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TUESDAY, November 4, 2014 / 11 Muharram 1436 AH timesofoman.com wtimesofoman.com facebook.com/timesofoman twitter.com/timesofoman blog.timesofoman.com ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company

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HAROON JUMA AL HASANI [email protected]

MUSCAT: It is seven years since Cyclone Gonu hit Oman, and while the government has reha-bilitated some of the families who were rendered homeless, there are many others who are still waiting to move into their new homes.

Hani Al Rahbi’s family in Yiti has been living in a caravan and

desperately wants to move into a better space.

Al Rahbi says, “The area where our caravans have been put up is not suitable for families to live in. There is hardly any privacy and each of the caravans is congested with a large number of people liv-ing in them. The caravans are not safe either as there have been in-cidents of fire. Besides, stagnant water around the area is causing

a lot of problem for the families.”Like Al Rahbi, there are many

others who have had to leave their damaged houses and live in caravans in the aftermath of the cyclone. While they hope that the rehabilitation process will be completed soon, they don’t know when they will move into their own homes. The government is in the process of building homes for residents of Yiti on top of the mountains in the Al Husn heights.

Project in final stageA Muscat Municipality official confirmed that the project is in its final stage and the housing

units will be distributed in early 2015. However, residents can’t stop complaining about what they have gone through till now.

An elderly woman told Times of Oman, “The caravans are in the mountains which are infested with insects, and it is really an-noying. You never know when a snake might appear in the living room or kitchen.”

Another resident, Khalifa Al Rahbi, expressed his frustration at lack of maintenance.

No maintenance“There is barely any maintenance in the caravans. Recently mainte-nance workers came to the area and asked our children to sign some papers but there is still no maintenance,” he said.

He added, “The horrible smell of sewage water makes living in caravans a nightmare.” >A6

Displaced by the cyclone back in 2007,

some residents are still living in caravans

desperately hoping that their rehabilitation

process will be completed soon

OMANSur Gate Project to offer more jobs

2 Residents of Sur will soon have more job opportunities. >A3

OMANSoldier narrates Dhofar war saga

3Operation Oman aims to remember troops who died fighting rebels. >A5

OMANPeace is a prerequisite for prosperity

1Peace is a prerequisite for prosperity and this belief underpins foreign policy in Oman and is demonstrated in Oman’s dealings with other countries in the region. >A3

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

His Majesty’s role in Iran talks hailedTEHRAN: The positive role played by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said in resuming the Iranian nuclear negotiation pro-cess has been praised by Hussain Amir Abdul Lahyan, Assistant Foreign Minister of Iran for the Arab and African Affairs.

In a statement to Al Wifaq newspaper of Iran, he said that holding of nuclear talks in Mus-cat with the participation of Iranian Foreign Minister Mo-hammed Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry in addition to the EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton is an evi-dence of the positive role played by His Majesty the Sultan in re-

ducing the tension between Iran and the US.

On the role played by the Sul-tanate in ending the US-Iranian stalemate, Hussein Mousavian, a visiting research scholar at Princeton University and former senior Iranian nuclear negotia-tor, affirmed the importance of Muscat meeting.

He said that the Sultanate has played a positive and effective role in the Iranian nuclear nego-tiations. He also commended the good intentions of Oman towards sorting out the problems between Iran and the US and said both Tehran and Washington have full confidence in Oman. -ONA

I R A N I A N M I N I S T E R ’ S S T A T E M E N T

LONG WAIT: Cyclone victims are living with the hope that their wait for new home would end soon. – O K Mohammed Ali/Times of Oman

Gonu victims wait seven years for home

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OMANYouth Summit to focus on Salalah

SARAH [email protected]

MUSCAT: The sixth edition of Muscat Youth Summit (MYS) will head to Salalah where the 100 participants will create projects aimed at promoting year-round tourism in Dhofar, organisers an-nounced on Monday.

The theme MYS 2014, which will take place from December 13 to 18, is ‘Opening Minds & Bor-ders’ and it will encourage the stu-dents to discover and advance the untapped potential of an outdoor economy and capitalise on mar-ket trends in adventure tourism, explained His Highness Sayyid Faisal bin Turki Al Said, Chairman of MYS Organising Committee.

“The focus this year is going to be on tourism primarily. What is the potential of Oman and how can we get young people thinking about this in a way that is innova-tive and creative,” Al Said said.

Students will be divided into groups and they will work on pro-jects including creating a market-ing and public relations campaign

for Salalah, creating eco-friendly tourism accommodations, making an adventure tourism company, and promoting local arts and cui-sine. The group with the best pro-ject will win OMR3,000 to start putting their idea into practice.

“This youth summit is about encouraging young people to be forward thinking and innova-tive,” Al Said said, adding that he hoped their projects would be commercially viable and usable by

the Ministry of Tourism or other ministries.

By having MYS 2014 in Sala-lah during the winter, which is its low season, students will be chal-lenged to think about how to make the city and its surrounding areas an attractive tourism destination throughout the year.

Khalid Waleed Al Zadjali, from the Ministry of Tourism, said tour-ism is growing in Salalah, not only during the khareef, or monsoon, season. He said MYS 2014 will complement the work the min-istry is doing to encourage more visitors to Dhofar.

“This is what we are targeting, to promote Salalah all the year, not just in the summer time. I think the outcomes from Muscat Youth Summit are sure going to help us with ideas. They’re really going to serve us. We’ll take some of those ideas and apply them,” Al Zadjali said.

The 100 students who are se-lected will include 50 males and 50 females, approximately 65 per-cent Omani and 35 per cent from other nationalities, which Al Said says encourages students to have an open dialogue and learn from each other’s diverse experiences and backgrounds.

While other years there have been participants from universi-ties in other countries, this year the focus is on students in Oman who may be employed in the pri-vate sector in two or three years, including in the tourism sector.

“In partnership with the Minis-try of Tourism, we have a respon-sibility to educate the youth on the endless possibilities and opportu-nities that exist in this industry. This is the kind of industry that we want our youth to explore, lead and enterprise,” added Al Said.

Registration begins today at www.muscatyouthsummit.com. It is open to students 18 to 24 years old who are Omani nationals or residents of Oman who have not participated in MYS before.

The theme of Muscat

Youth Summit

(MYS) 2014, which

will take place from

December 13 to 18 at

Salalah is ‘Opening

Minds & Borders’

I think the outcomes from Muscat Youth Summit are sure going to help us with ideas. We’ll take some of those ideas and apply them

Sayyid Faisal Chairman of MYS

Photos & Videos: Talib Al Wahaibi

We expect to offer 400 to 500 job opportunities

after the project is completed and it will definitely

have a direct impact on the local community Yasser Al Alawi, MD of Al Sharqiya Real Estate >A3


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Sur Gate plan to offer jobs, better services


MUSCAT: Residents of Sur will soon have more job opportunities and they won’t have to drive as far to go shopping, relax in posh coffee shops, and have fun playing games like bowling, thanks to the Sur Gate Project, currently being built near the city’s industrial area.

Speaking with Times of Oman, Yasser Al Alawi, Managing Direc-tor of Al Sharqiya Real Estate and Development which is developing the project, said the multipurpose integrated complex will include a shopping mall, hypermarket, en-tertainment facilities, residential zone and a four-star hotel, result-ing in many new jobs and easy ac-cess to products and services pre-viously unavailable in Sur.

“We expect to offer 400 to 500 job opportunities after the project is completed and it will definitely have a direct impact on the lo-cal community. We are in touch with the director of the Ministry of Manpower in Sur to supply Omani manpower for the pro-ject, whether in the construction or post-construction,” Al Alawi explained.

Currently the building of the first phase, City Walk, which will have entertainment, food and re-tail outlets, is under construction. Al Alawi said he hopes this will

be completed by November 2015. They are working primarily with local SMEs to do the construc-tion, which is already benefitting the local economy, he said.

Once construction is complete and the business begins to fill the retail spaces, Al Alawi hopes they will establish relations with the lo-cal Ministry of Manpower offices and the colleges and training cen-tres in Sur so they can hire locals. “Sur is in need of some commer-cial projects. There is a lack of cer-tain services and certain products for the local community and the local workforce in Sur,” he noted.

The hypermarket and other re-tail outlets will reduce the need for people to drive to Muscat to buy the things they need. It will also serve nearby communities like Ras Al Hadd, Jalan, Al Kamil and Quriyat, added Al Alawi.

The residential development will benefit companies at the Sur Industrial Estate such as Oman LNG, which needs to lease

more villas and apartments for their employees.

The development will also complement other industrial and transportation developments, such as the Ras Al Hadd airport.

Al Alawi’s family is from Sur and although he grew up in Mus-cat, he spends many weekends and holidays there. He says there are beautiful tourist places to visit outside the city, but Sur itself is lacking in entertainment options.

“We find a lack of services, a lack of entertainment. There is a cinema and a children’s play area that opened recently, but till now these are the only ones so we want to play a role and offer something to our hometown,” he said, noting that the City Walk would include a bowling alley.

Another void Al Alawi hopes the development will fill is for meeting, conference and conven-tion space near the Sur Indus-trial Estate. The hotel will have facilities which they can use, he explained.

Al Alawi said he would also like to collaborate with the companies in Sur to do CSR projects once City Walk opens, and organise some activities of their own.

“Even the local companies

there are talking to us and they did convey their need to serve the community. Some of them have already done a lot. We have a moral responsibility towards our hometown. We want to make something special that will make a difference,” he said.

The long-term vision includes the possibility of building an in-ternational school and an interna-tional hospital, too, he said.

The integrated

complex will

include a shopping

mall, hypermarket,

entertainment

facilities etc

GROWTH MACHINE: Currently the first phase, City Walk,

which will have entertainment, food and retail outlets, is under

construction. Photos & videos – OK Mohammed Ali and submitted

Sur is in need of some commercial projects. There is a lack of certain services and certain products for the local community

Yasser Al AlawiMD of Al Sharqiya Real Estate



Peace and prosperity define Oman’s foreign policy: BadrTimes News Service

MUSCAT: In what was the highlight in a busy calendar of events for the Anglo Omani So-ciety, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, secretary general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently delivered a lecture in London entitled ‘Omani views on regional issues’.

In a speech that explored a number of issues currently affect-ing the region, Al Busaidi started by outlining Oman’s belief that, “Local issues need local solutions and regional issues require re-gional solutions.”

He went on further to explain that peace is a prerequisite for prosperity and that this belief un-derpins foreign policy in Oman and is demonstrated in Oman’s dealings with other countries in the region.

Under the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, importance has been placed on developing an education sys-tem that can meet the challenges of the future and create the right environment for the needs of young people, so they may be giv-en an increasing stake in society.

Al Busaidi highlighted the im-portance of good governance in tackling problems such as ex-tremism. “If young people today

experience a wealth of different viewpoints and cultures while they are still in education, they will be better placed to make deci-sions in the future. We live in an age of diversity and pluralism, and we should welcome that. Our Om-ani tradition of tolerance equips us well for this,” he said.

Shifting the focus away from Oman’s boundaries, into areas currently experiencing instabil-ity such as Syria and Iraq, Al Bu-saidi explained that while peace should be the main aim, it cannot be imposed.

“Whether it is in Iraq, or Af-ghanistan, in Syria, or in Yemen, local people and local leaders have to make their choices. The issues and situations are unique to local players, and only they will be able to understand the intricacies of the disagreements and, crucially, the intricacies of where they can agree,” said Al Busaidi.

Al Busaidi explained, “Oman’s approach is based on realising that peace and stability are the preconditions for prosperity, but also that those foundations are best built by the people who are going to live in that house them-selves. Therefore, domestic poli-cies cannot be forced on neigh-bours, but rather directions and approaches can be encouraged.”

Robert Alston, chairman of the Anglo Omani Society said, “Sayy-id Badr has been a great supporter of the work of the society and the popularity of tonight’s event is a true reflection of the important insight he brings to our events. We are grateful to him for deliver-ing tonight’s speech for our soci-ety members.”

G L O B A L P E R S P E C T I V E

Ras Al Hadd pact to boost growth

Times News Service

MUSCAT: A development agree-ment for the Ras Al Hadd tourism project is to be signed tomorrow between the Omani Government and Qatari Diar Ras Al-Hadd De-velopment Company SAOC.

The signing ceremony is set to take place at the Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Muscat.

The development agreement with the Qatari Diar Ras Al-Hadd Development Company, a joint

venture company owned by Om-ran with a 30 per cent sharehold-ing, and Qatari Diar with a 70 per cent shareholding, includes the development of 1.9 million square metres of land in Ras Al Hadd, in the Governorate of A’ Sharqiyah North.

This development will include a number of tourist resorts, resi-dential units and recreational facilities to be designed and con-structed to the highest interna-tional standards.

Representing the Omani side at the signing of the agreement will be Ahmed Bin Nasser Al Mahrazi, minister of tourism, while Ali Shareef Al Emadi, the Qatari minister of finance and chairman of Qatari Diar Com-pany will officiate on behalf of the Qatari delegation. Senior of-ficials from Oman and Qatar, in-cluding Wael Al Lawati, CEO of Omran and Khalid Mohammed Al Sayed, CEO of Qatari Diar Group will also be attending.

D E V E L O P M E N T A G R E E M E N T

Whether it is in Iraq, or Afghanistan, in Syria, or in Yemen, local people and local leaders have to make their choices. The situations are unique to local players

Sayyid Badr Al BusaidiSecy Gen, Ministry of Foreign Affair

Al Dakhiliyah clocks

highest rainfall

MUSCAT: The rainfall meas-urement stations affiliated to the Ministry of Regional Municipali-ties and Water Resources have registered heavy to moderate rains in a number of wilayats of Muscat governorates from October 30 to November 1.

The highest rainfall was reg-istered in the Governorate of Al Dakhiliyah at 40mm in the wilayat of Al Hamra. It was 33mm in the wilayat of Al Rustaq in Muscat Governorate. In North Al Batinah Governorate the wilayat of Shinas had 30mm rains. In Musandam Governorate 21mm rain fell in the Niyabat of Lima, wilayat of Khas-

ab and 20mm rain fell in the South Al Batinah Governorate in the wilayat of Al Rustaq. In Al Buraimi Governorate it was 8mm in the wilayat of Al Buraimi and 5mm in the wilayat of Bidiya in North Al Sharqiyah.

The rains led to overflowing wadis at Al Madaam, Al Abri and Al Milh in the wilayat of Al Hamra, Wadis of Al Gatam and Al Hajri in the wilayat of Nizwa, Wadi Qari in the wilayat of Samail, Wadi Al Salil in the wilayat of Al Rustaq, wadis of Jahfan and Al Ain in the wilayat of Wadi Al Ma’awil and wadi Bani Kharous in the wilayat of Al Awabi among others.–ONA

W E A T H E R C O N D I T I O N S

A4 T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

OMAN 90 competitors across five different classes, at

the Route du Rhum race in France are set

to have a very tough first few days at sea.

Sara Khan’s paintings honour crumbling Mughal historySARAH [email protected]

MUSCAT: When artist Sara Riaz Khan visited the old Lahore Fort and mosque in Pakistan, she was saddened by the state of disrepair the buildings were in, but also found beauty in their remains that inspired a poem and a series of paintings.

Sara, who is a British-Pakistani teacher and artist based in Mus-cat, will show her work in an exhi-bition called ‘There is Beauty Yet’ which opens tonight at Bait Muzna Gallery. The paintings have layer upon layer of oil paint and gesso on the canvas, colours and patterns scraped and exposed, like archeol-ogy on canvas.

“These are two landmark mon-uments for the city of Lahore and I was just struck by how little it’s been looked after. I was disturbed by what I saw and I was very keen to create something positive from what I saw,” Sara told Times of Oman.

While Lahore’s Mughal-era buildings may be slowly disinte-grating and in need of protection and reparations, they have been given new life on Sara’s canvases and in a poem she wrote follow-

ing her visit to Lahore Fort in which she writes about the state of disrepair but the hints of beauty that live on.

The paintings are full of rich colours, ranging from intensely deep fuchsias and turquoises, to warm earthy and mossy tones. They draw on the colours Sara saw while wandering through the 16th century fort. “The fort is mainly in sandstone which is a kind of bright pink, but there is also marble, and

there is a lot of fresco painting, so there is all sorts of pigment. There are many colours to choose from, so the hardest thing was hiding the colour,” she said.

The decay and neglect of the Lahore Fort is apparent on the canvases, and it speaks of the ap-proach Sara took while painting. Sections of paint were covered over and reworked, all part of the process of creating the final result.

“For me it was a very emotional

experience because I felt I was covering over areas that I found beautiful and I was going through the loss on canvas,” she explained.

The geometric shapes common to Islamic art and architecture are revealed in some of the canvases, as are the shapes of the arches. Three of the paintings also reflect a room filled with mirrors in which light reflects back onto the space.

Sara’s work speaks to her at-tachment to her culture and her

desire to honour it, something which Christine O’Donnell, Bait Muzna’s gallery director, recog-nised immediately. She was at-tracted to the work which is rich with an emotional attachment to Lahore’s Mughal past and commu-nicates a strong message.

“They’re aesthetically sound and pleasing. I love the colours and I knew there was something be-hind them because of the layers,” O’Donnell commented.

‘There is Beauty Yet’ opens at 7:30 tonight at Bait Muzna Gal-lery. It is sponsored by Mistal and will be inaugurated by HH Sayyida Tania Al Said. It will be on display until December 1.

A R T E X H I B I T I O N

For me it was a very emotional experience because I felt I was covering over areas that I found beautiful

Sara Riaz KhanBritish-Pakistani teacher and artist



Omani flag flies with pride at Route du Rhum contest

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Hundreds of thou-sands of sailing enthusiasts turned out at St Malo yesterday to watch the start of the epic single-handed transatlantic race, the Route du Rhum, one of France’s most iconic offshore competitions from St Malo to Guadeloupe.

At the heart of the crowd, a proud group from the Sultanate of Oman braved the November weather to cheer on their skip-per, Frenchman Sidney Gavignet, and wished him fair winds for this unique and supremely challenging endeavour.

The 45-year-old skipper plays a dual role for the Sultanate of Oman. He is both a teacher and a role model for the Oman Sail na-tional initiative that seeks to cre-ate a generation of sailors and he is approaching this ultimate chal-lenge with a calm mind and a cool pragmatic focus.

“My main objective is to finish and get to the other side safely, and my other objective is to promote Oman,” said Gavignet.

The Sultanate has already be-come a great success with a re-

cord-breaking number of visitors flowing through the Ministry of Tourism ‘Visit Oman’ pavilion set up in the heart of the race village throughout the week.

“The Ministry of Tourism of the Sultanate of Oman is extremely proud to support the Musandam-Oman Sail, Oman Sail’s Multi70, for the Route du Rhum, one of France’s greatest offshore races. The giant multihull is proudly Omani and carries our flag and message to a global audience,” said Maitha Al Mahrouqi, undersecre-tary of the Ministry of Tourism of Oman and chairperson of Oman Sail. She was present at the flag handover ceremony on Saturday afternoon when she passed the Omani flag to Sidney Gavignet and wished him a safe journey and fair winds.

The sporting objective is the tougher of the two.

With a frightening forecast of up to 35 knots, gusting 40-45 from the South West overnight, Gavig-net and his 90 fellow competitors across five different classes, are set to have a very tough first few days at sea.

As he cast off the 70ft trimaran,

Musandam-Oman Sail, from the mooring this morning to head to the start line, he said, “I am very focussed on the race now. I will be aiming for a good start and then settling into the race immediately. With the conditions that we will have for the first 24 hours, the whole fleet will be straight into it.”

Emotional moment“This moment of the race is always very emotional, I have my girls and my wife with me here in St Malo, plus the team and all our Omani supporters that have made the trip to France to support me, our pro-ject, and to promote the country, but as soon as the start gun goes off, I will be completely dialled in to the race and what lies ahead,” said the skipper.

“My goal is to do a good job and to think of nothing else, just as I did when I was training, to draw on all the experience I have on this boat and what I have gathered throughout my career,” he said.

Day 1 of the Route du Rhum is going to push the sailors to their limits.

“We expect the strongest wind towards Ushant, at about 30

knots,” said Gavignet. “We’ll be sailing upwind and will need to put in several tacks. There is also the shipping to be aware of, so it will be a very busy first night with no res-pite,” he added.

The spectators at the Route du Rhum race village averaged 200,000 people per day reaching an estimated total of two million visitors overall.

The start of the race marked the last day of the ‘Visit Oman’ tour-ism pavilion, which was at the heart of the race village for ten days and enjoyed more foot traffic than it has ever seen.

“The welcome we received from the French public has been out of this world!” said Huda Sultan, head of marketing. “The ‘Visit Oman’ pavilion has been packed from opening time to the moment we close – it has been truly amaz-ing. The henna girls are working overtime sharing their artistry, our Ministry of Tourism representa-tives and Oman Sail staff has been thoroughly enjoying the enthusi-asm that the French people have shown towards finding out more about the treasures and beauties we have to offer,” Huda added.

The spectators at the

Route du Rhum race

village averaged

200,000 people per

day reaching an

estimated total of

two million visitors

overall. The start

of the race marked

the last day of the

‘Visit Oman’ tourism

pavilion, which was

at the heart of the

race village

for 10 days

OMAN’S PRIDE: There is a frightening forecast of winds going up to 35 knots, and gusting 40-45 from the South West overnight. Day 1 of the Route du Rhum is going to push

the sailors to their limits. –Supplied photo

ROHM invitation to witness ‘magic’ of stage Times News Service

MUSCAT: Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) has invited the public to learn about how the “magic” of the stage, the technical aspects of the theatre, are made in its stage presentation events on Wednesday and Thursday.

This fascinating and informa-tive event features members from the in-house technical team pre-senting a lecture-demonstration explaining some of the effects that happen backstage at The Royal Opera House Muscat.

These experts will give a run-ning narrative on the secrets in their areas as they guide the audi-ence through the areas of Sound, Lighting, Stage and Costume.

“A theatre requires lots of peo-ple working backstage with a va-riety of professional skills to put together a performance. This is an ideal opportunity for families to discover the state-of-the-art features of the opera house and learn about the many people work-ing behind the scenes who make the concerts, ballets and operas a success on stage,” said Christina

Scheppelmann, Director General of the ROHM.

The event is part of ROHM’s mission to inform people about the theatre and what makes it a uniquely imaginative place to be.

The Stage Presentation is a free event that will take place No-vember 5 at 4pm and November 7 at 10am.

For more information about Royal Opera House Muscat, tick-ets, and frequently asked ques-tions, please visit the website at www.rohmuscat.org.om or call 24403332.

P U B L I C R E L A T I O N S

STAGE SECRETS: The Stage Presentation is a free event that

will take place on November 5 at 4pm and November 7 at

10am.– Supplied photo

German team’s focus on renewable energy sector

Times News Service

MUSCAT: The German Indus-try and Commerce office (AHK) Oman recently welcomed a German delegation to the Sultanate.

The delegation is part of a programme called ‘Export ini-tiative Renewable Energies’, which is supported by the Fed-eral Ministry of Commerce in Berlin and focuses on the re-newable energy sector, mainly solar energy and in particular the private sector.

A full day symposium was arranged by AHK Oman under the theme ‘Sharing the German Experience in Developing Re-newable Energy through SME Case Studies’.

Seven German speakers from various companies spoke at the symposium. The companies were Apricum GmbH, Aquasoli GmbH, IS Predict GmbH, QTE GmbH, Sunset Energietechnik GmbH, Soleos Solar GmbH and 8.2 Ingenieurgesellschaft Obst & Ziehmann, and each made a presentation showcasing their range of services and products through SME case studies.

There were three experts from the German renewable energy sector who provided informative presentations re-garding renewables in general in Germany, as well as photo-voltaic on and off grid appli-cations. These experts were representatives from the Re-newables Academy (RENAC) AG, Fraunhofer Institut für So-lare Energie systeme (ISE) and EXXERGY GmbH.

Additionally, two Omani speakers, from the Public Au-thority of Electricity and Water and the Public Establishment for Industrial Estate, explained the current situation of renewa-ble energy in Oman, their future plans and vision and how Oman could benefit from the German experience in this field.

On the second day of their stay in Muscat, the delegation visited various private Omani companies and institutions where they engaged in individu-al meetings, in which they were able to exchange information and discuss ways of potential cooperation with their Omani counterparts.

I N F R A S T R U C T U R E

The delegation stressed on ‘export initiative renewable energies’, particularly solar energy and in the private sector

ART FOR HISTORY: The paintings draw on the colours Sara saw

while wandering through the 16th century fort in Lahore.

– Photos and videos by Shabin E and AR Rajkumar/TIMES OF OMAN

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Soldier narrates Dhofar war saga

ELHAM [email protected]

MUSCAT: When Major Nicholas Ofield returned to Oman 40 years after fighting the rebels in the Dho-far war, he did not know that he would end up narrating his story as a soldier in a documentary di-rected by his son.

A ‘self-seeking’ journey gave birth to the idea of making a docu-mentary about a war overshad-owed by the Vietnam war and almost unknown to most people around the world.

The details of Dhofar war — about which no one has ever done a film — slipped into oblivion over the years. But Operation Oman, directed by Tristan Ofield, aims to remember those soldiers who gave their lives fighting the insurgents and give British viewers an insight into both Oman and a war that has been so little reported.

Major Nicholas Ofield, one of around 500 British Army troops in the Dhofar war, left the Sultan of Oman’s Armed Forces in 1978 but continued to work in the Middle East and later in Africa.

“My father had always talked about visiting Oman again, but it never happened. Eventually, I pes-tered him enough to put the time aside and for us to go. My father then asked if I would ‘document’ his return,” Tristan wrote to Times of Oman in an e-mail interview.

“I had often tried to convince

my father to write a book about his experience in Dhofar, but he constantly declined. This was my opportunity to make him tell his story.”

Major Nicholas Ofield said that he returned to Oman on a personal journey and his son accompanied him to record the journey.

“It was after having paid a me-morial visit to the Christian cem-eteries at Mina Al Fahal and Ruwi that my son commented on the graves of the British officers bur-ied there. From this the idea of the documentary was born,” he said.

Self determination Commenting on his experience, Major Nicholas said, “Under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, it was won by a combina-tion of military action and a vigor-ous hearts and minds campaign.”

Since His Majesty Sultan Qa-boos bin Said took over the reins of power, he has led Oman into the modern era, using the country’s wealth for the benefit of his people, he said.

The Sultanate has undergone such development that Major Nicholas described his return to Oman as an experience similar to

‘visiting another planet’. He said, “I was truly astonished as I was un-able to recognise any place. It was not until we travelled to Nizwa and Saiq that I was able to recog-nise the unchanging features of the mountains. It was the same in Dhofar, with Salalah and its sur-rounds being unrecognisable.

“However, on the Jebel the fea-tures remain the same. One thing that remains unchanged is the open hearted hospitality of the Omanis. Everywhere we went we were made welcome, frequently being invited to people’s houses to have coffee and dates,” said Major Nicholas.

“This is the memory of Oman that remains with me,” he added.

It was so important for Tristan to make this movie that he quit his job in 2013 to work on the film full time.

“I have now burned through all my savings, but this has never been about money. It has been about needing to tell a story.”

The result of his efforts is a 67-minute film, which premieres

at the Broadway cinema in Hock-ley, England, on November 16.

Asked how this documen-tary differs from his other films, Tristan said that it is the most per-sonal film he has ever made.

“This was a chance for me to see my father in context. To look at the events that shaped his life as a young man. It is very scary to hold somebody familiar up in front of you and examine them.

“Normally, filmmaking for me is a very collaborative process,” ex-plained Tristan.

“I have tried to build a career around working with friends. This has been a completely different ex-perience, quite lonely. Many hours spent in my room editing, trying to craft a story out of approximately 50 hours of footage, choosing mu-sic, building composites in After Effects and colouring the picture,” he said.

Tristan wanted to do something different than most military docu-mentaries that are based on spe-cific campaigns. “I wanted to do something different to show the

difficulties that existed and the bond that was formed between the British officers and the Omani sol-diers,” he said, adding that he also wanted British viewers to become more familiar with Oman and the conflict in Dhofar.

Mystical OmanAsked why he was interested in making a movie in Oman, he said, “I had grown up listening to stories of Dhofar. I had spent many years in the Middle East but these were all countries of cars, air condition-ing, gold, and buildings made of marble. Oman sounded so differ-ent, so mystical by comparison.”

During their stay in Oman, Tristan and his father drove from Muscat to Salalah which took them two days with one stop overnight.

“We just camped by the side of the road. We woke up to find our-selves next to some incredible sand dunes. I had not seen dunes since I was about 14. Lots of mem-ories came flooding back,” he said.

Later, they visited an area of the

Jebel that had been known as Ma-dinat Al Haq.

“We continued to the Wadi Darbat, Shershitti and camped out in the Salalah area for about three weeks. Upon returning to the north we stopped in Nizwa and Ibri,” said Tristan.

The trip was special for Tristan not only career-wise but also be-cause he got to see his father in a new light. “When he had been a soldier in Oman he was younger than I currently was. That was dif-ficult to understand. Fear is some-thing that I have never felt when-ever I have travelled with him,” remarked Tristan.

He added, “He is still a very ca-pable man whether map reading, building shelters, or driving off road. To see where he learned the skills that have stayed with him all his life has been wonderful.”

Tristan said that Omani people and their hospitality are what he will remember the most and he would love to come back to Oman to make more movies.

“Omani hospitality is the stuff of legends. Everybody we met was so helpful. We had dinner with many people and shared stories, although most people thought we were crazy to drive all the way from Muscat just to sleep in the dust,” said Tristan.

He said he would also remember the Al Qubrah Mosque, which was the most beautiful building he had ever seen.

There was also an abandoned souq at Birkat Al Mawz, which fea-tures in the documentary.

“It was like stepping back in time,” he said.

“I would love to make more films in Oman. The Lost City of Ubar is a fascinating subject. There are also forts at both Nizwa and Saiq that have stories worthy of study,” he concluded.

Link to the trailer: https://twit-ter.com/LeftLion_Screen/sta-tus/519530729986740225

Operation Oman, directed by Tristan Ofield,

aims to remember those soldiers who gave

their lives fighting insurgents, and provide

British viewers an insight into both Oman

and a war that has been so little reported

It was after having paid a memorial visit to the Christian cemeteries at Mina Al Fahal and Ruwi that my son commented on the graves of the British officers buried there. From this the idea of the documentary was born

Major Nick OfieldSultans Armed Forces

HISTORY RETOLD: Left, Colonel Mike Ball briefs troops during ‘Operation Jaguar’, and right, Major Nicholas Ofield and his son, Tristan, director of the documentary, during filming. – Photos courtesy Tristan Ofield



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I would like to express my deepest feelings

to those soldiers, sailors, air force men, and

policemen who serve our beloved country

Paola Amadei, Ambassador of Italy to Oman

Italian community pays tribute to military on Armed Forces Day


MUSCAT: The Italian commu-nity in Muscat got to celebrate its Armed Forces Day with a naval crew on board the ITS A. Doria, which was docked in Port Sultan Qaboos on Sunday evening.

HE Paola Amadei, Ambassador of Italy to Oman, the commander of the Italian Naval Group Rear Admiral Guido Rando, the Defence Attache of Italy Captain Stefano

Crementieri and the ITS A. Do-ria Commanding Officer Captain Angelo Virdis welcomed guests on board.

New ship“It’s an honour and pleasure to have you on board. Today we cel-ebrate the Italian Armed Forces Day, and it will also be an occasion to show you the ITS A. Doria,” said Capt. Virdis.

The ITS A. Doria is the flagship of the European naval counter-pi-

racy operations. It has been in the Gulf of Aden since August and will be there until February, ensuring safe passage for other ships, ex-plained the captain.

Italian Armed Forces Day is normally celebrated on Novem-

ber 4 each year, commemorating Italy’s victory in World War I after Austrian-Hungarian forces agreed to a cease fire.

Thanks militaryAmadei also made some remarks at the occasion, noting she was honoured to host the event aboard the ship, which is one of the new-est in the Italian navy, and pay trib-ute to her country’s military.

The Italian ambassador also thanked the Italian men and wom-

en currently serving their country in the military and police.

Principal of freedom “I would like to express my deepest feelings to those soldiers, sailors, air force men, and policemen who serve our beloved country. They put the national interest above their own and sacrificed them-selves, strongly believing in the principal of freedom. These peo-ple deserve our utmost respect,” Amadei said.

Italian Armed Forces

Day is celebrated on

November 4 each

year to commemorate

the country’s victory

in World War I

COMMEMORATING VICTORY: Paola Amadei, Ambassador of Italy to Oman, commander of the Italian Naval Group Rear Admiral Guido Rando, Defence Attache of Italy Captain Stefano Crementieri and the ITS

A. Doria Commanding Officer Captain Angelo Virdis welcomed guests on board to mark the country’s Armed Forces Day. – A R Rajkumar/Times of Oman

Tanzanian prime minister woos Omani investors to boost country’s economySALEH AL [email protected]

MUSCAT: Tanzania’s Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda, in a bid to give a shot in the arm to his country’s economy, urged Omani businessmen not to miss the op-portunities to invest in the East African nation.

Pinda said both nations could complement each other’s strength as Tanzania worked towards be-ing a key East African business hub while Oman strived to di-versify its economy away from oil revenues.

“Oman has undergone a rapid transformation in the last 40 years. Its progress is remarkable in many ways. Tanzania would like to learn from Oman’s success and share its experience. The best way to do that is by asking Omani investors to open companies in Tanzania in areas which need in-vestments,” said Pinda.

He gave the example of crops, farm machinery, food stor-

age, fisheries, livestock, gas and minerals.

“Our two governments have already agreed to set up a Joint Investment Council and a Coun-cil of Businessmen to promote in-vestments between Tanzania and Oman. We are looking forward to the signing of these agreements that will lead to a long lasting trade relationship between us,” added Pinda.

The Tanzanian premier also praised the historical relations between the two countries say-ing that common heritage should

strengthen further the coopera-tion in all fields.

“You cannot separate a Tanza-nian from an Omani. History is in our side. It is natural for us to do business like we always did in the past centuries and I am confi-dent we will move forward for the benefits of our two countries,” ex-plained Pinda.

He pointed out that Tanzania has over 4,000 investment oppor-tunities for Omani businessmen to explore.

The East African country is rich with minerals. It has become

one of the fastest-emerging gold producers in Africa, and is now the continent’s third largest gold producing country after South Africa and Ghana. It also has lim-ited diamonds but abundant re-serves of nickel, copper, uranium and platinum.

The country also has a vast untapped potential in fresh wa-ter fish farming. It has one of the largest lakes in the world, spread over 53,000 square kilometres. It is currently promoting trout farming and is looking for more investors to take advantage in this much sought after sector.

The recent gas discovery in Tanzania attracted the attention of some of the biggest energy com-panies in the world.

Last year Tanzania had said that its gas reserves will double up in 2015 to 40 trillion cubic feet, thanks to recent new discoveries. The country is now preparing to offer new exploration blocks by the end of this year to internation-al energy companies.

G R A B T H E O P P O R T U N I T Y


ARTICLE, PHOTOS

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

Tanzania’s Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda praised the historical relations between the two countries saying that common heritage should strengthen further the cooperation in all fields

Experts to share success storiesTimes News Service

MUSCAT: The Free and Open Source Software Conference (FOSSC Oman), jointly organ-ised by the Communication and Information Research Centre (CIRC) at Sultan Qaboos Univer-sity (SQU) and the Information Technology Authority (ITA), will be held on February 18 and 19, 2015 at the SQU.

The objective of this event is to support the national initiative on free and open source software and it aims at promoting aware-ness and disseminating the use and development of free and open source software for profes-sionals, staff, students and the community in Oman.

The conference is held every two years.

The previous event was organ-ised in February 2013. FOSSC Oman targets ICT companies and professionals, academia fac-ulty, staff and students and the broader FOSS community.

A number of distinguished experts in free and open source

software will attend the event and speak on the main topics of the conference.

The FOSSC conference will of-fer a good opportunity to discov-er, discuss and exchange ideas on FOSS in Oman and beyond.

The event will also provide an opportunity to network differ-ent groups of FOSS users, benefit from insightful lectures deliv-ered at the conference, and share mutual experiences and dis-cuss potential implementations of FOSS.

The organising committee is inviting managers, and indi-viduals with a passion, students, educators and experts from com-panies, public and private organi-sations to share their successes in the vast array of free and open source software that is trans-forming information and com-munication technology across the globe.

Paper submission for the con-ference will last until November 15, 2014. More details are avail-able on the conference website http://fossc.om/2015/

F R E E A N D O P E N S O U R C E S O F T W A R E M E E T

Yiti families want early end to woes

Sheikh Talib Al Hasani from Yiti feels the rehabilitation process might take more time. “There are neither roads nor sanitation. The houses are be-ing restored because cracks have already started appearing in the structures, I tried to meet offi-cials concerned to get an idea of when the locals can move into the new housing units, but these efforts have been in vain,” he told Times of Oman.

He added, “It is absolutely un-pleasant living for eight years in caravans. The locals cannot tol-erate such a rough life, and every year we are promised a house the next year. We want the officials from the municipality to clear all this vagueness for the sake of the locals and to put the minds of these families at ease in a safe and suitable environment.”

Hani says, “We are desper-ate to improve our situation and have sought a clear picture on the new housing units from the mu-nicipality officials but there is no solid answer. We plead with the government to look into our situ-

ation and quicken the process of shifting us into our new homes.”

A hundred and ninety hous-ing units located in Yiti (Al Husn Heights) are expected to accom-modate the families affected by the floods that were caused by the unusual weather conditions.

The location of this new dis-trict is in a secure area away from the risks of wadis and floods in the town. However, a list of af-fected families has already been sent to the municipality for unit distribution.

C Y C L O N E V I C T I M S

< FROM

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Living in a caravan is full of

problems.

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REGIONT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

$3b is the amount of the package Saudi Arabia agreed to finance for French military equipment and arms for the Lebanese army

Iraq on ‘high alert’ after mass killings

BAGHDAD: Iraq boosted secu-rity on Monday amid fears of the IS group launching major attacks as further reports emerged of mass killings.

The people coming to Karbala are prime targets for the IS mili-tants, who have carried out a se-ries of mass executions in recent days, killing scores of members of a tribe in Iraq’s western Anbar province. The militants are re-ported to have slaughtered doz-ens of members of the Albu Nimr tribe, which took up arms against them in Anbar.

On Monday, tribal leader Naim Al Kuoud Al Nimrawi said that IS “executed 36 people, including four women and three children” on Sunday alone. Accounts have varied as to the number and tim-ings of the executions, but sourc-es have spoken of more than 200 people murdered in recent days.

A police officer and an official gave figures of more than 200 to

258 people killed, while Iraq’s hu-man rights ministry put the toll at 322 and a tribal leader said 381 were executed.

At least 19 people were killed in bomb blasts in Baghdad on Sun-day claimed by IS, and security forces were on alert for further attacks. Karbala deputy governor Jassem Al Fatlawi said “hun-dreds of thousands of people” and 65,000 others from 20 different countries have thronged Karbala.

Authorities have deployed thousands of security personnel and allied militiamen in a ma-jor test for the new government

headed by Prime Minister Haidar Al Abadi. “The security plan is ful-ly in effect and the security forces are on a state of high alert,” an Iraqi police colonel said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Police were deployed through-out districts of Baghdad and se-curity forces are guarding the 100-kilometre route from the cap-ital to Karbala. More than 26,000 members of the security forces were deployed in Karbala itself, backed by helicopters providing air support and monitoring desert areas, army Staff Lieutenant Gen-eral Othman Al Ghanimi said. — AFP

IS militants execute

36 more tribesmen

in Anbar Province

Libyan navy ship hit amid heavy fightingBENGHAZI (LIBYA): A Libyan navy ship docked at Benghazi port was hit during heavy fighting on Monday between the army and hardline fighters in Libya’s sec-ond-largest city, residents said.

A news reporter could see smoke rising from the port area, to which the army had earlier moved heavy guns to attack positions of hardline fighters. A security source said the ship was sinking but this could not immediately be confirmed.

Heavy fighting broke out near the seaport of Benghazi city when the army, backed by forces loyal to a former general, attacked fighters of hardline groups, residents said.

Dozens of residents were leaving the city, heeding a call by the army to evacuate the port area where military officials say hardliners are holed up after more than two weeks of fighting. A news reporter saw the army deploying tanks and artillery in the city. — Reuters

B E N G H A Z I P O R T

French-Saudi arms deal for Lebanon to be inked todayRIYADH: Saudi Arabia and France are to finalise on Tues-day a deal to provide Lebanon’s army with $3 billion worth of French weapons, with Riyadh footing the bill, a Saudi daily and a French source said.

The deal, first announced in December, comes as the poorly equipped Lebanese army battles militants, including from the IS group, in the north and along its border with war-torn Syria.

“This battle requires equip-ment, materiel and technology that the army doesn’t have,” Leb-anon’s army chief Jean Kahwaji said in August, urging France to speed up the promised weapons supplies. A signing ceremony for the deal would be held on Tuesday morning in Riyadh, the French source said on condi-tion of anonymity. The contract, which has gone through months of negotiations over the list of weapons to be supplied, would now “be rapidly implemented,”

the French source said. Al Hayat, a Saudi-owned pan-Arab daily, said the first arms shipment un-der the deal would be delivered to Lebanon “within a month”.

The newspaper, quoting sources in Paris, said the arms deal would be signed by Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim Al As-sad and Edouard Guillaud, the head of the ODAS organisation

set up by France for the export of defence equipment.

In December, Saudi Arabia agreed to finance a $3-billion package of French military equipment and arms for the Lebanese army. And in mid-June, at a conference in Rome, the international community pledged its backing for the Leba-nese military. — AFP

M I L I T A R Y E Q U I P M E N T

SITE OF BOMBING: Municipal workers clean the site of a car bomb attack in Baghdad, on Monday. – Reuetrs

This battle requires equipment, materiel and technology that the army doesn’t have

Jean KahwajiLebanon’s army chief

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INDIAT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

TOURISM INITIATIVEA sea-plane lands in waters of Gangapur dam at Nashik on Monday. The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation is

planning to start air services from Mumbai to Nashik. The administration will hold meetings with farmers and nature lovers

to learn about their concerns before allowing a regular service, said Vilas Patil, the collector of Nashik, who was present to wit-

ness the landing of the plane. - PTI

Bollywood veteranAmrapurkar dies MUMBAI: Veteran Bollywood actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar, who essayed villainous and comic roles with equal ease and gave powerful performances in Ardh Satya and Sadak, died here on Monday after battling lung infection.

Amrapukar, who was 64, died at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital here.

“Sadashiv Amarapurkar was suffering from Interstitial Lung Disease and passed away peace-fully at 2.45am,” his daughter Rima Amrapurkar said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bollywood fraterni-ty took to Twitter to condole the death of Amrapukar.

“We will remember Sadashiv Amrapurkar as a versatile actor, popular across generations. RIP. My deepest condolences to his family,” Modi tweeted.

Amrapukar played iconic char-acter roles including as a ruth-less eunuch in Sadak, a villain in Ardh Satya and a selfish father

in Ishq with an effortless ease. Amrapurkar had won two Film-fare awards. In 1984, he won the award for the best supporting ac-tor for Ardh Satya and in 1991, the best villain trophy for his por-trayal in Sadak.

His other works included Aankhen, Ishq, Coolie No. 1 and Gupt: The Hidden Truth. - PTI

L E G E N D

India condemns terror attack at Wagah border

S. MOITRAOur Correspondent

NEW DELHI: India has con-demned the suicide bomb attack at Wagah border on the Pakistani side, with both the BJP and the Congress advocating for a strong resolve to fight terrorism.

In a statement on Monday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the suicide attack, in which 65 people were killed and 200 others injured, was “a cow-ardly act”.

“There is no grievance or politi-cal goal so great, as to justify such a cowardly act. We believe that only the firmest and most com-prehensive action against all ter-ror groups without any distinction is the only way to defeat this evil scourge,” said the MEA.

The main political parties — the BJP and the Congress — have also strongly condemned the attack

and called for a strong response to terror acts. “I deplore this at-tack. Nations combating terror-ism need to make united efforts to deal with this problem effectively,” senior BJP leader and Informa-tion and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar told the media in Delhi.

DeplorableEchoing similar sentiments, sen-ior Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, “Terrorism has no boundaries, no religion,

no name or colour. It is deplor-able, condemnable. Pakistan should have realised that this menace should be put down by a firm hand.”

Indian Prime Minister Nar-endra Modi had on Sunday night described as a “dastardly act of terrorism” the attack at Wagah border, where large crowds gather on both sides everyday to watch an elaborate and colourful flag-low-ering ceremony by border guards in the evening.

A number of militant groups

said they carried out the attack. The Jundullah militant group and the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction of the Pakistani Taliban were among those who said they carried it out. Sunday’s attack is the deadliest to hit Pakistan in many months.

Dozens of people use the Wa-gah crossing to enter India and Pakistan every day, as it is the only road crossing between the two countries. It is also a crucial trade facility, where truckloads of goods coming from and going to India are loaded and unloaded.

In a statement on

Monday, the Ministry

of External Affairs

said the suicide

attack, in which 65

people were killed

and 200 others

injured, was ‘a

cowardly act’

NO SHOW: Indian tourists arrive on the Indian side of the India-Pakistan border at Wagah on Monday

to watch the daily retreat ceremony, which however has been cancelled for three days, following a

suicide bomb attack on the Pakistani side on Sunday. -AFP

Delhi looks set for fresh poll battle amid political uncertaintyNEW DELHI: Delhi was set for a fresh electoral battle after lead-ers of the BJP, the Congress and the AAP Monday told Lt. Gover-nor Najeeb Jung that they wanted elections to end months of politi-cal uncertainty.

Leaders of the three political parties told Jung that fresh ballot-ing was needed as no party was in a position to form the government in the hung 70-member assembly.

A Raj Bhavan statement said Jung would be writing to President Pranab Mukherjee giving his rec-ommendations. He is most likely to suggest fresh election— the second since December last year.

That election threw up a frac-tured mandate, with the Bharati-ya Janata Party refusing to form the government despite winning 31 seats.

CollapsedThe Aam Aadmi Party came a close second with 28 seats, an elec-toral performance that stunned the nation, and formed a minority government with Congress back-ing. But the government collapsed after 49 days as chief minister and AAP founder leader Arvind Kejri-

wal resigned after failing to pass a Jan Lokpal Bill.

Kejriwal, who later lost the Lok Sabha election in Varanasi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said later that he erred by quitting.

A BJP delegation led by its Delhi president Satish Upad-hyay was the first to meet the Lt. Governor Monday.

Commenting on the develop-ment, Upadhyay said BJP con-veyed its stand to Jung and he will take the steps he wants to accord-ing to provisions of the Constitu-tion. Delhi BJP general secretary Ramesh Bidhuri said the party was confident of getting a clear man-date when elections are held.

“We are confident of getting 47 seats. The people of Delhi have seen the AAP government and will not support it again,” he said.

Congress legislator Haroon Yu-suf also told Jung that his party wanted the Delhi assembly dis-solved, followed by fresh elections.

“We will contest the election under the guidance of (party pres-ident) Sonia Gandhi and (vice president) Rahul Gandhi, and de-velopment will be our main agen-da,” he said.

The AAP, which has repeatedly accused the BJP of trying to poach its legislators to form the govern-ment in Delhi, reiterated that it wanted a new election.

AAP leader Manish Sisodia said after meeting Jung along with Ke-jriwal: “Our stand is what it was eight months ago. We want the Delhi assembly to be dissolved.”

Sisodia also took a dig at the BJP.“If they wanted fresh elec-

tions, why did they create all this suspense for all these months?” he asked.

The December 2013 election for the first time led to a three-way battle in Delhi, with the Congress -- which had ruled the capital for 15 long years -- mauled and left with just eight of the 70 seats.

The BJP won all the seven Lok Sabha seats in May this year but the AAP overcame great odds to finish second everywhere, relegat-ing the Congress to the third spot in six places and to the fourth in one constituency.

The Lok Sabha election, how-ever, brought down the BJP’s strength in the assembly from 31 to 28 as three legislators were elected to parliament.

The AAP now has 27 legislators after one revolted early on.

Some BJP leaders said in recent months that they were capable of forming a new government with the backing of what they said were disgruntled AAP legislators.

But that never happened, and Kejriwal repeatedly accused the BJP of trying to win over AAP leg-islators with bribery -- a charge the BJP denied.

DemandCongress reiterated its demand for holding of polls along with elec-tions in Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. As LG is all set to recommend dissolution of the as-sembly, officials said bypolls to three assembly constituencies will not be held on November 25.

The last date of filing of nomi-nations for bypolls in three assembly constituencies is No-vember 5. -Agencies

D E V E L O P M E N T

‘Need to stop black money generation’NEW DELHI/PATNA: Amid a debate on black money, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday said efforts should be made to ensure that no illegal bank accounts originate at all and expressed confidence that such a thing will happen under the pre-sent government.

“As Prime Minster Modi has said we will win the fight against black money. All possible efforts will be made to bring back the il-legal money from abroad.

“But the need is to be more concerned about how to ensure that there is no black money, how it can be stopped from originat-ing. I am sure it will happen un-der Modi,” Javadekar told report-ers here.

The remarks by the Minister for Information and Broadcast-ing and Environment came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to get back every penny of the black money stashed abroad.

EffortsModi had said the efforts to bring back black money stashed abroad are on the “right track” even as he acknowledged that there was no correct estimate about how much money is kept illegally in foreign countries.

In an address to the nation over radio, he had said that bringing back black money from outside the country is an “article of faith” for him and nothing will be lack-ing in his efforts to do so.

Modi’s commitment to bring back black money stashed abroad comes against the backdrop of the stand it first took in the Su-preme Court last week about the inability to disclose the names of the account holders in foreign

banks because of the confiden-tially clause in treaties with other countries. It had maintained that disclosure of details of account holders would hamper efforts to bring back black money.

Slamming the Congress for “doing nothing” on the black money issue, Union Law minister Ravishankar Prasad on Monday said effective steps were being taken to fulfil the commitment of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring back “every penny” of black money parked abroad.

“We are initiating effective steps to fulfil the Prime Minister’s commitment to bring back every penny of black money parked abroad to the country,” Prasad told reporters here on arrival from Delhi. Stating that the NDA gov-ernment believed in transparency in politics, Prasad said, “Measures within the ambit of law are being taken on the matter.”

While the BJP government has shown firm commitment on the subject of black money, Congress did nothing during its rule on the issue, he said. -PTI

M O N E Y P A R K E D A B R O A D

Measures within the ambit of law are being taken on the matter.

Ravishankar PrasadLaw minister

UPBEAT: Arvind Kejriwal, chief of Aam Aadmi Party, leaves after

attending a meeting with Lt Governor Najeeb Jung at Raj Niwas in

New Delhi on Monday. - PTI

HAVE YOUR SAY Send us your comments at facebook.com/timesofoman blog.timesofoman.com [email protected]

Sadashiv Amrapurkar

But the need is to be more concerned about how to ensure

that there is no black money, how it can be stopped from

originating. I am sure it will happen under Modi

Prakash Javadekar, Information and Broadcasting minister

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Vasan quits Congress; forms new party in TN

CHENNAI/NEW DELHI: The already enfeebled Congress on Monday suffered a split in Tamil Nadu with one of its top leaders G K Vasan quitting the party and planning to start a new outfit.

Hitting back, the Congress leadership expelled him from the party for his inappropriate com-ments against it.

Angry over the way the Con-gress leadership handled the af-fairs of the state unit and alleg-edly ignored the merit of leaders, Vasan, son of late Congress leader late G K Moopanar, said he was quitting the party and would soon float a new party.

“We have taken this decision after getting the feedback of lakhs of Congress cadres in Tamil Nadu and also leaders of Congress party in Tamil Nadu. We have sent in our resignations,” he announced at a press conference here.

DevelopmentThe development marks a full cir-cle 18 years after his father broke from the Congress and formed the Tamil Maanila Congress which tied up with the DMK to sweep the Assembly and Parliament elections in 1996. Later the party merged with Congress in 2002.

Avoiding any criticism of Con-gress President Sonia Gandhi and her deputy Rahul Gandhi, Vasan squarely blamed others entrusted

with party affairs in the state. The approach of AICC in Tamil Nadu was not satisfactory in achieving its goal of bringing party rule in Tamil Nadu, he said.

Reacting to Vasan’s decision and his attack on the leadership, Congress spokesperson Ajoy Ku-mar announced his expulsion from the party. He said the party took the decision on the basis of inappropriate comments he made about it and the leadership.

Vasan, however, did not refer to Mukul Wasnik, in-charge of Tamil Nadu, and former union minister P. Chidambaram, with whom he had differences on party affairs.

“We want to lead, be the number one regional party and an alterna-tive political party to Tamil Nadu people and we feel we can fulfil the vision of the late Kamaraj. We are going in the right direction,” he said highlighting the principles of the new party.

Defending his decision to se-vere his 12-year-long association with Congress, which was antici-

pated after he had dropped am-ple hints to this effect last week, Vasan said, “We are on a new path. Youth in Tamil Nadu are looking for a new political culture. We are confident of fulfilling it”.

Flanked by former state unit president B. S. Gnanadesikan, who quit the post last week, Vasan charged that the Congress High Command did not give the Tamil Nadu unit the due importance it deserved, particularly in the af-termath of its worst debacle in the Lok Sabha elections.

Vasan’s decision to quit Con-gress comes a day after newly-appointed state unit President E. V. K. S. Elangovan took charge. El-angovan’s appeals to Vasan to stay in the party went unheeded.

He said the name and symbol of his outfit would be disclosed at a meet to be held in Tiruchi shortly.

Vasan said he would work to-wards regaining the vote bank of the Congress in Tamil Nadu, which he says is more than 10 per cent.

Moopanar, who opposed Con-gress forging electoral truck with AIADMK, had resigned from the party and formed his own outfit Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC) in 1996. TMC had won 39 of 40 seats it contested in alliance with DMK in Assembly elections that year. It secured a vote share of 9.30 per cent, while Congress did not win a single seat of 64 it contested in alliance with AIADMK. The party had registered a vote share of just 5.61 per cent.Congress even lost the deposit in 14 seats.

However, after Moopanar’s death TMC merged with Con-gress in 2002.

Party sources indicated “some glitches” in christening the new outfit again in the name of erst-while Tamil Maanila Congress.

While Vasan was making pub-lic his decision, newly-appointed TNCC president E. V. K. S. El-angovan appealed to him to stay back “as the party was facing trou-bled times,” to which the latter said “thanks.” - PTI

Hitting back, the

Congress leadership

expelled him from

the party for his

‘inappropriate

comments’

JUBILATION: Former union minister G. K. Vasan is garlanded by supporters as he formally announc-

es his decision to revive the erstwhile Tamil Manila Congress (TMC) in Chennai on Monday. -PTI

Google announces alliance to promote Indian languagesNEW DELHI: Ensuring greater reach of Internet in the country, Google on Monday announced alliance with industry partners to form the Indian Language In-ternet Alliance (ILIA), a group committed to promote the growth of Indic-language content online.

This will facilitate India to reach the coveted 500 million in-ternet users mark by 2017, Google India vice president and managing director Rajan Anandan said here.

Google also launched a website called www.hindiweb.com, a plat-form for Hindi speaking internet users to discover the best Hindi content across websites, apps, videos and blogs.

India now has over 200 million internet users and to reach the desired 500-million mark, Hindi language tools will help a lot.

Anandan said the success will be based on four pillars — access, discovering ability, content and innovations.

Google has tied up with 15 part-

ners to take the Indian language mission forward, but later on the number of partners will increase.

The search engine giant will also look into other languages like Tamil, Marathi, and Bengali, said Amit Singhal, senior vice president.

“Our mission at Google is to ensure the world’s information is universally accessible, and this

includes the millions of users in India who are about to come on-line for the first time.

“Hindi Voice Search will be just one of the many steps Google is taking to empower the Indian language users and advertisers to take advantage of the web’s huge economic and social potential,” he said. -IANS

I N T E R N E T

INITIATIVE: Union Information and Broadcast Minister Prakash

Javadekar with Google India’s MD Rajan Anandan during the

launch of Google Hindi search and the creation of Indian Lan-

guage Internet Alliance in New Delhi on Monday. - PTI

END OF AN ORDEALSeven sailors of the ship Asphalt Venture, which was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2010, on

their arrival in Mumbai in the wee hours of Monday after being released by the pirates. - PTI

Russian team to review

Sukhoi-30 fighter planes

NEW DELHI: A team of Rus-sian experts is in India to carry out technical evaluation of Sukhoi-30 fighter planes, whose entire fleet was grounded over 10 days back in the wake of a crash of the Russian-made frontline combat aircraft.

The team of 10 experts is cur-rently in Pune, the Sukhoi-30 base, probing the crash that took place on October 14 near there with both the pilot seats ejecting without any command during landing.

The pilots were safe but the air-craft crashed about 20km short of the runway.

Fleet grounded The fleet was grounded a week later. The Russian experts along with IAF personnel and officials from Hindustan Aeronautics Lim-ited besides others are conducting a complete evaluation of the fleet of about 200 twin-engine fighters, IAF sources said here on Monday.

The jets will be back in opera-tion only when the process is com-pleted, the sources added.

The grounded fleet represents almost a third of the country’s fighter plane fleet. IAF is already down to 34 combat squadrons, as against an authorised strength of 44. Each squadron has up to 18 fighter planes. Incidentally, one of the two pilots of this ill-fated air-craft was involved in a previous Su-30 crash too.

This was the fifth accident in-volving a SU-30 MKI since 2009 and the fleet has at least been grounded twice earlier. -PTI

F I F T H A C C I D E N T

INSPECTION: The team of 10

Russian experts is currently in

Pune, the Sukhoi-30 base, prob-

ing the crash that took place on

October 14. - AFP file photo

A10

PAKISTAN T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

High alert after Wagah bloodbath

LAHORE: Pakistan was on high alert on Monday for the mourning processions of Ashura, a flashpoint for sectarian violence, a day after the country’s deadliest bombing in more than a year killed 55 people.

A suicide bomber struck at the main Pakistan-India border cross-ing on Sunday, causing carnage among crowds leaving the colour-ful daily ceremony to close the Wa-gah frontier post, near the eastern city of Lahore.

The explosion, which wounded more than 120, was a rare attack in Punjab, Pakistan’s most popu-lous province and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ’s powerbase.

At least two different factions of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) have claimed the attack, the first major strike since the army

launched an offensive against militant strongholds in the tribal northwest in June.

The Wagah ceremony is one of Pakistan’s few genuine tourist at-tractions, drawing people from all walks of life. Like many Pakistanis who attend the event, eyewitness Nawaz Khan had gone with family members, visiting from the north-western city of Peshawar.

“There were 14 of us, after the parade I came out of the gate and my brother told me to go back and bring the children,” Khan said.

As he returned with the chil-dren, he said, he saw a “young boy” running towards the gate, who was stopped by a Ranger.

“Then there was a huge bang and I saw my brother flying in the

air. There were screams all around and the place was filled with smell of burnt human flesh and blood,” he said.

“I had lost the children and I was screaming for them and then I saw the body of my brother lying on the ground with other dead bodies”.

Security forces across the coun-try were bracing on Monday for possible attacks on Ashura..

Thousands from minority com-munity will take to the streets for mourning processions and the oc-casion has been marred by sectar-ian bloodshed in recent years.

Around 10,000 police and para-military Rangers have been de-ployed in Islamabad and its twin city Rawalpindi, officials said, and some mobile phone services have

been shut down. This is a tactic routinely deployed at sensitive times in Pakistan to try to stop militants using mobile phones to detonate bombs.

Sectarian violence has been on the rise in recent years, mostly tar-geting minority community, who make up 20 per cent of Pakistan’s 180 million population, and at least 11 people were killed in Ashu-ra clashes in Rawalpindi last year.

Security analyst Hasan Askari said the security forces’ focus on the Ashura threat may have made them take their eye off the ball at Wagah.

“There was a lot of security for the Muharram processions so this place was the easiest target,” he said. - AFP

At least two different

factions of Tehreek-

e-Taliban Pakistan

have claimed

responsibility for

attack, the first major

strike since the army

launched an offensive

against militants

in the tribal

northwest in June SECURITY BEEFED UP: A man travels on a donkey cart as Pakistani paramilitary troops patrol a day

after a suicide bombing, along a street leading to the Wagah border on Monday. - AFP

LAHORE: Tragic scenes were witnessed at several city hospitals when victims of a suicide attack at Wagah Border were brought there on Sunday evening.

A majority of the victims were initially taken to Ghurki Trust Hospital, some 2.5 kilometres away from the site of bombing that has claimed at least 50 lives.

Some of the injured were later taken to Services, Mayo and Shalamar Hospitals.

Many of the injured were from outside Lahore and had gone to the border to par-ticipate in the flag-lowering ceremony and the parade that are arranged daily.

“We are doing our best to treat the injured. Doctors and paramedics who had gone home after duty have been called back,” Naeem Ghurki, the Ghurki Hospital director told reporters.

Shrapnel wounds“At least 44 bodies and more than 100 injured have been brought to the hospital,” Ghurki said. A doctor at the hospital said the death toll could rise as several injured were in critical situation.

“Most of the injured had wounds from ball bearing. Many of them have deep wounds… nails and shrapnel were found in their bodies,”

the doctor said. The Health Department had declared an ‘emergency’ at all teaching hospitals in the city soon after the bombing.

“Hospitals have been asked to stay alert. We also request citizens to come ahead and donate blood,” a spokesman for the Health Department said.

“A number of the injured are being treated at Services Hospital. There is an infant in the Emergency Department and we don’t know anything about his family or their whereabouts. If any family has lost a child, they should come and check with us,” a doctor at the hospital said.

The Ghurki Hospital administration said they had received 50 bodies; 36 of them had been taken to Mayo Hospital, four to Services Hospital. Three bodies were received by Rangers and seven by the relatives.”

It said 111 injured were brought to the hospital of which 16 were referred to other hospitals.

It said 14 people were brought with minor injuries. They were discharged after they were given first aid.

Pakistan Peoples Party Lahore president Samina Khalid Ghurki supervised the emergency services at the hospital. - Express Tribune

Hospitals scramble to provide care

Little chance of bilateral talks at Saarc summitISLAMABAD: There will be a ‘handshake’ between Prime Min-ister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi but a little chance of a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of a regional sum-mit later this month in Nepal.

The two prime ministers are scheduled to attend the summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) in Katmandu on November 26 and 27.

“There will be a formal hand-shake but no bilateral meeting is planned as yet,” said a senior gov-ernment official while requesting anonymity. “At this stage neither side has shown any interest in arranging a bilateral meeting be-tween the two leaders.”

Recently, Prime Minister’s Spe-cial Assistant on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi said the onus of resuming the dialogue process was

now on India. “India would now have to make the first move to start the stalled peace talks,” he told the BBC Urdu in an interview.

However, signals coming from

New Delhi were not encouraging as the Indian external affairs min-istry rejected reports regarding the possibility of a Nawaz-Modi meet-ing in Kathmandu. “There is no

such proposal from any side,” said the ministry spokesperson. Con-versely, some sources claimed that a meeting between the two leaders could still be possible given the fact that some world powers, par-ticularly the United States, would want de-escalation of tension be-tween the two neighbours.

Sources said army chief Gen-eral Raheel Sharif, who is travel-ling to Washington, on November 16, would brief the American civil and military leadership about the worsening situation along the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary.

Sources said the army chief would convey to the US leadership that the worsening situation along the LoC and Working Boundary could have negative implications for the country’s campaign against extremism. -Express Tribune

P A K I S T A N - I N D I A

Deteriorating security hits tourism industry

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, with its diverse culture, people and land-scapes, has attracted 75 million tourists to the country, almost double to that a decade ago.

Due to deteriorating security, the number of foreign tourists has gradually declined and the 2013 Nanga Parbat tourist shooting in-cident has terribly affected the in-dustry. Moreover, foreign tourism in Pakistan is at a low ebb, badly hit by the country’s reputation for violence.

Pakistan’s tourism industry was at its prime during the 1970s when the country received un-precedented amounts of foreign tourists. The main destinations were the Khyber Pass, Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore, Swat, Quetta, Gwadar and Rawalpindi.

It can be hard to digest now, but there was a time when Pakistan was a prime tourist destination. In the 1960s and 1970s, it was part of the vaunted hippie trail — the name given to the journey taken by people from the hippie sub-culture – when backpackers from Europe would cross the Khyber Pass and make their way through Peshawar, Chitral and Karachi.

Security threatsNow, as ranked by the World Eco-nomic Forum’s Travel and Tour-ism Competitiveness Index, it is ranked 122nd out of 140 coun-tries. That is actually an improve-ment of three ranking points from last year but if this is a victory, it is purely a Pyrrhic one.

There are many reasons for the

decline in tourism but none looms larger than the security threats that plague the country. From Pa-kistan-administered-Kashmir to the northern areas and from Fata to Swat, it simply is not safe for foreigners to come and experience the best the country has to offer.

Despite global economic chal-lenges, international tourism results were well above expecta-tions, with an additional 52 mil-lion international tourists travel-ling the world in 2013. For 2014, World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) forecasts 4 per cent to 4.5 per cent growth – again, above long-term projections.

Out of the global tourism in-come of $514 billion, the share of South Asia is $5.4 billion, includ-ing Pakistan’s share of only $135 million — that is 0.03 per cent of global and 2.5 per cent of South

Asia’s share. Out of the total tour-ist arrivals in the world estimated at 694 million per year, Pakistan receives only 0.5 million tourists annually.

Pakistan has been facing prob-lems in policy as well as imple-mentation to exploit the inherent tourist potential of the country due to social and religious con-straints, ineffective promotional policies, lack of infrastructure and inadequate tourist services.

The tourism potential of the country has not been realised and harnessed properly during the past because of a lack of initiatives on part of the concerned govern-ment departments, which also in-clude inadequate knowledge and training of relevant personnel in the tourism sector.

It also includes the law and order situation in the country

particularly in the areas of high tourist attraction, general image of the country in Europe and US, which to a large extent is based on fears generated out of foreign me-dia; undeveloped tourist sites and inadequate infrastructure facili-ties. There are also socio-cultural constraints, and lack of incentives in the tourism sector and lack of projection through media to the outside world.

Tourism policyThe strategies to develop tourism industry would include formula-tion of a comprehensive and real-istic tourism policy that will sup-port tourism as an industry and create credibility.

The private sector will be in-volved for tourism development through lease and rent agree-ments. The PTDC can concen-trate its activities in the market-ing, promotion, and development of tourism. New market segments will be explored, marketing ef-forts for tourism at cultural places can be intensified and training in tourism services can be improved in collaboration with internation-al tourism and hotel management institutes.

The fallen tourism industry needs to be revived through plan-ning and implementing access to finance, investment incentives, attracting foreign investments and efficiently handling the man-agement of local tourism.

Only then can we expect to re-gain the glory days of Pakistani tourism. - Express Tribune

B O T T L E N E C K

SCENIC: A lone traveller walks to his tent set up at the base of

Nanga Parbat, one of the highest mountains in the world, in the

Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan. - AFP file photo

PPP quashes talk of replacing Sindh CMISLAMABAD: Senator Farhat-ullah Babar, spokesperson for the Pakistan Peoples Party, on Sun-day denied media reports that the party was considering replacing Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah. The spokesperson said that the reports were based on conjec-ture and were not true.

Earlier on Sunday, several me-dia channels reported that the PPP had decided to replace Qaim Ali Shah. They said Murad Ali Shah had emerged as the strong-est candidate for the post of chief minister of Sindh.

By-electionsMurad Ali Shah, who recently gave up his Canadian national-ity, has filed his nomination pa-

pers to contest by-elections for the Sindh Assembly from PS-73, which was recently vacated.

Media speculationsMedia channels reported that several Pakistan Peoples Party leaders believed that Murad Ali Shah’s appointment could help in addressing party workers’ issues and improving the performance of provincial institutions.

Senator Farhatullah Babar later put the rumours to rest and said these were simply media speculations. PPP chairman Bi-lalwal Bhutto also tweeted about the alleged shuffle saying that the PPP had no plans to change the leader of the house in the Sindh Assembly. - Express Tribune

R U M O U R S

Hospitals have been asked to stay

alert. We also request citizens to

come ahead and donate blood

Spokesman for the Health Department

ELATED: Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi

will be attending the Saarc summit in Katmandu. – Reuters file photo

A11

WORLDT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

Stay ahead of the curve with

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SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY INSTALL WHATSNEWS

Laser will shoot down low-flying drones now

BEIJING: China has developed a highly accurate laser weapon system that can shoot down light drones at low altitude, state me-dia reported.

The machine has a two-kilo-metre range and can bring down “various small aircraft” within five seconds of locating its tar-get, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing a statement by the China Academy of Engi-neering Physics (CAEP), one of the developers.

Xinhua showed pictures of large metal boxes in camouflage paint and the wreckage of a small drone, some of it burning.

It is expected to “play a key role in ensuring security during major events in urban areas” and address concerns on unlicensed mapping activities, according to Xinhua. It is effective up to a maximum altitude of 500 metres and against aircraft flying at up to 50 metres per second (112 mph), Xinhua said.

It cited Yi Jinsong, a manager with China Jiuyuan Hi-Tech Equipment Corp., a firm un-der the academy, as saying that small-scale, unmanned drones were relatively cheap and easy to

use, making them a likely choice for terrorists. “Intercepting such drones is usually the work of snip-ers and helicopters, but their suc-cess rate is not as high and mis-takes with accuracy can result in unwanted damage,” he said.

The system, which can be in-stalled on vehicles, shot down more than 30 drones in a recent test with a “100 per cent success rate” said the CAEP statement.

The academy is developing similar laser security systems with greater power and range, Xinhua said in its report late Sunday. — AFP

China develops a laser machine which

has a 2km range and can bring down

‘various small aircraft’ within five

seconds of locating its target

Two new records at tightrope walkCHICAGO: US daredevil Nik Wallenda broke two world records on Sunday when he crossed the Chicago skyline on a tightrope sus-pended between three skyscrap-ers, without a safety harness.

Wallenda, already the first per-son to cross the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls, set records for the steepest tightrope incline and high-est blindfolded walk as he stepped gingerly across the Windy City in mid-air. In the first half of the stunt Wallenda, 35, walked more than two city blocks and crossed the Chicago River with a tightrope set at an incline of 19 degrees, between the Marina City west tower and the Leo Burnett Building.

Upon descending from the tightrope, Wallenda returned to Marina City west via the ground to complete his second and more dangerous feat: a tightrope walk to the east tower at more than 500 feet (152 metres), blindfolded. He completed the first walk in just within seven minutes and the sec-ond in slightly more than a minute, despite gusts of wind. “It’s all

about pushing myself to become better at what I do and hoping to inspire others to become better at what they do,” Wallenda told the Discovery Channel, which broad-cast the stunt in more than 220

countries. The Chicago Tribune said police estimated some 50,000 people turned out to watch Wal-lenda, a seventh generation mem-ber of the Flying Wallendas circus family. — AFP

U S D A R E D E V I L

Bangladesh upholds death sentence for leaderDHAKA: Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld the death penalty for a leader over atrocities committed during 1971 war.

In May last year, a special war crimes tribunal found Mohammad Kamaruzzaman, 62, an assistant secretary general of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, guilty of genocide and torture of unarmed civilians dur-ing the 1971 war.

The tribunals have delivered death sentences for two Jamaat leaders, including its party chief and former minister, Motiur Rah-man Nizami, over the past week.

Violent protests over the trials are one of the main challenges fac-ing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who opened an inquiry into war crimes in 2010.

Defence lawyers said they would

file a petition for a review but state prosecutors said a review was not an option.

“His death penalty was upheld by a majority decision of the Su-preme Court,” chief prosecutor Golam Arif Tipu told reporters outside the packed court amid tight security.

Cheering the verdictVeterans of the war were among hundreds gathered outside the court who cheered the verdict.

“We want the verdict to be im-plemented soon,” Nasiruddin Yu-suf, a filmmaker and war veteran, told reporters.

Jamaat called for another strike for Wednesday to protest against the verdict. A three-day strike is already underway in protest

against the death sentence for the party chief.

On Monday, Jamaat activ-ists smashed a dozen vehicles in Gazipur, on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka, where several crude bombs went off.

In September, the Supreme Court commuted to life imprison-ment a death sentence for another top leader, Delawar Hossain Saye-dee, convicted for similar crimes.

A politician was hanged in De-cember, the first war crimes ex-ecution in Bangladesh, after the Supreme Court overturned a life sentence imposed by the tribunals.

The tribunals have angered hardliners who call them a politi-cally motivated bid to persecute the leadership of Jamaat and weaken the opposition. — Reuters

W A R C R I M E S

The machine is effective up to a maximum altitude of 500 metres and against aircraft flying at up to 50 metres per second


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

STEEPEST TIGHTROPE: Daredevil Nik Wallenda walks along a tightrope between two skyscrapers sus-pended 500feet (152.4 metres) above the Chicago River in Chicago, Illinois, on Sunday. – Reuters

FOUND GULITY: Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami leader, Mo-hammad Kamaruzzaman, in Dhaka. – AFP/File photograph

COMMEN ARYT I M E S O F O M A NT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

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Special to Times of Oman

In case you haven’t noticed, the Obama Administration is in the midst of an on-going and very public spat with the Netanyahu government in Israel. The “tit for tat” exchanges have been noted in the press, with reporters and some analysts providing banal motives for

the acrimony. I believe, however, that it would be wrong to attribute the bitter words and bad feel-ings to trite personal concerns since there may be a strategic political purpose being served by this unfolding drama.

First, a recap of the most recent events—to set the stage: A few weeks back, following a Netan-yahu-Obama meeting in Washington, the White House rebuked the Israeli leader’s announcement of new settlement construction in occupied Jeru-salem and the West Bank. The Israeli Prime Min-ister was quick to respond.

He charged that the US criticism failed to reflect “American values”, bizarrely claiming that since Palestinians have the right to live anywhere they wish in the “Land of Israel”, that Jews should not be denied that same right.

To their credit, Israeli commentators were quick to point out that this was sheer nonsense since it is well understood by Israelis that Palestinians can-not live anywhere they please.

In fact, even Arab citizens of Israel are denied the right to live in most Jewish-only communities. The White House quickly shot back at Netanyahu suggesting that his harsh words were both uncalled for and more than a little ungrateful, reminding him how the US had funded the “Iron Dome” and taken a host of other actions in Israel’s defense.

Round two came last week as Netanyahu’s Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon came to Wash-ington and left after failing to secure meetings with the Secretary of State, the National Security Adviser, and other top Administration foreign af-fairs officials. The latest episode in this public spat came in the form of an interview given by an un-named “senior Administration official” in which he was quoted saying: “The thing about Bibi is, he’s a chickens**t...the good thing is he is scared to launch wars. The bad thing about him is that he won’t do anything to reach an accommodation with the Palestinians or with the majority sect Ar-abs. The only thing he’s interested in is protecting himself from political defeat... he’s got no guts.”

The reaction in Israel was immediate and sus-tained. The Prime Minister acted like a wounded warrior claiming that he was being attacked solely because he was defending Israel.

While Netanyahu had some defenders, to be sure, many commentators were not buying his ar-guments. They charged that his behaviour was not only putting the US-Israel relationship at risk; it was also isolating Israel in the world community.

With the recklessness of Netanyahu’s own ac-tions and those of his extremist allies fuelling an ever-increasing volatile situation in Jerusalem and with the Palestinians launching an effort at the United Nations against settlements and for an end to the occupation, the Prime Minister’s newly emboldened critics have become increasingly con-cerned that the last thing Israel needs in the face of these serious challenges is isolation from its friends in the West.

Netanyahu may have already written off the Obama White House and may be counting on a Republican Congress to save him from the Admin-istration’s pressure, but opinion in Israel appears not to share his confidence that the country can whether the storms created by his defiance. They are warning that regardless of which party wins the upcoming US election, Israel may be heading for two long and lonely years.

This is what, I believe, is behind the Administra-tion’s gambit. The President has long been frus-trated by the Israeli Prime Minister’s wily and of-ten dishonest manoeuvring. But knowing that the opposition in Israel is too weak at present, to win control of the government, something needed to be done to shake up the internal Israeli debate.

The “conventional wisdom”, as projected by some former US officials and pro-Israel groups in Washington, is that Israelis will only make peace when they are given everything they want and feel secure. In fact, the opposite is true. It is only external pressure—especially pressure from the US—that historically has forced Israelis to make the right choice.

This may very well be what the Obama Adminis-tration is up to right now. It is a gamble, to be sure. It may be too late to empower the Israeli peace camp and stop the right-ward drift in that country. But it is a risk that must be taken.

Netanyahu must go, but for that to happen, the debate in Israel must change and that country’s peace forces must be strengthened to the point where they will coalesce around a candidate that will move the country in a different direction. That process is beginning. But if it is to have any chance of succeeding, it must be sustained.

The author is the president of Arab American Institute. All the views and opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of Times of Oman.

More to the US-Israel spat than meets eye

The President has long been frustrated by the Israeli Prime Minister’s wily and often dishonest manoeuvring. But knowing that the opposition in Israel is too weak at present, to win control of the government, something needed to be done to shake up the internal Israeli debate

Temper good intentions with deep deliberationsThis refers to the report, ‘Women demand more slots in top posi-tions’ published in the Times of Oman. The commendable report highlights the irony of the fact that while one third of the work-ing force in the country comprises women, they still have to struggle to reach the top management positions. It is nice to know that there is unanimity across the gender divide on the issue that a quota should be set aside for women in the senior echelons of managements. But that is where the unanimity ends. This is not surprising though. I am sure if a decision is taken to introduce the system of quotas for women in senior management positions, eventually a way to implement it in a manner satisfactory to all

parties will also be found. What I am not sure, however, is what im-pact it will have on the businesses. I am not in the least suggesting that women do not have the abil-ity to fill senior management posi-tions. In fact, an Indian newspa-per recently published a report saying that companies which had women in their senior manage-ment positions had proved to be more profitable. Though it was not research per se, it pointed towards a fact we all know from experience. Women are more prudent when it comes to finan-cial matters. Again, I agree that it may not hold true in all cases. But coming back to the issue of quotas, what seems to me to turn out the most intractable issue is what would a management do if is unable to find a suitable candi-date? Will it be keep the position

vacant and wait for a suitable woman candidate to arrive? Will it appoint a man to the position? If the second option is available, will it not be misused? There are many related questions that need to be asked and satisfactorily answered before a decision of such import is taken.Ravish KhanduriMuscat

Security Council indeed faces a test of credibility Refer to Gareth Evans’ piece ‘Credibility test for Security Council’ published in Times of Oman. The writer has rightly cautioned that the institutional legitimacy as the world’s foremost decision-maker on issues of peace and security cannot be taken for granted so long as the major play-

ers of the current century find a seat on the high table. What is even more noteworthy that a seasoned diplomat like Evans is giving a shelf-life of just 15 years or so if countries like Brazil, Germany, India, Japan, and South Africa do not have a seat on the high table. While reconstructing the Security Council to ensure that the most influential powers always have a seat at the table is not the most ur-gent reform, but it remains one of the most important because in the long term this ‘democratisation’ of the security council is the only way to keep it alive and in good health to take on the challenges before it. Not missing the point Evans has pointed out that the various crises to plead for stopping the stopping erosion of faith in the global body.Najeeb AhmadSalalah

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

WASHINGTON WATCH

A two-day International Investment Conference concluded in Islamabad recently, with the government attempting to high-light various sectors that could attract, and need, investment

to spur the country’s growth. The conference, which featured inter-national participants as well, focused mainly on the energy sector with a healthy debate on the opening day summing up the country’s approach and actual performance. The second day saw Finance Min-ister Ishaq Dar discussing a “14-point road map” that would steer the country towards prosperity, giving a new meaning to the word cliches and drawing an “all talk no action” reaction from critics. It is quite clear that the energy crisis is one of Pakistan’s biggest hurdles in the way of achieving sustainable economic growth.

In this regard, the government’s statements and calculations that an addition of 17,000MW was needed to meet the energy demands by the year 2020 drew a mixed reaction. In response to the government seek-ing $20 billion for the power sector, a chief executive officer said that privatisation of power companies was the only solution. He referred to transmission losses and electricity theft, stressing that it was pointless to add more water to the “leaking bucket”, a point well made. Upgrad-ing the infrastructure, controlling leakage and cracking down on theft must be done first. Privatising state-owned entities has been a difficult task, but delaying what has been promised to the IMF has only put the government in a tighter spot. While the government can celebrate the participation of international investors, who seemed interested during the question-and-answer sessions, it will be the policies that would de-termine the success of the investment conference. It was heartening to see the turnout and investor interest in Pakistan. The country does offer potential, but policies hold it back. -The Express Tribune

Investment conference

If scientists ruled the world, we would all be safe, at least so far as climate change is concerned. Yesterday’s report from the UN In-tergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, containing their latest

thinking, could not be clearer. Humanity still has some chance of avert-ing the worst consequences of our abuse of the planet; if not, the pro-cess of climate change will become irreversible. It is not a new message, but that should not make it any the less frightening. But the prospects for agreement at the climate change conferences in Paris next year are scarcely better than they were at Copenhagen five years ago.

Today that sense of imminent economic disaster has passed, and events such as Fukushima and a succession of extreme weather epi-sodes, such as the floods in southern England in recent years, have fo-cused a little more attention on green concerns (whatever the scien-tific truth about those phenomena). Nonetheless, jobs and economic progress top the list of voter concerns in most of the major powers, while the rise of Isis points to near existential geopolitical threats.

Nations with plentiful and cheap, though still dirty, fossil fuels under their feet such as China, Australia and Russia will continue to burn them to power their cities and heat their homes, to be com-petitive in world trade. Their push for growth has created jobs, a new middle class and lifted millions out of poverty, but at great cost to the wider world and the quality of the air they breathe themselves.

Yet it is difficult to answer the point made by a Malaysian prime minister some years ago, who asked why those nations that had al-ready enjoyed their industrial revolutions in previous centuries had any right to stop others from taking that same path to a better future now. When these emerging economies refuse to co-operate then the US usually finds excuse enough to follow suit.

Oil producers such as Saudi Arabia raise their own problems, per-fectly legitimately. But those countries likely to disappear through rising sea levels, such as Bangladesh or the Maldives have a more vital interest at stake, though they tend to be ignored by the bigger world powers. The global economy’s recovery is still too fragile for govern-ments to put sustainable growth first.

Even in the good times world leaders found agreement on power-ful, immediate radical measures to rescue the planet impossible to achieve. Since the last remotely successful effort was at the Rio Earth Summit two decades ago, India and China have become real forces in the world economy, others such as Brazil and Indonesia have put pros-perity ahead of biodiversity and their impact on climate change has been substantial and still escalating. Plenty of fruitless summits and conferences and declarations have come and gone.

The global environment is the ultimate “common good” issue for the world, the property of everyone and no-one. Worse still, the effects of trashing it will not become critical for decades, long after most peo-ple alive today have departed a steadily more degraded Earth. Thus the decision makers have little incentive to change much. As the IPCC implies, the outlook is about as grim as can be. -The Independent

Filthy lucre, dirty fuel and latest IPCC report

D R J A M E S J . Z O G B Y

READERS’ FORUM

website: www.newindiaoman.com

NEW INDIA ASSURANCENew India’s PERSONAL ACCIDENT INSURANCE offers you world-wide cover/protection and TRAVEL INSURANCE that ensures you tension-free travels.

The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understandFRANK HERBERT

PERSPEC IVET I M E S O F O M A N T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4T I M E S O F O M A N A13

If there is one phrase less fit for purpose than the utterly ir-ritating “fit for purpose” then

it is surely that smugly-said tru-ism about the public interest not necessarily being defined by what interests the public.

There are of course endless de-bates to be had about what type of content is and is not in the public

interest. Common ground tends to be found over material that serves some sort of public good: an article which uncovers corpo-rate impropriety; or a programme which exposes misleading state-ments by a person in authority.

But even if agreement can be reached on what the public inter-est actually is, there often remains division on the question of how frequently it should be employed as a defence for publication.

I was reminded of this question last week when a reader queried a report about a woman who had taken legal action to try to stop Westminster Council re-housing her and her children. In our article we included information about the woman’s background.

We said she had successfully sought asylum some years ago, was now a British citizen and was a single mother. We also named her children and included a pic-ture of the family.

Was all this information rel-evant, asked the reader? And was

it, he wondered, really in the best interests of the children for them to be identified as being depend-ent on state benefits?

The second question was a rea-sonable one but overlooked the fact that we had published the children’s identities with their mother’s consent; and there was no obvious reason to withhold anodyne information which had been freely given.

As to whether it was relevant to note that the family originated from overseas, it is certainly true that the article would have hung together without the fact. That the subject of the piece was a sin-gle mother was pertinent in that it potentially had an impact on the family’s earning capabilities. But again, we could have written the article without mentioning her marital status.Yet this issue of rel-evance, which is broadly speaking an extension of the public interest debate, can become an over-bear-ing mantra.

A lot of media output does not

strictly serve a public interest in the sense of being crucial to the common weal. But the point is, it should necessarily have to.

When David Cameron makes a speech about the EU, it is not crucial or strictly relevant to note that he was in Manchester or that he went there by train or that he spoke for 45 minutes. The fact that a person may or may not be married is not central to whether they have been treated properly by their local council.

But background information establishes context and, let’s be honest, makes a story more read-able. A newspaper which only published articles to serve a nar-rowly defined public interest, or which only included details that were strictly related to the mat-ter at hand would be pretty dry. And newspapers can only serve the public interest if people read them; they must therefore be in-teresting to the public.

Now there’s a nice turn of phrase. -The Independent

TODAY IN HISTORY

OPINION POLL

1760 Following the Russian capture of Berlin, Frederick II of Prussia defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Torgau.

1798 Congress agrees to pay a yearly tribute

to Tripoli, considering it the only way to protect U.S. shipping.

1918 Austria signs an armistice with the

Allies.

1922 The U.S. Postmaster General orders all homes to get mailboxes or relinquish delivery of mail

1922 The entrance to King Tut’s tomb is discovered.

2008 Senator Barack Obama of Illinois elected president of United States.

PANEL TO REVISE MUNICIPALITIES, ENVIRONMENT LAWMUSCAT: – Dr Khamis bin Mubarak Al Alawi, Minister of Regional Municipalities and Environ-ment, issued yesterday two ministerial decisions setting up two committees to revise the Regional Municipalities and Environment Law, and the building permission procedures. The first commit-tee to be chaired by the ministry’s undersecretary with secretaries general and experts at the mini-stry as members, is tasked to revise the Regional Municipalities and Environment Law.

FROM OUR ARCHIVES

In the future, virtually all of the information connected to a bank account will be reported to the tax authorities of the account holder’s country

We are witnessing profound changes in the way that the world economy works. As a result of the growing pace and intensity

of globalisation and digitisation, more and more eco-nomic processes have an international dimension. As a consequence, an increasing number of busi-nesses are adapting their structures to domestic and foreign legal systems and taxation laws.

Thanks to technical advances in the digital economy, companies can serve markets without having to be physically present in them.

At the same time, sources of income have be-come more mobile: There is an increasing focus on intangible assets and mobile investment income that can easily be “optimised” from a tax point of view and transferred abroad. Tax legislation has not kept pace with these developments. Most of the tax-allocation principles that apply today date back to a time when doing business internationally primarily meant transporting goods across a bor-der to a neighbouring country.

But rules that were devised for this in the 1920s and 1930s are no longer suitable for today’s inter-national integration of economic processes and corporate structures. They need to be adapted to the economic reality of digital services.

In the absence of workable rules, states are los-ing revenue that they urgently need in order to ful-fil their responsibilities. At the same time, the issue of fair taxation is becoming more and more press-ing, because the number of taxpayers who make an adequate contribution to financing public goods and services is decreasing.

The resulting tensions between national fiscal sovereignty and the borderless scope of today’s business activities can be resolved only through in-ternational dialogue and uniform global standards.

Within the European Union, permitting groups of states to forge ahead with joint solutions to is-sues that can be addressed only multilaterally has worked well in the past. If such measures prove successful, other states follow.

This approach can also serve as a global govern-ance model for resolving international problems. In today’s world, even large states cannot establish and enforce international frameworks on their own. Groups of countries still can.

This has been demonstrated in the context of fi-nancial-market regulation; it is starting to become clear with regard to the regulatory framework for the digital economy; and it is now being confirmed in the area of taxation.

The Seventh Meeting of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes took place in Berlin this week, bring-ing together representatives from 122 countries

and jurisdictions, as well as the EU. A joint agree-ment on the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts was signed on Wednesday.

The joint agreement was originally an initiative by Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain. Roughly 50 early-adopter countries and territories decided to take part, while other countries have indicated their willingness to join.

The agreement is based on the Common Re-porting Standard, which was developed by the OECD. Under the CRS, tax authorities receive in-formation from banks and other financial service providers and automatically share it with tax au-thorities in other countries.

In the future, virtually all of the information connected to a bank account will be reported to the tax authorities of the account holder’s coun-try, including the account holder’s name, balance, interest and dividend income, and capital gains.

Various measures are in place to ensure that banks can identify the beneficial owner and notify the relevant tax authorities accordingly.

The CRS thus expands the scope of global, cross-border cooperation among national tax authorities. In this way, we can establish a regula-tory framework for the age of globalization.

The automatic exchange of information is a pragmatic and effective response to the perceived lack of global governance regarding international tax issues. By making taxation fairer, govern-ments will have a positive impact on people’s ac-ceptance of their tax regimes.

This great success in the fight against interna-tional tax evasion would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. Now it is important to con-tinue the efforts of the OECD and the G-20 in the area of corporate taxation. We need to make sure that creative tax planning in the form of profit-shifting and artificial profit reduction is no longer a lucrative business model.

A “beggar-thy-neighbour” taxation policy, by which one country pursues tax policies at the expense of others, is just as dangerous as beggar-thy-neighbour monetary policies based on com-petitive currency devaluation. It leads to misal-locations – and will ultimately reduce prosperity around the world.

That is why we need to agree on uniform inter-national standards in order to achieve fair inter-national tax competition. The progress achieved in Berlin on the automatic exchange of tax infor-mation shows that, by working together, we can realise this goal. -Project Syndicate

Wolfgang Schäuble is Germany’s Federal Minister of Finance

A convincing case for taxation to go global

HISTORYORB.COM

Foreign fighters in SyriaSome 15,000 foreign fighters are believed to have travelled to Syria over the past three years to fight in the civil war and join extremist groups such as the Al Nusra Front and so-called IS group

GraphicsGraphic News /Source: International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, reports by AIVD and FSIS, Soufan Group, government estimates

Tunisia

Jordan

Morocco

Russia – mainly Chechnya

Libya

Algeria

Turkey

Egypt

Pakistan – Taliban

Indonesia

Philippines

Kosovo

Malaysia

Indonesia

3,000

1,500

1,500

800

600

400

400

350

270

200

200

120

at least 100

60

France

UK

Germany

Belgium

Australia

Netherlands

Canada

Denmark

United States

Norway

Sweden

Spain

Finland

Ireland

Switzerland

700at least 500

400300300150130100

at least 100100100

50303010

Fighters from Other countries(excluding Syria and Iraq) 11,920 2,970

From westernCountries

LAST POLL RESULT

Should Israel be tried for murdering Yassr Arafat?

Should there be a quota for women in top management positions in Oman?

Visit timesofoman.com to cast your vote

Yes90.6%

No4.7%

Can't say4.7%

The Bank of Japan, this country’s equivalent of the Federal Reserve,

has lately been making a big effort to end deflation, which has afflicted Japan’s economy for almost two decades. At first its efforts — which in-volve printing a lot of money and, even more important, trying to assure investors that it will keep printing money until inflation reaches 2 per-cent — seemed to be going well. But more recently the economy has lost momentum, and last week the bank an-nounced new, even more ag-gressive monetary measures.

I am, as you might guess, very much in favour of this move, although I worry that the policy might nonetheless fail thanks to fiscal mistakes. (More about that later.) While the bank did the right thing, however, it did so amid sub-stantial internal dissent. In fact, the new stimulus was ap-proved by only five of the bank board’s nine members, with those closest to business vot-ing against. Which brings me to the subject of this column: the economic wisdom, or lack thereof, of business leaders.

Some of the people I’ve spoken to here argue that the opposition of many Japanese business leaders to the Bank of Japan’s actions shows that it’s on the wrong track. In saying this, they’re echoing a common sentiment in many countries, including America — the belief that if you want to fix an ailing economy, you should turn to people who have been success-ful in business, like leaders of major corporations, entrepre-neurs and wealthy investors. After all, doesn’t their success with money mean that they know how the economy really works? Actually, no. In fact, business leaders often give remarkably bad economic advice, especially in troubled times. And I think it’s impor-tant to understand why.

About that bad advice: Think of the hugely wealthy money managers who warned Ben Bernanke that the Fed’s efforts to boost the economy risked “currency debase-ment”; think of the many corporate chieftains who sol-emnly declared that budget deficits were the biggest threat facing America, and that fix-ing the debt would cause growth to soar. In Japan, busi-ness leaders played an impor-tant role in the fiscal mistakes

that have undermined recent policy success, calling for a tax hike that caused growth to stall earlier this year, and a second tax hike next year that would be an even worse error.

And on the other side, the past few years have seen re-peated vindication for policy makers who have never met a payroll, but do know a lot about economic theory and history. The Federal Reserve and the Bank of England have navigat-ed their way through a once-in-three-generations economic crisis under the leadership of former college professors — Ben Bernanke, Janet Yellen and Mervyn King — who, among other things, had the courage to defy all those ty-coons demanding that they stop printing money. The Eu-ropean Central Bank brought the euro back from the brink of collapse under the leadership of Mario Draghi, who spent the bulk of his career in academia and public service.

Obviously there are busi-ness leaders who have gotten the economic analysis right, and plenty of academics who have gotten it wrong. (Don’t get me started.) But success in business does not seem to convey any special insight into economic policy. Why?

The answer, to quote the title of a paper I published many years ago, is that a coun-try is not a company. National economic policy, even in small countries, needs to take into account kinds of feedback that rarely matter in business life. For example, even the biggest corporations sell only a small fraction of what they make to their own workers, whereas even very small countries mostly sell goods and services to themselves.

So think of what happens when a successful busi-nessperson looks at a troubled economy and tries to apply the lessons of business ex-perience. He or (rarely) she sees the troubled economy as something like a troubled company, which needs to cut costs and become competi-tive. To create jobs, the busi-nessperson thinks, wages must come down, expenses must be reduced; in general, belts must be tightened. And surely gimmicks like deficit spending or printing more money can’t solve what must be a fundamental problem.

In reality, however, cutting wages and spending in a de-pressed economy just aggra-vates the real problem, which is inadequate demand. Deficit spending and aggressive mon-ey-printing, on the other hand, can help a lot. But how can this kind of logic be sold to busi-ness leaders, especially when it comes from pointy-headed academic types?

Here in Japan, the fight against deflation is all too likely to fail if conventional notions of prudence prevail. But can unconventional-ity triumph over the instincts of business leaders? Stay tuned. -New York Times

Business vs Economics

The touchstone of public interest

PA U L K R U G M A N

W I L L G O R E

WOLFGANG SCHÄUBLE

A14

GLOBAL EYET U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

HONDURAS: A view of the rainbow at the Tiburcio Carias Andino stadium during a Honduran Apertura tournament football match between Olimpia and Espana in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on Sunday. – AFP

MEXICO: Camilla, left, Duchess of Cornwall and Britain’s Prince Charles, right, visit the Museum of

Paste with Hidalgo state Governor Jose Francisco Olvera, left rear, and his wife Maria Guadalupe

Romero in Pachuca, in the Mexican state of Hidalgo, on Sunday. The ‘Paste’ is Cornish Pasty brought to

Mexico by miners from Cornwall in Great Britain who used to work in the mines of Pachuca around the

1820s. Charles and Camilla are in Mexico on a four-day official visit. – Reuters

HAWAII: A lava toe oozes out of the northern margin of the Kilauea volcano lava flow in thick forest,

about 300 metres above the slope of the leading edge of the flow near Pahoa, Hawaii. Hawaii civil

defence officials say the lava flow that has been inching its way down hill towards the village of

Pahoa for weeks is still very much active but that it has not advanced in the last 48 hours. – Reuters

JAPAN: Japan’s star monster Godzilla, left front, poses with a fan

after an awards ceremony at Toho Studio in Tokyo’s Setagaya

Ward on Monday. The ceremony was held in front of an 11-metre-

tall (36feet) mural of Godzilla, displayed to celebrate the 60th

anniversary of the popular film series. – AFP

CHILE: Tandem paragliding instructor flies with a tourist in Santiago, Chile, on Sunday. Paragliding schools are visited by tourists who

pay around $80 for a 15-minute flight to see the city from the air. – AFP

CHINA: A man pushes a stroller carrying his 13-month-old twin babies as he runs among participants

during the Hangzhou International Marathon, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Sunday. The father

finished a 7-kilometre section while pushing the stroller, local media reported. – Reuters


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

A15

WORLDT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

George Caton Jutting, 29-year-old British banker,

was arrested in the early hours of Saturday at

his apartment in Wan Chai after police found the

bodies of two women in his apartment

Branson hits out at critics after safety warning claim

LONDON: Virgin Galactic boss Richard Branson hit out against “hurtful” critics and “self-pro-claimed experts” on Monday after a rocket scientist said that the company had ignored safety warnings ahead of the deadly crash of one of its spacecraft.

Branson said the evidence showed there had been “no explo-sion” behind the SpaceShipTwo accident in the United States last Friday. He vowed to push on with the project, while investigators pored over the wreckage in the Mojave Desert in California for

clues. “I’ve never seen such irre-sponsible innuendo and damaging innuendo,” the British business tycoon told Sky News television, referring to critical press reports in Britain. “The fuel tanks and the

engine were intact, showing there was no explosion, despite a lot of self-proclaimed experts saying that was the cause,” he said.

Investigators on Sunday point-ed out that a lock-unlock lever

used to activate a process in the spaceship’s tail section had been moved by the co-pilot premature-ly although they emphasised the cause of the accident had not been established.

Carolynne Campbell, an expert with the Netherlands-based In-ternational Association for the Advancement of Space Safety, also on Sunday told AFP that she and other experts “were con-cerned about what was going on at Virgin Galactic”.

She said that multiple warn-ings about the spacecraft’s motor and the fuel used to power it had been issued to Virgin since 2007, when three engineers died testing a rocket on the ground.

“I warned them... that the rocket motor was potentially dangerous,” she said.

Campbell’s warnings related to nitrous oxide, reportedly used as a fuel component in the doomed craft along with a new substance derived from nylon plastic grains.

Branson wants to ferry wealthy customers to the edge of space, charging $250,000 (200,000 eu-ros) per ticket, and the crash is expected to delay the programme.

“It’s a grand programme which has had a horrible setback,” he said in a separate interview on NBC’s “Today” show.

In his Sky News interview, he said: “We must push on.”

“I’m absolutely convinced that Virgin Galactic has a great future once the NTSB (US National Transportation Safety Board) has made clear exactly what hap-pened,” he said.

“If we had had an accident once we’d actually started carry-ing passengers in the early days it would be very difficult to recover from that. I hope this is slightly different.

“We have test pilots testing the aircraft in very extreme situations to make sure it is safe for pas-sengers,” he said. But he stressed he would personally test the flight first.

“We will not fly members of the public unless we can fly myself and family members,” he said.

A team of NTSB investiga-tors has been deployed to the site of the crash, in which pilot Mi-chael Alsbury was killed and co-pilot Pete Siebold was seriously injured. — AFP

Virgin chief asserted

the evidence showed

there had been ‘no

explosion’ behind

the SpaceShipTwo

accident

‘Diversion of funds to combat Ebola hits UN rights initiatives’REJIMON K [email protected]

DUBAI: The diversion of funds to combat the spread of the Eb-ola virus is affecting the human rights initiatives of the United Na-tions (UN), said an official of the world body.

“The ongoing refugee crisis in the Middle East and the outbreak of the Ebola virus is adversely im-pacting the UN’s human rights initiatives. Especially, when funds are diverted to combat the spread

of the Ebola virus, the UN’s Of-fice of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) faces a severe fund crunch. We have dropped some of the initiatives from the bottom of the priority list. Moreover, vacant posts have also not been filled in the OHCHR headquarters at Geneva,” said the official who refused to be named.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 4,000 people have died since the cur-rent Ebola outbreak, with the vast majority from Guinea, Liberia and

Sierra Leone. With regard to the war in Syria, since early 2011, the number of people fleeing the coun-try has swelled to more than three million – half of them children.

After a thorough review of the office’s financial situation, the ex-tra budgetary plan for 2014 has been fixed at $149.9 million for new and ongoing programmes.

“For the last the two years, the office has been facing a severe fi-nancial crunch. Now, we need $25 million to fulfil our commitments. A majority of the countries fail to

provide us with the money they have committed. This has put us in trouble,” said the official, while adding that they depended mainly on voluntary contributions from some generous countries.

OHCHR accepts contributions from member states, intergovern-mental organisations, NGOs, com-panies, foundations and private individuals. Approximately 60 per cent of OHCHR’s work is funded through voluntary contributions. The rest is provided by the regular budget of the United Nations. Hu-

man rights is recognised as one of the three pillars of the UN system, the other two being development and peace and security.

For the 2014-2015 Biennium $173.5 million was allocated to OHCHR, compared with $174.2 million for the 2012-2013 Bien-nium. “This amount is not enough to implement human rights man-dates established by the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council. Mandated work should ideally be financed by the regular budget, however as this is not the

case, the office uses a substantial portion of extra budgetary funds to supplement these activities,” added the official.

During the 2012–2013 Bien-nium, OHCHR had to rely on vol-untary contributions for 34 per cent of its funding to support the human rights treaty bodies.

The situation was even worse with regard to the Human Rights Council special procedures mech-anisms, for which merely 60 per cent of their support was covered by the regular budget.

A C U T E S H O R T A G E

British banker is charged with murderHONG KONG: A 29-year-old British banker appeared in a Hong Kong court on Monday charged with two counts of murder after po-lice found the bodies of two women in his apartment, including one in-side a suitcase on a balcony.

A court document said Rurik George Caton Jutting worked for Bank of America Corp.

The US bank said that it had, until recently, an employee with the same name, but it declined to give further details.

Looking stony-faced and un-shaven and wearing a black T-shirt and dark-rimmed glass-es, Jutting told the court he understood both charges. The brief hearing was adjourned until November 10, without Jutting en-tering a plea.

Jutting was arrested in the early hours of Saturday at his apartment in Wan Chai, a central city district known for its vibrant night life.

The charge sheet identified the woman in the suitcase as Sumarti Ningsih and said she had been killed on October 27.

The second woman, who was not identified, was killed on No-vember 1. It did not say how they were killed. — Reuters

H O N G K O N G

The fuel tanks and the engine were intact, showing there was no explosion, despite a lot of self-proclaimed experts saying that was the cause

Richard BransonVirgin Galactic chief

MARKEWWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14B

Muscat

7,031.31+ 3.53

+ 0.05%

Dubai

4,577.39- 38.73

- 0.84%

Abu Dhabi

4,950.26+ 22.83

+ 0.46%

Saudi Arabia

10,141.67+ 42.40

+ 0.42%

Kuwait

7,318.99- 40.92

- 0.56%

Bahrain

1,446.28+ 2.15

+ 0.15%

Qatar

13,780.59+ 157.26

+ 1.15%

CURRENCY RATES* DRAFT RATES (OMR1)* GOLD PRICES*Forex rates vs OMR1*

US Dollar .................................2.58

Euro ............................................2.06

Pound ............................................1.61

Indian Rs .............................159.49

Pak Rs ...................................262.54

Bangla Taka.......................198.37* Rates are as of Nov. 3

Source: BankMuscat

Indian Rs .................................. 159.20

Pakistan Rs ............................ 265.60

Sri Lanka Rs ...........................337.50

Bangla Taka...........................200.80

Phil Peso ..................................... 116.15

* Rates as of Nov. 3 Source: Oman UAE Exchange

Muscat 24ct per gm (OMR) .......15.00

Muscat 22ct per gm (OMR) .......14.45

Dubai 24ct per gm (Dh) .............141.50

Dubai 22ct per gm (Dh) .............134.25

* Rates as of Nov. 3

Source: Malabar Gold & Diamonds

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

Oman Crude ............. (Spot) ........$84.04

Dubai Crude ............. (Spot) .........$85.17

Murban Crude ........ (Spot) ........$85.66

Arabian Light ......... (Spot) ........$85.56

N.Sea Brent ............... (Spot) ........$86.06

West Texas Int ....... (Spot) ........$80.80

CRUDE OIL PRICE

Al Maha Ceramics shares soar 69 per cent on maiden listing

A E [email protected]

MUSCAT: Shares of Al Maha Ce-ramics surged ahead by 274 baisas or 68.8 per cent to close at 672 baisas on the first day of listing, which is against an issue price of 397 baisas per share.

Market sources said that the strong listing gain, which was more than market expectation, was main-ly due to expectation of a 35 per cent cash dividend early next year.

“It is the criteria to price shares in the secondary market (in Oman). Dividend plays a big role in determining the share price,” said Kanaga Sundar, head of research at Gulf Baader Capital Markets.

The company’s shares peaked to as high as 708 baisas during intra-day trading, before settling down at 664 baisas, which is against the opening price of 640 baisas.

Al Maha Ceramics, which floated an initial public offering of OMR7.94 million, has projected

a cash dividend of 35 per cent for 2014, which is payable by March 2015. The cash dividend works out to a dividend yield of 8.8 per cent, which is very attractive in the local bourse.

As many as 12.73 million Al Maha shares changed hand, re-sulting in a turnover of OMR8.57 million, against the total market turnover of OMR13.27 million. “It could be retail selling.”

Sundar said that the trading is likely to continue in 650-700 baisas range in the coming days.

The company, which raised OMR155.34 million as application money from 34,851 investors, has allotted a minimum of 200 shares and thereafter at the rate of three per cent for additional shares ap-plied in the case of retail appli-cants. As far as mutual funds are concerned, the share allotment was four per cent.

Market sources said that the high-level of interest from retail investors in primary issues is a healthy sign for the overall de-velopment of the capital market in Oman. The Capital Market Authority and the Muscat Securi-ties Market have been taking a series of initiatives, including res-ervation and minimum allotment for retail investors, for attracting investing public.

Al Maha offered 20 million shares or 40 per cent of its paid up capital at 397 baisas per share – 295 baisas premium and two baisa issue expenses.

As much as 70 per cent of the shares were reserved for individ-uals applied for 100,000 shares or less, while the remaining 30 per cent was allocated to local mutual funds.

The company, which has an in-stalled capacity of 6 million square meters per annum, is running close to 100 per cent capacity uti-lisation. The capacity utilisation was 102 per cent and 104 per cent in 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Al Maha Ceramics, which has a strong presence in the GCC mar-kets, sells 55-60 per cent of its total production in the local mar-ket. Apart from GCC markets, the company exports its products to Yemen and Jordan as well.

Market sources said that the strong listing

gain was mainly due to expectation of a 35

per cent cash dividend early next year

‘Tremendous progress seen in delivering Duqm as mega-project’Times News Service

MUSCAT: Tremendous pro-gress has been made in delivering ‘Duqm’ as the Sultanate’s single largest mega-project, said Yahya Al Zadjali of the Special Eco-nomic Zone Authority at Duqm (Sezad). Altogether 15 projects are underway and more than 50 projects are in preparation, ten-dering or planning stages.

A wide range of major projects underway or planned in Oman came for discussion at the Oman Projects Forum organised by MEED Events and supported by Oman’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry and held in the Al Bustan Palace here. Participants were also updated on the Sultan-ate’s continuing success in deliv-ering a stable environment for business and trade.

The value of contracts placed in Oman will reach an all-time high of more than $10 billion in 2014 and this figure could rise to $13.7 billion in 2015, MEED Projects director of analysis Ed James told the MEED Oman Projects Forum. “MEED Projects figures show that a total of $87 billion worth of project contracts is due to be placed in Oman 2014-18,” James added.

The forum opened on the first day with an extensive update on Oman’s projects market with the keynote speech delivered by Dr Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, min-ister of commerce and industry, who, in his speech, said that non-oil growth is accelerating and that the project pipeline is worth more than $100 billion. Hamood Al Zadjali, the executive presi-dent of the Central Bank of Oman, said the Oman’s economy is solid and the banking system is profit-able, liquid and well-capitalised. He said that possible borrowing next year, which might include a sovereign loan, a bond or a sukuk, would be limited and sustainable.

Abdullah Al Salemi, chief ex-ecutive officer of the Capital Market Authority (CMA), told the conference that the govern-ment should consider privatising government companies through public share offerings.

Ahmed Al Jahdhami, chief ex-ecutive officer of the Oman Power

& Water Procurement Company, said that electricity demand is rising robustly and that new measures were needed to contain the increase in power use.

Dr Hamed Al Oufi, undersec-retary of fisheries wealth, at the Ministry of Agriculture & Fish-eries Wealth, said the fisheries sector will become an important new source of income and em-ployment. This will involve in-creasing the annual catch, invest-ment in new fishing harbours and creating a fish industries zone in Duqm to serve local, region and international fishing fleets. The aim is to increase production from 200,000 tonnes in 2013 to 480,000 tonnes by 2020 and cre-ate more than 20,000 jobs.

Bids for the EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) packages in the Oman Oil Refin-eries and Petroleum Industries Company’s (Orpic’s) $3.6 billion Liwa plastics project are to be called in January-April next year, Liwa plastics project general manager Henk Pauw said. Pauw said he expected the EPC con-tracts to be placed in or before October 2015 and for the plant to be operational in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Oman’s oil production has been recovering from a dip in the past 10 years with output averag-ing 942,000 barrels a day in 2014, MEED oil and gas editor Mark Watts said.

Sohar Port & Free Zone is preparing to deal with rising demand, new industrial invest-ments and the construction of the Oman Railway Company (ORC) project. The port is han-dling 44 million tonnes a year of cargo compared with 4.4 million tonnes in 2007, Port of Sohar and Free Zone executive com-mercial manager Edwin Lam-mers said. The port is expected to handle 600,000 TEUs in 2014 and is working to lift this figure to 1 million. Its capacity is 1.5 million containers.

S E Z A D I N I T I A T I V E

RINGING THE BELL: The shares peaked to as high as 708 baisas

during intra-day trading, before settling down at 664 baisas, which

is against the opening price of 640 baisas. — Supplied picture

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MARKETT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

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China needs to train half a million civilian pilots BEIJING: China’s national civil aviation authority says the coun-try will need to train about half a million civilian pilots by 2035, up from just a few thousand now, as wannabe flyers chase dreams of landing lucrative jobs at new air service operators.

The aviation boom comes as China allows private planes to fly below 1,000 metres from next year without military ap-proval, seeking to boost its transport infrastructure.

Commercial airlines aren’t affected, but more than 200 new firms have applied for gen-eral aviation operating licences, while China’s high-rollers are also eager for permits to fly their own planes.

The civil aviation author-ity’s own training unit can only handle up to 100 students a year. With the rest of China’s 12 or so existing pilot schools bursting at the seams, foreign players are joining local firms in laying the groundwork for new courses that can run to hundreds of thousands of dollars per trainee.

First batch“The first batch of students we enrolled in 2010 were mostly business owners interested in getting a private licence,” said Sun Fengwei, deputy chief of the Civil Aviation Administra-tion of China’s (CAAC) pilot school. “But now more and more young people also want to learn flying so that they can get a job at general aviation companies.”

While uncertainties remain for what will be a brand new industry, firms are betting they can make money and trainee pilots are convinced they can land dream jobs. Among them is Zong Rui, a 28-year-old former soldier in the People’s Libera-tion Army from Shandong prov-ince in east China, attending a pilot school in Tianjin, an hour’s drive from Beijing.

“The salary is good for a gen-eral aviation pilot,” Zong said, preparing for a training session. Even without a job lined up, Zong is certain money he bor-rowed to learn how to fly will pay off: “I can pay back the 500,000 yuan ($81,750) tuition in two years, once I get a job.” - Reuters

A V I A T I O N G R O W T H

HSBC misses estimates as it sets aside $1b

LONDON: HSBC, Europe’s largest bank by market value, posted lower-than-estimated third-quarter profit as it set aside more than $1 billion for customer redress and an in-vestigation into rigging cur-rency markets.

Pretax profit rose to $4.61 billion from $4.53 billion in the year-earlier period, the London-based lender said in a statement yesterday. That compares to the $5.47 billion average estimate of seven analysts. The bank made a $378 million provision toward a settlement of the cur-rency benchmark-rigging inves-tigation and set aside an addi-tional $701 million for customer redress in Britain.

“Regulatory cost inflation continues to be a headwind,” said Chirantan Barua, a banking analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein in London. The provision was still “much lower than peers.”

AllegationsHSBC brings to $2.4 billion the total banks have set aside to settle allegations traders used instant-message groups to share information about their positions and client orders to rig the $5.3 trillion-a-day foreign-exchange market. Last week, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc set aside £400 million ($639 million) for the matter, Barclays £500 million, and Citigroup took a $600 million charge.

“Discussions are ongoing with the FCA regarding a pro-posed resolution of their foreign exchange investigation,” the bank said in the statement. “The resolution is likely to involve the payment of a significant financial penalty.” - Bloomberg News

P E R F O R M A N C E

B3T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

MARKETIndustrial growth pace eases in Asia

SYDNEY: Asia’s factories are reporting a generalised loss of momentum that speak volumes about the need for more policy stimulus, on top of Japan’s latest efforts to ignite growth.

A raft of regional manufac-turing surveys yesterday were littered with unwelcome land-marks, including a five-month low for activity in China, a four-month trough for South Korea and a 14-month low for Indonesia.

Even China’s long resilient ser-vices sector saw growth ebb to the slowest in nine months as the cooling property sector weighed on demand.

“We still see uncertainties, giv-en the property downturn as well as the slow pace of global recov-ery, and expect further monetary and fiscal easing measures in the months ahead,” said Hongbin Qu, chief economist for China at HSBC. HSBC’s own version of the purchasing management index

(PMI) compiled by Markit was a whisker firmer at 50.4 in October, from the September’s 50.2, but showed growth slowing in output and new orders, while companies trimmed staff levels for the 12th straight month.

Beijing has already cut taxes, quickened some investment pro-jects, offered short-term loans to banks, instructed local govern-ments to spend their budgets and reduced the amount of deposits that some banks hold as reserves to spur lending.

Low mortgage ratesSo far, lower mortgage rates have not revived the housing market as quickly as some had hoped, with prices falling for a sixth consecu-tive month in October, according to one private survey.

Readings on Japanese activ-ity were delayed by a holiday but will likely be overshadowed by the central bank’s decision on Friday

to expand its already massive as-set buying programme in a sud-den change of tack that stunned financial markets.

Quantitative easingThe bold move has raised expec-tations the European Central Bank (ECB) will eventually have to bite the bullet on quantitative easing, even if not at its meeting on Thursday.

“In this environment of sub-dued growth and long-term low-flation, we expect the ECB to announce the purchase of government bonds of euro area member states by early next year at the latest,” said Apolline Menut, an analyst at Barclays. - AFP

Asia’s factories

are reporting a

generalised loss

of momentum that

speak volumes about

the need for more

policy stimulus

HAVE YOUR SAY Send us your comments at facebook.com/timesofoman blog.timesofoman.com [email protected]

DOWNTURN: Manufacturing surveys show five-month low for activity in China, a four-month trough for South Korea and a 14-month low for Indonesia. — Bloomberg News

Saudi Arabian bank’s share offer oversubscribed 16 timesRIYADH: A share offer by Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank (NCB) was 16 times oversub-scribed late on Sunday, in what one financial analyst called ‘the moth-er of all IPOs.’

The initial public offering (IPO) by the NCB, which was hoping to raise $6 billion, is one of the largest in the world this year and the big-gest in the kingdom’s history.

In preliminary figures on the fi-nal day of the offer, NCB said sub-scribers had reached 1.166 million for a value of 215.76 billion riyals ($57.54 billion).

Beginning on October 19, NCB

offered 300 million shares to the Saudi public at 45 riyals each. Fi-nal figures from the offer will be re-leased within a few days, the bank said in a statement.

“This is the mother of all IPOs,” said Beshr Bakheet of the privately held Osool and Bakheet Invest-ment Company. But he cautioned that the value is exaggerated be-cause banks offered generous loans to people wishing to buy the shares.

They are expected to begin trading on the country’s Tadawul All-Shares Index, the largest Arab bourse, within one or two weeks.

Bakheet said the shares were

sold at a discount and he expects their price to double from the of-fered 45 riyals when trading starts, potentially valuing the public por-tion of the issue at $7.2 billion. An additional 200 million shares are allocated to the state pension fund.

While the value was unprece-dented, the number of subscribers was slightly below normal for the kingdom. That figure could still rise to two or three million when final figures are in, Bakheet said.

NCB is the last of 12 Saudi banks to go public. Only three of them are fully compliant with Islamic sharia laws. - AFP

P R I M A R Y M A R K E T


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

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MARKETT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

Index rises marginally

MUSCAT: The MSM30 Index ended on a flat note at 7,031.31 points, up marginally by 0.05 per cent. Monday marked the listing debut of Al Maha Ceramics and it accounted for 51 per cent of the trading volume for the day’s session. The MSM Sharia index increased by 0.25 per cent to close at 1,048.92 points. Al Maha Ceramics was the most active in terms of volume as well as turno-ver. The top gainer of the day was Al Maha Ceramics with listing gains of 68.84 per cent, while Gulf Investment Services Preference shares, down by 7.98 per cent was the top loser of the day.

A total number of 12,621 trades were executed during the day’s trading session generating turn-over of OMR13.2 million with more than 24.8 million shares changing hands. Out of 49 traded stocks, 15 advanced, 10 declined and 24 remained unchanged. Omani investors switched to net buyers for OMR3 million while GCC & Arab investors were net sellers for OMR2.6 million fol-lowed by foreign investors for OMR346,000 worth of shares.

The financial Index closed with gains at 8,593.82 points, up by 0.13 per cent. Al Madina Takaful, Al Anwar Holding, Glob-al Finance & Investment, Gulf Investment Services and DBIH increased by 1.94 per cent, 1.90 per cent, 1.61 per cent, 1.44 per cent and 1.14 per cent respec-tively. Gulf Investment Services Preference shares, DIDIC and National Bank of Oman declined by 7.98 per cent, 1.12 per cent and 0.54 per cent respectively.

Industrial Index increased by 0.18 per cent to close at 9,612.52 points. Al Maha Ceramics, Al Hassan Engineering, Al Anwar Ceramics, Voltamp Energy and

Raysut Cement increased by 68.84 per cent, 3.82 per cent, 1.51 per cent, 1.40 per cent and 0.24 per cent respectively. Construction Materials and Galfar Engineer-ing decreased by 1.89 per cent and 1.20 per cent respectively.

Services Sector Index declined by 0.10 per cent to end the ses-sion at 3,672.62 points. Al Ja-zeera Services and Omantel in-creased by 2.11 per cent and 0.60 per cent respectively. Renais-sance Services, OIFC, Al Suwadi Power and Al Batinah Power de-creased by 1.96 per cent, 1.33 per cent, 0.55 per cent and 0.55 per cent respectively.

Daman plans share saleDaman Investments plans to sell 55 per cent of its equity in an ini-tial public offering (IPO) in the first quarter, according to Chair-man Shehab Gargash.

The Dubai-based fund man-ager and brokerage hired Emir-ates Investment Bank as the adviser and manager of the IPO, and plans to list its shares on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), Gargash said at a news confer-ence in Dubai on Monday. Daman will sell new shares in the pub-lic sale and none of its existing shareholders will exit through the offer, which still awaits regu-latory approval, he said.

Companies in Dubai are con-sidering IPOs as Dubai’s bench-mark index is poised to become the world’s second-best perform-ing gauge in dollar terms for a second consecutive year. Marka ended the DFM’s five-year IPO drought with a sale in April and Emaar Malls Group raised $1.6 bil-lion in September. A dH1.38 billion ($376 million) share sale of Am-anat Holdings closes On Tuesday. — United Securities/Bloomberg News

The top gainer of the day was Al Maha

Ceramics with listing gains of 68.84 per cent,

while Gulf Investment Services Preference

shares, down by 7.98 per cent, was the top

loser of the day

MUSCATSECURITIES MARKET

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3

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

Security Name .................................................... Volume .....Turnover ... Trades ......... High .........Low ..........Close ......... Prev. .......... Diff. ............ Diff .............Last ..........Last ............ Last ................ Market Cap .........Par........................................................................................................................................................................................ Pr. ............ Close ........... RO ............... % .................Pr ..............Bid ............ Offer ............................................value

AL JAZEERA SERVICES .................................... 120,498 ............. 46,646...............17 ............0.394 ......... 0.380 ............0.388 ............ 0.380 ............ 0.008 ............. 2.105 ............. 0.384 ............ 0.384 ............. 0.390 ................23,747,257.924 ......0.100AL ANWAR HOLDING .................................. 4,983,228 ........1,601,594............269 ............0.330 ......... 0.304 ............0.322 .............0.316 ............ 0.006 ............. 1.899.............. 0.306 ............0.304 ............. 0.306 .............. 42,021,000.000 ......0.100GLOBAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT ..................134,186 ..............16,945.................8 ............ 0.127 .......... 0.125 ............ 0.126 .............0.124 ............ 0.002 ............. 1.613 ...............0.125 ............ 0.125 ..............0.126 .............. 25,200,000.000 ......0.100AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ..............................190,661 ........... 102,598...............12 ............0.540 ......... 0.530 ............ 0.538 .............0.530 ............ 0.008 ............. 1.509.............. 0.540 ............ 0.540 ..............0.568 .............132,802,467.430 ......0.100GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES .......................218,000 ............. 45,988.............. 28 ............ 0.215 .......... 0.208 ............ 0.211 ............. 0.208 ............ 0.003 ............. 1.442 ............. 0.208 ............0.208 ..............0.210 ................ 12,415,918.787 ......0.100VOLTAMP ENERGY ........................................... 42,828 ..............18,549.................6 ............0.434 ......... 0.428 ............0.434 .............0.428 ............ 0.006 ............. 1.402 ............. 0.434 ............ 0.434 ............. 0.000 ...............26,257,000.000 ......0.100OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ......................321,735 ........... 540,759...............31 ............ 1.685 .......... 1.665 ............ 1.680 .............1.670 ............ 0.010 .............0.599 ..............1.675 ............ 1.675 ..............1.685 ........ 1,260,000,000.000 ......0.100BANK MUSCAT ................................................821,651 ........... 583,693.............. 40 ............ 0.716 .......... 0.708 ............ 0.712 ..............0.708 ............ 0.004 .............0.565 ..............0.716 ............ 0.716 ..............0.720 ......... 1,554,073,989.856 ......0.100OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING ..............920,920 ........... 171,842.............. 57 ............ 0.196 .......... 0.185 ............ 0.187..............0.186 ............ 0.001 .............0.538 ..............0.185 ............ 0.183 ..............0.185 ...............22,790,625.000 ......0.100AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING ............... 36,460 .................7,015............... 11 ............ 0.196 ...........0.191 ............ 0.192 .............0.191 ............ 0.001 .............0.524 ............. 0.192 ............ 0.186 ..............0.192 ................16,611,840.000 ......0.100RAYSUT CEMENT ...........................................202,782 ...........425,828.................8 ............2.100 ......... 2.095 ............2.100 .............2.095 ............ 0.005 .............0.239 ............. 2.100 ............ 2.095 ..............2.150 ........... 420,000,000.000 ......0.100ACWA POWER BARKA ..........................................5,000 ................3,680................. 1 ............ 0.736.......... 0.736 ............ 0.736 .............0.736 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.736 ............ 0.736 ............. 0.808 ............. 117,760,000.000 ......0.100AHLI BANK ........................................................ 48,322 ............. 10,520.................5 ............ 0.218.......... 0.212 ............ 0.218 .............0.218 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.212 ............ 0.212 ..............0.216 ............ 282,416,254.072 ......0.100AL MADINA INVESTMENT ...............................411,185 ............. 33,228...............15 ............ 0.081.......... 0.079 ............ 0.081 .............0.081 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.079 ............ 0.079 ............. 0.080 ................16,779,262.104 ......0.100ALMAHA PETROLEUM PRODUCTS MAR. ...........18,045 ............. 44,120.................3 ............2.445 ......... 2.445 ............2.445 .............2.445 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 2.445 ............ 2.445 ..............2.495 ............ 168,705,000.000 ......0.100BANK DHOFAR .................................................. 23,308 ................8,344................. 1 ............0.358 ......... 0.358 ............0.358 .............0.358 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.358 ............ 0.358 ..............0.368 ............. 480,880,712.612 ......0.100BANK SOHAR .................................................. 120,122 ............. 26,449...............12 ............0.222 ......... 0.220 ............0.220 ............ 0.220............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.222 ............0.222 ............. 0.224 ............ 251,680,000.000 ......0.100DHOFAR CATTLE FEED ........................................5,000 ................... 925................. 1 ............ 0.185 .......... 0.185 ............ 0.191 ..............0.191 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.185 ............ 0.185 ..............0.191 ............... 14,707,000.000 ......0.100DHOFAR INSURANCE ....................................... 23,245 ................4,649.................2 ............0.200 .........0.200 ............0.200 ............ 0.200............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.200 ............0.200 ............. 0.220 ..............40,000,000.000 ......0.100HSBC BANK OMAN .......................................... 496,801 ..............81,863...............21 ............ 0.165 .......... 0.163 ............ 0.165..............0.165 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.163 ............ 0.163 ..............0.165 ............. 330,051,610.350 ......0.100NATIONAL GAS ....................................................5,000 ................ 3,160................. 1 ............0.632 ......... 0.632 ............0.640 ............ 0.640 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.632 ............ 0.632 ............. 0.640 ...............29,159,304.960 ......0.100OMAN CEMENT ..............................................217,704 ............155,916...............10 ............0.720 ..........0.716 ............ 0.716 ..............0.716 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.720 ............ 0.716 ..............0.724 ............236,904,860.360 ......0.100OMAN CHLORINE ............................................. 44,487 ............. 24,913.................4 ............0.560 ......... 0.560 ............0.560 .............0.560 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.560 ............0.000 ............. 0.560 ...............34,592,335.120 ......0.100ONIC. HOLDING ................................................. 74,208 ............. 28,833.................4 ............0.392 ......... 0.388 ............0.388 .............0.388 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.388 ............ 0.380 ..............0.388 ...............67,288,221.000 ......0.100OOREDOO ..........................................................49,975 ............. 33,583.................4 ............0.672 ......... 0.672 ............0.672 .............0.672 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.672 ............ 0.672 ..............0.684 ............ 437,434,522.560 ......0.100PORT SERVICES CORPORATION ........................... 3,100 ................1,240.................2 ............0.400 ......... 0.400 ............0.400 ............ 0.400 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.400 ............ 0.392 ............. 0.400 ...............38,016,000.000 ......0.100SOHAR POWER .................................................... 1,060 ................... 388................. 1 ............0.366 ......... 0.366 ............0.366 .............0.366 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.366 ............ 0.366 ............. 0.380 ...............80,889,660.000 ......0.100TAAGEER FINANCE ..........................................20,000 ................3,000................. 1 ............ 0.150.......... 0.150 ............ 0.150 .............0.150 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.150 ............ 0.150 ............. 0.000 .............. 38,038,500.000 ......0.100UNITED POWER ......................................................200 ...................300................. 1 ............1.500.......... 1.500 ............ 1.605..............1.605 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 1.500 ............0.000 ..............1.500 ................. 4,477,245.405 ......1.000NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ................................51,268 ..............18,888.................7 ............0.370 ......... 0.360 ............0.368 .............0.370 ........... -0.002 ........... -0.541 ............. 0.370 ............ 0.370 ..............0.374 ............448,528,520.000 ......0.100DHOFAR INT.DEV.AND INV. HOLD. ......................... 17,050 ................9,037................. 1 ............0.530 ......... 0.530 ............0.530 .............0.536 ........... -0.006 ............-1.119 ............. 0.530 ............ 0.530 ............. 0.580 ............ 116,600,000.000 ......0.100GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. ................... 199,426 ............. 32,684...............18 ............ 0.166 .......... 0.163 ............ 0.164 .............0.166 ........... -0.002 ........... -1.205 ..............0.163 ............ 0.163 ..............0.166 ...............43,233,476.804 ......0.100OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE ...........1,026,367 ........... 227,799.............. 48 ............0.226 ......... 0.220 ............0.222 .............0.225 ........... -0.003 ........... -1.333 ............. 0.220 ............ 0.218 ............. 0.220 ..............44,400,000.000 ......0.100RENAISSANCE SERVICES ................................473,692 ...........284,275.............. 24 ............ 0.612 .......... 0.600 ............0.600 .............0.612 ............-0.012 ........... -1.961 ............. 0.600 ............ 0.592 ............. 0.600 .............169,256,672.400 ......0.100GULF INV. SER. PREF SHARES ............................205,000 ..............30,750.................3 ............ 0.150.......... 0.150 ............ 0.150 .............0.163 ............-0.013 ........... -7.975 ............. 0.150 ............0.000 ..............0.150 ................ 13,708,617.450 ......0.100SUM: ................................................................................ 11,532,514 ....... 4,630,002............677 .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......................35.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

PARALLEL MARKET ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... ALMAHA CERAMICS ................................. 12,726,400 ........8,568,703.......11,874 ............0.708.......... 0.640 ............0.672 .............0.398 ............ 0.274 ............68.844 ............ 0.664 ............ 0.664 ..............0.668 .............. 33,600,000.000 ......0.100AL HASSAN ENGINEERING ............................. 130,425 .............. 17,748...............19 ............0.140 ......... 0.129 ............ 0.136..............0.131 ............ 0.005 ............. 3.817 ...............0.139 ............ 0.133 ..............0.136 ...............10,228,288.000 ......0.100AL MADINA TAKAFUL ........................................23,149 ................2,429.................4 ............ 0.107.......... 0.103 ............ 0.105 .............0.103 ............ 0.002 ............. 1.942 ............. 0.104 ............ 0.104 ..............0.107 ...............18,375,000.000 ......0.100AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ...........................10,360 ................1,844.................4 ............ 0.178 .......... 0.177 ............ 0.178..............0.176 ............ 0.002 ............. 1.136 ...............0.177 ............ 0.177 ..............0.178 .................5,340,000.000 ......0.100BANK NIZWA .....................................................29,656 ................2,610.................6 ............0.088 ......... 0.088 ............0.088 .............0.088 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.088 ............ 0.088 ............. 0.090 ............132,000,000.000 ......0.100OMAN FIBER OPTIC ....................................................46 ................... 221................. 1 ............4.800 ......... 4.800 ............5.005 .............5.005 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 4.800 ............4.900 ............. 0.000 ...............27,305,608.330 ......1.000OMAN FISHERIES ............................................. 72,500 ................5,527...............12 ............0.077 ......... 0.076 ............ 0.076 .............0.076 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.077 ............ 0.076 ..............0.077 .................9,500,000.000 ......0.100SHARQIYAH DESALINATION ................................... 369 ................ 1,624................. 1 ............4.400 ......... 4.400 ............4.400 ............ 4.400............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 4.400 ............4.400 ............. 4.840...............28,688,633.600 ......1.000AL BATINAH POWER ......................................... 34,850 ................6,286.................8 ............ 0.181 .......... 0.180 ............ 0.180 .............0.181 ............-0.001 ........... -0.552............. 0.180 ............ 0.179 ..............0.180 ..............121,479,737.400 ......0.100AL SUWADI POWER ........................................... 56,224 ..............10,125.................9 ............ 0.181 .......... 0.180 ............ 0.180 .............0.181 ............-0.001 ........... -0.552............. 0.180 ............ 0.180 ..............0.181 .............128,593,141.200 ......0.100CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. ........................5,500 ................... 286.................2 ............0.052 ......... 0.052 ............0.052 .............0.053 ............-0.001 ........... -1.887 ............. 0.052 ............ 0.051 ..............0.052 ................ 4,420,000.000 ......0.100SUM: ................................................................................13,089,479 ........ 8,617,402...... 11,940 .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ...................... 11.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BONDS MARKET .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. BANK MUSCAT C C B 4.5 ..............................................142 ...................... 15................. 1 ............0.106.......... 0.106 ............ 0.108 .............0.108 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.106 ............ 0.106 ..............0.118 ...............34,521,408.900 ......0.100BANK MUSCAT CONV. BONDS 4.5 ................................142 ...................... 15................. 1 ............ 0.105.......... 0.105 ............ 0.105 .............0.105 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.105 ............ 0.105 ..............0.109 ................31,788,656.655 ......0.100BANK SOHAR BONDS 4.5 ................................... 219,662 ............. 22,625.................2 ............0.103.......... 0.103 ............ 0.103 .............0.105 ........... -0.002 ........... -1.905 ............. 0.103 ............ 0.103 ..............0.105 ................. 7,364,500.000 ......0.100SUM: ..................................................................................... 219,946 ............. 22,655.................4 .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........................ 3.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

O M A N S T O C K S

INDICESIndex .................................................High .................Low ..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff %MSM30 Index ........................................ 7,039.72 ...............7,021.32 .................... 7,031.31 ....................7,027.78 .................... 3.53 ................... 0.05Financial Index .................................... 8,608.64 ...............8,578.12 ................... 8,593.82 ...................8,582.69 .................. 11.13 ................... 0.13Industrial Index ....................................9,618.96 ............... 9,597.61 ....................9,612.52 ...................9,595.04 .................. 17.48 ................... 0.18Services Index ....................................... 3,679.81 .............. 3,672.20 ................... 3,672.62 ................... 3,676.37 ...................-3.75 .................. -0.10MSM SHARIAH INDEX....................1,049.09 .............. 1,046.30 ................... 1,048.92 ...................1,046.30 ....................2.62 ................... 0.25

Trading SummaryVolume ................ Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up ............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded24,841,939 ............... 13,270,059 ............... 12,621 ................15,118,959,500 ................ 15 ..................... 10 ....................24 .........................49


WhatsNews


DRIVE SLOWER LIVE LONGER Sensex ends flat; rupee depreciatesMUMBAI: In a range bound trade, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex ended almost flat at 27,860.38 after scaling historic high on buying mainly in Re-alty and Banking sectors amidst mixed global cues.

Trading sentiment was by and large tepid as traders preferred to stay sidelines ahead of trading holidays during the week.

The Sensex resumed higher at 27,943.04 and firmed up further to an all-time high of 27,969.82 on initial strong buying in view of good foreign capital inflows. However, it declined afterwards to 27,785.40 before ending at 27,860.38, showing a marginal loss of 5.45 points or 0.02 per cent.

However, the CNX 50-share Nifty closed at a news high of 8324.15 with a modest gains after hitting a lifettime high of 8350.60 in intra-day trade. India’s manu-facturing sector output picked up modestly during October, driven by strong demand conditions and rise in new order flows, an HSBC survey said on Monday.

The headline HSBC India Pur-

chasing Managers’ Index (PMI) — a composite gauge designed to give a single-figure snapshot of manufacturing business condi-tions — rebounded from Septem-ber’s nine-month low of 51.0 to 51.6 in October.

Trading will be truncated this week as the stock market will remain closed on Tuesday, on ac-count of Muharram. Also, there will be no trading on Thursday on account of Gurunanak Jayanti.

Asian stocks ended mixed as key benchmark indices in China, Sin-gapore and Taiwan rose 0.34 pct to 0.51 per cent while indices in Hong Kong and South Korea fell by 0.34-0.58 per cent. Stock market in Ja-pan was closed for a holiday.

European stocks were trad-ing lower after last week’s sharp gains triggred by a surprise stimu-lus plan from the Bank Of Japan. Key benchmark indices in France, Germany and UK moved down by 0.25 per cent to 0.46 per cent.

Jignesh Chaudhary, Head Of Research, Veracity Broking Ser-vices said, “Today local equities opened positively as in the morn-

ing to start the day, other markets in Asia opened strong and traded positively. But as the day pro-gressed the Indian local indices lost its way after hitting another all time high. Profit booking was seen in the market as on Friday it closed at all time high so inves-tors preferred to stay cautious at higher levels.”

Rupee dropsThe Indian rupee on Monday de-preciated by four paise to close at 61.40 against the Greenback on moderate dollar demand from importers, amid some hesitancy in equities.

A better dollar overseas also weighed on the rupee while sus-tained capital inflows restricted the rupee fall.

At the Interbank Foreign Ex-change (Forex) market, the ru-pee commenced lower at 61.50 a dollar from its previous close of 61.36. It moved in a range of 61.3750 and 61.5550 before con-cluding at 61.40, a fall of four paise or 0.07 per cent.

The dollar index was trading up

by 0.03 per cent against its major global rivals.

Pramit Brahmbhatt, Veracity Group CEO, said: “Rupee traded range-bound and ended almost flat near previous close. It is ex-pected to appreciate in coming days tracking gains in local equi-ties. The trading range for the spot rupee is expected to be within 61.00 to 61.80.”

In the forwards market, pre-mium dropped on fresh receipts from exporters.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in April dipped to 226.5-228.5 paise from pre-vious close of 233.5-235 paise. Far-forward contracts maturing in October, 2015 also dropped to 443.5-445.5 paise from 456-458 paise. The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for dollar at 61.4118 and for the Euro at 76.6665.

The rupee held stable against the pound to end at its previous closing level of 98.23 while rose to 76.71 per euro from 77.22 per euro. It improved further to 54.14 per 100 Japanese yen from 54.95. — PTI

I N D I A N M A R K E T S


ROUND-UPLove us on Facebook


Nissan's smart technology highlight of its top models

MUSCAT: Nissan from the house of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles has some of the most sought after SUV and sedan models that come with new levels of sophistication and state of the art features.

Nissan SUV and sedan vehicles are known to offer smoother ride comfort, more refinement and benchmark fit and finish, while delivering breathtaking perfor-mance and road-holding, says a press release.

Their ‘multi-dimensional per-formance’ means the driver can enjoy the full depth of a Nissan’s capabilities whether navigating the corners of a winding moun-tain road, cruising on a motor-way or even travelling in an urban environment.

Intelligent keyThe 2015 Nissan Sunny, Sentra,

Tiida, Micra, Maxima, Altima 2.5L and 3.5L, Juke, Murano, Ar-mada, the new X-Trail, Pathfinder 3.5L and the impressive Patrol all come with the Nissan Intelligent Key with push start button that allows owners a seamless experi-ence when it comes to getting in and out of their vehicles.

Convenience at hand This technology allows owners to lock and unlock the door just by pressing the ‘Request Switch’ on the door while just simply carry-ing the key. Drivers can also open and close the trunk, and can start the engine without having to in-sert the key, making departure seamless. By cutting out the trou-

ble of putting in the key, there is no need to search for the key inside a bag or pocket. It also eliminates the fear of accidentally shutting the key inside the vehicle or trunk.

Technology functionality-

gine activates just by turning the ignition knob or pressing the en-gine start switch without taking the key out and inserting it.

to avoid a key being shut up in-side the vehicle cabin or trunk, the technology detects the status of the door lock and whether the key is inside the vehicle, it alerts drivers via a buzzer and simulta-neously automatically unlocks the

door or opens the trunk.

Technology configurationIntelligent key utilises antennae that transmit signals between the car and the key, and a tuner that receives the signals.

Pressing the ‘Request Switch’ transmits a signal from the car antenna, and the key that receives the signal then automatically re-turns a signal. The car tuner re-ceives this signal and then locks or unlocks the vehicle.

Similarly, for starting the en-gine, the ignition knob is turned or the engine start switch is pressed and the car transmits a signal, which is then received and re-turned by the key, and the engine activates. The signal transmit-ted by the car is tuned to reach an area one meter around the request switch, or when inside the car, only inside the cabin or trunk, so that only the person with the key in range can engage it.

The technology in the intel-ligent key is characterised by its detection range accuracy for measuring keys. This accuracy is supported by technology that

controls signal output with high accuracy and measuring technol-ogy that accurately detects key location. Further, the signal trans-mitted by the key contains an individual recognition code, and that code is registered to the car in advance. For this reason, when signals are received from unreg-istered keys and so on, the system does not respond.

SBA commitmentSBA is known to have a prestig-ious nationwide network of over 19 showrooms, 22 service and 35 parts centres. The group is fa-mous for their World’s largest Ni-ssan Showroom in Qurum, Oman along with the largest Nissan warehouse in the GCC for parts, ensuring 98 per cent parts avail-ability at all times. SBA has suc-cessfully spearheaded Nissan’s growth in Oman making them the fastest growing market for Nissan in the entire GCC. They have been awarded the Nissan Champion Distributor Award three consecu-tive years in a row (2009, 2010 and 2011) and the Nissan Global Award in 2013.

SBA also has to its credit the achievement of excellence in Sales, Service and Parts and Op-erations for Nissan, making them one of the pioneering leaders in the automobile companies in customer satisfaction.

The Nissan

intelligent key

feature allows drivers

to have a seamless

experience


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

Redtag holds major blood donation campaignMUSCAT: Redtag recently organ-ised a blood donation campaign in partnership with the Ministry of Health, says a press release.

The major highlight of the initia-tive was to encourage and motivate the staff at Redtag and elsewhere to donate blood to help save thousand other lives across the nation. Held at both the leading outlets of Redtag in Al Khuwair and Markaz Al Bahja, the response was positive and eve-ry donor was positively impacted through this initiative.

Commenting on the success of the initiative, HR Manager, Affan

is delighted to be supporting this worthwhile initiative to encourage individuals to donate blood and help save the lives of others. We have always been fully committed towards helping support commu-nities all over the country as a truly global brand. We are delighted by the very keen and enthusiastic re-sponse from our staff towards this unique initiative."

N O B L E A C T

Oman Air starts paper recycling programme

MUSCAT: Oman Air has expand-ed its corporate social responsi-bility programme to include dedi-cated newspaper and magazine recycling points within its head-quarters and at Muscat Interna-tional Airport, says a press release.

The initiative is being run in partnership with Mzaya Al Batina Modern, an Omani company run by young local entrepreneurs.

It will see Oman Air-branded collection points being placed in the airline’s HQ1 and HQ2 build-ings, before being extended to in-clude Oman Air’s extensive opera-tion at its home airport.

Newspapers and magazines from across the company and from Oman Air’s aircraft arriving at Muscat, will then be recycled, thereby saving energy and reduc-ing dependence on trees and other primary sources of paper.

extending our corporate social responsibility programme by working with Mzaya Al Batina to recycle more waste paper than ever before.

"The dedicated team at Mzaya Al Batina are experts in their field

and are able to offer this service at no cost to Oman Air," said Paul Gregorowitsch, chief executive of-ficer at Oman Air.

Air’s previous environmental ac-tion. That has included waste minimisation initiatives, provid-ing more onboard information electronically, and annually par-ticipating in Earth Hour. Further-more, the arrival from next year of the Boeing B787 Dreamliners that we currently have on order will offer further environmental ben-efits. They will enable us to reduce the average amount of fuel we use per kilometre and our noise foot-print on many long haul services," he added.

a greener, more environmentally-sensitive agenda and we are sure that this latest recycling initia-tive will prove to be a major suc-cess. I would encourage colleagues throughout Oman Air to make the most of this opportunity by dis-posing of all their unwanted paper products at the designated collec-tion points,” explained the Oman Air CEO.

S O C I A L R E S P O N S I B I L I T Y

Odissi dance show on November 14Times News Service

MUSCAT: A bunch of gifted dancers will showcase their talent in a show called 'Gunjan', being hosted by Deepam Odissi Acad-emy, Oman’s first Indian classical dance school for Odissi, on No-vember 14 at the Oman auditori-um, Al Bustan Palace, A Ritz Carl-ton Hotel. Her Highness Sayyida Aliya bint Thuwainy bin Shihab Al Said, will be the chief guest.

Founded in 1994, by Guru Deepak Roy, Deepam has contin-ued to encourage young, talented dancers to build their capabilities as performers. Deepam is proud to present its latest production, 'Gunjan'. Over 25 dancers have come together to bring this pro-ject to fruition. Many of these dancers will set foot on stage for the very first time.

‘Gunjan’ will be a combination of classical and contemporary, an-

cient and modern with a twist of fantasy and reality.

The show, being presented by Minara and Fauchon Paris, and will start at 7pm.

The evening will be a classical treat with solo performances by Aishwarya Hegde, Tamoghna Dey and Sthiti Parida along with group performances by Alina Thomas, Samraggee Bhatta-charya, Varsha Rathi, Vaishali Rathi, Ayushmita

Ghosal, Srjita Banerjee, Dilsri Ajith and Sthuti Kapadia. The grand finale of the evening will be a contemporary Odissi production addressing the grave issues sur-rounding marine pollution. Here the team aims to use the traditional style and essence of Odissi to bring awareness on a looming environ-mental crisis that demands imme-diate attention and effort. Through ‘Gunjan’, the performers will take

the audience through a beautiful journey in the ocean and shed light on how our actions are upsetting these delicate ecosystems.

Over the past two decades, Guru Deepak Roy has enticed audi-ences with his mystical creations and performances. His choreog-raphies are best known for their spontaneity and technical perfec-tion. Guru Deepak Roy was a sen-ior disciple of Padma Vibhushan Guru Kelucharan Mo-hapatra who is credited with the revival of Odissi in the 20th century. Guru Deepak Roy’s continual efforts to promote the lyrical style and pre-cision of Odissi has brought De-epam to where it is today.

C L A S S I C A L T R E A T

Qatar Airways offers two business class tickets for price of one

DOHA: In celebration of its first anniversary of joining the one world global alliance, Qatar Air-ways is offering customers in Doha a fabulous Double the Lux-ury offer. Passengers booking a business class ticket will receive a second business class ticket free, for their travelling companion, says a press release.

The promotion is valid for trav-el until March 31, 2015 to select destinations across Europe, Afri-ca, Asia Pacific and the Americas.

Qatar Airways Senior Vice President Commercial – Qatar,

-stant endeavour to provide our customers with enticing and ex-citing incentives.

"This Double the Luxury spe-cial promotion will enable our business class customers to take advantage of a fantastic two-for-one opportunity with our award-winning business class service.”

Qatar Airways’ customers from Qatar can avail of this offer by vis-iting any Qatar Airways sales of-fice, appointed travel partners or qatarairways.com. This offer also allows Qatar Airways’ Frequent

Flyer Programme — Privilege Club members — a chance to earn 50 per cent bonus Qmiles on their travel, by simply registering at least 24 hours before their travel.

Five-star hospitalityQatar Airways’ signature five-star hospitality offers passen-gers an inflight experience like no other. Awarded Best Busi-ness Class for two consecutive years by industry audit Skytrax, the airline provides a premium travel experience to passengers combined with unparalleled

comfort, sophisticated luxury and excellent service.

While flying with Qatar Air-ways, passengers are also able to experience the world’s latest international gateway, Hamad International Airport, in Doha, with its state-of-the-art facili-ties and seamless connections to global destinations.

Qatar Airways’ award-winning five-star service continues on-board with its renowned enter-tainment system which offers pas-sengers up to 1,000 channels of the latest inflight entertainment.

P R O M O T I O N

Mrunal’s Boutique set to exhibit

Ritu's collection on November 8

MUSCAT: Mrunal’s Boutique will bring Ritu Kumar’s collection for an exclusive exhibition to Oman on November 8 and 9. The exhi-bition will be held exclusively at Mrunal’s Boutique in Qurum from 10.30am to 7pm.

In line with Mrunal Khimji’s vi-sion to bring world class handwork, designs and talent from Indian and Western heritage to Oman, Ritu Kumar is yet another example of this vision, says a press release.

Ritu is the largest and most re-spected designer-wear brand in India today. Since 1969 it has de-veloped a unique style of its own, reflecting the ancient traditions of Indian craftsmanship in a con-temporary vocabulary. Kumar’s

understanding of ancient designs and the innovative use of tradi-tional crafts has created a new classicism. Today the company is renowned for its distinctive use of colours, quality of fabrics, intricate

embroideries and a gloriously rich Indian aesthetic.

Since the company was built on patronage of craftspeople, it has made a significant impact in creat-ing employment in underdeveloped areas. Over the years it has patron-ized several organizations working in these areas and helped in devel-oping skills and taking them to the market. Ritu Kumar operates two production centres one in Delhi-NCR and the other in Calcutta. The production lines and quality control are strictly regulated and of the highest standard. The full col-lection will be available in Oman during the exhibition including sa-rees, salwar khamees, tunics with both formal and casual wear.

D E S I G N E R W E A R


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

Orpec 2015 set to provide enhanced

downstream business opportunities

MUSCAT: Oman Refining and Petrochemical Exhibition and Conference (Orpec) is set to be the flagship event for Oman’s downstream industry.

Scheduled to be held from March 16 to 18, 2015 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre, the show will provide a venue to meet industry needs and present available business and investment opportunities to companies that cater to the growing petrochemical, refin-ery and downstream sector, says a press release.

Given the substantial invest-ments made in the sector by the government, along with the cur-rent refinery expansion projects

in Muscat, Sohar and new devel-opments in Duqm, pioneer organ-iser Omanexpo once again cre-ates the much-needed platform that will help meet rising sector demand, boost the petrochemi-cal industry, and attract foreign investment and partnerships to leverage expertise, technology, and capital-raising capacity.

OGWA 2014, specialised event for the upstream market, the need to support the growth of the downstream segment was vital, along with the positive feedback from OGWA exhibitors,” says ex-hibition manager Ebrahim Taher.

The conference will underline the major downstream projects

in Oman, present midstream de-velopments, investment drivers and strategies, and in-country value (ICV) development. The exhibition will be a showcase of products, services, technology, systems and equipment that are relevant to the ongoing projects in the Sultanate and has to date, confirmed country pavilion par-ticipation from China, India, In-donesia, Malaysia and Iran.

To further strengthen its com-mitment towards achieving its strategic goals, Omanexpo has al-lied with global events company Clarion Events and World Refin-ing Association, a non-profit organ-isation under Clarion’s Energy Group of Companies.

E X H I B I T I O N

B6 T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

ROUND-UPExcellence abounds as Al Mar’ahonours top women achievers

MUSCAT: The fourth edition of the Al Mar’a Excellence Awards was held at a dazzling ceremony on the lawns of InterContinental Muscat on October 27, 2014. The awards honoured and commend-ed Omani women achievers from various fields.

Her Highness Sayyida Aliya Al Said, Sayyida Rawan Ahmed Al Said, Dr Muna bint Salim Al Jardani and Yuthar Al Rawahy at-tended the event as the guests of honour. Naashiah bint Saoud Al Kharusi and Barka Al Bakry were the judges of the Al Mar’a Excel-lence Awards.

Ghada Mohammed Al Yousef won the coveted Woman of the Year Award while Lamia Al Ansi was adjudged as the Most Promising Woman of the Year. Sayyida Rawan Ahmed Al Said was honoured with the Al Mar’a Hall of Fame.

Apart from these, the Al Mar’a Excellence Awards felicitated women from diverse categories like corporate leadership; fash-ion design; fine arts; entrepre-neurship and innovation; edu-cational services, science and industry, health services, technol-ogy, sports, SME sector; petroleum services, social responsibility, performing arts, world of beauty and marketing and sales. Al Mar’a also recognised six women with Special Awards. Ooredoo was hon-oured with a Special

Award for their exceptional cor-porate social responsibility efforts. The winners were adjudged on a host of parameters like innova-tion and creativity, impact of their contribution on society, leadership

abilities and goals achieved. The event was presented by

Areej Vegetable Oils and Deriva-tives and had on board — Stra-tegic partners: Audi Oman, Ooredoo, Bank Muscat, and Mikimoto&Chopard from Kh-imji’s Watches; Beauty Partners: Makeup by Revlon and Hairstyling by Rafal Salon; Media Partners: Times of Oman and Al Shabiba; Radio Partners: Merge 104.8 and Al Wisal FM; Print Partner: Ruwi Modern Printers and Assessment Partner: Ernst and Young. The at-tractive display of the stylish and debonair Audi RS4 and Audi A650 TFSI Supercharger at the venue was a real highlight and added to the glitz of the event.

Yuthar Al Rawahy, founder and chairperson, Oman Cancer Asso-ciation, in her speech commended the wonderful equal opportunities that Omani women have enjoyed in this glorious land and applaud-ed the growth and achievements of Omani women in the Sultanate. Shatha Al Maskiry, country man-aging director of Protiviti Oman and regional managing director, Human Capital Consulting, spoke about her journey to becoming a successful and preeminent wom-an in Oman and expressed her appreciation for every woman’s unique journey to becoming ex-traordinary women of substance.

Rekha Baala, Editor, Al Mar’a and The Woman, gave a brief in-sight about the awards and high-lighted the role of the magazines in celebrating ‘different shades of a woman’ for the past 11 years. Sandeep Sehgal, chief executive, and Alpana Roy, executive vice president, UMS, joined the dig-nitaries on stage for the awards distribution.

The event also saw the ramp ablaze with rounds of fashion shows by Elya Boutique, Kawashi Boutique, The Lookout Boutique and international brand Desigual, showcasing the latest styles and trends in women’s and kid’s cloth-ing. Special rounds showcasing Mikimoto jewellery and Chopard watches, bags, jewellery, scarves and sunglasses also lit up the ramp. A lucky draw by Bank Mus-cat saw five women walk away with exciting prizes and the raf-fle draw by Khimji’s Watches had two lucky women win gifts from Chopard. During the course of the event, Ooredoo conducted the #OooredooSmartWoman con-test which saw one woman win an Ipad and another, a Samsung Galaxy S5.

The evening ended with a sump-tuous dinner. As the curtains came down on the memorable evening, the guests left looking forward to the 2015 edition of the awards.

Winners List; Main Categories Al Mar’a Woman of the YearGhada Mohammed Al Yousef, Executive Manager, Communica-tions and Sustainability, Electric-ity Holding GroupAl Mar’a Most Promising Woman of the YearLamia Al Ansi,Director of Procurement, OmranAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Corporate LeadershipLubna Al Kharusi, Chief Finance Officer, OmranSpecial Commendation Maimuna Al Suleimani, Head of Legal – Alizz Islamic BankAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Social ResponsibilityHanan Al Rumhy, Social Invest-ment Adviser, Petroleum Develop-ment OmanSpecial CommendationShaima bint Murtadha bin Ali bin Mohammed Al Lawati, CEO – Oman Road Safety AssociationAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Performing ArtsHiyam Al JabriSpecial CommendationBasma Al NassriAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Fashion DesignAnisa Moosa Al Zadjali, CEO, Dar Al Uons FashionSpecial CommendationHazar Al Zadjali, Managing Direc-tor, Boutique MuscatAl Mar’a Excellence Award for SME SectorGhada Al Harthy, Proprietor, Café G PatisserieSpecial CommendationAlya Ahmed Sulieman,CEO, Grand SpaAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Petroleum ServicesMoza Al Adawi, Chief Operations Officer, Daleel Petroleum LLCSpecial CommendationNajla Al Jamali, Associate Direc-tor, Oman Oil Company

Al Mar’a Excellence Award for Entrepreneurship & InnovationAreej Mohsin Haider Al Zaabi, Deputy Chairperson, Mohsin Haider Darwish LLCSpecial CommendationZuwaina Al Rashdi, CEO, Dar Al HerfyaAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Educational ServicesDr Fatma Al Kharousi, Assistant Professor of Mathematics & Sta-tistics, Sultan Qaboos UniversityAl Mar’a Excellence Award for TechnologyTeam Thrizers - Asya Al Jabri, Safa Al Mukhaini and Marwa Al Habsi, Created a revolutionary Windows 8 app – Read XSpecial CommendationSaba Al Busaidi, Social Media Ex-pert who now works with OmranAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Marketing & SalesInsherah Bawazir, Head of Corpo-rate Affairs, Standard Chartered BankSpecial CommendationZayana Al Badai, Corporate Com-munications Specialist, Daleel Pe-troleum LLCAl Mar’a Excellence Award in Fine ArtsNof Al Zadjali, Artist and designerSpecial CommendationLubna Al Bulushi, Accomplished poetAl Mar’a Excellence Award in World of BeautyZulfa Al Barwani, Founder, Lilac Beauty CentreSpecial CommendationBudoor Al Lawati, Director/Own-er of Xtreme LashesAl Mar’a Excellence Award for SportsRayan Al Mujaini,Part of the National Athletics Team for Special Needs and spe-cialises in javelin, discus and shot put.Special Commendation

Shatha Al Zadjali, Halima Al Kin-di& Maryam Al Moosa, They are accomplished racers ranked high in a predominant male sport.Al Mar’a Excellence Award for Health ServicesDr Kauthar Al Busaidi, Founder, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation CentreAl Mar’a Excellence Award for Science & IndustryRayan Al Kalbani, Co-founder, Mazoon Environmental & Tech-nological ServicesSpecial CommendationMuznaNabhan Al Brashdi, De-signer of the Remote Energy Mon-itoring with SMS project

Special Awards:Al Mar’a Hall of FameSayyidaRawan Ahmed Al SaidAl Mar’a Special Award for Ex-cellence in Youth Leadership and Development Shaima Al Aufi, Team LeaderBusiness Planning, OrpicAl Mar’a Special Award for Ex-cellence in Fostering Personal-ised & Preventive HealthcareSeeniya Biju, Chief Operating Of-ficer &Country Head, Aster Al Raf-fah Hospitals & ClinicsAl Mar’a Special Award for Excel-lence in Style & DesignAmna Al Sabri, Owner, Style PassportAl Mar’a Special Award for Ex-cellence in Corporate Commu-nicationHer Highness Sayyida Wisam Jaifar Salim Al Said, Bank NizwaSeham Al Balushi, Bank DhofarAl Mar’a Special Award for Ex-cellence in Human ResourcesLamees Al Kindi, Assistant Man-ager, Human Capital Consulting, ProtivitiAl Mar’a Special Award for their achievements and ex-cellence in Corporate Social ResponsibilityOoredoo

The Al Mar’a

Excellence Awards

saw thriving

businesswomen,

sportswomen,

talented artists,

scientists and

humanitarians rise

high and shine

bright. It was a night

to celebrate the

indomitable spirit of

the Omani woman

Chevrolet sells 3 millionth CruzeMUSCAT: Eleven plants. One-hundred and eighteen countries. Eighty-eight awards and now, 3 million sales for the Chevrolet Cruze. The best-selling Chevrolet model crossed the milestone re-cently, just 16 months after selling its 2 millionth model. From the US and Canada, to Laos and the Philippines, to UAE and Jordan, the Cruze has proved itself a glob-al player among small cars, says a press release.

“The Cruze is an extremely adaptable car that can cater to the demands of nearly every market in the world. It is a testimony to Chevrolet’s global focus and ca-pabilities to offer a car that is so highly regarded in so many places,” said Alan Batey, GM executive vice president of Global Chevrolet.

The Cruze has collected 39 product awards in China, 27 in the US and 12 in Brazil. Chevrolet is committed to building product in the markets they are sold, so the Cruze is built in 11 different countries on five continents. GM design teams in South Korea and Germany had the global consum-er in mind when developing the car in just 27 months in the late 2000s before debuting in South Korea in November of 2008.

The Cruze endured intensive durability testing, including ex-treme weather tests and more than 210 crash tests tailored to the regulatory demands of the coun-tries where it is sold.

For the Middle East market, the 2015 Cruze features enhanced

connectivity with the easy-to-use Chevrolet MyLink infotainment system and upgraded safety fea-tures such as side blind zone alert. It also provides Chevrolet Care aftersales service, which ensures hassle-free service and the lowest maintenance cost in the compact car segment.

According to recent research, Cruze’s cost of maintenance for up to 100,000km is @ 3.98 baisa per km. Cruze also requires less upkeep than other models in its segment. The manufacturer’s scheduled maintenance inter-val for the Cruze is once every 10,000km versus once every 5,000km for most of its com-petitors. This means fewer visits

for service, more time for driv-ing pleasure and more money to spend on the pleasures of life.

The service price of the Cruze is not only competitive, it is also consistent and transparent. Pric-ing information is available at dealerships and online at www.chevroletarabia.com, enabling owners to check the cost of ser-vice in advance.

Chevrolet Cruze comes with a 1.8-litre engine and is coupled with a six-speed automatic trans-mission, delivering responsive performance with 140 hp at 6,300 rpm and peak torque of 175 Nm at 3,800 rpm, In terms of power out-put-per-litre, this engine is among the most efficient in the market.

Cruze is not only loaded with a lengthy roster of features such as leather seats, rear view cameras and sensors, smart entry, push button start etc., but also fea-tures a host of standard active

and passive safety features.OTE Group is the exclusive

dealer for Chevrolet in Oman with 13 showrooms spread across the Sultanate and offering excellent after-sales service support at par with global standards, with a na-tionwide service network.

MILESTONE


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

The Cruze is an extremely adaptable car that can cater to the demands of nearly every market in the world. It is a testimony to Chevrolet’s global focus and capabilities to offer a car that is so highly regarded in so many places

Alan BateyGM executive vice president of Global Chevrolet


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Bank Muscat wins HR leadership award

MUSCAT: Bank Muscat, the flag-ship financial services provider in the Sultanate, has won for the third time a prestigious HR lead-ership award in recognition of vi-tal contributions to human capital development in Oman.

The HR leadership award host-ed by the Employer Branding In-stitute, CMO Asia, was conferred on Salim Al Kaabi, DGM – Human Resources, endorsing his role in moulding the finest Omani talents at Bank Muscat during the past 27 years, says a press release.

Bank Muscat was cited as a best employer brand with a distinct identity visible through HR prac-tices, polices and strategy. The

award acknowledged exemplary excellence in learning and devel-opment initiatives; distinctive-ness in employee hiring; training and retention practices and con-tinuous innovation.

“For the third time, we are greatly honoured to be chosen for this prestigious award. Bank Muscat considers intellectual capital as corporate asset and managing employee potential as a crucial element of delivering val-ue for all stakeholders. The bank pursues effective engagement of employee retention and optimal performance of the workforce,” said Salim Al Kaabi.

Bank Muscat’s achievements in the development of human resources have been consist-ently recognised locally and

internationally. Bank Muscat is the first bank in the world to receive PCMM Level-3 certi-fication for benchmark human resources processes.

Notable achievements also in-clude the Hewitt recognition as the Middle East’s Best Employer and the Investor in People award. On several occasions, the Minis-try of Manpower has appreciated the bank’s human resources de-velopment initiatives.

The HR practices focus on creating, nurturing and support-ing people to meet the ambitious growth plans of the bank, through a wide variety of initiatives that cover all stages of employee life cycle. HR serves as a strategic partner along with business units in the bank’s success story.

The Omanisation level pres-ently exceeds 93.6 per cent at the bank, which has been able to de-rive maximum mileage out of HR processes as most of its middle and senior management cadres are drawn from within the bank.

Al Kaabi said: “Bank Muscat maintains a clear lead as the best place to work. We regard our peo-ple as the most precious asset and maintain the highest standards of people management.

“The bank remains committed to investing in people, encourag-ing them to take ownership and responsibility and contribute to the growth of the organisation.”

The bank has adopted innova-tive strategies to equip Omani staff to take up leadership positions in tandem with future challenges.

Bank Muscat was

cited as a best

employer brand with

a distinct identity

visible through HR

practices, polices and

strategy

Toyota returns with 9th dream car art contestMUSCAT: The 9th Toyota Dream Car Art Contest is being held in Oman, in Association with the Ministry of Education. This year’s theme is ‘Your Dream Car’. Toyota is providing this unique opportu-nity for kids to display their talent, ‘Share the drawing of a car of your imagination with us and win a trip to Japan,” says a press release.

Since 2004, the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest has been conduct-ed as part of Toyota Motor Corpo-ration’s social contribution initia-tives. It gives children throughout the world the opportunity to de-velop an interest in cars and helps them feel the joy and importance of having a dream. During the pre-vious contest, a huge number of entries were received from Oman and countries across the globe.

The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest invites children from all corners of the globe to share ideas about the future of mobility by drawing their dream cars. The aim is to kindle their creative im-agination. According to an official source, the kids expression will reflect their thoughts and aspira-

tions, ‘How will your dream car make the world a better place?’

In Oman, Toyota is conducting the competition at various Toyota showrooms. Interested partici-pants can visit the nearest Toyota showroom for more details.

During the event, popular car-toon characters will welcome the participants to the showrooms. Drawing sheets, drawing kits, light refreshments and snacks will be provided. Each contestant par-

ticipating at the Toyota Showroom will be awarded a Certificate of Participation.

For those who are not able to make it to the event, additional drawing sheets are being kept at all Toyota showrooms. Three winners from each branch (one in every category) will be chosen and nine winners will be selected as national winners.

“We welcome kids up to 15 years old from all over Oman to partici-

pate in the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest. The best entries stand to win exciting prizes such as Ipad Mini 2, Laptops, SLR Camera, Tabs and more. There are three age categories comprising the ‘un-der 8’, ‘8 to 11’ and ‘12 to 15’ years groups,” said the spokesperson.

World contestThe winners of the national con-test will be eligible to take part in the World Contest to win gold, sil-ver and bronze awards and an invi-tational trip to Japan.

Competition rules apply: The contest is open to anyone under the age of 15 living in Oman; Art-work can be created using paint, colour markers, crayons or felt pens and should be drawn by hand. Digitally created artwork will not be accepted; artwork should in-clude a background and should be submitted on entry forms avail-able at Toyota showrooms; judging will be based on originality, artistic expression, description and col-ouring; all artworks should be sub-mitted with an entry form signed by a parent or guardian.

A R T I S T I C E X P R E S S I O N

Indian School Sohar

hosts ‘Spectrum 2014’

MUSCAT: The annual school exhibition, ‘Spectrum 2014’ for Classes VI to XII was organised by Indian School Sohar recently in the new phase of the school premises. The students show-cased their talents in languages, science, mathematics, social sci-ence, art and craft, music etc. The entire school was abuzz with ac-tivity and one could feel the pulse and the magnitude of the event, says a press release.

Said Al Risi, Supervisor of the International Schools, Ministry of Education was the chief guest. He inaugurated the function by lighting the ceremonial lamp.

The annual school exhibition was indeed unique since it em-braced scientific, analytical, lit-erary, artistic, culinary talents of the students. Parents, and guests were overwhelmed by the pas-sion exhibited and extensive re-search work undertaken by all the departments and congratu-lated them for the grand success

of the annual exhibition.The Indian School Sohar family

paid a tribute to the scientists of Indian Space Research Organisa-tion and commemorated the suc-cess of the positioning of Mars Or-bital Mission in the orbit around the red planet, breaking into an elite club of three nations. The class rooms and soft boards dis-played an array of creativity which won the praise of all the visitors.

Principal Sanchita Verma and members of the school manage-ment committee appreciated the effort of students and teachers and also thanked the parents for their cooperation in making this event a grand success.

E X H I B I T I O N

AHEC achieves 3m LTI free man-hoursMUSCAT: Al Hassan Engineer-ing Co. (AHEC) added another feather to its cap recently with the achievement of 3 million LTI free man-hours at the Emer-gency Reservoir Project. To mark this milestone, AHEC organised a safety ceremony at the Hotel Muscat Holiday that was attended by representatives of PAEW and Sogreah in addition to senior man-agement members of AHEC, says a press release.

“At Al Hassan, the health and safety of our people is our top most priority and we are extremely proud of our performance in the field,” said Hassan Ali Salman, chairman, Al Hassan Group.

M I L E S T O N E

Thai chefs to showcase their culinary expertise

MUSCAT: Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa will wel-come special guest chefs from Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok, Thailand, to showcase their culi-nary expertise in authentic Thai cuisine from November 7 to 21 at Asia restaurant.

Well known for its abundance of exotic flavours and fragrances, Thai cuisine is one of the most coveted amongst all interna-tional cuisines. Its enthusiastic use of fresh herbs and spices, such as chillies, lemongrass, and Thai basils, guarantees diners an exceptional culinary journey. Sous Chef Yanavit Theerasom-boonkun and Chef Montri Piya-vinichaikul will bring to Shangri-La’s Asia restaurant their secret recipes, some of which have been

passed down over generations, to provide Muscat’s Thai lovers a true ‘Taste of Thailand’.

Sous Chef Yanavit learned about the passion of cooking from the renowned Thai Chef, Charlie Amatyakul.

Over 22 years ago, he was priv-ileged to have the opportunity to be the chef for Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and back in

2007, he was honoured to be able to serve Princess Chulabhorn Walailak. Highlighting the dis-tinct ingredients and spices used in Thai cuisine, Chef Yanavit is happy to share his passion and expertise with colleagues and guests alike.

Visiting Muscat with Chef Yanavit is Chef Montri who has been dedicating his skills for Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok for 11 years.

Signature dishes featured in the special à la carte menu will include traditional fresh papaya salad, deep-fried prawns wrapped with Thai pancakes, green chicken cur-ry with fragrant jasmine rice and sweet coconut ice cream with Asian toppings.

B A R R A L J I S S A H R E S O R T

B8

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Ooredoo launches exciting 4G home broadband offers

MUSCAT: Continuing the ex-citement of the brand launch, Ooredoo is now offering fantastic value on two Home Broadband (HBB) plans with introductory discounts on their two most popular plans.

For the first three months of a one year postpaid contract, cus-tomers will pay just OMR10 per month for the 75GB plan and OMR15 per month for the 150GB plan, before moving back to the regular tariff for subsequent months, says a press release.

“We have seen data consump-tion increasing exponentially in the Sultanate over the past two years and have invested heavily in upgrading our fixed data network to cater for the increased demand.

“With this brilliant promotion we are providing customers who use a lot of data every month with the chance to enjoy our 4G

Home Broadband technology at a great price,” said Feras Al Shaikh, director of Consumer Sales at Ooredoo.

“The large monthly data al-lowances and faster speeds al-low customers to download large files, stream music and video without buffering and it’s also great for online gaming.

“Plus of course, customers will be able to surf and message through social media platforms much more quickly. Ooredoo is always looking to give customers the opportunity to do more on-line with innovative value-added plans and this promotion is one of many that we will be launch-ing in the coming weeks and months,” he added.

Home Broadband from Oore-doo allows customers to get online the same day using cutting-edge plug-and-play technology. The enhanced 4G network, which is already in place throughout Mus-cat and Batinah and being rolled out across the country, provides a much faster online experience than with previous technologies.

This latest offer is available for customers in the upgraded ar-eas and is valid for three months. Customers can sign up to the new plans at any of the 29 Ooredoo stores located across the Sultan-ate and be online the same day. More information about the full range of Ooredoo products and services can be found online on www.ooredoo.om.

For the first three

months of a one year

postpaid contract,

customers will pay

just OMR10 per

month for the 75GB

plan and OMR15 per

month for the 150GB

plan, before moving

back to the regular

tariff for subsequent

months

The large monthly data allowances and faster speeds allow customers to download large files, stream music and video without buffering and it’s also great for online gaming

Feras Al ShaikhDirector of Consumer Sales at Ooredoo

ahlibank helps you bring home car of your dreamsMUSCAT: ahlibank announced the launch of all-new Instant Car Loan at a press conference held at their headquarters in Wattayah recently. The product was intro-duced at an event attended by representatives from several au-tomobile dealerships, press and the Bank’s management, says a press release.

ahlibank’s all-new Instant Car Loan guarantees fast approvals, offering financing for all new car purchases, at most competitive interest rates of 2.49 per cent flat (salary assigned) and 2.63 per cent flat (non-salary assigned) seg-ments, with a seven-year repay-ment plan, high loan amounts of up to OMR50,000 and without any

need for salary assignment. The Instant Car Loan’s launch

event’s proceedings began with a welcome address by Amir Al Ha-bib, head of Corporate Communi-cations of ahlibank, followed by a short presentation. The presenta-tion was succeeded by an interac-tive question and answer session with those present.

Hassle-free finance solutionCommenting on the launch of the Instant Car Loan, Lloyd Maddock, CEO of ahlibank said: “By offer-ing a quick response, our custom-ers can enjoy greater freedom in making a quick purchase decision. Our Instant Car Loan product will provide our customers with an

extremely fast and hassle-free fi-nance solution when purchasing the car of their dreams. Together with its higher financing limits, competitive interest rates and

other benefits, the Instant Car Loan also offers customers a level of financial flexibility that will be nearly unparalleled in the market.”

Even the pre-requisite docu-

mentation for the Instant Car Loan has been designed in a man-ner that it is minimal and custom-er friendly, and can be complied with easily by customers; thereby

giving them the comfort of avail-ing of a stress-free car loan facility from the bank.

Customer needsServices and offerings such as these reiterate ahlibank’s constant commitment towards customising products and services based on an in-depth understanding of the cus-tomer’s needs; thereby continually striving to improve their overall banking experience.

Aside from the Instant Car Loan, ahlibank also provides an array of other services and customer-centric products including savings account schemes, term deposits, personal finance, as well as debit and credit card facilities.

I N S T A N T C A R L O A N

HSBC supports Cancer Awareness Walkathon

MUSCAT: As part of the bank’s ongoing commitment to the com-munity, a number of HSBC Bank Oman volunteers recently took part in the Cancer Awareness Walkathon organised by Oman Cancer Association (OCA).

Participating as gold sponsor, HSBC Bank Oman’s support of OCA went beyond the walka-thon, as the financial contribu-tion made by the bank will help the association to run a number of country-wide awareness pro-

jects and activities including the Mobile Mammography Unit, says a press release.

Now in its 11th year, the walka-thon aims to raise awareness of the treatment and support servic-es available for people with cancer, as well as sharing success stories and offering free scans to partici-pants. As a result of the walkathon events, the OCA reports that doc-tors now receive over 30 per cent more patients at the out-patients clinic to treat early stage cancer.

F I N A N C I A L C O N T R I B U T I O N

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

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GERMAN GIANTS, REAL CLOSE TO QUALIFICATIONGerman heavyweights Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund — who contested the 2013 final — plus holders Real Madrid have all been in imperious form and will be confident of making it four wins from four games in the Champions League. >C4

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drid ill be four

Seeb Club gets Ministry’s green signal for new hockey stadium

A. SESHAGIRI [email protected]

MUSCAT: The wait is over. Seeb Club can now go ahead with their plans to build a state of the art hockey stadium, the first of its kind in the Sultanate with all the ultra modern facilities, on their club premises.

The club, early this year, had come forward with an ambitious plan to establish a full-fledged hockey stadium and an academy with the funds from the Royal grant of OMR 1 million awarded to each club by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos in July 2013.

And subsequently, Seeb — one of the few clubs to have an-nounced plans to utilise the Royal grant to develop sports other than football — submitted their pro-posals to the Ministry of Sports Affairs, who are entrusted with

the responsibility of releasing the funds to clubs based on their plans and proposals.

Back in April after submitting their proposal, Seeb Club Vice-Chairman Yousuf Al Wahaibi, speaking to Times Sport, sounded confident of getting the ministry’s approval. “We have submitted our proposals. And we are also in con-stant touch with the officials of the Ministry of Sports Affairs. We are very positive and hopefully we will get the nod soon,” he said then.

Now a delighted Seeb Club of-ficial, sharing the latest news with Times Sport, said: “Our proposals have been approved by the sports ministry. So we can say the wait is over and we can now start the ac-tual process.”

Thanking the ministry, Yousuf said: “We are grateful to all the officials at the Ministry of Sports Affairs. They have been very co-operative with us from day one — from the initial talks to the final approval.”

“They steadied and assessed each and every detail of our pro-posal and then gave the approval. That means they have liked our plans and has confidence in us. We are thankful for that,” he added.

Yousuf said ‘now is the time to start acting’ on our project.

“We can say we have already started the action. We have al-ready got in touch with the tender board, which is mandatory to im-plement the projects in Oman.

“Three companies have been shortlisted and they have already visited our club to look at the site where the project will come up.”

Stating that the work on the sta-dium will start at the earliest, You-suf said: “It’s our dream project

and we are also eager to start work on it at the earliest.”

The hockey stadium will be build on the club premises, he informed.

“We will have an astro turf on a standard playing area of 91.5 by 69 square metres playing area. We also have the galleries with proper seating arrangements, to start with one side of the hockey pitch,” he explained.

“The other facilities like chang-ing rooms will also be in place. And we also have fans on our minds and we will try to provide facilities like toilets and other the basis ameni-ties for them.”

Boost for hockeyThe Seeb Club official said the pro-ject will not only help their own hockey team but will contribute for the overall development of hockey in the Sultanate.

“Our main objective in pursuing this project is to revive our glory days in hockey. We have a spe-

cial place in the history of Oman sports. There was a time when our club teams used to make it to the fi-nal of both His Majesty’s Cup foot-ball and hockey championships.

“Even today our priority is to see our hockey teams do well in the His Majesty’s Cup and the Oman Hockey Association leagues. But we want to revive those glorious title winning days of past.”

“So the project is mainly aimed at achieving that primary goal. But we believe with a state of the art stadium we can do a lot not just for the club and for entire country. We can aspire to host regional and in-ternational level hockey activities, including tournaments and train-ing camps which will definitely lead to the overall development of the hockey in the Sultanate.”

Academy on the anvilYousuf, meanwhile, reiterated the club’s commitment to launch a hockey academy.

“Establishing a hockey academy

is one of our ambitions. We believe establishing an academy will help in grooming the future generation of hockey players.”

“Once we complete the stadium project, then we will start working on the academy,” he added.

But the club has already started implementing the plans to have a proper technical team and a pro-fessional system in place when they roped in Indian coach Mukul Pandey last year who was entrust-ed with the job was ‘not just train-ing the club’s senior and junior teams but also advise the club on how to develop our system’.

But the Indian coach departed at the end of last season.

“Unfortunately coach Mukul has left the club. But the local Om-ani coaches are continuing with the work. We will also recruit a foreign coach to take us forward, especially after the completion of the stadium project and when we start working on establishing the hockey academy,” Yousuf added.

The club, early this

year, had come

forward with an

ambitious plan to

establish a full-

fledged hockey

stadium and an

academy with the

funds from the

Royal grant of OMR

1 million awarded

to each club by His

Majesty Sultan

Qaboos in July 2013

Yusuf Al WahaibiVice-chairman, Seeb Club

We are grateful to Ministry of Sports Affairs for approving our project. Now we can start work on our dream project of building a state-of-the-art hockey stadium

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 .

Pakistan crush Australia for 2-0 series winABU DHABI: A defiant Steve Smith tried to delay the inevitable before Pakistan crushed Australia by 356 runs in the second and final Test to complete a 2-0 series vic-tory in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

Having set the visitors an im-probable 603-run victory target, Pakistan claimed the remaining six wickets in a little over a session the final day to secure their first test series victory against Austral-ia in 20 years.

The win also saw them leapfrog England, Sri Lanka and India to rise to number three in test rankings, behind South Africa and Australia.

Smith (97) added 107 runs with Mitchell Marsh in a rare display of Australian resistance in the two-match series before his post-lunch dismissal triggered a collapse with the visitors losing their last five wickets for only eight runs to be all out for 246.

“I think Misbah-ul-Haq and his team played some outstanding cricket in both Test matches and we’ve certainly been outplayed,” Australia captain Michael Clarke said at the presentation ceremony.

“In all three facets — batting, bowling and fielding — we probably let ourselves down. We were not good enough against the very good and experienced Pakistan team.”

Zulfiqar Babar (5-120) and Ya-sir Shah (3-44) once again laid bare Australia’s spin frailties even though Pakistan were without their main spinner Saeed Ajmal who has been banned for an illegal action. Pakistan captain Misbah was adjudged man-of-the-match for his twin centuries in the match, the second of which equalled Viv Richards’ record for the fastest test century in 56 balls.

Run-machine Younis Khan, who hit two centuries and a double hundred in his four innings, was the obvious choice for the man-of-the-series award. Resuming on 143-4, Smith and Marsh (47) frus-

trated the Pakistani bowlers with a century stand, showing the stom-ach for fight which was missing in their team mates.

Leg-slip trapMarsh, playing only his second test, proved the perfect foil for

Smith, whose decisive footwork against the spinners and positive intent stood out in an otherwise Australian batting capitulation.

Marsh was looking set for his second fifty of the match when the 23-year-old walked into a leg-slip trap, flicking off-spinner Mo-

hammad Hafeez straight into the hands of Asad Shafiq.

Smith hit Babar for successive boundaries to bring up his eighth test half-century and meted out the same treatment to the spinner in the final over before lunch to cruise into the 90s.

Yasir denied the 25-year-old Smith his fifth test century, trap-ping him leg before with the sec-ond delivery after lunch, which opened the flood gates and Aus-tralia collapsed in a heap. “It’s a re-ally special series for me, because every individual performed,” said Misbah. “That’s a sign of a good team and I’m really happy.”

Smith hit 12 fours in his 204-ball knock that proved there were no real demons in the dry and dusty pitch at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

Comprehensively beaten in the first test in Dubai, nothing went right for Australia in the second test either.

Not a single Australian managed a century in the test while Misbah and Azhar Ali got hundreds in both innings and Younis struck 213 in the first innings. — Reuters

T E S T S E R I E S

JUBILANT: Pakistan players celebrate after beating Australia by 356 runs. – AFP

Pakistan 1st innings: 570-6 dec (Younis Khan 213, Azhar Ali 109, Misbah-ul Haq 101; M. Starc 2-86) Australia 1st innings: 261 (M. Marsh 87; M. Clarke 47; Imran Khan 3-60) Pakistan 2nd innings: 293-3 dec (Misbah-ul Haq 101 not out, Azhar Ali 100 not out; M. Johnson 2-45) Australia 2nd innings C. Rogers c Shafiq b Babar 2 D. Warner c Shah b Hafeez 58 G. Maxwell lbw b Babar 4 M. Clarke b Babar 5 S. Smith b Shah 97 M. Marsh c Shafiq b Hafeez 47 B. Haddin b Babar 13 M. Johnson b Shah 0 P. Siddle not out 4 M. Starc b Shah 2

N. Lyon c Ali b Shah 0 Extras: (b-5, lb-1, nb-3, pen-5) 14 Total: (all out; 88.3 overs) 246 Fall of wickets: 1-19 (Rogers), 2-31 (Max-well), 3-43 (Clarke), 4-101 (Warner), 5-208 (Marsh), 6-238 (Smith), 7-238 (Haddin), 8-238 (Johnson), 9-245 (Starc) Bowling: Rahat 8-6-3-0, Khan 8-1-29-0, Hafeez 17-4-38-2, Babar 32.3-2-120-5 (1nb), Shah 22-4-44-3 (1nb), Ali 1-0-1-0 Note: Pakistan were penalised five runs after the ball hit the helmet placed behind the wicket-keeper Result: Pakistan won by 356 runs Toss: Pakistan Umpires: Richard Kettleborough (ENG) and Nigel Llong (ENG) TV umpire: Marais Erasmus (RSA) Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SRI).

S C O R E B O A R D

Fortunate we have three opening options: DhawanCUTTACK: Shikhar Dhawan feels that Team India is “fortu-nate” that they have three op-tions for the opening slot in him, Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Shar-ma, which will help in gaining the much-needed consistency re-quired at the top of the order, with World Cup round the corner.

“We are very fortunate that we three (him, Rahane and Rohit) are there with the Indian team, who can give the consistency. It’s a very good sign for the team that our openers are scoring runs consist-ently. It’s very important to have a strong base whenever batting first or chasing,” Dhawan said.

However, the Delhi left-hander refused to be drawn into com-parison between who was a bet-ter opening partner among Rohit and Rahane. “I really enjoyed batting with both of them (Ra-hane and Rohit). Hopefully, they too enjoy batting with me. Both

have their own styles. As far as my opening partner is concerned, it’s team’s call and I can’t answer that. I love batting with both of them. When myself and Rohit used to open, we used to do the same thing,” said Dhawan.

Dhawan found his touch dur-ing the final leg of the England ODI series, got a half century against West Indies in the trun-cated home series and now reached the three-figure mark against Sri Lanka in the first ODI on Sunday.

“When you play such a knock, the self confidence gets a big boost and involve yourself in such a big partnership, it’s a hap-py feeling,” Dhawan added.

Even as the Indian bowlers had the luxury of defending a huge total of 363/5, Dhawan was effu-sive in his praise for the manner in which pacers intimidated the opposition. — PTI

C R I C K E T

BACK IN FORM: India opener Shikhar Dhawan. – PTI

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SPORTST U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14


WhatsNews


Seventeen years after what could have been a cataclysmic tragedy

that would have devas-tated millions of hearts, we get to hear that Sachin Tendulkar was so down and depressed in 1997 that he almost walked away from the game he loved as madly as he did the lady of his life who eventually helped him walk confidently back out onto the 22 yards to conjure up moments that are now a priceless collection of nostalgia for some and inspiration for others.

What nearly did the little champion in was the bitter realization, after India in-famously lost a Test match and series in the Caribbean failing to chase a ridicu-lously small target of 120, that he had given the game everything and that he was not sure if he could give “even .1 per cent more”.

What probably Tendulkar did not know then was that mathematical simplicity might not always help solve all the puzzles of cricket. Look at what happened at the Baramati stadium on Sunday! Captain for the first three ODIs Virat Kohli’s frustration over his failure to rise up to the occasion, especially after he and the rest of the world fondly believed that his months of misery was over at last with that patient cen-tury against the West Indies at Dharmasala, was loud. The heave of the bat would tell you that it was perhaps .1percent. And now look at the result: a brutal victory over the hapless Lankans.

You could better even your worst-ever score to a perfect 10 if you could smarten up your act and do a couple of things which you don’t normally do. That’s what Kohli said he did that miraculously helped trans-form the mood in the Indian dressing room.

The first of a couple of outside-the-box things he did, which team India, or MS Dhoni, normally don’t do, was taking the second power play option as early as the 24th over. The move paid off handsomely: the sweet 62 runs bolstered the scoreboard to a muscular 186 at the end of the 28th over, and that was a helluva great opportunity for the team to dream of something as big as 400.

The second simple thing was bringing in the fast bowler to mop up the tail in the 34th over. With the re-quired run rate mounting to Himalayan impossibilities to conquer, the normal way of getting the job done was waiting patiently for the Lankans to get hopeless and threw away their wickets by getting part-time bowlers to do the dance almost till the very end. Kohli did try to do what India don’t do

normally, and the result — rather, the manner it has been achieved — speaks for the brand new excitement generated by the new-found courage in doing the normal things.

Normal or otherwise, the possibilities opened by Kohli are mouth-watering. The young guys who ran in hard and fired the mis-siles consistently at over 140kmh were not some new-finds: they were the al-ready available, but seldom trusted youngsters ready to bend their back to scare the guys from end to end at any cost. Injury or short life. Both Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron were hitting it hard — let them enjoy doing their business the way they love.

A little while ago Indian fans might have been feel-ing down over the kind of bowlers the team could have taken onboard for a tour of Australia and the World Cup campaign that follows. A group of tired guys who struggle to run in hard and bang in mad match after match to get the ball talking, and a few slow souls who have nothing new left in their armour — that’s hardly what it takes to bring home the World Cup from Down Under.

Could the Cuttack cour-age become the new-normal for team India? Perhaps yes, if Dhoni realises the delight in doing the normal things.

The writer is a freelance contribu-tor based in India. All the views and opinions expressed in the arti-cle are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of Times of Oman

Get normal when you couldC O M M E N T A R Y

Could the Cuttack courage become the new-normal for Team India? Perhaps yes, if resting Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni realises the delight in doing the normal things

Rahul makes his case for India’s tour to Australia

NEW DELHI: Karnataka’s in-form young opener K.L. Rahul has staked a strong claim for inclusion in India’s Test squad to Australia which is to be picked here on Tues-day by the five-man selection com-mittee headed by Sandeep Patil.

The two centuries (185 and 130) he hit for South Zone, albeit in a losing cause, in the Duleep Trophy final against Central Zone could not have come at a better time for the 23-year-old Bengaluru-born batsman.

The selectors are bound to give a serious thought of including this Karnataka youngster as the third opener in the squad behind first-choice Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan — who did the duty in the first two Tests of the series that In-

dia lost to England last season. Rahul is expected to be included

as the reserve opener in place of the experienced 33-year-old Gau-tam Gambhir who looked out of sorts and failed to cross 20 in his four innings when included in place of Dhawan in the last two Tests in England.

Rahul, however, could face some competition from his teammate Robin Uthappa who scored a ton against East Zone in the same competition but failed to prosper in the summit clash at Delhi.

The selectors would also delib-erate on the choice of the second wicket keeper between Wriddhi-man Saha, who was the reserve keeper in England, and Namaj Ojha who replaced the former midway through the tour after Saha was injured. Ojha has forced his way into reckoning after scor-ing a double hundred in the Duleep Trophy game against North Zone but did not do well with the bat in the final against South.

Saha, on the other hand, is keep-

ing wickets in the absence of the rested Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the ODI series in progress against Sri Lanka and seems to hold the edge. The selectors are bound to think long and hard at the bowl-ing combination and it will depend on whether they opt for a smaller squad or a jumbo squad of 18 that they picked for England.

The five-man panel is bound to choose a battery of pace bowlers for the bouncy wickets in Australia but injuries to Mohammed Shami and Varun Aaron has queered the pitch a bit.

Both should make the squad if the medical opinion states they will be fit from the beginning of the tour for which the Indian squad is set to depart on November 21.

Ishant Sharma and Bhu-vneshwar Kumar would spear-head the attack, and Stuart Binny is expected to be picked as the pace bowling all-rounder, as was the case in England, especially after picking up seven wickets in the Duleep game against East.

The Bengaluru bowler missed the Duleep final after he was named in the squad for the one-day warm-up game against the visiting Sri Lanka team here.

A question mark hangs over Rajasthan’s big and burly Pankaj Singh who bowled reasonably well in England but did not generate enough pace to worry the batsmen. Ishwar Pandey was the additional pace bowling option not used in the Test series in England.

But with the cupboard empty and with injuries to Shami and Aaron, Singh could get the nod ahead of his younger MP competi-tor who failed to grab a wicket in the Duleep final while the Rajas-than bowler got five.

There could be a surprise in the spin department though Ravi-chandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja appear to be the front run-ners to take two spots. The third spot if the squad size is big enough — could go to an untested, ortho-dox leg break bowler like Karn Sharma, who picked up four wick-ets for India A in the one-off warm-up against Lanka, or even Karna-taka youngster Shreyas Gopal who has come into the picture of late.

It all depends on whether the selectors feel there’s no point in in-cluding the more experienced but inconsistent Amit Mishra or Pi-yush Chawla for the leggie’s spot.

The middle and lower order bat-ting line-up is more or less settled with Rohit Sharma fully recovered from the finger injury he had sus-tained in England. He is set to re-tain his middle order slot.

Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkyha Rahane, Rohit and skip-per Dhoni would fill up the middle order slots. — PTI

The two centuries

(185 and 130) he hit

for South Zone, albeit

in a losing cause, in

the Duleep Trophy

final against Central

Zone could not have

come at a better

time for the 23-year-

old Bengaluru-

born batsman

KNOCKING AT THE DOOR: South Zone opener K.L. Rahul. – File photo

Malik relieved not to be reportedKARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has heaved a sigh of relief after the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed that his bowling action has not been re-ported by the match officials dur-ing a recent game in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

“Malik’s action was scrutinised by the umpires and the match referee during a recent match be-tween Malik’s ZTBL side and Ka-rachi Dolphins after he took five wickets in the first innings. But after the umpires and match ref-eree studied the video recordings of his bowling they found noth-ing wrong with action,” a PCB official confirmed.

“No report was made to the board about Malik’s bowling ac-tion and he is clear to bowl in the tournament,” the official added.

Malik, who has been in good form with the bat and ball while captaining the ZTBL bank side, said he had been concerned af-ter media reports that his action

would be reported to the board.“I am happy now that the

match officials didn’t make any report because I have been focus-sing on my bowling a lot now,” Malik said.

“Being an all-rounder and since I play a lot of T20 cricket in foreign leagues now I know it is important to also contribute as a bowler with my off-breaks,” he insisted.

Malik has been out of favour with the Pakistani selectors since he played in the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh earlier this year. His last Test appearance was in 2010, while he played his last ODI was in the Champions Trophy last year in England.

“I always remain hopeful of a comeback to the national team which is why I am playing the domestic matches and enjoying them. I know I have a lot of crick-et still left in me and the national team always needs a quality all-rounder,” said Malik. — PTI

B O W L I N G A C T I O N

PRASAD PANICKER

BEYOND THE BOUNDARY

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SPORTST U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

CAUTIOUS KNOCK: Bangladesh batsmen Tamim Iqbal runs after playing a shot during the first day

of the second cricket Test match against Zimbabwe at Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna. – AFP

Tamim resists Zimbabwe

KHULNA: Tamim Iqbal and Mo-hammad Mahmudullah hit sedate half-centuries to take Bangladesh to 193-3 on the opening day of the second Test against Zimbabwe in Khulna on Monday.

Left-hander Tamim was un-beaten on 74 after Mahmudul-lah made 56. Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim had won the toss and elected to bat.

At stumps, Shakib Al Hasan was keeping Tamim company on

13. The usually agressive Tamim played a dour innings and took 169 deliveries to reach 50, the slowest of his 17 Test half-centuries. He has so far hit six boundaries dur-ing his 250-ball knock, which was marked by a 95-run stand for the third wicket with Mahmudullah.

Mahmudullah was equally cau-tious, reaching his 50 off 140 balls before he was trapped leg-before by Tinashe Panyangara.

Panyangara, who had earlier taken a return catch to dismiss Mominul Haque (35), ended the day with two for 29 from 19 overs.

Tamim and Mominul put on 72 for the second wicket after Zim-babwe removed opener Sham-sur Rahman, leg-before to Elton

Chigumbura, for two in the eighth over. Shamsur was initially de-clared not out, but Zimbabwe used the Decision Review System to get the verdict in their favour.

Bangladesh lead the three-match series after a three-wicket victory in the first Test in Dhaka last week. The hosts recalled seamer Rubel Hossain in place of Al-Amin Hossain, who opted out of the game to take his university exams. Zimbabwe handed Test caps to batsman Brian Chari and leg-spinner Natsai M’shangwe.

The third Test will be played in Chittagong from Novem-ber 12-16. Zimbabwe’s tour will also feature five One-day Interna-tionals. — AFP

Left-hander Tamim

was unbeaten on 74

after Mahmudullah

made 56 after

Bangladesh skipper

Mushfiqur Rahim

had won the toss and

elected to bat

Bangladesh 1st innings: Tamim Iqbal not out 74 Shamsur Rahman lbw b Chigumbura 2 Mominul Haque c and b Panyangara 35 Mohammad Mahmudullah lbw b Pan-yangara 56 Shakib Al Hasan not out 13 Extras (b-4, lb-5, w-2, nb-2) 13 Total (three wickets, 90 overs) 193 Fall of wickets: 1-6 (Shamsur), 2-78

(Mominul), 3-173 (Mahmudullah). Bowling: Panyangara 19-5-29-2 (nb1), Chigumbura 16-5-32-1 (w2), Chatara 15-3-30-0 (nb1), M’shangwe 24-4-60-0, Waller 9-1-22-0, Raza 7-2-11-0 Toss: Bangladesh Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZL) and Aleem Dar (PAK) TV umpire: S. Ravi (IND) Match referee: Chris Broad (ENG)

S C O R E B O A R D

Mudgal panel submits final reportNEW DELHI: The Supreme Court appointed Justice Mukul Mudgal committee Monday submitted its final report of its investigation into the allegations of betting and spot-fixing in the 2013 edition of Indian Premier League (IPL).

The committee, which investi-gated the allegations against side-lined BCCI chief N. Srinivasan, who is still the International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman, and 12 others submitted the re-port in a sealed cover. An apex court bench headed by Justice T.S. Thakur, before which senior coun-sel Raju Ramachandran submitted the report on Monday, said that it will be taken up for hearing as scheduled November 10.

In the course of the last hearing

, the court gave the Justice Mudgal committee another two months time to complete its probe.

Delhi Police were the first to bust the scandal after they arrest-ed three Rajasthan Royals cricket-ers — S. Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila

and Ankeet Chavan — in a mid-night raid in Mumbai.

Mumbai police also unearthed betting links after they arrested Gurunath Meiyappan, son-in-law of Srinivasan, and Bollywood actor Vindu Dara Singh.

In October last year, the Su-preme Court appointed a three-member committee, headed by former High Court judge Mukul Mudgal and comprising additional solicitor general L. Nageswara Rao and senior advocate Nilay Dutta.

The court told the panel to con-duct an inquiry into the allegations of corruption against Meiyappan, India Cements, and Rajasthan Royals team owner Raj Kundra and also asked them to look into the involvement of players. _ PTI

I P L P R O B E

OVER TO SUPREME COURT: Justice Mukul Mudgal.

Ready to bat ‘in any position’SYDNEY: Australian all-round-er Shane Watson, poised to re-turn to the national team after a prolonged injury layoff, said on Monday that he is willing to bat in any position to help his team bounce back from their poor per-formance against Pakistan in the ongoing Test series.

Australia trail the two-match Test series 0-1 after losing the first match at Dubai by 221 runs.

They are staring at another de-feat in the second game, needing 459 more runs with only six wick-ets in hand going into the fifth day of the match on Monday.

Watson said that he is ready to bat at the crucial No.3 batting slot and the long layoff has given him a new perspective on cricket.

“I just want an opportunity to be able to play again and wher-ever they want me in the batting order, I’m happy to be a part of the team,” he was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.

Watson will play his first game for Australia since April, making a comeback from ankle and calf ail-ments in Wednesday’s Twenty20 series opening match against South Africa at the Adelaide Oval.

“I am as fresh as I have been

for a long, long time. I’m ready to play,” he said. “I love playing the game of cricket, and this break has really continued to make me realise how much I love the game and how much I love playing. So any game that is available, I want to be able to play.”

The 33-year-old said he is close-ly watched Australia’s poor perfor-mances against Pakistan. “After everything that we have done over the last 18 months to build it up, things are never meant to go per-fectly well. We have had an incred-ible run in the Ashes last summer and in South Africa as well.” — IANS

S H A N E W A T S O N S A Y S

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Real close to qualification

LONDON: The three teams with 100 per cent records in this sea-son’s Champions League can se-cure their places in the knockout stage this week with two games to spare.

German heavyweights Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund — who contested the 2013 final — plus holders Real Madrid have all been in imperious form in the competition and will be confi-dent of making it four wins from four games as they take on oppo-nents they beat away from home a fortnight ago.

Real Madrid, now top of La Liga, are on a club record of 11 straight wins in all competitions as they host five-times European cham-pions Liverpool in Group B, hav-ing beaten them 3-0 at Anfield on Match Day Three.

The main interest in that group appears to be who finishes sec-ond, with three teams all on three points. Basle and Ludogorets play their return game in Switzerland on Tuesday after the Bulgarians won 1-0 at home.

“We’re still very much in the group to qualify, which is the objec-tive,” Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers said ahead of a daunting trip to the Spanish capital.

“It’s a big ask playing against ar-guably the best team in the world at the moment. But we’ll go into it with confidence.”

Bayern host AS Roma in Group E on Wednesday after an astonish-ing 7-1 away victory against them in Italy, and will be confident of taking another three points.

Roma’s defeat offered new hope to winless Manchester City, who let a 2-0 lead slip away to CSKA Moscow and now need to win the return in England and hope the Italians lose again.

Strange seasonDortmund are having a strange season in which they struggle do-mestically while brushing aside all opposition in Group D.

Beaten by Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga on Saturday, they have dropped into the relegation places, but play at the comforts of home to Galatasaray on Tuesday look-ing for a repeat of their 4-0 success in Turkey.

If Juergen Klopp’s team and Ar-

senal, who are at home to Ander-lecht, both win, they will each have qualified with two games to spare.

The four German representa-tives have lost only one game out of 12 between them so far, which was Bayer Leverkusen’s 1-0 defeat

to Monaco on matchday one. They still top Group C, but a sec-

ond loss, away to Zenit St Peters-burg on Tuesday, would put the Russians ahead of them. Second-placed Monaco, away to Benfica, have yet to concede a goal and are

also very much in contention. The fourth German and English

teams, Chelsea and Schalke, hold the top two spots in Group G ahead of Wednesday’s matches.

Chelsea visit Slovenia to play Maribor, who they thrashed 6-0

in London, while second-placed Schalke know Sporting Lis-bon have a poor record against German opposition, despite only having beaten them 4-3 in Gelsenkirchen with the help of a last-minute penalty.

Barcelona will want to bounce back from on Saturday’s shock defeat at home to Celta Vigo when they visit Ajax in Group F, in which they trail Paris St Germain by a point.

Four points ahead of Ajax, they would be well-placed to qualify with another win, as would PSG if they win as expected at home to APOEL.

Manager Laurent Blanc has said they must do that without talis-manic striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who suffered a heel injury in Sep-tember and has not played since.

He is due to return in the middle of this month.

Group A remains the closest, so much so that two home wins

on Tuesday would bring all four teams level on six points.

Juventus and Malmo are those home teams, facing Olympiakos and last season’s finalists Atletico Madrid respectively.

In Wednesday’s other matches Group H leaders Porto travel to Athletic Bilbao and Shakhtar Donetsk host BATE Borisov, who they humiliated 7-0 in Be-larus when Luiz Adriano scored five times. — Reuters

Real Madrid, now

top of La Liga, are

on a club record of

11 straight wins in

all competitions as

they host five-times

European champions

Liverpool in Group B,

having beaten them

3-0 at Anfield on

Match Day Three

GraphicsGraphic News /Source: UEFA, Infostrada Sports

Today TomorrowHead-to-head W D L

Champions League’s next matches

GROUP AMalmo SWEAtletico ESP

Juventus ITAOlympiacos GRE

GROUP BBasel SUILudogorets BUL

Real Madrid ESPLiverpool ENG

GROUP CZenit RUSLeverkusen GER

Benfica PORAS Monaco FRA

GROUP DArsenal ENGAnderlecht BEL

Dortmund GERGalatasaray TUR

6633

9333

6541

9611

500

-5

8-1-3-4

310

-4

92

-4-7

AtleticoOlymp’cosJuventusMalmo

Standings PtsGD

RealLudogoretsLiverpoolBasel

Lev’kusenMonacoZenitBenfica

DortmundArsenalAnderlechtGal’saray

5 2 2

0 0 3

2 0 1

1 0 3

1 0 2

0 1 0

2 0 1

3 1 1

European Dream

Home record inChampions League

998101058

ShakhtarDortmund

AtleticoPorto

Real MadridLeverkusen

Chelsea

Efficient Attack

128147148

153159

125117PassesGoals

21202416

Robin van PersieLuis Suarez

Wayne RooneySergio Aguero

Premier League Strike Records (2011-2014)

5652

6568

GoalAssists

L8

D7W26Dortmund are aiming to improve on poor domestic form and qualifyfor Last 16

Ever Presents

Away record inChampions League

Barcelona travel to Ajax hoping to seal 12th successiveLast 16 berth

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang DortmundGabonese striker leading line for Dortmund, scored twice in comfortable 4-0 victory over Galatasaray

Luis Suarez BarcelonaEuropean Golden Boot winner, Suarez, is set to return to Champions League stage after four month ban for biting at World Cup

3812

Compared to La Liga masters...Lionel Messi

Cristiano Ronaldo124

111

GROUP EMan City ENGCSKA Moscow RUS

FC Bayern GERAS Roma ITA

GROUP FPSG FRAAPOEL CYP

Ajax NEDBarcelona ESP

GROUP GSporting PORSchalke 04 GER

Maribor SVNChelsea ENG

GROUP HShakhtar UKRBATE Borisov BLR

Athletic ESPPorto POR

9421

7621

7521

7531

8-2-1-5

22

-2-2

71

-6-2

77

-12-2

BayernRomaMan CityCSKA

Standings PtsGD

PSGBarcelonaAjaxAPOEL

ChelseaSchalkeMariborSporting

PortoShakhtarBATEAthletic

4 0 1

2 1 0

3 0 0

0 0 1

0 0 1

1 0 0

1 0 2

2 0 1

L26

D29W40

GEARING UP: Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale, left, shares a laugh with Cristiano Ronaldo next to Pepe, right,

during a training session at Valdebebas sports grounds in Madrid on the eve of their Champions

League soccer match against Liverpool. – Reuters

Hamilton drives it like he owns it

AUSTIN: Lewis Hamilton’s father always told him to ‘drive like you stole it’ but there was never any question about who owned on Sunday’s United States Grand Prix. The Mer-cedes driver did not start on pole, that honour denied him by team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg in on Saturday qualify-ing, but the Briton knew he had something special going on.

Hamilton feels at home in the United States, where he spends time with singer girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger and friends in Los Angeles, and won the in-augural race at the Circuit of the Americas in 2012. As he took the chequered flag for his 10th win of the season, and fifth in succession, the championship leader entered the record books as the British driver with most Formula One wins—his 32 now one more than 1992 champion Nigel Mansell.

Full control“Once I got past Nico it was re-ally just about controlling it,” he told the crowd in a podium interview with 1978 champion Mario Andretti, the last US driver to take the title.

Later, once he had tried An-dretti’s black Stetson sheriff’s hat for size, he told reporters: “Before the race there’s a lot you can do to really understand what opportunities could come up and in different scenarios, how you approach it, and I felt very much on top of that as I have done for quite some time.

“I just went into the race with the belief that I could win it,” he added. I went into the race thinking I need another race just like 2012 and it was just like that. I was catching him through exactly the same points at which I was catching Sebastian (Vettel in 2012). There wasn’t a mo-ment in the race when I didn’t think that I would get him. Once I was past, as I said, I was able to relax for a second.”

The move, when it came, was on the 24th lap—a fitting num-ber since the win sent him 24 points clear of Rosberg with two races remaining and a max-imum of 75 points available.

It could still be that he ends up with 11 wins and no title, a casu-alty of the new rules that allow double points for the final round in Abu Dhabi, but on Sunday he was not thinking of that. — Reuters

F O R M U L A O N E

OVER THE MOON: Lewis

Hamilton. – AFP

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SPORTST U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

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Shounak seizes boys under-13 crownMUSCAT: Shounak Kelkar has claimed the boys under-13 sin-gles crown at the Villeroy & Boch + Hansgrohe Open Table Tennis Tournament organised by the In-dian Social Club Muscat.

Southpaw Shounak justified his top seeding when he put in a mas-terful display to outplay challeng-er M.V. Sai Prem in straight games 11-5, 11-7, 11-4, 11-6 to claim the top honours.

Shounak played fluent fore-hand drives and controlled the game against Sai Prem who one felt was nervy and well below his best during the game.

While Shounak executed his plan to perfection, Sai Prem paid dearly for his unforced errors.

Top seed Kenneth Vaz and second seed Armaan Sattikar re-newed their rivalry after having advancing to the summit clash of the boys under-16 singles competition after both survived

anxious moments before emerg-ing as the winners.

In the first semifinal, Kenneth was given a torrid time before overcoming a fighting Sai Sharan

in six games, 11-2, 12-10, 11-7, 9-11, 11-13, 13-11.

After cruising to a comfortable win in the first game, Kenneth was made to earn every point on merit.

Sai Sharan pulled back the fourth and fifth games to stay in the match and led 10-7 in the sixth.

Kenneth saved three game points and a lucky edge gave him match point which he converted to advance to the final.

Second seed Armaan Sattikar will take on Kenneth in the un-der-16 final.

Armaan was stretched to the limit before rallying from two games down to edge past Pranav Vinod with a 9-11, 3-11, 11-2, 11-8, 15-13, 9-11, 11-6 verdict.

Pranav went all out and un-leashed a flurry of attacking strokes to win the first two games.

Armaan pulled back the next three games to gain the lead.

Pranav kept the pressure on the second seed and won the sixth game to take the match to the de-cider. However, Armaan won the final game to earn a place in the title match.

I S C T A B L E T E N N I S

CHAMPION AND RUNNER-UP: Shounak Kelkar, left, and Sai Prem

Denson bowls Trust Oilfield Strikers to victory over Starcare Hospital

MUSCAT: Skipper Mathias Den-son claimed four wickets in four overs to help Trust Oilfield Strik-ers to a thrilling two-run win against Starcare Hospital in a J Division T20 match played in the morning session at the Univer-sity Grounds in Al Khoud during the week end.

All other matches scheduled for the weekend at the Municipality and Ministry Grounds in Al Am-erat and the OAC grounds in Seeb

were called off due to wet outfields.Invited to bat first, Trust Oilfield

Strikers managed to score 169 for the loss of five wickets in 20 overs thanks to an opening partnership of 79 runs in 9.5 overs between Taimur Khan (62) and Khuram Rashid (48).

Meesam Ali and Nitin Shetty picked up two wickets each.

In reply, Starcare Hospital were well placed with the score on 86 for the loss of four wickets at the half way mark with a useful 32

from No. 3 batsman Meesam Ali. But the Strikers managed to

restrict Starcare to 167 for nine wickets in 20 overs. V.S. Sujith Kumar batting at No.9 remained unbeaten on 28 for Starcare.

Shibas P.B. with three wickets for 22 in four overs lent valuable support to Mathias.

Brief scores: Trust Oilfield Strik-ers 169 for 5 in 20 overs(Taimur Khan 62, Khuram Rashid 48; Meesam Ali 2/27, Nitin Shetty 2/30) bt Starcare Hospital 167 for 9 in 20 overs (Meesam Ali 32, V.S.

Sujith Kumar 28 n.o; Mathias Denson 4/32, Shibas P.B. 3/22). Points: Trust Oilfield Strikers -2; Starcare Hospital – 2 (2 games, 2 points).

Rafeeq lifts OCT Al Hail B In another J Division match played in the afternoon at the same venue, OCT Al Hail B, aided by an unbeaten 65 from opening batsman Rafeeq Ahmed Al Bal-uhsi, crushed ISC Kutch Wing for a eight-wicket victory.

Opting to bat first, ISC Kutch

Wing scored 132 for the loss of sev-en wickets in 20 stipulated overs. Major contributions came from Kiran Joshi (37), opening bats-man Girish Salian (30) and Hardik Limbani (27 not out).

The bowlers to be amongst the wickets were skipper Ismail Al Balushi, Mohammed Al Balushi and Anaya Allah Ali Al Balushi who claimed two wickets apiece.

OCT Al Hail B reached their tar-get losing two wickets in 18 overs. Abdul Ghani Rahim Bakhsh Al Bal-

ushi (28) and Haroon Trad Yaqoob Al Balushi (24 not out) chipped in with useful contributions.

Brief scores: ISC Kutch Wing 132 for 7 in 20overs (Kiran Joshi 37, Girish Salian 30, Hardik Limbani 27 n.o.; Ismail Al Balushi 2/21, Mohammed Al Balushi 2/24, Anaya All Ali Al Balushi 2/25) lost to OCT Al Hail B 133 for 2 in 18 overs (Rafeeq Ahmed Al Balushi 65 n.o., Ab-dul Ghani Rahim Bakhsh Al Balushi 28, Haroon Trad Yaqoob Al Balushi 24 n.o). Points: OCT Al Hail B - 2 (2 games, 2 pts), ISC Kutch Wing - Nil (2 games, Nil).

Trust Oilfield Strikers

managed to score 169

for five in 20 overs.

Then the Strikers

managed to restrict

Starcare, who were

well placed at 86 for

four, to 167 for nine

wickets in 20 overs WINNING TEAMS: Trust Oilfield Strikers, left, and OCT Al Hail B pose for group photos after their respective victories. – Supplied photos

ISC GOAN WING TO ORGANISE FOOTBALL TOURNAMENTGoan Wing of the Indian Social Club (ISC) Muscat will organised their annual football tournament at Al Ghubra Power & De-

salination Company ground on November 7. The tournament draw was conducted Majan Continental Hotel last weekend and

the twenty participating teams are divided into four groups. After round robin league matches, the top two teams from each

group will qualify for the knockout stage. Apart from the main eight-a-side tournament there will be the ladies tiebreaker,

children’s exhibition match, kids painting competition, spot prizes and lots of music and fun. The teams: Group A: Hooli-

gans, Titos, Black & White Kerala, Pajero and Alatool Muscat. Group B: Sohar Mavericks, United Kerala, FC Kerala, Chivas and

Muscat United. Group C: Hitachi FC, Beach Boys, Sao Minguel, Curtorim and F.C. Siolim, Group D: Déjà Vu United, AIG Anjuna,

Amigos, Goa United and Wadi Kabir FC. — Supplied photo

Makelele sacked

PARIS: Former France mid-fielder Claude Makelele’s first coaching stint was brought to a premature end on Monday when he was sacked by Ligue 1 strugglers SC Bastia.

“The board of directors of SCB inform their supporters and partners that as of today Claude Makelele is no longer the coach of Sporting Club of Bastia,” the club said.

Makelele, 41, lasted just 12 Ligue 1 games in charge of the Corsicans, winning two. — AFP

F O O T B A L L

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Muneer clinches U-12 crown at OAB Open

MUSCAT: Talented Omani boy Muneer Al Rawahi outplayed inform Avigyan Battacharya to clinch the boys under-12 title at the ongoing Oman Arab Bank (OAB) Open Tennis Championship at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex.

Avigyan went into the summit clash after dominant victories in the previous rounds but he found his match in Muneer Al Rawahi in the all-important match. In fact, the latter went on to dictate terms, dropping just two games on his way to a 9-2 victory.

Tim Rutherford, meanwhile, reached the semifinals of the boys under-18 competition. He defeat-ed Taisei Nishino 6-2, 6-2 for a place in the last four.

In the boys under-14 doubles

competition, Eyad Al Khanjari and Abdullah moved into last 16 after overcoming Hassan Haider and Yash Tanna in a thrilling three-set match. Eyad and Abdullah deserv-

ingly won the 6-4, 4-6, 10-7.In the men’s pro singles, Vimal

Krithi booked his place in the sem-ifinals with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over Neil Fernandez.

In the men’s B singles, Zakariya Al Suleimani make it past Tomoki Nishino and into the quarterfinals with a 7-5, 6-2 victory.

Also reaching the last eight of the same event are Abdullah Al Barwani, Marlon Austria and Ar-maan Sattikar.

Abdullah defeated Jodbhir Sin-gh 6-4, 6-2, Marlon beat Eugene Ivonov 6-3, 6-0 and Armaan over-came Nashat Helal 3-6, 6-3, 10-5.

Meanwhile, Omani star Fatma Al Nabani and compatriot Younis Al Rawahi stormed into the semi-finals of the mixed doubles com-petition. The duo dropped just two games in their 6-1, 6-1 quarterfinal victory over Deepathika Gooner-atne and Imran Khan.

Matei Horia and Alexandra Sere also reached the last four stage defeating Chatherine Bonfert and Amr Hassan 6-0, 6-2.

In the women’s doubles, Rupsha D and Yashika Jain defeated Ayse K and Yvonne W 6-0, 6-0 to enter the semifinals.

The annual championship, one of the biggest events to be organ-ized by Oman Tennis Association with participation of 260 players in various categories, runs till No-vember 26 and is supported by one of country’s leading banks, Oman Arab Bank, as the title sponsored and co-sponsored by Omantel and Pocari Sweat.

Muneer Al Rawahi

dictated the terms,

dropping just two

games on his way to

a 9-2 victory against

Avigyan Battacharya

THE FINALISTS: Muneer Al Rawahi, right, and Avigyan Battacha-rya pose for a photo during their boys under-12 final at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex. – FAISAL AL BALUSHI/OTA

11 teams to participate in Golf for Atta’a on November 7MUSCAT: Dar Al Atta’a, in as-sociation with The Jagwanis, will organise the Golf for Atta’a 2014 at the Ghala Valley Golf Club on November 7.

The charity organisation, in its third association with the Jag-wanis, announced the details of the tournament during a press conference organised at the Jungle Restaurant in Al Qurm recently.

The tournament is being organ-ised with the aim of raising funds for Dar Al Atta’a Charity Building to aid in its various charity programmes.

The tournament will be organ-ised under the auspices of Dr. Mo-

hammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy, Minister of Gas and Oil, from 7.30 am at the Ghala Valley Golf Club on November 7.

During the press conference, Niti Jagwani and Dar Al Atta’a rep-resentatives welcomed the guests, the participants and sponsors.

Eleven teams representing sponsors - National Ferries Com-pany, Horwath Mak Ghazali, Oman Telecommunications Com-pany, Sarco – Samsung, Daleel Pe-troleum, CCED, Khimji Ramdas, BP, Al Izz Bank, Al Nahda Resort & Spa, and Al Mirath Petrogas - will take part in the tournament.

Meanwhile, Dar Al Atta’a board member Lubna Al Kharusi ex-pressed her deep gratitude to Go-pal Jagwani saying: “We thank Mr. Jagwani for his continuous efforts and participation in such charity events. It’s our third association with him and his wife Niti Jagwani who have been involved in charity causes for the past six years. We certainly hope to collaborate with them more in the future”.

Schedule: 0700: Tee off time for 2 Teams; 0815 : Registration for all other teams; 0845: Tee off time for all other teams and 1345: Prize distribution ceremony.

C H A R I T Y E V E N T

FOR A CAUSE: Dar Al Atta’a representatives and those associated with the ‘Golf for Atta’a’ speak during a press conference organised to announce the event details at Jungle Restaurant. – Supplied photo

Fifa shows little enthusiasm for 2022 World Cupin April-MayZURICH: Fifa showed little en-thusiasm towards a proposal to stage the 2022 World Cup in April and May, saying on Mon-day that January-February or November-December remained the most likely options for the tournament in Qatar.

Soccer’s governing body said there were medical concerns at holding the competition during any period between May and Sep-tember while Ramadan would affect preparations if the tourna-ment were to be held in May.

“We are getting closer to nar-rowing the dates.....to two op-tions - January-February 2022 or November-December 2022 - but Fifa has also been asked to consider May 2022,” said Fifa secretary general Jerome Valcke following a meeting of the task force set up to determine when the tournament should be held.

The world players’ union FIF-Pro also opposed a summer World Cup, saying that “we must avoid the hottest months at all costs, ir-respective of what was suggested during the bidding procedure.”

Qatar were ranked bottom of the nations bidding to stage the World Cup by Fifa’s own techni-cal study group before the vote was taken in December 2010.

However, Qatar saw off rival bids from the United States, Aus-tralia, Japan and South Korea to become the first Arab state to stage the tournament.

The award of the World Cup to the tiny Middle-East emir-ate has been the subject of an investigation by New York at-torney Michael Garcia over the last 18 months, set up to estab-lish whether any corruption was involved in the decision taken by the Fifa executive committee.

Garcia’s findings are now being studied by German judge Hans-Joachim Eckert, the head of Fifa’s independent adjudicatory chamber, who is expected to issue his initial report later this month.

Evening matchesThe European Clubs’ Associa-tion, seeking as little disruption to the traditional European cal-endar as possible, suggested last week that April-May would cause less disruption to the club season and that temperatures during that period would not be hot-ter than at some previous World Cups provided matches were played in the evening.

The task force, which includes representatives from clubs, leagues, players and local organ-isers was meeting for the second time. Qatar was awarded the com-petition on the basis that it would

be staged in June/July using nat-urally cooled stadiums to allevi-ate the effects of the desert heat.

Despite this, there is widespread agreement that the tournament should be held in cooler months.

Fifa said that its chief medical officer Jiri Dvorak provided a re-port on the medical concerns re-lated to player safety and fan safe-ty if the World Cup were to be held between May and September.

Valcke also highlighted that “the month-long period of Rama-dhan would begin on April 2 in 2022, which would have an im-pact on a number of players in their preparations for any April-May option and with regard to the preparation of the event itself.”

FIFPro, whose general secre-tary Theo van Seggelen took part in the meeting, said it would not accept any decision which risked the players’ health.

“The health and safety of the players is non-negotiable. While we understand the concerns of those whose competitions will be affected, FIFPro will not be swayed to endorse a World Cup that puts the health of the players at risk,” it said in a statement.

“Staging a World Cup in and around the oppressive summer months of Qatar is simply not an option. It is a huge health risk that no responsible stakeholder should be willing to take.”

“What we see now in discus-sions between the various stake-holders is not healthy for the game,” added FIFPro.

“Some people only seem inter-ested in talking about the com-mercial perspective and com-pensation to cover the apparent financial consequences of mov-ing a World Cup from its tradi-tional dates.

“How was this decision taken in the first place? If it had been in consultation with the players, through FIFPro, we’d be having a very different discussion.”

Sponsorship blowMeanwhile, airline Emirates said it was ending its sponsorship of Fifa, a blow to soccer’s governing body as it investigates whether there was corruption in the bid-ding process for the next two World Cup tournaments.

“Emirates can confirm that a decision has been made not to re-new the sponsorship agreement with FIFA past 2014,” the Dubai-based airline said on Monday.

“This decision was made fol-lowing an evaluation of Fifa’s contract proposal which did not meet Emirates’ expectations.”

Fifa had no immediate com-ment. - Reuters

F O O T B A L L

Al Hail to host day-night tournament

MUSCAT: Al Hail Cricket Club will organise a day-night cricket tournament at the club grounds in Mabellah on November 14 and 15.

According to a press release issued by the club on Monday, the MRI ball tournament will have just 16 teams with the en-tries accepted on first-come-first-serve basis.

The organisers also said as per the tournament rules each participating team are al-lowed to field two players from Oman Cricket’s A and/or B division leagues.

The matches, to be played in knockout format, will pro-vide the teams who are used to play softball cricket an oppor-tunity to experience of play-ing in different conditions, the organisers said.

All arrangements are in place at the venue for this winter cricket tournament.

According to the organisers there will be a number of excit-ing prizes on offer.

C R I C K E T

Flying start to OCCI-CBC eventMUSCAT: Daleel Petroleum won the inagural match as the fifth Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry-Companies Basketball Competition (OCCI-CBC) got off to a flying start at the Sultan Qa-boos Sports Complex on Sunday.

The tournament was inau-gurated by Fahmy Al Musharfi, Chief Corporate Planning Officer

at Daleel Petroleum. The opening ceremony was attended by mem-bers of OCCI and Oman Basketball Association (OBA), representa-tives from companies and teams participating in the competition.

The simple yet impressive cer-emony started with a welcome speech by Nadir Al Bahrani, Exec-utive Director of STTE, which was

followed by a speech by OBA Gen-eral Secretary Assad Al Hasani.

Later the real action began with Daleel Petroleum locking horns with Pepsi with the former win-ning the match 69-21.

Two matches will be played on Tuesday with Sultan Center facing Pepsi at 7.30 pm and STTE meet-ing WAB from 9.15 pm.

B A S K E T B A L L

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMSECTIONC T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

He was hailed as “the man who won the war”, yet Captain Bruce Bairnsfather received no official

recognition of his contribution. Now, nearly 100 years on, his fam-ily is joining campaigners in call-ing on the British government to acknowledge in Parliament his World War II effort. Bairnsfather, who served on the front line with the 1st Battalion the Royal War-wickshire Regiment, became a household name during the war, thanks to his morale-boosting comic sketches depicting life in the trenches.

Starring the walrus-mous-tached soldier Old Bill, the car-toons, which appeared in the weekly magazine The Bystander from March 1915, inspired mer-chandise from playing cards to handkerchiefs as well as books, plays and films. A first compila-tion volume of his drawings, Frag-ments from France, published in January 1916, went on to sell more than a million copies.

English Heritage is display-ing the original artwork for his best-known cartoon, captioned “Well, if you knows of a better ‘ole, go to it”, as part of an exhi-bition, Soldiers at Stonehenge: Salisbury Plain and the Journey to the First World War, opening at the Stonehenge visitor centre last week. Bairnsfather produced the drawing, which depicts Old Bill and another soldier in a shell hole as other shells fly past them, while posted to the 34th Division on Salisbury Plain as a machine-gun instructor, after being admit-ted to hospital with shellshock after the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915.

An online petition proposes that a leading member of the govern-ment should make a statement in the House of Commons recognis-ing Bairnsfather’s contribution, before next October’s 100th an-niversary of the Better ‘Ole car-toon’s publication. The campaign, launched by the military histo-rians Major Tonie and Valmai Holt, whose book The Biography of Captain Bruce Bairnsfather: In Search of the Better ‘Ole, is published this week backed by Bairnsfather’s family and organi-sations including the Cartoon Museum in London and the Roy-al Regiment of Fusiliers Museum (Royal Warwickshire).

Bruce Littlejohn, 63, the eldest of Bairnsfather’s six grandchildren, who live in the United States, said parliamentary recognition would be wonderful: “I think he served... in a very interesting way, first as a sol-dier and second as an artist and sort of documentarian of what happened

at the front. What he drew, the com-mon soldier (and) the common man could relate to. It wasn’t some high-brow take on what happened — it was an attempt to really bring home to the British people the resilience to sustain the struggle and at the same time to believe in its purpose.”

Both Bairnsfather and Old Bill were at various times dubbed “the man who won the war”.

They were credited with boost-ing morale, prompting the Ital-ian, French and American armies to ask Bairnsfather to draw their own troops. The British War Office used him for propaganda purpos-es, appointing him official cartoon-ist with the Military Intelligence Section 7B.

Yet he received no official recog-nition. Ms Holt said that while he was popular with the public, his work did not go down well with some parts of the establishment. “During the war, politicians in the House of Commons criticised the way he portrayed men as scruffy and ill-disciplined and said that was not the right image that should be projected of our brave heroes in the trenches,” she said.

The World War I centenary has prompted renewed interest in Bairnsfather. The Royal Shake-speare Company is holding an ex-hibition about his life and work at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon until March. Its new play, Phil Porter’s The Christmas Truce, which opens on 29 November, is inspired by events experienced during the World War and features characters based on Bairnsfather and Old Bill. - Kate Youde/The Independent

THE CAPTAIN WHO GAVE BRITAIN ITS

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMSECTION T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

ULTIMATE WEAPON DURING WORLD WAR ONE: LAUGHTER

LIFE & STYLE

Bruce Bairnsfather’s cartoons depicting

life in the trenches boosted morale

but the establishment was not amused

What he drew, the common soldier (and) the common man could relate to. It wasn’t some high-brow take on what happened: it was an attempt to really bring home to the British people the resilience to sustain the struggle and at the same time to believe in its purpose

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EXTRAT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

AOL’s Instant Messenger, per-haps the icon of the anonymous instant-messaging age, quietly killed off its chat rooms in 2010. Yahoo Messenger axed its public chat rooms in 2012, explaining only that they weren’t a “core Ya-hoo! product.” And when MSN Messenger shuts down Friday in China, the last place where the service still operated, it will mark the conclusive end of the main-stream chatroom era.

Sure, we have Rooms now — but Rooms, despite its branding and anonymous discussion groups, has little in common with the chatrooms of yore. And like other modern attempts to reincarnate the ‘90s chat room (Airtime, any-one?) it seems to lack that criti-cal quality that made early AIM, Yahoo Messenger and MSN fun — the edge of quirkiness, trans-gression and inventiveness. The feeling that this was a new and semi-lawless space, that unex-pected things could happen.

Just look at the earliest, suc-cessful forerunner to online chat — a program that academics in-vented, almost by accident, long before the birth of the World Wide Web.

Talkomatic, the program’s ap-propriately retro name, was born out of PLATO, a computer-based education program at the Uni-versity of Illinois, in 1973. It was primitive, by modern standards: Only five people could chat at once, and their messages dis-played letter-by-letter as they typed. But at the time, Talkomatic was something of a revelation. PLATO had been designed for classroom use; according to its creators’ original plans, “commu-nication between people would

play (only) an incidental role.” But as more people signed on to the community, its participants began to notice something striking: In the freewheeling, pseudonymous realm of PLATO, people began to form highly personal, social con-nections that had nothing to do with academics. In other words, they just wanted to chat.

“People met and got acquainted in Talkomatic, and carried on ro-mances via “term-talk” and Per-sonal Notes,” one of its creators, David Woolley, wrote in his 1994 history of the program. “Many online personalities developed ... Many people travelled to Urbana to see the lab and meet those of us who worked there ... Over the years, PLATO has affected many lives in profound ways.”

Early Internet servicesOf course, PLATO could only reach so many people. But in 1980, CompuServe — one of the earli-est commercial Internet services — would release its own take on the chat concept, allowing more than 123,000 to sign on nightly under screennames like “Mike” and “Silver.” (Both names are, in-cidentally, critical to chat room history: They were, on Valentine’s Day 1983, one of the first couples to marry as a result of online chat.)

Even though CompuServe’s “CB Simulator” was a commer-cial service, it shared something of the pioneering quirkiness of ye Talkomatic chats of old. The CB stands for citizens band radio — a relative of ham — and originally operated in similar ways, borrow-ing from radio’s lingo and channel system. In one early “channel,” described by InfoWorld in 1984, users did nothing but speak Old English and roleplay as kings and maidens. In others, a form of radi-cal, soul-baring honesty was fairly common; between the fake names, the small communities, and the

hours of online contact, the idea of intimacy became “very seductive,” one user told InfoWorld. (Seduc-tive enough that most mainstream coverage of chat at the time fo-cused on a phenomenon.

“To say this typewritten “hu-man contact” or “people typing in their thoughts” is the equivalent of genuine friendship or intima-cy is something else,” wrote Vic Sussman, struggling to under-stand the very concept of online community for The Washington Post in 1986. “It’s certainly the il-lusion of intimacy — the instant gratification of human contact

without responsibility or conse-quences or actual involvement —(But) the danger is that going on-line instead of going into the real world ultimately turns conversa-tion into a spectator sport.”

For users, of course, this kind of outsider bemusement was half the motivation. The Web didn’t achieve anything like mainstream usage until well into the ‘90s; before then, the people sitting through many, many minutes of dial-up bleeps and buzzes, all to talk to pseudonymous strangers, were a very par-ticular breed — hobbyists and early adopters and other tech-nophilic types, each drawn to this peculiar experiment in part because it was peculiar, and its re-sults were far from known.

You never knew quite what, or who, you would find in a Com-puserve chat — or, later, a chat on AOL (c. 1992), Prodigy (1992) or Yahoo (1997). AOL’s chief archi-tect and longest-serving employ-ee, Joe Schober, once described the earliest AOL chatrooms as “little frontier towns”: small and unpolished, perhaps, but pio-neering — like a spark in the big Internet void.

If the Internet was an unchart-ed wilderness, however, the ‘90s were its Gold Rush. Services like

MSN and AOL (which bought Compuserve in 1998) made the chat function available to millions of Americans, packaging it in dial-up subscriptions that users pur-chased first by the hour, and later by the month. In 1993, shortly af-ter the debut of AOL’s chatroom, the Associated Press reported, hi-lariously, on the “team of young, high-tech specialists” who were trying to get President Bill Clin-ton to host a town hall chat. (His screenname was “Clinton Pz.”)

Instant MessengerBy 1997, the year AOL launched Instant Messenger as a stand-alone chat product, the company boasted an estimated 19,000 cha-trooms. Users spent more than a million hours chatting each day. And despite the panicked testimo-ny of then-senator Herb Kohl just two years prior (“Most Americans don’t know what it is out there on the Internet,” he told a Senate committee, “and if they did they would be shocked”).

“Chat, always burdened with a slightly seedy reputation ... is undergoing a major makeover,” enthused one 1997 trend piece in the Irish Times. Chatrooms were showing up in business soft-ware packages, such as Lotus and Oracle. The rooms had become a favoured hangout not only of teenagers and technophiles, but of stay-at-home moms. And compa-nies that had previously eschewed their own stand-alone chat servic-es, such as Yahoo and MSN, were beginning to offer their own.

In some ways, in fact, chatrooms were experiencing a cultural shift similar to one much-discussed on Facebook today. - Caitlin Dewey/The Washington Post

THE RISE AND FALL AND RISE OF THE BELOVED 90’S CHATROOM

Facebook chose an odd time to launch Rooms — its homage to the classic 90’s chatroom

ANITA Roddick was an English businesswoman best known for being the founder of The Body Shop, which was one of the first to ban testing on animals. She said, “If you do things well, do them better. Be daring, be first, be different, be just.”

In most pursuits, if your opponent plays well, you must play better to succeed. That applies in this deal, where North and South bid well, but East could defeat their contract with excellent defense.

What should East do when his partner leads the diamond king against four hearts?

North’s four-diamond jump cue-bid was a splinter. It showed four-card heart support, the values for (at least) game and at most a singleton diamond. East took the opportunity to show his diamond support with a double. South, of course, had no thoughts of a slam and signed off in four hearts. (A pass by South here would have been mildly encouraging, expressing some slam interest, but a hand not strong enough to drive the auction above game.)

West leads the diamond king. East sees that there is no defensive club trick available. If his side has a trump trick, it isn’t running away. But if there is no trump winner, the defenders will have to take three spade tricks immediately.

This should make it clear to East that he should overtake the diamond king with his ace and shift to a spade — but to which one?

From J-x-x(-x) or Q-x-x(-x), lead low if you need two tricks; but lead high if you need three. East must lead the spade jack at trick two.

— By Phillip Alder

C9

ENTERTAINMENT

They bid well; you defend better

B I G N A T E

B O R N L O S E R

M A R M A D U K E

A C E S O N B R I D G E

C I N E M A S C H E D U L E

K I D S P O T H E A L T H C A P S U L EC R O S S W O R D

Ans

wer

to p

revi

ous

puzz

le

WITH LOVE

Previous puzzle Solution

HOW TO PLAY Fill the empty cells with the numbers 1 to 9, so that each number appears once in each row, column and area. — Seven Galaxies

S U D O K U

T U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

Send us a colour photograph of the child (below 16 years) whose birthday you are celebrating, along with his/her full name, date of birth, address, telephone number and parents’/your name to Times of Oman, With Love, PO Box 770, PC 112, Ruwi or through e-mail to [email protected]

24 Where Khartoum is

25 Runs in neutral26 Secret messages28 Fluctuates wildly

(hyph.) 31 Trickle 35 On fire 37 Sell-out sign of

yore 38 Three-toed sloths

40 Alaskan seaport41 Crane arm42 Linen vestment43 Nick or

scratch 44 Sundial

numeral 45 EMT’s

skill 46 Vane dir. 49 That thing

ACROSS

1 Yokums’ cartoonist5 Prize

marbles 9 Navy

noncom 12 Water, in

Guadalajara13 Go on foot14 Derisive snort15 Equaled 17 Fracture finders

(hyph.) 19 Islet 20 — — —foot pole21 Reserved 24 He has his doubts27 Proceed along a

route 28 Round tent29 Veiled oath? (2

wds.) 30 Ill temper 31 Extinct birds32 DA’s degree33 Tenth inning

cause 34 O’Neal of films35 Helm position36 Conference part38 Yawning gulf39 Moons and

planets 40 Goose egg41 Ebenezer’s late

partner 43 Tile murals47 Class 48 Neeson of the

movies 50 Rushes past51 Small shot52 French I verb53 Limerick locale

DOWN 1 Engine part2 — Khan 3 Lay down 4 Very crowded5 Those people6 Give alms 7 Mo. part 8 Duets times three9 Kind of lace10 Take care of the

tab 11 Sighs of distress16 Roost sitter18 Gym iteration20 Tire centre21 Irritating sorts22 Craggy abode23 Calf coverers

SYEDA FARHANANovember 1, 2006

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STARS CINEMA

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

For More Information 24789032, 24786776 Website: www.isurf.co.om

Film information 24791641 / 24786776

Ouija (Horror)Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto1.15 pm, 8.00 pm & 11.55 pmCP No: 2220 (15+) Wolves (Action / Horror) Cast: Jason Momoa, Merritt Patterson4.00 pm & 10.00 pmCP No: 2219 (PG 12)Captain Harlock (Animation ) Cast: Yu Aoi, Jessica Boone2.00 pm & 6.00 pmCP No: 2167 (15+)Fury (Action / War) Cast: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf3.00 pm & 11.55 pmCP No: 2167 (15+)Happy New Year (Act / Com) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan5.30 pm & 8.45 pm CP No: 2165 (PG 12 )

Poojai (Tamil) (Act/Com)Cast: Vishal Krishna, Shruti Hassan 3:30 pm at Cinema Main, 6:45 & 9:45pm at Cinema 3Money Rathnam (Mal) (Com/Drama)Cast: Fahadh Fasil & Niveda Thomas3:45, 6:45, 9:45 at Cinema 4Kaththi (Tamil) (Action)Cast: Vijay Chandrasekhar, Samantha3:45pm at Cinema 3; 6:30pm at Cinema 2, 9:30pm Cinema MainHappy New Year (Action / Comedy) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone6:15pm at Cinema Main, 3:30pm & 9:30 pm at Cinema 2 Next Change: Vellimoonga (Mal)Oru Oorula Rendu Raja (Tamil)

John Wick (2D) (Act | Thriller) (15+) Cast: Keanu Reeves, Alfie Allen4:15, 9:45, 11:45 pmOuija (2D) (Horror) (15+) Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto2:15, 11:30 pmHappy New year (2D) (Act ) (PG12) Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone6:15, 8:15pmSpace Pirate Captain Harlock (2D) (Animation | Adventure) (PG12) Cast: Yû Aoi, Ayano Fukuda2:00, 04:15 pmWolves (2D) (Act | Horror) (PG12) Cast: Jason Momoa, Lucas Till6:30 pmReaper (2D) (Cri | Horror) (12+) Cast: Danny Trejo, Vinnie Jones, Jake Busey4:00, 11:45 pmAl Jazeera 2 (2D) (Thriller ) (TBC) Cast: Ahmad ALsaqa, Arwa Gouda5:45, 8:45 pmFury (2D) (Action | Drama) (15+) Cast: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman1:30 pm

Cast: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist11:00 am, 4:30, 8:45 & 11:45 pmGold Class: 12:00 pm, 9:00 & 11:15 PMQuija (2D) (Horror) (15+)Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto, Daren Kagasoff1:00 pm & 6:30 pmReaper (2D) (Crime/Horror) (12+)Cast: Danny Trejo, Vinnie Jones2:45 pm & 11:45 pmSpace Pirate Captain Harlock (2D) (Animation/Aduventure) (PG12)Cast: Yû Aoi, Ayano Fukuda10:30 am & 12:45 pmThe Trial (2D)(Crime/Drama) (15+)Cast: John Lloyd Cruz, Gretchen Barretto, Sylvia Sanchez6:15 pm

Happy New Year (Hindi) (2D) (Action/Comedy/Drama) (PG12)Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan3:00 pm & 8:15 pmGold Class:2:00 & 05:00 pmJohn Wick (2D)(Act/Thriller) (15+)

SCREEN 1

Happy New Year (Action |Romance | Drama) (PG 12 )Cast: Shahrukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone10.00 pm

SCREEN 2

Super Nani ( Drama/ Family (TBC )Cast: Sharman Joshi, Rekha 9.45 pm

SCREEN 3

Kaththi – 2D (T)(PG12) (Action)Cast: Vijay Chandrasekar, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Neil Nitin Mukesh5.15 pmHappy New Year – 2D (PG12) (Action | Comedy | Drama)Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan6.15 , 8.15 pmFury – 2D (15+) (Act | Drama | War)Cast: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf 11.30 pmReaper – 2D (12+) (Crime | Horror | Sci-Fi)Cast: Danny Trejo, Vinnie Jones2.30, 11.45 pmJohn Wick – 2D (15+)( Act | Thriller)Cast: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist2:45, 4.15, 6.15, 9.45 , 11.45 pmQuija – 2D (15+) (Horror)Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto3.30 , 11.45 pmSpace Pirate Captain Harlock – 2D (PG12) (Animation | Adv | Sci-Fi)Voice Overs: Yû Aoi, Ayano Fukuda4.30, 6.30 pmThe Trial – 2D (15+) (Crime/Drama Family)Cast: John Lloyd Cruz, Sylvia Sanchez4.00 pmPoojai – 2D (T) (PG12) (Act | Drama)Cast: Vishal, Shruti K. Haasan8:45 pm

Wolves (Action | Horror) (PG12)Cast: Jason Momoa, Lucas Till,3:00, 6:30, 8:15, 11:30 pmOuija (Horror) (15+)Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto2:45, 4:45, 10:15, 11:45 pmHappy New Year (Act | Com) (PG 12)8:15, 11:15 pmKaththi (Action) (PG 12)3:15 pmCast: Vijay Chandrasekar, SamanthaSpace Pirate Captain Harlock (Animation | Adv | Sci-Fi) (PG12)Cast: Yû Aoi, Ayano Fukuda4:30, 6:15 pmMoney Ratnam (Com | Thriller) (15+)9:00 pmCast: Fahadh Faasil, Ranji Panikkar, Niveda ThomasFury (Act | Drama | War) (15+)Cast: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman6:30 pm

Happy New Year (Drama) (PG12) 8:30 pmKaththi (Tamil) (Action) (PG12) 5:45 pmFury (Action | Drama | War) (15+) 2:30 pm

Reaper (2D/PG) (Crime/Sci-Fi 12:15 am, 2:00pm, 8:00pmJohn Wick (2D/15+) (Act/Thriller) 12:30pm, 9:45pm, 11:45pmFury (2D/15+) (Action/Drama/War)Cast: Brad Pitt; 2:00pmOuija (2D/15+) (Horror)4:30pm, 11:45pmWicked Blood (PG12) (Act/Adventure)6:15pmSpace Pirate Captain Harlock (2D/PG12) (Animation/Adv/Sci-Fi)10:00am, 12:00pmHappy New Year (2D/PG12) (Act)7:45pm, 11:00pmRoar (2D/PG12) (Act/Adv/Thriller)10:00am, 5:30, 8:45pmKaththi (2D/PG12) (Action)2:30pmMoney Ratnam (2D/TBC) (Com)Cast: Fahadh Faasil, Ranji Panikkar10:15, 6:30pmPoojai (2D/PG12) (Action/Drama)3:30pm

Space Pirate: Captain Harlock (Animation | Adv| Sci-Fi) (TBC) 3:30 pmWolves (Action | Horror) (PG12) 5:00, 11:45 pmOuija (Horror) (15+) Cast: Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto,6:45, 8:45 pmMoney Rathnam (Mal) (Thril) (TBC) 10:30 pm

Roar (Action | Adventure) (TBC )Cast: Abhinav Shukla, Achint Kaur, Subrat Dutta9.45 pm

Money Ratnam – 2D (M) (15+) (Comedy | Thriller)Cast: Fahadh Faasil, Ranji Panikkar, Niveda Thomas9.15 pm

C10

FIND-IT-ALLT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

PHARMACIESRound the clockAl Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24783334; Appolo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24782666; Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24702542, Salalah: 23291635; Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra: 24503585; Ruwi 24811715 Muscat RegionApollo, Al Hamriya. Tel: 24787766Muscat, A Seeb Market. Tel: 24421691Muscat, Al Khuwair. Tel: 24485740Muscat, Al Hail South. Tel: 24537080Dhofar RegionMuscat, Al Nahdha Road, Salalah. Tel: 23291635

HOSPITALSAl Amal Medical & Health Care Centre: 24485052Atlas Hospital: Ruwi: 24811743/ Ghubra: 24504000Al Musafir Specialised Medical Clinic: 24706453Hatat Polyclinic LLC,Ruwi: 24563641, Azaiba: 24499269, Sohar: 2683006Al Raffah Hospital: 24618900/1/2Al Massaraat Clinic & Laboratory: 24566435Al Makook Medical Coordinance Centre: 24499434Apollo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24787766, 24787780Capital Polyclinic: 24707549Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic, Ruwi: 24799760/1/2Capital Clinic, Seeb: 24420740Ceregem National Raak: 24485633Dr Harub’s Clinic: 24563217Elixir Health Centre: 24565802Emirates Medical Centre: 246045401st Chiropractic Centre: 24472274Hamdan Hospital: 23212340International Medical Centre LLC: 24794501/2/3/4/5Kims Oman Hospital: 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency: 24760123Lama Polyclinic, Sohar: 26751128, MBD: 24799077, Al Khuwair: 24478818Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital: 24568870Muscat Private Hospital: 24583600Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair: 24477666Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC: 22004000

ROYAL OMAN POLICEEmergencies and inquiries: 9999General Directorate of Passport and Residence: 24569603Directorate General of Customs: 24521109Traffic violations inquiries: 24510228Public Relations Admin: 24560099

ACCOMMODATIONAl Bahjah Hotel: 24424400Al Bustan Palace: 24764000 Al Khuwair Hotel Apartments: 24478171Al Madina Holiday Inn: 24596400Al Maha International Hotel: 24494949Al Fanar Hotel: 24712385Al Falaj Hotel: 24702311Al Qurum Resort: 24605945Azaiba Hotel Apartments: 24490979Beach Hotel: 24696601Bowshar Hotel: 24491105Coral Hotel Muscat: 24692121Crowne Plaza Muscat: 24660660Crystal Suites: 24826100Golden Tulip Seeb: 24510300Grand Hyatt Muscat: 24641234Haffa House Hotel: 24707207Hotel Muscat Holiday: 24487123InterContinental Muscat: 24680000Majan Continental Hotel: 24592900Marina Hotel: 24711711Midan Hotel Suites: 24499565Mina Hotel: 24711828Muttrah Hotel: 24798401

Nuzha Hotel Apartments: 24789199Oman Dive Centre: 24824240Park Inn: 24507888Qurum Beach House Hotel: 24564070Radisson Blu Hotel: 24487777Ramee Dream Resort Seeb: 24453399Ramee Guestline Hotel: 24564443Ruwi Hotel: 24704244Safeer Hotel Suites: 24691200Sheraton Oman Hotel: 24772772Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa: 24776666The Chedi Muscat: 24524400The Treasurebox Muscat Hotel: 24502570

AIRLINE OFFICESMuscat Airport Flight information (24 hours): 24519456/24519223Aeroflot: 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, Turkish Airlines: 24703033

MUSEUMSBait Al Baranda: Corniche (seafront opp fish market), Open from Saturday to Thursday 9am to 1pm and 4 to 6pmNatural History Museum: Al Khuwair, Tel: 24604957, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm; Thursday: 9am to 1pmMuseum of Omani Heritage: (former Omani Museum), Madinat Al Alam, Sat-Wed 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday - 9am to 1pm, Tel: 24600946Armed Forces Museum: Bait Al Falaj, Tel: 24312651, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm; Thurs 9-12pm and 3-6pm; Fri 9-11am and 3-6pm. Al Hoota Caves 24498258; Turtle Beach 96550606/96550707Children’s Science Museum: Shatti Al Qurum, Tel: 24605368, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pmOman-French Museum: near Muscat Police Station, Tel: 24736613, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pmBait Al Zubair, Muscat: Tel: 24736688, Al Saidiya St., [email protected] from Sat to Thurs: 9:30am to 6pm.National Museum Ruwi: Tel: 24701289, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pmSohar Fort Museum: Tel: 26844758, Open from Saturday to Wed: 8 to 1:30pm Thurs: 9am to 1pmMuscat Gate Museum: at Al Bahri Road, Muscat open from Sat to Wed 8am to 2pm

PRAYER TIMINGS

Dhuhr 11.55am

Asr 3.08pm

Maghrib 5.32pm

Isha 6.44pm Fajr (Tomorrow) 4.57am

Sunset 5.28pm

Sunrise (Tomorrow) 6.14am

High tide 7:01pm 6:48am

Low tide 12:47am ---

W E A T H E R

OMAN

Max 32Min 23

Max 32Min 26

Max 32Min 26

Max 35Min 18

Max 32Min 25Max 36

Min 19

Max 34Min 23

Max 32 Min 24

Mainly clear skies over the Sultanate with chances of convective clouds development and isolated rain over Al-Hajar mountains & adjoining areas towards afternoon.

Chances of dust blowing over Al-Buraimi, Al-Dhahira and Al-Wusta due to blowing wind, and chance of late night to early morning low level clouds or shallow fog patches along the southeastern coast.EXPECTED WIND: Along the coastal areas of Oman Sea wind will be northeasterly to easterly light to moderate during day becoming variable light at night, while over the southeastern coast

wind will southeasterly wind light to moderate and the rest of the Sultanate wind will be southerly light to moderate.SEA STATE: Sea state will be moderate along western coast of Musandam maximum wave height of 2.0 metres. And it will be slight over the rest of the Sultanate coast with 1.25 metres.HORIZONTAL VISIBILITY: Good over most of the Sultanate becoming poor during rain. THE NEXT 48 HOURS OUTLOOK: Chances of convective clouds development with isolated rain over Al-Hajar

Max Min

GULFAbu Dhabi 33 24Doha 34 25Dubai 33 23Kuwait 28 13Manama 32 25Riyadh 34 18

WORLDAthens 18 12Baghdad 21 10Beijing 16 4Berlin 16 7Boston 12 9Cairo 24 10Colombo 27 24Frankfurt 13 9Hong Kong 24 22Istanbul 16 6Johannesburg 23 11Kuala Lumpur 33 21Lisbon 18 12Paris 12 6Perth 26 13Singapore 31 25Tokyo 18 11Toronto 12 6

WORLD

Max 17Min 11

Max 30Min 20

Max 11Min 4

Max 31Min 23

Max 27Min 16

Max 25Min 16

Max 8Min 1

Max 30Min 24

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

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (Route 36)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 15:00 Quriyat 16:30 Daily15:00 Sur 18:00 Daily15:00 Jaalan 19:30 Daily

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (Route 36)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41)06:30 Sohar 08:50 Daily06:30 Buraimi 11:00 Daily08:00 Buraimi 14:30 Daily via Ibri13:00 Sohar 15:45 Daily13:00 Buraimi 17:40 Daily 16.00 Sohar 18.35 Daily 16.00 Buraimi 20:20 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41)07:00 Sohar 08:55 Daily07:00 Ruwi 11:40 Daily13:30 Ruwi 20:20 Daily via Ibri13:00 Sohar 14:55 Daily13:00 Ruwi 17:40 Daily 13:00 Sohar 19:20 Daily 17:00 Ruwi 22:15 Daily

TO SINAW (Route 52)17:30 Sinaw 20:50 Daily

TO SINAW (Route 52)07:00 Ruwi 10:25 Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54)14:30 Nizwa 16:50 Daily14:30 Yanqul 19:30 Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54)06:00 Nizwa 08:40 Daily06:00 Ruwi 11:00 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54)08:00 Nizwa 10:20 Daily08:00 Al Araqi 12:30 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54)15:40 Nizwa 17:55 Daily15:40 Ruwi 20:20 Daily

TO SUR (Route 55)07:30 Sur 12:00 Daily14:30 Sur 18:45 Daily

TO SUR (Route 55)06:00 Ruwi 10:45 Daily14:30 Ruwi 19:00 Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (Route 62)06:30 Fahud 10:30 Daily06:30 Yibal 11:15 Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (Route 62)12:30 Fahud 13:15 Daily12:30 Ruwi 17:30 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201)06:00 Sohar 08:30 Daily06:00 Dubai 11:30 Daily13:00 Sohar 15:30 Wed,Thur13:00 Dubai 18:30 Wed,Thur15:00 Sohar 17:35 Daily15:00 Dubai 20:55 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201)07:30 Sohar 10:50 Daily07:30 Ruwi 13:40 Daily13:00 Sohar 16:15 Thur-Fri13:00 Ruwi 19:10 Thur-Fri15:30 Sohar 18:45 Daily15:30 Ruwi 21:35 Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (Route 100)07:00 Salalah 20:00 Daily10:00 Marmul 20:30 Daily10:00 Salalah 23:30 Daily19:00 Salalah 07:40 Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (Route 100)07:00 Ruwi 19:50 Daily10:00 Marmul 13:15 Daily10:00 Ruwi 22:30 Daily19:00 Ruwi 07:30 Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101)06:00 Marmul 16:50 Daily

SALALAH TO DUBAI (Route 102)15:00 Dubai 07:00 Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101)06:00 Marmul 16:30 Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (Route 102)15:00 Salalah 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily 07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily 07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily 16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI) TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

LISTINGS

FLT NO DEPARTURES TO ETD AI986 BOMBAY 0005LX243 DUBAI/ZURICH 0020BA072 ABU DHABI/LONDON- HEATHROW 00259W539 BOMBAY 0025SG062 AHMEDABAD 0030LH619 ABU DHABI/FRANKFURT 0050WY685 RIYADH 0105WY251 MADRAS 0110WY201 BOMBAY 0120WY225 COCHIN 0125WY235 HYDERABAD 0135WY341 LAHORE 0150WY345 ISLAM ABBAD 0150WY601 DUBAI 0150WY241 DELHI 0155WY431 TEHRAN 0155WY151 ZURICH 0155WY643 KUWAIT 0200WY637 ABU DHABI 0205WY313 CHITTAGONG 0205WY657 BAHRAIN 0205WY123 MUNICH 0210WY133 PARIS 0215WY115 FRANKFURT 0215WY667 DOHA 0220WY143 MALPENSA 0225NL769 LAHORE 0230WY691 DAMMAM 02354H584 DACCA 0245TK775 ISTANBUL 0310PK282 SIALKOT 0325PK230 LAHORE 0330ET625 ADDIS ABABA 0450EK867 DUBAI 0455FZ042 DUBAI 0510QR1133 DOHA 0520EY385 ABU DHABI 0525WY3921 DUQUM OMAN 0715GF561 BAHRAIN 0745WY903 SALALAH 0800WY3301 MUKHAIZNA 0800WY603 DUBAI 0800WY215 TRIVANDRUM 0845WY325 KARACHI 0920WY905 SALALAH 0920WY291 CALICUT 0920WY273 JAIPUR 0930FZ044 DUBAI 0935WY283 BANGALORE 0940WY245 DELHI 0955WY231 HYDERABAD 0955G9115 SHARJAH 1005WY815 BANGKOK 1010WY605 DUBAI 1030WY203 BOMBAY 1030WY253 MADRAS 1040WY717 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 1045EK863 DUBAI 1055EY383 ABU DHABI 1105WY655 BAHRAIN 1110QR1129 DOHA 1115QR8551 DUBAI WORLD CENTRE/DOHA 11309W533 COCHIN 1135WY917 KHASAB 1140WY331 KATHMANDU 1205G9842 RAS AL KHAIMA 1210WY631 ABU DHABI 1225IX350 CALICUT 1255WY3303 MUKHAIZNA 1300WY101 LONDON-HEATHROW 1325PK192 GWADUR/TURBAT 1325WY663 DOHA 1330WY413 AMMAN 1330WY927 SALALAH 1415BG024 CHITTAGONG 1415FZ048 DUBAI 1415WY609 DUBAI 1420WY405 CAIRO 1430IX818 MANGALORE 1530KU678 ABU DHABI/KUWAIT 1625WY675 JEDDAH 1630FZ046 DUBAI 1700WY613 DUBAI 1700WY913 SALALAH 1735WY623 DUBAI 1820WY907 SALALAH 1840WY681 RIYADH 1845QR1127 DOHA 1845GF565 BAHRAIN 1855WY661 DOHA 1900WY647 KUWAIT 1900WY653 BAHRAIN 1910WY695 DAMMAM 1910EK865 DUBAI 1915WY909 SALALAH 1940SV535 RIYADH 2000G9117 SHARJAH 2005RG126 BATEEN AIRPORT OF AUH 2015WY611 DUBAI 2025WY635 ABU DHABI 2030TG508 KARACHI/BANGKOK 2040FZ048 DUBAI 2040WY915 SALALAH 2050WY825 KUALA LUMPUR 2110WY817 BANGKOK 22359W529 TRIVANDRUM 22406.00E+82 BOMBAY 2245AI908 MADRAS 2300AI974 DELHI 2310QR1135 DOHA 2320GF567 BAHRAIN 2325UL206 COLOMBO 2335WY673 JEDDAH 2350WY901 SALALAH 2350EY381 ABU DHABI 2350

FLT NO DEPARTURES TO ETD AI986 BOMBAY 0005LX243 DUBAI/ZURICH 00209W539 BOMBAY 0025BA072 ABU DHABI/LONDON-HEATHROW 0025LH619 ABU DHABI/FRANKFURT 0050WY685 RIYADH 0105WY211 TRIVANDRUM 0110WY251 MADRAS 0110WY201 BOMBAY 0120WY811 BANGKOK 0120WY225 COCHIN 0125WY235 HYDERABAD 0135WY601 DUBAI 0135WY821 KUALA LUMPUR 0140WY341 LAHORE 0150WY241 DELHI 0155WY281 BANGALORE 0200WY637 ABU DHABI 0205WY657 BAHRAIN 0205WY323 KARACHI 0210WY371 COLOMBO 0210WY667 DOHA 0220WY383 MALE 02354H584 DACCA 0245PK230 LAHORE 0315TK777 BAHRAIN/ISTANBUL 0350WY267 LUCKNOW 0355EK867 DUBAI 0455FZ042 DUBAI 0510QR1133 DOHA 0520EY385 ABU DHABI 0525GF561 BAHRAIN 0745WY603 DUBAI 0800WY903 SALALAH 0800WY273 JAIPUR 0820WY3301 MUKHAIZNA 0830WY291 CALICUT 0920NL769 LAHORE 0930FZ044 DUBAI 0935WY231 HYDERABAD 0955WY245 DELHI 0955WY917 KHASAB 1000G9115 SHARJAH 1005WY815 BANGKOK 1010WY203 BOMBAY 1030WY905 SALALAH 1030WY605 DUBAI 1030WY253 MADRAS 1040WY347 ISLAM ABBAD 1040WY311 CHITTAGONG 1040WY717 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 1045EK863 DUBAI 1055EY383 ABU DHABI 1105WY433 TEHRAN 1105IX554 TRIVANDRUM 1110WY655 BAHRAIN 1110IX442 COCHIN 1115QR1129 DOHA 11159W533 COCHIN 1135WY331 KATHMANDU 1205G9842 RAS AL KHAIMA 1210IX350 CALICUT 1255PA451 LAHORE 1315WY101 LONDON-HEATHROW 1325WY663 DOHA 1330WY3303 MUKHAIZNA 1330WY413 AMMAN 1330WY413 AMMAN 1330WY645 KUWAIT 1340WY645 KUWAIT 1340WY3921 DUQUM OMAN 1345WY113 FRANKFURT 1345WY927 SALALAH 1415FZ048 DUBAI 1415WY609 DUBAI 1420WY121 MUNICH 1425WY405 CAIRO 1430WY913 SALALAH 1545WY675 JEDDAH 1630FZ046 DUBAI 1700WY613 DUBAI 1700WY623 DUBAI 1820WY907 SALALAH 1840QR1127 DOHA 1845WY681 RIYADH 1845GF565 BAHRAIN 1855WY647 KUWAIT 1900WY661 DOHA 1900WY695 DAMMAM 1910WY653 BAHRAIN 1910EK865 DUBAI 1915WY909 SALALAH 1940G9117 SHARJAH 2005RG126 BATEEN AIRPORT OF AUH 2015WY611 DUBAI 2025WY635 ABU DHABI 2030FZ048 DUBAI 2040WY915 SALALAH 2050WY825 KUALA LUMPUR 2110AI978 HYDERABAD/BANGALORE 2200KL442 DOHA/AMSTERDAM 2230WY817 BANGKOK 22359W529 TRIVANDRUM 22406.00E+82 BOMBAY 2245AI908 MADRAS 2300AI974 DELHI 2310QR1135 DOHA 2320GF567 BAHRAIN 2325UL206 COLOMBO 2335EY381 ABU DHABI 2350WY901 SALALAH 2350WY673 JEDDAH 2350

A I R L I N E S

—www.met.gov.om

TUESDAYFLT NO ARRIVALS FROM ETA WY682 RIYADH 0005WY406 CAIRO 0005WY676 JEDDAH 0005WY648 KUWAIT 0010WY816 BANGKOK 0015WY824 KUALA LUMPUR 0055WY916 SALALAH 01054H583 DACCA 0115NL768 LAHORE 0130TK774 ISTANBUL 0215PK281 ISLAM ABBAD/SIALKOT 0225PK225 LAHORE 0230QR1132 DOHA 0345ET624 ADDIS ABABA 0350EK866 DUBAI 0355EY384 ABU DHABI 0405GF560 BAHRAIN 0405FZ041 DUBAI 0415WY902 SALALAH 0630WY638 ABU DHABI 0650WY658 BAHRAIN 0700WY686 RIYADH 0700WY668 DOHA 0710WY644 KUWAIT 0715WY692 DAMMAM 0725WY674 JEDDAH 0730WY602 DUBAI 0805WY202 BOMBAY 0815WY432 TEHRAN 0815WY102 LONDON-HEATHROW 0820WY342 LAHORE 0835FZ043 DUBAI 0850G9114 SHARJAH 0915WY236 HYDERABAD 0920WY226 COCHIN 0930WY242 DELHI 0935EK862 DUBAI 0940WY346 ISLAM ABBAD 0940WY252 MADRAS 0940QR8550 DOHA 1000QR1128 DOHA 1010EY382 ABU DHABI 10159W530 TRIVANDRUM 1035WY3922 DUQUM OMAN 1055WY904 DUBAI 1110WY822 KUALA LUMPUR 1115G9841 RAS AL KHAIMA 1120IX337 CALICUT 1155FZ037 DUBAI 1200WY314 CHITTAGONG 1210WY268 LUCKNOW 1210WY904 SALALAH 1215WY3302 MUKHAIZNA 1230PK191 GWADUR 1240BG023 CHITTAGONG 1245WY906 SALALAH 1325WY606 DUBAI 1330WY326 KARACHI 1355WY918 KHASAB 1440IX817 MANGALORE/ABU DHABI 1440KU677 KUWAIT 1525WY656 BAHRAIN 1530WY632 ABU DHABI 1535FZ045 DUBAI 1555WY3304 MUKHAIZNA 1630WY274 JAIPUR 1640WY216 TRIVANDRUM 1705WY204 BOMBAY 1710WY292 CALICUT 1720WY610 DUBAI 1730WY246 DELHI 1730WY284 BANGALORE 1740WY232 HYDERABAD 1740QR1126 DOHA 1745WY664 DOHA 1745EK864 DUBAI 1800GF564 BAHRAIN 1810SV534 RIYADH 1900G9116 SHARJAH 1915WY254 MADRAS 1920RG125 BATEEN AIRPORT OF AUH 1930WY144 MALPENSA 1930TG507 BANGKOK/KARACHI 1935FZ047 DUBAI 1945WY614 DUBAI 2030WY152 ZURICH 2110WY124 MUNICH 2115WY624 DUBAI 2125AI973 DELHI 2125WY134 PARIS 21306.00E+81 BOMBAY 2130WY914 SALALAH 2130WY414 AMMAN 21359W534 COCHIN 2140AI907 MADRAS 2200QR1134 DOHA 2210UL205 COLOMBO 2225BA073 LONDON-HEATHROW/ABU DHABI 2240GF566 BAHRAIN 2240EY388 ABU DHABI 2250WY908 SALALAH 2255AI985 AHMEDABAD/BOMBAY 2310WY662 DOHA 2315LX242 ZURICH/DUBAI 23209W540 BOMBAY 2325WY654 BAHRAIN 2330LH618 FRANKFURT/ABU DHABI 2330WY612 DUBAI 2335WY116 FRANKFURT 2345WY696 DAMMAM 2350WY928 SALALAH 2350WY636 ABU DHABI 2350WY717 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 2355WY910 SALALAH 2355

WEDNESDAYFLT NO ARRIVALS FROM ETA

WY406 CAIRO 0005WY676 JEDDAH 0005WY682 RIYADH 0005WY648 KUWAIT 0010WY816 BANGKOK 0015WY916 SALALAH 01054H583 DACCA 0115PK229 LAHORE 0215TK776 ISTANBUL/BAHRAIN 0300QR1132 DOHA 0345EK866 DUBAI 0355GF560 BAHRAIN 0405EY384 ABU DHABI 0405FZ041 DUBAI 0415WY902 SALALAH 0630WY638 ABU DHABI 0650WY324 KARACHI 0700WY686 RIYADH 0700WY658 BAHRAIN 0700WY668 DOHA 0710WY674 JEDDAH 0730WY602 DUBAI 0805WY202 BOMBAY 0815WY102 LONDON-HEATHROW 0820NL768 LAHORE 0830WY342 LAHORE 0835FZ043 DUBAI 0850G9114 SHARJAH 0915WY236 HYDERABAD 0920WY226 COCHIN 0930WY242 DELHI 0935EK862 DUBAI 0940WY212 TRIVANDRUM 0940WY252 MADRAS 0940IX443 COCHIN 1010QR1128 DOHA 1010EY382 ABU DHABI 1015IX549 TRIVANDRUM 10209W530 TRIVANDRUM 1035WY282 BANGALORE 1100WY604 DUBAI 1110G9841 RAS AL KHAIMA 1120WY372 COLOMBO 1140IX337 CALICUT 1155FZ037 DUBAI 1200WY384 MALE 1205WY384 MALE 1205WY332 KATHMANDU 1210WY268 LUCKNOW 1210WY332 KATHMANDU 1210PA450 LAHORE 1215WY904 SALALAH 1215WY3302 MUKHAIZNA 1230WY826 KUALA LUMPUR 1230WY818 BANGKOK 1235WY918 KHASAB 1300WY606 DUBAI 1330WY906 SALALAH 1445WY812 BANGKOK 1525WY656 BAHRAIN 1530WY274 JAIPUR 1530FZ045 DUBAI 1555WY204 BOMBAY 1710WY434 TEHRAN 1720WY292 CALICUT 1720WY822 KUALA LUMPUR 1720WY3922 DUQUM OMAN 1730WY3304 MUKHAIZNA 1730WY610 DUBAI 1730WY246 DELHI 1730WY232 HYDERABAD 1740WY284 BANGALORE 1740QR1126 DOHA 1745WY348 ISLAM ABBAD 1745WY664 DOHA 1745EK864 DUBAI 1800GF564 BAHRAIN 1810WY646 KUWAIT 1900G9116 SHARJAH 1915WY254 MADRAS 1920RG125 BATEEN AIRPORT OF AUH 1930FZ047 DUBAI 1945WY914 SALALAH 1950WY614 DUBAI 2030AI977 BANGALORE/HYDERABAD 2105KL441 AMSTERDAM/DOHA 2120WY624 DUBAI 2125WY312 CHITTAGONG 2125AI973 DELHI 21256.00E+81 BOMBAY 2130WY414 AMMAN 21359W534 COCHIN 2140AI907 MADRAS 2200QR1134 DOHA 2210UL205 COLOMBO 2225GF566 BAHRAIN 2240BA073 LONDON-HEATHROW/ABU DHABI 2240EY388 ABU DHABI 2250WY908 SALALAH 2255AI985 AHMEDABAD/BOMBAY 2310WY662 DOHA 2315LX242 ZURICH/DUBAI 23209W540 BOMBAY 2325LH618 FRANKFURT/ABU DHABI 2330WY654 BAHRAIN 2330WY612 DUBAI 2335WY928 SALALAH 2350WY636 ABU DHABI 2350WY696 DAMMAM 2350WY910 SALALAH 2355WY717 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 2355

BORN today, you are one of the most solid, sturdy, stalwart individuals born under your sign. With the inner strength that the stars have bestowed upon you, it should be possible for you to endure anything — and accomplish anything, too! Patience is a virtue, and for you it is likely to prove a necessary ingredient of success. You’re not the kind to make a big splash right off the bat; you will earn your rewards through hard work, tenacity and a willingness to stick things out through thick and thin. It’s not a matter of biding your time, of course; nothing can be as laid-back as that! You must always work hard, knowing your time will come.

Like many Scorpio natives, you can be quite influential — though not always intentionally. Indeed, there may be times when others point to you as the cause of this or that, and you will shake your head and insist that no, you were not at all responsible! The truth usually lies somewhere in the middle.

Also born on this date are: Matthew McConaughey, actor; Ralph Macchio, actor; Kathy Griffin, comedian; Laura W. Bush, US first lady; Loretta Swit, actress; Martin Balsam, actor; Art Carney, actor and comedian; Walter Cronkite, news anchor; Will Rogers, cowboy humorist.

The promise of something more will have you moving in a direction that surprises some, but that gives you more energy and drive.

VIRGO [AUG. 23-SEPT. 22]

LIBRA [SEPT. 23-OCT. 22] LLLLLLLLLLLLLLL[S[S[S[S[[[S[[S[S[S[[S[S[SSS[SS[SSSS

SCORPIO [OCT. 23-NOV. 21] S[

SAGITTARIUS [NOV. 22-DEC. 21] S[[[[[[[[[[[[[

AQUARIUS [JAN. 20-FEB. 18]

A quick, occasional look around will allow you to get your bearings. Don’t assume things will fall out the way you expect.

Now is the time for you to communicate your desires more effectively, especially to that one friend or loved one who is on the outs.

A change of scenery or venue will serve you well as you look for inspiration. Guidance comes to you as needed.

You’re in need of something a little special, and you know just where to find it. A friend knows you’ll be knocking.

You’re going to have to set aside your doubts about a certain situation and move ahead more confidently.

You won’t be far from the center of the action. Give yourself time to adjust to changing circumstances, and be willing to say yes.

You are in a position that will afford you a bit more time to get things done. Don’t let that go to your head, however!

PISCES [Feb. 19-March 20]

You’ll want to get a fast start. Later, a slowdown is to be expected, but it shouldn’t have any far-reaching consequences.

GEMINI [MAY 21-JUNE 20]

CANCER [JUNE 21-JULY 22]

LEO [JULY 23-AUG. 22]

CAPRICORN [DEC. 22-JAN 19]

Y O U R B I R T H D A Y

ARIES [March 21-APRIL 19]

TAURUS [APRIL 20-MAY 20]

Collaborative efforts may prove more difficult than usual as the day begins, but not because your communication skills are lacking.

You’ll want to be sure that messages are reaching their intended target. Focus on efficiency, and be sure to use your own words.

It’s time to get moving in a direction that affords you more in the way of professional and personal choices.

C11

EXTRAT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

STUDY

Fake bear selfie goes viral A TERRIFYING selfie with a bear, taken by a backpacker in the US, went viral on the social media much before the selfie was found to be fake, media reports said. The original selfie was tak-en in May and was posted on photo-sharing website Instagram by Jacob Bean. Subsequently, many websites, newspapers and blogs posted the picture without verifying the authenticity of the selfie. It was only the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) that doubted the originality of the selfie and the secret was fi-nally revealed. “No one except NBC checked the legitimacy of the photograph. This picture was photoshopped as a joke after my backpacking trip in May in the Smoky Mountain National Park because I kept saying I was going to get a selfie with a bear. I never saw a bear. So I made sure it happened!” Bean posted on social media. But before the truth was revealed, dozens of tourists and backpackers including children tried for a similar selfie. This led the US Forest Service to issue a warning to visitors not to try such risky selfies with wild animals.

Space sounds could become your new mobile ringtone

OUT OF the world mobile ringtones are set to be launched, liter-ally, as NASA recently released over half a century of sounds from space. So you could hear Neil Armstrong’s memorable quote, “one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind” or the roar of a space shuttle every time your phone rings. The US space agency has created a page on the social sound platform Sound-Cloud to release the sounds. Although sounds in space are stifled by a vacuum, scientists have discovered ways of capturing noise using special instruments on the Voyager space probe that con-verted electromagnetic vibrations into sound, Gigwise reported. The recordings include sounds of Saturn’s rings, Neptune, Jupi-ter and Uranus, as well as what Earth would sound like millions of miles away. For example, the the clip “Lift Off” includes sounds of the first manned mission to the moon, Apollo 11. The Sound-Cloud page so far comprises 63 files, including several of the most historic moments from the past 50 years of space exploration, The Inquisitr reported.

Check your fellow flier’s profile with this app, but only with permission

WANT TO check out the social profile of your fellow flier be-fore striking up a conversation? A new app could help you do so. The updated version of the traveller app Quicket, has a ‘social check-in’ option that allows fliers to pry on their fel-low passengers. This app for smartphones and tablets facilitates ticket booking and flight tracking besides providing detailed airport maps.

Those users who choose their seats on the plane by clicking on the avatar linked to their social profiles can now be looked up with the ‘social check-in’ option. But thankfully, your con-sent is necessary for others to spy on you, the Daily Mail re-ported. Quicket is a brand new app to find you the best seat for your flight on more than 80 airlines, 400+ aircraft and over 100,000 flights throughout the world. It’s a really handy app to own for frequent flyers or occasional travellers, read a statement by the app developers. —IANS

WACKY

Premature babies at greater risk of future hip replacements LOW BIRTH weight and premature birth are linked to increased risk of osteoarthritis-related hip replacements in adulthood, says a research.

The researchers, however, found that low birth weight and pre-term babies were not at risk of knee replacement surgery due to osteoarthritis (OA) as adults.

“Our findings suggest that individuals born prematurely or with low birth weight are more likely to need hip replacement surgery for OA in adulthood,” said lead investigator, Flavia Ci-cuttini, professor at the Monash University in Australia.The study study used data from 3,604 participants, who were 40 years of age or older at the time when joint replacement surger-ies were conducted. —IANS

When you aretoo sick to go to the gym

You finally got into

a good fitness

routine and then

bam — a head cold

hits, you’re sidelined

and now you feel all

your good work is in

vain right before the

calorie-laden holiday

season. Not so fast

Above-the-neck coldsIf the cold is just a head cold, you probably can continue working out, says Theo Hodge Jr., an internist and specialist in infectious diseases with Capital Medical Associates in the Dis-trict in the US.

“Always listen to your body, but generally speaking, if you don’t have any underlying issues, it’s usually safe to exercise with a cold,” says Hodge, adding that a quick check with a doctor is al-ways a good idea.

(Underlying issues such as asthma or cardiac conditions require special considerations, Hodge says. With asthma, there is already shortness of breath that will be exacerbated by con-gestion, and in cardiac patients, medications such as decongest-ants can elevate the heart rate to dangerous levels.)

But even with the above-the-neck head cold, otherwise healthy people will want to modify their exercise by lowering the intensity and duration, says Greg McMillan, online running coach and owner of McMillanRunning.com.

“There is this interesting di-chotomy. On the one hand, exercise helps boost the immune system, but if you are trying to take your training to the next fitness level, that effort can actually suppress it.”

In other words, when a head cold hits is not the time to do high-intensity drills (not that you would want to) but rather to keep your exercise in the light-to-moderate range, says

Alyssa Morrison, a local endur-ance sports coach.

“The athletes I work with — especially if they are training for an Ironman competition — don’t want to miss a single day of train-ing,” Morrison says. “So what I might tell them to do is to go for a recovery run or a light spin in-stead of intervals or surges.”

Sometimes, Morrison says, the athlete will feel good during the light spin and start pushing harder.

“There is always that fine line,” she says. “Exercising and getting the blood flowing in your body can feel great. You might even feel less congested. But working too hard will make it worse.”

McMillan says in his experi-ence, taking it easy on “the front end” of a cold can save you two or three weeks down the line.

“Give your body a break,” he suggests. It’s unclear exactly how much fitness you lose, says Ross Miller, associate professor in the Department of Kinesiol-ogy at the University of Mary-land. But a long-distance run-ner is probably more affected than, say, a sprinter.

Aside from giving your own body a break by keeping it out of the gym, remember that you are also giving other people a break from your germs, Hodge points out.

“As long as you are sneezing and coughing, you are contagious,” he says, and those symptoms can eas-ily go on for seven to 11 days — the typical duration of a cold.

“The kind thing to do would be to stay home.”

Below-the-neck coldsAnd then there are the big-ka-

huna colds, the ones that knock you out with extreme fatigue, body aches, chest congestion and/or fever. With those it’s bet-ter to stay home, in bed, allowing the immune system to focus on getting well, Miller says.

“Any time you exercise with a fever you risk delaying the recov-ery,” he says. Or worse, you could get really, really sick.

“You’ve got a low-grade fe-ver and you’re short of breath, but you feel pretty good so you keep running hard,” Hodge says. “Four, five days in and you are way short of breath and you’re coughing up green stuff. Next thing, you have pneumonia.”

And now you are looking at being sick and sidelined for several weeks.

If that happens, remember to take it easy as you get back into exercise, Hodge says. “If you’re out two weeks, I think you could expect to work back up for at least two weeks.” For example, if you are a runner train-ing for a marathon, you would not want to start with a long run as your first run. McMillan says the time off can be good for the body and the mind — especially the mind of a runner focused on a particular race. “They might do better than they expected because they kind of got out of their own way,” he says. “They adjusted their expectations and started enjoying it again.” - Gabriella

Boston/The Washington Post.

C12

EXTRAT U E S DAY, N OV E M B E R 4 , 2 0 14

A tall, elderly gentle-man delivered a short eulogy to past life on Earth while stand-ing on the Jurassic

coast of southern England, and in the process begin an ambitious project to remember the 860 spe-cies known to have become extinct over the previous five centuries. Professor Edward Osborne Wil-son, the Harvard entomologist and Pulitzer prize-winning author who has been called the “natural heir to Darwin”, has come to Britain to break ground on a construction project to rival in scale the great

medieval cathedrals of England.The new stone edifice will pay

tribute to all known species that have disappeared during the sixth great mass extinction that the planet has experienced in the 4.5 billion-year history of life on Earth — and the only mass extinction caused by another species: man.

The Mass Extinction Monitor-ing Observatory (Memo) will be built from the fossil-rich Portland limestone of the Jurassic Coast. Sculptors from around the world will be commissioned to create a gallery of carvings that will set in stone the portraits of each lost

species, from the passenger pigeon to the Tasmanian tiger. It will form a visual memorandum of what has been lost since the last dodo was bludgeoned to death by European sailors in the 17th century. Pro-fessor Wilson, 85, is perhaps the most distinguished of the natural-ists and scientists who are back-ing the $45 million project. They include the broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, James Lovelock, the inventor of the Gaia theory, Sir Ghillean Prance, the Kew botanist, and Sir Tim Smit, the co-founder of the Eden Project, who has called the Memo project one of the most

important construction schemes in Europe. Other influential sup-porters include the Royal Society, the International Union for Con-servation of Nature — which keeps the Red List of Threatened Species — and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Professor Wilson’s charitable education foundation has em-braced the Memo project as a way of communicating to younger gen-erations about the greatest mass extinction since the demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

“I was deeply moved on learn-ing of this brilliant, profound and ultimately humanitarian enter-

prise,” said Professor Wilson. The Memo construction, designed by the award-winning architect Da-vid Adjaye, who donated the plans free of charge, will be built on a cliff top on the Isle of Portland, facing the mainland. The edifice’s spiral tower, reminiscent of the stepped ziggurats of ancient Sumeria, is designed to be a visual tribute to the fossilised shells entombed within its limestone walls.

“The Jurassic coast is a World Heritage Site and the place where evolution is set in stone,” said Sebastian Brooke, the project’s director and co-founder, and lo-

cal stonemason. “This will be an architectural continuation of the story of life,” .

The project is in a strong po-sition to win the $32 million needed to build the first phase of the project, Brooke said. It is in talks with several private donors which, if successful, could trigger a matched $8 million donation from the Government.

Once the money is secured, con-struction could begin within a few weeks, and the end result could last for as long as the limestone ca-thedrals that have made Portland famous. – Steve Connor/The Independent

THE FINAL minutes before entering an operating room for surgery lasting 13 hours to re-move a large tumour from her brain still haunt Ellen Beardmore.

“Waiting to be wheeled down for open brain surgery is abso-lutely terrifying,” she says. “All you think is: ‘I am going to die’.”

Seven months later Ellen had gamma knife surgery, a revolu-tionary new treatment, to stop the remaining parts of the tu-mour from spreading inside her brain, and the experience was incomparable.

“When I went into the gamma knife machine I was a bit unsure of what was going to happen but I was awake the whole time and could not feel anything.

“If I had the choice I would not go through open surgery again.” She spent eight days in hospital and five weeks off work after the open brain surgery but needed just a day off after the gamma knife procedure.

The 27-year-old, from Shef-field, South Yorkshire, UK, who has made a full recovery, was fortunate to live near one of only seven gamma knife machines in England, yet only four of these are being used due to lack of funds. Two treat only private and foreign patients, while one at the Hallamshire Hospital in Shef-field has been mothballed.

It is no wonder Ellen is one of many who are calling for Eng-land to make this advanced radi-otherapy available to every can-cer patient who could benefit.

Each year 55,000 people in Britain are diagnosed with brain tumours yet there is only one gamma knife machine for every

8.5million people in the UK, compared with one for every 2.5million in the United States and one for every 2.7million in Japan. Leading cancer specialist Andras Kemeny says: “I describe the different radiotherapy treat-ments as carpet bombing ver-sus laser-guided bomb. “Whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) is indiscriminate. It is better to target tumours in the brain with high-precision, as with gamma knife surgery.

Open brain surgery can take months to recover from and WBRT has the immediate side effects of hair loss, drowsiness

and headaches. In the longer term it can slow mental func-tions and even bring on a change of personality and dementia.

Stereotactic radiosurgery, which is known as gamma knife, can be offered as an outpatient treatment under local anaes-thetic for tumours, abnormal collections of blood vessels in the brain, epilepsy and such pain disorders as trigeminal neural-gia. It uses a focused array of 201 intersecting beams of controlled gamma radiation to burn lesions within 0.1mm of precision and can target 15 tumours in one sitting. -Jon Coates/The Daily Express

A house to 860 lost species planned for Jurassic coast

Gamma knife machine removes brain tumours without general anaesthetic

SC I ENCE

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

T U E S D AY, N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

RENT D2

DAILY GUIDE Email: [email protected] [email protected].: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

For rent apartments: An apartment

in old Muscat at Oman Arab Bank’s

building. 3 bedrooms + 3 bathrooms,

dining room, living room and a

kitchen. Air conditioned apartments.

2 bedrooms + 2 bathrooms, living

room, dining room area and kitchen

in an excellent location in

Al Khuwair opposite the court of first

instance. For further information

call 97072976

Industrial land in Al Rusayl 1000 m

squared. For further information

call 97072976

2BHK Flat at Old Muscat. Contact: 91393005

Indian School Muscat, 3 minutes

by walk, very spacious 1 BHK flat, 2

bathrooms, brand new well main-

tained building, ground floor OMR

275/- per month. Contact 99310180

1st floor flat in Amerat 4 rooms, 3

bathrooms, family hall, kitchen with

A/C. Contact 95522405

2 BHK flat in Ruwi.

Contact – 99792181

Family room for rent at Muttrah.

Contact 99712088 / 99022790

Flat in Wadi Kabir near Indian

School. Contact 99362003

Flat/rooms for rent in Mumtaz Area.

Contact 92502241 / 92245110

Room for rent in Ruwi. Contact

95372192

Villa for rent at Madinat Sultan

Qaboos – Three storied villa, 3

bedrooms, having spacious halls,

drawing and dining rooms, Majlis,

kitchen, store room, with split AC

units in all rooms, servant rooms

and pantry, surrounded by garden.

Contact 24785555 / 99427951, villa

no. 3190, way no. 2388 at Madinat

Sultan Qaboos

Office room for rent at prime

location Muttrah. Contact 24712088

/ 99022790

Double bedroom flat near Wadi

Kabir Lulu. Contact 99719471,

99639102

Independent rooms in Qurum / Hail.

Contact 95529970

Studio flat for Rent in Ruwi.

Contact – 99792181

100 + 140 +180 + 200 SQ Mtrs office

for Rent in Al khuwair.

Contact – 99792181

Furnished room for couple or family

near Honda Road in Walja.

Contact - 91018560

2 BHK flat for rent near Baladiyah

Office and Indian School Darsait.

Contact 99552832

Flat for rent in Al Amerat.

Contact 99209264

Furnished flat with room & toilet,

kitchen with A/C in Hilt Al Saad opp

Al Nahdha Hospital RO 180/- with

E/W. Contact 91114040

Flat and room for rent in Qurum

near park. Contact 99664703

Flat for rent 2 BHK Muttrah near

Oman House. Contact 97007934 /

92629232

Flats/villas owned by ROP pension

fund available for rent in Muscat.

Contact 99349526

Studio for rent of two rooms and two

bathrooms and a kitchen in South

Mabela with electricity and water.

Contact 94090550

D2 T U E S D AY, N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

Shop for rent in Ruwi near Bank

Sohar. Contact- 97452727 /

99358615

Fully furnished luxury 2 bedroom

flat for rent at Ghala for long term or

short term basis.

Contact 91786526

2 bedrooms flat for rent at Mumtaz

Area near Al Burj Hotel. Contact

99104418, 99345914, 99884924

Available for rent – Labor camp in

Barka for 300 workers along with

provisions : Catering, Dining Hall.

Also available open lands for

rental in same place. Contact

24564460 / 61, GSM: 99430943

Email : [email protected]

1 BHK for commercial MBD RO

280/-. Contact 92144045

2 BHK without A/C RO 300/-.

Contact 92144045

1 BHK Mumtaz Area RO 250/-.

Contact 92144045

2 BHK without A/C Wadi Kabir.

Contact 92144045

1 BHK without A/C Darsait.

Contact 92144045

1 BHK near ISD Darsait.

Contact 92144045

1,2,3 BHK flats & villas.

Contact 92144045

Flats, Amerat Souk. Contact

99647903 / 98026234

Small office for rent in Azaiba North.

Contact 92294409

Bachelor villa at Al Ansab.

Contact 98458542

Villas / flats / store / labor /

accommodation. Contact 99776071

/ 99057348

Flat for rent 2 BHK flat with 3 toilets

near Muscat Bakery, Wadi Kabir.

Contact 99885169, 99897223

Room for rent in Ruwi.

Contact 95372192

Beautiful villa for rent next to post

office in Al Qurum, 5 bedrooms, hall

and kitchen. Contact 99311454

Warehouse for rent 200 SQM at

Ghala near Bridgestone, Ghala.

Contact 99349311

Industrial land for rent available at

November 2014, Ghala Area 3.500

SQM way #5251 next to Naseem

Workshop opposite Rimsigns Indus-

try LLC Ghala. Contact 99349311

2 BHK beautiful flat with split AC

available for rent at Qurum near PDO

Gate No-2. Contact 94057023

Excellent flat for rent in Ruwi,

Mumtaz Area and Al-Hail South.

Contact 98051159

1 BHK near Oman House, Muttrah.

Contact 99233116

2 BHK pent house R. 360, 2 BHK

RO.340, 1BHK RO.250/- Bldg #1619

way# 1322 adjacent to Indian

Nursary Darsait.

Contact – 99476728 / 99831047

Flats & shops for rent in Al Amerat.

Flats only for family 3 rooms,

3 attach bathrooms & 1 kitchen.

Flat RO.230/- & shop RO.150/-.

Contact – 98046005

BHK, 2 BHK flat for rent near ISM

Darsait. Contact 95158570

For rent flat and showroom,

Al Azaiba, Ghala, Ghubrah, al

Khuwair-33 and Mabelah. Contact

93651633, 24485240, 24485241

5 bedrooms villa, 2 halls, 4 bath-

rooms in Darsait, behind Khimjis

Mart. Contact 24700120 / 92584715

2 B/R Fully Furnished Executive

Apartment @Azaiba Near Zubair

Showroom. 2 B/ R Fully Furnished

Executive Apartment @ Al Khuwair

33 Near Zhaker Mall. 5 B/R Luxury

Fully Furnished villa at Azaiba with

servants quarter. Contact: Atlas Real

Estate & Rent A Car LLC : 99249069

/ 92888376/ 93201688,

Email: [email protected]

2 BHK, 2 Bath, Split A/C,

Wadikhabeer, Near Indian elementry

school. Way 6926, building 1733.

99441193, 93004802.

Commercial villa for rent in Sarooj

next to Thailand Embassy

Contact :96969824

5 Bedroom Villas at Al Ansab

(Near express highway).

Contact 99199365

Large flat of 2 bedrooms, hall & 3

bathrooms with split A/C’s in Al

Ghobra North 18 Nov Street RO.360.

Contact - 93191111

Rooms available near Qurum Park

with separate bathroom for

family and bachelor.

Contact 99664703

1 BHK flat in Wadi Kabir.

Contact 99277787

8 Rooms villa in Al Khuwair for rent

opp. Rawasco, way 4104, villa 341.

Contact - 99361589

1 BHK Flat in Ghobra.

Contact 99792181

For rent Flat 2 bedroom attach bath-

room opp Ruwi police station Ruwi.

Contact 99311209/ 99013580

1 BHK flat near Star Cinema, Ruwi.

RO 240/-. Contact 97079146 /

95570288

Furnished / unfurnished apartments

available for rent on long term /short

term basis, near Vacha’s hypermar-

ket in Ghala. Contact : 97677211

2 Bedroom Flat with free Internet,

Gas, Gym, Play area and reserved car

parking for rent in Ruwi.

Contact: 92197959/92502497

Showroom / office for rent located in

Prime location of Azaiba Main High-

way. Contact: 92197959 / 92502497

2 & 3 Bedrooms Townhouse with

Swimming pool, free Wi-Fi for Rent

near British School in Madinat Qa-

boos. Contact: 92197959 / 92502497

New 1 and 2 B/R near Bank Muscat,

Bausher directly from owner.

Contact 92158031

Café Shop for Rent at Ghubrah North.

Contact 99359755

3 BHK flat available for rent in

Al Hail (North), rent RO 280/-.

Contact 97661432

2 rooms, 1 hall, 1 kitchen, 1 toilet flat

available for rent in Al Khoudh, rent

RO 250/-. Contact 97661432

Building with four flats near Pizza

Hut Mawaleh. Contact 99044164

5 Rooms, main living room +

Women living room+2 halls, 6 toilets,

kitchen in Azaiba near Al Fair

800 RO. Contact 99888873

1,000 sq mtrs industrial land in Mis-

fah Industrial area near to Khanco.

OMR 1,500 Monthly. Electricity and

Boundary wall will be provided. Tel:

99333479 or 95215360

Land and Shops in Rusayl.

Contact 99323957, 95490842,

fax : 24452534

Flat for rent in Wadi Kabir.

Contact 99383569

Flat one bedroom in Wadi Kabir

with split AC. Contact 99313274

I BHK Flat Wadi Kabir. RO 180/-.

Contact 99376454

Flat for rent in Ruwi, Mumtaz Area

and Al-Hail South.

Contact 91409778

Villa for rent in Muscat 6 rooms.

Contact 96116767

1 BHK flat in Wadi Kabir. RO 215/-.

Contact 99358589

Small house for rent at Ghubrah.

Contact 95032152

2 BHK with A/Cs Mutrah behind

Oman house. Contact 99896838

3 BHK Flat Ghubra close to ISG Way

4041, Building 4390.

Contact 99319880

Showroom with Mezzanine, 310

meter square at Qurum Prime loca-

tion with excellent interior decora-

tion. Ideal for exotic jewellery etc.

Contact 24714625 / 94460790

New deluxe 2&3 BHK flats in

Mumtaz, Al Falaj Area, Darsait.

Contact 99142314, 99369081

Flat for rent in Mabela near express

road rent RO 300/-.

Contact 97695450

DAILY GUIDET U E S D AY, N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4 D3

FOR SALE

FOR RENT

FOR SALE

BUYING/SELLINGACC. AVAILABLE

Restaurant in a running and excellent

condition, ample parking space with a

capacity of 55 seating and a party hall

for sale. Contact - 99343735

Sharing flat with A/C for bachelor

in Wadi Kabir. Contact 95470129

Furnished single room + bath for

executive bachelors at Darsait.

Contact 92116197

Executive Bachelor sharing flat,

Ruwi, Mumtaz main Rd RO 85/-.

Contact 92230581 / 95084850

Furnished large room separate

entrance Wadi Kabir.

Contact 99336206

Sharing accommodation available

for veg family/bachelor.

Contact 99877845

Looking for purchase of Used Portable Compressor (350 CFM,

7 Bar Pressure) powered with Diesel

run Generator. Kindly contact :

99014686 or

[email protected]

Expat leaving household iem for

sale include sofa set, A/C, fridge, cot.

Contact 99552832

Treadmill, LED TV 42’.

Contact 98887511

Running Business Marble & Granite

cutting & polishing workshop in

Wadi Kabir for immediate sale.

Contact 99105492

Running studio for sale at Amerat

Souq. Contact 97621737

Used restaurant furniture and

kitchen equipment for sale.

Contact 96500940

Running ladies beauty parlor for

sale at Amerat, on main road near

Al Mahaj R/A. Contact 96349635 /

95622129

NRI

Awesome investment opportu-

nity, ideal location for hotel/resort/

hypermarket/business/residen-

tial complex construction in the

outskirts of Munnar for immedi-

ate sale, (50+cents worth 10+c),

serious buyers please contact

0096891791419,

[email protected]

Looking for an experienced A/R

conditioner and deep freezer Tech-

nician to independently handle

a running refrigeration service

center in Kannur Kerala. Attractive

terms offered. Please send CV to

[email protected]

For Astrological consultation, Jathakam. # 99860435 / 97102599

6 Seater sofa set & dining table with

6 chairs, good condition.

Contact 99327247

For Sale Well running Pharmacy at

primelocation. 93240949

New Villas in (Al Ghobra/Al Khoudh

/ Al Mabella). Contact 24505072/

91155779 Fax 24507045

Building Material Shop for sale

in Mabela. Contact 95094141,

95099335

Parlor for sale in Ruwi near

Honda Road. Contact 97452727 /

99358615

Shop for sale in Seeb near Bank

Muscat. Contact 99828343

AVAILABLE

FOR SALE

Established Restaurant for rent

with sponsorship.

Contact 97628242

Party & Wedding equipment rent-

als. Full line, from Tables, Linen

& Skirting, Chairs & Chair covers,

Cutlery, Crockery, Glassware, Chaf-

ing Dishes, Ice Sculptures, to Large

Sound Systems and spectacular

lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222 for

Catering and

Croyden 9623 5555 for Sound &

Light. www.tunesoman.com,

E-mail: [email protected]

3 rooms, 3 bath & Kitchen Oman

House Muttrah. Contact 99319149

Flats, shops basements,

location, Ruwi MBD area, Honda

road, Qurum. Contact 96942749 /

97293708

Big Villa at Bowshar 8 rooms,

8 bathrooms, kitchen, maid room &

Majlis. Contact 91183117

We are dealing with sale of all beauty

salon equipments, furnitures & cos-

metics. # 942 888 61 / 942 888 63

Villa in Mawaleh for sale town

house style near Sahwa roundabout

taamer road.

Contact :96969824

Running restaurant with all ameni-

ties for sale. For further information

contact: [email protected]

Shop for sale in Al Hail North main

road near Bank Muscat ATM.

Serious buyers only.

Contact 96435935

23,886 Sq Mtrs Agriculture land

with water well in Al Salwa, Barka.

OMR 260 Thousand. Tel: 99333479

or 95215360

Logistic Company with new equip-

ments, contracts sale. Contact

99438523 / 94252527

Electrical & Building Material Shop

in Muscat for sale.

Contact 95330905

Vegetable shop for sale in Wadi

kabir, Cont : 92786449

Flats For Sale in Boushar: OMR 35

Thousand 1 bedroom. OMR 45 Thou-

sand 2 bedroom. Monthly income

1 bedroom OMR 270 and 2 bedroom

OMR 350. Tel: 99333479

or 95215360

If you have any properties /

Inquiries. Contact us

[email protected] .

Tel 24505072/ 91155779

Fax 24507045

Lady Beauty saloon. Contact

97786792, 96644372 Contd on pg

DAILY GUIDED4 T U E S D AY, N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 4

DAILY GUIDE

DOMESTIC HELP

DRIVER

EDUCATION

SKILLED / UN SKILLED

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION VACANT

MEDICAL

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

SITUATION WANT-ED

SIT. WANTED

SITUATION WANT-ED

SIT. WANTED

Required a cook. Contact 99209264

ADMIN/HR

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

DRAUGHTSMAN

DESIGNER

DRIVER

Email: [email protected] [email protected].: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

ENGINEERS/TECH..

Experienced Indian driver need job.

Contact 96460224

Pakistani driver needs job.

Contact 99285194

We need the following: driver-1, driver with car-1, coffee shop part-ner-1, printing press working part-ner. Contact 95116938, 97807262

Light duty driver. Contact

92341826

Required Indian driver. Contact 99209264

Urgently required A Driver for a

reputed family in Muscat.

Contact : 24810353 ( 8 AM - 5 PM).

Driver required for morning 7 to 9

am and 2 to 7 pm. call at 99101958

after 6 pm or SMS.

Cosmetic leading company is look-

ing for: qualified experienced light driver. Please email CV to mary-

[email protected]

or call +968-99389888

Coordinator for Transport/ Heavy

Equipment Company and Light Driver salary RO 175 + Accommoda-

tion. Contact 99454425

Wanted driver. Contact 97469823

Indian Male: B.COM, 4 years experi-

ence in Accounts, in Manufactur-

ing Co Oman, Working Knowledge

With Tally ERP- With Oman valid

D/L,Presently working in Muscat

NOC Available Looking for Suitable

position in Reputed Company,

Contact; 95745287 and Email:

[email protected]

Indian Male, MBA, 12 years experi-

ence in Banking & Insurance, well

versed in Accounting, banking

operations, insurance underwrit-

ing & sales co-ordination, currently

on visit visa. Contact 97221657,

00919444298845

Indian Male, MBA Finance, (Pursu-

ing CMA from US) , 15 plus years

Oman experience in Finance/Ac-

counts and Administration seeks

suitable placement.

Contact 99669275

MBA Finance with 6 years of experi-

ence including Oman experience in

the field of Accounts and Finance,

Male. Contact 91157870

Sr. Accountant up to finalization

looking for part time job after 5 pm

(location prefer – Qurum to

Al Khoudh). Contact 92917574

Part Time Accounting, Accounts

Finalization, Internal Audit, Onsite

Tally Training, Onsite Training for

Accountants, Inventory Manage-

ment, MIS Reports, Feasibility Study

and Project Reports.

Contact: 96975454,

email: [email protected]

Indian Male, 24 MBA Finance,

1+ years experiences in US Health

Care in Accounts looking for a

suitable job. Contact 92239445

Indian Male, 24 yrs, MBA in HR/

Finance, 2 yrs experience in Trade

finance (Standard Chartered Bank)

presently on visit visa. Contact

959124531

Sr. Accountant, M.Com (Finance),

14 yrs experience (1 year in Oman) in

Finance & Accounts. NOC available,

immediate joining.

Contact 92404608,


Indian Male, 25 years, B.Com gradu-

ate having 4 years of experience

(2 years in Oman) in Accounts and

Admin field seeking for suitable

placement, currently on visit visa

in Oman. Contact 93207867 /

98353078

Pakistani Male, ACCA Fundamental

Level qualified, advanced Diploma

in Accounting and Business certified

accounting technician, 3 years expe-

rience as Accounts Officer.

Contact 99860453,


Indian Male, 28, B.Com, 6 years exp

in East Africa seeking suitable job,

3 months visit visa.

Contact 94613626

M.Com, MBA having 7+ years of ex-

perience in Accounts seeking suitable

placement. NOC available.

Contact 91006072

MBA (Management, finance) from

UK with 5+ years of experience in

management and Accounts positions

seeks a suitable job. # 95658916

Indian Female 29 Yrs, B-Com Gradu-

ate with Basic Computer Knowledge

and Tally, having 6 yrs experience in

accounting seeking for the placement

in Account Assistant, currently on

visit visa in Oman Contact: 95478149


Chartered Accountant Indian

(Female) having valid Omani DL and

work experience of 1 year in a Big

4 Audit firm (India) seeks suitable

placement. GSM: 99484368

Looking senior positions for a Char-

tered Accountant (CA) with 12 years

post qualification experience, now

working as head of finance at a lead-

ing construction company in Muscat.

Contact:97916442

Indian male, 30 yrs MBA Finance, 5

yrs experience in Accounts, finance

and Insurance, well versed in ERP

Tally 9, MS Office, valid Oman D/L.

NOC available. Contact 97366016

ACCA Member, currently working in

UAE as a Senior Accountant seeking a

job in Oman (Pakistani Male).

Contact for details CV 94066698

SALES / MARKETING

IT

Required Sales & Marketing person for engineering items, work on com-

mission basis,

[email protected]

Wanted Marketing and Lawyer. Email : [email protected]

Reputed building material company looking for outdoor Sales executive having valid Omani

driving license with more than

2 years local sales experience in

tiles/ sanitary ware. Please fax your

CV to 24798709 /

Email – [email protected]

Urgently required marketing person with minimum 4-5 years ex-

perience with good communication

skills and driving license (optional)

to work part time. Fax – 24564459,


An established Construction Company requires the following

professional: 1-Graduate Civil Engi-neer, 5 years’ local exposers, 2-Civil Engineer (Diploma), 7 years’ local

exposers. Confident candidates with

relevant experience may forward the

CV’s through fax: 2200911, 99703972

Email: [email protected],

Grade 1 Construction Company re-quired Civil Quantity Surveyor – 1

No with 10 years of local experience.


Wanted civil Engineer, Civil Fore-man, Blocks and Tile Masons, Shut-tering Carpenter, Email :

[email protected]

5 years experience with Diploma Civil required urgently for an

excellent grade company. Email :

[email protected]

MOH licensed GP doctors and dentist immediately required for

polyclinics at Sohar and Liwa:

Attractive package is offered.

Contact: 93952123 / 98855602;


Required PAED Doctor, Gyn doctor, dentist -female G.P lab technician,

X.ray technician staff nurse for poly-

clinic for Saham.

Contact: 92406024/ Email:

[email protected]

Required for a reputed Medical

Center in Al Khuwair: 1-GP Doctor with MOH license, 2-Neurolab Technician, 3-X-Ray Technician. Please send CV to

[email protected]

Dentist male & female with MOH

License for a polyclinic near Sohar.

Excellent salary, accommodation

and commission.

Contact 99006915,

email : [email protected]

Required General Physician, Gynecologist, Lab Technician, Pharmacist, Staff Nurses. Contact 96064925.


Urgently required Lab Techni-cian either Locum (3 months) or

permanent for a hospital in Muscat.

wanted the following : Gynecologist

(female), Embryologist (Muslim),

Nephrologists, Nursing Superin-

tendant (female), Nurse (female with

MOH license), Dialysis Nurses,

all other medical specialist /

consultants. Email CV :

[email protected]

Indian Male, 36 yrs available on

visit visa, 14 yrs experience seeking

suitable placement in games devel-

opment / graphics industry.

Contact 98454245

AUTOCAD DESINGER, 3D, 3DMAX,

REVIT, PHOTOSHOP PH : 93837973

B.Tech, AutoCAD, Indian Electri-

cal 4 yrs experience in designing,

drawing, testing commesioning of

transformers D.G. Sets HT Panels, LT

Panels, LT and HT, cable laying look-

ing immediate placements.

Contact- 94516624.


Required Tailor. Contact 95204145

Required Electrical cum plumber

foreman capable of handling site

by himself, free food and accom-

modation, salary negotiable. Contact

99410979, fax: 24810592, email:

[email protected]

HR Professional (Indian/Female)

with MBA from Symbiosis, having 6+

years of work experience in leading

organization in Muscat, with SAP

experience seeks suitable position.

NOC available. Contact: 97288278,

[email protected].

Indian Female MCA (Computer

Science) looking for placement in

Admin/Purchase/Sales Coordina-

tor/Office, currently on family visa.

Contact 95462266.


Legal adviser and consultant in

International arbitration (Egyptian

resident) legal and administrative

expertise and the Omani Labor Law

and drafting contracts.

Contact 99664890

Indian Male 32 yrs( MBA-HR) 9 yrs

of Exp (GCC,AFRICA) in EPC, Diversi-

fied industries, Seeking Suitable

placement in HR/Admin. Currently

on visit visa, NOC available, join

immediately. Contact 94535618

Email:[email protected]

HR & Admin Assistant, 26 yrs

Indian Male having 6Years of experi-

ence looking for suitable position.

Contact No: +968-93264616

Indian female MBA, HR 1 year

experience in India seeking suitable

opportunity. Contact 99889718

Indian male MBA 32 yrs having 10

yrs of exp seeking suitable place-

ment in Admin/ HR/ Operations/

Coordination/ Logistics etc. Holding

valid Oman D/L Contact - 99054786

Indian male, MBA 23 years having

1 year of exp seeking suitable place-

ment in Admin/ HR/ Marketing/

Coordinator/ Logistic etc.

Contact 97014369.


Male, 27 years with MBA in HR/

MKT having 2 years exp in respec-

tive field looking for suitable

placement in leading organization.

Contact 91705051

Experience PRO Oman Male, 36

Yrs, 16 yrs experience in PRO/ HR &

Administration, Prefect English lan-

guage speaking & writing with D/L,

Seeks suitable placement, Can join

immediate. Contact 91221773

Omani female with 9 yrs exp look-

ing for PRO job with Oman D/L.

Contact 97917333

Required Teachers for English, Phys-

ics & Art. Only eligible candidate with

the required experience and qualifica-

tion may apply within a week’s time

at [email protected]

MISCELLANEOUS

Indian B.Sc. Maths+PGDCA - well

experienced, seeks suitable place-

ment as Commercial/Logistic

Executive or Document Control-

ler/Customer Service Executive;

expected on short visit by Nov. 1st

Week; Contact 99702383. Email:

[email protected]

Female, Indian having 2 years

experience in Muscat, currently on

visit visa seeks suitable placement.

Qualification : B.Com MBA (Finance).

Contact 95742787

Financial Manager, Egyptian,

experience 10+ years.

Contact 91676723

AutoCAD Draughtsman looking for

suitable position. Contact 94436180

AUTOCAD D/MAN, STEEL STRUC-

TURE, 3 YRS DME, AUTOCAD,

TEKLA , EXP, PH : 93837973

Draughtsman, 2D & 3D (DCSE) with

2 years experience for any vacancy.

Contact 91781227

Autocad d man experienced (arch /

str) revit, 3dmax, Photoshop.

Contact : 93837973

Chief Accountant with 20 years

experience in reputed companies

looking for suitable placement.

Contact 97385562

Masters in Banking and Finance,

UK University, 6 months experience

as Account Analyst at UK

seeking suitable position in reputed

companies. Contact 99883502,

97422558

28 yrs, female, B. Com, 6.5 years ex-

perience in client servicing in Indian

markets for wealth management,

financial products & Banking domain

knowledge. Excellent communication

skills, seeks immediate placement,

family visa. Contact : 91242128.

B.Com, 16 years experience in Stores,

accounts and procurement seeks suit-

able position. Local release available

(NOC). Contact 98606546 / 91680124

Chartered Accountant with 10 yrs

of Gulf & MNC experience, in depth

knowledge in Financial statements

including consolidation, treasury,

MIS, AR/AP, Insurance, Taxation,

Payroll etc looking for Senior posi-

tion in finance, NOC available.

Email : [email protected].

Contact : 96293649

MBA (UK) B.Sc (Hons), 24 yrs male

professional with ACCA background

and Masters in International Business

Management from UK is currently

seeking employment on immediate

basis. Contact - +968-97941288,

email : [email protected]

Accountant 10 years Oman exp,

M.Com, upto finalization available for

part time works, timing 2 pm to 6 pm.

Contact 96247295

Indian male, 44 yrs, Account Man-

ager, B.Com & MBA, 20 yrs above

experience, 9 yrs experience seek-

ing suitable position, NOC available,

currently visa expires.

Contact 97438194

Senior Position for CA with 24 years

of experience: Managing Finance,

Accounts, Audit, Bank Loans, Budg-

eting, Business planning, Strategy,

Operations management of SAOG,

group of companies.

Mobile 91799262

MBA, Finance, Indian male, 2 yrs

experience in Accounting experience,

seeks suitable placement.

Contact 92045306

Indian male age 30 having

10 yrs experience in Finance &

Accounts seeking suitable place-

ment. mob.93675399

Indian Document Controller,

15 years, GCC experience, release

available. Contact 99324617

Accountant 8 years experience in

Oman seeking part time job.

Contact 99867456

Indian female Senior Accountant

with 10 years experience in Ac-

counts, Finance, Audit & Tax Man-

agement. Contact 96263157

Recruitment 1- Marketing Execu-tive. 2 - Chemical laboratory. 3 – Designer. Experience in Marble,

Granite or ceramic industry with

minimum 3 years, experience

preferred. Send detailed CV with

expected salary -

[email protected]

Wanted Accountant-Male/Female, Marketing executives-male/female with driving license, secretary/office

admin staff-male/female.

Contact 92058868, email :

[email protected] /

[email protected]

Manager/Caretaker wanted for

small Tourist Camp near Sur. Can-

didate must start soon. Couples also

welcome. Call 93356310

Presales Engineer - IT 4yrs exp. en-

gineering graduate (Indian female)

currently on family visa looking

for opportunities as Sales/Presales

engineer or any suitable positions.

Contact: 0096895829278,

[email protected]

Experienced Salesman with 5 years

experience vehicle looking for job.

Contact 93079087

Indian male with over 19 years of

qualitative experience in Automo-

bile field, expert in providing techni-

cal advice on repairs and servicing

seeks jobs in sales/ service in

manegerial capacity.

Contact 91-7736048460.

[email protected]

29 yr old indian male graduate 5yrs

oman exp in sales and marketing

with valid oman driving license

looking for suitable job.Noc available

ready to join immediately

Contact 95136784

A Filipino COMPUTER TECHNICIAN (Hardware & Software) is wanted for

a computer shop in Sohar. Please,

send your CV to

[email protected]

IBH Multispeciality Medical

Center- Seeb, requires the following

faculty: 1) General Practitioner. 2) Gynecologist. 3) Dermatologist. 4) Nurse. 5) Pharmacist. E-mail CV : [email protected]

Contact: 97884856

Indian male 32 Years 6 years experi-

ence in Building material outdoor

Sales with valid Oman D/L.

Contact 97462080

Indian male, 22 yrs, MBA(HR) BCA

looking for suitable position. Pre-

ferred Admin, Accounts, HR, Sales,

Purchase Co-ordinator.

Contact 94512430

Sr. Accountant M.Com (Finance)

14 years experience (1 year in Oman)

in finance & Accounts. NOC

available. Contact 92404608.


DOMESTIC HELP

DOMESTIC HELP


DAILY GUIDESITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

DRIVER

MISCELLANEOUS

INFORMATION TECH

INFORMATION TECH

EDUCATION

HOSPITALITY

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

MEDICAL

Indian female Dentist, MOH license

holder, with an experience of 6 yrs,

looking for a suitable opportunity.

Contact 94046651 or

[email protected]

Senior Staff Nurse with MOH

license and more than 20 years of

experience presently on family visa

seeking suitable placement in

capital area. Contact 99630557

Indian female, 30 years, MBA in

Health Care Services (MBA HCS)

looking for suitable job in hospital.

Contact 92606341

Indian Male GP with MOH License

and NOC, having 10 years of excel-

lent hands on experience in Oman

with corporate culture.

Contact 98140024


Nursing caregiver, qualified Nurse/

Asst. Nurse (male/ female) medical

staff seeks placement for Hospital/

clinic. Contact 92989109 (Oman),

0091 – 9555427742 (India),

[email protected]

Indian Male 26 yrs Store keeper

having experienced of 2

years in Oman looking for a good

placement Note: Release/ NOC

Available by current Company

Contact 96671102,

[email protected]

Indian male, experienced executive

secretary / Document Controller /

Admin Executive, looking for suit-

able job. Contract No. 91091963 /

99707262”

Bangladeshi man wants good job,

can speak English, Arabic, Hindi.

Contact 93822195

Land Surveyor : Indian male, 1 year

experience in India, using total

station, Auto Level and AutoCAD

seeking suitable placement.

Contact 95140761, 99208290,


22 yrs female completed MBA

looking for job in any or-

ganization willing persons

can contact:92441525 OR

email:[email protected]

Indian male, senior Miller flour

mills, 24 yrs exp. including erection

& QC, presently working in India.

Contact 0091 9744167051

27 Years Pakistani male in (Crimi-

nology having 4 years experience in

security and management seeking

suitable placement as security

officer. Contact 99191701


Indian male, 3 years experience in

Automobile Service Engineer seeks

suitable placement.

Contact 95936331

B.E (Civil) Engineer, male 6 years

experience as a project Engineer in

multinational ISO standard company

(Oman, Dubai & Qatar) high rise

building, substation, industrial

building, pipe line & Oil & Gas fields.

Knowledge Auto CAD, Ms Excel, MS

Project. Looking suitable place-

ment. Contact:- +97433854588,

+96896007635 E-mail-

[email protected]

B.Sc Civil Engineer over 19 years

experience in construction field with

project management skills seeks

suitable placement. NOC available &

can join immediately.

Kindly contact 92198264,


Electrical Engineer, 9 yrs experience

in Electrical Projects with Oman D/L,

NOC available, can join immediately.


BS Electronic engineer, Pakistani

Male, 23, specialize in Industrial

Automation (Siemens PLC, HMI),

embedded system design & instru-

mentation looking for suitable place-

ment in Oman. Contact 96271586

BE Software Engineer, 2 years expe-

rience in JAVA on visit visa. Kindly

contact 93403948, 99426840

MSc. Chemistry Teacher (5 y EXP.)

Pakistani female looking for

a job in School/college.

Contact 96580101

Indian Male 25 MBA in Sports

Management; Looking for job in

Sports administration/Sports

events/sports facility management

and Sports related Organisations.

Exp. as sports development of-

ficer in schools,Project Manager in

Syncotts international Bangalore

& part of World Hockey Series of

India-2012 as Production Runner.

Presently on Visit visa in Oman.

Contact; 96398569.


MANAGER/ SUPER

Indian male, 24 years experience

Senior Miller Flour Mills includ-

ing erection and QC, presently in

India. Contact 00919744167051,

98657006

Indian male 28 completed

B.H.M.CT, 4 yrs exp in food & bever-

ages dept. looking for senior super-

visor position. Contact – 91018857 /

[email protected]

Indian Male, 25 years in Oman, FMCG business in Senior Manager

level looking for senior position.

Contact 99015946

Professionally qualified Manager with Financial and Commercial

experience at a Group level with

diversified operations across the

Middle East. Contact 98480428 ,

[email protected]

Indian Male, 9 years experienced

Mechanical piping Engineer work-

ing in MNC Company, Saudi Arabia

currently in Muscat seeking suitable

placement. Contact 96255649

Indian Male, 9 years experienced

Mechanical Engineer (oil and gas)

background seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact 96255649

BE Electronic & Communication

Engineer, fresh graduate male, 23

yrs Indian looking for a suitable

placement. Contact -Email:

[email protected]

BSc Computer Science Programme

seeking job, visit visa.

Contact 97923444

Electronics & Communication Engi-

neer, graduate with BSNL Certified

Engineering (GSM) seeking suitable

placement. Contact 91611341, email:

[email protected]

Civil Engineer, 6+ years work

experience in Oman, valid Omani

D/L looking for suitable placement.

Contact 96936404

Pakistani, 3 years experience in

Surveying + engineer DAE in Civil

Engineer, looking for suitable posi-

tion, valid Omani Driving License

with valid Omani visa.

Contact 97255360

B. E electrical & electronics Indian

male 24 yrs having 2 yrs Exp NOC

available seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact: 99381733


Indian Male, Diploma holder in

Mechanical Engineering with 2

years experience as Site Supervisor

in leading company in India who is

presently at Muscat looking for good

opportunity. Contact 98856004

Sudanese Mechanical Engineer, 3

years experience (production, opera-

tion), driving license easy to transfer

immediately. Contact 91135140

Mechanical Engineer, Sudanese,

3 years experience in HVAC

Site Engineer, driving license easy to

transfer immediately.

Contact 91135140

Civil Diploma Engineer, Indian

Male, 5 years experience in Oman

with valid Omani D/L.

Contact 98518370

Chemical Engineer with M.Tech

in Energy Engineering is looking

for process/chemical Engineer

post. Contact 95094101, email:

[email protected]

Indian Male, B.Tech in Mechanical

Engineering with Level II NDT, Cer-

tification & also an MBA Graduate

with 18 months experience as a QC

Engineer & 24 months experience in

an Automobile field, now in Oman on

visit visa seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact: 92551673


Consultancy professional experi-

enced civil manager with 18 yr in

Oman with experience in PDO and

other Government sector liking

for handle self-governing projects,

interested consultancy firm may

contact on 99765165.

Male 26 yrs, B.Tech Engineer (EIE),

with 4 years experience looking for

a good position in oil and Gas field,

automation field, DCS field. currently

on Visit Visa, willing to join immedi-

ately. Contact 92453908, Email I’d:

yousuf_Omair [email protected]

Indian Male, 26 yrs, graduate in

hospitality science, with New Zea-

land business diploma and previous

Oman experience in Customer

service seeks suitable placement in

hospitality/salesmarketing/ logis-

tics/ admin. Contact 91383167

Female 21 yrs, Tally 1 year experi-

ence, looking for visa. #95330720

Male 22 Housekeeping front office

Hotel management degree course.

Contact 96732520

B.E (Chemical), 23, Indian male

with 1 year experience (production)

in Chemical Plant, on visiting visa

seeking for a suitable job.

Contact: 94525650,


Indian male 30 yrs seeking suit-

able placement to work as forklift

operator, having 5 yrs of exp. NOC

available. Contact – 94370085

Indian male 28, completed B.H.MCT 4 yrs exp in food &bever-

ages department. Looking suitable

job for senior supervisor.

Contact – 9108857 /

[email protected]

Piping/Pipeline engineer, 3+ yrs

exp with B.E degree (Mech), familiar

with CAESAR-2, PDMS, AutoCAD,

stress analysis and piping of criti-

cal lines for hydrocarbon industry.

Contact: 95785479,


Civil Engineer 8 years Exp (2 in

Angola with DAR AL HANDASAH,

4 months in Oman) as a site engi-

neer. He holds a Diploma in project

management, fluent in English &

Arabic. Contact: 99170315

SKILLED/UN SKILLED

MBA Graduate with 2 years of

experience as working as Executive

assistant in Dubai is looking for a job

(full time) other than as an Execu-

tive Assistant / Office Assistant.

Contact 91615322

29 years, Indian Male with PGDM

and B.Com, experience 4.5 years in

administration, corporate sales and

marketing seeking suitable place-

ments, willing to join immediately.

Contact 99720370,


28 years Indian Male, 5 years

experience in Sales/FMCG-(B.Com),

holding UAE D/L, now in Oman on

visit visa, searching suitable posi-

tion. Contact 98211481

Urgent Indian 37, indoor, outdoor,

13 years Sales experience having

NOC with D/L. Contact 99646321

Indian Male, Sales and Admin expe-

rience in India, 4 yrs now in Muscat.

Contact 91344706,


Indian male, Graduate, 23 yrs on

visit visa looking for suitable posi-

tion in Sales and Marketing.

Contact 91757222,


Indian male, MBA, 6 years of experi-

ence looking for suitable placement

in Marketing and Sales. # 91780948

Indian Male, 26 yrs old having

3 years experience in Networking

and Sales in KSA, have valid GCC

driving license, CISCO Certified and

BBA Graduate, visiting visa,

looking for a suitable placement.


Indian Male 23yrs, BBM With 2.5

yrs of exp. in Sales & Marketing.

Looking for a suitable placement in

sales & Marketing/Counter sales,

Store keeper or Supervisor.

Contact 92092248

WELDER, TIG, ARC, 6G, GULF EXP

PH : 93837973

Welder cum fabricator TIG, 3G 6G,

Gulf experienced,

PH : 93837973

SECRETARIAL

SALES / MARKETING

Executive Secretary-Indian Male,

graduate, 16 years of experience, 9

years in Oman having valid Oman

D/L seeks suitable placement.

Contact 94542833

Egyptian woman resident has

considerable experience in the

administration and secretarial

executive for companies.

Contact 97221126

North Indian female, Commerce

Graduate with good communication

skills, looking for a job as Reception-

ist / Data Entry Operation / Office

Staff at reputed companies.

Contact 91289686

Indian Housemaid from Mumbai

available for cooking, babysitting

from 7-12 noon. Contact 95896415

Housemaid looking for job in Qurum

area. Contact No. 93623629

Sri Lankan housemaid looking for a

job. Contact 99529499

Indian male, 27 yrs, NOC available.

Office boy, helper degree B.Com,

exp 1.8 months, Oman. Contact

93764069, room boy (watchman

building maintenance)

Looking for full time/part time job,

cleaning, cooking, personal care

taker, ladies and kids.

Contact 97882204 / 98562066

B.Tech Electronics, Indian Male with

2 years experience in Oman in office

management, looking for suitable

job, NOC available.

Contact: 96539538.


Irrigation Engineer to work as mar-

keting and sales in charge. Min

5 years experience with Oman

driving license. Email CV to:

[email protected]

Indian M/25 Engineering, Software

developer, 2yrs Exp, ADO.Net, WPF,

ASP.net, SQL Server, Oracle. On visit

Visa. GSM.94513655

Mechanical Engineer (B.E), Indian

Male, 8+ years experience in Manu-

facturing/Production/Project Plan-

ning seeking placement. #98359944,


Indian Male, 29 years.

BCA + ITI Electronics, 8 years

experience in Electronic service and

telecommunication networking,

Contact 98689568

Nanotechnology (M.Tech), Karunya

University 7.3 GPA, Project: Non-

Linear Energy Harvesting Electron-

ics and Communication (B.Tech)

Anna University 68%, Project: Wire-

less Remote Sensing Robot. Contact

98434781, 98373764,


Indian Male, Civil Engineer with

0.5 years of experience as a Site

Engineer looking for a job as a Site

Engineer / Site Supervisor. Please

contact: 98247618, 99775118

Female Software Engineer Contact -91706562

Licensed Electrical Engineer Gulf

experienced looking for suitable job.

Contact 98063081

Indian Female, 25 years, Electronics

& Communications Engineer from

Vishwarya Technological University

with 3 yrs experience in Technical

Support and Sales looking for suit-

able placement, currently on visit

visa. Contact 91713423

Indian male - 23 yrs-Mech Engi-

neer-on visit visa-1 year exp-

Contact: 99669889 -


Indian male B.E. Electronics & Com-

munication, from Anna University,

Chennai and also done a BSNL certi-

fied optical fibre optic course on

visiting visa, looking for a suitable

job. Contact 91530768,


Electrical Engineer (24), female,

fresher looking for suitable jobs,

Falaj Al Qabail, Sohar.

Contact 94347258,


Diploma Civil Engineer looking for

suitable job. Contact 95659028

Instrumentation Engineer, Indian

male having 2 years experiences in

process instruments seeks suitable


Sudanese Mechanical Engineer, male, 5 yrs experience looking for

job in Oman. Contact 91762602

Indian female, Civil Engineer, 10 yrs

experience QS, valid Oman D/L look-

ing for better opportunities.

Contact 95719108

6 years experienced, NET WEB

DEVELOPER (Software Engineer)

available in Oman on visit visa &

looking for opportunity.

Contact 91125896

Civil Engineer, Indian male with 5

yrs experience in building looking

for immediate opportunity.

Contact 99126087

Indian male (23), Diploma in

Computer Engineering, 1.5 years

experience in IT Company in India.

IT skills including Web Design and

Development, Computer Hardware

Maintenance and BPO, looking for

a suitable placement, currently on

visit. Contact 92689778 / 92150123,


Indian Female, University 1st rank

holder in M.Sc Computer Science

seeking for suitable placement

available in Muscat on a visit visa.

Contact 93778682 / 95378696

Telecom Engineer with 8 yrs exp

from India in IT Networking seeks

suitable opportunities now in Oman.

Contact 99002635 Emal :

[email protected]

B.Tech Mechanical Engineer with

Quality Controller certificate looking

for a job. Contact 94525819.


Indian Female (25), married, MSc

(Software Engg), 2+ years of experi-

ence in leading MNC, IT skill include

HTML, CSS with the design and

development of web based applica-

tion using struts frame work, J2EE

and oracle with excellent commu-

nication skills looking for a suitable

job opening. Contact 95892587,

96265726

Computer Programmer 27F B.Tech

3yrExp (.net, php) seeking for suit-

able placement 98620611

Indian Female, BE, 1 year experience

in Mobile Application Development

IOS, Android currently in family visa

seeks suitable job.

Contact 97632721,


Indian Female, working as IT Pro-

fessor in India since 2009, M. Phil

& MBA (Dist edu) M.Sc IT, seeking

for suitable placement in data base

management systems.

Contact 91105949. Email:

[email protected]

MBA (Operations) with 13 years

experience in IT Infrastructure

enterprises, voice network, unified

communication, MS Certified Lync

Avaya Polycom is on visit visa

seeking a suitable placement.

Contact 94535700.


Indian male (34), IT System and

Network Manager, 8 years experi-

ence within Tunisia MS Exchange

SQL Backup Exec, trouble shooting

network on family visa.

Contact 97441102

IT support, 1 yr experience in Oman,

5 yrs in India looking for suitable job.

Contact 97311847

Searching for job BSC Computer

Science. Contact – 97923444

[email protected]

Malayalee driver need job.

Contact 93729371

Driver is available for his personal

home, driver as a Company driver,

outhouse to go to UAE, please do not

hesitate to contact 96964343

Light driver, 3 years experience in

Oman. Contact 94453093

Indian L/D, driver, 2yrs exp.

Contact 98783139

Light driver seeking job.

Contact 95963682

Light driver looking for job in any

Company. Release available.

Contact 98368378

Light driver. Contact

98537756

Light driver looking for job.

Contact 93181200

Experienced Light Driver available.

Contact 95076476


Contact 92014540

Bangladeshi male, Light Driver

experience 12 yrs looking for job in

any Company any Office.

Contact 99165961


Contact 94216536

Driver require job with visa.

Contact 92073175 / 95803184

Bangladeshi male having 2 yrs exp

in Light Vehicle Driving.

Contact 98487511

Sri Lankan driver looking for job.

Contact - 97387112

Light driver looking for job, 5 years

exp in Saudi Arabia + Oman 2 yrs.

Contact 96088707

Indian B.Sc. Maths+PGDCA - well

experienced, seeks suitable place-

ment as Commercial/Logistic

Executive or Document Control-

ler/Customer Service Executive;

expected on short visit by Nov. 1st

Week; Contact 99702383. Email:

[email protected]

Indian male, Civil Engineer (B.Tech)

with 4 yrs & 6 months experience in

Gulf & India, presently on visit visa,

seeking suitable position at Capital

region in Oman.

Contact 93453417, Email :

[email protected]

Graduate Mechatronic Engineer with Diploma in product design and

analysis, seeking a job.

Contact – 98584349 /


Electrical Engineer having 2

yrs of experience, substation/

maintenance seeking for suitable

placement. Contact 97698493 /

99253909

Civil Engineer with 8 years experi-

ence and valid Omani D/L looking

for suitable placement. Ready to join

immediately. Contact 95326194 /

99525367

Sudanese Electrical Engineer, Bsc.

Degree with more than 8 Years Ex-

perience in Projects Field available

on Visit Visa 96160749`,


BSc Mechanical Engineer, 6 years experience Master of Project

Management (USA), energy graduat-

ed study. Contact 99487902. Email

[email protected]

Diploma in Electronics Engineering

with 5 years experience in Oman

as Customer Service Coordinator,

Inventory Control and Indoor Sales

Executive seeks suitable job. Speaks

Arabic, English & Hindi.

Contact 95681406.

Email [email protected]

Mechanical Engineer,(BTech in

Mechanical) with Certified quality

controller - NDT level 2 qualified as

per ASNT - SNT-TC-I A, with

1 & half yr exp. as quality control

engineer, presnetly in India seeks

suitable placement Cont : 95405033

[email protected]

Electrical Engineer, Indian, 2.5

years experience at Thermal Plant,

(erection and commissioning). Now

in Oman on visit seeking suitable

job. Contact 95836714.

Email – [email protected]

Srilankan B.Tech Quantity Surveyor

with 6 years exp (3 yrs GCC) looking

for a suitable placement with NOC.

Contact 98357512.


BE Civil Engineer, fresh graduate,

male 24 yrs, Indian looking for a suit-

able placement. Contact 95117509

Microsoft Certified Systems En-

gineer (Hardware)-5 years experi-

enced Systems Engineer (2 years in

UAE as plant IT operations) search-

ing for job in Oman -

Contact 92254218 / 99412003

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624





SITUATION WANTED

INDIAN female having ten years

experience as cook. South Indian,

Gujarathi special. Contact::

94224512

Homoeopathic Doctor, Indian

Female, with MOH License( to be re-

newed) (Nearly 2 years exp in Mus-

cat, Oman) seeks suitable place-

ment in Clinics/Hospitals in Muscat

area. Please Contact:92975815.

Male senior accountant with 20+

years experience readily available.

6 years experience in construction

industry Oman. NOC & Oman driving

license holder. 93969767/ gnana-

[email protected]

Electronics & communication

Engineer, having 3+years experience

(2Yeras GCC) in Security systems/

low current systems (FAS, CCTV,

ACS, PAVA etc) seeking suitable

Post in construction/manufactur-

ing/production/maintenance depts.

Contact: [email protected]

91001523

Experience salesman with 5 years

experience and vehicle looking for a

job. Contact 93079087

Dynamic Indian Female, Chemi-

cal Engineer (fresher from NIIT),

holding Oman D/L seeks suitable

placement. Contact 97477127,


Indian Male, B.Sc, Fashion & Ap-

parel Design having 4+ yrs of experi-

ence (in retail sector as Designer-

Visual Merchandising & Marketing)


Contact 94535866,


Indian female 29 Graduate/Com-

puter diploma 5-year work experi-

ence as Manager Administration/

HR in Construction & Real Estate

seeking suitable placement .

On family Visa. Contact - 91191236

British Female with 4 years experi-

ence in Oman in Marketing and

Project Management.

Call 00974 3343 7619

Indian Male MBA & PGDFM 26

Yrs. having 3.2 yrs of exp. seeking

suitable placement in Admin/HR/

Accounts/Purchase co-ordinator

etc..Holding valid Oman driving

license. Contact No :93359371

Indian Female, B.Com, Secretarial

skills, MS office, Oracle, 5 years

experience in Oman, as QA/QC As-

sistant, Administrator, Document

Controller, seeking placement.

Contact: 96465391 or

E-mail: [email protected]

Indian female MCA., M. Phil in

computer Science having 5 yrs of

experience in teaching(as Lecturer)

seeking for teaching position in

school or college. Can join im-

mediately. Contact :97765173.

Email:[email protected]

Indian male 23YRS, 4 Years expe-

rienced in Architectural Draughts-

man looking for a suitable Post

GSM:96023726, Email :

[email protected]

Indian Male having 10 years of

Experience in Oman having Valid

Omani Driving license working in

Purchase Dept looking for a suit-

able position. salary is negotiable.

[email protected]

Mob: 94304324/92654817

Female Candidate: Having

experience(ISRO) in Administra-

tion (seeking suitable opportunities

&presently in Oman Mob:97239854,

Mail:[email protected]

Indian male 27 years B.com gradu-

ate 4 years experience as marketing

executive in IT field looking for a

good job in any field. #98765838

PDO Approved in Contracts, Pro-

curement, Operations, Project Indian

Male PMP, CIPS, PGDBA, DME, Oil &

Gas with Exp-18+ Yrs. & having valid

Oman & PDO D/L Seeking job -

Contact 92560287 /

[email protected]

Indian Male, 24 years old on visit

visa, 3 years Diploma in Civil Engi-

neering, 3 yrs experience. #98515106

Senior Accounts Professional, Indi-

an Male, 35 years, M.Com, MBA (Fin)

8 years in Oman, with valid Oman

DL and NOC available. Capable to

handle accounts up to finalization.

Contact 9602 3965.

Female Candidate: Having

experience(ISRO) in Administration

(seeking suitable opportunities &

presently in Oman Mob:97239854,

Mail:[email protected]

Indian male, 24 years MA Sociol-

ogy (Social science) B-Ed. 2year

experience in teaching, currently

on visit seeking suitable placement.

Contact 91632006, 91397505

Email- [email protected]

Post graduate in hospitality and

tourism, Indian ,male 26 , looking

suitable placement ,in Muscat on

visiting visa contact 98861272

Indian male having 10 years of

experience in Oman having Valid

Omani Driving license working in

Purchase Dept looking for a suit-

able position. Salary is negotiable.

[email protected]

Mob: 94304324/92654817

Indian Male, 24 years old on visit

visa, 3 years Diploma in Civil Engi-

neering, 3 yrs experience.

Contact 98515106

Communication Manager, pleasing

personality, strong English skills,

highly qualified, Oman experience

in Corporate, Organizational &

Marketing Communication, Busi-

ness Development, Marketing Press

Relations, Ads, Campaigns,

CSR Programs. NOC.

Contact 98179887

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

SIT.WANTED

SALES / MARKETING

Indian female having 8 years

experience in Sales & Marketing

in oil and gas field as commercial

manager, looking for a suitable

placement-NOC available -Contact -

Email- [email protected]

Mob: 96311709

Looking for Sales/Marketing job : Indian male with 5 years experience

& GCC Driving License.

Contact +91 9916918977,


15 years experience in Sales / Mar-

keting FMCG and Building Materials,

Indian male seeking suitable posi-

tion with Oman D/L. NOC available.


10 years Oman experience in Sales

and Marketing with valid D/L and

NOC available from current sponsor.

Can join immediately. #96491505

5 years experience, valid Omani D/L,

4 years warehouse experience look-

ing for good placement. Release letter

available. Contact 98615731

Indian male, MBA (USA) having 5

years of International experience in

Sales and Marketing.

Contact 98853309.


Indian female, 32 yrs, MBA (Market-

ing), holding Omani D/L seeks suit-

able placement. Contact 95041134.


MBA with 15+ years of experience

in Senior/Middle Level Mgt in India

and GCC with various MNC’s is on

family visit looking for a suitable

opening. Contact 97330734

Indian male, MBA (Marketing) hav-

ing more than 3 years experience in

Marketing & Sales, currently on visit

visa seeking suitable placement.

Contact 96301626.


Indian Male, MBA in Marketing and

Finance, 10 years’ Sales & Business

Development Experience with valid

D/L of Oman & UAE looking for a

suitable placement. NOC Available.

Contact: 93969961

e-mail [email protected]

Indian Male, 28 yrs, having 5

years experience in FMCG Sales in

visit visa, Looking for any suitable

jobs in Oman. Contact 98531486/

98988824

Sales/ Marketing / customer

service release / NOC available UK

+ Oman experience valid Oman D/L,

excellent communication & organ-

izing skills, can join immediately,

Email : [email protected],

gsm 92342060 / 96761225

Indian Female: Bachelor in Travel &

tourism.1 year experience in ticket-

ing and 6 month in cargo (CIAL).

Looking suitable placement.

Contact 95883404

TOURS & TRVLS

ACC. AVAILABLE

Fully furnished room with separate

toilet, equipped kitchen and big

terrace available for executive

bachelor from Nov.1s tin N. Ghobrah.

Contact-- 95450250

Fully furnished room with sharing

toilet, equipped kitchen immediate-

ly available for executive bachelor

in MBD area. Contact-95450250

Fully furnished Villa at Al Mawalah

with 5 bedrooms asking 700

Tel: 95339258

Sharing accommodation for executive bachelor in Ruwi.

Contact: 95453473

Sharing accommodation available

for family big room, hall & separate

toilet at Mumtaz, Ruwi. #97612335

2 BHK available in Darsait near

Lulu RO 250/-. Contact 92383882

Furnished room in Ruwi high street

for a non cooking ex bachelor.

Contact- 94412557

Candidate having 9 years of logis-

tics operation and marketing experi-

ence in Saudi Arabia and India with

valid Saudi Driving License,

looking for suitable placement .

Please contact 94525696

MISCELLANEOUS

MISCELLANEOUS

Semi furnished room with Separate

T&B Split AC Wifi pref Filipino

or non cooking bachelor lady in

Boushar near Rehab Hotel RO.145/

mo incl W&E. Contact 99058225

Furnished room near Manam

Apartments executive bachelor/

working lady RO 140/-. Wattaya.

Contact: 93476160/92446858

1 BR accommodation available at

Rex Road, suitable for bachelors.

Contact 99889590

Furnished room available for

Executive bachelor in Ruwi area.

Contact 99054542

Furnished room for Indian Bachelor

in Al Falaj/Ruwi & for lady in Wadi

Kabir Al Maya-RO 130/-.

Contact 96202458

Sharing accommodation for a fam-

ily in W/K. contact 97167857

Single room available for exclu-

sive bachelors in Azaiba villa

and complete ground floor with

Kitchen facility bedroom and

Hall in Darsait. Contact details –

98048207,99261773

Big room with attached bath near

Mabela Souq for working lady or

single couple.R.O. 110 –

Call 95208305

Sharing one big room with AC and

bathroom, kitchen sharing for lady

or single person near OC Centre,

Ruwi RO 130 Rials. # 99410160

Executive bachleor accomodation

available at north al hail. Near wave.

Contact : 91325959

1 room with attach toilet rent

RO 120/- at Al Hail North.

Contact 97661432

Furnished single room with

bathroom, Al Khuwair area only for

ladies. Contact 96059431

Independent rooms in Qurum /

Hail. Contact 95529970

Transportation available driver with

car-Muscat. Contact 97361454

Transportation. Contact 99508282

Transportation Available

Contact: 97180655

Transportation. Contact98698909


Transportation. Contact: 97897833

TRANSPORTATION

Senior Sales & Marketing special-

ist with 14 years of experience

and proven track record in Muscat

looking for a suitable placement in

a reputed Company. Indian Male,

38 years (Electronics Engineer)

preferred industry (Electronics /

Electrical / Electro Mechanical) hav-

ing good exposure in access Control

& Automation systems, Lighting &

Electrical accessories etc.

Contact 92208744.


NDT ASNT Level II (RT,UT,PT,MPT)

Technician having 3 & half yr experi-

ence, seeks suitable placement. Cur-

rently on visit visa. # 94514454,

[email protected]

Indian male 24: Looking for job in

admin /sale/office/customer service/

maintenance etc. Currently on family

visit. Contact:94514201, email id:

[email protected]

28year Indian female (MBA-

Finance) with 3+yrs experience

(Oman) in Accounts is seeking suit-

able placement in Accounts/Admin.

Contact:96141283.

Indian Male, MBA Finance, 1.5

years’ experience in Operations and

Customer Service. In Muscat on

Visit Visa till 14th Nov.

Contact: 93755852, Email:

[email protected]

Indian Male, 24 yrs on visit visa,

3 yrs Diploma in civil Engineering,

3 yrs experience. Contact 98515106

23,male, ACCA finalist-last paper

left, 2 years of accounts, external &

internal audit and feasibility study

experience in Audit Firm, looking for

permanent replacement, #95140445

email address:[email protected]

Indian male, age 27, having 6 years

experience in finance & accounts,

seeking suitable jobs. Ph: 92902651

Young male, 22 years, B. Arch. gradu-

ate with 7 months training experience,

seeks suitable entry-level position

in an architecture firm or architec-

ture and engineering consultancy.

Currently on visit visa, ready to join

immediately. Phone no. 91265929


Indian Male, Purchase/Procurement

Officer with 16 years experience,

presently working in UAE,


Contact: 00 971 55 3390 467

Mail: [email protected]

Indian Female Lawyer 36 yrs hav-

ing 10 yrs experience presently in

Oman seeks suitable placement in

Legal field/HR/Admin # 94436960


CIVIL ENGINEER (Diploma) Male

25, 3 years experience in site, CAD,

3d, MS Project, seeking job in

Oman.#92887561,

[email protected]

Diploma in Civil Engineering, site

engineer with Auto Cad (Civil & MEP),

Total Station, Theodolite, Dumpy

level, etc., having 4 years experience

in Oman with Omani LMV Driving

License, Seeking suitable chances.

Contact:- 0091 9744851943(India),

00968 99416057(Oman)

Female Dentist with MOH li-

cense, 4 years experience look-

ing for work as dentist in Muscat.

Contact 91268110/99884299 or

+639274302729

M.Com Graduate seeking suitable


8 yrs exp 2d, 3d draughtsman

(HOLDING OMANI DRIVING LICENSE)

seeking job. Contact : 97449630

B.E(Civil), Indian male with 1 year

of experience, on visit visa seeking

for a suitable job.

Contact 91231972,


Indian Male 25, Office Administra-

tor/Assistant, 2 years experience in

Oman, Well versed with Computer

operation and basic knowledge

in Computer Software and Hard-

ware, seeks immediate change.

NOC available. Contact: 94024096

Eamil:[email protected]


DAILY GUIDESITUATION WANTEDCARGO

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with

Buffet, & Land Tours

Al- Ainain Marine Tours Contact-

98029602, 92808636

TOURS

RENT A CAR BUSINESS

BUSINESS

Experienced Civil Engineers invite

Sponsors/Investors to start

contracting business set-up.

Contact 93299940

We assist in new business set up

local sponsorship, real estate

services, assist in company

formation services. Contact -

93166088

Increase your income on

commission basis with our land-

scaping & gardening services

provided for big, small projects &

maintenance contracts.

Contact +968 99242207


GOOD NEWS

Pest control & tiles & toilets & Mar-

bles & carpet and tipples cleaning.

Contact 92108447/99666505

Ayurvedic treatment for backache,

paralysis, arthritis etc & massage,

All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact 24475280 / 95371554 /

92504980 , www.siddhayur.com

Ayurvedic treatment for joint

pain, backache, paralysis massage,

steambath, obesity, spondylitis,

IDEAL CARE Ayuvedic Clinic,

18 November Street Azaiba.

Contact 99639695

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know

more about Islam, please call:

99425598, 96050000, 99353988,

99253818, 99341395, and

99379133. For ladies: 99415818,

99321360, 99730723

Orvisit: www.islamfact.com

Genuine Ayurvedic treatments

& massage, ayurvedic clinic at

Al Khuwair. Contact 24478618 /

97263637/ 93309131

M.V. FOR SALE

Subaru Impreza 2.0 ltr 2000 model,

manual in super condition.

Contact 99844601

Toyota Corolla X Limited, Model:

2005, Make: 2004, 1.3 liters, Fully

Automatic, Grey, 96,800 km, Excel-

lent condition, New Battery (20.7.14),

diplomat driven with brand new

tyres. Mob: 96530055

Toyota Yaris auto 2009, 142 k,

RO 2,500. Contact 93289652

Pajero 2007, Camry 2006.

Contact 98887511

Expat driven single user Honda CRV

2009 model. 100,000 km.

Contact 95392848

For sale – Camry 2011, Mazda 6

2006, Lancer 2010, Civic 1996.

Contact 96408433/ 93806625

Lexus GS300, 2006.

Contact 93218349

PROTON GEN 2 FOR SALE: Manual

Gear. Good condition. Single owner.

Silver colour. 1st registered August

2009. Full insurance till August

2015. Price OMR 1,680.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

M.V.WANTED

Required Nissan Tida / Toyota yaris

/ Suzuki swift / hyundai/Kia hatch-

back car in good condition.

Contact : 95405033

MATRIMONIAL

Hindu Ezhava, family settled in

Muscat looking for suitable groom

for their daughter, 24 yrs, MBA-HR

presently working (preferably BE,

B.Tech, MBA Professional).

Contact 95693133

Indian Doctor, Businessman look-

ing for working lady in Oman for

marriage, any nationality, Muslim

preference self. Contact 96290792

Keralite Hindu Nair, Male 33 yrs

divorcee 6.1, working in Ministry

as Administrator seeks suitable

alliance. Please send details on

[email protected].

Contact 93139524

Mangalore Sunni Muslim, seek-

ing suitable bride (preferably from

Dakshina Kannada) for their son

working as Logistics Manager.

Contact 92198085

FOR HIRE

TRUCK FOR HIREIsuzu 10 ton cargo body truck

(2012 FVR) with UAE experienced driver

available for long term / short term rent.

Contact: 95346950

Cuplock System Scaffolding. Contact 99828343

We provide all heavy duty equip-

ment, tractor & trailers & all type

of trucks. Contact 97722507

Running truck wash for rent in

Ouhi Sunia Sohar. Serious people

can. Contact on 97864747

50 seater bus with PDO specifica-

tion for rent or lease.

Contact 99839898

MANPOWER

Housemaid , driver/operator (heavy & light Gulf D/L), house boy, cleaner, all skilled and unskilled cat-

egories process, (embassy agreement

and immigration). Contact 95175192,

EMAIL. [email protected]

Running hotel in Marbella Muscat

required investor/partner for

expansion contact mr Zeeshan

97913980






CLASSES

WEBSITE

WEB, ERP and Business Intelli-

gence (BI) creation and man-

agement at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

COMPUTER

SITUATION WANTEDSERVICES

GULF INTERNATIONAL LLC

all kind of pest control.

Contact 92326955

Truck body making, Misfah

Industrial Area. Contact 92326955.

BRIDGE GULFA LLC

House Shifting. Contact 99708138

GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet & sofa shampooing,

Contact 99314807/24792998

MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your

marble. Contact 24793614/

99314807

All types of curtain ventation,

Roman, vertical (blinds), sofa

shampooing. Contact 99539521

Pest Control Treatments, termites,

cockroaches, bedbugs. Ocean

Center LLC - Contact 99344723

Carpet and Sofa shampooing.

Ocean Center LLC – Contact

99884591

Building construction & mainte-

nance. Contact 95659028

For All Your Maintenance Solutions,

A/c Servicing & Fixing, Painting,

Cleaning, Electric.

Contact No. 99002390

Civil Maintenance, Painting Elec-

tric, Plumbing, Decor, Tile Fixing,

Lecithin Copra Board flat stifling ,

Carpet Cleaning and A/C Servicing.

Contact 97897831 (Indian keralite)

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance. Contact ABU QA-

BAS- 99320217 /24788722

A.M Trading Pest control. Contact 99067923

Painting Interlock plumbing

maintenance. Contact 92142319

For HT cable jointing and

termination works 33KV/11KV.

Contact 99056438 /


Door to Door Computers repair

specialist laptop software Website

cartridges. Contact 99199376

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance. Contact ABU QA-

BAS- 99320217 /24788722

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile pol-

ishing, pest control & anti-termite

treatment, general cleaning paint-

ing, Plumbing, Electrical, shifting.

Contact Mundhir Al-Rizaiqi trading.

L.L.C. # 24810137, 99450130

Water proofing ABUQABAS-

Contact 99320217/24788722

Window & split unit A/C servicing

& maintenance.

Contact 96236476

Split & window A/C servicing &

maintenance.

Contact 93769089

Learn Driving from professional

instructors. Contact 94022250

Driving School, automatic.

Contact 92245110

Learn driving automatic from

scratch. Contact 98599675

DRIVING

Civil maintenance, Electrical &

Plumbing work. Contact 99557080 /

96236476

Bus service available with experi-

enced driver on monthly basis for

2 yrs. Contract for companies only.

Contact 98605556, 92577588

Electrical Plumbing Painting

Contract and Maintenance.

Contact 98456535

Waterproofing, light weight Screed,

Antitermite and MS Fabrication.

Contact 92888337

Waterproofing, light weight Screed,

Antitermite and MS Fabrication.

Contact 92888337

Catering services We do industrial

catering service, Canteen/ mess,

3 times packed meals,

and all types of catering events.

Contact 92188777/ 99249899

NOTICE

LOST

Mohammed Sulaiman Moham-med Al Sinani & his partner Trad joint which is recorded under the

commercial register in directorate

general for trade industry number

3041972 is going to change its

name to Abaq Saham Modren Trad

joint .This is to inform anybody who

concerns about that.

Hussnaath Ahmed Ahmed Sulthan has lost Pakistani Passport No. P Z

1156462. Finder please report to ROP

Mohammad Rabiul Hossain has

lost Bangladeshi passport No AC

5443143 Finder please handover

to ROP.

Manjur Alam Ahmed Ullah has lost

Bangladeshi passport

No AC 6914864

Finder please handover to ROP.

Mohammad Abdul Salam has lost

Bangladeshi passport

No AE 3181085

Finder please handover to ROP.

TRANSPORTATIONTRANSPORTATION




Transport. Contact 99664703

Transportation available car with

driver. Contact 98475141

Transportation for women only

from Muscat area only.

Contact 97007934 / 92629232

Transportation available.

Contact 95068976


times of oman - november 4

Documents

khalifa al rahbi

al husn heights

al wifaq newspaper of

residents of yiti

hani al rahbis family

rehabilitation process

living room