checks for food safety and quality as-surance each chicken product is transported to grocery stores and restaurants. Cooked to con-sumer liking, A’Saffa chicken is fresh, healthy, juicy, tender, protein rich and tasty delivering wholesome richness.”

S T A T E - O F - T H E - A R T F A C I L I T Y

Nissan X-Trail re-invents compact SUVA D V A N C E D T E C H N O L O G Y

Joyalukkas opens outlet in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI: Joyalukkas, the world’s favourite jeweller, opened the latest addition to its growing number of showrooms across 10 countries recently at Mushrif Mall, Abu Dhabi.

An eclectic harmony of tradi-tional and contemporary jewel-lery, something that Joyalukkas is synonymous with, is show-cased beautifully at this grand new location.

The showroom was inaugurat-ed by Yasser Al Yousuf, managing director of Etihad Guest in the presence of John Paul Alukkas, executive director, Joyalukkas Group, Antony Jos, director, Joy-alukkas Group, Mary Antony, di-rector, Joyalukkas Group, many local dignitaries and VIPs, says a press release.

“We are delighted to open our jewellery showroom in Mushrif Mall, Abu Dhabi and are extreme-ly grateful to the country and it’s lovely residents for the warm welcome they have given us. Our team is eager to serve jewellery shoppers here with the best and widest range in jewellery,” said

John Paul Alukkas.Conveniently located in

Mushrif Mall, the showroom features wide range and most exquisite collection of jewellery in all precious form i.e. gold, dia-mond, precious stone, pearls and platinum. Joyalukkas showroom will offer a choice of over one million designs from around the world to meet all the dreams and expectations of jewellery lovers in Abu Dhabi.

The Joyalukkas sales team have also been extensively trained by retail specialists to manage the superior expectation of the residents of here.

This outlet is now open with tempting inaugural offers such as a free gold coin on jewellery purchase, and the limited edi-tion ‘Be Mine’ Heart to Heart Collection specially designed for Valentine’s Day.

The Joyalukkas jewellery showroom has been designed in the signature Joyalukkas format with stylish and convenient inte-riors to offer the widest choice of jewellery under one roof.

E X P A N S I O N

Don’t litter a beautiful

country like OMAN.

Ensure proper disposal of garbage.

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Moroccans dominateAl Amerat Challenge

Sports Reporter

MUSCAT: Moroccan runners dominated the 2016 Al Amerat Challenge taking the top honours both in the men’s and women’s categories after a stiff competi-tion on Saturday.

Excellence Performance suc-cessfully organised another edi-tion of Al Amerat Challenge, the only Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) sanctioned event, with participation of a total 588 run-

ners in three different categories.In the men’s section, which at-

tracted 416 runners from across the world, Sameer Al Jawareh of Morocco pushed the defending champion Abdullah Al Joud of Saudi Arabia to the second place to the title.

Sameer covered the 9km race in 30 minutes and 37 seconds (30:37) to finish just ahead of Ab-dullah Al Joub, who timed 31.08.

Sameer’s compatriots Abdul-razaq Ar Ar and Mohammed Al Hadad finished in third and fourth places respectively. Abdulrazaq clocked 33:58 while Mohammed finished in 34:28. In the women’s category, also a 9km affair which

saw participation of 22 runners, it was Ameena Maheeh who raised the Moroccan flag finishing ahead of her competitors in 40:29.

Asta Parker of Iceland settled for second place in 42:07. Anna Christe (50:06) of USA and Mag-gie Muller (50:06) South Africa finished in third and fourth places respectively.

Meanwhile, in the 1.8km fun race, around 150 runners of vari-ous nationalities took part.

The organisers, despite facing shortage of sponsors, presented the winners in both categories with $1,000 and a medal each. The sec-ond and third placed runners were handed medals as well as $800 and

$500 respectively. Fourth place winners got $250 each.

The first 100 finishers in the fun race were presented with medals.

Oman Cables Industry were the Gold Sponsors of the event while the list of Silver Sponsors included Zubair Automobile Company, Tanuf, Oman Riders and Al Safa Company.

Enjoyed the outingExcellence Performance chief Rashid Al Kindi said: “The event went technically very well. I want to thank all the marshals, officials and the individuals who contrib-uted to the success of this year’s Al Amerat Challenge.”

Expressing delight at the re-sponse to the Challenge from the runners, he said: “This year we had a good number of internation-al and national athletes compet-ing in the two categories. Those who took part in the Fun Race too showed a lot of enthusiasm and enjoyed their outing.”

Speaking about the plans for the next edition, he said: “We are planning from today to get more sponsorship for the event... The more sponsors we rope in the more international runners we will be able accommodate.”

“We also want to bring more kids and families in Fun Race next year,” he added.

ResultsMen: 1. Sameer Al Jawareh, Mor-roco, 30:37; 2. Abdullah Al Joud, KSA, 31.08; 3. Abdulrazaq Ar Ar, Morroco, 33.58; 4. Mohammed Al Hadad, Morroco, 34.28.

Women: 1. Ameena Maheeh, Morroco, 40:29; 2. Asta Parker, Iceland, 42:07; 3. Anna Christe, USA, 50:06; 4. Maggie Muller, South Africa, 50:06.

The 2016 edition of

Al Amerat Challenge

saw Moroccans

Sameer Al Jawareh

and Ameena Maheeh

taking top honours

in the men’s and

women’s categories

respectively

ALL FOR FUN: Participants in Run Race of Al Amerat Challenge pose with their medals. – JUN ESTRADA/Times of Oman

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Kamworor winsNAIROBI: World champion Geof-frey Kamworor won the Kenyan Cross Country trials on Saturday but pulled out of the team for next month’s African Cross Country Championships in Cameroon, say-ing the event did not fit in with his preparations for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in August. World sil-ver medallist Bedan Karoki, who finished behind Kamworor, and third-placed Leonard Barsoton also said they would not take part. - Reuters

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Ashwin opening the bowling in a match India must win to stay

alive in the series. Hardik Pan-dya strolling out into the mid-dle ahead of Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni with just 33 balls remaining in the innings at a stage of the game where India needed to gain back the mo-mentum lost in the mid-overs. Jasprit Bumrah walking up to the top of his run-up for the first time in the innings, in the 15th over, and Pandya running in to bowl the 19th over.

What do we call all this, sin-gularly or collectively? Exper-imenting, perhaps. But don’t ever say that word — experi-menting — within the earshot of Dhoni. Experimenting, we got to know from Dhoni at the presentation ceremony of the second T20 played at Ranchi on Friday, is a word banned from Indian cricket. If you are desperate for a word or a phrase to capture the current mood in the Indian camp, you better say that with a phrase as straight and simple as ‘do-ing things differently’.

The moral of the Ranchi sto-ry is that experimenting is not about doing things differently, and doing things differently is not about experimenting, but whatever it is, the experi-ence a normal Indian cricket fan had when the game was on was pure and uncomplicated, which, incidentally, was the mood the Indian skipper was in throughout the proceed-ings right after Shikhar Dha-wan set the tone of the night.

Of all the different things on display, what took the cake was Bumrah’s yorkers-on-demand show. The setup for the young-ster was perfect. Sri Lanka were five down for just 102 — a long, almost impossible way from the imposing target of 197. Scoring 95 runs from 30 balls would have been a daunt-ing task even for a Sangakkara-Jayawardene combo, with An-gelo Mathews waiting for his turn in the dugout. For lesser mortals like Mirinda Siri-wardana and Dasun Shanaka the task — 19 runs an over for five overs in a row — seemed taller than Everest.

Bumrah was reluctant to bowl yorkers in the Pune match, but at Ranchi he made

amends for his sins. He began with one that was described by Matthew Hayden as abso-lutely perfect, and four more followed in his first two overs, all of which were a mysterious beauty to behold as the bats-men woefully tried to dig and defend or save their toes. Yor-kers, carefully concealed amid an unpredictable rain of deliv-eries ranging from slow balls to sharp bouncers and low, full tosses outside off, didn’t allow the batsmen even to stand up and stare back.

While it was an opportu-nity delightfully taken up by youngsters like Pandya and Bumrah, it was another in-stance of why and how Dhoni fails to hit the big shots. The stage was set for the skipper to smash a couple of sixes which would have taken India to and past the 200-mark — a target within reach after Rohit Shar-ma and Dhawan plundered 70 runs in the first six overs, and Suresh Raina and Pandya harvested 59 from 4.1 overs to post 186 for 4 at 18.4 overs.

Dhoni tried but failed. A mighty heave at the third ball in the final over sums up the harsh reality. His bat was no-where near the ball pitched wide outside off stump.

Helicopters don’t take off from a submarine staying un-derwater. They don’t take wing unless the weather is fine. Bowlers are not offering Dhoni the right conditions to set the flight in motion, so Dhoni says the only way to hit a helicopter shot nowadays is by standing on a stool. In the unlikely event of Dhoni walking out to bat at Visakhapatnam today with a stool in hand, don’t ask what it is: doing things differently or experimenting?

The writer is a freelance con-tributor based in India. All the views and opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of Times of Oman

Yorkers on demand, but Dhoni needs a stool to fly the copter

C O M M E N T A R YVoges hits unbeaten ton as Aussies take big lead

WELLINGTON: Adam Voges continued to capitalise on an early reprieve by scoring his fifth Test century as Australia eased to 463 for six by the close of the sec-ond day’s play of the first match against New Zealand at the Basin Reserve on Saturday.

Voges was unbeaten on 176 at stumps with Peter Siddle on 29 as the Australians stretched their advantage to 280 runs, snuffing out any hope New Zealand had of claiming victory in captain Bren-don McCullum’s 100th Test.

The 36-year-old Voges has made the most of a lifeline when he was bowled by Doug Bracewell

for seven with two deliveries re-maining on Friday, only for um-pire Richard Illingworth to sig-nal a no-ball. Television replays showed the delivery was legal but because the infraction had been called on the field, New Zealand were unable to ask for a review.

Voges was involved in partner-ships of 168 with Usman Khawaja (140) and 96 with wicketkeeper Peter Nevill (32) to prevent New Zealand from gaining any momen-tum on a tough day for the hosts.

New Zealand briefly appeared to be in position to expose the Australian tail during the middle session when Trent Boult took two wickets, including Khawa-ja’s, in three deliveries but Voges calmly ensured that the visitors maintained their dominance.

The late-blooming Voges, who was 35 when he made his debut against West Indies last June, has scored 1,204 runs in a bounti-ful Test career to date, boasting a high score of 269 not out and an average of 100.33.

“He’s got an average higher than (Australian batting legend) Don (Bradman) at the moment, so I might just have to call him Sir Voges,” Khawaja joked.

Slim hope“He’s almost faultless the way he went about it. Batted very sensi-bly, patiently at the start, was hit-ting a lot of good shots straight to fielders, but didn’t get frustrated with it. The way he’s been batting lately it feels like he’s not going to get out.”

As Australia resumed on 147 for three in response to New Zea-land’s 183 all out, the only excite-ment for locals at a sold-out Basin Reserve came during that eventful Boult over in the middle session.

Corey Anderson claimed the only other wicket of the day when he enticed Nevill to edge behind to make the score 395 for six.

While Australia have batted themselves into a position they are unlikely to lose from, New Zealand’s past record at the Basin Reserve should provide local fans with some hope. In their last two matches at the Wellington ground, they conceded large first innings leads before scoring 680 for eight to save a Test against India two years ago and 524 for five to set up a win last year against Sri Lanka.

The second Test of the two-match series is in Christchurch from February 20 to 24. - Reuters

Voges was unbeaten

on 176 at stumps

with Siddle on 29

as the Australians

stretched their

advantage to 280

runs, snuffing out

any hope New

Zealand had of

claiming victory in

Brendon McCullum’s

100th Test

UNBEATEN: Adam Voges of Australia celebrates after completing

his century on the second day of their first Test match against

New Zealand at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Saturday. – AFP

New Zealand 1st innings: 183 Australia 1st innings J. Burns c Watling b Southee 0 D. Warner c Watling b Southee 5 U. Khawaja lbw Boult 140 S. Smith c&b Craig 71 A. Voges (not out) 176 M. Marsh c&b Boult 0 P. Nevill c Watling b Anderson 32 P. Siddle (not out) 29 Extras (b-4, lb-2, nb-2, w-2) 10 Total (6 wkts, 130 overs) 463 Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-5, 3-131, 4-299, 5-299, 6-395.Bowling: T. Southee 28-5-76-2 (w-1); T. Boult 27-6-80-2; D. Bracewell 25-4-97-0 (nb-2); C. Anderson 14-0-68-1 (w-1); M. Craig 32-2-128-1; K. Williamson 4-0-8-0.

S C O R E B O A R D

India primed for unprecedented fourth title

MIRPUR: A seemingly invin-cible India are primed to win an unprecedented fourth ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup when they take on a wily West Indies in the final here on Saturday.

India breezed into their fifth fi-nal, steamrolling their opponents in the three league games as well as in the knock-outs. If they win on Sunday, India will surpass Australia for the most number of titles in the U-19 showpiece event

introduced way back in 1988. The subcontinent team last lifted the trophy in 2012 after winning it in 2008 and 2000.

The Indians seem unstoppa-ble but they can’t afford to take it easy against the West Indians, who have upped their game as the tournament progressed. The boys from Caribbean finished second in their group before earning plaudits with a spirited showing against Pa-kistan and Bangladesh in the quar-

ters and semifinals respectively.India will once again bank on

their dangerous opening duo of Rishabh Pant and captain Ishan Kishan to give them a flying start.

Kishan, who has only one 50 to his name in five innings, would love to be amongst the runs in the big final. Another IPL recruit, Pant, too, would be itching to rise to the occasion after getting out cheaply against Sri Lanka in the semifinals. Anmolpreet Singh would be high on

confidence after making a crucial 72 against Sri Lanka and so would be power hitter Sarfaraz Khan, who is India’s leading run-getter in the competition with 304 runs at an average of 76, including four fifties in five games. Pacer Avesh Khan, with 11 scalps, has taken the most number of wickets for the team while left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar, too, has impressed with eight wickets from four matches at an average of 12. - PTI

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Almouj all set for SATT debut

MUSCAT: Almouj is new to EFG Sailing Arabia – The Tour (SATT) but an experienced crew, packed with spirit and talent, is hungry for success with plans to spring a few surprises. The Omani-French crew is skippered by French navigator Nico Lunven who has Volvo Ocean Race, Tour de France a Voile, Figaro and RORC miles under his belt.

He also knows how it feels to win the EFG Sailing Arabia – The Tour having been navigator on board Sidney Gavignet’s trium-phant EFG Bank Monaco in 2015.

To add to Almouj’s pedigree, Lunven has seasoned campaigner Gilles Favennec, a member of Oman Sail’s MOD 70 and M34 crew, on board as co-skipper.

“This team was put together by me and Gilles and we decided to try to build it to be happy working together during this month,” ex-plained Lunven.

The crew comprises two Omani

sailors Abdulaziz Al Obidani, vet-eran of four Sailing Arabia – The Tours, and Haitham Al Wahaibi as well as three other French sail-ors Christian Ponthieu, Gregory Gendron and Thomas Rouxel, all offshore specialists.

With the changes to Tour de France a la Voile, EFG Sailing Ara-bia – The Tour was the obvious choice for the crew looking to keep up their racing and training dur-ing the winter months when the inclement weather across Europe prevents a full programme.

“In Europe at this time, there is

nothing like this. We have done a lot of Tour de France a la Voile but now there is only this race if we want to do high level competitive offshore sailing,” said Favennec.

New routeBusy schedules have prevented any intensive training so the crew have gathered for the first time in Dubai where the first inshore race starts on February 15 before the fleet of identical Farr 30 boats set off on the first leg to Abu Dhabi. They are big fans of this year’s new route with the second upwind leg to Doha and

the marathon third leg to Khasab offering them a chance to shine.

This is where they hope to rack up the points and are serious con-tenders for a podium place with am-bitions to dislodge favourites EFG Bank Monaco from the top spot.

“We would like play for the first place,” said Lunven. “We are espe-cially looking forward to compet-ing against Sidney Gavignet’s team EFG Bank Monaco.”

The 2016 EFG Sailing Arabia – the Tour, which is supported by mobile satellite communications company, Al Thuraya, is the sixth edition of the race which combines long offshore legs with high action racing ‘around the cans’ in har-bours along the 780 nms course. Oman Sail first launched the race in 2011 and since then, it has grown into the jewel in the crown of Middle East sailing, as the Gulf region’s leading offshore event.

Earlier this year, Team EFG Bank Monaco, Team Mangold, Dutch team Delft Challenge, Bi-enne Voile of Switzerland, Averda, Zain Kuwait, the all-female Oman Airport-Al Thuraya team and Re-

naissance Services announced they are going to participate in the 2016 edition of EFG Sailing Arabia – The Tour. Kicking off on Febru-ary 15 in Dubai, the five leg 750 nm challenge offers an opportunity for both professional and amateur racing teams to sustain their train-ing and competition programmes over the winter months and show-case the GCC region as a sailing and sporting destination.

An inshore race in Dubai will be followed by the first leg to Abu Dhabi after which the fleet heads off on a tricky marathon second leg to Doha, then the most demanding leg of them all, the 200 nms pas-sage from Doha to Khasab, Oman’s northernmost Governorate which will be a test of skill and patience.

From Khasab, they will race round the Musandam Peninsula and down the coast of Oman to So-har, before the final leg to Al Mouj in Muscat.

Team: Gilles Favennec, Nico Lunven, Haitham Al Wahaibi, Abdullaziz Al Obidani, Christian Ponthieu, Thomas Rouxel and Gregory Gendron.

The crew comprises

two Omani sailors

Abdulaziz Al Obidani,

veteran of four

Sailing Arabia – The

Tours, and Haitham

Al Wahaibi as well

as three other French

sailors Christian

Ponthieu, Gregory

Gendron and Thomas

Rouxel, all offshore

specialists

NEW CHALLENGE: Abdulaziz Al Obaidani is one of the two Omani sailors on Almounj crew, the other

being Haitham Al Wahaibi. – Supplied photo

Al Turki rout Raha, NYDT defeat Ooredoo A

MUSCAT: Al Turki recorded an eight-wicket victory over Raha CT in a Muscat Pharmacy and Stores-sponsored Premier Di-vision match at the Ministry of Sports Affairs Ground during the afternoon session on Friday.

Batting first, Raha were bowled out for 200 in 50 overs. Khurram Khan scored 75 and was ably as-sisted by Azhar Ali (45). Jayesh Odedra claimed three wickets for Al Turki. In reply, Al Turki bat-ted 44.1 overs and scored 211 for two with Twinkle Bhandari and Ghulam Shaikh scoring 64 and 57 respectively. Khursheed Alam claimed two wickets for Raha.

Brief scores: Raha 200 in 50 overs (Khurram Khan 75; Jayesh 3/32) lost to Al Turki 211 for 2 in 44.1 overs (Twin-kle Bhandari 64, Ghulam Shaikh 57; Khursheed Alam 2/410). Points: Al Turki - 2; Raha – 0.

NYDT too goodIn a Khimji Ramdas sponsored A Division match, National Youth Development Team (NYDT) handed Ooredoo A a five-wicket defeat at the Municipality Ground I. Batting first, Ooredoo managed to score 228 for eight in 30 overs. Kimberley Bentick top scored with 93. Shoaib Ismail claimed three wickets for NYDT. In reply, NYDT put on 229 for five in 25.5 overs with Shoaib Ismail top scoring with 108. Rithwik Kadankot claimed three for Ooredoo A in vain.

Brief scores: Ooredoo A 228 for 8 in 30 overs (Kimberley Bentick 93; Shoaib Ismail 3/38) lost to NYDT 229 for 5 in

25.5 overs (Shoaib Ismail 108; Rithwik Kadankot 3/36). Points: NYDT – 2, Oo-derdoo A – 0.

Fairtrade edge Design Unit In an Al Ansari Group of Compa-nies-sponsored B Division match, Fairtrade defeated Design Unit Engineering by one wicket.

Batting first, Design Unit En-gineering put on 156 for five in 20 overs. Shehbaz Nazar top scored with 46. Aadil Mohammed claimed three wickets for PDO. In reply, Fairtrade scored 157 for nine in 19.5 overs to claim the nar-row win. Vijay Anand and Aadil Mohammed scored 31 and 28

respectively. Nishant B. claimed three wickets for PDO.

Brief scores: Design Unit Engi-neering 156 for 5 in 20 overs (Shehbaz Nazar 46; Aadil Mohammed 3/21) lost to Fairtrade 157 for 9 in 19.5 overs (Vijay Anand 31; Nishant 3/22). Points: Fair-trade – 2, PDO – 0.

SARCO beat L&TIn a Raha Poly Products-spon-sored C Division match, SARCO defeated L&T by 126 runs.

Batting first, SARCO put on 223 for four in 20 overs. Hafiz Za-hid top scored with an unbeaten 122. In reply, L&T were bowled out for 97 in 17.4 overs. Althaf PK top scored with 51. Hafiz Zahid claimed four wickets for SARCO.

Brief scores: SARCO 223 for 4 in 20 overs (Hafiz Zahid 122 n.o) bt L&T 97 in 17.4 overs (Althaf 51; Hafiz Zahid 5/10). Points: SARCO – 3, L&T - 0.

O M A N C R I C K E T

DOMINANT SHOW: A file photo of National Youth Development Team team. – Supplied photo

AL TURKI STARS: Twinkle Bhandari and Ghulam Shaikh.

13 European FAs pledge FIFA backing to Infantino

BELGRADE: The football as-sociation chiefs of 13 European countries that met in Belgrade on Saturday have pledged unan-imous support to Gianni Infan-tino in his bid to become FIFA president, the Serbian FA (FSS) said in a statement.

The FSS hosted a convention attended by UEFA secretary gen-eral Infantino and the FA chiefs of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Slove-nia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Al-bania, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Russia, Romania and Turkey.

Meanwhile, FIFA presiden-tial candidate Sheikh Salman Al Khalifa plans to keep the world soccer body’s headquarters in Zurich and retain the name “FIFA” if he wins the race for the game’s top job later this month.

Salman also denied accusa-tions that he used funds from the Bahrain football association he headed at the time to win a FIFA executive committee seat. - Reuters

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Praneeth lifts U-10 titleMUSCAT: Praneeth Raj hit the bullseye in his very first final to capture the under-10 singles crown at the ISC/Muscat Phar-macy Open Junior Tennis Tour-nament organised by the Indian Social Club (ISC) Muscat.

In the final, Praneeth, the No. 2 seed was not overawed by the occa-sion and did his basics right to reg-ister a brilliant 8-4 victory over top seed Issa Al Suleimani to win the under-10 title, the first of his career.

The two budding prospects played true to reputation main-taining consistency in their ground-strokes. Praneeth earned the first break for a 3-1 lead. Issa nullified the lead breaking Pra-neeth in the sixth game.

After a keen tussle, Praneeth broke twice for a 6-3 lead. Issa kept his hopes alive with a break in the tenth game. Issa’s game suf-fered under pressure as Praneeth

broke yet again and served out the match for his first title.

Ibra-based Vivek Kolluru, the top seed in the boys under-12 singles took his place in the fi-nal. Vivek earned his place in the summit clash with an emphatic 6-0, 6-0 victory over M. Surya in the semifinal.

Top seed in the boys under-14 singles, Hassan Haider powered his way into the last four with a convincing 8-2 win over Vivek Kolluru in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Hassan will take on fourth seed Avigyan Bhat-tacharya who overcame Abdullah Al Raisi 8-4 in the quarterfinals. The other semifinal of the boys under-14 will be contested be-tween Ayaan Malhotra who upset second seed Muneer Al Rawahi in the quarterfinals and third seed Sanskar Dubey who scored a hard-fough 8-6 win over Shlok Ail.

I S C T E N N I S

UNDER-10 COMPETITION: Champion Praneeth Raj, right, runner-up Issa Al Suleimani. – Supplied photo

Oman Cricket condoles sudden demise of MDC Enhance Eagles’ Sultan SheikhMUSCAT: Oman Cricket (OC) condoled the sudden demise of MDC Enhance Eagles’ young player Sultan Sheikh due to heart attack on Saturday.

According to officials, Sultan Sheikh collapsed during Oman Cricket A Division side MDC Enhance Eagles’ practice match at Al Amerat ground on Satur-day. He was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital, where he breathed his last after suffering a severe heart attack.

Oman Cricket officials, includ-ing Chairman Kanak Khimji and Secretary Madhu Jesrani imme-diately got in touch with the family members of the deceased as well as the team manager Guru Prasan-

na to convey their condolences.

One minute’s silenceLater in the evening, a minute’s silence was observed during Pre-

mier Division T20 match between Assarain and Muscat CT.

Speaking to Times Sport, Oman Cricket Secretary Madhu Jesrani said: “We are sad to hear about

Sultan Sheikh’s sudden demise due to heart attack.”

“It is an irreparable loss... not only for his family and friends but for the entire cricketing fraternity. We are shocked to lose a talented player at such a young age,” he said.

Meanwhile, MDC Enhance Ea-gles manager Guru Prasanna said: “I pray to the Almighty God to give enough strength to his family mem-bers to overcome this situation.”

He also thanked the Oman Cricket officials for getting in touch with the family members of the deceased and expressing their sympathies on behalf of Oman Cricket. “Thanks to all those who stood with us in this moment of grief,” he said.

C R I C K E T

SAD DEMISE: Sultan Sheikh

Gloom returns for Man United

LONDON: Manchester United’s top-four hopes suffered another setback as goalkeeper David De Gea’s own goal cost them a 2-1 de-feat at Premier League strugglers Sunderland on Saturday.

Louis van Gaal’s side had im-proved since the turn of the year but the gloom descended again on a raw day in north east as they slipped to a defeat that left them six points behind fourth-placed

Manchester City having played one more game.

Anthony Martial equalised for United shortly before half-time after Wahbi Khazri’s third-minute free kick evaded De Gea who was embarrassed again eight minutes from time when he di-verted Lamine Kone’s header into his own goal.

Defeat boosted second-from-bottom Sunderland’s survival

hopes and left United looking down rather than up as South-ampton closed to within a point of them in sixth after Shane Long’s goal sealed a 1-0 win at Swansea City.

West Ham United are also a point behind United after coming back from two goals down at Nor-wich to draw 2-2.

West Bromwich Albion eased their relegation fears, winning 1-0 at mid-table Everton, but Bournemouth’s 3-1 home defeat by Stoke City left the south coast club too close to the bottom three for comfort.

Emmanuel Adebayor scored his first goal since joining Crys-tal Palace but could not prevent a sixth defeat in seven matches for Alan Pardew’s side who were beaten 2-1 at home by Watford.

The Premier League’s top four all play on Sunday with leaders Leicester City at third-placed Ar-senal before fourth-placed Man-chester City host second-placed Tottenham Hotspur. - Reuters

Louis van Gaal’s side had improved since

the turn of the year but the gloom descended

again on a raw day in north east as they

slipped to a defeat that left them six points

behind fourth-placed Manchester City

having played one more game

COSTLY ERROR: Manchester United’s goalkeeper David de Gea, second right, fails to save a headed shot from Sunderland’s Lamine Koné during the English Premier League match at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland on Saturday. – AFP

Real keep up pace behind Barca with win over Athletic

MADRID: Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Real Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao 4-2 in a thrilling match at the Bernabeu to move within a point of leaders Barce-lona in La Liga on Saturday.

Barca, at home to Celta Vigo on Sunday, have 54 points, Real are on 53 and Atletico Madrid 51 before their trip to Getafe on Sunday.

Real made a blistering start and Ronaldo opened the scoring after three minutes, attacking into the box from the left, cut-ting inside Xabier Etxeita and beating Gorka Iraizoz for his 15th goal in 14 matches.

Athletic replied in kind, hit-ting Real with a string of coun-ter-attacks and were on level terms seven minutes later when midfielder Javier Eraso pounced on a poor back pass from Raph-ael Varane to Keylor Navas and made the most of the gift.

James restored Real’s lead in the 37th with a ferocious shot from the edge of the edge of the box that the Colombian, who has struggled for form and goals, celebrated with clenched fists.

Real led by two goals at half-time after Toni Kroos scored from Ronaldo’s pass in first-half added time.

Athletic were equal to Real in the first half and Aritz Aduriz hit the bar in the 28th minute but the home side controlled play after the interval and cruised to victory.

The home side had Varane sent off for a second booking after he elbowed striker Aduriz for the second time in the match as they went for a high ball.

The match ended in a flurry with Ronaldo scoring his 21st league goal in the 87th, Iraizoz denying him a hat-trick with a save a minute later and Athletic pulling one back with substitute Gorka Elustondo’s header in added time. - Reuters

L A L I G A

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

HealthSECTIONC L I F E S T Y L E S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Gum disease, in-cluding gingivitis and periodonti-tis, are serious infections that

can lead to tooth loss if left untreated. Gum disease, also known as periodontal disease, is a chronic bacterial infection that affects the gums and bone supporting the teeth. Gum disease generally doesn’t hurt because of which you may have it for years before you feel pain or discomfort. Gum disease can affect one tooth or a number of teeth. It starts when the bacteria in plaque, which is the sticky, colourless film that constantly forms on the teeth, causes the gums to become inflamed.

What are the main causes of bleeding gums?Poor oral hygiene, crowding of teeth, systemic diseases like un-controlled diabetes, bleeding disorders, and untreated reced-ing gums can all lead to bleeding gums. While the main cause of gum disease is bacterial depos-its, other factors can also affect the health of your gums. Recent studies indicate that tobacco use may be one of the most signifi-cant risk factors in the develop-

ment and progression of gum disease. In addition, research shows that stress can make it more difficult for the body to fight off infections such as gum disease. Other risk factors that may contribute to gum disease include genetics, poor nutri-tion, clenching or grinding your teeth, certain medications like anti-coagulants, and anti histamines.

Is there any link between gum and heart disease?Overall research indicates that chronic gum disease may con-tribute to the development of heart disease. Gum disease is one of those bacterial infections that can affect conditions out-side your mouth. It can cause bacteria to enter the blood-stream where they attach to the fatty deposits in the heart blood vessels. This condition can cause blood clots and may lead to heart attacks.

Common SymptomsCheck for the following signs to determine if you have gum dis-ease receding gums that bleed when you brush your teeth:

from the teeth

go away

fit together when you bite

dentures

If you have any of the above signs then you should consult your dentist.

You may be suffering from gum disease which is left un-treated could lead eventually to tooth loss.

TreatmentThe following tips can play a ma-jor role in stopping bleeding, bad breath, and maintaining your pearly whites to their shine:

polished every 6 months.

brushing.-

ouration (caries) over your teeth. Get caries cleaned and filled before it is too late.

Seek professional advice for it as soon as you can.

leaking or fractured margins.— lifestyle@timesofoman.com

FIGHT GUM DISEASE

While we are always alert on our general health and well being

most of us do not take our oral healthcare seriously. Watch out

for the early warning signs like bleeding gums along with

persistent bad breath, toothache, and receding gums.

S T O R Y D R R I C H A R A J

Dr. Richa Raj is dentist at Pearly White Dental Centre, Al Khuwair

Contact: + 968 9705 2624 pearlywhitedental@gmail.com

FIND-IT-ALLC6 S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

Dhuhr 12.26pmAsr 3.41pmMaghrib 6.06pmIsha 7.17pm Fajr (Tomorrow) 5.25am

PRAYER TIMINGS

CITY CINEMAContact (10 am to 6PM) 24567664 | 68 www.citycinemaoman.netfacebook.com/citycinemaoman

SHATTINavy Seals: The Battle of New Orleans (Action| Horror) 15+Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff, Rick Fox5:00 & 7:15PMThe Choice (Drama | Romance) 15+Cast: Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer5:15PMThe Pack (Horror| Thriller) 12+Cast: Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell11:45PMHow to Be Single (Comedy | Romance) 18+Cast: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson3:00, 7:15 & 11:30PMPride & Prejudice & Zombies (Action) 18+Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston2:45,9:15 & 11:45PMFitoor (Hindi | Romantic| Drama) 12+Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor , Katrina Kaif 9:15PMThe Finest Hour - 3D (Action) PG123:30 & 9:30PMThe Finest Hour - 2D (Action) PG127:00PMAlvin & the Chipmunks: The Road Chip (Animation) PG5:30PM

MUSCAT GRAND MALLHow to Be Single – 2D (18+) Comedy Cast: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson7:00 PMGold Class – 8:45, 11:00 PMFitoor – 2D (12+) Hindi | Romantic| Drama |Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor / Katrina Kaif / Tabu9:15 PMGold Class – 6:15 PMPride & Prejudice & Zombies – 2D (18+) Action | Horror | Drama |Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston1:45, 9:30, 11:45 PM

Gold Class – 3:30 PMKongu Fu Style – 2D (TBC) Comedy | Animation|Voice over: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann4:00 PMThe Finest Hour – 3D (PG12) Action | Drama 12:15,11:30 PMAlvin & the Chipmunks: The Road Chip - 2D (Animation) (PG) 12:00, 2:30, 7:30PMEverything About Her - Taglog (PG) Comedy 4:30PMCapture the Flag – 3D (PG) (Animation)5:45 PM

PANORAMA MALLPride & Prejudice & Zombies-2D (Horror)(18+)Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston3:30, 7:45, 9:45, 11:45PMPride & Prejudice & Zombies- 2D (18+)-VIP LOUNGE3:30, 11:00PM Fitoor-2D (Romantic, Drama) (TBC)Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Katrina Kaif , Tabu 3:45, 6:15, 8:45, 11:15 PM

Fitoor-2D (Romantic, Drama)(TBC)VIP LOUNGE- 8:30 PMThe Choice-2D (Drama, Romance) (15+)Cast: Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer4:45, 7:00 PM The Finest Hour (MX4D)(PG12) 3.30, 6.15, 8.30, 10.45 PMThe Finest Hour 3D (action, Drama) (PG12)-VIP LOUNGE6:15 PMThe Finest Hour 3D (action, Drama) (PG12)9:15, 11:30 PMAlvin & the Chipmunks – The Road Chip (Animation,) (2D) (PG)3:00, 6:00 PM

AZAIBA Pride & Prejudice & Zombies (2D) (Action Horror) (18+) CP#Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston2:30, 4:30, 6:30, 11:45 PMFitoor (Hindi) (2D) (Romance| Drama) (12+) CP#Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Tabu2:45, 7:30, 9:15, 11:30 PMGhayal Once Again (2D) (Action) (PG12) CP#Cast: Sunny Deol, Tisca Chopra, Om Puri3:45, 6:15, 11:30 PM

Sanam Re (2D) (Romance) (PG12) CP#Cast: Yami Gautam, Pulkit Samrat3:30, 5:15, 10:00 PMBangalore Naatkal (Tamil) (2D) (Comedy)(PG) CP#Cast: Arya, Sri Divya, Bobby6:15, 8:30 PMPavada (Mal) (2D) (Action | Comedy(PG) CP#Cast: Prithiviraj Sukumaran, Anoop Menon8:45 PM

RUWIScreen 1Fitoor (Romance / Drama) –12 +Cast: Aditya Roy Kapur, Katrina Kaif3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PMScreen 2Ghayal Once Again (Action) –PG123.45, 9.45 PMSanam Re (Romance / Drama) –12 +Cast : Pulkit Samrat, Yami Gautam6.45 PMScreen 3Sanam Re (Romance / Drama) –12 +3.45, 9.45 PMGhayal Once Again (Action) –PG12Cast: Sunny Deol, Tisca Chopra, 6.45 PM

SURNavy Seal: The Battle of New Orleans (Action |Horror) (15+) Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff7:30, 11:45 PMFitoor (Hindi) (Romance) (TBC) Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Katrina Kaif.5:00, 9:15 PMPavada (Mal) (Comedy) (PG) CPCast: Prithiviraj Sukumaran, Anoop Menon10:30 PMVisions (Horror | Thriller) (15+) Cast: Isla Fisher, Anson Mount4:45, 8:45 PM.The Finest Hour 3D (English) (Action | Drama | History) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster6:30 PM

SOHARAlvin & the Chipmunks: The Road Chip - 2D (PG) AnimationVoice over: Jason Lee, Jesica Ahlberg5:45 PMThe Finest Hour - 3D (PG12) Action | Drama Cast: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster5:00, 9:30, 11:45 PMGhayal Once Again - 2D (PG12) ActionCast: Sunny Deol, Tisca Chopra, Om Puri6:30 PMBangalore Naatkal - 2D (T) (PG) ComedyCast: Arya, Sri Divya, Bobby6:30 PMPride & Prejudice & Zombies - 2D (18+) Action | Horror | DramaCast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston2:45, 9:15, 11:45 PMHow to Be Single - 2D (18+) Comedy Cast: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson3:15, 7:15, 11:30 PMFitoor - 2D (TBC) Hindi | Romantic| DramaCast: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Katrina Kaif , Tabu3:30, 9:15 PMNavy Seals: The Battle of New Orleans - 2D (15+) Action| Horror Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff, Rick Fox3:00, 7:30 PMVisions - 2D (15+) Horror | ThrillerCast: Isla Fisher, Anson Mount, Gillian Jacobs4:45, 11:45 PMPavada - 2D (M) (PG) Action | ComedyCast: Prithiviraj Sukumaran , Anoop Menon

8:55 PM

BURAIMIThe Finest Hour – 3D (Action) (PG12)Cast: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster5:15, 6:45, 9:15PMNavy Seals: The Battle of New Orleans– 2D (Action/Horror) (15+)Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff, Rick Fox3:30, 5:35, 9:35, 11:30PMThe Pack– 2D (Horror/Thriller) (12+)Cast: Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell5:00, 11:45PMVisions – 2D (Horror/Thriller) (15+)Cast: Isla Fisher, Anson Mount, Gillian Jacobs3:30, 7:30PMFitoor – 2D (Romantic/Drama) (12+)Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Tabu3:15, 7:15, 11:15PMPavada– 2D (Action/Comedy) (PG)Cast: Prithiviraj Sukumaran, Anoop Menon

9:00PM

SALALAHThe Finest Hour (3D) (PG12) (Action) Cast: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster2:55, 9:00PMNavy Seals: The Battle of New Orleans (2D) (15+) (Action| Horror)Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff, Rick Fox1:05, 5:10PMThe Choice (2D) (15+) (Drama | Romance)Cast: Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer 11:35AM, 6:45PMThe Pack (2D)(12+) (Horror|Thriller) Cast: Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell12:00, 5:00, 11:55PMPride & Prejudice & Zombies (2D) (18+) Cast: Lily James, Sam Riley, Jack Huston11:00, 2:00, 4:00, 7:00, 11:35PMPavada (2D) (PG) (Mal) (Action/Comedy)Cast: Prithviraj Sukumaran , Anoop Menon9:05PMFitoor (2D) (12+) (Hindi|Romantic) Cast: Aditya Roy Kapoor , Katrina Kaif , Tabu2:15, 8:55, 11:15PM Bangalore Naatkal (2D) (PG) (Tamil) (Comedy / Drama)Cast: Arya, Sri Divya, Bobby6:10PM

CINEMA SCHEDULE CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 3 YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE CINEMA | BOX-OFFICE COUNTER OPENS 30-MINUTES PRIOR TO THE SCREENING OF THE FIRST SHOW

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

EMBASSIES IN OMAN

Afghanistan 24698 791/4

Algeria 24605 593

Bahrain 24 605 074/133

Bangladesh 24 698 660

Brazil 24640100

Brunei 24 603533

China 24 696782

Cyprus 24 699815

Egypt 24 600 982/411

France 24681 800

Germany 24835000

India 24684500

Indonesia 2469 1050

Iran 24 696 944/7

Iraq 24603642

Italy 24693727

Japan 24 601 028

Jordan 24692760/1/3

Kazakhstan 24 692418

Kenya 24 697664

South Korea 24 691490

Kuwait 24 699628

Lebanon 24 693208

Libya 24603466

Malaysia 24698329/643

Morocco 24696152/3

Nepal 24696177

Netherlands 24603706

Pakistan 24603439

Palestine 24601312

Philippines 24605335

Qatar 24 691 153/2/4

Russia 24602894

Saudi Arabia 24601705

Senegal 24694139

Somalia 24697977

South Africa 24647300

Spain 24691101

Sri Lanka 24697841/2

Sudan 24697875

Switzerland 24603267

Syria 24697904

Tanzania 24601 174

Thailand 24 602684/5

Tunisia 24603486

Turkey 24697050/1/2

UAE 24400000

United Kingdom 24609000

United States 24643400

Yemen 24600815

PHARMACIES

Round the clock

Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi 24783334

Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24782666

Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi 24702542

Salalah 23291635;

Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra 24503585

Muscat Region

Apollo, Al Hamriya 24787766

Muscat, A Seeb Market 24421691

Muscat, Al Khuwair 24485740

Muscat, Al Hail South 24537080

Dhofar Region

Muscat, Al Nahdha Road,

Salalah 23291635

HOSPITALS

Al Amal Medical & Health Care

Centre 24485052

Atlas Hospital

Ruwi 24811743/

Ghubra 24504000

Al Musafir Specialised

Medical Clinic 24706453

Hatat Polyclinic LLC,

Ruwi 24563641

Azaiba 24499269

Sohar 2683006

Al Raffah Hospital 24618900/1/2

Al Massaraat Clinic &

Laboratory 24566435

Al Makook Medical

Coordinance Centre 24499434

Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24787766, 24787780

Capital Polyclinic 24707549

Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic,

Ruwi 24799760/1/2

Capital Clinic, Seeb 24420740

Ceregem National Raak 24485633

Dr Harub’s Clinic 24563217

Elixir Health Centre 24565802

Emirates Medical Centre 24604540

1st Chiropractic Centre 24472274

Lifeline Hospital Salalah 23212340

International Medical

Centre LLC 24794501/2/3/4/5

Kims Oman Hospital 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency 24760123

Lama Polyclinic, Sohar 26751128

MBD 24799077

Al Khuwair 24478818

Magrabi Eye and

Ear Hospital 24568870

Muscat Private Hospital 24583600

Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment

Centre, Al Khuwair 24477666

Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC 22004000

AIRLINE OFFICES

Muscat Airport Flight information

(24 hours) 24519456/24519223

Aeroflot 24704455

Air Arabia 24700828

Air France 24562153

Air India 24799801

Air New Zealand 24700732

Biman Bangladesh Airlines 24701128

British Airways 24568777

Cathay Pacific 24789818

Egypt Air 24794113

Emirates Air 24404400

Ethiopian Airlines 24660313

Gulf Air 80072424

Indian 24791914

Iran Air 24787423

Japan Airlines 24704455

Jazeera Airways 23294848

Jet Airways 24787248

Kenya Airways 24660300

KML Royal Dutch Airlines 24566737

Kuwait Airways 24701262

LOT Polish Airlines 24796387

Lufthansa 24796692

Malaysian Airlines 24560796

Middle East Airlines 24796680

Oman Air 24531111

Pakistan International

Airlines 24792471

Qatar Airways 24771900

Qantas 24559941

Royal Jordanian 24796693

Saudi Arabian Airlines 24789485

Singapore Airlines 24791233

Shaheen Air 24816565

SriLankan Airlines 24784545

Swiss International

Airlines 24796692

Thai Airways 24705934

LISTINGS

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

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36)

15:00 Quriyat 16:30 Daily

15:00 Sur 18:00 Daily

15:00 Jaalan 19:30 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

06:30 Sohar 08:50 Daily

06:30 Buraimi 11:00 Daily

08:00 Buraimi 14:30 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 15:45 Daily

13:00 Buraimi 17:40 Daily

16.00 Sohar 18.35 Daily

16.00 Buraimi 20:20 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

17:30 Sinaw 20:50 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

14:30 Nizwa 16:50 Daily

14:30 Yanqul 19:30 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

08:00 Nizwa 10:20 Daily

08:00 Al Araqi 12:30 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

07:30 Sur 12:00 Daily

14:30 Sur 18:45 Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62)

06:30 Fahud 10:30 Daily

06:30 Yibal 11:15 Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Salalah 20:00 Daily

10:00 Marmul 20:30 Daily

10:00 Salalah 23:30 Daily

19:00 Salalah 07:40 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:50 Daily

SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Dubai 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

06:00 Sohar 08:30 Daily

06:00 Dubai 11:30 Daily

13:00 Sohar 15:30 Wed,Thur

13:00 Dubai 18:30 Wed,Thur

15:00 Sohar 17:35 Daily

15:00 Dubai 20:55 Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily

07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily

07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily

05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily

05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

07:00 Sohar 08:55 Daily

07:00 Ruwi 11:40 Daily

13:30 Ruwi 20:20 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 14:55 Daily

13:00 Ruwi 17:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 19:20 Daily

17:00 Ruwi 22:15 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

07:00 Ruwi 10:25 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

06:00 Nizwa 08:40 Daily

06:00 Ruwi 11:00 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

15:40 Nizwa 17:55 Daily

15:40 Ruwi 20:20 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

06:00 Ruwi 10:45 Daily

14:30 Ruwi 19:00 Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (ROUTE 62)

12:30 Fahud 13:15 Daily

12:30 Ruwi 17:30 Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Ruwi 19:50 Daily

10:00 Marmul 13:15 Daily

10:00 Ruwi 22:30 Daily

19:00 Ruwi 07:30 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:30 Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Salalah 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

07:30 Sohar 10:50 Daily

07:30 Ruwi 13:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 16:15 Thur-Fri

13:00 Ruwi 19:10 Thur-Fri

15:30 Sohar 18:45 Daily

15:30 Ruwi 21:35 Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH/SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily

16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily

16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

@SOHAR @BAHJA

Visions - 2D (Horror / Thriller) (15+) Cast: Isla Fisher, Anson Mount, Gillian Jacobs4:45, 11:45PM

How to Be Single: (Comedy ) (18+) Cast: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson4.00, 6.00 & 8.00PM

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

The Pack (Horror / Thriller) (12+)Cast: Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell2.00, 6.00, 10.00, & 11.55 PM CP No: 321 Navy Seals: The Battle of New Orleans (Action / Horror) (15+)Cast: Ed Quinn, Michael Dudikoff, Rick Fox 2.00, 10.00 & 11.55 PM. CP No: 322 How to Be Single: (Comedy / Romance) (18+) Cast: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann 4.00, 6.00 & 8.00 PM CP No: 323 The Choice: (Drama / Romance) (15+)Cast: Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer4.00 & 8.00 PM CP No: 324

STAR CINEMAFilm information 24791641 / 24786776Website: www.isurf.co.om

Pavaada (Mal) (Drama/Comedy) Cast: Prithviraj Sukumaran & Miya George 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30PM Cinema Main Bangalore Naatkal (Tamil) (Com) Cast: Arya , Sri Divya & Rana Doggadathi 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30PM Cinema -2 Adi Kappyare Koottamani (Mal) (Com) Cast: Dhyn Sreenivasan & Namitha Pramod 6:45PM Cinema -2 2 Countries (Mal) (Com) Cast: Dileep & Mamta Mohandas 3:45 & 9:45PM Cinema -3Jil Jung Juk (Tamil) (Com) Cast: Siddharth & Sanath Reddy 3:45, & 9:45 PM Cinema -4 Airlift ( Hindi) ( Act)Cast: Akshay Kumar & Nimrat KaurShow Time: 6.45pm at Cinema 4Next Change: Miruthan ( Tamil), Monsoon Mangoes ( Mal), Neerja ( Hindi)

Programmes are subject to change

@RUWI

Screen 3Sanam Re (Romance / Drama) –12 +Cast : Pulkit Samrat, Yami Gautam3.45, 9.45PM

WEATHER

240

Maximum

170

Minimum

TEMPERATURE

60-30%RELATIVE HUMIDITY

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

WITH LOVE

ANIKA PRASANTHFebruary 14, 2012

Sweating is a normal function of the body but some of us generally sweat too much. Excessive sweat-ing is common in adolescence and causes body odour and can also cause skin infections. While it’s important to consult dermatologist for the right solution here are few useful home treatments that can help you reduce sweating and con-trol body odour.

daily in warm (butnot hot) water. Dry yourself thoroughly afterward.

natural fabrics, such as cotton, particularly next to your skin.

Avoid tight clothes.

leather shoes and cotton socks, and change both regularly..

-ter a day, to replace lost body fluids. Cut down on drinks that caffeine, particularly hot drinks.

likely to make you sweat, and onion and garlic, because of the odour.

-ious, try practical techniques that reduce stress.

some weight.

Consult a Doctor When..

or unusual.

associated with the excessive sweating.—lifestyle@timesofoman.com

LIFESTYLEC7

ASK DR. GERRY

F A M I L Y A D V I C E

Dr Gerry D’Costa has an MD in psychiatry and a special interest in the areas of anxiety, depression, addiction, and children’s psychiatry. He has practiced as a specialised psychiatristat Badr Al Samaa hospital in Ruwi for the last 9 years.Dr D’Costa offers advice and professional insights to the readers of Times of Oman. Send your questions to lifestyle@timesofoman.com

While it’s important to con-sult a medical practitioner for one’s ailment, it is also im-portant to empower oneself with the right information. Every week we will discuss about some common condi-tions and ways to deal with it.

Get Back your ConfidenceDear Dr GerryI am a 43-year-old man working in a reputed position in a corporate firm. I have been known to be a confident person so far but in recent times my self esteem is at its lowest ebb. I fear making mistakes at workplace, while meeting clients I get jittery, and most of the time I get this feeling that I am not good enough. I keep thinking about all the mistakes that I would possibly make.

their younger years and rise up the corporate ladder suddenly seem

-pressed and anxious when facing stress they handled easily before.

-

same person you were in the past. Let’s charge the battery and get our strength back.

Sustained stress leads to elevated hormones such as cortisol “the stress hormone” and reduction in brain serotonin which leads to clinical depression and anxiety. So let’s get them recharged. Exer-

in regaining the balance between work and life. Sometimes symp-toms persist, so meet a doctor and discuss about the need for a med-

can solve. -Dr. G

Unlike cancers, the di-agnosis of pancreatic cancer is difficult as there is no screen-

ing test, and symptoms can be subtle and mimic other condi-

the early stages, and in advanced stages, symptoms are present but non-specific — such as digestive issues, back pain, and weight loss.

A pancreatic cancer diagno-sis can be devastating and often comes with many questions from both patients and caregivers.

Like other cancers, pancre-atic cancer starts with abnormal cells that grow out of control. With pancreatic cancer, the ab-normal cells form a tumour or tumours in the head, body, or tail of the pancreas.

the functions of the pancreas that normally include help with diges-

tion and blood sugar control.

healthcare teams will create indi-vidualised treatment plans based on many factors, including the pancreatic cancer’s stage and the patients’ overall health. Common treatment plans may include: sur-gery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, palliative care, and men-tal health care.

Clinical trials investigate prom-ising new treatments and may also be a treatment option for cer-tain pancreatic cancer patients. Eating is often a challenge for people with pancreatic cancer because they are living with on-going symptoms from their can-cer, or from their surgery or other treatments.

ability to digest foods normally, maintain good nutrition, and

important for patients to talk to their healthcare team about a nutritional plan. Counselling can help patients learn new ways to cope with cancer, manage emo-tions, and improve communica-tions both with their healthcare teams and with their families.

-vices, online networks and sup-port groups can help patients and their loved ones.

-ceive a large number of medical bills and health insurance state-

-

and manage bills, statements, and payments through the creation of tracking and filing systems. Care-ful management of these impor-tant documents can help reduce stress, allow patients to feel more in control, and better manage their finances. - BPT

Pancreatic Cancer

H O M E R E M E D I E S

E-cigarettes can cause heart disease: Study

Exposure to either e-cigarette aerosol or smokeless tobacco alone can increase the potential of atherosclerosis — a dis-ease that leads to heart attack, stroke and peripheral arterial disease, says a study. When atherosclerosis affects the arteries of the heart, it is known as coro-nary artery disease, a condition that af-

do conventional cigarettes but they do generate an aerosol - the vapour that alters indoor air quality and contains toxic aldehydes,” said Daniel J. Conklin from the University of Louisville in the US.

of e-cigarette aerosol, tobacco smoke, smokeless tobacco or to an aldehyde produced by tobacco. -IANS

H E A L T H N O T E

Pancreatic cancer can affect the functions of the pancreas that normally include help with digestion and blood sugar control

Excessive

Sweating

LIFESTYLEC8 S U N DAY, F E B RUA RY 14 , 2 0 1 6

BRAIN FOOD

1

2

3

4 5

7

Like our body our mind too ages with time and it is essential to maintain its sharpness by eating the right food. So include

these superfoods in your diet and stay focused.

WholegrainsA diet rich in wholegrain foods is very good for the brains. It includes cereals, wholewheat bread and pasta, wheatbran, and wheatgerm. We need energy to concentrate and this supply of energy comes from wholegrains.

FishBeing a rich source of omega 3 fatty acids, fish is known to boost the brain power. The main sources of oily fish include salmon, trout, mackerel, her-ring, sardines, pilchards, and kippers. It lowers dementia and stroke risks and may help slow mental decline especially as we age. Blueberries

Research says that consumption of blueber-ries may be effective in improving short term memory loss. Blueberry smoothie increases con-centration by as much as 20 per cent in a single day, says UK based nutrition-ists. Eating blueberries also can help stave off dementia.

BroccoliVitamin K helps in increase in the cognitive function and improves brain power and a very good source of this vita-min is broccoli. You can either steam or stir-fry them.

NutsA study published in the American Journal of Epi-demiology suggests that a good intake of vitamin E might help to prevent cog-nitive decline, particularly in the elderly. It has also been found by scientists at Tufts University in Boston that a diet rich in walnuts may improve mental performance.

6 Pumpkin SeedsJust a handful of pumpkin seeds a day is all you need to get your recommended daily amount of zinc, vital for enhancing memory and thinking skills.

EggsEating protein-rich foods like eggs for breakfast can improve overall cognitive performance, according to Swiss researchers. Add these quick and easy egg recipes to your morning routine.

8BeetsThis root vegetable is sure to boost your brain power. Scientists at Wake Forest University determined that natural nitrates in beets can increase blood flow to the brain, thereby improving mental perfor-mance. The tastiest way to eat beets? Roasted and then drizzled with honey dressing like this easy-to-make healthy side dish.

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

CONNECT H E D A I LY G U I D E

D

D4 VACANCY CARGO D7

S U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

RENT D2

*Tourist visa arranged

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

D2 S U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

DAILY GUIDE

Luxury flat for rent in Bareeq Al Shatti building

Spacious 2 BHK with sea view,

split A/Cs, fixed wardrobes,

kitchen appliance.

Near Opera Gallery.

Rent RO.900/- negotiable.

Contact - 94084335 / 96920789

High quality

Warehouses

for rent at Mizfa

550 sqm to

3400 sqm.

Contact

96046951 / 99332291

Flat for rent in CBD area - Ruwi

Two rooms and a large hall•Office spaces for rent in Al Hail on

the main road On the same building

of Al Khamis Shoes at Al Hail

•2 bed room flats in Qurum 29 for

rent next to ABA New building

-split AC - Good location

Contact No: 96177505

Flat for rent south Al Mabela.

Contact: 95331177/95230355

Villa 2bedroom, 1 sitting room,

small hall, Kitchen & 2 bath-

room behind Sultan center south

Mawalah 300/- O.R. Contact:

92757673 /99388138

2bed rooms flat with hall,

2 bathrooms in Darsait near

Muscat Municipality.

Contact: 92584715/ 24700120

1000sqmtrs industrial land for

rent in Ghala suitable for

warehouse workshop etc.

Contact 24700120 /92584715

5 B/R villa available in Mumtaz

area. Contact: 97296105

Warehouse at Wadikabir - total

area 3500 sqm - covered ware-

house (500sqm), office,

accommodation (1000sqm), open

area (2000sqm) please contact:

99273774 - 99202278

Villa for rent in Al Hail South con-

sist of two floor, can rent each floor

separate or together. Each floor

consist of two bedrooms, Majlis

with dining room, living room and

kitchen for every floor 400/-R.O.

Contact: 99546777

Flats for rent at Mawaleh near

Omantel main office opposite Lulu

bandar comprises 3 rooms,

2 toilets and one kitchen OMR 250/-

Per month. Contact: 93131497 or

99203435

Villa is composed of 5 bedrooms

and sitting toilets and 5 living

room, kitchen and Seeb (North

Al Hail). Contact: 91130875

For Rent near ONTC Bus stop Ruwi.

Contact: 99475052/99502708

Modern office space for rent at

MBD area near Atlas hospital.

Contact: 98825805/98825806

Email: info@rns-group.com

1/2/3 bedrooms flats at Al Hail

including utilities bills 92817777

Commercial office at prime loca-

tion in Azaiba for rent. 171sq.mtr.

Contact:- 91398925

3BHK flat for rent in Ghubra.

Contac: 99328070

Restaurant for rent or sale in Al

Ghobrah with its equipments and

permitions for workers. For details

contact: 95094062

1B/R apartment executive fully

furnished at AL Khuwair 33 & 5

B/R villa unfurnished at Madinat

Al Ilam & 5 B/R villa furnished at

Madinat Al Ilam. Contact: Atlas

Real Estate & rent a car LLC 24834

888/99249069/92888376/94617

563 Email: info@alshahiintl.com

Flats for rent in Ruwi Mumtaz

area 2 bedroom. Contact:

91409667/24291500

Flat for rent in Al Hail

south 2 bedroom. Contact:

91409667/24291500

Commercial office at prime

location in Azaiba for rent. 171sq.

mtr. Contact: - 91398925

Shop for rent near Al Nahdha

Hospital. Contact: 97380548 /

99680499

For rent 1 B/R Apartment Execu-

tive Fully Furnished @ Al Khuwair

33, 5 B/R Villa – Unfurnished @

Madinat Al Ilam 5 B/R Villa – }

Furnished @ Madinat Al Ilam

Please Contact:

Atlas Real Estate & Rent A Car LLC

24834888/ 99249069 /

92888376/94617563 /

Email: info@alshahiintl.com

Four bedrooms villa in Al Athaiba

300 m away from Shell Petrol

Station in an excellent condition.

Contact: 97755586

1 BHK Ghubra R.O 250/.

Contact: 97799175

Luxury villa of 5 BHK in Al Khuwair

33 RO.650/- Contact – 91776665

1& 3 BHK Al Khuwair.

Contact: 99024730

2 BHK apartment in

Al Wadi Al Kabir.

Contact 93252324, 99364041.

2 BHK Flats for rent, Muttrah near

Oman house S/ AC.

Contact: 97007934 / 92629232

Flats shops & store for rent in

Ruwi, MBD area & Honda road.

Contact: 92589235/ 94579531

Two bedroom flat in Al Ghubra

near Oman Oil of 18 Novem-

ber street. OMR 330 Monthly.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 or

97509955.

New flats for rent at Darsait near

to ministry of sports, Mumtaz area

the flats include 1 living room, 2

Bedroom, kitchen, 3 toilets every

room with split A/C & high Quality

finishing, rent per flat is R.O 340/-.

Interested candidates please

Contact: 00968- 92225523

One bedroom flat with big balcony

in al Ghubra near Oman Oil of 18

November street. OMR 280 Month-

ly. Tel: 99333479 or 95215360 or

97509955

Brand new deluxe flats located

near Seeb flyover on the right

hand side the main road coming

from the Seeb palace round about,

2 bedrooms family, hall, kitchen,

3 toilets & split unit.

Contact: 97755586

WAREHOUSE AVAILABLE FOR RENT

IN BALADIA SANAYAH AMIRAT

(Floor area 600sqmtrs and mezzanine of 500sqmtrs)

1100sqmts fully cover warehouse

Please contact: G.S.M

99417229/92621039

One / two B/R , RES / Comm flat

near Bank Muscat Bausher directly

from owner. Contact: 92158031

1 BHK near medical Darsait Mut-

trah House. R.O 180/-.

Contact: 95076261

Showroom, readymade office with

ACs & free internet 2 B/R flats with

split ACs & free internet available

at Al Khuwair near KM Hypermar-

ket. Contact: 99460330

Brand new Twin deluxe villas, ex-

cellent location in Madinat Qaboos

4 bedrooms, housemaid room, 2

kitchens, 2sitting rooms, study

room, full A/C, remote control car

parks. 1,600 RO each villa

Contact 00968 92503825

Spacious 5 bedroom villa

Al Khuwair, 1BHK flats Ruwi and

Darsait. Contact: 99369081

FULLY RENOVATED 5 BHK VILLA

For Rent in Azaiba, behind Al Sawa

Towers. WITH Majlis, Living room,

Dining, Kitchen, Laundry, Store.

CONTACT: 93332444, 95166141

Spacious 160 sq meter office with

pantry and toilet built in eagle eye

view of Al Khuwair on 7th floor

Jasmine Building near Radisson Blu.

1,100 RO per month. Contact 00968

92503825

Modern and spacious 4 bedroom

twin villa for rent in Azaiba north

behind Nov 18st with detached

maids room. Contact 99317349

Flat in Wadi Al Kabir 2 bedrooms, 1

living room, 1 family hall, kitchen & 3

bathrooms. Contact: 99277787

2 BHK in MSQ opposite Al Fair with

split AC. Contact: 96708000

2 BHK in Bareeq Al Shatti with split

AC. Contact: 96708000

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6 D3

FLATS FOR RENT

CONTACT :

93202733

1 BHK and 2BHK Flats

with Split ACs -

Opp. to MOD -

Near Lulu Darsait

FOR RENT

FOR SALE

LOSTFOR SALE

Running shop with paint machine for sale in kadra

- - 260 Square meters- Warehouse facility

BUILDING MATERIAL SHOP FOR SALE

9322 3382 or mail to cs@mpesllc.com

Commercial flats of 3 & 2 BHK

in Al Ghobra North 18 Nov street

RO.650/- & 450/-

Contact: 91776665

600 M2 showroom or office in

Bousher in front of Dolphin com-

plex. RO.3.5 per m2.

Contact: 91776665

Brand new villas in Al Ansab.

Contact - 94051789-97201688

Offices & Showrooms in Muttrah.

Contact - 94051789-97201688

Carpentry workshop with all basic

equipments, tools, amenities and

a work force of 15. Total area 1600

SQ.M and a built up area of 800

SQ.M. Accommodation for workers

within the compound. Excellent

goodwill and reputation created in

the market since the last 14 years.

Contact 95219895 or

Email: mci.carpentry@yahoo.com

Cradle lift for external Building

painting, almost new height up to

100 Mts six mtr cradle. Contact :

99235701 / 90648313

Restaurant items for sale.

Contact: 96772479 /98428507

A well Established Indian restau-

rant with all necessary equipments

well qualified staff furnished party

hall (capacity 150) is up for imme-

diate sale at MBD area.

Contact: 92978956

Space for printing press available

at wadikabir with or without

machinery. Contact 99328430

Sale of shop with interiors and

basement go down in Wadi Kabir

near to Lulu Market, on the Juma

Masjid road. Contact: 99344106

Special Dental Center for sale.

2 Dentist room, dental lab, full

brand instruments with external

public pharmacy in Muscat.

Contact no. 99019144

HD Scaffoldings, Shuttering

Jacks, Wooden Planks, Shuttering

wood assorted, Tower hoist (lift),

Concrete Mixer, Bending Machine,

Steel Fabrication Machinery

(Searing/Cutting, lathe & Welding)

including tools for immediate sale:

Contact 99273774/ 99202278

Steel Scrap materials for im-

mediate sale: Contact 99273774/

99202278

Running company with construc-

tion fire & safety license.

Contact: 99319670

INDUSTRIAL LAND

FOR RENT

(BARKA)

1100 SQ MTR free industrial land for

all purpose is available with compound and furnished

offi ce in Barka

Contact:

24707088, 98283896

ACC. AVAILABLE

ACC. AVAILABLE

Single room at Walja, opposite MBD

area SPAR available for executive

bachelors inclusive of electricity and

water for OMR 110/-.

Contact: 98958586

Excellent room, kitchen with A/C

couple / bachelor ONTC bus near

Ruwi. Contact: 91657455

Flats 3 bedroom available at

Ghobrah near Indian School.

Contact: 99236718

Sharing accommodation near

Hamriya flower shopping super-

market. Contact: 98985763

Single room attached bath at

Mumtaz area. Contact 95212017 /

90562744

Furnished room for an Indian in

Al-Khuwair33 - 95234062

Room with kitchen, bath avail-

able in Ruwi for a couple or single

working lady. Contact: 91450718 /

91429608

Accommodation available at

Al Hail Keralite family only.

Contact: 96234708

Room with attached bathroom and

sharing kitchen available for

Executive bachelor or small

family at wadikabir 9304 9849

Fully furnished room with at-

tached bath for Executive bache-

lor, behind Al Meera hypermarket,

Azaiba 150/-R.O.

Contact: 99455735

Single room attached bath,

kitchen in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 99336206

Accommodation for couple or

working lady, near Al Nahda

hospital. Contact 95871148

WANTED

IELTS Coaching (academic)

required nearby wadi Kabir area.

Please call on mobile or msg on

Whats up.

Mobile no: 92927880/99012165

BUYING

Bobcat available for rent.

Contact 97623299

Buying cars for cash.

Contact: 90202090

Brand new 4 BHK villa in Al Fai

compound Al Khoud. RO.475/-

Contact – 91776665

Villa of 3 BHK and sitting area in

Al Ghobra North. RO.525/-

Contact – 91776665

Luxury and brand new semi

furnished 2 BHK flat in Remalbow-

sher. RO.550/- Contact – 91776665

Spacious 1 BHK flat in Al Wattaya

with all split A/C’s and parking.

RO.300/-Contact – 91776665

Flats in Darsait. Contact - 94051789-97201688

Flats in WadiKabir. Contact - 94051789-97201688

Fully Furnished apartments in

Boucher (35)

Contact - 94051789-97201688

Offices in Qurum opposite City

Center. Contact: 94051789-

97201688

Duplex villa in Qurum 29.

Contact - 94051789-97201688

Mini Furnished Apartment in

Qurum. Contact: 94051789-

97201688

Offices & Showrooms in Al Khoud. Contact: 94051789-

97201688

SCRAP COMPANYFOR SALE OR RENT

(BARKA)An excellent Grade 1 Scrap

available with compound

in Barka Industrial Area.Contact:

24707088, 98283896

Erin Jijo has lost Indian Passport

No. K 0074499. Finder please

handover to ROP

1 & 2 BHK Ruwi C.B.D.

Contact: 99024730

2 clean & spacious flats with A/C,

first flat is behind City center Al

Seeb consist of 2 bedroom and liv-

ing room second flat is in Al Khoud

3 consist of 1 bedroom and living

room. Contact: 93366421

Flats & offices for rent in CBD

Ruwi. Contact: 92820734 /

95345909

Flats shops & store for rent in

Ruwi MBD Honda road.

Contact: 92433127 / 97293708

1& 2 BHK flats for rent at Hamriya Wadi Adai, Al Khoud,

Mabela & shop at Al Khoud & land

line Contact: 24834644 GSM

93994401/02/03 3 lines

3 BHK flat near Darsait ID medical.

RO 420/- Contact – 99358589 /

97079146 / 95570288

Villa for rent in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 96571151

1BHK flat near Star Cinema 220/-

Contact 99358589 /95570288

Flats two bed room for rent in

Al Khuwair. Contact: 96571151

SITUATION WANTEDEDUCATION/COMPUTER/WEBSITE

Karate and self defense classes

at Azaiba 18 Nov Street. RO 10 per

month twice a week Monday and

Tuesday 6. 30 TO 7. 30. PM.

CONTACT 98294551

Spoken Arabic class for Non Arabic Speakers & English

class for Malayalam Speakers in Azaiba and Ruwi

earn in two monthstion guaranteed

Tel: 95244310

WEB, ERP and Business Intelli-

gence (BI) creation and man-

agement at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

Fire rated portacabins and steel

caravans. ContacT: 94058574

Ladies Beauty parlour for sale.

Contact: 96392978 / 96700192

Room available in Mumtaz area 1

room, 1 Bathroom, Kitchen & 1 room,

common bathroom. Interested

please Contact: 92680041 Mr. Altaf

DAILY GUIDED4 S U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION VACANT SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

SITUATION WANT-SIT. WANTED

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461Fax: 24812624

SKILLED / UNSKILLED

BEAUTY

DRIVER

DRIVER

MEDICAL

MEDICAL

IT

ADMIN

ADMIN

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

SALES / MARKETING

SALES / MARKETING

Required urgently a Legal Consultant/ Lawyer for reputed

law firm in Sohar, Muscat. Can-

didates should have 5-7 years

experience as a Legal Consultant/

Lawyer with good knowledge of

Computer & should be fluent in

English both written & spoken.

Email C V to shejaanil66@gmail.

com or Contact 99153620

between 8am to 1pm & 2pm to

5.30 pm on Sunday to Thursday

Part Time Accounting, Accounts

Finalization as per IFRS, Audit

Preparation, Project Report, Training

for Accountants, Internal Audit,

Accounting System for New

Companies, Contact: 96975454,

email:ibfc.gcc@gmail.com

Indian male good experienced in

Accounts, ERP Tally 9 & Admin in

India & Oman, presently on visit

visa, looking for suitable placement.

Contact 94834687

Contact -91262604Email: chillapalli76@gmail.com

Wanted female GP, female

Gynecologist, female Staff

Nurse, female X- Ray Technician

With MOH license for Al Saadi

Specialized Medical Centre

in Musanna.

DOMESTIC HELP

Indian male, 28, Post Graduate, 6

years exp. in Oman in Sales and

Credit Control , with valid Oman D/L

looking for suitable placements.

NOC available. Ph: 9206 6523

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

Indian male, 26 with MBA (Finance

/ Marketing) having 2 years experi-

ence in (Accounts / Finance) on visit

visa looking for suitable position

immediately joining available.

Contact: 92989197 Email:

abdulqhizer2004@gmail.com

CA with 16 years experience in

finance / audit, seeking suitable

senior position and available for im-

mediate joining. Contact: 96320588

Indian male 25 B.Com IATA

diploma 2 yrs exp in accounts,

good looking currently in Oman,

NOC available. Contact: 99323841

Email:rohitpanam@gmail.com

Part time up to finalization.

Contact: 91126314

Indian Accountant with experi-

ence in financial/cost accounting,

Administration, HR and Mate-

rial Management in construction

(more than 30 years) seek suitable

placement. Contact 98598099

EDUCATION

Demi Chef needed urgently for

seafood and fish and chips 2 male

Filipino Waiter needed urgently with

experience. Contact 92382239 /

98260306

B.Com 32 yrs male Accountant

having 8 yrs Oman experience in

Construction Co. seeking immedi-

ate change (NOC available).

Contact: 98624850

Indian male accountant with 7

years experience in Oman seeking

for suitable placement NOC avail-

able. Contact: 95578150 Whatsapp

Accounting Services for small/

medium Businesses. Accounting

from Data Entry to preparation

of P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash flow

and complete reports for auditing

contact: 99679247

Indian male (25) B.com 3 years

experience as Accountant seeking

placement accountant / Admin /

sales visit visa. Contact: 98437731

Email: falsalcpsy@gmail.com

Indian male Accountant having

B.Com, M.Com with 7 years

experience up to finalization look-

ing job, on tourist visa ready to join

immediately. Contact: 91651695

Email: danishpa2005@gmail.com

Indian female 25 yrs, MBA HR &

Marketing, with one and half years

experience as accountant and

6 months experience in teaching,

now on a visit visa,

seeking suitable position.

Contact: 99624044,

mail: np.neethu1@gmail.com.

Indian female Accountant 8 yrs

exp in Oman. Contact: 93726921

Indian male, MBA in finance with

more than 6 years of experience,

proficiency in accounting software

like tally, focus SAP (FICO) etc

seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 98665219 Email Id:

abdulhameed1527@gmail.com

Indian male 12 yrs exp in

accounts location Sohar .

NOC available. Contact :91212471,

Email: rennyj6@gmail.com

Bangladeshi male having MBA

(finance) & M.com (accounting)

with 2 yrs exp. looking for suitable

placement have valid D/L & NOC.

Contact :968 92491009,

Email: rasubiswas4@gmail.com

Indian female B.Com, ACCA affili-

ate fresher seeking for job in

Auditing finance & accounting in

family visa holding Oman driv-

ing license. Contact: 92264638 /

99858867

Email: mira.somya@gmail.com

Pakistani male 11 yrs experience

in accounts, finance looking for

suitable job.

Contact: 91479315

Email: bilalnazir65@hotmail.com

Finance Manager 22 years Oman

experience available. Transfer

possible. Contact: 95631834 /

91302906

Indian male 7 yrs Oman exp, tally

ERP 9, Accounting, Inventory

controlling & IT Supports seeking

suitable job. NOC Available. B.Com,

PGDCA. location Sohar having

Oman D/L. Contact 98317698,

Email: sukuanilkumar@gmail.com

Young 24, ACCA affiliate,

Advanced diploma in Accounting

and Business, seeking suitable

placement in Accounts, Finance or

audit With valid driving license.

Contact - 92430152,

Email - rau_dey@yahoo.com

Indian male 35 years, BBM,

diploma in accounts manage-

ment & banking, 5 years experi-

ence in Oman as sales executive

& accountant, with valid Oman

D/L, seeking suitable placement

in Muscat. Contact: 98163037/

92683606 Email:

abhi.abrahan09@gmail.com

Chartered Accountant - Indian, 9

yrs + Exp (7 yr in Oman & UAE) in

Finance, Accounts & Auditing, seek-

ing suitable position in Muscat/

Dubai ASAP, Can Join Immediately,

NOC Available, Contact : 98707434

/casmart007@gmail.com

Chief Accountant looking for full /

part time job.

Contact: 95598477/98803439

Urgently required a Gulf experi-enced professional hair dresser cum beautician (lady) for a

reputed beauty salon, immediate

appointment. Contact: 99816262 /

98557585 Fax: 24796211

Email: skin.hair.makeup@gmail.

com

Wanted experienced beautician and hairdresser for the reputed

ladies beauty center at Qurum.

Contact: 97453246

Email: souzawilfred@gmail.com

Reputed organization is looking

for heavy duty drivers for trailers

Omani / expat (3 nos) and outdoor

Sales Executive for hardware and

general trading with valid D/L (1 no).

Send your CV on

ocm@theocmgroup.com

Urgently required one Omani driver for a reputed trading com-

pany in Ghala. Contact: 24502710

Fax: 24502609, GSM 99763251

Email: sharlu.entp@gmail.com

A Leading trading group is looking for Sales executives / Outdoor sales Co-coordinator having experience in construction

equipment / Building materials

with driving license & Release /

NOC. Email CV to

alhajoil@omantel.net.om or

fax: 24701683

Urgently Required Steel Fabri-cated Products Salesman with

an experience in steel fabrication,

MUST have Oman driving license,

and immediately join. Apply,

fax 00968–24605955, emails

sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com,

sbeoman@yahoo.com

Required Electrician ITI experi-

enced in L.T works or M.E.P with

MEDC license. Contact: 99364007

/ 99454425

Developers needed with experience in .net, C#, EF Code

First, WCF, MVC 4/5, WebAPI, SQL

and WF 4.5 must. Work from home

role for an Australian company.

Send resume to

Email: atif.saad@mis.technology

26/Pakistani Male/MBA-HR

having 2 years of experience in HR

with MN Insurance Company and

banking industry is currently in

OMAN on VISIT VISA & looking for

a suitable job in HR,

ADMIN or FINANCE.

Email ahmadraja010@gmail.com

GSM 91716268/93228785

Indian female Graduate over

6 years experience in Admin

operations support with excellent

communication skills looking for

suitable job. Contact: 94231020

Indian male MBA 33yrs having 10

yrs of exp seeking full time suit-

able placement in Administration/

HR/ Operations/ Coordination/

Logistics. Holding valid D/L.

Contact 99054786

Indian legal adviser drafting

cases / contract administrator job

experience computer knowledge

Oman experience / India suitable

job NOC. Contact: 91171650

Indian female 27 yrs Masters

in computer, 2 yrs exp in admin.

Looking for full-time or part-time

jobs Contact: 99417993

Pakistani male 7 yrs experience

in purchase & HR looking for suit-

able job with valid Oman driving

license. Contact: 91020279,

Email: afaiz7345@gmail.com

Indian male, Graduate having

more than 10 years experience in

logistics & freight forwarding with

GCC license, looking for a suitable

job. Contact: 91714980

Email: medileep@gmail.com

Looking for H.R Admin Assistant post or any related position, cur-

rently on visit visa, available for

immediate placement Qualifica-

tion MBA H.R. Contact: 94665450

Email:

paulwesleywilliaams@yahoo.com

Indian Female, MBA-HR having

8+ experience in Administration/

HR, Customer Support, Office

Coordinator with good Computer

skill, Now on Visit Visa,looking for

suitable position.

Contact: 90196235

Urgently required a building maintenance / cleaning person worked in gulf if Oman has already

completed 2 years stay in India.

Contact: 99231676

Required experience carpenter & Gypsum worker for interior fit-out.

Contact: 98825805/98825806

Email: info@rns-group.com

Need master cutter, tailor for

tailor shop. Contact: 99825211

Wanted A/c Mechanic, Electri-cian / Plumber, Carpenters, Driv-er. Contact 94147874 / 97014234,

globalaccessunited@gmail.com

Required experienced Accountant for group of restaurant.

Visa available. Contact: 99190190

Audit Assistants. Email: aoabmuscat@gmail.com

Accountant with knowledge of

Tally. Driving license preferred.

Send C.V to info.rsttllc@gmail.com

QHSSE ADVISOR - Interna-

tional Oilfield Services Company

requires a NEBOSH qualified

QHSSE Advisor (Omani National)

to ensure continual improvement

in our Muscat base. Main duties

to include Journey Management,

supporting implementation of

policies and procedures, mentor-

ing staff, training coordination,

reporting, audit & inspection and

risk assessment. Submit CV to

me-job@interwell.com

Required Cleaners & office boys. Contact 24707833

Urgently required House Maid Cum Cook for an Indian Business Family.

Call for Interview 99471085

Keralite house maid required for 3

hrs evening part time job at Ghubra.

Contact:92448315

Required Cook, Omani food &

continental experienced. Visa

available. Contact: 99190190

CATERING

A leading company in travels & tourism, accredited by IATA requires:

Sales Executive for Travels & Tourism:Experience not less than 3 years in one of the travels & Tourism, must have a

driving license.

Sales Executive for Car Rental:Experience not less than 4 years in one rent a car company, must have a driving license.

Ticketing consultant:Must have at least 4 years experience in the travels, professional in GDS (Sabre,

Amadeus, Galelio).

Tourism consultant:Experience not less than 5 years in tourism domain, very good knowledge in Tour-

ism systems (DOTW,GTA…etc).Having relationships with suppliers in diff erent

countries in the world.

Notes: -You must determine which position did you applied for it as email subject

-Th e company will not see at any demand without subject.

Email : nrtvacancies@gmail.com

Required Yacht Captain for a marine tour company in Muscat,

English speaking and valid boat

driving license. Contact: 92014572

TOURS/TRAVELS

Required Female Teacher to teach

Physics and Maths for grade

11 girl, studying at Al Ibdaa PS.

Tel 99227839)

MISCELLANEOUS

Required gynecologist GEN: practitioner lady lab Technician and pharmacologist immediately

for a clinic in Suwaiq.

Contact: 95081010

Email: umchealthcare@gmail.com

Required gynecologist GEN: practitioner lady lab Technician and pharmacologist immediately

for a clinic in Suwaiq.

Contact: 95081010

Email: umchealthcare@gmail.com

Wanted female Ayurvedic

therapist with or without MOH.

Contact: 97263637/93309131

Building material company look-ing for a Marketer with experi-

ence. Contact: 95342240 &

send CV to Email:

venice.decoration@gmail.com

Urgently required Marketing Executive with driving license

for sales of furniture. Contact:

97164554 / 99452755

Email: aliasgar.tarwadi@yahoo.

com

Wanted experienced Sales Person for show room related

to safety products (PPE) having

knowledge of computer, driving

license is an added advantage.

Contact: 99344106/99893938

Required building material outdoor sales man with Omani

driving license

3 years experience in outdoor.

Contact: 24817708

Office furniture Sales Executive with minimum 5 years experi-

ence & valid Omani driving

license, should have experience in

handling office furniture projects,

Tenders & Retail. Candidates

should have NOC from the current

employer. Interested candidates

can apply by mail:

info@smartvisionoman.con

Fax: 24818818

Required marketing Executives females in Muscat with Oman

driving license. Email:

excellentchoice1ccs@gmail.com

Required male / female Market-ing person for man power Supply

Company with minimum 3 years

experience with valid GCC / Oman

driving license.

Contact: 97158893 / 94148972.

Kindly send CV at

Email: rastllcmuscat@gmail.com

Urgently required Marketing Executives with driving license

for sales in artificial grass & steel

fabrication. Contact 99104577

Email: info@greencover.net

URGENTLY REQUIRED

Mobile Technician

Contact:

91577519/99737812

Décor Company looking for an Engineer or Technician deco-

rated with experience. Contact:

95342240 & send CV to Email:

venice.decoration@gmail.com

Senior Factory Control Room Operator Required for a Manufac-

turing Company in Oman. Candi-

date should possess a Diploma in

Electrical and Electronics

Engineering with minimum

5 years of experience.

Candidates who have experience

in Oman are preferred. Kindly

forward relevant resumes to

info.companyoman@yahoo.com

One of the leading Business

Groups in Oman is looking for

Secretary- male / Secretary – Female / Accountant / Driver

with valid Omani license & Laborer (loading & unloading). Interested candidates may apply

to muscat.supply@gmail.com

Required candidates for following

posts: Accountant, Storekeeper, Foreman Building Maintenance, Van-salesman (water), Helpers. Candidates with Omani driving

license preferred.

Contact 99273774/99202278

An Indian light driver. Contact:

24705605, Ruwi

Wanted Driver. Contact 91025698

ENGINEER

URGENTLY REQUIRED HR Manager

Interested candidates may send in their CVs to Fax # 24600217 or

email on: zeeshan@starslightllc.com

LOOKING FOR

SALES EXECUTIVES &

SALES ENGINEERS

WITH AT LEAST TWO YEARS

EXPERIENCE IN THE FIELD

OF EARTHMOVING

EQUIPMENTS,

CRUCHERS, QUARRY &

MINING INDUSTRY.

Email: applyinggchr@gmail.com

Vacancy dermatologist doctors & internal medicine for inquiry or

send CV. Contact: 24571094/

Fax: 24571097

Email: zmczahara@yahoo.com

Experienced CEO required

Kindly send your emails :- issa@nibras.om, kevin@nibras.om

Omani Based Group of companiesRunning a midsized successful holding organization

With multi discipline of fi elds is looking for an active CEO with minimum of ten years Experience

who has a global Business outlook, he should have strong leadership, and be able to give clear direction

and guidance to the management team.

FMCG is looking for a

SALES SUPERVISOR

- Bachelor ‘s degree on the same fi eld- 5 Years experience in the (FMCG) fi eld.- Minimum Age 30 to 40 years- Speaks English and Arabic- Driving license

Ready to directly of work

Send your CV to Email :receptionist@mescooman.com

Indian male having good experience

in accounts and in accounting and in

accounting software’s ready to join

immediately

Contact +91 9444965126

28/male/MBA - finance/B.Com -

Accountant with 4 years of Dubai/

India experience looking for a

suitable placement.

Contact 90187483

shobinkarikkan1987@gmail.com

Indian Male Accountant 10yrs

Exp. in OMAN Retail & Furni-

ture Co. (Release Available)

GSM.92564955

M.Com & MBA finance Indian 10

years of experience in finance & ac-

counts up to finalization currently

available in Oman. #90501642,

Email: bobykkj@gmail.com

Indian male, B.Com with 6 years

experience as an Accountant,

looking for suitable placement.

Mob: 93903458 ,

Email : Akkandyrijesh@gmail.com

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, with

13yrs experience, 6 yrs Oman in

manufacturing, trading & contract-

ing Cos, capable of handling all

accounting, finance, banking, L/C,

import, export & finalization seeks

placement. NOC Available.

Call+968-98932752,

mail:jjohnmuscat@hotmail.com

Indian male 34 Yrs, Dual MBA

Finance and marketing with IT

skills, 7+ yrs of experience, Look-

ing for suitable placement.

Contact : 94879615,Email-

sajan_chacko1981@yahoo.com

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT-M. Com

Finance-Indian with 7 years expe-

rience in Finance & Accounts up to

finalization. Currently employed in

Oman. Having D/L & NOC.

Mob: 94122464,

Email: cammk13@gmail.com

Indian male 25 yrs, Graduate in

commerce, overall 5 yrs exp in ac-

counts/ finance field. On visit visa.

Immediately available.

Contact – 92836216 /

muhammad.tausif623@gmail.com

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6 D5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

BEAUTY

DRIVER

ADMIN

CATERING

DESIGNER/DRAUGHTSMAN

ENGG. / TECH./MECH.

Indian Kerala male 39 well exp

commis chef /cook / supervising

in hotel / catering seeking suitable

placement. Contact: 98137476

Cooks (Arabic Indian) gulf exp

looking job. Contact: 99531802

Finance / Project/Program Manager Professional

Country Exposure Canada &

Canadian, In Person Interview on Sundays

Contact No: 97203531, +923352855176

Interior Designer 4 years experi-

ence design and supervision skills

(3D Max, AutoCAD Photoshop.

Contact: 95246737

Email: yassalnajjar@gmail.com

DOMESTIC HELP

E

EDUCATION

Indian Lecturer Lady, MTECH

with 5+ years teaching experience

in Electrical engineering - RUWI-

95073922 /

chithrarakeshkumar@gmail.com

Looking for part time tutoring on

Mathematical & Statistics.

Contact: 99229700

Mechanical Engineer (B.Tech) with

QA / QC piping Engineering (ASNT)

level 2 (UT, RT, MPT, LRT) with

experience QC Inspector in a expan-

sion project of a refinery. Currently

on visiting working for suitable job.

Contact: 00968 97697944

Email: arskpo7@gmail.com

Project Engineer (Civil) Indian Male

11 years in Building Construction.

Visa release & D/L available.

Contact: 93836362/94605415,

mathan.civil04@gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer (B.Tech) with

2 and half years experience Indian

male 24 years in visit visa. Contact:

96620482 / + 919605423272

Email: bijumonps@gmail.com

Civil Engineer 6 years experience, 4

years in Oman, driving license avail-

able. Contact number 92553263

Offshore Structural Engineer

(M. Tech) Indian 27 yrs 1 year expe-

rience looking opportunity in Oman.

Contact: 93653629

Telecom Engineer, Indian, M.Tech

(Communication System) 2 years

exp O& M of Ericsson BSC, RNC

equipments seeking suitable job,

presently on visit visa.

Contact: 968 93615443

Email: shabnaspk@gmail.com

Diploma Engineer looking for job

(Civil) 7 years experience in Oman.

Contact: 92076339

Process Engineer Chemical Engi-

neer, MBA certified in supply chain

(MGT) 6 years experiences in opera-

tion. Contact: +968 94690325 Email:

phahad.hashim@gmail.com

Electrical designer Indian male

25 yrs experience of oil & gas field

in Oman seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact: 99605127 Email:

Gerard.baptist@gmail.com

Civil Engineer (B. Tech) Indian

male with 3 years experience

skilled in the area quantity survey-

or, primavera, MS Excel, AutoCAD.

Contact: 00968 94853061, E mail:

arunmohan.13990@gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer (4 years

exp) (3 years HVAC 10 months

Piping Engineer) job visa Indian

Muslim (27). Contact: 90486758

Email: afsalhyder@gmail.com

Indian Civil Eng., (BE) 16 years

exp in Oman const. having driving

license & NOC. Contact : 99446335

Email: sonymathew76@yahoo.com

Technical Analysis Trainer with

automated trading system (NSE)

looking for a job. Contact: 91285811

Diploma in Civil Engineering

having an experience 16 years (8

years in Oman) looking for a suita-

ble placement. Contact: 95900744

/ 98028329

Email: skalam744@gmail.com

B.E .Mechanical Engineer Indian

over 4 yrs of exp in HVAC design

auto cad drafting on visit visa.

Contact 90305596, Email:

shaikrizwan330@gmail.com

Mechanical Eng. Diploma 31

years experience (22 Oman) Steel

fabrication, steel furniture, Powder

coating, Production and Planning.

Machine shop, looking for

Managerial position in Sohar.

Contact 99314899

Seeking for Job: Male Bachelor of

Science In Industrial Technology

Graduate Job Exp.6yrs water safe-

ty rescue/lifeguard/scuba diving

Contact: 96094260 / 96023570

Electrical Engineer B.Tech with

4 yrs experience in India available

on visit visa looking for suitable

placement. Contact: 94741401 /

97239852 Email:

sobinthomask05@gmail.com

Indian male, Electronics Engineer

with 16+ yrs experience in ELV sys-

tems looking for suitable position

in Sales, Business Development or

operations, having valid license &

local release. Contact 98143907 or

mazher2005@yahoo.com

Indian male 26 yrs have 6 yrs

exp in technical assistant in tyre

production, visit visa at Ruwi.

Contact: 92600859

HOSPITALITY

Hotel Management Degree holder,

Indian Male, with 4 years work ex-

perience (Kuwait & India) looking

for “Supervisor” position in F&B

Department. Contact 96278739 or

email anand786x@yahoo.com

Hospitality/Hotel/ Restaurants

Dynamic result oriented hospital-

ity professional with 20 years of

international exp. MBA in Hotel

Management, specializing in

Hotel/Restaurant start ups, con-

cepts & Franchise development

with proven records. Seeking for

Challenging positions in reputed

groups as GM/COO/CEO/Business

Head. (NOC available)

Contact: 96059470

HSE Engineer (B.E Mech+ Diploma

Safety + NEBOSH+ OSHA) over

10yrs. Exp, (Visa Release Letter

(NOC) available), seeking suitable

placement. Contact :97061817,

Email:jayanammu1977@gmail.com

Indian male Electrical Engineer with MBA (Mktg) having 4 and half

years experience in technical com-

mercial and marketing fields with

valid GCC D/L, NOC available seeking

placement. Contact: + 968 96547828

Email: deva0234@gmail.com

Civil Engineer diploma, 4 yrsexp

seeks suitable position ina reputed

company. NOC available.

Contact – 96789711

HSE Engineer B.Tech (safety & fire)

M. Sc 8 years experience

Indian 31 years presently occupied

on notice period available with clean

NOC, holds Oman driving license &

owns car. Contact: 94616721

Email: aibelg19@gmail.com

B.Sc Civil Engineer, 27 yrs Oman

experience as Project Manager,

Structure Engineer looking for suit-

able placement. NOC / LOCAL trans-

fer available. Contact: 99349578

Email: farooqatm@hotmail.com

Civil Engineer 8 years experience

in Oman as a project engineer for

governmental & private projects.

Contact – 90164912

IT

Indian male Nurse Prometric 70%

with MOH license. Smart & fluent

in English. Ready for immediate

joining. Contact – 92194649

Female Nurse Indian, total 15 yrs

experience, 6 yrs in KSA, promet-

ric passed with 66% ready to join

immediately. Contact: 95525004 /

98146565

MANAGER

MEDICAL

IT Service Desk Management

with 3 years experience now on

visit visa looking for suitable

placement. Contact: 95917613

Email:shithin.kanakadas@gamil.com

Indian male 27 yrs master in

computer applications currently in

Muscat with Oman driving license

seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 93191800

Email: vijilraj60@gmail.com

Indian Male, IT System Engineer

having 4 yrs of experience in sys-

tem administration.CCNA,MCSE,

Linux. Looking for suitable job.

Contact :91272867

Indian Female, MSC, 2.5 Yrs

experience in Infosys Ltd as senior

systems engineer. Currently on

family visa. Area of expertise-

Java, Ecommerce, IBM-Sterling,

SQL, C/C++, Oracle, Java script.

Looking for suitable job opportuni-

ties. Contact: 93092729

Indian female 28 years, MCA,

B.com, 3 years experience in the

field of computer hardware, ERP

software and windows network-

ing where planning, implementing

and troubleshooting with multiple

platform of OS Microsoft XP /7/8

on visit visa. Contact: 95089170

Email: anjuretnakar@gmail.com

Indian male 25 years BSC (C.S)

with basic hardware and software

knowledge seeks suitable place-

ment now on visit visa.

Contact: 92319677

Email: ismabsc@gmail.com

Indian male having B. Tech

C.C.NA M.C.SA 3years Saudi expe-

rience in IT System Administrator,

2 years experience in Networking

(routing & switching) & server

administrator presently on visit

visa looking suitable placement.

Contact: 92339064 Email :

anshadsainullabdeen@gmail.com

Indian female, B.Tech graduate,

with one and half years experience

as ‘web developer’ interested in

web development and has experi-

ence working in HTML, CSS, Boot-

strap, JavaScript and Photoshop.

Contact : 9592 7075, e-mail id:

mariarosejacob90@gmail.com

LOGISTICS

IT

ARCHITECTURE

Architect / Site Architect 12 years experience in Supervision

the implementation of major

projects & design, looking for work

in construction or consulting.

Contact: 96049397

Indian female diploma in archi-

tecture having 5 years of working

experience in Oman (Engg Consul-

tancy having valid Oman driving

license. Contact: 96683293

Indian heavy duty driver having

15 years experience in Oman NOC

available. Contact: 91395329

/94730087

Driver with car 2015 model,

speak British English.

Contact: 94039796

Embassy experienced driver with

17 years experience seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 92191698

Driver with release Oman

4 years, K.S.A 12 years exp.

Contact: 93885404

Pakistani light driver looking

for job with 5 years experience.

Contact: 92617293

Looking job for driving with car.

Contact: 90436094

Looking for job car driver.

Contact: 98388947

Light driver looking for job expe-

rience 8 years. Contact: 94297563

Light driver. Contact: 99141481

Light driver looking for job.

Contact : 95494310

Light driver 10 years experience

looking for suitable job, can speak

English, Arabic & Hindi.

Contact: 92360040

Driver, 2 yrs exp looking for suit-

able placement. Contact: 97133246

Light driver need job knows

Arabic & Hindi. Contact: 95145988

Looking job L.T.V with car,

without car. Contact: 94436276

Driver, 5 years experience in

Oman looking for job.

Contact : +968 99139890

Job for driving. Contact:

98982410

Beautician, Indian exp. required

visa. Contact 95175192

Housemaid & Driver, valid GCC

D/L (couple) overseas looking for

job. Contact 95175192

Housemaid (overseas) Indian

family looking for job.

Contact 99531802

Indian Male, 36 years, over 16

years’ Stores, Logistics and Import

Export experience with US based

MNC, seeks suitable placement.

Mob: 9822 6568

Indian Male, 36 years, over 16

years’ Stores, Logistics and Import

Export experience with US based

MNC, seeks suitable placement.

Mob: 9822 6568

Civil Engineer (B.Tech), Indian

male 24 years with 1+years Indian

experience,(Certified in Staad

Pro/ Quantity Survey/ Auto Cad).

Looking for a Suitable position.

Available In Sultanate of Oman

(Muscat) on Visit Visa.

Contact: 92835952. E-mail:

mohammedamair.bin@gmail.com

Indian male Electrical Engineer, having 6 years gulf experience in

designing, assembling, commis-

sioning execution etc having valid

GCC license too looking for a suit-

able. Contact: 00968-98052942

Email: azamjeelani78@gmail.com

Electrical Testing Engineer (B.Tech) having 7 yrs Gulf expe-

rience expertise in testing pre-

commissioning commissioning of

electrical systems, currently on visit

visa seeks suitable job in Muscat.

Contact: 90188231

Mechanical Engineer male 26 yrs,

with 4 yrs of experience in manu-

facturing oil & gas retail, brand pro-

moting, marketing, logistics having

valid Omani D/L seeking for a suit-

able placement. Contact: 97098676

Email: ja237le@gmail.com

Indian male, Mechanical

Engineer having 1year experi-

ence, on visit visa looking for

suitable job. Contact:97416564,

Email:jovinmathias@gmail.com

Civil diploma Engineer cum

quantity survey male 6 years

experience in Oman valid Oman

D/L. Contact: 93747759 Email:

jaleelvanimalkp@gmail.com

B.Tech Mechanical Engineer Experienced from Indian & Sin-

gapore, experience in QA/QC is

looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 98919114

Indian female (22) BE Computer

Science & pursuing MBA in sym-

biosis, looking for a job in HR & IT

with 2 years experience in IT field.

Contact: 92649477 / 96043223

Male 38 yrs Graduate 07 years

experience indoor / outdoor

electronic field with D/License &

NOC available (as per new rule).

Contact: 92453375

Chemical Engineer Sudanese

male 29 yrs. Master degree in

chemical engineering , Experience

1 yrs and 2 months OSHA Course

,HACCP Course , look for suitable

job in Oman. Contact 96533430

Indian male, Age 22, B.Tech,

Mechanical Engineer, seeking for

job on any position presently on

family visa. Contact 94597785

Highly experienced Indian

Civil Engineer looking for suitable

placement. NOC available.

Contact 95715278

Iraqi Architect with 10 years of

experience in Engineering designs

and Construction Supervising

professional in 3Ds Max, AutoCAD

Photoshop. Contact: 96011716

Civil Engineer 4 years experience

(Site Engineer). Contact: 94703391

Soft ware Engineer available,

1 year experienced in Oracle –DB,

VB. Net, SQL. Interested contact:

97440378

Electrical Engineer with 18 years

exp in UAE. Contact: 98148034

Email: shassalih66@gmail.com

Electrical Engineer Indian male

30 years, having 5 years of experi-

ence in industrial automation and

utility maintenance in India (MRF

Tyres) holding valid Oman D/L.

Contact: 92789995 Email:

akhilabrahamlktr@gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer, Experience

in the power plant and any types of

the Mechanical work, looking for

mechanical jobs.

Contact: 92827254 /94641669

MEP Engineer 5 years exp in Gulf

driving license NOC. #97838220

Civil Engineer (Diploma) having

11 years experience in building

construction, looking for a suitable

placement , having Oman driving

license. Noc available. # 95075365

Email: azharraaz@gmail.com

Procurement Manager / Commer-

cial Manager / G.M Indian male

having 26 years of experience in

Import, procurement, logistics,

Commercial activities, Warehous-

ing, TRD & Sales. # 90502724

Email: tk.sasi@gmail.com

Office Manager / personal As-

sistant with extensive experience

in overall admin, commercial activi-

ties, purchase, accounts with driv-

ing license seeks suitable change.

Local release available. #99168054

Egyptian male finance manager

7 years experience release avail-

able. Contact: 95539923

Showroom & Office &Purchase

manager with legal background

and operation management-6

years experience inside Oman

-An ongoing relationship with a

number of customers & supplier

in Oman-with valid Omani driving

license. Contact: 97792871 –

email : m.hossam1986@gmail.com

Store Incharge / Store keeper

8 years experience in Oman,

NOC & release is available looking

for good job. Contact: 98178804 /

96703816

The Business Development Man-

ager, Iraqi, Experience 15 Years

Inside and outside Oman follow-

ing activities: construction(Very

strong and qualified to bringing

business for civil work Or any

type of the construction work for

many million per year with a good

experience in pricing and collect

payment and cash management of

the company & marketing projects

& investments& tenders & real

estate. Contact 92385033

MBA (marketing) with 17 years

experience in freight forwarding/

logistics industry in GCC & Oman.

Presently working as branch

manager in Muscat. Looking for a

suitable position. Release and NOC

available. Contact: 99856331

Indian male, with experience in

operations management, informa-

tion security, purchase & stores

mgmt, hold UAE driving license,

on visit visa, seeks suitable job.

Contact 91904541

Email: naushers@yahoo.com

The Business Development Manager, Iraqi, Experience 15

Years Inside and outside Oman

following activities: tenders& real

estate& construction & marketing

projects& investments & trans-

portation & Marine services&

companies management& develop

business. Contact: :- 92385033

Indian female civil engineer

B.Tech having 3 years experience

sound knowledge of software,

REVIT STAD PRO structural detail-

ing currently on family visa seeks

suitable placement.

Contact: 95345591

Mechanical Engineer with 3 Yrs

experience in international Oil

& Gas company looking for job

Contacts: Tel: 90164236 Email:

mustafaoshi-62@hotmail.com

Sudanese Architectural Engineer

2 years experience in Oman, Revit,

AutoCAD 3Ds max Archicad

looking for suitable job.

Contact: 94722356

Email: maya40999@hotmail.com

Indian Electrical Engineer Btech,

female 24 seeking job, presently

in oman having 2 year experience

in design and estimation of Ht &Lt

projects. Contact 968 97436557,

Mail id : sibinanoop1@gmail.com

Civil Engineer 6 yrs Exp in Oman

with license. Contact: 98975518

Diploma in Mechanical Eng piping system in AutoCAD work,

21+ years experience with Driving

license. Contact: 95267113

Email: rkakkaryil@gmail.com

Sri Lankan Engineer (27 Years

old) – B.Sc Engineering (Hon)

Mining / Geotechnical Presently

in Muscat, 1.5 years experience.

Contact 91295802 /

acmfaslan123@gmail.com

Road and Construction Engineer with 5 years exp in Oman.

Contact: 97667113

7 Yrs Exp. PM in Mech. Engg in

the field of Building Const. Oil &

Gas Seeking Job.94625598

Indian Male 23 years B.Tech

Civil having 2 years experience in

quantity survey and site manage-

ment looking for suitable place-

ment. Contact:- 95042656

Civil Engineer (BE) having total

5 years experience in building

construction looking for a suitable

placement. D/L available

Contact# 94450270

Mechanical Engineer M.Tech

2 years experience HVAC design

& site Engg revit MEP Auto CAD.

Contact: 90150913 Email:

mahmanmechengg@yahoo.im

Indian female, 31 yrs, 7 yrs expe-

rienced as AutoCAD civil drafts-

man (2 yrs experience in Oman)

currently in Oman seeks suitable.

Contact 96789441

Email: simi5304@gmail.com

Bachelor Civil Engineer 6 Years

in Oman experience Valid Driving

License seeks suitable placement

Phone 97619722

Email – golamrob@yahoo.com

Indian male, MCA, 15 years

experience in Oracle, developer,

Orion Sage ERP, 5 years in Oman

working as IT In charge, with NOC

release and transferable visa.

Contact: 95398567,

Email: anasa4@gmail.com

SAP / ABAP certified Indian

female (30), BCA, MCA, ASP. Net

certification having 2 yrs of

experience family visa,

seeking placement.

Contact: 99109121

Email: ashamaryphilip@gmail.com

Indian male MBA- UK 18 yrs Gulf

exp in Administration/ HR & Pub-

lic relationship. Fluent in Arabic/

English with D/L. Looking for suit-

able position. Contact - 99897280

Indian female, Masters in HR,

having 4 + years Oman experience

in media management and HR,

looking for openings in HR, Educa-

tion, Admin, Corporate communi-

cations. Contact 98252030

young Omani male have experi-

ence 12 years as P.R.O , Clerk helper

supervisor Admin supervisor , H.R

Manager have diploma in H.S.E, IT

and P.D.O license looking for H.R

position or P.R.O license . Looking

for H.R position or P.R.O part time or

full time. Contact: 95933288

Sudanese Telecom Engineer, 5 years experience, 3 years in

Oman PMP certificate.

Contact: 93391008 Email:

momen.awadallam@gmail.com

Procurement Engineer (27 years

single male with Oman Driving Li-

cense) having 7 years experience

(UAE 2, Oman 3) with expertise in

MEP, Water, Electromechanical,

Instrumentation seeking suitable

placements. Contact 95852033,

mail: hemal1988@gmail.com

Civil Engineer 8 years experience

Structural buildings marine. Availa-

ble NOC release. Contact: 92451323.

Email: zubairali134@yahoo.com

DAILY GUIDED6 S U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED

Indian female, B.Tech graduate,

with one and half years experience

as ‘web developer’ interested in

web development and has experi-

ence working in HTML, CSS, Boot-

strap, JavaScript and Photoshop.

Contact 9592 7075, e-mail id:

mariarosejacob90@gmail.com

Indian male 26, on vist visa, 2+

yrs of experience with UAE D/L,

IATA-FIATA,BBA looking for any

suitable job. Contact 91324567

Bangladeshi Male, University MA,

Working as Sales coordinator cum

Store In-charge in Muscat; search-

ing better job. Phone: 91997605

email: mohamednazrulislam2@

gmail.com

33 year old Filipina with experi-

ence in Teleperformance, Manila

call centre ,now working as Wait-

ress in Qatar seeking suitable post.

Contact 99022484

9 yrs exp Site Engineer in Civil &

Shade Structure. 2d, 3d draughts-

man (HOLDING OMANI DRIVING

LICENSE) seeking job. #90139903

Bangladeshi Male, University

M.Com, Working as an administra-

tor in Oman; searching better job.

Phone:94864966,

email: sunrisetoiqbal@gmail.com

MISCELLANEOUS

MISCELLANEOUS

TECHNICIAN /MECH.

TOURS/TRAVELS

Instrumentation & controls Technician with 2-3 years

experience preferably in water

sector and having valid driving

license call Ph:+968 99450811

Send CV to shiju@spec-link.com

Indian male 26 yrs, 7 yrs experi-

ence in airfare, audit, air ticketing

well verse with Microsoft Office

Windows application seeking for

suitable position.

Contact: 94894170 / 95618311

SALES / MARKETING

SIT.WANTED

SIT.WANTED

MBA Indian male 4 years experi-

ence sales & marketing seeking suit-

able opportunities. Contact: 96931719

Male 26 BBA studied in Oman

3 yrs exp in MNC and now on visit.

Contact: 98180071

Email: nikhildasin@gmail.com

Sri Lankan lady experienced in

key accounts, Market Demand

planning & Communications,

Brand/Sales in multination-

als seeks placement in Muscat.

98250829

Experienced Indian male with

Oman driving license and NOC

looking for sales & marketing or

purchase jobs.

Contact: 97360689

Indian male 27 yrs, B.Com, tally

4 years sales exp in electrical &

building materials with valid D/L.

Contact: 98462052

Indian male, experienced Sales

Executive with D/ L seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 97853426

Marketing exceutive BBA, MCOM,

Tally, exp in accouting (can

continue in current visa)

ph : 98269281

Indian sales marketing professional

highly experienced in business

development in ME India and Africa

seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 97897611

Indian female, MBA in Garment

Manufacturing Technology, having

over 8years exp in Merchandising &

Marketing, worked for brands Zara,

H&M, DKNY, Even & Odd, Soya Con-

cept & many more, now on family

visa looking for a suitable position.

Pls contact: 95604511.

email: richagandhi25@gmail.com

MBA gradate (Indian male 25 yrs)

having two years experience in

sales and marketing looking for

suitable position.

Contact: 92129799

Email: nabu096@gmail.com

Indian male 23 Graduate with 1

year experience with valid Oman

driving license looking for a

placement. Contact: 93379169

Indian male 4 years sales experi-

ence & Business development

look forward for suitable position.

NOC & Oman D/L available.

Contact: 97198976

Email: qubaisakhan@gmail.com

Indian male, Graduate, experi-

enced Sales person (FMCG) with

valid UAE driving license, on visit

seeks suitable position.

Contact 92419491 / 94881950,

Email : pranilpp76@gmail.com

Indian male 26, with more than 3

years experience in Counter Sales

& Marketing with valid N.O.C Cont:

94704522, 97826454 & Email-

md.noman.mansoori@gmail.com

26 years male MBA in Market-

ing & Finance Graduate having 2

years exp in sales & marketing in

Mitsubishi Motor seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 94676974

Email: dabdulmuqsit@gmail.com

Male 38 yrs Graduate 07 years

experience indoor / outdoor

electronic field with D/License &

NOC available (as per new rule).

Contact: 92453375

MBA with 18 years of experience

in Procurement, 2 years in Sohar,

Oman driving license, looking for

suitable position.M:94047501,

ahmed16071974@gmail.com

MBA graduate having 6 years exp

in Sales & Marketing, 4 years with

PEPSI, India, having international

driving license permit seeks

suitable placement.

Contact : 95308167,

Email : samir.pag@gmail.com

Indian male plumbing sanitary

ware & building materials experi-

ence in outdoor sales (9 years)

with valid D/L UAE.

Contact: 98723456

Indian male B. Pharm 15 years

sales experience MOH Pharmacist

license driving license looking

for opportunities in Pharmacy or

Sales and marketing can get NOC.

Contact: 99694865

Indian male, MBA Marketing

having 2.5 years Sales experience

immediately looking for a suitable

position. Contact: 91415145,

Email: shariqs88@gmail.com

B.Com male 2 yrs experience in

sales Computer knowledge,

seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 98371144

email: nabilnazar22@gmail.com

Indian male, BBM, MBA, having

3 years experience in Sales look-

ing for suitable job.

Contact: 92796046

Bangladeshi Male, University MA,

Working as Sales coordinator cum

Store keeper in Muscat; searching

better job. Phone:91997605. E mail:

mohamednazrulislam2@gmail.

com

Assistant Manager – Planning

(B.Tech EEE): Indian Male, over

10 years( 7+ Yrs in Oman & UAE)

of experience in Project Plan-

ning & Scheduling, Liaison &

Coordination, Budgeting and

Client Interaction. Seeking a

suitable Job in Muscat. Contact

– 00971503529608, Email Id:

saravananbe44@gmail.com

Indian male B.Eng. in IT, CCNA,

MCSA, MCSE, 3yrs exp. in IT/net-

working/server, valid Omani D/L

seeking suitable placement in IT/

Network/Server support.

Contact 92607532

Indian Male, 26 years, With 7

years of experience in Sales Field

in shipping company in “Dubai”

, looking for suitable placement.

Experienced working in safety

Marine equipment and well versed

with MS Office. Contact: 90182494,

manojmallya999@gmail.com

Indian female 25 yrs, MBA HR &

Marketing, with one and half years

experience as accountant and 6

months experience in teaching,

now on a visit visa, seeking suit-

able position. Contact: 99624044,

mail: np.neethu1@gmail.com.

MBA (F), B.COM. Indian female

having knowledge of accounts

with Tally looking for full or part

time job. presently on family visit

visa. Contact :- 96259171. Email:-

bhumicapandya@gmail.com

Indian Male, 27 Years, MBA

Finance pursuing, BCA, 6 years

working in Airline Cargo Op-

erations, Airline Passenger Ticket

Auditing domain, looking for a

suitable placement, currently on

visit. email: jeevamal89@gmail.

com, Phone:- 91713489

Assistant Manager – Planning

(B.Tech EEE): Indian Male, over

10 years( 7+ Yrs in Oman & UAE)

of experience in Project Plan-

ning & Scheduling, Liaison &

Coordination, Budgeting and

Client Interaction. Seeking a

suitable Job in Muscat. Contact

– 00971503529608, Email Id:

saravananbe44@gmail.com

B.Com 5yrs experience good

command on tally, Excel sheet on

family visa. Contact: 98002428

Email: lubnakanwal36@gmail.com

Diploma in civil engineering

having an experience 26years

(22years in Oman) experience

in Estimator / quantity surveyor

looking for a suitable placement.

Willing to join immediately

Contact : 96328687.

Indian B.Tech 37 years Project

Engineer , 12 + years experience

in construction, maintenance of

STP, Pumping stations, sewer lines,

drinking water distribution and ser-

vice reservoirs & pipe lines. Contact:

99364007 / +91-887422635

Email: mdzubair01@gmail.com

Indian Mech Engineer, 9+ years

of Saudi experience in HVAC, MEP

oil & gas and hospital projects with

valid Saudi driving license can join

immediately. Contact: 99364007 /

+966-505899608

Email: shuebmech@gmail.com

Bangladeshi Male, University

MA, Working as Store keeper in

Muscat; searching better job.

Phone:91997605, email:

mohamednazrulislam2@gmail.

com

Electrical Engineer with 11 years

experience in Electrical Design

(LV&HV) Villas , apartments ,

seek part time jobs.

Contact -91403412

Pakistani Male having 6 years

Experience Valid Omani Driving

license working as a Transport

Manager looking for a suitable

position. salary is negotiable.

mail: mohdnaveed043@gmail.com,

Mob: +96893363316 / 94202746

Indian male 25 yrs, MBA (Finance,

Marketing), Overall 2 yrs exp in

Accounts/Finance field, On Visit

Visa. Immediately available.

Contact - 92989197/94786544.

abdulqhizer2004@gmail.com

Bangladeshi Male, University MA,

Working as Store keeper in

Muscat; searching better job.

Phone: 91997605,

email: mohamednazrulislam2@

gmail.com

22, Indian BBA graduate, 1 year

experience, presently on visit visa,

looking for suitable placement.

Contact 91881053

Highly experienced mechanical/

steel structural fabrication engineer

looking for suitable placement. NOC

available. Contact: 99860714,

hussain20173@gmail.com.

Part- Time Accountant, well expe-

rience senior accountant ,doing all

type of accounting works, Finaliza-

tion, Budgeting available.

Contact 98803439

Bangladeshi Male, University

M.Com.Working as an Admin-

istrator cum Accountant in

Oman; searching better job.

Phone:94864966,

email: sunrisetoiqbal@gmail.com

IT professional, B.E. in IT, CCNA,

MCSA, MCSE, 3yrs exp. in IT/

networking/server support, valid

Omani D/L seeking suitable place-

ment in IT/Network/Server support.

Contact 92607532.

Light Driver looking for job.

Contact:99594946

Sudanese Mechanical Engineer

26 years old (male) with 4 years

experience as Mechanical engineer

, Sales engineer and Call center

agent seeking suitable placement.

Contact: +968.90644235

9 yrs exp Site Engineer in Civil &

Shade Structure. 2d, 3d draughts-

man (holding Oman driving

license) seeking job. #90139903

AVAILABLE

Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirt-

ing, Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery,

Crockery, Glassware, Chafing Dishes,

Ice Sculptures, to Large Sound

Systems and spectacular lighting.

Call Andrea 9606 2222 for Catering

and Croyden 9623 5555 for Sound &

Light. ww.tunesoman.com,

E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

MEDICAL

MISCELLANEOUS

Filipina lady very urgently look-

ing job only in boutique, release

available ready to join immediately.

Contact: 97122152 / 91240759

Office boy, exp, knows English/

Hindi, can work on current visa

94263603

Sudanese male 43 PHD Busi-

ness Management DiPCii, CITIP,

ARM54, 12 years experience in

insurance field, seeking insurance

post or risk management or teach-

ing in University.

Contact: 96796630 Email:

brhomalkhoozamy@yahoo.com

Bachelor of Science in Agricul-

ture, Major in Animal Science,

Male, 5yrs experience in poultry

farm, seeking for job.

Contact 96093752.

A Filipina lady having experience

in call center, airline booking and

reservations, secretarial and real

estate is now looking for a job in

any fields. Contact: 93839304

Sh. Carpenter, steel fitter, helper,

seeks visa. Contact 95175192,

email : oman.manpower@yahoo.com

Indian female on visit MBA

(International Business- Market-

ing & Logistics), BE (Computers &

Science Engg.) Trained in SAP-BI/

BW with 1 year experience

seeking for job

Contact: 90228586

Email:fathimasha16@gmail.com

Graduate, computer literate,

experienced in sales, credit

control, accounts, Omani D/L ,

seeks suitable placement.

Gsm 98805474

SALES / MARKETING

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE

SKILLED / UNSKILLED

Mason, SH / carpenter, steel fitter

gulf & Indian exp looking job.

Contact: 95175192

A dynamic professional, female,MBA,8 yrs MNC exp in

Purchase, Secretary, Sales Coordi-

nation, Office Assistant, Logistics,

Petty Cash, Stock, Dispatch, Project

management, Documentation,

residing in oman with valid NOC

from current company, looking for

suitable job, ready to join

immediately. Contact:-phone:-

94157662

Email: shiji4123@gmail.com

Lady Secretary / Sales Co-co-

ordinator 12 years experience in

Oman in reputed companies, seek

immediate Employment.

Call: 95244761

Indian female B.C.A having exp in

Office Assistance cum

Secretary looking for job.

Contact: 97384206

Email: rani_sweet786@live.com

Male GP Doctor with NOC 6 yrs

experience in Oman for perm/locum

job. Contact : 97746074

Indian Bsc Female Nurse with

6.5 years exp, 4 years in KSA.

Passed Oman Pro Metric with 69%,

completed data flow. Presently in

Muscat in visit visa looking for a

suitable placement.

Contact 94744900, 94742834,

jincyalphonese@gmail.com

An experienced Sudanese female Dentist with MOH license look-

ing for job. Contact 96436517

/97396088

Indian male experienced Office

Asst with D/L looking for suitable

job. Contact: 97718658

Bangladeshi Male, University

M.Com Working as an Administra-

tor cum Accountant in man; search-

ing better job. Phone:94864966,

email: sunrisetoiqbal@gmail.com

MBA - (F), M.Com, B.COM. Indian

female having knowledge of ac-

counts with Tally looking for part

time or full time job. Presently on

family visa. Contact :- 91892264.

Email:- yv.dixit@yahoo.com

Bangladeshi Male, University

MA, Working as Sales administra-

tor in Oman; searching better job.

Phone:91997605, email:

mohamednazrulislam2@gmail.com

Indian Female, BE Electronics and

Communication, having oman ex-

perience looking for full time or part

time job. Ready to join immediately,

currently on family visa.

Contact : 92115948 / 99327912

Indian male B.Eng. in IT, CCNA,

MCSA, MCSE, 3yrs exp. in IT/net-

working/server, valid Omani D/L

seeking suitable placement in IT/

Network/Server support.# 92607532

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6 D7

TOURS

TOURS

RENT A CAR

25 - 50 seater bus with PDO & BP

specification for monthly rent &

small car with driver.

Contact: 99839898

SITUATION WANT-ED

TOURS

SITUATION WANTEDCARGO

TRANSPORTATION

TRANSPORTATION

MV SALEFrom Mabela to Mawaleh for school

student. Contact: 92757673

Transportation. Contact: 96248040

Transportation in Muscat.

Contact: 96004045

Transportation. Contact :98505294

Transportation.Contact: 99099714

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with

Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain

Marine Tours contact 98029602,

92808636

We arrange tours & accommoda-

tion at all the beautiful places in

Oman. Contact 99839898

MV SALE

2007 Nissan Tiida in good condition

for sale. Contact 98241569

Hyundai Santafe 2010 model, 2.7

litres, Black Colour, Expat driven,

well maintained, 86000 kms.

Contact - 93304439.

GOOD NEWS

Transportation available Ruwi to

Al Khuwair, Ghubra & Azaiba.

Contact: 91103909

Ayurvedic treatment for joint

pain, backache, paralysis, mas-

sage, steambath, obesity, spondy-

litis. Ideal Care Ayurvedic Clinic,

18 November Street, Azaiba.

Contact: 99639695 / 97397320

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to

know more about Islam, please

call: 99425598, 99250777,

99353988, 99253818, 99341395,

and 99379133. For ladies:

99415818, 99321360, 99730723

Orvisit:www.islamfact.com

Ayurvedic treatment for back-

ache, paralysis, arthritis etc &

massage, All Season (Vaidyarat-

nam).Contact: 24475280 /

95371664 / 92504980

www.siddhayur.com

Genuine Ayurvedic treatments

& massage, Ayurvedic clinic at

AL Khuwair. Contact: 24478618 /

97263637 / 93309131

2008 2ltr VW Passat, good condi-

tion, 115k km, 99659946, RO 2800

Toyota Haice delivery van 2015

model, high roof in condition.

Contact: 99471699 / 95339183 /

94082616

MANPOWER

Experienced 10 Shuttering

carpenters, 10 Steel Fixers and

10 mason to ready to joined with

our organization with release

& NOC. Salary will be fair, food

and accommodation is available.

Contact 90234289 / 91496549 /

24494900

Transportation Al Khuwair.

Contact: 92711421

Transportation. Contact 92015894

DRIVING

SITUATION WANT-ED

BUSINESS

Partner wanted 10 to 30% share

handover for running Construction

Company. Contact: 97491117

D8 S U N D AY, F E B R UA R Y 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

DAILY GUIDE Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTEDSERVICES

SERVICESWe Provide Cleaners,

General cleaning etc.

Contact : 94277020

Split & window A/c servicing &

maintenance. Contact 93769089 /

95323517

Building maintenance. Contact: 96173326

Cleaning services sofa, carpet,

shampoo old house or new house.

Contact: 92179395

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

LEGAL SERVICE

L

new business in Oman, Civil, criminal cases,.service issues.

Ibrahim Al Massalhi.legal consultancySarafudheen, LLB, MBA,

L Advisor Muscat. GSM: 97351649

FURNITURE SHIFTING

Maintenance, Dismantling, Packing,

Shifting & Fixing furniture

with expert technicians.

Contact: 99041337

GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing,

Contact 99314807/24792998

A/C maintenance & servicing,

fridge, washing machine & dish

washer repairing, painting & clean-

ing services, electrical & plumbing.

Contact 99447257 / 97014234 /

24504281

MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your

marble.# 24793614/ 99314807

Marble, Grinding, Crystallization. Ocean Center L.L.C.

Contact: 99344723

Water proofing ABUQABAS-

Contact 99320217/24788722

Al farzdaq Al Fedi Trad and Cont

Maintenance services electric,

plumbing and A/C.

Contact: 96524904 / 94285064

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance.

Contact ABU QABAS- 99320217

/24788722

Pest Control Treatments Ocean Center L.L.C.

Contact: 99344723

Cleaning & Carpet Shampooing Ocean Center L.L.C.

Contact: 99344723

Split A/C servicing

R.O 10 only. Contact: 94217681 /

99210141

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile

polishing, pest control & anti-ter-

mite treatment, general cleaning

painting,Plumbing, Electrical,

shifting. Contact Mundhir

Al-Rizaiqi trading. L.L.C.

Contact: 24810137, 99450130

Express Building Cleaning Services.Contact 98480070 / 94134784

MATRIMONIAL

Keralite Hindu EzhavaParents invites suitable alliance for their son

26 yrs, Nakshtaram Rohini employed in Muscat.

Girl, resident of Oman is preferred.

Please write to: satishkumar@altesoman.com

House shifting. Contact: 99708138

Muscat Driving School. Contact: 97026581

House shifting packing.

Contact: 99657644 / 98518013