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‘Switch off’

FAHAD AL GHADANIfahadnews@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Turn off your engines or we will not refuel your tanks, is what staff at numerous fuel sta-tions are telling motorists.

With more than five incidents of fire reported at fuel stations in June and July, the attendants are insisting that motorists switch off their vehicles before they refuel.

“It is true that we are imple-menting rules strictly and are tell-ing customers to switch off their vehicle engines,” said a worker at a fuel station in Azaiba.

“When you take into consid-eration the high temperatures in

Oman, the risk of cars catching fire at petrol stations is very high, so it’s better to be cautious, he noted.

An official at the Public Author-ity for Civil Defence and Ambu-lance (PACDA) also confirmed that following the recent reports of fires, several fuel stations have de-cided not to refuel any vehicle that keeps its engines running.

“These fuel stations were not forced by the PACDA to do so, but they decided on their own,” said the official. He, however, added that PACDA makes the same rec-ommendations.

“Clear regulation sheets are pasted at all fuel stations but nobody follows them,” said the source. If petrol stations stop

fuelling vehicles, motorists will be forced to switch off vehicle en-gines, he added.

“Since summer sees high tem-peratures, incidents of fire are triggered off easily,” the official pointed out.

More than four incidents of fire have been reported at fuel stations this year in summer. >A6

Alarmed over recent

incidents of fire,

petrol pump staff are

asking motorists to

shut off their engines,

if they want to fill

their fuel tanks

ALARM: More than four incidents of fire were reported at fuel stations in Oman this year. – File photos

OMANChallenges for SMEs

1SME projects will face formidable challenges in Oman without the expats’

participation. >A3

OMANOmani author at 80

2Jawad Ibrahim Al Bahrani penned his first book and at the ripe old

age of 80. >A6

REGIONAnti-terror law

3The Tunisian parliament adopted an anti-terror law to confront a

militant threat. >A7

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

Search on for EmiratisTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Search operations will continue to trace the two Emiratis who went missing in the sea off Al Dimr in the wilayat of Mirbat in Dhofar governorate, said a Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) official.

Seven friends, including two Omanis, had gone for swimming

when six of them got trapped in strong currents. “One of them was standing at the shore. Four among the six, who entered the sea, managed to swim to safety but two are still missing,” said the PACDA official.

In their Twitter account, PAC-DA said that search was carried out along the rocks of the Mirbat shore but without success. >A6

M I R B A T I N C I D E N T

LIFESTYLEC9

S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Sip Lemon JuiceIt’s good to start your day with a glass of lemon juice cut with water. The

citrus is loaded with Vitamin C and other antioxidants that boost your

immunity, and it enhances the body’s ability to absorb iron, an important

nutrient for a healthy immune system. As lemon juice is similar in atomic

structure to the stomach’s digestive juices, it also has a positive effect on

the gastrointestinal tract and helps cleanse the bowels, relieving symptoms

of indigestion, heartburn and bloating. The acid can damage the enamel on

your teeth, so don’t eat lemon raw.

Lift CorrectlyMany people injure their backs when they lift objects. To prevent back injury and pain, bend and lift the proper way:

Don’t Miss Tea TimeTea is loaded with antioxidants and is considered good for the heart. Drink-

ing tea may help keep your arteries clear of clots that can develop due to high

cholesterol levels. It ensures that arteries are smooth and clog-free in much

the same ways as drain ensures that bathroom pipes remain clear. Studies

have found a 70 per cent lower risk of fatal heart attack in people who drink

at least two to three cups of tea daily compared to non-tea drinkers.

Here are a few simple, time-tested foods, techniques,

and remedies to try, and a bit about why. Have you tried any of these

tricks? How did you like them? Do you have a favourite remedy of

your own? Tell us about it at lifestyle@timesofoman.com

TryWhy

DECODINGDOCTOR

Hubert Vaz chats with Dr Mathew Raphael, a physician and gastroenterologist at Al Hayat International Hospital Love Your LiveIF

Watching cartoons can make kids fatChildren consume more high-calorie food such as cookies and candy after ob-serving egg-shaped cartoon characters that they perceive to be overweight, a study said. Children tend to perceive ovoid, or egg-shaped, char-acters as overweight even though the creatures are im-aginary, and seeing them can influence children to eat more unhealthy food, found the study. “They have a tendency to eat almost twice as much indulgent food as kids who are exposed to perceived healthier looking cartoon characters or no characters at all,” said lead author of the study Margaret Campbell, marketing profes-sor at the University of Colo-results of the study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology said that kids are responsive to the apparent bodyweight of cartoon char-acters like the aptly named Grimace, a rotund, milkshake-loving creature created by McDonald’s restaurant in the 1970s. The findings — gath-ered from over 300 partici-pants in three age groups av-eraging eight, 12 and 13 years — have implications for mar-keters as well as parents navi-gating a world where children encounter cartoon characters in a variety of media, from books to graphic novels, TV shows, video games, movies and more. IANS

New drug may treat depression in a dayResearchers have identified promising drug compounds that could successfully treat depression in less than 24 hours while minimising side effects. Although they have not yet been tested in people, the compounds could offer signifi-cant advantages over current antidepressant medications, the study said. “Our results open up a whole new class of potential antidepressant med-ications,” said lead researcher Scott Thompson, professor at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine (US). IANS

B R I E F S

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMHealthSECTIONCL I F E S T Y L E

S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

e Your Live

New drug may treat depressigon in a dayg may treaty tre

Researchers have identified promising drug compounds that aa could successfully ty reat depression in less than 24 hours while minimising side effects. Although they hay veaa not yet been tested in people, the compounds could offer signifi-cant advantages over current rantidepressant medications, the study said. “Our results open up a whole new class of potential antidepressant med-ications,” said lead researcher Scott Thompson, professor at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine (US). IANS

C7The heavy burden

Rush expected at Oman fuel pumps FAHAD AL GHADANIfahadnews@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Fuel stations in ar-eas such as Buraimi and Madha, which share a border with the UAE, are likely to face a rush of vehicles from across the border following a decision of that coun-

try to deregulate fuel prices from August 1, according to fuel station owners and residents.

In a recent decision, the UAE’s Ministry of Energy decided to link gasoline and diesel prices to global oil markets making it the first country in the Gulf to end fuel subsidies. >A6

D E R E G U L A T I N G F U E L P R I C E S

A2 S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

OMAN Omanis topped the list of tourists to Salalah

with 66,348 visitors, followed by 14,248

Emiratis and 3,370 Saudi nationals

Khareef Salalah records 88,405 footfalls >A5

OMAN CELEBRATES RENAISSANCE DAY IN MILANOmani pavilion in Expo Milan 2015 celebrated the Renaissance Day on Saturday. The

government delegation was led by Dr. Fu’ad bin Ja’afar Al Sajwani, Minister of Agriculture

and Fisheries, member of the Ministerial Committee tasked with supervising and prepar-

ing for the Sultanate’s participation in the expo. — ONA

Asphalt road network tops 13,857-kmMUSCAT: As of October 2014, Oman has paved 13,857 km long asphalt roads and 16,414 km long dust roads, the Ministry of Transport and Communica-tions said in its report published on the 45th anniversary of the Renaissance Day.

The major projects under way include Sur-Bidbid dual-carriageway project (240 km) and Al Batinah Expressway, from the first to sixth package (about 265 km).

The ministry also revised the final draft of the Land Transport Law, which aims at regularising the land transport activities and meeting the needs of economic development.

The first stage of the structur-al study for the public transport in Muscat Governorate, which has been already completed, aims at creating an integrated public transport system that meets the needs of the public and limit the traffic congestion and environmental effects.–ONA

A N N U A L R E P O R T

A3

OMANS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

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saleh@timesofoman.com

Small to Medium En-terprises (SME) pro-jects will continue to face formidable challenges in Oman

without the participation of the expatriates.

The official statistics show that expatriates make up around 40 per cent of Oman’s total population and it makes sense to give them the opportu-nities to take part in the SME projects. Also, young Omani entrepreneurs need to learn to cope with intense competition to come up with a long lasting project. The SME funds, such as Al Raffd and Al Naama, can still be reserved solely for Omanis to create self-employment but the government should consider allowing expatriates to become partners of these projects.

Expatriates should not be barred to partner Omanis in SME projects provided they can raise their own funds to inject into the business. In other words, though govern-ment’s SME funds can only be given to Omanis, local banks should come up with a special financing scheme to finance expatriates so they can own a percentage of these projects. The percentage of expatriate ownership in SMEs can be minority to allow Omanis to own the majority sharehold-ing. Giving opportunities to expatriates to participate in these projects, will inject the much needed experience in the

newly established companies to ensure the survival rate of the businesses.

Export prospects At the moment, 80 per cent of the SMEs fail to take off and collapse within five years of their launch. Expatriates will give SME projects a new di-mension and a competitive edge to ensure business longevity. The current SME companies solely depend on the domestic market for their survival. The local market is limited and is not big enough to support new entrepreneurs.

Inclusion of expatriates in these projects will add a new business angle that will lead to exports. Expatriates, if allowed to have stakes in government-funded SME projects, will work hard to diversify the market by exporting to their countries of origin. The decision can also di-versify business risks and offer opportunities to expand glob-ally, instead of relying just on the Omani market. The govern-ment can allow a maximum 25

per cent expatriate ownership in SMEs, the rest can belong to Omanis. The government can also legislate by reserving 80 per cent of the jobs to Omani nationals in any SME project.

Clear guidelines Such clear guidelines will help SMEs maximise the available opportunities and the use of the full resources, both domesti-cally and internationally. It will also give struggling SME projects, which are on the brink of collapse, a shot in the arm.

Ask any SME owner and they will tell you that part of their problem is, they draw a blank when it comes to marketing their products. They don’t know how to raise product awareness or launch a sales campaign. An expatriate partner can make up for this lack of knowledge and expand the business beyond the shores of Oman. SME owners at the moment feel isolated and their businesses are scattered all over the country without a proper business vision. They need help and expatriates’

inclusion in these important projects can be the answer to their problem. SMEs also need to be part of the extensive busi-ness scenario. The reason why the United Arab Emirates has been successful is that the coun-try started linking SMEs with Free Trade Zones (FTZ). FTZs are getaways for exports and the examples in the UAE indicate that SME owners forge a suc-cessful partnership with expatri-ates. In very global competitive markets, reserving SME projects solely to the local population is an economical oversight.

Skills and experience need to be in greater diversity to make an SME project successful.

A fusion of skills from both Omanis and expatriates are much needed to make this seg-ment grow. With 40 per cent ex-patriates working in Oman, the Sultanate is certainly becoming a multicultural society. Young Omani entrepreneurs will surely need to take advantage of this if the authorities consider allowing expatriates take part in the SME projects.

SME projects need participation of expatriates to make them feasible

C O M M E N T A R Y

GROWTH AGENDA: Around 80 per cent of the SMEs fail to take off and collapse within five years of their establishments. Expatriates will give SME projects a new dimension and a competitive edge to ensure business longevity.-File photo

SALEH AL SHAIBANY

SUNDAYBEAT

More accidents, but fewer deaths in Oman this yearTimes News Service

MUSCAT: While there has been a marginal increase in the num-ber of accidents, there has been a decrease in the number of deaths and injuries in the first six months this year.

There has been a 1.7 per cent in-crease in road accidents across the Sultanate compared to the same period last year, according to the monthly bulletin of the National Centre for Statistics and Informa-tion (NCSI) for July.

The report says that 2,958 ac-cidents were recorded until June, compared to 2,909 for the same period in 2014.

Fatalities decreased 24 per cent compared to last year, with 307 people losing their lives in the first half of 2015, compared to 404 last year. “We request motorists to abide by road safety rules and continue to work towards bringing down the accident figures,” said a police official.

“It is good to know that there is a decrease in the number of those dead and injured in accidents. We appreciate the efforts of the Royal Oman Police in creating aware-ness among motorists. The de-crease in numbers proves that peo-ple are now mindful of the rules,” said a resident. “However, more needs to be done to avoid accidents

completely. We can bring the fig-ures down further,” he added.

The number of injured till June this year totalled 1,593 as com-pared to 2,832 till June 2014, a 43.8 per cent decrease.

The number of injured Omanis stood at 1,240, which was again a drop from 2,131 last year.

Omanis accounted for 77.84 per cent of injured victims while the number of injured averaged 22.15 per cent. Injuries due to road acci-dents decreased 41.8 per cent and 49.6 per cent, respectively for Om-anis and expatriates, compared to figures during the same period last year.

Among those who lost their lives in road accidents in the first six months of this year were 208 Oma-nis and 99 expatriates.

June was the month when the most accidents took place. There were 631 mishaps registered com-pared to 546 in May, 506 in April, 455 in March and 337 in February.

In 2014, 816 people died and 4,143 were injured in 5,768 road accidents as compared to 913 deaths and 10,802 injuries in 7,829 road accidents in 2013. The num-ber of deaths in road accidents also dropped 10.6 per cent in 2014.

The number of those who suf-fered injuries in Muscat also saw a significant decrease of 61.6 per cent in 2014, according to NCSI.

N C S I R E P O R T

ROAD TRAGEDIES: Road fatalities decreased 24 per cent compared to last year, with 307 people losing their lives in the first half of 2015. – ONA file photograph

A4 S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

OMAN

YOUR BIGGEST ROAD HAZARD IS IN YOUR HAND A TIMES OF OMAN

HANDS-FREE DRIVING INITIATIVE

SARAH MACDONALDsarah@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Photographers in Oman, both nationals and expa-triates, will have the chance to win up to OMR3,000 and have their work exhibited in Saudi Ara-bia thanks to a Saudi photography competition that is now expanded to include the whole GCC region.

The 6th annual Art Jameel Pho-tography Award (AJPA), which seeks to discover talented pho-tographers and help them develop their skills and exhibit exceptional photography, is open for the first time to nationals and residents

across the GCC, having previously been limited to Saudi Arabia.

“This year we are expanding the competition to include artistic talent from the entire Gulf region, which marks a really exciting ex-pansion of the Art Jameel Photog-raphy Award and recognises the abundance of talent we have in our region,” said Dalya Mousa, Art Jameel Programme Manager.

In Oman the organisation is partnering with MuscArt, a gal-lery and workshop space run by Omani photographer Ahmed S. Al Harthy. “The programme and concept of the award very much reflected MuscArt’s own philoso-

phy. It’s to challenge photogra-phers to come up with new con-cepts and new ideas which leads to creative thinking and looking into a different subjects in pho-tography, ultimately resulting in a form of education, and hopefully a unique and strong result,” said Al-exandra Hoepfner, MuscArt Gal-lery Manager.

Male and female entrants of 18 years and above are required to produce a single photograph, or series of photographs that capture the theme ‘Transitions’, reflecting transitions from social, conceptu-al, cultural, economic, personal or even technical perspectives.

Hoepfner said there are a num-ber of photography competitions in Oman, but often with repetitive themes and competitions that re-volve around the same people. She hopes this competition, with its unique theme and its workshops may “bring a fresh wind into the market with a whole new level of competitors.”

The workshop, which will be held in September in Oman, will be free of charge and open to all participants on a first-come, first-serve basis if they reserve tickets

in advance. “It’s just a great opportunity for

Oman to show a different more abstract side, which takes quite a bit of courage, as well as a chance of building your name within the GCC countries,” Hoepfner said.

Hoepfner said she hopes any-one with a passion for photogra-phy will participate, especially those “quirky misfits that may find it difficult to find their place in traditional photography.”

This competition will focus more on the message than the technical aspects of the photo-graphs, which may encourage more participants, she added.

Competitions winners will be announced at an Awards Cer-emony in December 2015. Win-ners will receive cash prizes, the opportunity for residency and the chance to participate in Art Ja-meel’s activities in Saudi Arabia and abroad.

The winning work will be pro-moted online and in print, both regionally and internationally.

Applications will close on Octo-ber 31, 2015. Submissions can be made via the competition website - www.ajpa.artjameel.org.

The Art Jameel Photography Award, which

seeks to discover talented photographers

and help them develop their skills and

exhibit exceptional photography, is open to

nationals and residents in the GCC region

LENS ART: Winners of the photography contest; First Place: Akram Al-Amoudi, for his picture Ana Khalfak (I Stand Behind You); Second

Place: Abdallah Al-Thuwaini, for his picture Taharah Muda’fah (Double Purity).–Supplied photos

Oman’s jewellery brand ‘Deema’ tobe launched in UAETimes News Service

MUSCAT: Oman’s jewellery brand ‘Deema’ is all set to launch a new collection made available for the first time in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The brand uses traditional Ara-bic designs with a modern twist using the finest gems and mate-rials. The brand, led by mother-daughter design duo Shadya and Suad Al Riyami, was founded in 2008 as the first ever jewellery brand to be born in Oman.

Featuring one of a kind, hand-made creation inspired by arts, heritage, nature and culture, Dee-ma’s pioneering fourth collection will be available in September for the first time in the UAE, via the soon to launch e-commerce site www.deemaoman.com.

Four distinct lines make up the ‘Deema’ brand. These are Islamic heritage, heritage, architecture, and nature. Each includes its own beautiful assortments, with in-dividual inspirations and telling their own exceptional story.

Peace collectionLuminescent, lemon quartz, blue topaz and blue aquamarine stones are blended with 18K yellow gold and diamonds to create the Is-lamic eight-pointed star pattern, promoting the heritage and rich-ness of Islamic patterns and archi-tectural designs, the inspiration behind the collection.

Harmony collectionRichly hued blue and green gem-stones conjuring up thoughts of deep oceans, compliment perfect-ly with lavish 18K white gold and diamonds, to create astonishing beauty in this luxurious collec-tion. The materials symbolically reflect the nautical heritage of the Arabian Gulf region, with the blues representing the seas that connect the land with the rest of the world in harmony.

Palm collectionAmethyst gemstones and dia-monds are intricately set against earthy tones of sapphire dark green, light green and 18K yel-low gold, evoking thoughts of the true beauty of mother nature. The ‘Palm’ is inspired by the striking date trees, the fruit of the Middle East.

Other ‘Deema’ collections in-clude Eqaam, Deco Art and ex-clusively for men, Oman El Izz, Opera and Riyam. ‘Deema’ has been recognised for its revolution-ary impact on Omani jewellery designs, and has been celebrating the brand’s successes through its presence at prestigious events like Jewellery Arabia (2010), Interna-tional Jewellery London Exhibi-tion (2011), the celebration of 150 years anniversary of life and legacy of Sir Henry Royce (2012), in addi-tion to Knooz for Fine Jewellery and Watch Exhibition (2012), and the celebration of the 110th anni-versary of Rolls Royce (2013), etc.

F A S H I O N S T A T E M E N T

JEWELLER’S ART: (Above)

Necklace and (below) ear ring

com pendant.–Supplied photo

It’s to challenge photographers to come up with new

concepts and new ideas which leads to creative thinking

Alexandra Hoepfner, MuscArt Gallery Manager

Saudi photo contest now open to Omanis

A5

OMANS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

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Snapchat’s Mecca live feed lauded

TARIQ AL HAREMItariqh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: There was a time when Snapchat was seen as a tool to spread illicit messages, but re-cently the popular apps used its platform to shine a positive light

on the Muslim world.Worshippers at Mecca gave

non-Muslims, who are not allowed into the holy land, a rare insight into what goes on at the holiest site of Muslims, by taking videos using Snapchat’s ‘Live Story’ feature.

Snapchat then compiled all the

best videos into one 300 second video feed and broadcast it to 100 million users.

Non-Muslims around the world took to social media to express their surprise about the peaceful-ness of the religion and its portray-al that the otherwise traditional media would not have shown. They posted their thoughts on Twitter under the hashtag #Mecca_live.

Omanis and expatriates, both Muslim and non-Muslim, ap-plauded Snapchat for its efforts for displaying the truth about Islam.

“Mecca being live on Snapchat was a great opportunity for Mus-lims to share the true and only meaning of Islam as well as their personal experience at Islam’s ho-liest city with the whole world dur-

ing a holy and blessed night,” said Shorooq Abu Nasser, a resident of Oman.

“I personally think it gave an in-credible insight to non-Muslims who are not allowed into the city and I would love to see more expe-riences shared on what Islam re-ally is,” he added.

An Omani citizen, Rumaitha Al Busaidi, also applauded the so-cial networking platform, saying that for the first time social media had the power to make a positive change.

“Snapchat took the right steps forward to make sure there was positive attention towards a reli-gion not many know as peaceful. We keep stressing that as Muslims and explain how peaceful we re-

ally are, but like they say ‘actions speak louder than words’. Only by allowing people to look through a window and judge for themselves, do their impressions of that image change,” she said.

“Mecca Live was a true defini-tion of what we believe in. It was the message of an entire religion in silence doing what they know to do best; coming together in peace with a message of unity away from racism and hatred towards one an-other,” added Al Busaidi.

“It was a moment that brought all Muslims together in spirit. It was a moment that identified to the world that there is a spiritual unity to Muslims that they cannot find anywhere else. It was enlight-ening, galvanising and informa-

tive. I wish we could see more re-ligious places and use Snapchat to bring the world into one peaceful mind,” said Fahmi Al Maawali.

George Satti, a Syrian resident said about Islam, “I never thought it was this organised and peaceful.”

Mahmoud Al Zadjali also com-mented, “It illustrated Islam in a way it should have, inspirational and loving. I think that Snapchat is the perfect platform because it is within everyone’s reach world-wide.”

More than 100 million people make the annual pilgrimage to Mecca which is one of the pillars of Islam. Last year 10,114 Omanis, 550 Arabs and 499 non-Arab pil-grims registered for the pilgrimage to the holy land.

Mecca being live on Snapchat was a great

opportunity for Muslims to share the true

meaning of Islam as well as their personal

experience in Islam’s holiest city

Salalah records 88,405 footfallsTimes News Service

MUSCAT: More and more tour-ists are soaking in the charm of Salalah this Khareef season.

According to the National Cen-tre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the number of visitors to Khareef Salalah touched 88,405 till July 21, which was an increase compared to figures of the same period last year.

Khareef Salalah is an annual blessing for the people of Oman, especially the Dhofar Governo-rate, as locals escape the scorch-ing heat of the North and enter the cool, drizzling weather of the South, and visitors from abroad experience the forest-like envi-ronment in the Gulf Cooperation Council state.

Of the 88,405 visitors so far, 86,795 were from Arab nations, including Oman.

Omanis topped the list with 66,348 visitors, followed by 14,248 Emiratis and 3,370 Saudi nation-als. Completing the list were 968 tourists from Qatar, 608 from Ku-wait and 543 from Bahrain, while

710 visitors arrived from the other Arab countries.

Non-Arab visitors reached 1,610, with 1,250 Asians making up most of those numbers. There were 206 Europeans who visited Khareef Salalah, while 154 oth-ers were from various non-Arab countries.

NCSI recorded 70,321 people arriving by land and 18,084 by air which is 79.54 and 20.45 percen-tiles respectively.

Last year, the total number of local and international visitors re-corded from June 21 to August 30 was 415,209, compared to 399,747 during the same period in 2013,

representing an increase of 3.9 per cent, reported the National Centre for Statistics and Informa-tion (NCSI).

In 2014, the majority of Kha-reef Salalah visitors were Omanis, representing 76.2 per cent of the total number, while other GCC citizens represented 16.1 per cent of the total tourist count.

Activities at the Salalah Tour-ism Festival 2015 kicked off Thursday under the title ‘Oman: Love and Peace’. The festival con-cludes on August 31.

“Salalah is unique, especially when one realises that it is the only place in the Gulf that turns green during summer. The cam-els, a variety of chirping birds, the fruits, and the people, apart from the lush green hills, misty woods and sparkling mountain springs give the place a magical effect. It is surely an experience for those visiting Salalah,” said Ravi H, who makes it a point to take his family to Salalah every year.

“We are sure to visit the place before the Khareef season ends,” he said.

K H A R E E F S E A S O N

COOL CLIMES: Of the 88,405 visitors to Salalah so far, 86,795 were from Arab countries, including Oman. Omanis topped the list with 66,348 visitors, followed by 14,248 Emiratis and 3,370 Saudi nationals.–TIMES OF OMAN

A6

OMANS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

I always wanted to publish books and

have readers to read them

Jawad Ibrahim Al Bahrani, Omani author

Omanis collecting honey since agesMUSCAT: Omani honey is very popular and people rush to buy it whenever it is available, and use it in food and even for medicinal purposes, which is also a reason for its high price and shortage.

Omanis have been collecting honey since ages — much before it became a profession that began to be managed by government institutions connected with agri-culture, and before honey collec-tors were trained and provided the tools to produce honey for commercial purposes, as well as for domestic use.

There are numerous types of honey, but the finest variety and the most famous is “Al Baram”, or “A’Sumar,” named after “Aca-cia tortilis” which is usually light black in colour. Then there is “A’Sidr” honey, which is light brown in colour.

Honey is usually collected throughout the year, but the fin-est types are those that are pro-duced from March until the end of May. The search for honey is practiced by observing bees, which come to drink water, espe-cially early in the morning.

Beekeepers observe honey-bees either with the naked eye or through binoculars. They try to determine the direction in which the bees fly. They begin searching in caves or on certain trees in the mountains, in farms, in addition to palm groves and various other

trees. After finding the hives the beekeepers decide, depending on their experiences, how much honey is in the hives based on their size. They collect the honey if the hive is large, but if it is small they wait until the honey is ready to be collected.

Both men and women take part in collecting honey, and some-times even children take part, ei-ther in groups or individually.

Some may move from one place to another in search of hon-ey, sometimes for long distances, which may include valleys or mountains or neighbouring are-as, while others do not go beyond their area of residence.

Beekeepers noiselessly re-move honeybees from the upper part of the hive where the honey is stocked. To protect them-selves from bee stings, they wear clothes that completely cover the body, including the face, and use gloves to cover their hands.

After cutting away the upper part of the hive, the beekeep-ers put the hives back in their original place to use again. Some-times, they move the hive to a new place, if they find it more ap-propriate than the previous loca-tion.

After collecting the honey, bee-keepers filter it for impurities and pack it in glass bottles or cans which are is used either in food, for medicinal purposes, etc. -ONA

W I D E U S E

Omani author Jawad pens first book at 80

SALEH AL SHAIBANYsaleh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Jawad Ibrahim Al Bahrani has proved that it is never too late to pen your first book. At the ripe old age of 80 he is embark-ing into a new career of writing stories for general readers.

Jawad, who was born in Zanzi-bar in 1935 to Omani parents, had a kaleidoscope of careers before he decided to become a full -time writer late in life.

Starting as a seamanHe started life as a seaman fol-lowed by a brief stint as a stage ac-tor. Later, he started writing Swa-hili songs in the 1960s and had his own photography studio.

In 1977, he joined Oman Televi-sion as a cameraman. His enthusi-asm in creativity was noted by his bosses and was given an opportu-nity to work as a film director for the Ministry of Information. As a result, one of his television docu-mentaries about Oman won an award in Bahrain.

Resurrecting his ambitionWhen he retired from the Minis-try of Information in 1997, Jawad did not want to stay at home idly looking at the four walls. He res-urrected his ambition to become a published author by dusting his old manuscripts that were stored in his house for many years.

He decided to finish off a sto-ry he started in the 1960s, The Tales of Bul Bul Adventures, but due to his family commitment and financial constraints, it took

many years to be published. It was printed earlier this year, al-most five decades after he started writing it. The book is written in the same mould as The Ara-

bian Nights (Alf laylah wa laylah) about a young orphan who de-cided to straighten up his life to make something for himself.

By finishing off his book and published it fifty years later is not just a matter of accomplishing a long standing task but it is about proving to everyone that it is nev-er too late to realise your ambi-tion and embark in a new career.

“You are never too old to real-ise your dreams, no matter how bold or difficult they are. It is just a matter of getting it right and the opportunities available to you. I always wanted to publish books and have readers to read them,” Jawad explained.

How prolific Jawad is going to be after the publication of his first book is a question of how fast he can write more.

Final touchesHe is already putting the final touches of his second fiction book, titled The Tales of Zanzibar Nights, to be published next year.

There is a third one brewing in his mind, whose title would be “Tales of Arabian and Persian Deserts,” which will be published in 2017.

He is planning to continue with a series of books of ‘Tales’ for as long as he can.

Jawad also has published a non-fiction book this year with a title of “My Wisdom Thoughts.”

Jawad Ibrahim Al

Bahrani, who was

born in Zanzibar

in 1935 to Omani

parents, had a

kaleidoscope of

careers before he

decided to become a

full-time writer late

in life

NEW INNINGS: The front cover of the book.

You are never too old to realise your dreams, no matter how bold or difficult they are. It is just a matter of getting it right and the opportunities available to you

Jawad Ibrahim Al BahraniOmani author

‘Shut off engines while refuelling’

The source at the PACDA clarified that the high temperatures have been the trigger in all those cases.

The PACDA has also called on motorists to install fire extin-guishers in their vehicles and to abide by the rules.

Mark Pudwell, business devel-opment and training manager, Competence HR said, “It is en-couraging to hear that fuel station staff is telling drivers to shut off their vehicle engines while refu-elling.”

He explained that high octane fuels are highly inflammable and in environments such as those prevalent in Oman where ambi-ent air temperatures are very high, particularly at this time of the year, the liquid fuel vaporises much more quickly, and creates a highly explosive environment.

Confirming that this process cannot be eliminated completely, Pudwell said, “We can do much more to reduce chances of a fire by following some simple rules.”

Pudwell suggested switching off the vehicle engine once the park-ing brake is applied.

“Vehicle occupants must also extinguish anything they are smoking before entering the sta-tion forecourt,” he added.

Pudwell said, “Mobile phones are intrinsically unsafe, which means they can generate static electricity that is capable of ignit-

ing fuel vapour and the oxygen in the atmosphere. So these must not be used in the forecourt at any time.”

Pudwell advised fuel pump at-tendants not to leave vehicles un-attended during refuelling and to hold the fuel dispenser till the tank is filled. “This ensures that in case of spillage, they can take immedi-ate action and alert the occupants to vacate the vehicle until the spill is removed,” said Pudwell

Pointing out that most vehicle fuel tanks are situated under the rear of the vehicle and often adja-cent to the exhaust systems which heat up during use, Pudwell said,

“If liquid fuel reaches the hot ex-haust pipes it could ignite. Switch-ing off the vehicle during refuelling will reduce the temperature of the exhaust thus reducing the likeli-hood of ignition.”

He stated that all these rules are mandatory and instructions are clearly displayed by law at each station.

“Staff must be further encour-aged to educate customers and receive regular approved training in the dispensing of fuel and the actions required of them in the event of spillage,” he said.

“Staff should also be discour-aged from dispensing fuel to customers who refuse to comply with these simple but mandatory rules,” he said.

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Search onOn Friday, Pub-lic Authority for Civil Defence and

Ambulance had requested a helicopter from the Oman’s Royal Air Force to help in the search and rescue op-erations. In a tweet, PACDA clarified that there was a signboard at the spot warn-ing people against venturing out into the sea.

P A C D A

‘Buraimi fuel pumps can cope with rush’

Speaking to Times of Oman, Rashid Al Shamsi, a Majlis Al Shu-ra member representing Buraimi wilayat, said that while he expects a rush from across the border once the fuel price in the UAE increas-es, he is certain there will not be a shortage.

“I am sure the number of vehi-cles will rise, but I think the quan-tity of fuel received by petrol sta-tions in Buraimi and others will meet the daily needs of consum-ers,” said Al Shamsi.

He added that the rush will be witnessed only on some days.

“It is during weekends that we will witness a bigger rush as many of Omanis living in the UAE and Emiratis head to Buraimi on Fri-day and Saturday,” said Al Shamsi.

Salim Al Mizahmi, owner of a fuel station in Buraimi said that there is surely going to be a rush but it will not be unmanageable.

“The fuel consumed last year is less than the year before which means that there are fewer con-sumers. Many petrol station own-

ers here decided to decrease the quantity of fuel we would receive from the last year,” said Al Miz-ahmi.

He will monitor the market and then decide if more fuel is required for his fuel station, he added.

Some residents in Buraimi and other areas close to the border ex-pressed their unhappiness over the rush experienced at fuel sta-tions during peak days.

“Because of the slight price dif-ference that exists there is already a rush on weekends. Can you im-agine what it will be like once the price is deregulated?” asked a resi-dent.

According to Al Mizahmi, “I had a meeting the last time with the Wali of Buraimi and other con-cerned authorities and addressed the issue. Some suggested that res-idents of the areas should have fuel cards. They also suggested that there should be a limit on the fuel for cars with non-Omani licence plates. However, these suggestions were rejected.”

E N D O F S U B S I D Y

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REGIONS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

The bill would also make it easier for

investigators to use phone-tapping against

suspects and make public expressions of

support for terrorism a jailable offence.

Tunisia adopts new anti-terror legislation

TUNIS: The Tunisian parlia-ment adopted a new anti-terror law overnight on Friday aimed at beefing up powers to confront a militant threat following deadly attacks.

The law was adopted after three days of debate by 174 members of parliament with 10 abstentions and no votes against, according to an AFP tally.

The president of the assembly, Mohamed Ennaceur welcomed the passing of the “law against terrorism and money laundering”, calling it an “historic” moment.

“It’s with pride we have arrived at this historic moment ... this law will reassure the citizens,” Enna-ceur said.

The new legislation comes after a gunman massacred 38 tourists on a Tunisian beach in an attack claimed by IS militant group (IS) on June 26.

In March an attack on the Bardo museum in the capital Tunis that was also claimed by IS left 21 tour-ists dead.

Old lawThe law replaces legislation from 2003 which was adopted under the leadership of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and rights groups say was largely used to crush dissent, in particular then-banned Ennahda

party, which is now one of the main players in Tunisian politics. While the law was widely supported by both secular and hardline parties, it has been strongly criticised by rights groups and NGOs.

“This law poses a real threat to rights and liberties in Tunisia,” said Amna Guellali, the Human Rights Watch representative in Tunis.

Criminal lawyer Ghazi Mrabet agreed the law was a bad sign, say-ing: “You can’t fight terrorism with regressive reforms.”

Critics have condemned the fact the law brings back capital pun-ishment for a number of offences, after a de facto quarter-century moratorium on executions.

The death penalty can apply to anyone who “knowingly murders someone enjoying international protection”, a reference to people such as diplomats and interna-

tional civil servants.Another article refers to peo-

ple who commit rape during the course of a terrorism-related crime. Rights groups also ques-tioned the powers the law accords the authorities, allowing them to detain suspects for 15 days with-out access to a lawyer or being brought before a judge.

The bill would also make it eas-ier for investigators to use phone-tapping against suspects and make public expressions of support for terrorism a jailable offence.

Advocacy groups have said the law’s definition of terrorist crimes is too vague and it fails to adequately safeguard the rights of defendants and could undermine freedoms.

Members of the leftist opposi-tion have also criticised the bill, saying it could be used to stifle popular movements and does not

distinguish between protests and terrorist acts.

President Beji Caid Essebsi de-creed a month-long state of emer-gency on July 4, eight days after the shooting at the Mediterranean resort of Port El Kantaoui killed 30 Britons, three Irish nationals, two Germans, one Belgian, one Portu-guese and a Russian. That came af-ter two gunmen attacked Tunisia’s national museum on March 18, killing 21 foreigners and a Tuni-sian policeman. Both attacks were claimed by the IS militant group.

The country’s vital tourist in-dustry has been badly hit and Es-sebsi has said his country is “at war with terrorism”.

“The army, the National Guard, the security forces are doing their duty and the Tunisian people must be secured,” he has said. “The country needs to overcome this crisis, everyone must unite.” — AFP

The new legislation

comes after a

gunman massacred

38 tourists on a

Tunisian beach in an

attack claimed by IS

militant group

HISTORIC MOMENT: Tunisian deputies attend a debate on Friday at the Assembly of the Representa-

tives of the People in Tunis. – AFP

BOOSTING TRADE: Boats, including a container ship, cross the new waterway of the Suez canal on

Saturday in the Egyptian port city of Ismailia, east of Cairo. – AFP

Ships cross New Suez Canal in first ‘successful’ test-runISMAILIA: The first cargo ships passed through Egypt’s New Suez Canal on Saturday in a test-run before it opens next month, state media reported, 11 months after the army began constructing the $8 billion canal alongside the ex-isting 145-year-old Suez Canal.

The new waterway, which President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi hopes will help expand trade along the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia and give a boost to Egypt’s economy, will be formally inaugurated on August 6.

Symbol of national prideSisi wants the canal to become a symbol of national pride and to help combat Egypt’s double-digit unemployment. The old Suez Canal is already a vital source of hard currency for Egypt, which has seen tourism and foreign in-vestment drain away in the years of turmoil since a 2011 uprising.

Three container ships crossed the new waterway, state news agency MENA reported. One was an American ship heading

to Egypt’s Port Said from Saudi Arabia, another was a Danish ship sailing to the United States from Singapore, and a Bahraini ship going to Italy from Saudi Arabia.

The exercise took place amid tight security. An insurgency based in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders on the Suez Canal, has killed hundreds of soldiers and police since 2013. State tele-vision said there were helicopters

circling above and showed naval vessels escorting the ships.

Mohab Mameesh, the chair-man of the Suez Canal Author-ity who led the project, told state television from aboard the first ship that the test-run had been a success.

“This is the first trial crossing but it will be followed by more trials,” he said. “We are 99.2 per cent done with everything. We should be completely done in two or three days.

The existing canal earns Egypt around $5 billion per year. The new canal, which will allow two-way traffic of larger ships, is sup-posed to increase revenues by 2023 to $15 billion.

It should also reduce navigation time for ships to 11 hours from about 22 hours, Mameesh said last month, making it the fastest such waterway in the world.

The government also plans to build an international industrial and logistics hub nearby that it hopes will eventually make up about a third of the Egyptian economy. — Reuters

N E W W A T E R W A Y

Iran accuses Kerry of

threatening military

action against Iran

TEHRAN: Iran hit out late on Friday against US Secretary of State John Kerry, accusing him of threatening military ac-tion against Tehran if it fails to respect a historic nuclear deal sealed on July 14.

“Unfortunately the US Secre-tary of State once again talked about the rotten rope of ‘the abil-ity of the US for using military force’,” said Iranian Foreign Min-ister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a statement.

Empty threatsZarif decried what he called the “uselessness of such empty threats against the nation of Iran and the resistance of the nation of Iran”, and said such remarks should be consigned “to the last century”.

Despite the agreement reached with Iran on putting the nuclear bomb out of Tehran’s reach, sev-

eral US officials, including De-fence Secretary Ashton Carter, have signalled that military force remains on the table to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Kerry and other American of-ficials “have repeatedly admitted that these threats have no effect on the will of the people of Iran and that it will change the situa-tion to their disadvantage,” Zarif claimed. “Therefore, it would be better for Americans to abandon their old habit and put aside once and for all their threatening lan-guage and sanctions against this great people,” he added.

Under the July 14 agreement, Iran has agreed to dismantle or mothball much of its nuclear industry in return for an easing and eventual lifting of sanctions. World powers have called it a his-toric opportunity to set relations with Iran on a new path. — AFP

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

LASHING OUT: Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif

speaks in parliament in Tehran last Tuesday. Zarif on Friday

decried what he called the ‘uselessness of such empty threats

against the nation of Iran and the resistance of the nation of

Iran’, and said that such remarks should be consigned ‘to the last

century’. – AFP

GETTING READY: Employees

work on a boat in front of a

container ship, as they are both

crossing the new waterway of

the Suez canal on Saturday,

in the Egyptian port city of

Ismailia, east of Cairo. – AFP

A8

INDIAS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Politics has hampered growth of Bihar: PM

PATNA: On his maiden visit to the east Indian state of Bihar af-ter assuming power, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sat-urday said politics had hampered the development of the state and promised to give more than Rs500 billion special package to the poll-bound state at the right time.

Modi, who was in the state to kick-start his party’s poll cam-paign for Bihar where assembly elections are due later this, inau-gurated several projects at a func-tion attended by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and several Union Ministers.

Referring to Chief Minister’s statement that the 38 km railway line from Daniyawan-Biharsharif could have been completed had polls in 2004 not taken place six months ahead of the tenure of the NDA government ended, he said, “I agree with Nitishji that politics had hindered development creat-ing great loss.”

Taking a jibe at former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, Modi said, “After the change in the gov-ernment, the railway ministers

that came from here halted the work and after we came to power we have again started the work. Let those who wants to do politics do it. But the people of Bihar have been hit because of it.”

Recalling his promise of giving a special package of Rs500 billion to Bihar during the campaign for Parliamentary election, he said he would fulfil the promise at the right time.

“Meine jo Bihar ke janata se vada kiya tha usse age bad ke nib-hayun ga sahi samay par (I’ll de-liver more than I had promised to people of Bihar at the right time),” he said.

“Looking at our dreams for a prosperous Bihar, we will give a bigger package than Rs500 billion. This is my promise. The country

will progress if the eastern part of the nation progress. The develop-ment of Bihar is our prime agenda, development of eastern India is our mission,” he said.

Emphasising on “cooperative federalism, the prime minister said development of the states was necessary for the progress of the country.

He said it was heartening to see that states were now competing with one another in terms of de-velopment.

“Days of chalking out develop-ment plans sitting in Delhi are over. Priority of my government is to devise plans suited to develop-ment of states,” he said.

The prime minister said till all the eastern states like Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, As-

sam and north eastern states were developed, the country would not achieve the desired growth.

The Prime Minister differed with the Chief Minister’s view that Bihar has suffered losses due to the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission.

Modi said after increasing 10 per cent in central tax devolution to the states as per recommenda-tions of 14th Finance Commis-sion, Bihar would get Rs 3,750 bil-lion in five years between 2015-20 which could have been Rs1,500 billion as per the previous devolu-tion formula.

Earlier the Chief Minister in his speech welcomed the PM to Bihar and addressed state BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi as his “old friend” and Nand Kishore Yadav as “most favourite old friend” and actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha as “Bihari Babu.”

Kumar took the opportunity to highlight the state’s contribution to the projects inaugurated by the Prime Minister. Bihar government provided 500 acres of land for new campus of IIT at Bihta. The state paid Rs3 billion for starting two units of 250 MW each of power projects at Barauni, Kumar said.

The CM and PM were seen talking to each others on the dais and the PM applauded Kumar’s speech. Kumar was also seen speaking with LJP President and Union minister Ramvilas Paswan.

Modi launched the Deendayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana.

He also inaugurated the Dani-awan-Bihar Sharif new railway line and flagged off the Rajgir-Bi-har Sharif-Daniawan-Fatuha pas-senger train and Patna-Mumbai AC Suvidha Express. -PTI

Modi inaugurated

several projects at a

function attended by

Chief Minister Nitish

Kumar and several

union ministers

PATNA: Lashing out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for com-ments purported to be directed against him, RJD president Lalu Prasad accused the PM of trying to “demean” the people of Bihar and “create a rift” between him and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

“Modi is trying to demean the people of Bihar. The people here know how much JD(U) and RJD have served them. He is lauding one of us and criticising another. This is a clear strategy to divide us. He is trying to create rift between Kumar and me,” Prasad told me-dia persons.

Prasad asserted “Modi’s ploy to create a rift (between him and Kumar) will not succeed and the public will give a befitting reply”.

The RJD chief’s quick rebuff came soon after Modi targeted him in his speech while inaugu-rating several projects, including a new project for IIT Patna, at pro-gramme here in which Kumar was also present.

Modi had said: “I agree with Ku-mar. Railway ministers after him did not work, which halted rail-way projects initiated during Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government at the Centre.”

The comment was taken as an attack on Prasad, as he had suc-ceeded Kumar as Railways Minis-ter in the UPA I government that followed. It was also widely seen as a criticism of the Congress-led government at the Centre then.

Kumar’s JD(U), RJD, Congress and Nationalist Congress Party are already in alliance to contest

the state assembly polls, sched-uled to be held in October-No-vember this year.

Reacting to the prime minis-ter’s announcement that he will provide a special package to the state at the right time,

Prasad said “Modi will not give any special package to Bihar. We will take it. It is the right of our people. “He promises so much for everyone every time he comes here, but nothing has been ful-filled so far,” he said.

Prasad who has been demand-ing the release of caste census data, also pointed out that the Prime Minister did not speak any-thing regarding it.

He said a survey by a leading television channel has shown that 52 per cent respondents support-ed Kumar as the popular leader, making him more popular than Modi who could muster only 45 per cent. -PTI

P O L L B A T T L E

ELECTION RALLY: RJD chief Lalu Prasad at the working meeting

of Bihar Rajya Nonia Mahasangh in Patna on Friday. -PTI

Nitish ‘back-stabbed’ Bihar people: ModiMUZAFFARPUR: Kickstart-ing NDA’s poll campaign in Bihar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday focussed his attack on former BJP ally and Chief Minis-ter Nitish Kumar, accusing him of “back-stabbing” the people of the state and alleging that there is some problem with his “DNA”.

Modi also targeted Kumar for allying with RJD, saying he was trying to drag the state back to the ‘jungle raj’, and asked the voters to reject such people as they “can-not be trusted” again and elect NDA with a two-third majority for changing Bihar’s fate.

He said Bihar will be given a special package “bigger” than Rs 500 billion which he had promised earlier and that will be announced

after the end of Monsoon ses-sion of Parliament as his “lips are sealed till then”.

Addressing a public meeting here, he said Kumar practices “political untouchability” as he recalled how the JD(U) leader had refused to entertain him after inviting him over dinner and had snapped ties with BJP because of his dislike towards him two years back.

Modi took a dig at Lalu for his comments about “drinking poi-son”, which was made in an appar-ent reference to his accepting Ku-mar’s leadership. He said while he had chosen to do so for his “vested interest”, why was he forcing the people of Bihar to “drink poison” along with him.

“During the last elections, Ku-mar had said that if he was un-able to provide electricity to entire Bihar, he would not come to ask for votes again in 2015...But have you got the electricity? It has not come. But he has come to ask for votes. He betrayed your trust. For-get me, he even back-stabbed you. Such people cannot be trusted again,” he said.

Seeking to play a dalit card, he said Kumar had practised “po-litical untouchability” not only to-wards him but also a “mahadalit” former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, an erstwhile leader of JD(U), who has since joined NDA.

He said even George Fernandes, former associate of Nitish Kumar, and BJP leader Sushil Kumar

Modi, were not treated well by him even though they had worked shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

“There seems to be some prob-lem in his DNA because the DNA of democracy is not like that. In democracy, you give respect even to your political rivals,” he said.

He said Nitish welcomed his ar-rival with a complaint that he was visiting the state after 14 months.

“Chief Minister, I am grate-ful for the welcome...How times change...There was a time when you used to say that ‘we already have one Modi (Sushil Kumar), so what is the need for another Modi to come to Bihar,” he said, while recalling how Kumar had been strongly resisting his entry into the state. -PTI

T A R G E T I N G B I H A R C M

POLITICAL RIVALS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Bihar Chief

Minister Nitish Kumar at a function for the launch of a number of

government schemes in Patna on Saturday. -PTI

‘Never sought travel documents for Lalit’NEW DELHI: External Af-fairs Sushma Swaraj on Satur-day defended herself against allegations of helping former IPL chief Lalit Modi saying she never requested or recom-mended travel documents for him.

In a series of tweets, Swaraj, who is facing ire of the Opposi-tion led by Congress which is demanding her resignation for helping Modi get travel docu-ments, said it was “absolutely false” that she spoke to Keith Vaz, the British Labour MP, to allow British government to let the former IPL Commissioner travel.

“I am saying this time and again that I never requested or recommended travel docu-ments for Lalit Modi,” she said.

In another tweet, the minis-ter said, “As a Minister I am ac-countable to Parliament. That is the only forum to inform the nation.”

On her earlier tweets when the controversy broke out where she had maintained that her gesture was based on humanitarian ground, Swaraj said, “I left this to the UK Gov-ernment to decide under their own laws and regulations. And that is what they did.”

“Yes I tweeted this on day one. Yet they spread falsehood .... I help people every day. That

too on a single tweet....The lady is suffering from

cancer for the last 17 years. This was the 10th recurrence of cancer,” she tweeted.

Reiterating her stand, she said, “I accepted a debate on the very first day of Parliament session. Congress members are not allowing a debate.” -PTI

L A L I T G A T E

External Affairs Sushma

Swaraj.

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

Prasad asserted: ‘Modi’s ploy to create a rift (between him and Kumar) will not succeed and the public will give a befitting reply’

Modi trying to demean people of Bihar: Lalu

Chief Minister, I am grateful for the welcome...How times change...

There was a time when you used to say that ‘we already have one Modi

(Sushil Kumar), so what is the need for another Modi to come to Bihar

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

‘House will not work without resignations’NEW DELHI: Congress will not allow Parliament to function till the ministers whose names have surfaced in Lalit Modi controversy and Vyapam scam resign, party leader Ashwani Kumar said on Saturday, stressing that it was op-position’s right “to oppose, expose and depose” the government.

The Congress MP said that the responsibility of running Parlia-ment is of the ruling party and not the opposition.

“We have clearly stated our strategy. Till the time, the minis-ters give their resignation, Parlia-ment will not function. Running Parliament is the responsibility of the ruling party and not the oppo-sition.

“It is the right and responsibility of the opposition to oppose, expose and depose the government,” the former union minister said.

Parliament’s proceedings in the first week of the Monsoon Session have been a complete wash-out, with both Houses adjourning on Friday till Monday without trans-acting any business as the dead-lock between the opposition and the ruling party persisted over issues like the Lalit Modi contro-versy and the Vyapam scam. The opposition remained unrelenting on its demand for resignation of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Min-ister Vasundhara Raje. -PTI

S C A M S

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INDIAS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

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Governor confers with top officials on Memon’s plea

MUMBAI: Maharashtra Gover-nor Ch Vidyasagar Rao on Sat-urday held consultations with Home and Law Department of-ficials on the mercy petition sub-mitted by 1993 Mumbai blasts convict Yakub Memon.

The BJP-led government head-ed by Devendra Fadnavis had sent its opinion to the Governor late last evening on the plea sub-mitted by Memon following the Supreme Court’s rejection of his

curative petition which sought a stay on execution of his death sentence slated for July 30.

The Governor on Saturday called Additional Chief Secre-tary (Home) K P Bakshi, Law and Judiciary officials and Advocate General Anil Singh for consul-tations. When asked about the outcome of the meeting, official sources said, “There has been no decision. The matter is under consideration of the Governor.”

The government, however, had earlier indicated that it stood for sticking to the schedule for hang-ing and abiding by the Supreme Court directions on the matter.

“There was no question of changing the plan to hang Memon

on July 30. The date of hanging has been communicated to the state government by the special court. Since no court has stayed the judicial order, there is no question of changing the date. Memon will be hanged as per the court order,” highly placed sourc-es had said earlier this week.

Chief Minister Fadvanvis, who declined to reveal the govern-ment’s stand, had said he would make a statement on July 29.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is slated to hear on Monday the plea of Memon seeking stay of ex-ecution of his death sentence.

Memon, whose curative peti-tion against the death sentence awarded by special TADA court was dismissed by the Supreme Court earlier this week, is lodged in Nagpur Central Jail. As many as 257 people were killed and over 700 injured in the serial blasts in Mumbai on March 12, 1993. Me-mon was the only convict in the case whose death penalty was up-held by the apex court. After his curative petition was dismissed, Memon has submitted a mercy petition to Maharashtra Governor. The President had earlier rejected his mercy petition. — PTI

Maharashtra

governor called

additional chief

secretary (Home),

law and judiciary

officials and

advocate general for

consultations

Nun barred from exam for wearing veilTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A Keralite nun was on Saturday denied permission to take the All India Pre Medical Entrance Test (AIPMT) here after she refused to remove her veil and Holy cross as required under the CBSE’s new dress code.

Sister Saiba, who was to take the test at the Jawahar central school on Saturday morning in the capital of the south Indian state of Kerala, said she sought permission to write the examina-tion with her veil and cross.

However, the school Principal told her about the guidelines is-sued by the Central Board of Sec-ondary Education (CBSE). She then requested for a separate room

to write the examination without the veil and cross, but it was not accepted by the school authorities, she told mediapersons. “I request-ed that I may be given a separate room where I will remove the veil and cross and write the test, but that was not allowed,” she said. The Principal told her that she was also a Christian and understood her plight, but as per CBSE guide-lines, veil and cross cannot be per-mitted inside the examination hall. Many students were seen remov-ing head scarfs, ear rings and all other articles banned before enter-ing the hall at various examination centres in the state. They were al-lowed inside only after body frisk-ing. The Supreme Court had on

Friday refused to entertain plea of an Islamic organisation that Mus-lim girl applicants be allowed to wear ‘hijab’ (scarf ), a customary religious dress, while appearing for the AIPMT.

“Faith is something different from wearing some kind of cloth,” a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu stated, adding the AIPMT was being held again at its direction and some “reason-able restrictions” were needed. Kerala High Court had earlier granted conditional permission to two Muslim girls to appear for the test wearing hijab. In the backdrop of large scale irregularities in the AIPMT held in May this year, the apex court had directed CBSE to

conduct a second test following which CBSE imposed a strict dress code, banning jeweleries, hair pins, head scarf or veils, shoes, watches and all electronic devices. React-ing to the incident, Syro Malabar Church spokesperson Father Paul Thelekkat, said it was “unfortu-nate” that the nun was not permit-ted to write the test.

“The Catholic church does not consider veil as the most impor-tant religious symbol of the Cath-olic faith. At the same time, we do not subscribe to the view of the Supreme court Chief Justice that 3-4 hours without veil does not make any difference. It does make and it is up to the citizen to take the decision”, he said. — PTI

M E D I C A L E N T R A N C E T E S T

1993 Mumbai blasts convict Yakub Memon. – File photo

A10

PAKISTAN S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

FEEDING PIGEONS A man holds a bucket of lentils while feeding pigeons in front of a mosque in Karachi, Pakistan, on Saturday. Many Pakistanis believe feeding pigeons brings

good luck. — Reuters

Three killed in Abbottabad earthquakeISLAMABAD: At least three people were killed when a 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck northern Pakistan early Saturday, officials said.

The United States Geological Survey said the tremor struck at a relatively shallow depth of 26 kilo-metres with its epicentre located 15 kilometres (nine miles) to the northeast of Islamabad.

An official in the northwestern town of Abbottabad, around 50 kilometres from Islamabad, said two women and a nine-year-old child were killed when their house collapsed.

“A house built of mud in the outskirts of Abbottabad collapsed due to the earthquake, leaving two women and a young boy dead and a minor girl injured,” senior police official Sher Akbar Khan told AFP.

The women were aged 25 and 48 and the boy nine. The injured girl was about six, Khan said.

Buildings shake in capitalThe quake was felt in several cities in the provinces of eastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber Pakh-tunkhwa, Ghulam Rasul, a sen-ior meteorologist at the Pakistan Meteorological Department, told AFP.

Residents of the Pakistani capi-tal reported buildings and vehicles shaking after the quake hit at 1:59 am local time (2059 GMT Friday).

Local meteorologists measured the quake at 4.6 magnitude with a depth of just 10 kilometres. — AFP

E A R L Y M O R N I N G

Government secures $5 billion in form of loans, grantsISLAMABAD: Pakistan received $5.6 billion in foreign financing in fiscal year 2015, over 90 per cent of which was in the form of loans. The government fell short of its estimates by $1.8 billion, mainly due to its inability to introduce reforms in the energy sector, and made up for the shortfall with heavy domestic borrowing.

The government had projected receiving $7.4 billion in loans and grants in the fiscal year that ended June 30. Instead, it was able to se-cure only $5.1 billion in loans and $515 million in grants, according to figures released by the Econom-ic Affairs Division of the finance ministry.

Among the grants, the United Kingdom was the single largest do-nor, giving $260 million, followed by the United States, which gave

$97.4 million, and China, which provided $47.7 million.

Of the $5.1 billion in new for-eign debt, $1 billion was raised by floating a US-dollar denominated sukuk (Islamic bond) on the global capital markets. The government also secured a $100 million short-term loan from the London-based Standard Chartered Bank after loans from multilateral lenders fell through.

As much as 18 per cent of the to-tal economic assistance was short-term credit that the government has to either roll over or retire in fiscal 2016. Roughly one-fourth of the foreign inflows came in shape of budgetary support while pro-ject assistance was slightly over one-third. Only 2 per cent of the receipts were meant for 2014 flood relief activities.

Part of the reason behind the shortfall was lethargy on the part of Pakistani bureaucrats in ap-proving the development projects that needed foreign financing, as well as delays in procurement, ac-cording to officials familiar with the budgetary process. As a result of the bureaucratic laziness, many foreign funded projects will now

face delays. Pakistan received Rs92 billion in foreign financing for development projects in fiscal 2015, against a budgeted Rs102 billion.

According to the EAD, the Asian Development Bank gave $450 mil-lion in loans in fiscal 2015, 59 per cent less than the government’s estimates of $1.1 billion. The ADB

delayed the approval of $400 mil-lion in budgetary support for the energy sector due to the govern-ment’s failure to implement re-forms.

The World Bank gave $1.2 bil-lion, or slightly less than two-thirds of annual estimates of $1.9 billion. The World Bank too has postponed the approval of a $500 million loan for energy sector re-forms.

The Washington-based lender was the single largest source of development assistance last year, followed by Islamic Development Bank and China.

After failing to implement the reforms that would have resulted in financial assistance from the ADB and the World Bank, the gov-ernment turned to domestic bor-rowing to make up for the short-

fall, borrowing Rs865 billion ($8.5 billion) from local financial insti-tutions in fiscal 2015, compared to Rs303 billion in fiscal 2014, ac-cording to the State Bank of Paki-stan. The government’s heavy bor-rowing has meant that banks have very little left to lend to the private sector.

China lent slightly over $1 bil-lion, which was 30 per cent less than the government’s estimate of $1.5 billion. Beijing lent mainly for the construction of two nuclear power plants in Karachi.

The Islamic Development Bank was the only multilateral institu-tion that gave more than the gov-ernment’s estimates.

The country received $1.15 bil-lion from the IDB, which was 15 per cent more than the govern-ment’s projections. — Express Tribune

F I S C A L W O E S

According to the Economic Affairs Division, the Asian Development Bank gave $450 million in loans in fiscal 2015, 59 per cent less than the government’s estimates of $1.1 billion

Five Peshawar survivors leave for internship in US

PESHAWAR: At least 10 students from army-run schools, including five from Army Public School on Warsak Road, left for Washington DC on Friday for the International Visitors Leadership Programme.

An Inter-Services Public Rela-tions (ISPR) spokesperson said students had been selected for the programme based on their aca-demic performance.

“All 10 students left Peshawar for Islamabad Thursday evening,” the spokesperson said.

“Friday morning, they boarded a flight at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto International Airport for Wash-ington DC.”

According to the spokesper-

son, five of these students belong to APS on Warsak Road. “The remaining students belong to an-other army-run school on Mall Road,” he added.

According to the schedule, the students will visit the US for three weeks. They will visit Washing-ton DC, New York and other ma-jor cities and attend classes at

various educational institutes in the country.

A teacher from the school on Mall Road has confirmed the visit. “Students from both schools are position holders and were selected for the trip because of their aca-demic performance,” he said.

“Some of the students from my school include Waleed, Maryam

Shahid and Maryam Jan. They are accompanied by the section head of the school.” However, the names of APS students could not be ascertained. “As far as I know, the APS students who have gone on the trip are position holders, the cream of the crop,” the teacher said.

Members of the Shuhada Ghazi

Forum voiced dissatisfaction over not being consulted about the visit.

When contacted, the forum’s president Abid Raza Bangash said he was neither taken into confidence about which students would be sent on the trip nor con-sulted about the selection pro-cess. “I came to know through the media,” he added.

Children of civiliansQaiser Ali, who leads another fac-tion of the forum, said eight of 10 students are children of high-ranking military officials. “Only two of them are children of civil-ians,” he added.

Leaders of both factions com-plained the government has failed to consult them about similar visits in the past. Furthermore, it has also not informed them about events held in memory of APS vic-tims.

“I met the principal and in-formed her about our grievances,” Ali said. “Members of both fac-tions are disappointed over the government and school manage-ment’s policies.”

However, a father who lost his son in the APS massacre told The Express Tribune miscreant ele-ments were misusing the forum to serve their narrow interests.

“There are some people who introduce themselves as office-holders but have no links with the victims,” he said.

“Their children aren’t even en-rolled at the school.” — Express Tribune

A total 10 students

were selected

on the basis of

their academic

performance. They

will be taking part

in the International

Visitors Leadership

Programme

NEW BEGINNING: Pakistani Army chief Raheel Sharif, right, speaks with a student at the Army Public

School after it was reopened following an attack there by Taliban militants in Peshawar, on January

12. — AFP/INTER SERVICES PUBLIC RELATIONS file photo

Three citiesmake it onlist of most polluted 20ISLAMABAD: Three Pakistani cities are listed among 20 most polluted cities in the world, ac-cording to the World Economic Forum.

Of the Pakistani cities, Kara-chi, Peshawar and Rawalpindi are among the 20 most pol-luted cities in the world, as per the most recent statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) compiled from more than 1,600 cities for the years 2008 to 2013.

Karachi ranks number five just ahead of Peshawar and Rawalpindi which stand at six and seven on the list of 20 most polluted cities.

Quality of airThe WHO report listed 1,600 cities in 91 countries and ranked them according to the quality of their air which is measured for concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 that is particles smaller than 10 or 2.5 microns which are harmful toxins that can cling to the lungs and cause diseases.

Pakistan records the highest level over all of the 91 countries in the WHO air pollution data-base.

13 Indian citiesInterestingly, 13 of the 20 cities on the list are Indian. Delhi tops the list of the most polluted cit-ies followed by Patna, Gwalior and Raipur. — Express Tribune

E N V I R O N M E N T A L W O E S

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Where every rain cloud has a silver lining

AL AIN (UAE): The United Arab Emirates (UAE), one of the world’s most arid countries, is striving to capture every drop of rain it can wring from the clouds that pass over the desert nation.

In the blazing sunshine at Al Ain airport, a twin-propeller Beech-craft stands ready to fly into action at a moment’s notice on a cloud-seeding mission.

The plane is armed with salt flares that are fired into a promis-ing cloud to increase condensation and hopefully trigger a downpour.

The UAE, an oil-rich federa-tion of about eight million people, ranks among the world’s top 10 driest countries.

Its annual rainfall stands at 78 millimetres (three inches), more than 15 times less than what falls in an average year in the United Kingdom.

The UAE’s National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) runs the so-called cloud seeding programme.

Its Abu Dhabi-based forecast-ers monitor weather radars to tell pilots when to take off on rainfall-inducing sorties.

“As soon as they see some con-vective cloud formations, they launch us on a flight to investi-gate” to try “to seed the cloud”, said Mark Newman, deputy chief pilot at NCMS.

Speaking at the base for a fleet of four Beechcraft King Air C90 aircraft, Newman said summer is usually the busiest season.

That is when clouds form over the eastern Al Hajar mountains which deflect the warm wind blowing from the Sea of Oman.

The strength of the updraft de-termines the number of flares fired as the plane explores the base of the forming cloud.

“If we’ve got a mild updraft, we usually burn one or two flares. If we’ve got a good updraft, we burn four, sometimes six flares into the cloud,” he said.

Not all seeded clouds produce rainfall, but it happens often, said Newman.

“It is fantastic... As soon as there is rain, there is a lot of excitement. We can hear the guys in the office are happy,” he said.

The effectiveness of cloud-seed-ing in increasing rainfall has often been questioned.

However, US ski resorts in Colo-rado reportedly use the method to induce heavier snowfall.

China also used rain dispersal technology to ensure dry weather during the opening of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

To cover its surging water needs, driven by rapid economic growth and a large influx of foreigners, the UAE has resorted mainly to desali-nation. The Gulf country accounts for 14 per cent of the world’s de-salinated water and is the second largest producer after neighbour-ing Saudi Arabia. The country has 33 desalination plants that provid-ed 42 per cent of its needs, accord-ing to a 2013 report by the environ-ment and water ministry.

But groundwater represents 44 per cent of used water, putting im-mense pressure on the country’s reserves.

Another 14 per cent of water us-

age comes from treated wastewa-ter, mostly for irrigation and and landscaped green areas.

Rain triggered through cloud seeding is much cheaper than desalinated water, according to Omar Al Yazeedi, head of research at NCMS.

In 2010, four days of heavy rain induced by cloud seeding brought downpours equivalent to the nine-year output of a single desalination plant in Abu Dhabi, he said.

“This shows that there is a huge amount of water that could be tapped... It is a source that can not be ignored,” he said.

Studies show that cloud seeding can increase the amount of rain by between five and 70 per cent, depending on the quality of the clouds, he said.

The American Meteorological Society said in 2010 that despite some uncertainty over its effec-

tiveness, “large potential benefits can warrant relatively small in-vestments to conduct operational cloud seeding”.

The UAE is also looking into methods to preserve the rain that does hit the ground, instead of al-lowing it to quickly evaporate or flow off into the sea.

It has built dams and reservoirs to gather water that flood desert wadis. The country has around 130 dams and levees with a storage ca-pacity of about 120 million cubic metres (more than four billion cu-bic feet), according to the ministry report.

NCMS executive director Ab-dulla Al Mandoos said studies were being prepared to plan more dams and to protect water, aimed at directing rain “from the cloud right into the aquifer”.

“We do not want to waste a drop of water,” he said. — AFP

In the blazing

sunshine at Al Ain

airport, a twin-

propeller Beechcraft

stands ready to

fly into action at a

moment’s notice

on a cloud-seeding

mission

READY TO TAKE OFF: An airport employee signals to a twin-propeller Beechcraft plane that is fixed with salt flares which are fired into a promising cloud to increase condensation and hopefully trigger rainfall, as it prepares to take off on a cloud-seeding mission at Al Ain airport on April 23, this year. – AFP

ALL SET FOR SORTIES: A pilot checks salt flares attached to a twin-propeller Beechcraft plane at al-Ain airport on April 23 this year. – AFP

FINAL CHECKS: A pilot and a UAE official from the national center for meteorology and seismology check salt flares attached to a twin-propeller Beechcraft plane at Al Ain airport on April 23. – AFP

SALT FLARES: A pilot and a United Arab Emirates official from the national center for meteorology and seismology check salt flares attached to a twin-propeller Beechcraft plane at Al Ain airport on April 23, this year. – AFP

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Rosie Millard

Here’s the good news: We are probably not alone in the universe, because the pres-ence of a planet which is rather like us in

shape and distance from the sun has been discov-ered. Here’s the bad news: This “sister” planet, the rather prosaically named Kepler-452b, is more than 8,400 trillion miles away. Trillion. Even if we go for the American trillion, that is still a sobering 8,400,000,000,000,000 miles away.

Light from Kepler-452b, or we should say the parent star around which Kepler-452b orbits (since we haven’t ever seen this planet, we know it is there only because light from its “sun” dims ever so slightly when Kepler-452b passes in front of it), has taken 1,400 years to arrive at the mighty eye of NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope, which itself sits 93 million miles above Earth.

That means that in terms of Earth years, light from Kepler-452b’s sun left our sister planet in AD615, and has been travelling through space towards us ever since. What was happening on Earth, back in 615? Let me quickly check, using a device which was, at that point, many hundreds of years away from invention. Not very much to show in the annals of history. Apparently the Bal-kans were being overrun in 615. The Anglo-Saxons massacred 1,000 Christian monks at Bangor. Since then light from Kepler-452b’s parent star has been trundling faithfully on through empty space to-wards the NASA’s scope.

During this time quite a lot of things have hap-pened, including the building of the Great Wall of China, the stitching of the Bayeux Tapestry, the writing of the US Declaration of Independence, the invention of penicillin, the Great War and Paul Simon, and the birth and death of billions of individuals, and innumerable other things that has been marvellous, dire, or just ordinary in our little world.

Kepler-452b may be, it’s true, a bit bigger than us, but the reason NASA is excited about it is be-cause it is (probably) a rocky planet which inhab-its the same “Goldilocks” terrain of proximity to its parent star: Not so near as to get frazzled, but not so far as to get utterly iced over. It takes just over an Earth year to orbit its “sun”. Furthermore, it is apparently 1.5 billion years older than Earth, so it has certainly been around long enough for in-

telligent life to evolve. Water could probably exist on its shores.

Shores? Who knows if it has shores, and wheth-er they are like the shores of Barbados, Lake Victo-ria or the banks and braes o’ Bonnie Doon. Because we will never know. We will never be able to send a signal to Kepler-452b, and we will never get one back in return. Are you kidding? Light takes 1,400 years to cover the distance. Nothing goes faster. So even if we sent a message to Kepler-452b, it would be 3415 when it arrived, and 4815 when we might expect a reply... oh, it is just too ghastly to contem-plate. NASA data analyst Jon Jenkins has actually envisaged travelling to Kepler-452b “with an ark full of plants or animals... it would feel a lot like home”, he has stated, which frankly puts him in the world of The Little Prince, not the world of NASA.

Jenkins is articulating something which Saint-Exupéry captured in his classic book, and which the graphic designers who appeared this week on the BBC bulletins also suggested, with their repre-sentations of Kepler-452b showing clouds, lakes and (almost) an Arrivals lounge. He is acknowl-edging the same thing as the Russian Yuri Milner, who this week gave $100m to scientists, including Stephen Hawking, to look for aliens in the Milky Way. We all yearn for a signal to show we are not alone. We will never stop looking for one, even though we have given up on our own solar system.

Yet the numbers offer no comfort. If we had discovered life on Mars, that would have been bad enough. It takes a rocket seven months to get to Mars. It took Nasa years to fly past Pluto. But Kepler-452b? Furthermore, there is the worry about Kepler-452b’s age; as it is more than a bil-lion years ahead of us, who knows where evolu-tion has taken it? We might find that life was very much not as we know it. Indeed, it might be rather like living at a Star Trek convention, or that nasty moment in Ant Man where the hero leaves the comforting world of Michael Douglas’s study and goes “sub atomic”, rolling around in a foetal position surrounded by opening and closing geo-metric shapes. For ever. At which point, I would rather reread The Little Prince.

I value NASA and its determination to keep looking, but the mind-troubling suggestions pro-voked by its telescope only make Earth appear more alone than ever, not the reverse.

- The Independent

Follow these simple tips HOW TO GET UP EARLY?

Turn off your phone

Read a book(not online, you can’t browse away from it)

Use a blanketthat keeps you warm(best sleep is between 16-21 °C)

Drink water before going to bed (is healthy and relaxing)

Put the alarm across the room, you can’t reach easily the snooze button

Sleep in total darkness,

Melatonine, the sleep hormone, is

produced in the dark

Need to ensure gold product prices decrease as wellThis refers to the online report, Gold price dip spurs sharp rise in sales in Oman (July 24). The constant fall in gold prices is beneficial to consumers. However, it must be ensured that the total price of jewel-lery per gram sold by shopkeepers is actually less than the earlier offer. This is because the shopkeepers never sell any gold ornament below the cost and chances are they could increase the percentage of

current making charges to compensate for the loss, if there is any. — Sasi Menon, Muscat

Very excited to see Oman book spot in WorldTwenty20 in IndiaThis refers to the online story, Oman make history, book World Twenty20 spot (July 23). While watching the match and also the presentation, I literally did not move from my seat. My excitement level was higher than when India won the World Cup for the second time. — Vinesh Mandalia, Muscat

Bobby Jindal statement on gun control is extremely strangeThis refers to the report on the latest shooting in the United States. This time around two moviegoers were gunned down in a city in Louisiana by a white man. I cannot understand what is going on in that country. This is highlighted by the state-

ment of the state’s Governor Bobby Jindal that it would be better not to discuss gun control. This attitude could be because he is himself is a presidential candidate of the 2016 elections. I fail to understand US claims to be a superpower and the most democratic country with such state of affairs. — Firas Taheri, Muscat

T I M E S O F O M A NS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5A12

Finding ‘sister planet’ makes us more alone

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Full credit to Director Kabir Khan and superstar Salman Khan for making a passionate story out of ‘Bajrangi Bhaijan’ (BB), whose echo will resonate long after the credits roll over. It will touch a

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For decades, central banks lorded over markets. Traders quivered at the omnipotence of monetary authorities -- their every move,

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More than 57,000 expatriate workers have absconded from their em-ployers since the begin-ning of this year, accord-ing to figures from the Ministry of Manpower

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WORLDS U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Coalition declares five-day truce in Yemen to allow aid

ADEN: The Saudi-led coalition bombing Yemeni rebels since March declared a five-day truce on Saturday so aid can reach a country the UN says is on the brink of a humanitarian disaster.

Announcing the unilateral truce to begin from midnight Sunday, a statement on the offi-cial Saudi Press Agency said the coalition also reserved the right to respond to “military activity or movement” by the Houthi rebels during the ceasefire.

SPA said the decision was taken at the request of Yemen’s Presi-dent Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who has taken refuge in the Saudi capital with much of his gov-ernment. Hadi, whose support-ers have recaptured most of the southern port of Aden from the rebels after four months of war,

wanted the truce for the “delivery and distribution of the maximum amount of humanitarian and medical aid”, it said. Two previous UN-brokered ceasefires failed to take hold.

35 civilians killedThe Saudi move came as Yemeni medical sources said a coalition air raid killed at least 35 civilians in the southwest of the war-rav-aged Arabian Peninsula nation.

Women and children were among the dead in the Friday night strike on the town of Mokh-ba near the country’s third city

Taez, the sources said. Residents said the raid hit a residential neighbourhood where employees of the town’s power station live. They said several houses were destroyed and dozens of people were wounded. Some witnesses said the district had been targeted by mistake, but others alleged that the Houthis had taken up posi-tions in the area.

In March, the coalition began a campaign of air strikes after the Houthis swept into Sanaa and pushed south towards Aden, where Hadi initially took refuge before fleeing to Riyadh.

Coalition jets carried out fresh raids overnight on Houthi posi-tions across Yemen, including around Aden, military sources said on Saturday. The United Na-tions says the conflict has killed more than 3,640 people, around half of them civilians, since late March.

On Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned that civilian suffering in Yemen has reached “unprec-edented levels”. The ICRC said intensifying violence in the south was hamstringing emergency medical aid.

It voiced particular concern over worsening clashes in the southern provinces of Taez and Aden.

“The suffering of the civilian population has reached unprec-edented levels,” ICRC mission chief in Yemen Antoine Grand said in a statement.

In Aden and Taez, “it is becom-ing increasingly difficult for us to reach affected areas, to evacuate the dead and the wounded and to provide life-saving assistance”, Grand added. The aid group urged both pro-Hadi forces and the re-bels and their allies to let humani-tarian groups work.

Aden’s international airport was closed for months, but recent gains by Hadi loyalists allowed it to reopen this week. Four aircraft carrying humanitarian supplies have since landed there, although the airport came under fire from rebels on Thursday as a Saudi plane was unloading.

The ICRC warned that, as the fighting escalated, so too did “shortages of water, food and fuel across the country”.

A boat chartered by the Red Cross and loaded with humanitar-ian supplies successfully docked at Aden Thursday. The ICRC in-sisted that aid should not be held hostage by the shifting situation on the ground. “All sides must fa-cilitate our access and respect our mandate,” it said.

A humanitarian ceasefire de-clared by the UN earlier this month was not respected, and the world body warned that the im-poverished country was just “one step away from famine”. — AFP

Announcing the

unilateral truce to

begin from midnight

Sunday, Saudi Press

Agency said the

decision was taken

at the request of

President Abedrabbo

Mansour Hadi

Turkey carries out new strikes

against IS, Kurdish militants

ISTANBUL: Turkey’s military on Saturday carried out a new wave of air and artillery strikes against IS group militants in Syria and Kurdish militants in northern Iraq, in an escalating campaign Ankara says is aimed at rooting out terror.

The two-pronged operation against IS and the outlawed Kurd-istan Workers Party (PKK) -- two groups who are themselves bit-terly opposed -- came after a week of deadly violence in Turkey the authorities blamed on both or-ganisations.

The PKK blasted the air raids on its northern Iraq mountain stronghold, saying a fragile cease-fire that had been in place since 2013 with Ankara “no longer has any meaning”.

After raids overnight, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkish war planes were car-rying out new daytime raids against IS in Syria and PKK in northern Iraq.

Meanwhile, Turkish ground forces were pounding targets be-longing to both groups with artil-lery, he added.

“No one should doubt our de-termination,” he added. “We will not allow Turkey to be turned into a lawless country.”

RaidsThe raids against IS, which had begun before dawn on Friday, marked a major shift in policy towards the group by key NATO member Turkey, which has faced severe criticism from its West-ern allies for not doing enough to combat the militants.

But the “anti-terror” operation has now been expanded to strikes on the PKK in neighbouring Iraq,

where the banned group’s mili-tary forces are based.

Davutoglu’s office said shelters and warehouses containing PKK weapons were hit in the north-ern Iraq operation, listing seven locations where the strikes had been carried out including Mount Kandil, where the PKK’s military leadership is based.

Davutoglu said he had earlier Saturday spoken to Massud Bar-zani, the president of the Kurd-ish-ruled autonomous region in northern Iraq, who expressed his “solidarity” with the operation.

The air strike raised questions about the future of the fragile

peace process between Turkey and the PKK, which has for dec-ades waged a deadly insurgency in the southeast for self-rule that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.

The PKK’s military wing, the People’s Defence Forces (HPG), said in a statement on its website that Turkey had “unilaterally ter-minated” the ceasefire.

“Amid this intense aerial bom-bardment, the truce no longer has any meaning,” it said.

Turkish security forces on Sat-urday launched new raids to ar-rest suspected IS and PKK mem-bers in Istanbul and other cities, adding to hundreds of detentions already made the day earlier.

A total of 590 people have so far been arrested across Turkey over links to terror groups and for allegedly posing a threat to the state, Davutoglu said. — AFP

W A R A G A I N S T T E R R O R

Pluto wrapped in haze; ground reveals flows of nitrogen iceCAPE CANAVERAL: A stunning silhouette of Pluto taken by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft after it shot past the icy orb last week show an extensive layer of atmospheric haze, while close-up pictures of the ground reveal flows of nitrogen ice, scientists said on Friday.

New Horizons became the first spacecraft to visit Pluto and its entourage of moons and so far has returned about 5 percent of the pictures and science data col-lected in the days leading up to,

during and immediately following the July 14 flyby. The latest batch of images includes a backlit view of Pluto with sun, located more than 3 billion miles away, shining around and through the planet’s atmosphere.

Analysis shows distinct layers of haze in Pluto’s nitrogen, carbon monoxide and methane atmos-phere. The haze extends at least 100 miles (161km) off the surface.

“This is our first peek at weather in Pluto’s atmosphere,” New Hori-

zons scientist Michael Summers, with George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, told reporters during a teleconferenced press briefing. As the tiny particles fall to the ground, they may trigger chemical reactions that give Pluto its reddish hue, he added.

The haze layer, which extends five times farther than predicted by computer models, was not the only surprise. Pressure measure-ments show the total mass of Plu-to’s atmosphere has halved in two

years. “That’s pretty astonishing, at least to an atmospheric scien-tist. That tells you something is happening,” Summers said.

More details will come over the next year as New Horizons sends recorded data back to Earth.

NASA also released new images

of Pluto’s surface, with telltale signs of a wide range of geologic activities including a Pluto version of glacial ice flows.

With surface temperatures just shy of 400 degrees below zero Fahr-enheit (-235 degrees Celsius), Pluto is too cold for the ice to be made of water. Instead, Pluto’s surface ice consists mostly of nitrogen. “We knew that there was nitrogen ice on Pluto... and we imagined that nitro-gen was sublimating, or evaporat-ing, in one place and condensing in

another place. But to see evidence for recent geologic activity is sim-ply a dream come true,” said New Horizons scientist William McKin-non, with Washington University in St. Louis.

“Recent” in geological terms does not mean yesterday, he added. Based on the lack of im-pact craters, scientists suspect the surface of Pluto is less than a few hundred million years old, a fraction of the solar system’s 4.6 billion year age. — Reuters

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

Africa on the move, says ObamaNAIROBI: US President Barack Obama declared on Saturday that “Africa is on the move”, praising the spirit of entrepreneurship at a business summit in Kenya as he kicked off a landmark visit.

Obama arrived in Kenya late on Friday, making his first visit to the country of his father’s birth since he was elected president.

“I wanted to be here, because Africa is on the move, Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world,” Obama said, drawing cheers and applause from dele-gates. “People are being lifted out of poverty, incomes are up, the middle class is growing and young people like you are harnessing technology to change the way Africa is doing business,” Obama said in his first official engagement in Nairobi. The US embassy itself warned the sum-mit could be “a target for terrorists”, but Kenyan President Uhuru Keny-atta, sharing the stage with Obama, said the event showed a different side to Africa. “The narrative of African despair is false, and indeed was never true,” Kenyatta said. “Let them know that Africa is open and ready for business.”

Obama later laid a wreath at the memorial site of the US embassy destroyed in an Al Qaeda attack in 1998, standing in silence in mem-ory of the 224 killed in the twin bombings in Nairobi and Tanza-nia. Obama said he was delighted to be back. “It is wonderful to be back in Kenya,” Obama said, also greeting the summit with a few words of Swahili. “I’m proud to be the first US president to visit Ken-ya, and obviously this is personal for me. My father came from these parts.” — AFP

V I S I T T O K E N Y A

AIR STRIKE VICTIM: A child injured in a recent Saudi-led air strike sits on a hospital bed in Yemen’s

capital Sanaa on Saturday. – Reuters

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SPECIAL MEETING: Turkey’s Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu,

centre, Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, fourth right, and

Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan, fourth left, Commander of

the Turkish Air Forces and Full General Akin Ozturk, second left,

during a special security meeting on terrorist groups IS in Syria

and the PKK in Iraq, at the Cankaya Palace in the capital Ankara

on Saturday. – AFP/HO/Turkish Prime Minister’s Office

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

People are being lifted out of poverty, incomes are up, the middle

class is growing and young people like you are harnessing

technology to change the way Africa is doing business

Barack Obama, US President

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GLOBAL EYES U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

SINGAPORE: People take photos of fireworks in the skyline of Singapore during a National Day Golden Jubilee parade rehearsal on Saturday. The city-state’s 50th independence falls on August 9. — Reuters

INDIA: An Indian model showcases a creation by designer Ashok

Maanya on the penultimate day of the four-day Bangalore Fashion

Week 2015 in Bangalore on Saturday. — AFP

UNITED KINGDOM: Kite enthusiasts participate in the St Annes Kite Festival on the seafront in Lytham St Annes, United Kingdom on

Saturday. The festival, which takes place on July 25 and 26, features single line kites of all shapes and sizes including the world’s largest

teddy bear kite. — AFP

BELARUS: A girl in an inflatable ball plays bubble soccer during the Freaky Summer Party at a park in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday. — AFP

UNITED STATES: Local residents pass a makeshift memorial out-

side of a store owned by one of the victims, Jillian Johnson on Sat-

urday in Lafayette, US. Two people were killed and nine wounded

when a shooter identified as John Russell Houser, 59, opened fire

in a movie theatre, killing himself when police arrived. — Stacy Revere/

Getty Images/AFP

CROATIA: Burned vehicles are seen in Trstenik, southern Croatia,

on Saturday. Several dozen residents were evacuated from a village

on Tuesday as firefighters struggled to keep a raging forest fire

away from houses, state television HRT reported. — Reuters

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Shark kills man as daughter watches

SYDNEY: A diver was killed by a shark on Saturday while hunting scallops off the coast of Australia as his daughter watched helpless-ly, shocking locals in an area not known for such attacks. The deadly incident happened off Maria Island

in the southern island state of Tas-mania following sightings of a large great white shark in the vicinity over recent days. The man, in his late 40s, was diving with his daugh-ter when he failed to resurface.

“My understanding is the daugh-ter returned to the boat and the father returned to get some more scallops,” Tasmania Police Inspec-tor David Wiss told reporters. “He did not return to the surface.

“His daughter became worried and went down and checked on her father, she saw a very large shark, she saw her father being attacked by the shark.”

The woman scrambled back on board their dingy and set off a flare to get the attention of other boats, who came to her aid and helped

haul her father back to the surface using the air hose he was attached to. “But unfortunately he was fa-tally injured,” added Wiss.

Tasmanian Scallop Association president John Hammond said the area, off the state’s east coast, was not known for sharks. “Absolute tragedy for the family. Bloody ter-rible,” he told national radio, adding

that there were a number of other divers in the water at the time. “(The diver was) in the shallow water there, it just struck out of the blue, and bang.”

Michael Kent, mayor of nearby Glamorgan Spring Bay, said Sat-urday’s grisly incident was “ab-solutely devastating”. “I feel for the family,” he told The Examiner

newspaper in Tasmania, adding that a 4.5 metre (15 foot) shark had been spotted in the area a number of times over the past week. “It’s a recreational area. The scallop sea-son has been very good to profes-sional and recreational fisherman and then we’ve got a disaster like this. “The whole community down here will be deeply in shock.”

Diver Danny Smith told the Aus-tralian Broadcasting Corporation he and a friend had a close call in the same area on Friday.

He said he saw a great white while he was in the water but man-aged to get back on his boat, where he and other crew frantically pulled the friend aboard. “The (shark) came to the surface to see where I’d gone I presumed and she sort of took a swipe at him (his friend),” he said.

“We saw fins and arms and legs going everywhere, we were ini-tially thinking that we were going to pull in half a body.

“We got him on the boat and she came right to the back of the boat and then just descended back to the bottom.”

Sharks are a regular feature in Australian waters, and swimmers and surfers have had their share of encounters this year. — AFP

The deadly incident

happened off

Maria Island in the

southern island state

of Tasmania

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UN urges South Sudan to allow aid via River NileJUBA/ADDIS ABABA: South Sudan should lift restrictions on transporting aid supplies us-ing the River Nile, a vital mode of movement in the war-torn country that has almost no proper roads, the United Na-tions’ humanitarian chief said on Saturday.

Also on Saturday in Addis Ababa, negotiators proposed establishing a court to try pos-sible genocide and war crimes in South Sudan, in the latest power-sharing peace proposal hoped to end a 19-month civil war.

South Sudan, the world’s newest nation and one of its poorest, has been mired in a conflict since December 2013 that pits President Salva Kiir’s SPLA army against troops loyal to rebel leader Riek Machar, a former deputy president.

Fighting has killed thou-sands of people and displaced more than 2.2 million, 500,000 of whom have fled the country, since the country plunged into civil war. Many rely on aid to survive.

The country relies heavily on the River Nile for transport due to a lack of tarmacked roads. The river was a lifeline for aid recipients until the government put restrictions on its use.

In early June, government spokesman Michael Makuei Lueth said for security reasons all UN humanitarian cargo would be searched along high-ways, on water and at the Juba International Airport.

UN Emergency Relief Coor-dinator Stephen O’Brien urged Kiir to “ensure the restriction on barges transporting vital life-saving supplies on River Nile be lifted without delay,” making the comments at a news conference in Juba. O’Brien visited Bentiu and Leer in Unity State County, which has experienced some of the worst fighting over its oil fields. On the trip he met relatives of victims of the conflict, some of whom he said had been raped.

In July - in response to sever-al complaints from UN humani-tarian agencies - President Kiir directed that security personnel and other government agencies stop harassing humanitarian aid workers and allow for safe passage for them and their sup-plies. “I call on all parties to up-hold their obligations to comply with the principles of interna-tional humanitarian law and en-sure the safe passage of humani-tarian assistance,” O’Brien said, adding 27 aid workers had been killed and others were unac-counted for during the conflict.

“We need rapid and unhin-dered access to provide assis-tance to conflict affected com-munities by the most efficient means possible - be that air, road or river.”

Peace talksMeanwhile, peace talks, led by the eight-nation East Afri-can IGAD bloc, have been tak-ing place in Ethiopia almost as long as the war, resulting in at least seven failed agreements or ceasefires, all broken within days or even hours. An IGAD draft “compromise agreement” proposes an independent hy-brid court, set up in collabora-tion with the African Union and United Nations, able to try possi-ble genocide, crimes against hu-manity and war crimes. — Agencies

R E S T R I C T I O N S

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien urged Kiir to “ensure the restriction on barges transporting

vital lifesaving supplies on River Nile be lifted without

delay,” making the comments at a news conference in Juba.

BMARKE

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Plastic takes 1,000 years or more to break downWHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW. DON’T WASTE A BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY LIKE OMAN.

MUSCAT: Awareness on cor-porate governance and social responsibility will get a boost in Oman with the recent formation of Oman Governance and Sus-tainability Centre, said Abdul-lah bin Salim Al Salmi, executive president of the Capital Market Authority (CMA).

The centre will ensure that all public and private companies are abiding by the best international practices in these two fields, es-pecially there has been a growing interest in the various kinds of corporate governance due to its economic, legal and social effects.

The Sultanate has been a lead-er in 2002 at the level of the re-gion’s markets when it issued the first corporate governance char-ter for public companies.

Al Salmi also added that there has been a growing interest in the mechanisms, standards and applications of governance as it contributes to enhancing eco-nomic growth and progress. The centre, which was established as per the recent Royal Decree No. 30/2015, will also integrate this concept at the joint stock companies to develop the capi-tal market in the Sultanate and help it become more efficient and competitive.

Al Salmi is optimistic of the role that will be played by the cen-tre in enhancing the status of the Sultanate, which has been known for adopting the best interna-tional practices that safeguard the rights of investors and their investment. The centre will also enhance the Sultanate’s invest-ment status and investors’ confi-dence in the market.

As for as social responsibility is concerned, Al Salmi said that due to the growing interest in social responsibility, CMA has adopted

Oman Social Responsibility ini-tiative, which include the market regulator, a number of leading public, private and family-owned companies. These entities have made great efforts to bring this centre into reality.

He added that the issuance of the Royal Decree culminates all sincere efforts. He pointed out that the adoption of a centre like this will enhance the good citizenship among companies and will regularise the interac-tion among different compa-nies and the communities they are working at.

It will also make it important for companies to attach a great care to the different humanitari-an, ethical, professional, environ-mental, labor right, transparency at work, health, education, train-ing, rehabilitation, abidance by laws and regulations, being away from financial, ethical corruption and local community develop-ment aspects. – ONA

New centre set to boost corporate governance, social responsibility

B E S T P R A C T I C E S

Abdullah bin Salim Al Salmi

— Times file picture

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MARKETSecond phase of Frontier Town at Duqm coming up

MUSCAT: Duqm Development Company started developing the second phase of Duqm Frontier Town, while Al Madinah Real Es-tate Company is building a shop-ping mall there to further develop facilities at the economic zone.

“There are also a number of infrastructure projects, such as the remaining packages of Duqm Port and airport, roads, liquid and bulk material berths, construc-tion of 150 housing units for the citizens, construction of Special Economic Zone Authority at Duqm (Sezad) headquarters, and the new main road to the center of the Wilayat of Duqm, in addi-tion to many other projects,” said

Yahya bin Said Al Jabri, chair-man of Sezad, in a speech pub-lished in the first issue of Duqm Economist magazine.

He said projects implemented in Duqm also include a residen-tial complex for contractors to provide accommodation for workers implemented by Re-

naissance Services, instead of porta cabins. He explained that this complex will accommo-date about 16,000 people and will provide various facilities to its residents.

Development agreements“There are other investments carried out by local and foreign companies with which Sezad signed usufruct and development agreements during the current and prior years in the education-al, health, commercial, indus-trial, logistics and other sectors.”

Al Jabri also added that Sezad provides several facili-ties through its one-stop shop to overcome various difficulties and challenges facing investors. In addition, Duqm overlooks the Arabian Sea, and near the inter-national shipping routes and the key markets in Asia and Africa. Sezad also has the advantage to embrace a variety of projects in different sectors.

“It is not only an industrial zone, a multi-investment eco-nomic zone that has a room for tourism, recreational, real estate, and residential projects. It can accommodate warehouses, hos-pitals, international schools and many other projects, in addition to other key projects relating to ports, dry docks, heavy and pet-rochemical industries. All these projects give Sezad an impetus and readies it to attract different investors,” noted the Sezad chief.

Local communityAl Jabri pointed out that since its inception, Sezad has been focus-ing on implementation of many programmes for the local com-munity and for the local compa-nies to benefit from the projects implemented there. A committee — Local Community Develop-ment Area in Sezad – was also formed. The panel includes members of the local community as representatives of and familiar with the needs of residents.

He further added that Sezad has taken great strides in the area of social development in the region through strengthen-ing its relationship with the local community and implementing a number of programmes to serve it, such as providing 10 scholar-ships for the people of Al Wusta Governorate with a view to qualifying them to work on the projects in the region. – ONA

Projects in Duqm also include a residential

complex for contractors to provide

accommodation for workers, which is being

implemented by Renaissance Services

Bond issue to open todayMUSCAT: A government devel-opment bond for raising OMR300 million will open for subscription on July 26 and will close on Au-gust 2, 2015. The issue is with a maturity period of five years and will carry a coupon rate of three per cent per annum. The Central Bank of Oman (CBO) said in a statement that the auction will be held on August 4, 2015 and the issue settlement date will be on August 9, 2015.

Interest on the new bonds will be paid on February 9 and August 9, every year until maturity date on August 9, 2020.

Competitive biddingInvestors can apply for these bonds through the competitive bidding process only. Investors may submit bids through commer-cial licensed banks operating in the Sultanate.

Investors with applications of one million rial and above can di-rectly submit their bids to Central Bank of Oman after getting them endorsed from their banks. Pro-spectus and application forms can

be obtained from any commercial licensed bank operating in the Sul-tanate of Oman. The bonds are di-rect and unconditional obligations of the Government of Oman. The bonds can be used as collateral to obtain loans from any local com-mercial licensed bank. The bonds can also be traded at prevailing market rates through the Muscat Securities Market (MSM).

The details of the Bonds al-lotted will be recorded in the register maintained by Muscat Clearing and Depositary (MCD). Investors must provide the same bank account details registered with MCD in order to ensure the smooth processing of their bids and the receipt of the coupon pay-ments and principal amount on their scheduled dates. – ONA

D E V E L O P M E N T B O N D

OMR42m worth treasury bills issued by CBO

MUSCAT: Total value of treas-ury bills amounted to OMR42 million at a tender for govern-ment treasury bills held at the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) on July 21. This is with a maturity period of 91 days, from July 22 to October 21, 2015.

The average accepted price reached 99.958 for every OMR100, while the minimum accepted price arrived at 99.945 per OMR100. The average dis-count rate reached 0.16999 per cent and the average yield stood at 0.17006 per cent. The inter-est rate on the Repo operations with CBO is 1 per cent for the period from July 22 to 28 while the discount rate on the treas-ury bills discounting facility with CBO is 1.35 per cent, for the same period. Treasury bills are short-term highly secured financial instruments issued by the CBO on behalf of the govern-ment, which helps the licensed commercial banks to gainfully invest their surplus funds. – ONA

C E N T R A L B A N K O F O M A N

Central Bank of Oman. — Times file picture

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PHILIPPE LEGRAIN*

Eurozone has a German problem. Germany’s beggar-thy-neighbour

policies and the broader crisis response that the country has led have proved disastrous. Seven years after the start of the crisis, the eurozone economy is faring worse than Europe did during the Great Depres-sion of the 1930s. The German government’s efforts to crush Greece and force it to abandon the single currency have desta-bilised the monetary union. As long as German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s administration continues to abuse its dominant position as creditor-in-chief to advance its narrow interests, the eurozone cannot thrive – and may not survive.

Germany’s immense current-account surplus – the excess savings generated by suppress-ing wages to subsidize exports – has been both a cause of the eurozone crisis and an obstacle to resolving it. Before the crisis, it fueled German banks’ bad lending to southern Europe and Ireland. Now that Germany’s annual surplus – which has grown to $255 billion, ap-proaching eight per cent of GDP – is no longer being recycled in southern Europe, the country’s depressed domestic demand is exporting deflation, deepen-ing the eurozone’s debt woes. Germany’s external surplus clearly falls afoul of eurozone rules on dangerous imbalances. But, by leaning on the European Commission, Merkel’s govern-ment has obtained a free pass. This makes a mockery of its claim to champion the eurozone as a rules-based club. In fact, Germany breaks rules with impunity, changes them to suit its needs, or even invents them at will. Indeed, even as it pushes others to reform, Germany has ignored the commission’s recommendations. As a condi-tion of the new eurozone loan programme, Germany is forcing Greece to raise its pension age – while it lowers its own. It is insisting that Greek shops open on Sundays, even though German ones do not. Corporat-ism, it seems, is to be stamped out elsewhere, but protected at home. Beyond refusing to adjust its economy, Germany has pushed the costs of the crisis onto others. In order to rescue the country’s banks from their bad lending decisions, Merkel

breached the Maastricht Trea-ty’s “no-bailout” rule, which bans member governments from financing their peers, and forced European taxpayers to lend to an insolvent Greece. Likewise, loans by eurozone governments to Ireland, Portu-gal, and Spain primarily bailed out insolvent local banks – and thus their German creditors.

To make matters worse, in ex-change for these loans, Merkel obtained much greater control over all eurozone governments’ budgets through a demand-sap-ping, democracy-constraining fiscal straitjacket: tougher euro-zone rules and a fiscal compact.

Germany’s clout has resulted in a eurozone banking union that is full of holes and applied asymmetrically. The country’s Sparkassen – savings banks with a collective balance sheet of some €1 trillion ($1.1 trillion) – are outside the European Central Bank’s supervisory control, while thinly capitalised mega-banks, such as Deutsche Bank, and the country’s rotten state-owned regional lenders have obtained an implausibly clean bill of health.

The one rule of the eurozone that is meant to be sacrosanct is the irrevocability of member-ship. There is no treaty provi-sion for an exit, because the monetary union is conceived as a step toward a political union – and it would otherwise degen-erate into a dangerously rigid and unstable fixed-exchange-rate regime. Germany has not only trampled on this rule; its finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, recently invented a new one – that debt relief is forbidden in the eurozone – to justify his outrageous behaviour toward Greece.

As a result, Greece’s member-ship in the eurozone – and by extension that of all other mem-bers – is now contingent on submission to the German gov-

ernment. It is as if the United States unilaterally decided that NATO’s principle of collective defense was now conditional on doing whatever the Ameri-can government dictated. The eurozone desperately needs mainstream alternatives to this lopsided “Berlin Consensus,” in which creditors’ interests come first and Germany dominates everyone else. Merkelism is causing economic stagnation, political polarisation, and nasty nationalism. France, Italy, and Europeans of all political stripes need to stand up for other visions of what the euro-zone should be.

One option would be greater federalism. Common politi-cal institutions, accountable to voters across the eurozone, would provide a democratic fis-cal counterpart to the ECB and help cage German power. But increasing animosity among eu-rozone member states, and the erosion of support for European integration in both creditor and debtor countries, means greater federalism is politically unfeasible – and potentially even dangerous. A better option would be to move toward a more flexible eurozone, in which elected national representa-tives have a greater say. With the no-bailout rule restored, governments would have more space to pursue countercyclical policies and respond to voters’ changing priorities.

To make such a system cred-ible, a mechanism for restruc-turing the debt of insolvent governments would be created. This, together with reform of the rules covering the capitali-zation of banks – which incor-rectly treat all sovereign debt as risk-free and do not cap banks’ holdings of it – would enable markets, not Germany, to rein in truly excessive borrowing.The eurozone’s members are trapped in a miserable mar-riage, dominated by Germany. But fear is not enough to hold a relationship together forever. Unless Merkel comes to her senses, she will eventually destroy it. - Project Syndicate

* The author, a former economic adviser to the president of the European Commission, is a vis-iting senior fellow at the London School of Economics’ European Institute and the author of Eu-ropean Spring: Why Our Econo-mies and Politics are in a Mess – and How to Put Them Right.

Eurozone’s German problemC O M M E N T A R Y

German Chancellor Angela

Merkel. — Bloomberg file picture

Iran offers to sell state assets to foreigners

VIENNA: Iran offered to sell state assets to foreigners, said it would cut the government’s role in the economy and pledged a tight mon-etary policy as it sought to attract billions of dollars of investment from abroad after over a decade of isolation. At a business confer-ence in Vienna this week, the first such event since last week’s deal between Tehran and world pow-ers on its nuclear programme, top Iranian officials outlined an eco-nomic policy package designed to win foreign investment.

The package was strikingly pro-market — many of the policies would not have been out of place in a centre-right European govern-ment. If implemented, they could move Iran’s economy well beyond the tight restrictions and heavy state involvement that followed its 1979 Islamic Revolution.

“The government, the parlia-

ment are trying to remove all the obstacles for free investment and for reducing interference of government in private invest-ment,” said Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh.

Well-educated populationWith a young, well-educated popu-lation of just under 80 million and some of the world’s largest energy reserves, Iran looks likely to pro-vide huge investment opportuni-ties. Officials at the conference said Tehran had identified nearly 50 oil and gas projects worth $185 billion that it hoped to sign by 2020. Under the nuclear deal, sanctions that have stifled Iran’s economy are to be lifted when the International Atomic Energy Agency verifies that Iran is hon-ouring its side of the bargain.

Nematzadeh said Iran expected

verification in under three months, and that it believed it could rejoin the SWIFT global electronic pay-ments system — a key step to en-able inflows of foreign money — three months after sanctions were repealed. Foreigners will then be welcome to enter Iran’s economy through joint ventures — including those in the banking sector — and direct investment, such as partici-pation in tenders to buy stakes in state companies, he said.

National oil companyThe national oil company will be off-limits to investors but pet-rochemical and refining firms may be partly sold off, and par-liament has given permission for the sale of assets or projects such as hospitals, schools and highways, he added.

Over the past decade, the gov-ernment has sold off stakes in

state companies worth tens of billions of dollars. But its privati-sation programme has not been fully effective because most of the stakes have gone to state-linked bodies such as pension funds and foundations. Iranian bankers be-lieve that if foreign investors are allowed to enter the Islamic Re-public, they will end up buying as-sets from the cash-strapped funds and foundations, completing the privatisation process. During the sanctions years, the government often favoured state firms over private ones on the grounds of eco-nomic survival. Nematzadeh said this was ending, and parliament had agreed that all firms would be treated equally for tax purposes.

ReformsFor privatised companies to suc-ceed, however, they may need to reduce staff. This might put them in conflict with Iran’s strict labour rules, a legacy of the revolution; a complex, unpredictable legal system adds to risks for foreign companies. Iranian officials at the conference did not describe in de-tail any plans for labour or legal re-forms, which would be politically sensitive and could cost President Hassan Rouhani some of the pub-lic support he has won with the nuclear deal.

But they, however, did outline plans for a conservative monetary and fiscal policy which could re-assure investors. One of the big economic risks that Iran will face after sanctions are lifted is how to keep the economy stable as money flows back into the country and growth accelerates. - Agencies

Top Iranian

officials outlined

an economic policy

package designed

to win foreign

investment at a

business conference

in Vienna

alizz islamic bank gets investment grade credit ratingTimes News Service

MUSCAT: alizz islamic bank (SAOG) has been assigned by Capital Intelligence (CI), the in-ternational credit rating agency, an initial Long-Term Rating on the Oman National Scale of ‘omBBB-’ and a Short-Term Rat-ing of ‘omA3’, on ‘Stable’ Outlook, according to a press release.

Given the relatively short his-tory of alizz islamic bank, the main supporting factors are non-financial. These include strong shareholders including Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth funds, a strong and experienced manage-ment team and well developed policies and procedures. An im-portant supporting factor is the close regulatory oversight by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).

alizz islamic bank was estab-lished in late 2012 and received its Islamic banking license in September 2013. As at end-June

2015, the Bank had six branches and is steadily growing its distri-bution network.

Within a short time framework alizz has established its footprint in Omani banking industry and is being widely regarded as one the most innovative bank and is known for introducing technolo-gy oriented products and services to the Omani banking customers.

Al Shaksy, CEO of alizz islamic bank said “Assignment of invest-ment grade rating by an inter-national agency in such a short span of time affirms our finan-cial strength, support from our shareholders, quality and expe-rience of our management team and risk management frame-work of the Bank.

The bank will continue to re-main conservative, maintain as-set quality of its balance sheet, and will further strengthen its risk management systems to face future economic challenges.

C A P I T A L I N T E L L I G E N C E R A T I N G

STABLE OUTLOOK: alizz islamic bank was set up in 2012 and re-

ceived Islamic banking licence in September, 2013. — Supplied picture

ECONOMIC PACKAGE: Instead of immediately bringing the money

back to Iran when sanctions were lifted, the central bank would

keep some of it in accounts abroad until it was needed to fund

domestic investment projects. - Bloomberg file picture

US approves AT&T’s $49b deal for DirecTVWASHINGTON: AT&T’s $49 billion acquisition of sat-ellite broadcaster DirecTV won final regulatory approval on Friday, clearing the way for a new powerhouse in broad-band and video services. The US Federal Communications Commission said it approved the plan, announced last year, with conditions drawn up to ensure competition and more deployment of high-speed In-ternet connections.

Earlier this week, FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said he had circulated an order approving the mega-deal and the Justice Department said it would not block the merger.

The deal merges AT&T, which offers Internet and television in parts of the US and is one of the biggest wire-less carriers, with DirecTV’s more than 20 million sub-scribers. That creates the largest pay TV provider in the US, but also opens up possi-bilities for other online ser-vices and packages.

“This transaction allows us to significantly expand our high-speed Internet service to reach millions more house-holds, which is a perfect com-plement to our coast-to-coast TV and mobile coverage,” AT&T chairman and chief ex-ecutive Randall Stephenson said, in announcing the com-pletion of the deal. “We’re now a fundamentally differ-ent company with a diversi-fied set of capabilities and businesses that set us apart from the competition.”

Stephenson added that the deal “is all about giving customers more choices for great video entertainment integrated with mobile and high-speed Internet service,”

He further added that “we’ll now be able to meet consumers’ future entertain-ment preferences, whether they want traditional TV ser-vice with premier program-ming, their favourite content on a mobile device, or video streamed over the Internet to any screen.”

AT&T said it becomes “the largest pay TV provider in the US and the world,” with 26 million US customers and 19 million in Latin America. - AFP

A C Q U I S I T I O N

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Greece asks for fresh IMF aid in step closer to huge third bailout

ATHENS: Debt-crippled Greece on Friday took a step closer to a huge third international bailout by formally requesting IMF help, but sources said “logistical prob-lems” were delaying the start of talks in Athens.

The Greek government, which is seeking a three-year bailout worth up to 86 billion euros ($94 billion) to avert financial meltdown and a chaotic exit from the eurozone,

had initially planned to go without fresh help from the IMF as it con-siders the agency too wedded to draconian austerity measures.

But in a letter to Christine La-garde, the managing director of the IMF, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos wrote that Greece was “seeking a new loan” from the IMF.

He noted the Greek parliament has passed two laws enshrining a series of tough reforms demanded

by the creditors, including tax rises and a pensions overhaul, in a step closer to finalising the deal.

“The Greek authorities have committed to implement a num-ber of policies that would enhance fiscal sustainability, strengthen fiscal stability, sustain long-term growth and, importantly, spread the cost of economic adjustment in a fair way,” the finance minis-ter wrote in the letter, which was

dated July 23 and released to the public on Friday. “It is our belief that it will take several quarters before the Greek economy faces up to these challenges and returns to a vigorous and sustainable path to growth with fairness and social inclusion,” he added.

The IMF confirmed receipt of the request, saying that it will next discuss with Greek and EU author-ities “the timing and the modali-

ties” of talks on the next bailout. Tsakalotos said that Greece, which has been bailed out by the Euro-pean Union, European Central Bank and IMF twice since 2010, had already formally requested a new three-year loan from the euro-zone’s bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism.

Greece’s existing aid pro-gramme from the IMF runs un-til early 2016, and the letter ap-

pears to have been a gesture of goodwill as a new request is not technically necessary.

Apparent delayThe request came amid an appar-ent delay in getting the ball rolling on talks to finalise the package.

Negotiators from the creditors, known collectively as the troika, have not set foot in Athens for more than a year as hostility has grown between the two sides.

Greece had said on Thursday that negotiators would fly in to Athens on Friday to begin the talks, but this swiftly became “in the coming days”, according to a Euro-pean Commission spokeswoman, with the location of the talks and offices for the creditors apparently among the sticking points.

“The mission is being prepared. We are still discussing a location as we have to find an accessible place to work, near the ministries,” a source close to the negotiations further added..

The two sides are under enor-mous pressure to hammer out the rescue deal before August 20, when Athens is scheduled to make a loan repayment of 3.2 bil-lion euros to the ECB that it can-not currently afford.

The IMF warned on Thursday that finalising the deal, which is conditioned on Greece imple-menting painful reforms, would not be easy. — AFP

Greek government,

which is seeking a

three-year bailout

worth up to 86b

euros to avert

financial meltdown

and a chaotic exit

from the eurozone,

had initially planned

to go without fresh

help from the IMF

as it considers the

agency too wedded

to draconian

austerity measures

Brazilian economy now hits the skidsSAO PAULO: Bad news piled up on Friday for Brazil’s economy, with the real plunging to its lowest level against the dollar in 12 years and analysts warning the home of samba will need years to recover its economic rhythm.

For President Dilma Rousseff, weakened by government ap-proval ratings of just 7.7 per cent, things appear to be falling apart.

Friday’s tumble of the national currency to 3.34 to the dollar fol-lowed Thursday’s news of unem-ployment rising in June for a sixth month, while annual inflation has risen to almost nine per cent.

Many analysts are of the opin-ion Brazil’s once booming econ-omy suffers deep underlying illnesses, notably the massive cor-ruption scandal unfolding at na-tional oil company Petrobras and rippling across other top compa-nies and into political circles. On Friday, prosecutors announced formal Petrobras-related charg-es against Marcelo Odebrecht, chairman of Brazil’s biggest con-struction firm, Odebrecht.

The once powerful executive is currently in detention.

Macro-economic issuesThe latest sign of macro-eco-nomic problems appeared on Wednesday when the government announced a radical cut to its fis-cal savings goal and said it would

increase austerity measures. Fi-nance Minister Joaquim Levy said the lowering of the surplus goal from 1.1 per cent of GDP to just 0.15 per cent reflected the worsening performance in the world’s seventh largest economy.

With Brazil on the brink of re-cession, “there has been an effect

on tax receipts,” he said. However, the government’s commitment to austerity measures was unshak-en. Cuts of 8.6 billion reais ($2.66 billion) were announced, raising this year’s cuts to $24 billion, the ministry of planning and budget further added.

“The revision is largely to do with the slowdown of the econo-my, which turns out to be deeper than thought,” said Ignacio Cre-spo, an analyst at Guide Inves-timentos in the financial capital Sao Paulo.

“It’s hard to know how far the recession will go, but for sure it will be tougher.

Contrary to what we hoped for a few months ago, the economy will be going down in 2016,” he said.

Another analyst, Andre Ferrei-ra, from Futura, said he didn’t ex-pect growth to return before 2018.

If so, that would add up to a sev-en-year stretch of zero or negative growth in a country that not so long ago had been hoping to ride the commodities boom to top rank economic status. - AFP

R E C E S S I O N

US stocks succumb

to lack of confidence

NEW YORK: After a strong open-ing for the second-quarter report-ing season, US stocks reversed course on a raft of earnings disap-pointments as Wall Street suc-cumbed to lack of confidence this week. Traders also bared their doubts about the US economy’s breakaway from the rest of the globe on Friday, when shares sank more than one percent after poor data on China drove down espe-cially oil and other commodity-tied companies.

For the week, the Dow Jones In-dustrial Average lost 2.9 per cent at 17,568.53, and broader S&P 500 fell 2.2 per cent to 2,079.65.

The Nasdaq began the period looking like it would buck the trend on the back of the two largest US companies, Apple and Google.

The Nasdaq Composite struck a new record close of 5,218.86 on Monday. But investors tossed in that towel, too, dumping Apple shares on Wednesday after its “only” 38 per cent gain in net in-

come in the quarter ending June 27, to $107 billion.

Apple ended up losing 4.0 per cent for the week, and dragging down Google, the previous week’s earnings king, 7.3 per cent. By the end of the week, then, the Nasdaq Composite had given up 2.3 per cent at 5,088.63.

Friday’s sell-off came despite a 10 per cent gain by Amazon — which surprised with a modest profit in the second quarter and became larger by market capitali-sation than the country’s largest traditional retailer, Walmart. The market also found little happiness in the $54 billion merger of An-them and Cigna which will estab-lish the largest US health insurer.

“An unexpected decline in US new home sales and a disappoint-ing read on Chinese manufactur-ing output sapped sentiment,” said Charles Schwab. That could be true, but it also suggested that bullishness was already in short supply on the Street. — Agencies

W A L L S T R E E T

LOAN FACILITY: A man carries bags of goods in an alley in central Athens, Greece on Saturday. The International Monetary Fund said on

Friday it had received a letter from Greece seeking a loan facility. Greece is due to begin talks with European Union and IMF lenders on a

new bailout deal. - Reuters

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

NOT SO ROSY: Analysts say Brazil’s once booming economy suffers

underlying illnesses, notably the massive corruption scandal

unfolding at national oil company Petrobras and rippling across

other top companies and into political circles. - Bloomberg file picture

B6

FEATURES U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Honduras’ homicide rate of 90.4 per 100,000 people is the

world’s highest. The capital, Tegucigalpa, is the country’s larg-

est city, so features on the UNODC cities list, with 1,175 killings

in 2011 – but San Pedro Sula has a higher rate.

The damage in 2013 due to economic crimes in companies operating in

Colombia is estimated at $3.6 billion, or 1% of the Colombian gross domestic

product for 2012, according to the recently released KMPG “Fraud Survey

Colombia 2013 report. In 2011, the damage was $950 million.

An increasingly important challenge for Guatemala is to improve the

levels of citizen security. The World Bank report estimates that crime and

violence represent staggering economic costs for the country, equivalent

to 7.7 per cent of its GDP.

Crime affects an economy in many ways. The first effect

that violence has on an economy is the way it limits interna-

tional capital flows, The high rates of crime also hurt people’s

confidence and the possibility for entrepreneurship.

Mexico has experienced increasingly high crime rates,

especially in major urban centres. The country‘s great

economic polarisation has stimulated criminal activity in the

lower socioeconomic strata, which include the majority of the

country‘s population. Crime continues at high levels.

Guatemalans are steaming. Crowds of them have poured into the streets this month — some 60,000 on May 16 alone — to protest corruption and demand the ouster of President Otto Perez Molina.

Triggered by the scandal over a giant scheme of im-port tax fraud, the widening crisis already has toppled the nation’s vice-president, the energy minister, the Central Bank governor and interior minister.

Social upheaval has a deep history in Guatemala, where Marxist-inspired guerrillas battled security forces from 1960 to 1996, leaving 200,000 dead.

What's new, and encouraging, is the popular revolt against re-surgent corruption, which has reignited partisan feuds and sapped confidence in the country’s still-wobbly democratic institutions at a time when this nation of more than 14.6 million may need them most.

Latin America is no stranger to bureaucrats on the take. The re-gion traditionally merits dismal ratings on Transparency Interna-tional’s annual corruption perception index. In 2014, Guatemala ranked a lowly 115th among 175 countries.

For a while, paying off officials was brushed off as a necessary lu-bricant for the cumbersome gears of government service. “Rouba mas faz,” — “He steals but gets things done” — was the unofficial disclaimer in the 1940s for the famously light-fingered but much ad-mired Sao Paulo governor, Ademar de Barros.

No one is winking now. That may be because corruption has grown exponentially. In Brazil, it’s as big as Petrobras, the state oil company, which just reported $2.1 billion in losses to kickbacks and graft.

The other reason is that wherever corruption spreads, violence generally follows. The link between bent officials and the region’s fevered murder rate, according to a recent report by Insight Crime — a news portal which monitors illicit activity in the Americas — is organised crime.

In recent years, international cartels moving cocaine, arms and laundered money have installed themselves in key transshipment locations in Latin America and the Caribbean. As their franchis-es expanded, they have converted several countries into global crime hubs.

More than greasing the odd palm or exploiting the blind spots of flawed institutions, the cartels — Sinaloa and Zetas in Mexico, the Soles of Venezuela, Colombia’s FARC and Barrio 18 of Guatemala — have systematically crippled law enforcement by capturing lo-cal governments or buying entire police departments — often to devastating effect.

The most blatant example was the kidnapping and apparent mas-sacre of 43 Mexican students by drug traffickers allegedly in service to the mayor of Iguala, in southern Mexico, last August. In a recent poll, Mexican businesses named lack of public safety as the biggest single obstacle to growth.

It's much the same for El Salvador, where powerful gangs forced government to broker a truce with outlaws, which briefly quelled one of the world’s highest murder rates before the deal fell apart.

A 2014 study by The Institute for Economics and Peace concluded that “Latin America clearly remains the world’s most violent region in terms of crime.”

The violence also bleeds economies. Honduras — Latin America’s third most crooked country, according to Insight Crime — has the world’s highest murder rate and loses 19 percent of its gross domes-tic product a year to violence.

El Salvador is next, forfeiting 14.5 per cent of its national wealth on violence, followed closely by Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico and Gua-temala, each foregoing around 10 per cent of potential GDP on secu-rity, prison maintenance and income of workers who were murdered.Though hardly surprising, the cross contamination of corruption and crime suggests that stopping the bloodshed will take more than best practices and government reforms. It means freeing courts, law-makers and police from the grip of powerful cartels and their official sponsors, who have a vested interest in preserving the shadows.

Look for more crowds in the Guatemalan streets in the days ahead. — Washington Post-Bloomberg News

CORRUPTION HITS LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMIES HARDOf the world’s 50 most dangerous cities,

43 are located in Latin America and this

is affecting their economy

Total number of people estimated to have

been killed since the administration of

former President Felipe Calderón launched

its war on the drug cartels.

Venezuelan Violence Observatory, a

nongovernmental organisation, says the

official figure is too low; it estimates that

24,763 people were killed last year, or 79

per 100,000 people.

Was the total number of murders in Colombia

in 2012. Colombia had a murder rate of 30.8

per 100,000 population.

Violence still touches far too many lives

in Guatemala, where nearly 100 people

were murdered each week last year.

murders per 100,000 population,

more than twice that of neighbouring

El Salvador and Guatemala – most

victims are poor and nameless.

85,000

79

14,670

100

90.4

The damage in 2013 due to economic crimes in companies operating in

Colombia is estimated at $3 6 billion or 1% of the Colombian gross domestic

f murders in Colombia

murder rate of 30.8

Mexico has experienced increasingly high crime rates,

especially in major urban centres The country‘s great

estimated to have

dministration of

e Calderón launched

tels.

An increasingly important challenge for Guatemala is to improve the

levels of citizen security. The World Bank report estimates that crime and

Violence still tou

in Guatemala, w

were murdered

Honduras’ homicide rate of 90.4 per 100,000 people is the

world’s highest. The capital, Tegucigalpa, is the country’s larg-

murders per 100,000 po

more than twice that of n

El Salvador and Guatema

victims are poor and nam

Crime affects an economy in many ways. The first effect

that violence has on an economy is the way it limits interna

Venezuelan Violence O

nongovernmental orga

official figure is too low

24,763 people were kil

per 100,000 people.

MUSCAT: Oman Arab Bank (OAB) continues to play its role as a main sponsor of Salalah Tour-ism Festival 2015 that opened its doors to all tourists on Thurs-day, July 23, coinciding with the Sultanate’s Renaissance Day celebrations. OAB has been sup-porting this festival on an annual basis, says a press release.

Amin Al Husseini, chief ex-ecutive officer of OAB, said: “The bank’s participation this year as a main sponsor for Salalah Tourism Festival comes in line with its vision to continuously support national tourism. This includes activities that help pro-mote the Sultanate as a unique touristic destination, especially with our management’s commit-ment to social responsibility and strengthening the bank’s relation-ship with the local community.”

“We aim to continue our sup-port to the community by con-tributing to local festivals and activities that provide an added value to tourism in the country. Salalah, being unique with its monsoon season during summer, is the ideal holiday destination for

many local and regional families.”Visitors of the festival can also

enjoy Oman Arab Bank’s offers and services by visiting the bank’s stand at the festival centre in Salalah, where most of the festi-val activities take place.

Oman Arab Bank’s staff are available on site to attend all cus-tomers’ enquiries and answer their questions. The festival visi-tors can also enjoy Oman Arab Bank’s ATM services as a full-fledged ATM is available onsite.

OAB offers a wide range of banking products and services to its valued customers through retail, corporate, and investment banking operations. The bank provides comprehensive banking services in Dhofar Governorate through its branches.

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OAB continues to support Salalah Tourism FestivalVisitors of the

festival can also

enjoy Oman Arab

Bank’s offers and

services by visiting

the bank’s stand at

the festival centre

in Salalah

NDC gives away prizes to raffle draw winnersMUSCAT: The prize distribution ceremony of National Detergent Company’s (NDC) summer pro-motion ‘Bahar - 60 Days! 60 Win-ners’ was held recently at KM Hy-permarket in Al Khuwair.

Fabulous prizes like three iP-hone 6, 10 Samsung Galaxy S5, 30 Samsung Galaxy S4 and five grams gold (20 nos) were handed over to

63 lucky winners. The three winners of iPhone

6 were Shareef P. A., Shesir Jamsheer and Khadeeja, says a press release.

During the promotion, for every purchase of NDC products worth OMR3, consumers received a scratch and win card along with a raffle coupon. The promotion was

made available in Lulu Hyper-market, The Sultan Centre, Mars Hypermarket, Karama Group and K. M. Trading. Along with mega and grand raffle prizes, there were 20,000 scratch and win prizes too. As an added attraction, 100 win-ners received a tablet each for col-lecting combination of alphabets ‘BA+HA+R’ in the coupons.

A. K. Shaji, head of Business Development at NDC, said: “The ‘Bahar - 60 Days! 60 Winners’ pro-motion proved to be a fantastic success with our customers. We are seeing increased growth and high conversion rates, a clear in-dication that more and more con-sumers are coming in to shop and enjoy our promotion on offer.”

‘ B A H A R - 6 0 D A Y S ! 6 0 W I N N E R S ’

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SPOR SY O U R G A M E

SECTIONC S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

INDIA COURT CLEARS SREESANTH, OTHERSA New Delhi court on Saturday cleared Test fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and two other players of spot-fixing during the Indian Premier League (IPL), a lawyer and media reports said. >C3

ed

er

From the ‘wadi’ beds to parking slots, from the streets to concrete

pitches and finally on to the green turf ground, Oman Cricket has come a long way.Since 1979, when Late His Highness Sayyid Abbas bin Faisal was the patron-in-chief, Oman Cricket has been inspired by the national body chairman Kanaksi G. Khimji.

From then on every cricket loving individual has seen the game’s popularity grow.

From becoming an affiliate International Cricket Council (ICC) member in 2000 to an associate status last year and now with the qualification to World T20 comes the interna-tional status for Oman Cricket — a quantum jump indeed.

This meant the nation is set to receive good ICC funds for further develop-ment and along with it more international exposure on the Twenty20 platform.

Official calendar for as-sociate nations will now see Oman featuring a lot more and the new infrastructure could see more tournaments or matches at home too.

More exposure means more opportunities for home grown players and I hope that the Oman Cricket think tank will start working on that line.

Until now the nation has had the distinction of boast-ing the maximum number of citizen players unlike other Gulf nations and some of them have also performed with distinction on interna-tional platform.

It is hoped that the new-found laurel is utilised to lure more citizen players into the game and spread the excite-ment all across the country.

It was also nice to see Oman Football Association, the most popular sports body in the Sultanate, applauding Oman Cricket’s efforts to qualify for the World T20 in India.

I have been watching the de-velopment of cricket in Oman since 1997. Though I have been critical in my views some times, the moment of pride that came on the nation’s 45th Renaissance Day, has instilled an euphoria in me.

As any other aficionado, I watched Team Oman live on television for the first time, and the winning stroke by Zeeshan Ahmed Siddique made my day.

It was a dream realised for Oman, who will be going to India to take part in the World T20 2016. A first on all counts and an achievement for the na-tion who have had very few ap-pearances on the world stage.

The game of cricket may not enthuse the local popula-tion much, but these achieve-ments will surely act as a fodder to attract more and more local talents.

Surely there had been many achievements before that Oman Cricket can boast of, especially on the continental platform, but this perfor-mance in Scotland and Ireland is indeed something special.

To be frank, none includ-ing me expected Oman to come through from the tough Group B, which had teams like Scotland, Netherlands, Afghanistan, UAE, Kenya and Canada. But the boys led by experienced Sultan Ahmed, groomed by the legendary Sri Lankan Duleep Mendis and advised by Derek Pringle, looked remarkably sound.

In 2012 qualifier, the Gulf nation had nothing to showcase, but currently with a rank of 29 in the world and just part of a lowly Division 5 in World Cricket League, there has been a remarkable transformation.

It was in 2009, I had an opportunity to follow the national team to South Africa during the ICC World Cup

(50-over-format), but what I saw was to see the players finding it difficult to adapt to the conditions.

Oman had finished 11th among 12 teams and had nothing to boast but that enlightened the need for in-frastructure development.

The difference now is indeed the new infrastructure with lush green ground and natural turf wicket, which came up at Al Amerat.

With the A Division matches being played on this surface the players have tuned themselves to the natural vagaries of the game, unlike the monotonous mo-tions found while playing on concrete pitches.

Adding on the valuable in-puts of Duleep Mendis along with the Oman Cricket’s deci-sion to issue contracts to na-tional players have succeeded in enhancing professionalism into the game.

Now that they are on world stage, Oman Cricket can-not rest on the laurels as the national cricketers will cross swords with the big boys of the game.

It was only some years ago when Oman earned a chance to battle it out against the big boys of Asia, when they qualified for the Asian Cup 2006, but unfortunately that tournament did not happen that time.

All said and done, the qualification for World T20 has opened a new chapter for Oman Cricket. It will also be interesting to find how the Ministry of Sports Affairs responds to the achievement of the cricketers.

When Duleep Mendis and his boys understand that it is more hard work from now on, the onus will be on the administrators to lend more support. Hopefully, we must see a boom in infrastruc-ture development and more inroads made into talent tap-ping and training.

Its high time Oman has more coaching expertise in the offing for all age groups and formation of Duleep Mendis’ brain child of Na-tional Youth Development Teams at all levels.

Well, now it is celebration time, and the nation is wait-ing for the cricketing heroes to arrive.

— sportseditor@timesofoman.com

Oman cricket has come a long way...C O M M E N T A R Y

The success means

the nation will

receive good ICC

funds for further

development

and along with it

more international

exposure

Afghanistan pip Oman in thriller

DUBLIN: In a low-scoring thrill-er at the Clontarf Cricket Club Ground in Dublin, Afghanistan finished fifth in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier tournament after beating Oman by five wickets on Saturday.

Both teams have already quali-fied to take part in the ICC World T20 2016 to be played in India.

Sent in to bat, Oman, shaken by a collective effort from the Af-ghanistan bowlers, posted 127 for 8. Zeeshan Maqsood, who had pro-vided his side with good starts on many occasions during the course of the tournament, fell in the first over, bowled by Dawlat Zadran, the right-arm medium-pacer.

Zeeshan Siddiqui and Khawar Ali tried to consolidate with a second-wicket partnership of 39 off 34 balls before Dawlat struck again in the seventh over, sending Siddiqui back for a 16-ball 18.

That brought Khawar and Jatin-der Singh, the highest run-getter for Oman in the tournament, to-gether with Oman on 45 for 2 in 6.2 overs. The duo added 22 more to the total before Afghanistan re-moved both in quick succession preventing Oman from building any momentum.

Mirwais Ashraf and Aftab Alam then bagged two wickets each to restrict Oman, who had beaten Afghanistan by 40 runs in a Group B clash in Edinburgh earlier in the tournament.

Afghanistan’s chase was rattled by the early dismissal of Moham-mad Shahzad (0), who had held the side’s batting together in the tour-nament with a tally 199 runs in

the previous six matches. Shahzad was caught by Jatinder off the bowling of Rajeshkumar Ranpura, the right-arm medium-pace bowl-er, in the first over.

Ranpura struck again in his next over, removing Asghar Stanikzai, caught behind for nought. Six balls later, without a run being added to the total, Nowroz Mangal was back in the hut for four.

Despite being in pursuit of a low target, Afghanistan now looked in deep trouble, with the score read-ing 7 for 3 after 3.3 overs.

It was then up to Mohammed Nabi and Samiullah Shenwari to put the innings back on track, and that they did, with a 49-ball stand of 44 for the fourth wicket.

Mohammed Nadeem broke the partnership in the 11th over when he got Nabi to edge one to Sultan Ahmed, the wicketkeeper, who grabbed onto his third catch.

But Shenwari and Najibullah were adamant on taking Afghani-

stan over the line. They took Af-ghanistan past the 100-run mark in the 17th over with a flurry of boundaries in their fifth-wicket partnership.

Najibullah went past his previ-ous best of 38 in T20Is to score a marvellous 32-ball 44 partnering Shenwari, who finished with an unbeaten 40 off 41 balls to take Afghanistan to victory with seven balls to spare.

The four sides competing for the trophy are Ireland, Scotland, Netherlands and Hong Kong.

Brief scores: Oman 127 for 9 in 20 overs (Khawar Ali 21, Zeeshan Siddiqui 18, Jatinder Singh 18, Aamir Kaleem 10, Sultan Ahmed 15, Dawlat Zardan 2 for 21, Aftab Alam 2 for 23) lost to Afghani-stan 130 for 5 in 18.5 overs (Samiullah Shenwari not out 40, Mohammed Nabi 27, Najibullah Zadran 44, Rajeshkumar Ranpura 2 for 17, Munis Ansari 2 for 38).

Man of the match: Najibullah Zadran. Positions: Afghanistan Fifth, Oman Sixth. — ICC

Both teams have

already qualified to

take part in the ICC

World T20 2016 to be

played in India but

the win on Saturday

ensured Afghanistan

finish fifth — one

above Oman

MAN OF THE MATCH: Najibullah Zadran. – ICC photo

DUBLIN: Scotland and the Netherlands will square off in Sunday’s final of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier after recording contrasting victories on Saturday.

In the first semifinal, Al-asdair Evans, Safyaan Sharif and Rob Taylor took three wickets apiece as Scotland bowled out Hong Kong for

116 in 19.4 overs before Kyle Coetzer (33) and Calum Ma-cLeod (39) made light work of the target, chasing it down in just 12.2 overs.

In the second semifinal, the Netherlands pip Ireland by five wickets. The Dutch first bowled out Ireland for 128 in 19.5 overs and then scored 129 for five in 18.1 overs.

Scotland, Netherlands in final

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Rain-hit Chittagong Test ends in draw

CHITTAGONG: The first Test match between Bangladesh and South Africa ended in a draw on Saturday after rain washed out the fifth day’s play in Chittagong.

With no chance of a result in the weather-battered match, officials called off play at noon.

South Africa captain Hashim Amla said he was disappointed over the loss of playing hours.

“It goes without saying that when you come all the way from South Africa you really want to play Test cricket,” Amla said at the post-match press conference.

“But these things you can’t really control. So there’s no use getting frustrated about it,” he said.

“The game was poised in our fa-vour I feel, but there’s nothing you can do about it.”

This was the first draw for Bang-ladesh against South Africa after defeats in previous eight Tests, seven by an innings margin.

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim said he was expecting a bet-ter result, especially after taking the first innings lead.

“Yes, it’s frustrating. It was re-ally positive for us to take the lead against the world’s top-ranked Test side,” Rahim said after the match.

“If there had been a complete match, the result could have been different. We can only take posi-tives from the match.

“Bowling them out cheaply and then scoring over 300 runs against them first time, taking the lead, the batting of top and late order are positives for us.”

Rain had washed out the en-tire fourth day’s play and some 50

overs were lost on the second and third days at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.

Highest totalSouth Africa, who scored 248 in the first innings, bowled out Bang-ladesh for 326 before making 61 without loss in their second knock.

Bangladesh’s first innings total was their highest ever against the Proteas, the top-ranked Test team.

Stiaan van Zyl remained un-beaten on 33 and Dean Elgar was 28 not out for South Africa.

Bangladesh’s pace debutant Mustafizur Rahman was judged man of the match for his four for 37, including three wickets in an over in the first innings.

The home side named an un-changed squad for the second and final Test, which will be played in Dhaka from July 30. - AFP

Bangladesh’s pace debutant Mustafizur

Rahman was adjudged man of the match for

his four for 37, including three wickets in an

over in the first innings

WEATHER-BATTERED: A general view shows Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chittagong as the rain falls during the final day of the

first Test match between Bangladesh and South Africa on Saturday. – AFP

Indian cricket is, at the moment, sucked into the Bermuda Triangle.

The magnetic variation the-ory postulated by the U.S. Coast Guard in the 1970s and other, similar scientific manoeuvres at explaining away and dispelling the myths and mysteries about the Triangle have so far not been able to explode the popular belief that the large area of ocean between Florida, Puerto Rico and Bermuda is actually and inexplicably a vortex of doom—but it doesn’t take rocket science intelligence to get to know how Indian cricket drifted itself into a treacherous triangle of a different, but just as much perilous, sort.

Batsmen who struggle against spinners. Fast bowl-ers with fake confidence. Spinners who cannot win a series for the team. That’s the Bermuda Triangle sort of doom Indian cricket has found itself in for quite some time now.

During the 2014 tour of England, Indian batsmen, believed to be among the best in the business against spinners of any sort and art, cut a sorry figure fumbling against Moeen Ali, and in the early part of this year they proved their crit-ics right again when they showed no courage to take on or tackle Nathan Lyon at Perth and elsewhere.

The reason? If you be-lieve Harbhajan Singh, it’s because Indian batsmen do not get to play quality spin-ners at home, so when they face blokes like Ali or Lyon abroad, or guys like Monty Panesar or Graeme Swann (Remember the 2012-2013 shock?) at home, they are found out, tragically.

How did it happen? How did batsmen born and brought up on low, slow and dusty pitches against an army of spinners of all sorts and revolutions, suddenly found themselves weak-kneed in international cricket?

Or, how a country that pro-duced some of the unplay-able spinners of the game in the past who singlehandedly tormented the opponents and won the matches for the team could not confidently name even one who could turn the fortunes in favour of Team India?

Blame it on the greentops, perhaps.

It seems there has been an overemphasis on get-ting pitches with pace and bounce to produce fast bowlers who could get on a flight to Australia happily and walk out onto the Waca ground with the pace and confidence to scare the lions in their dens.

It seems they were filled with “fake confidence” because the green, too much of it, at the Raji Trophy pitches made even the guys who bowled at speeds in the 120-125km per hour range look like Malcolm Mar-shalls. The fake Marshalls fell flat on away pitches and the ball didn’t even reach the batsman.

And, unfortunately, those who managed to bang it harder were lacking in the most essential thing humans have: intelligence. Hitting the 140-mark is fine, but you need to bowl within the vicinity of the three stumps. And you need

to outthink the guy who you are hurling the stuff in your hand at.

With the Bermuda grass on the greentops making life less charming for spin-ners, youngsters ditched spin for speed.

The result? The spin bench strength is so miser-able now that the selectors have to toss the ball back to veterans like Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra.

Importing the Bermuda grass from Australia and laying greentops would have made sense if the authorities tried to get the kind of soil too that gave the ball that extra jump on the WACA pitch, just like what Cricket Australia is doing now by importing soil from India to prepare low-bounc-ing, spinning pitches at the training facility in Brisbane.

They don’t do it at the cost of their strength, which is having wickets that offer pace and bounce. That—abandoning the strength to shore up the weakness—was the Indian blunder.

As things unceremoni-ously stand now, India don’t have spinners who could put confusion in the minds of the batsmen even at home and fast bowlers who could put six balls in a row exactly at the spot they should.

The future of Indian cricket has now been en-trusted with Virat Kohli, and much will depend on how he puts his ideas across the table when he sits with the selectors.

For that, he has to talk unfailingly and consistently smart with his bat first.

The writer is a freelance contributor based in India. All the views and opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of Times of Oman

How to get out of Bermuda Triangle

C O M M E N T A R Y

Importing the Bermuda grass from Australia and laying greentops would have made sense if the authorities tried to get the kind of soil too that gave the ball that extra jump on the WACA pitch, just like what Cricket Australia is doing now by importing soil from India

Marsh warms up for

Test with four wickets

DERBY: Australia’s Mitchell Marsh took four wickets against Derbyshire on Saturday ahead of next week’s third Ashes Test against England at Edgbaston.

The lively all-rounder led the tourists’ attack with four for 41 as Australia dismissed Derbyshire for 259 in reply to Australia’s first innings 413 for nine declared, a deficit of 154 runs, on the third and final day at Derby on Saturday.

Derbyshire’s Tony Palladino, primarily a seam bowler, top-scored in the innings with 82 off just 68 balls, including eight fours and four sixes.

Together with David Wain-wright (38) he put on 105 for the eighth wicket.

Although Australia captain Michael Clarke could have en-forced the follow-on, as Derby-shire were not within 150 runs of the tourists’ first innings score, he chose to bat again instead.

Indeed Clarke, in a match where Australia’s chances of vic-tory had been reduced after rain

washed out two-thirds of Friday’s second day, promoted himself to open the innings.

At tea he was 19 not out, with Shaun Marsh unbeaten on 30.

Derbyshire resumed Saturday on 81 for two with skipper Wayne Madsen 14 not out and Scott El-stone unbeaten on 13.

Mitchell Marsh, who im-pressed in Australia’s Ashes-lev-elling 405-run win in the second Test against at Lord’s last week after Shane Watson was dropped following England’s 169-run vic-tory in the series opener in Car-diff, was the pick of the attack in an extended first session.

He had Elstone (19) caught in the gully by David Warner and, four le-gitimate balls later, pinned Madsen lbw for 19. Mitchell Marsh struck again when he had Tom Knight (three) well caught low down at second slip by Adam Voges.

The ongoing Ashes series is all square at 1-1, with Australia look-ing to win their first Ashes cam-paign in Britain for 14 years. - AFP

C R I C K E T

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India court clears Sreesanth and two others over IPL spot-fixing

NEW DELHI: A New Delhi court on Saturday cleared Test fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sree-santh and two other players of spot-fixing during the Indian Pre-mier League (IPL), a lawyer and media reports said.

Indian prosecutors had filed charges of cheating and conspir-acy against the players over their alleged links to an organised crime syndicate during the 2013 edition of the Twenty20 competition.

Two of Sreesanth’s teammates from the Rajasthan Royals fran-chise, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan, had also been charged along with bookmakers and un-

derworld figures. “The judge has passed the order and discharged all the players. There is no case against the players now,” a defence lawyer told reporters outside the court on Saturday.

“All are discharged (from the case),” the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency quoted ad-ditional sessions judge Neena Bansal Krishna as saying while pronouncing the order. The three

players were arrested in May 2013 along with scores of bookies as part of a police investigation into the spot-fixing scandal that caused outrage among fans in the cricket-mad nation.

The players were later granted bail due to lack of evidence.

Gambling is mostly illegal in In-dia, but betting on cricket matches thrives through underground net-works of bookies.

Spot-fixing, in which a specific part of a game but not the result is fixed, is also illegal.

Sreesanth, who played 27 Tests for India, was alleged to have been paid tens of thousands of dollars after agreeing to deliberately bowl badly in an IPL match.

Delhi police also said at the time of their arrest that his teammates agreed to similar deals in two other IPL matches.

The players welcomed the ver-dict on Saturday, hugging family members and friends.

“It’s a huge relief. I have nothing against anybody. God willing I will return to cricket,” Sreesanth told India’s NDTV network.

Chandila said “a bad dream” had come to an end while Chavan said he was looking forward to being able to play again soon.

The glitzy Twenty20 league,

which is broadcast around the world, is hugely popular in India, with a number of teams fronted by big Bollywood names.

But it has been dogged by cor-ruption allegations ever since its first edition in 2008.

Earlier this month, a Supreme Court-appointed panel suspended two of the eight IPL teams after of-ficials were found guilty of illegally betting on matches. - AFP

The three players

were arrested in

May 2013 along with

scores of bookies

as part of a police

investigation into the

spot-fixing scandal

that caused outrage

among fans in the

cricket-mad nation

HUGE RELIEF: Indian cricketer Shanthakumaran Sreesanth speaks to the media following the judge’s

pronouncement of the order discharging 36 accused in the IPL spot fixing case outside Patiala Court

in New Delhi on Saturday. – AFP

NEW DELHI: Notwith-standing the verdict of a Delhi court dropping charges against former India pacer S. Sreesanth and two others in the 2013 spot-fixing scan-dal, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to stick to its ban on the three cricketers for the time being.

All the 36 accused persons including Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila were on Saturday discharged in the IPL-6 spot-fixing case by Patiala House Court but the Indian board said its dis-ciplinary decision remained unaltered.

“Any disciplinary proceed-ing or decision taken by the BCCI is independent to any criminal proceeding and has no bearing. The decisions of the BCCI, based on its independent disciplinary ac-tion, shall remain unaltered,” BCCI said in a statement issued on Saturday.

All three had to spend time in jail during the course of investigation.

Of the three, Sreesanth and Chavan are currently serving life bans imposed by the BCCI after the scandal shook the high-profile league, while Chandila’s hearing is still on. - PTI

BCCI sticks to ban on players for time being

England not haunted by Lord’s defeat, says BroadLONDON: Being humiliated by 405 runs in the second Ashes Test by Australia was a setback but England will not dwell on it when the third Test gets underway at Edgbaston on Wednesday, fast bowler Stuart Broad has said.

England won the first Test in Cardiff by 169 runs in a near-per-fect performance but a resurgent Australia crushed them in the sec-ond Test at Lord’s to level the series.

“In Ashes series it’s so crucial to be mentally and physically fresh,” Broad told the Telegraph. “It’s cru-cial that we don’t get to Edgbas-ton still hung over or fearing what happened at Lord’s. We need to be quite clear that we performed bad-ly, but this is a new week.”

Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson finished with match fig-ures of six for 80 at Lord’s but the 29-year-old Broad believes Eng-

land were at fault for the manner of the dismissals.

“In the first innings especially, the 10 wickets we lost, they weren’t good balls,” he said.

“We gave them 10 wickets, and in Test match cricket you’ve got to make teams work hard for their wickets.”

England have brought in bats-man Jonny Bairstow to replace his Yorkshire teammate Gary Bal-lance in the only change to their squad for the Edgbaston Test.

Ian Bell moves up the order to bat at number three, followed by Joe Root, with Bairstow coming in at five.

“I think when we get to Edgbas-ton you’ll see a very determined, steely, skilful batting line-up for England,” Broad said. “I think it’ll be a big change from Lord’s.”

Broad is confident playing the

third Test at Edgbaston in Bir-mingham and the fourth Test at Trent Bridge in Nottingham will play into England’s hands.

“Let’s not forget that Edgbaston and Trent Bridge are two fantastic grounds for the England cricket team,” he said.

“We should have a lot of con-fidence. The last Test I played at Edgbaston, Cooky (Alastair Cook) got 294 (against India in 2011) and we won by an innings.

“It’s a huge week. I read some-where that England haven’t won the third Ashes Test since 1981, which has got to change.

“A lot has been written this week about it being the end of the world, like we’re losing 10-0.

“But actually, it’s 1-1. They’ve played fantastically one week, we’ve played fantastically one week. Let battle commence.” - Reuters

C R U C I A L T O B E F R E S H

Recovering Rogers returns to Australia Test squadDERBY: Australia opener Chris Rogers was back with the tourists’ Test squad on Friday and will un-dergo further medical assessment to determine his fitness to play in next week’s third Ashes Test against England at Edgbaston.

The 37-year-old left-hander succumbed to a sudden bout of dizziness during the second Ashes Test at Lord’s on Sunday.

There were concerns that Rog-ers was a victim of delayed con-cussion, having been struck on the helmet by a bouncer from England paceman James Anderson on Fri-day’s second day.

But a London-based specialist said on Wednesday that Rogers

was suffering from a balance prob-lem in the inner ear.

Australia team doctor Peter Brukner, in a Cricket Australia statement issued on Saturday, said: “Chris continues to improve and has re-joined the team in Not-tingham last night.

“He will continue to increase his level of activity over the next couple of days and will be closely monitored by team medical staff.”

Before the third and final day’s play in Australia’s tour match with Derbyshire in Derby on Saturday, Rogers walked round the outfield and then had a gentle knock-up with the bat.

At Lord’s, after two overs’ play

on Sunday, Rogers crouched down by the side of the pitch and then sat motionless before eventually go-ing off on 49 not out.

Retirement plansThe left-hander played no further part in Australia’s crushing 405-run win, which levelled the series at 1-1, having helped establish their strong position at Lord’s with a Test-best 173 in the first innings.

Rogers was not scheduled to play against Derbyshire in any event. Rogers, who plans to retire after the Ashes, missed Australia’s recent 2-0 series win in the Caribbean with concussion after being hit on the head while batting in the nets. - AFP

B A L A N C E P R O B L E M

LOOKING FOR CHANGE: Stuart Broad, left, and Alastair Cook.

CLOSELY MONITORED: Chris Rogers

Pakistan’s Riaz out of Sri Lanka T20 seriesKARACHI: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on Saturday that paceman Wahab Riaz had ruled himself out of the team’s two-match Twenty20 series against Sri Lanka due to an on-going hand injury.

The 30-year-old was named in the 15-man squad subject to complete recovery from the in-jury, sustained during the sec-ond Test against Sri Lanka ear-lier this month.

But after bowling during a fit-ness test on Friday, it was found that the left-arm paceman had not fully recovered.

Riaz will be replaced by an-other left-arm fast bowler, Zia-ul Haq, who was in the squad as a stand-by.

“Riaz bowled in nets on Fri-day and still feels stiffness in his bowling hand. Thus he with-drew himself from T20s squad. Zia will replace him,” a Pakistan Cricket Board statement said.

Riaz said he was disappoint-ed. “Unfortunately still some stiffness in my bowling hand. Hopefully another week or so to give my 100 percent,” Riaz said on his Twitter account.

Pakistan, already leading the five-match ODI series by 3-1, will face Sri Lanka in the fifth and final one-day in Hamban-tota on Sunday. That will be fol-lowed by two Twenty20 inter-nationals on July 30 and August 1 — both in Colombo.

The squad: Shahid Afridi (cap-tain), Ahmed Shehzad, Nauman An-war, Mohammed Hafeez, Mukhtar Ahmed, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Rizwan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Yasir Shah, Sohail Tanvir, Imad Wasim, Anwar Ali, Mohammed Irfan, Zia-ul Haq. - AFP

I N J U R E D

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Froome poised to win Tour, Pinot triumphs on Alpe d’HuezL’ALPE D’HUEZ: Chris Froome is poised to win a second Tour de France title, but was forced to hang on desperately as Colombian Nai-ro Quintana attacked relentlessly in Saturday’s penultimate stage up the iconic Alpe d’Huez.

In a gripping finale, Quintana powered clear of Froome, slicing almost a minute and a half off the Briton’s lead, but not doing quite enough to prevent the Team Sky rider almost certainly ensuring he will celebrate victory on Sunday.

With only the procession into Paris remaining, Froome leads Quintana by 1:12 after the Mov-istar rider attacked repeatedly and pushed the 30-year-old to the limit in a punishing ascent.

The day’s laurels went to Frenchman Thibaut Pinot, who salvaged an under-par Tour with victory on the race’s ‘Queen stage’.

Spain’s Alejandro Valverde is third 5:25 off the pace. Quintana was second in the 110-km stage from Modane-Valfrejus, 18 sec-onds behind Pinot, with Canadian Ryder Hesjedal taking third place 41 seconds adrift.

Froome, who could not respond when Quintana attacked less than four kilometres into the 13.8-km ascent, ended the stage in fifth place, 1:38 off the pace after being helped to the summit by team-mate Richie Porte. Froome, who claimed his first Tour title in 2013, was once again booed by the crowd in the final climb.

He will become the first rider since Carlos Sastre in 2008 to win both the yellow and the polka dot jerseys — although the Spaniard only claimed the mountain clas-sification after Austrian Bernhard Kohl was stripped of the title fol-

lowing a retroactive dope test.Froome, who had already lost

30 seconds to Quintana on Friday, spent another tough day in the sad-dle. Frenchman Alexandre Geniez attacked from the start and broke away with three others but the FDJ rider went out on his own in the climb to the Col de la Croix de Fer.

Among the group of favourites, Valverde attacked about five kilo-metres from the top of the col de la Croix de Fer and was quickly fol-lowed by Quintana. Helped by Porte, Froome managed to catch Quintana at the top and along with Valverde and Nibali, the four of them stayed together in the descent.

Pinot and Hesjedal then attacked and the Frenchman, who got help on the way from his FDJ team mate Geniez, powered to his second Tour stage win after claiming his first on his debut in 2012. - Reuters

C Y C L I N G

EYEING SECOND CROWN: Great Britain’s Christopher Froome celebrates his overall leader yellow

jersey on the podium at the end of the 110,5 km 20th stage of the Tour de France cycling race between

Modane Valfrejus and Alpe d’Huez, French Alps on Saturday. – AFP

Hamilton grabs Hungary GP pole

BUDAPEST: Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton took pole position for the Hungar-ian Grand Prix on Saturday with a blistering lap more than half a second faster than downcast Mer-cedes teammate and great rival Nico Rosberg.

The two title rivals will line up together on the front row on Sunday, with Ferrari’s four times champion Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull’s Australian 2014 race winner Daniel Ricciardo behind them on the second row.

The pole was Hamilton’s ninth in 10 races this season, the 47th of his career and left the Briton per-

fectly placed for a fifth career win at the Hungaroring.

Hamilton leads Rosberg by 17 points before a race that marks the halfway point of the season.

“I’m incredibly happy with the

weekend, I can’t remember hav-ing a performance as good as this,” said Hamilton, who has now been on pole five times in Hungary and went fastest in all three prac-tice sessions.

“I’m liking the weather, loving the city. I love the track, it feels a bit like an old go-kart circuit that we used to race on many years ago.”

Rosberg, who has won three times to Hamilton’s five victories this season, was on pole in Hun-gary last year but had no response to his team mate this time on a hot and hazy afternoon.

“I don’t have an explanation,” he said. “I just didn’t find the pace. It’s been a bit up and down all week-end, I’m definitely not happy with how it went today.”

Behind the top four, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen qualified fifth with fellow-Finn Valtteri Bottas lining up sixth for Williams.

Red Bull’s Russian Daniil Kvyat and Brazilian Felipe Massa, for Williams, share the fourth row.

McLaren, a team with an im-pressive record in Hungary, en-dured another tough afternoon with Fernando Alonso pushing his broken down car back to the pit-lane likely to be one of the year’s enduring images.

The second phase of qualifying was red-flagged to allow marshals to help the sweating Spaniard get the McLaren off the track.

Alonso will line up in 15th place with teammate Jenson Button alongside in 16th. Both drivers took their first grand prix win in Hungary but even a point will be a bonus this time around. - Reuters

The pole was

Hamilton’s ninth in

10 races this season,

the 47th of his career

and left the Briton

perfectly placed for a

fifth career win at the

Hungaroring

BUDAPEST: Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has recognised a fashion faux pas and assured Wimbledon he will respect the dress code at next year’s championships.

The Mercedes’ British driver was refused entry to the Royal Box for the men’s singles final at this month’s tennis tournament after turn-ing up in a floral shirt and hat but without the mandatory jacket and tie.

The story became an immediate talking point, with photographs of the driver spreading like wildfire around the world and spark-ing a debate about British sporting tradition, stuffiness and etiquette.

Enjoyed the aftermathSpeaking to reporters at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, his first race since Wimbledon, the 30-year-old Briton said he had been invit-

ed back and would definitely dress the part.

“It was fun, I enjoyed the aftermath of it and ultimately I am excited that I have been invited back again for another year, or I will be invited back — so I’m happy about that and I will make sure that I dress the right away,” said Hamilton.

“I love Wimbledon. I really, really like the sport,” added the Briton, who spent time chatting with beaten finalist Roger Federer after the semi-final with Britain’s Andy Murray.

“I just went home and watched it on TV. No problem for me, I went and watched it with my dogs,” he said.

“I see the positives of it. There were so many stories written about it, I’m like ‘Wow, that’s nice’.

“It was just one of those days, sometimes you get things right and sometimes you get things wrong.” - Reuters

Hamilton assures Wimbledon he will dress up next year

DELIGHTED: Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton reacts after

the qualifying session of the Hungarian Formula One Grand Prix at

the Hungaroring circuit near Budapest on Saturday. – AFP

Formula One right to go to Azerbaijan, says TostBUDAPEST: Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost has defended Formula One’s decision to race in Azerbaijan next year while brushing off con-cerns about media freedom and the country’s human rights record.

Asked at a Hungarian Grand Prix news conference how he would react if some reporters were denied entry for Baku’s race debut next year, as happened during the inaugural European Games re-cently, Tost was unmoved.

“There must be a reason why the visa was denied. I don’t know the background. To be honest, I don’t care about this. So we go there, we race there and that’s it. It’s your problem how you get the visa,” he replied.

The Austrian said Formula One was a sport and above politics.

“We go there to entertain. We do not go there for any political rea-sons. It’s the same issue we had a couple of years ago with Bahrain,” he said. “If we will be put into the corner to say, OK, we should not

go into a country where maybe the press freedom is not at a certain level or any other issues, then I don’t know where we go racing.

“Then we have problems with China, then we have problems with Russia, then maybe we have problems with Brazil, then any country...we just go there, make our show, present our sport and that’s it and therefore we should go.”

Red Bull boss Christian Horner also made light of the prospect of reporters being barred entry.

“It would make our press con-ferences a lot shorter anyway, so maybe not a bad thing,” he joked.

Azerbaijan, with a race in Baku, has been listed on the provisional 2016 calendar.

That calendar includes races in Russia, China and Bahrain — all countries with chequered rights records. Russia, which made its F1 debut last year, is also subject to Western sanctions over its annex-ation of Ukraine’s Crimea region.

Energy-rich Azerbaijan, gov-erned by President Ilham Aliyev since he succeeded his father in 2003, has been courted by West-ern countries because of its role as an alternative to Russia in sup-plying oil and gas to Europe.

However, various European bodies and human rights groups have accused Aliyev of muzzling dissent and jailing opponents, charges Baku denies.

In June, Amnesty Internation-al said Baku had blocked a visit in which they had planned to high-light human rights abuses in the south Caucasian republic ahead of the European Games. - Reuters

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

The Austrian said Formula One was above politics

Franco Di Santo leaves Werder

BERLIN: Argentine striker Franco Di Santo has made use of a buy-out clause in his con-tract with Werder Bremen to leave the north German club, it said on Saturday.

Werder did not say which club Di Santo was set to join but German media reports said Eu-ropa League competitors Schal-ke 04 had won over the talented player. Schalke officials could not be immediately reached for a statement. “Franco Di Santo is leaving Werder Bremen with immediate effect,” Werder said in a statement. “The Argentine made use of his contract’s buy-out clause and is no longer part of the team.”

Werder officials had con-firmed earlier in the week they were holding talks with Schalke for the player.

The powerful 26-year-old former Chelsea forward, who has scored 17 goals in 49 Bun-desliga matches, had joined Werder from Wigan Athletic in 2013. - Reuters

F O O T B A L L

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Fickle Hamburg winds see shift in fortunes for The Wave, Oman Air

MUSCAT: A turnaround in the Hamburg weather saw a shift in fortunes among the Extreme Sail-ing Series fleet which left The Wave, Muscat and Oman Air step-ping up their plans for the remain-ing two days of competition.

Racing on the city centre stadi-um course once again proved tricky with sunshine and the welcome breeze from day one giving way to light and shifty winds spiced up with strong gusts that kept um-pires busy watching for infringe-

ments. These conditions served to wrong foot experienced crews and create opportunities for others so after topping the leaderboard over-night, The Wave, Muscat’s crew had to move to third place.

A dip in consistency saw them start and finish the day with maxi-mum point wins with just one other podium place to add to their tally but in one of the tightest con-tests of the year so far, they were sitting just five points behind new leaders Gazprom Team Russia at the close and a single point behind SAP Extreme Sailing Team.

The variable breezes made life difficult for everyone added Oman Air’s Ali Al Balushi. “The wind was really tricky. Sometimes on the right and sometimes on the left so it was impossible for the tactician to decide where to go but it was the same for everyone. We did not

have a great day but tomorrow will be different,” he said.

“It was tricky and while we had some good races, there were a few that didn’t go our way and a few where the jury did not pick up on the situation,” admitted Leigh McMIllan.

“It was frustrating because we were not picking the right strategy in the starts. We were working as hard as we could but things kept on going against us, again and again. Hopefully we can get back up on top tomorrow.

“But it is still only day two of the regatta and it is very close, points wise — there are still two days re-maining and a lot of wind coming tomorrow which we are 100 per cent pleased about.”

Oman Air incurred several pen-alties during the day though main-tained their sixth place overall and

left skipper Stevie Morrison mull-ing over new ideas for their race strategies.

“Perhaps we need to think about buying the umpires an ice cream because I lost count of the penal-ties we received,” he said.

“We are racing hard and work-ing well as a team but we need to avoid incident. We have had some very close racing but it was a tough day with the jury. They did what they thought was right but we thought we only deserved one of the penalties. We are frustrated but you win some and lose some and we will fight on.”

A forecast for storms and strong winds on the third day of racing has created a stir of anticipation among the crews since yet again, the conditions are likely to cause more upset and further changes on the leaderboard.

Racing on the city centre stadium course

once again proved tricky with sunshine and

the welcome breeze from day one giving

way to light and shifty winds spiced up

with strong gusts that kept umpires busy

watching for infringements

TRICKY WEATHER: Nasser Al Mashari, centre, in action onboard The Wave, Muscat at

the Extreme Sailing Series Act 5 in Hamburg. – Supplied photo

RACING HARD: Oman Air crew, skippered by Stevie Morrison, in control at the Ex-

treme Sailing Series Act 5 in Hamburg. – Supplied photo

Oltmans to be Indian squad coach till Rio Olympic GamesNEW DELHI: High Perfor-mance Director Roelant Oltmans was on Saturday appointed coach of the Indian hockey team, replac-ing Paul van Ass, who was uncer-emoniously sacked after a bitter spat with Hockey India President Narinder Batra.

The 61-year-old Dutchamn, who has been associated with Indian hockey for close to three years now, will be at the helm of affairs at least till next year’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

The decision to appoint Olt-mans was taken at a meeting be-tween Sports Authority of India’s Director-General Injeti Srinivas and Batra.

“Oltmans has agreed to be the coach till the Rio Olympics and we would want him to continue after that,” Batra told reporters after the meeting.

Batra said that Van Ass’ ouster was a disappointing chapter but it was important for Indian hockey to move ahead.

“We should move ahead, coach-es come and go. We want to look ahead and prepare the team for the Olympics. We will talk to Oltmans about his requirements regarding the support staff and will give all possible assistance,” Batra said.

Earlier on Friday, a nine-mem-ber committee headed by Olym-pian Harbinder Singh, formed to decide Van Ass’ future, rec-ommended that the Dutchman should not be continued.

Van Ass blamed an “autocratic” Batra for his ouster and said the recommendation to remove him did not come as a “surprise” to him.

Oltmans has been associated with Indian hockey for nearly three years and to add to it, the players also gel well with him and some have even aired their views of handing the reins of the team to the Dutchman after Van Ass’ ouster.

Van Ass, who was appointed at the end of January this year, was awarded a three-year contract till 2018. The World League semifinals in Antwerp, earlier this month, was the Dutchman’s second assign-ment with the Indian team.

Van Ass’s future with the In-dian team was in doubt after he failed to report on time for the

national team’s camp that Negan at the scenic Sports Authority of India (SAI) Centre in Shilaroo, Himachal Pradesh on Sunday.

Speculations that the Dutch-man won’t be continuing was fuelled when he failed to submit his report on India’s performance at the recently concluded World Hockey League semifinals in Ant-werp, Belgium.

According to media reports, Van Ass had a public spat with HI president Narinder Batra after the quarterfinal match against Malaysia at the World League semifinals. — PTI

H O C K E Y

AT THE HELM: Roelant Oltmans

Mishra, Ojha return with rich hauls as match ends in drawCHENNAI: Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha turned out to be the biggest gainer while come-back man Amit Mishra got five wickets and more importantly vital overs under his belt as the first unofficial ‘Test’ match be-tween India A and Australia A ended in a tame draw.

Chasing a target of 240, Aus-tralia A reached 161 for four in 46 overs when the umpires de-cided to call off the match after the two captains shook hands.

For Ojha, a match haul of six for 132 (five for 87 and one for 45) will do his confidence a world of good. Mishra on his part bowled close to 40 overs across both innings and a return of five wickets could be consid-ered a decent performance.

Earlier, India A declared their first innings at 206 for eight, starting from their overnight score of 121 for three.

Kohli to playIndia on Saturday batted 32.3 overs as young Shreyas Iyer (33) again chipped in with a useful contribution while Karun Nair (23) failed once again.

Pacer Gurinder Sandhu (two for 27) and part-time seamer Marcus Stoinis (two for 17) were the most successful bowl-ers while left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe took his match-haul to eight wickets with two for 81 in the second innings.

The next match, starting July 28, will feature Test captain Virat Kohli. He will in all likeli-hood replace Karun in the start-ing XI as he has failed in both innings. - PTI

C R I C K E T

Five AS Roma stars denied entry to Indonesia

JAKARTA: Five players from Ital-ian club AS Roma will miss Sat-urday’s friendly match in Jakarta after they were refused entry to Indonesia and forced to fly home.

The team touched down in Ja-karta on Friday evening for the first time in the Serie A club’s his-

tory but ran into trouble at cus-toms, Roma chief executive Italo Zanzi said. Seydou Doumbia, Ger-vinho, Victor Ibarbo, Adem Ljajic and Antonio Sanabria were denied entry by immigration officials at Jakarta’s international airport and later boarded a flight to Rome.

Zanzi said it was “very frustrat-ing” the footballers wouldn’t be able to join the rest of the squad for Saturday’s friendly match be-tween two teams of AS Roma play-ers. “It’s a real disappointment for us, given that we’ve made a sub-stantial effort to be here.” - AFP

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Blatter promises ‘total support’ for 2018 World Cup in Russia

ST PETERSBURG: FIFA Presi-dent Sepp Blatter on Saturday vowed “total support” for Russia’s World Cup preparations in a meet-ing with Russian head of state President Vladimir Putin.

Putin in turn promised a “gran-diose” World Cup in 2018 at their talks ahead of the draw for the qualifying phase.

Some U.S. senators have called for a boycott of the World Cup be-cause of Russia’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict. But Blatter, whose organisation is at the centre of a major corruption scandal, has strongly rejected any such sugges-tion and condemned political in-terference in sport.

“FIFA will always be behind Rus-sia” and give “total support” to the 2018 World Cup, Blatter told Putin at the Konstantin Palace in St Pe-tersburg where the draw was held.

“We say ‘yes’ to Russia,” Blat-ter added. “Football does a lot for peace. It is especially important in the current geopolitical situation.”

Blatter gave the same message at the draw ceremony, insisting to

the 2,000 guests that FIFA will “al-ways stand behind Russia.”

He added that FIFA’s executive committee had this week reaf-firmed its “trust and confidence” in Russia.

Putin said Russia will “do every-thing to make sure that the sports-men and supporters who come will feel at home and that those who watch the television will feel that they are participating in a grandi-ose international sporting festival.”

The Russian leader also made a reference to the scandals that have embroiled FIFA, partly over

the award of the 2018 tournament to Russia.

“We see what is happening around football,” Putin told Blat-ter. “We are grateful that you still concentrate your time and atten-tion above all on sport,” he said.

Putin told the ceremony that Russia has “a long history of foot-ball” and that the World Cup was an opportunity “to show a multi-faceted and open Russia that can surprise and inspire.”

Russia was awarded the 2018 World Cup in a vote in 2010 when Qatar got the 2022 tournament.

The vote process is now at the centre of a corruption probe by Swiss investigators.

The inquiry was launched in parallel to a US corruption inves-tigation in which seven FIFA of-ficials were detained while they were at a congress of the world governing body in Zurich in May.

The Kremlin said at the time that the arrests were a bid to influence the re-election of Blatter. The Swiss official secured a fifth term but has since announced he will stand down and a new election for a re-placement held on February 26. - AFP

Blatter said ‘FIFA will

always be behind

Russia’ while Putin

in turn promised a

“grandiose” World

Cup in 2018

YES TO RUSSIA: FIFA chief Sepp Blatter, left, invites Russia President Vladimir Putin to address during the preliminary draw for the 2018 World Cup at Konstantin Palace in St. Petersburg on Saturday. – Reuters

ST PETERSBURG: FIFA’s embattled president Sepp Blatter is “a victim” and “a very brave person”, the chief executive of the 2018 Russian World Cup organising com-mittee said on Friday.

Blatter was in St Peters-burg for Saturday’s World Cup qualifying draw, his first foreign trip since football’s ruling body became the subject of criminal investi-gations into allegations of systemic corruption. The 79-year-old Swiss is stand-ing down in February as a result of the crisis.

“He has always been a friend of our country,” Alexei Sorokin told the BBC.

“We are certain everything he’s doing is for the good of FIFA to which he has dedi-cated his life.”

“Unfortunately, he decided to take up responsibility him-self for certain things which are not within his responsi-bility,” he said.

The bidding processes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups are being investigated in the U.S. and Switzerland, leading to media speculation that Russia and Qatar could be stripped of hosting the

finals and a new vote ordered.Sorokin said the contro-

versy was “casting shade on the most cherished FIFA product, the World Cup, with-out any grounds.

“It’s a purely blown-up mat-ter which hurts us,” he added. “It keeps lingering on in the media and in people’s minds and that is really disappointing.

“We need to focus. It’s time to go on and stop rubbing it in and discussing this.”

Sorokin also denied sug-gestions the Russian bid team destroyed computers when FIFA launched its own internal inquiry into the al-legations of corruption.

“They (the computers) were not destroyed,” said Sorokin. “The truth is they became obsolete and they were naturally discarded.

“I understand there is re-grettably such an atmosphere created a long time ago around Russia that creates suspicions that we don’t deserve.

“That is the biggest chal-lenge that we live with, stereotypes, and part of our job is to overcome these stereotypes about Russia. We believe we are doing that,” said Sorokin. - Reuters

Blatter is a victim and a brave person: Russian chief

Oceania winners to face South American sideST PETERSBURG: The winners of the Oceania World Cup quali-fying group will have to play the fifth-placed South American side to reach the finals in Russia fol-lowing the draw for the interconti-nental playoffs made on Saturday.

In the other tie, the team which finishes fourth in the CONCACAF competition will face the fifth-placed team from Asia. Both ties will be played over two legs.

Uruguay have finished fifth in the last four South American World Cup qualifying competi-tions and taken part in an inter-continental playoff each time. They beat Australia in 2001, lost to them four years later, beat Costa

Rica in 2009 and Jordan in 2013. In the first round (August-Sep-

tember 2015) American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga contest a group stage with winners only progressing to second round.

Group Stage: Group A: Winners of 1st rd; Papua New Guinea; New Caledonia; Tahiti. Group B: New Zealand; Vanuatu; Fiji and Solo-mon Islands. Top three from each group progress to third round and drawn into two groups of three. The top two in each group then play each other in two-legged tie with the winner then involved in a play-off with an opponent from another continent. The winner of that qualifies for the finals. - Agencies

P L A Y O F F

England drawn with ScotlandST PETERSBURG: England will face old enemies Scotland in qual-ifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia after they were paired to-gether at a lavish draw ceremony in Saint Petersburg on Saturday. Both sides will also face Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania and Malta in Group F.

World champions Germany were drawn alongside Czech Re-public, Northern Ireland, Norway, Azerbaijan and San Marino.

Arguably the toughest group sees 1998 champions France drawn alongside three-time World Cup runners-up the Neth-erlands and a Sweden side cap-tained by Paris Saint-Germain star Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

There is also a meeting of two former winners in Group G as Spain and Italy were paired along with Albania, Israel, Macedonia and Liechtenstein.

Group D sees another local clash as top seeds Wales will meet the Republic of Ireland as well as Austria, Serbia, Moldova and Georgia.

The winners of all nine Euro-pean groups will qualify auto-matically for the World Cup with the eight best runners-up facing off in two-legged playoffs for the remaining four spots.

Copa America champions Chile will entertain Brazil in their open-ing qualifying match with the most keenly anticipated South American encounters between Argentina and Brazil taking place on matchdays three and 11.

US grouped with TrinidadThe United States, who have qualified for the last seven World Cups, will begin their quest for an eighth straight appearance in Russia with Trinidad & Tobago likely to provide the toughest op-position in their first qualifying group.

The U.S., who reached the last

16 in Brazil last year, will also meet the winners of two earlier qualifying round games -- St Vin-cent and the Grenadines v Aruba, and Antigua and Barbuda v Gua-temala.

Mexico will play Honduras in their opening qualifying group as well as the winners of the earlier round ties -- Curacao v El Salva-dor and Canada v Belize.

Jamaica, whose ranking means they have to enter the competition at an earlier stage, face Nicaragua in a two-legged tie. If they win that tie they will go into a group con-taining Costa Rica and Panama as seeded teams. Grenada or Haiti will also be in the same group.

The top two teams in those three groups will go into a final group of six teams.

The top three teams will qual-ify for the World Cup with the fourth-placed team meeting an

Asian qualifier bidding to take their place in the finals.

The first two rounds for the African stage of qualifying were also drawn with the 20 victors from round two progressing to a final group stage where the five group winners will qualify for the World Cup. The standout tie from the second round sees four-time finalists Morocco take on African Nations Cup semi-finalists Equa-torial Guinea.

Meanwhile, there was a blow for Oceania favourites New Zea-land as they will have to beat the fifth-best side in South America if they come through regional quali-fying in the inter-continental playoffs.

In the other inter-continental tie the fourth-placed side in the North and Central American con-federation face the fifth-best side from the Asian qualifying stage.

European qualifying draw: Group A: Netherlands, France, Sweden, Bulgaria, Belarus, Lux-embourg. Group B: Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary, Faroe Is-lands, Latvia, Andorra. Group C: Germany, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Norway, Azer-baijan, San Marino. Group D: Wales, Austria, Serbia, Repub-lic of Ireland, Moldova, Georgia. Group E: Romania, Denmark, Poland, Montenegro, Armenia, Kazakhstan. Group F: Eng-land, Slovakia, Scotland, Malta, Lithuania, Slovenia. Group G: Spain, Italy, Albania, Israel, Mac-edonia, Liechtenstein. Group H: Belgium, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Greece, Estonia, Cyprus. Group I: Croatia, Iceland, Ukraine, Turkey, Finland. (Group winners qualify directly for finals, eight best run-ners-up contest two-legged play-offs). - Agencies

O L D F O E S

LAVISH DRAW: Former German striker Oliver Bierhoff shows the name of England during the pre-liminary draw for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers in St. Petersburg on Saturday. – AFP

Cameroon face tricky start in qualifiersST PETERSBURG: Cameroon will have to negotiate a tricky two-leg knockout tie against Somalia or Niger at the start of their World Cup qualifying campaign follow-ing the African zone draw made in St Petersburg on Saturday.

Somalia and Niger will meet in the first round and the winners play the Indomitable Lions over

two legs in the second. South Su-dan, who joined FIFA in 2012, will face Mauritania in their first-ever World Cup qualifier, with the opening leg at home.

The winners play Tunisia in the second round.

Nigeria will face Djibouti or Swaziland in the second round and African champions Ivory

Coast must face Liberia or Guin-ea-Bissau.

Angola will meet South Africa in arguably the toughest of the second-round meetings.

The 26 lowest-ranked African teams take part in the first round and the winners join the remain-ing 27 African sides in the second stage, again played on a knockout

basis with each tie over two legs played from November 9 to 17.

This creates a potential pitfall for the established teams who run the risk of being eliminated be-cause of a single shock result.

In the third round, the 20 teams are divided into five groups of four and the winners of each group qualify for the World Cup. - Reuters

A F R I C A N Z O N E

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

HealthSECTIONC L I F E S T Y L E S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

LIFESTYLEC8 S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Obesity and weight-control issues affect more than 1.5 billion people around the world. Even more if you take

into account the families of those strug-gling with the scale who are affected in numerous ways, from the emotional toll of seeing a loved one suffer to the physical loss when a family member dies from an obesity related illness. While most people are now aware of the array of factors, from diet to ex-ercise to genetics, that contribute to weight management, many dieters and their supporters overlook the emo-tional cost of carrying excess weight.

International studies have found solid links between depression and obesity. One study sited a 37% increase in depression among women who experienced significant weight gain, while other studies reveal a strong correlation between weight gain and emotionally taxing life events, like un-employment, death of a friend or fam-ily member, or a diagnosis of a major illness. Depression is both a risk factor for obesity and a potential symptom.

Those struggling with their weight, often experience feelings of helpless-ness, hopelessness, and worthless-ness, which can cause them to turn to food as a source of comfort, as an act of self-destruction, or as a punishment for perceived weight-loss failures. This vicious cycle can destroy confi-dence and negatively effect personal relationships, further perpetuating the cycle.

So when it comes to losing weight, or supporting a loved one who is try-ing to live a healthier lifestyle, ad-dressing some of the emotional com-ponents that affect our weight is as important to long term success as diet and exercise.

Combat Emotional EatingWe often turn to food as a source of

comfort, stress relief, or out of bore-dom, instead of approaching our meals as a source of physical nourishment. There are some theories out there that purport that we crave sweets at times of great distress based on a primal as-sociation with mother’s milk. But no matter what the reason, emotional eating can lead to rapid weight-gain and feelings of being out of control or helpless. There are several ways to help combat emotional eating.

When you find yourself reaching for a snack, stop and ask yourself if you are physically hungry, or if your crav-ing might be triggered by something stressful that you are trying to avoid or seek comfort from.

Set a timer for 10 minutes and see if you are still hungry by the time the buzzer rings. If you think you are truly hungry, then eat a piece of fruit and drink a glass of water before eating any-thing else, as we rarely desire healthy options during an emotional craving.

In the long-term, try to find healthy ways to de-stress and find comfort, like calling a friend to talk, going for a walk, or writing in a diary. If you do succumb to your cravings, look at it as an isolated incident and don’t dwell on it, as that can derail your entire diet.

The All-Or-Nothing TrapWhen dieting, it is impossible to be perfect all the time; we miss workouts and sometimes eat an extra cookie (or ten). Sometimes these slip-ups lead to an all-or-nothing approach in which a missed workout seems to justify an all-day pizza binge. But the key to avoiding the emotional distress (and the associated overeating) is to be for-giving with yourself.

Instead of dwelling on your “fail-ure”, acknowledge your misstep, ask yourself why or how it happened (emotional crutch, a celebration, you just plain needed some choco-late), think of ways you might have avoided the situation (reaching for an apple, eating a salad before hit-ting the buffet, or maybe just prac-ticing moderation and splitting that piece of cake). Then put it out of your mind and move on.

Whatever you do, resist being pulled into the trap of negative self-talk. You are not what you eat.

Negative Self-TalkMany who struggle with their weight, especially over a long period of time (or a lifetime in some cases) are haunted by feelings of guilt. Part of this stems from the fact that weight loss has long been approached from a purely physical perspective — calories in versus calories out — with little con-sideration for the emotional factors or physical factors outside of one’s con-trol (like slow metabolism, or various medical conditions that inhibit weight loss). This oversimplified approach indirectly blames the overweight for being overweight, which unsurpris-ingly, can lead to feelings of guilt.

The biggest trap those on a weight loss journey can fall into is the cycle of guilt-induced negative self-talk: I have no self control. I am lazy. I don’t deserve to be healthy. I am worthless. I am ugly.

Such lies can eat away at a person’s sense of self worth and motivation, and can be incredibly damaging to the

psyche. These thoughts also have a tendency to spiral out of control.

The only way to combat this cy-cle of negativity is to refuse to en-gage in it. When you catch your-self repeating one of these lies,

counter it. I am strong. I am brave and willing to fight for the changes

I want to see in myself. I am loved. I am worth the effort. Whether you believe it or not is irrelevant as the mantras we repeat to our-selves become our truths.

If those around you are perpetuating this negative

talk (often unknowingly and with the best of in-tentions) it is important to express how it makes you feel and let them know how they can bet-ter support you. If they do not seem receptive or if you do not feel it is coming from a good place, find other support systems to build you up and help encourage you on your journey. Don’t Go it AloneStudy after study has found that those with a solid support system, which provides both accountability and encouragement, experience greater weight loss than those who go it alone, and tend to keep the weight off over the long-term.

Reach out for help. Confide in close friends or family about your weight loss goals and efforts and let them know how they can support you, for ex-ample, have a friend join you on a daily walk in place of your usual daily coffee. If they too are interested in losing weight, find ways to encourage each other through weekly check-ins, healthy recipe swaps, or pacts to call one another when a craving hits.

Get involved with community of people on the same weight loss jour-ney. Those working towards a healthi-er weight, especially those with a large amount of weight to loose, greatly benefit from being able to share and relate to one another’s triumphs and challenges. Go online and join weight loss chat groups or supportive pro-grammes like weightwatchers.com. Or put up fliers or ads to start your own weight loss support group at your local mosque, church, or school. Over 20% of the population in Oman struggles with their weight, so there are many out there going through the same challenges.

Weight at its most extreme is about life and death, and at the very least is about quality of life. Efforts to change one’s life through weight loss are brave and honourable, though they are too often fought in shameful isolation. This need not be the case. You are not alone. —felicia@timesofoman.com

When you find yourself reaching for a snack when you are stressed, set a timer

for 10 minutes. Then wait and see if you are

still hungry by the time the buzzer rings.

Don’t let a missed workout derail your entire day. To make

up for the lack of expended calories,

stick to water at dinnertime, avoiding sugary juice or soda

and saving yourself the 150 calories you might

have burned at the gym.

Replace negative statements about your

self-worth or value with positive affirmations.

Replace: I ate too much

today, I am a failure

With: I am proud of my continued efforts and perseverance. I look

forward to doing even better tomorrow.

According to a study conducted by the

National Weight Control Registry, people who lost

weight and continued bimonthly support

meetings for one year maintained their full

weight loss, while those who didn’t, regained

almost half of the weight they had lost. Start your own weight loss support

group within your family, mosque, church,

or school.

LIFESTYLEC9S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Sip Lemon JuiceIt’s good to start your day with a glass of lemon juice cut with water. The citrus is loaded with Vitamin C and other antioxidants that boost your immunity, and it enhances the body’s ability to absorb iron, an important nutrient for a healthy immune system. As lemon juice is similar in atomic structure to the stomach’s digestive juices, it also has a positive effect on the gastrointestinal tract and helps cleanse the bowels, relieving symptoms of indigestion, heartburn and bloating. The acid can damage the enamel on your teeth, so don’t eat lemon raw.

Lift CorrectlyMany people injure their backs when they lift objects. To prevent back injury and pain, bend and lift the proper way:

Don’t Miss Tea TimeTea is loaded with antioxidants and is considered good for the heart. Drink-ing tea may help keep your arteries clear of clots that can develop due to high cholesterol levels. It ensures that arteries are smooth and clog-free in much the same ways as drain ensures that bathroom pipes remain clear. Studies have found a 70 per cent lower risk of fatal heart attack in people who drink at least two to three cups of tea daily compared to non-tea drinkers.

Here are a few simple, time-tested foods, techniques,

and remedies to try, and a bit about why. Have you tried any of these

tricks? How did you like them? Do you have a favourite remedy of

your own? Tell us about it at lifestyle@timesofoman.com

Try

Why

PHOT

OGR

APH

Y: S

HU

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ERST

OCK

DECODINGDOCTOR

Hubert Vaz chats with Dr Mathew Raphael, a physician and gastroenterologist at Al Hayat International Hospital Love Your Liver

IF THE HUMAN BODY was an automobile, the liver would be its

is crucial to keeping things running well. Dr Mathew Raphael, physician

--

down of what the liver does, some common liver issues, and how to maintain good liver function.

What is the role of the liver?The liver has many crucial functions, like detoxification of the blood to rid it of harmful substances, digestion of fats, production of proteins and im-munoglobulins, storage of sugar, con-version of stored sugar to functional

sugar, breaking down haemoglobin as well as insulin, conversion of ammo-nia to urea (which is vital in metabo-lism) and eliminating old red blood cells. So, basically, cleaning the blood and turning food into usable energy.

What are common liver issues?

ailments concerning the liver include alcoholic liver disease (due to exces-sive consumption of alcohol), fatty liver (due to obesity), cancer of the liver, autoimmune liver dis-ease, developmental defects in infants, and amoebic liver disease which is not prevalent nowadays because of better hygiene stand-

ards. Thankfully, the most common liver ailments are preventable.

What if the damage is done? Liver transplants are an option for some patients with acute liver failure. They require a compatible donor who will donate a 30 per cent por-tion of his or her liver. It is far bet-ter to take preventative measures to ensure your liver health and main-tain a happy healthy life.

How can I protect my liver?One can protect the liver and prevent the most common liver issues easily by avoiding things that injure the liver.

Don’t engage in excessive consump-tion of alcoholLimit the number of medications you take that can damage the liver (cho-lesterol drugs must be taken under medical supervision).Keep your weight under control to prevent fat deposits from developing on the liver.

-atitis A (contracted through unclean

through blood or body fluids)

-tis C, which is most often contracted through unprotected sex or the use of unclean needles.

Watching cartoons can make kids fatChildren consume more high-calorie food such as cookies and candy after ob-serving egg-shaped cartoon characters that they perceive to be overweight, a study said. Children tend to perceive ovoid, or egg-shaped, char-acters as overweight even though the creatures are im-aginary, and seeing them can influence children to eat more unhealthy food, found the study. “They have a tendency to eat almost twice as much indulgent food as kids who are exposed to perceived healthier looking cartoon characters or no characters at all,” said lead author of the study Margaret Campbell, marketing profes-sor at the University of Colo-

results of the study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology said that kids are responsive to the apparent bodyweight of cartoon char-acters like the aptly named Grimace, a rotund, milkshake-loving creature created by McDonald’s restaurant in the 1970s. The findings — gath-ered from over 300 partici-pants in three age groups av-eraging eight, 12 and 13 years — have implications for mar-keters as well as parents navi-gating a world where children encounter cartoon characters in a variety of media, from books to graphic novels, TV shows, video games, movies and more. IANS

New drug may treat depression in a dayResearchers have identified promising drug compounds that could successfully treat depression in less than 24 hours while minimising side effects. Although they have not yet been tested in people, the compounds could offer signifi-cant advantages over current antidepressant medications, the study said. “Our results open up a whole new class of potential antidepressant med-ications,” said lead researcher Scott Thompson, professor at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine (US). IANS

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Appolo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24782666

Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi 24702542

Salalah 23291635;

Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra 24503585

Muscat Region

Apollo, Al Hamriya 24787766

Muscat, A Seeb Market 24421691

Muscat, Al Khuwair 24485740

Muscat, Al Hail South 24537080

Dhofar Region

Muscat, Al Nahdha Road,

Salalah 23291635

HOSPITALS

Al Amal Medical & Health Care

Centre 24485052

Atlas Hospital

Ruwi 24811743/

Ghubra 24504000

Al Musafir Specialised

Medical Clinic 24706453

Hatat Polyclinic LLC,

Ruwi 24563641

Azaiba 24499269

Sohar 2683006

Al Raffah Hospital 24618900/1/2

Al Massaraat Clinic &

Laboratory 24566435

Al Makook Medical

Coordinance Centre 24499434

Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24787766, 24787780

Capital Polyclinic 24707549

Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic,

Ruwi 24799760/1/2

Capital Clinic, Seeb 24420740

Ceregem National Raak 24485633

Dr Harub’s Clinic 24563217

Elixir Health Centre 24565802

Emirates Medical Centre 24604540

1st Chiropractic Centre 24472274

Hamdan Hospital 23212340

International Medical

Centre LLC 24794501/2/3/4/5

Kims Oman Hospital 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency 24760123

Lama Polyclinic, Sohar 26751128

MBD 24799077

Al Khuwair 24478818

Magrabi Eye and

Ear Hospital 24568870

Muscat Private Hospital 24583600

Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment

Centre, Al Khuwair 24477666

Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC 22004000

AIRLINE OFFICES

Muscat Airport Flight information

(24 hours) 24519456/24519223

Aeroflot 24704455

Air Arabia 24700828

Air France 24562153

Air India 24799801

Air New Zealand 24700732

Biman Bangladesh Airlines 24701128

British Airways 24568777

Cathay Pacific 24789818

Egypt Air 24794113

Emirates Air 24404400

Ethiopian Airlines 24660313

Gulf Air 80072424

Indian 24791914

Iran Air 24787423

Japan Airlines 24704455

Jazeera Airways 23294848

Jet Airways 24787248

Kenya Airways 24660300

KML Royal Dutch Airlines 24566737

Kuwait Airways 24701262

LOT Polish Airlines 24796387

Lufthansa 24796692

Malaysian Airlines 24560796

Middle East Airlines 24796680

Oman Air 24531111

Pakistan International

Airlines 24792471

Qatar Airways 24771900

Qantas 24559941

Royal Jordanian 24796693

Saudi Arabian Airlines 24789485

Singapore Airlines 24791233

Shaheen Air 24816565

SriLankan Airlines 24784545

Swiss International

Airlines 24796692

Thai Airways 24705934

LISTINGS

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

CINEMA SCHEDULE

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36)

15:00 Quriyat 16:30 Daily

15:00 Sur 18:00 Daily

15:00 Jaalan 19:30 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

06:30 Sohar 08:50 Daily

06:30 Buraimi 11:00 Daily

08:00 Buraimi 14:30 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 15:45 Daily

13:00 Buraimi 17:40 Daily

16.00 Sohar 18.35 Daily

16.00 Buraimi 20:20 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

17:30 Sinaw 20:50 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

14:30 Nizwa 16:50 Daily

14:30 Yanqul 19:30 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

08:00 Nizwa 10:20 Daily

08:00 Al Araqi 12:30 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

07:30 Sur 12:00 Daily

14:30 Sur 18:45 Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62)

06:30 Fahud 10:30 Daily

06:30 Yibal 11:15 Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Salalah 20:00 Daily

10:00 Marmul 20:30 Daily

10:00 Salalah 23:30 Daily

19:00 Salalah 07:40 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:50 Daily

SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Dubai 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

06:00 Sohar 08:30 Daily

06:00 Dubai 11:30 Daily

13:00 Sohar 15:30 Wed,Thur

13:00 Dubai 18:30 Wed,Thur

15:00 Sohar 17:35 Daily

15:00 Dubai 20:55 Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily

07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily

07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

CITY CINEMAContact (10 am to 6pm) 24567664 | 68. www.citycinemaoman.net facebook.com/citycinemaoman

SHATTI Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Drama)(PG)Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Harshaali11:30 am, 3:30, 8:30, 11:30 pmTerminator: Genisys (Action, Adventure)(3D)PG12Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Clarke 9:15, 11:45 pmTerminator: Genisys (Action)(2D)PG122:30 pmMinions (Animation, Comedy)(3D) PG1:30, 5:00 pmMinions (Animation, Comedy)(2D) PG11:30 pmHayaty Mebahdela (Comedy)(PG)Cast: Mohamed Saad, Nicole Saba7:00 pmThe Gallows (Horror, Thriller) (15+)Cast: Reese Mishler, Pfeifer Brown, Ryan Shoos6:15, 10:00 pmThe Vatican Tapes (Horror, Thriller) (12+)Cast: Michael Peña, Kathleen Robertson, Djimon Hounsou, 4:30, 11:45 pmPixels (3D) (Action, Comedy) PG12Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle2:30, 6:30, 8:00 pmPixels (2D) (Action, Comedy) PG1212:15 pm

MUSCAT GRAND MALLA Royal Night Out 2D (Drama)Cast: Sarah Gadon, Emily Watson, Jack3:45PM (15+)Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! 2D (Horror) (15+)Cast: Tara Reid, Bo Derek, Frankie Muniz7:45PMTerminator Genisys (3D): (Action) (PG12)9:30 PM, 11:55 PMGold Class: 12:30 PM, 11:15PMTerminator Genisys (2D) (Action) (PG12)4:15 PM

Minions (3D) (Animation, Comady) (PG)12:30 PM, 2:00PMBajrangi Bhaijaan (2D): ( Action) (PG)11:00 AM, 8:45 PM, 11:45PMGold Class: 3:00 PM, 8:15 PMPixels (3D) (Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi ) (PG12)Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle 2:15, 6:45 PMGold Class: 6:00 PMHayaty Mebahdela (2D) (Comedy)(PG)Cast : Mohamed Saad, Nicole Saba, Hassan Hosny5:45 PM

RUWISCREEN 1Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Action/Drama ) – PGCast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Harshaali3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PM

SCREEN 2Baahubali: The Beginning (Action) – (12+)Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka3.45, 6.45, 9.45 PM

SCREEN 3Masaan (Romance/Drama) – (12+)Cast: Richa Chadda, Sanjay Mishra, Saurav

Choudhary3.45, 9.45 PMBin Roye- Urdu - Pakistani (Romance/Drama/Comedy) – PG12Cast: Mahira Khan, Humayun Saeed, Armeena Rana Khan , Zeba Bakhtiar6.45 PM

SOHARTerminator Genisys - 2D (PG12) (Action) 3:30 PMTerminator Genisys - 3D (PG12) (Action) 12:30, 9:00, 11:45 PMBajrangi Bhaijaan - 2D (PG) Drama, Action4:00, 6:00, 8:45, 11:30 PMMinions - 2D (PG) (Animation)11:45 AMMinions - 3D (PG) (Animation)2:15, 5:00 PMBaahubali - 2D (Telegu)(12+) (Action)3:15 PMHayaty Mebahdela - 2D (Arabic)(PG) (Comedy) 6:45 PMPixels - 2D (PG12) (Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi) 6:15 PMPixels - 3D (PG12) (Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi) 12:15, 3:00, 7:00 PMThe Vatican Tapes - 2D (18+) (Horror)

1:30, 11:55 PMNom El Talat - 2D (12+) Comedy 8:15 PMMasaan - 2D (12+) (Drama)Cast: Richa Chadda, Saurabh Chadhary, Sanjay Mishra10:00 PMIvide - 2D (M) (12+) (Crime, Drama)12:45, 9:05 PMBaahubali - 2D (12+) (Action)11:45 PM

BURAIMITerminator Genisys - 3D (Action) (PG12)12:30, 6:45, 11:50PMBajrangi Bhaijaan– 2D (Drama, Action) (PG)12:45, 2:45, 7:00, 9:00, 11:30PMIvide– 2D (Crime/Drama) (12+)Cast: Prithviraj Sukumran, Nivin Pauly 7:30PMMinions– 3D (Animation) (PG)12:15, 2:00, 6:00PMBaahubali: The Beginning – 2D (Thriller) Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka3:45PM (12+)The Vatican Tapes– 2D (Horror) (18+)Cast: Olivia Taylor Dudley, Michael Pena 11:45PM

Sharkando 3: Oh Hell No! (2D) (Horror) (15+)Cast: Ian Ziering, Tara Reid, Cassie Scerbo, 5:45, 10:00PMThe Gallows– 2D (Horror/Thriller) (15+)Cast: Reese Mishler, Pfeifer Brown, Ryan3:45, 10:00PM

SURTerminator Genisys (3D) (Action) (PG12) 05:45, 11:45 PMMinions (3D) (Animation) (PG) 4:00 PMBajrangi Bhaijaan (Hindi) (Drama) (PG)04:15, 08:00 PMBahubali (Hindi) (Action) (12+) Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka7:15 PMThe Vatican Tapes (Horror | Thriller) (18+) Cast: Michael Peña, Kathleen Robertson 10:00 PMIvide (Mal) (Crime | Drama) (12+) Cast: Prithviraj Sukumaran, Nivin Pauly 11:00 PM

SALALAHTerminator (3D)(PG12) (Action) 9:00, 11:55 PM

Terminator (2D)(PG12) (Action) 2:45 PMMinions (3D) (PG) (Animation) 10:30, 2:15 PMMinions (2D) (PG) (Animation) 1:00 PMPixels (3D)(PG12) (Action/Comedy/Sci-Fi ) Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle 12:15, 5:00, 7:00 PMBajrangi Bhaijaan (2D) (PG) (Drama/Action) 10:00AM, 12:30, 4:00, 9:00, 11:15 PMCast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, HarshaaliHayaty Mebahdela (2D) (PG)(Arabic) 5:00 PMThe Gallows(2D)(15+) (Horror/Thriller) Cast: Reese Mishler, Pfeifer Brown, Ryan Shoos3:30, 11:30 PMMasaan (2D)(12+) (Drama) Cast: Richa Chadda, Saurabh Chadhary, Sanjay Mishra7:00 PMMahra Story (2D)(PG) (Drama) Cast: Salim Bahwan, Raniya alali7:00 PMIvide (2D) (12+) (Crime/Drama) Cast: Prithviraj, Nivin Pauly, Bhavana8:45 PM

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

Terminator: Genisys (Action / Adventure) Cast: Arnold Schwarznegger, Emily Clarke 3.30, 7.30, 9.45 & 11.55 pmCP No: 1714 (PG 12)The Gallows (Horror/ Thriller)Cast: Cassidy Gifford, Pfiefer Brown, Riyan Shoos8.00 & 10.00 pm CP No: 1730 (15+)Minions ( Animation/ Comedy )12.00 & 5.45 pmCP No: 1731 (PG)Max (Adventure/ Family)Cast: Thomas Harden Church, Josh Wiggin 4.00 pmCP No: 1732 ( PG)Vatican Tapes ( Horror/Thriller )Cast: Katheleen Roberston, Djimon Hounsou, Dougrey Scott12.00, 1.45 & 11.55 pmCP No: 1835 (18+)Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! ( Horror/Sci: Fic ) Cast: Tara Reid, Bo Derek, Frankie Muniz2.00 & 6.00 pmCP No: 1836 (15+) STAR CINEMAFilm information 24791641 / 24786776Website: www.isurf.co.om

Baahubali (Tamil) (Action)

Cast: Prhabas, Rana Daggubatti, Anshka

Shetty, Tamannaah & Satya Ra

3-30, 6-30 & 9-30 pm at Cinema Main

Baahubali (Telugu) (Action)

3-30, 6-30 & 9-30 pm at Cinema -2

Ivede (Mal ) (Thriller)

Cast: Prithviraj, Nivin Pauly & Bhavana

3-45, 6-45 & 9-45 pm at Cinema – 3

Premam (Mal) (Rom)

Cast: Nivin Pauly & Anupama

3-45, 6-45 & 9-45 pm at Cinema -4

Next Change: Acha Din (Mal), Appatakkar

(Tamil), Vallu (Tamil)(Programmes are subject to change)

TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily

05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily

05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

07:00 Sohar 08:55 Daily

07:00 Ruwi 11:40 Daily

13:30 Ruwi 20:20 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 14:55 Daily

13:00 Ruwi 17:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 19:20 Daily

17:00 Ruwi 22:15 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

07:00 Ruwi 10:25 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

06:00 Nizwa 08:40 Daily

06:00 Ruwi 11:00 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

15:40 Nizwa 17:55 Daily

15:40 Ruwi 20:20 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

06:00 Ruwi 10:45 Daily

14:30 Ruwi 19:00 Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (ROUTE 62)

12:30 Fahud 13:15 Daily

12:30 Ruwi 17:30 Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Ruwi 19:50 Daily

10:00 Marmul 13:15 Daily

10:00 Ruwi 22:30 Daily

19:00 Ruwi 07:30 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:30 Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Salalah 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

07:30 Sohar 10:50 Daily

07:30 Ruwi 13:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 16:15 Thur-Fri

13:00 Ruwi 19:10 Thur-Fri

15:30 Sohar 18:45 Daily

15:30 Ruwi 21:35 Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH/SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily

16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily

16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

9:15, 11:45 pm 1:00, 4:00, 7:00, 10:00 pm 5:45 & 10:00 pm 12:15, 5:00, 7:00 pm

@MGM @SHATTI @RUWI @BURAIMI @SALALAH

TERMINATOR: GENISYS (3D) (Action, Adventure) (PG)Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Clarke

3:45 pmA ROYAL NIGHT OUT 2D (Drama)Cast : Sarah Gadon, Emily Watson, Jack (15+)

BAJRANGI BHAIJAAN(Action/Drama ) Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor,

Harshaali Malthotra

SHARKANDO 3: OH HELL NO (2D) (Horror ) (15+)Cast: Ian Ziering, Tara Reid, Cassie Scerbo

PIXELS (3D) (PG12) (Action/Comedy/

Sci-Fi ) Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan

CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 3 YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE CINEMA | BOX-OFFICE COUNTER OPENS 30-MINUTES PRIOR TO THE SCREENING OF THE FIRST SHOW

WEATHER

380

Maximum

330

Minimum

TEMPERATURE

38%RELATIVE HUMIDITY

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

WITH LOVE

MIYA SHANTA THOMASJuly 26, 2011

Widely regarded as the oldest form of healthcare in the world, Ayurveda is an intricate medical system that originated in India thousands of years ago. Massage (Abhyanga) has a very important role in Ayurveda, in which it is performed using medi-cated oil (thailam).

Every thailam has a unique and specific formula that can contain the components of up to 50 dif-ferent plants. Each ingredient of the thailam is carefully selected for its physiological action and to help restore the body’s natural state of health.

In addition to general Ayurve-dic massage, there are special-ized massages like Udvartana and Shirodhara. Udvartanais performed primarily to promote weight loss, but also improves skin complexion, helps to de-stress and relax the body, and works as a natural exfoliation treatment. In this treatment a special medicated powder is used instead of oil and massage strokes are delivered in upward direction with high pressure.

Shirodhara involves dripping oil like a thread onto the head. The technique soothes and invig-orates the senses and the mind, promoting a total feeling of well-

ness, mental clarity and compre-hension. Medicated oil, ghee, or decoctions are placed in a dhara pot and allowed to trickle slowly onto the head of the patient ly-ing below it. Shirodhara is an extremely effective treatment used to calm the nerves, release pent-up emotions, and purify the mind and is particularly well suited to those struggling with mental distress or illness and in-somnia, as well as diseases of the ears, nose, and throat.

Specific strokes, oils, marmas, chakras, music and affirmations enhance the therapeutic impact of the customised massage, all of which must be preceded by a consultation to establish the state of the patient’s tissues and body systems, as well as his or her previous conditions and mental disposition.

Ayurvedic massage is available at: Kottakkal Ayurvedic CentreNear Hamriyah Al Maha pump. Building No. 2788, Way No. 4141Tel: 24701555

What is your favourite alternative medicine ?

Tell us about it:Hubert@timesofoman.com

LIFESTYLEC11S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

ASK DR. GERRYDRUG ADDICTION

Dear Dr Gerry,

I’m a 17-year-old boy and I have a troubling question to ask you. I love my friends, love being part of the group and hanging out together. Recently some of the group started using cigarettes and we all tried it out. Some of them want to try other substances but I’m feeling increas-ingly uncomfortable. I don’t want to lose my friends and want to be part of the group. Is there a problem with experimenting one time?

Z

Dear Z,

This is an important question that faces all young people. What do I do? Should I go with the flow? Many young people let peer pres-sure direct their choices. But what you are describing is a dangerous problem and I’m happy you’re feel-ing uncomfortable. It’s important to trust your instincts, which in this case are correct. Every year millions of people struggle with drug additiction. What starts as an experimentation or occasional joy rides, can very quickly become an

all consuming nightmare.But why not try it just once? The

fact is that nobody can say when ad-diction begins and it’s the first use that opens the door to addiction.Many of my patients have wished they could have gone back and re-fused that ‘first use’. They tell me, “I thought it wouldn’t happen to me, I thought I could control it.”

Don’t open that door. Talk to your friends and let them know this is not something you are comfortable with or interested in trying. Those who truly care about you will respect your decision.

F A M I L Y A D V I C E F I T N E S S M O V E O F T H E W E E K

Dr Gerry D’Costa has an MD in psychiatry and a special interest in the areas of anxiety, depression, addiction, and children’s psychiatry. He has practiced as a specialised psychiatrist at Badr Al Samaa hospital in Ruwi for the last 9 years. Starting next week, Dr D’Costa will begin offering his advice and professional insights to the readers of Times of Oman. Send your mental health questions to lifestyle@timesofoman.com.

PHOT

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(2)

ALTERNATIVEMEDICINE

“The Bridge” is an extremely effective exercise move that works the glutes (bum), hamstrings, and hips, as well as the supporting abdominal and back muscles.

DO A BRIDGE

By Dr Jisha K.J.

before rolling to the ground to rest.

As a bonus,pulse the move by dropping your hips towards the floor and squeezing your glutes to return to the top position, without touching the floor,

10 times

and repeat it 25 times to reap the benefits of full-fledged workout for your core and glutes.

You can use the same position, but lower your hip all the way down to the ground after

1 - 2 sconds

Do two sets of

20 repetitionsLay on your back with your arms flat at your sides.Bend your knees to a 45 degree angle, keeping your feet flat on the floor (your feet should be directly under your knees). Tighten your core (abdominal) and gluteus (bum) muscles. Lift your hips towards the ceiling until your body makes a straight line from your knees to your shoulders. Hold the pose for 5 full breaths and slowly roll back down to the starting position

three times per week

Ayurvedic Massage

LIFESTYLEC12 S U N DAY, J U LY 2 6, 2 0 1 5

Only cardio burns fat, so whether you want to lose

weight or show off your newly shredded abs and

bicep muscles, cardio is essential to any fitness

routine. Doctors recommend 30 minutes per day

to increase heart health and overall fitness,

here’s how to maximise that half hour.

CyclingTorch 200-500 calories (depending on speed and intensity) in just 30 minutes with this low-impact activity that is perfect for those who can’t run due to joint issues. Try a spinning class for extra intensity.

Racquetball Racquetball is a fun and social activity, and, believe it or not, it is one of the most effective high intensity workouts out there. Sprinting around the court, you’ll burn over 400 calories in 30 minutes.

SwimmingSwimming utilises the entire upper body and core, making it excellent for sculpting as well as for cardiovascular health. You’ll burn 250-300 calories in 30 minutes. This activity is zero impact, so anyone, regardless of joint or arthritis problems, can participate.

Aerobic DanceAerobic dance classes vary in intensity, but whether you salsa or two-step, you can be sure you are burning a minimum of 200-300 calories in half an hour. Aerobic classes range from club-style dancing to classes that incorporate kickboxing with hip dips. Try a variety until you find one that keeps you motivated.

RunningRunning is one of the most perfect forms of exercise, as it can be done anywhere and costs nothing aside from the initial cost of running shoes. If you are new to the sport, start slowly with short jogs, working your way up to longer runs at faster speeds. For experienced runners, intensify your workout by incorporating 30-second sprints into your daily run. You can burn about 10 calories a minute running, for at least a 300 calories every 30 minute session.

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

CONNECT H E D A I LY G U I D E

D

D4 VACANCY CARGO D7

S U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

RENT D2

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon

for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

3BR villa, sitting, dining & hall,

Azaiba behind Al Meera H- Market.

Contact: 99259977 / 95033008

1BHK, Darsait, walking distance to

ISM , neat and clean building, ground

floor, OMR 260/- per month rent

Call IQRAR on 99076557

Fully furnished 3 BHK accommo-

dation with all spacious rooms in a

villa at Darsait near ISD.

Contact: 9526 5289 / 9604 8422

Furnished room for rent at

Al Khuwair R.O 225/- for family only.

Contact: 99251975

Villa AL Ghobrah, 6 bedroom 1200/-

R.O. Contact: 99340055/97557555

For rent in Qantab European style 4

bedrooms, 4 baths, Guest toilet, fully

equipped modern kitchen, covered

car park for two cars, approximately

150 meters from the beach. For

enquiries, please Contact: Yasser at

92606005

Small old house for rent Al Ghobrah.

Contact 95112461

House for rent 4 bedrooms, 2 bath-

rooms, hall, kitchen Muscat Sidab

opposite the sea 250/-.

Contact: 99277377

1BHK without A.C Ghubra R.O 275/.

Contact: 97799175 / 92144045

2 BHK with A.C Mumtaz R.O 300/-.

Contact: 97799175

3BHK, 3 bathrooms, 2 balconies,

nr. Al Hassan W/ Kabir R.O 350/-.

Contact: 99384640

Flats shops for rent in

Ruwi MBD area Mumtaz area.

Contact: 97293708 / 92433127

2BHK at Al Khodh, 2BHK at Wadi

Kabir 2 room, 1hall, dining, 2

bathrooms. Contact: 99224748 /

99332297

Store in Wadi Kabir 1900 SQM.

Contact: 99473751 / 91471067

1BHK close to ISWKG Wadi Kabir

Bldg # 1690 R.O 250/-.

Contact 99476728

1BHK Darsait R.O 225/-. Contact: 92144045

1BHK Wadi Kabeer, RO 225/-.

Contact: 92144045

2BHK Darsait R.O 300/-.

Contact: 92144045

2BHK Ghubra R.O 350/-. Contact: 92144045

1,2,3 BHK. Contact: 97799175

Spacious 2- BR flat in MBD.

Contact 99713489

D2 S U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

2 bedrooms apartments for rent in Al

Khuwair and Ghubra. Call Yellow Bird

property on 24615375 / 97137989

or visit

www.muscat-realty.com

One & two bedroom apartments

available for rent, near avenue mall,

close to Atlas hospital next to Diwans

office, South Ghobrah.

Contact 99833747

250 sq mtrs restaurant for rent in

Plaza Hotel, Walja Ruwi.

Contact 99326339

3 Bedroom flat in Wadi Kabeer and

2 bedroom villa in Sidab- Muscat.

Contact: 95755953

Villa with two floors in (Hay Al

Arjan) in AL Khoud with 4 bedrooms,

hall, Majles, kitchen & one room in

ground floor. Contact: 93219597

For rent office CBD flat in Ruwi.

Contact: 92820734 / 95345909

House in Amerat near to Makah

hypermarket with three room,

5toilets, kitchen and hall 430/-.

Contact: 92747078

Room with A.C AL Khuwair

R.O 120/- Contact: 97799175

3000 sq mtrs Industrial landß,

in Barka Sanaiya, with electricity

400KW, shed, staff accommodation

and office. Ready to start any kind

of factory. Contact 99384255.

FOR SALE

BUYING/SELLING

DAILY GUIDE

FOR RENTBuilding In Rusail Industrial

comprising a store divisible area 266 sq. meters.

The building includes Studios

residence.Preferably to be leased to

one company.

Mob + 968 96177505

All type of car scanner available

easy car diagnostic for professional

and self use Authorize LAUNCH

and Autel dealer. GSM:92393972

www.omancartools.com

Used furniture & Electronic items,

office & house. Contact: 99834373

For rent if require flats for rent in

Wadi Kabir please send me mes-

sages through Whatsapp.

Contact: 99376454

Bath attached room for rent

Al Khuwair. Contact 99743569

Flat with A/C in the South Al Ma-

bella close to the Mosque Al Tawab

consists of 2 rooms, hall, 2 bathrooms

and kitchen. Contact: 99388995

4 BHK single villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158

1 Villa & 3 big Flats of 2/3 BHK with

hall, Kitchen & ACs Al Khoudh 6,

Close to express way,

from owner. Tel 97600322

alnehang@gmail.com

Fabulous AC flat at Al Khoud 3 bed-

rooms, hall and kitchen RO 270/-

for rent. Contact: 99334699

2 BHK flat in Al Ansab with

split A/C. RO.250/- Contact – 93191111

2BHK near Oman house behind

Khimji, H.O. Contact: 95865686

506sqm space with mezzanine

available for rent in AL Wadi Al

Kabir, Suitable for carpentry / Auto

workshop and / or electrical shop

interested parties may.

Contact: 24703981

Equipped kitchen showroom

company for sale at Ghubrah, Muscat.

6 visa available,

Contact owner at 96303747

Computer set up for sale. Contact

94412557

A parlour well settled / well

equipped in running position at

Ghobrah for sale. Contact immedi-

ately on 97498898

Darsait near labor card Medical

business furnished office for sale,

rent R.O 260/- p/m.

Contact: 91211117

Ladies beauty parlor sale in Mut-

trah, above Ahla supermarket.

Contact: 93231403

Used Super market Gandola RO

40.000 PER meter, double tube light

RO 2.000 per piece.

Contact: 96441670

Total Station Survey Instrument

S3 2” / Servo/ Trimble access

bundle - batch 9101025 – not used.

Contact: 94282782 / 95425747

6 bedroom, 6 bath rooms, sitting &

dining villa at Qurum.

Contact: 99342733

Turkish MDF door with frame for

sale, size 210 x 100 Price: RO 75/-.

Contact: 95899296 / 92141514

Sale & repair of Tyres 315/80

R 22.5 & 12.00 R 24.

Contact: 97477128

Brand new 4 BHK plus Maids room

in Barka, 2 Kms from Lulu.

Contact: 99347089

Commercial land for sale 3000 m

in quriyat road main high way can

use as a petrol station license

available asking price 350,000

For more information please call on

99070701 with out name

Villa for rent in Al Khuwair 33,

8 bedrooms & 5 bathrooms with

parking area near Taimur Mosque.

Contact: 99366624

2BHK with split AC at Al Khuwair

33. Contact: 94057023

Office space at Alasfoor Plaza

Qurum. Contact : 24566217

/24564686

For rent if require flats for rent in

Wadi Kabir please send me mes-

sages through Whatsapp.

Contact: 99376454

Luxury 3 BHK flat in Al Wattaya

with split A/C & private parking.

RO.500/- Contact – 93191111

Flat for rent in Mabellah 8th.

Contact: 97147240

Flat in South Al Hail, 2 bedrooms,

Majlis, 2 bathrooms, kitchen RO

250/-. Contact 93221474

Flat in Ruwi Mumtaz 2 BHK

RO 300 or 1 BHK 250 RO.

Contact 98588240

2BHK with split AC near PDO Gate

no -2 at Qurum. Contact: 94057023

2 bed rooms, kitchen, toilet & car

park in Al Khuwair R.O 200/- .

Contact 95154331

Deluxe furnished / unfurnished

flats Qurum. Contact: 24566217 /

24564686

Commercial 3 BHK flat in Al Ghobra

18 Nov Street. RO 700/-

Contact 93191111

2 BHK flat in Al Azaiba near sea,

with split A/C. RO.340/- Contact

93191111

Villa of 5 BHK in Al Ansab with split

A/C. RO.650/- Contact – 93191111

For rent in Qantab European style 4

bedrooms, 4 baths, Guest toilet, fully

equipped modern kitchen, covered

car park for two cars, approximately

150 meters from the beach. For

enquiries, please Contact: Yasser at

92606005

1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK new flat

available at Mabela in front of Mod-

ern English School

Contact: 96239126

Deluxe 1, 2 BHK flats in Darsait,

AL Khuwair 1deal for office &

residence. Contact 99369081

/99142314

Flat at Darsait. Contact 99326879

2 BHK Town house at Assarain

complex Al Khuwair for rent.

Contact 96365824 Rent RO 750

2 BHK near Kuwaiti Masjid Wadi Ka-

bir. Contact: 24816774 / 97608564

2 BHK, 2 bathrooms behind Abu

Nabil, Honda Road R.O 240/-.

Contact: 99737562 / 93887852

2BHK, 2 bathroom behind Sana

Wadi Kabir R.O 300/-.

Contact: 99737562 / 93887852

Luxurious room, fully furnished

with free WIFI and gas at Ruwi.

Contact : 95586937

Shop for rent/ sale in Ruwi near

Dish market good location, behind

City Cinema. Contact: 91318111

Flat for rent in Wadi Kabir with

3 rooms. Contact : 98555580 /

92800007

Flat for rent 2 bedrooms, sitting

room, store gym in ground floor in

Mumtaz area-Ruwi.

Contact 95135445

1BHK flats at Muttrah near Oman

house. Contact : 93231403

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5 D3

FOR SALE

MOTOR VEHICLE FOR SALE

Urgent sell KIA CERATO 2012,

63200 KM Run Expat family

used,1.6L, Price R.O. 3300/-. Excellent

Condition. GSM 92286477

Volvo prime mover model 1998 for

inspection Contact: Mr. Mohammed

Al Harthy 99427071

Doctor driven, Toyota Corolla 2009,

Honda CRV 2009, low mileage

available at Bombay Medical, behind

Ruwi Police Station.

Contact 99326339

Toyota Corolla 1.8 ltr GLI excellent

condition 28,000 kms.

Contact: 97717152

Touareg 2011 Oman cars, 114000

KM, silver, 8500/-R.O.

Contact 92857111

Prado ,2012. Contact : 99336093

Peugeot 206-2007 Model, expat

driven. Contact 99209285

Sportage, 2013. Contact:

99336093

Land Cruiser 2012. Contact:

99336093

2 Prime Movers Man 2008 with 40

ton petrol tank each working at the

moment in Al Maha. Price OMR 35

Thousand each. Contact 97000155

or 92688692

2 Rooms & 2 bathrooms with

kitchen near al meera hyper mar-

kets, azaiba for executive bachelors

/ family. Gsm : 942 888 63

ACC. WANTEDACC. AVAILABLE

ACC. AVAILABLEACC. AVAILABLE

Required a room in Darsait /

WadiKabir /Ruwi area.

Contact: 95405033

Fully furnished 1BHK with all

household items in Darsait near Lulu

on monthly Basis.

Contact : 99493500

Self contained furnished room for

executive bachelor in a decent Ghu-

bra North villa. Contact 92595830

1BHK sharing in Ruwi. Contact:

91214537

Sharing accommodation available

for working lady or couples near

Ruwi Church. Contact: 92837206

Room attached toilet and kitchen

near Indian School Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 95345537

Single furnished room, attached

bathroom in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 92155261

Fully furnished room in Ruwi for

non cooking ex- bachelor.

Contact 94412557

Room with bath, kitchen Al Khuwair.

Contact: 99743569/ 97004265

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication.

* Subject to space availability

Accommodation available with

Keralite family near W.K main

school. Contact: 95882866

/96575016

Rooms for rent in Seeb for couple /

single/ working ladies.

Contact: 96996938

Furnished room AL Khuwair for In-

dian Sri Lankan. Contact: 96536307

Furnished room for Indian couples

or family near Honda Road (Walja).

Contact 98952904

Furnished room attached bath for

lady in Wadikabir (Mars Hypermar-

ket) – 95941515

Independent rooms in Qurum /

Al Hail. Contact 95529970

3 cents plots-(12nos.) at walk-

able distance from Kovalm

Jn.,Trivandrum,Lorry site near to

main road-Bus route, for immediate

sale. 3 cents- 15 lakhs only.

Call 00968-95036240,

0091-9961034763 or

email- cfhd1@ yahoo.com

Centre For Housing Development-Trivandrum: Group of senior and

retired Engineers and Architects

provides service in the field of

Design and Supervision of buildings

in Kerala.For appointments, E-mail

your site location and building

requirements to cfhd@ymail.com. or

call 00968-95036240,

0091-9961034763.

38 cents plot with 2BHK house by

the river bank in Thrissur Dist. near

Irinjalakuda (Karavanoor).

Contact: 99347089

500 acre agricultural land suitable

for rubber plantation for sale in Rat-

nagiri Maharashtra. price 2 lakh per

acre, rubber board approved land,

minimum purchase 20 acre.

We provide care taking by expe-

rienced Malayalee team for your

plantation. please call ,

prasad 95760790

NRI

Well established medium size con-

struction company for sale. Equip-

ments, 30 employees &

ongoing projects.

Serious buyers only 99412020

Wall papers, grass carpets sale

& fixing. Contact 99834373 /

97102699

Coffee shop at Liwa main road.

Contact : 99515419

BUSINESS

New company seek partnership.

Contact: 96996938

General Investors. Gsm-99674870

2013 NISSAN MAXIMA FOR SALE.Single Owner,10 Months full cover

Insurance (UAE & Oman), 15,000

Km only. Intrested buyers can Call/

Whatsapp on 95692099

AVAILABLE

Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting,

Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crockery,

Glassware, Chafing Dishes, Ice Sculp-

tures, to Large Sound Systems and spec-

tacular lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222

for Catering and Croyden 9623 5555 for

Sound & Light. www.tunesoman.com,

E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

Fully furnished room for a decent

expatriate. independent kitchen,

bathroom in Wadi Adai.

Contact 96243086 at 5p.m.

Furnished room with attached bath-

room in W/K. Contact: 97167857

Sharing for non cooking executive

bachelor in CBD area WIFI free,

Advance deposit. Contact: 95094504

FOR HIRE

Silver Car, car for rent. Contact:

96166155 / 98402662

Volvo 12 Ton Truck for monthly

rent. Contact: 98713900

DAILY GUIDED4 S U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION VACANT

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

CATERING

DESIGNER

ADMIN

ENGINEER

ENGINEEREDUCATION

SALES / MARKETING

DESIGNER

AUTO CAD/DRAUGHTS-

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE

Secretary (Female), Experience:

Minimum 1 - 2 years. Forward CV

to hr@barikgroup.com

Required Office Assistant

160+25+Acc, Contact 99454425

Mechanical Engineer, Indian 24

with 2 yrs experience in HVAC- MEP

Revit – MEP, AutoCAD – MEP Navis

solid works Catia PRO-E primavera.

Contact: 96975382

Email: bonny491@gmail.com

2 years experienced Electrical Engi-

neer looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 98480509

SAP – SCM.MM Consultant B.Tech.

(Chemical), from NIT, working with

oil industry, seeks employment.

Contact: 98049288

Indian female 23, B.Tech (Electrical

& Electronics) & Diploma in

Electrical CAD on Visit Visa seeks

suitable placement.

Contact: 99278410 / 94027398,

Email: renju.raghavan7@gmail.com

ACCOUNTANT

BEAUTY

Indian CA with 15 yrs exp working

as Finance Head of MNC looking for

Job. NOC Available. 94047434

Qualified Accountant 5 years expe-

rience bilingual Arabic & English, 2+

years in Oman. Contact: 95539923

Indian male, 30 years, CMA(Inter),M.

com, 4 out of 7 years experience

in Oman in Auditing/ Accounts/

Finance. Having NOC and valid Oman

D/L. Contact: 96746420 ,

Email: sijuthampi@ymail.com

Indian male 32 years MBA, 6 out

of 14 years experience in Oman in

accounts / finance having NOC and

Valid Oman driving license last date

in Oman 01/AUG/2015.

Contact: 94051463

Email: gkvenkatesh83@gmail.com

Indian male, B. Com having experi-

ence in Accounts or Sales on visit

visa. Contact - 98295101

Indian Male B.com, 11 Year (8 Years

in Oman as a Senior Accountant) ex-

perience in accounts having 5+ year

experience in construction industry.

Working knowledge with SAP,

AS400 & Tally –with valid Oman D/L, presently working in Qatar,

will be available in Oman form 17th

July-21st July-2015 looking for a

suitable position in reputed

organization. Contact 00974

77181323 / 98065641,

email: bennybaby1982@gmail.com

Finance Manager, 10 years Oman

experienced MBA-Finance graduate

seeking suitable placement.

Contact 97745764

Assist Accountant Indian (m) 2

years experience in Oman looking

for a job immediate joining, cur-

rently working in Oman. Contact

Shaheed Shamsadin : 98427810

Accountant, Indian male, 10 years

experience in Oman. Can do upto

finalization and knowledge of Tally

ERP9 can be joined immediately

with NOC. Contact: 94134085

Email: muscatoman95@yahoo.com

Married lady 25 years, Master

Accounts having 5 years experience

in Indian looking for full / part time

job. Contact: 95140332 /93223050

family visa holder. Contact 95140332

Indian male, well experienced in

Accounts and Admin looking for a

suitable vacancy. Contact : 98717938

Indian female, M.Com Finance, DCA,

3 years experience in Accounts /

finance& knowledge in ERP & Tally

seeking suitable position in corpo-

rate finance / banking / consulting.

Email: prapullasuvarna@gmail.com

Contact: 96953705 now in family visa.

Indian male with total 5 year experi-

ence (2 years experience in Account-

ant cum sales co ordinator in a FMCG

Company in Oman) in accounts field

and NOC available. Looking for suit-

able job Contact 92130188

Indian male, B.Com, Accountant,

10 yrs in Oman experience in

Accounts, knowledge of Tally ERP 9,

focus RT having NOC & D/L, looking

for suitable job. Contact 93086105

Male 26 yrs, MBA in Accounts

and Finance, 2 years Experience in

Management and Accounts Fields,

and 1 year experience in Operations

in Oman Looking for a suitable job.

Contact 94374745

Indian male 22 yrs B. Com Graduate

1 year exp in Accounts, currently on

visit visa. Looking for suitable job.

Contact 94341848 /

Email – mohdhaji7272@gmail.com

MBA Graduate with 6 yrs exp in

finance/accounts/ auditing. Special-

ized in accounts payable dept, Ora-

cle app user, proficient in Sap (fico)

end user & tally 9.0. lean &six sigma

certified trainer on visit visa.

Contact – 91967213 / 99064780

Finance Manager, CPA, with more

than 15 yrs. of experience in GCC.

Fully knowledgeable in Finance,

General & Management Accounting .

NOC available. Contact 96209331

Sudanese Accountant seeking job

in Nizwa state experience 10 years

3 years in Saudi Arabia, 7 yrs in

Sudan. # 97796394 / 94003247

Chinese/ Arab/ continental cook & helper wanted. Contact 95529970

Required experience Waiter / Supervisor/ Juice maker, Shawarma maker. Contact: 95395378

Urgently required Accountant B. Com with 4-6 years Gulf experience

in construction field and good knowl-

edge in FOCUS accounting software.

Send CV : pccllcoman@gmail.com

Urgently required a part – time female Accountant fluent in English

with 2-3 years experience in Tally.

Email: mhca@mhabibgroup.com

Fax: 24564459

Urgently required female accountant with an experience

minimum 3years Email CV on

cv.hrcharity@gmail.com

Urgently required Junior Account-ant. Please send CV:

hr.azatllc@gmail.com

SKILLED

IT

DRIVER

Indian female B.Sc- Fashion De-

signer 21 years, fresher, One month

internship in a garment industry

2015 University best designer award

holder. Now looking for a creative

job, currently on residential visa.

Contact: 98297940 / 99741604.

Email : zintasabu@gmail.com

Architect and Interior designer, 8 years exp capable of managing

turn key projects, design, BOQ,

Execution. NOC available.

Contact : 95273166

AutoCAD Draughts man seeks

Employment. Contact: 91889873

Electrical draftsman AutoCAD

switch gear & MEP control panel

7 years experience Qatar.

Contact: 92546203/96228100

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

SITUATION WANT-ED

SIT. WANTED

Looking For office support staff with driving license and having

good knowledge of all official duty.

Contact .. 91624908, 93540898

Urgently required Male with 2

years’ experience in Admin Works,

fluent in Arabic and English,

Computer knowledge,

preferably with driving license.

Working hours 6am to 2pm or 2pm

to 10 pm daily

Email: jayan@ra.cc or 99661980

Vacancy for lady Receptionist

at Sinaw Hala Medical Center - Flu-

ency in English and Arabic Omani

or non Omani. Contact: 25524180 /

91362141 Email:

halamedicalgroup@gmail.com

Urgently Required: Administration with an experience minimum in

3 years in building construction,

required immediately join and MUST

have NOC.Apply, fax 00968–24605955,

emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com,

sbeoman@yahoo.com.

MANAGER

A vending Machine for sale of coffee products and Derivatives Company in Muscat having opera-

tions in Oman is on the lookout for

quality staff for the below positions:

Sales & Marketing Staff, Mechani-

cal maintenance mechanic, General

electric maintenance machines with

D/L. Send CV to

service@arabianvending.com

Urgently required Sales Executive and interior designer for furnish-

ing company with Valid Oman D/L

and minimum 3 years experience.

Contact: 93231403/

rainbowfurnishing156@gmail.com

Experience building material Salesman required in Amerat shop.

Contact : 99641900

Required Sales man - 1 Person Quali-

fication. Gulf Experienced - Minimum

5 Years with Oman Driving Licence

Language - English Education:- Any

Degree Further Contact :

Mr. Abdul Hameed

Nashabat - Mobile No: 97414307 and

-92807399 amn@yaqeeneng.com

Urgently required female Sales Promoters individual with pleasant

personality, excellent communica-

tions & presentation skills & experi-

ence in selling perfumes cosmetics

and skincare products would be

preferred. Send your CV & details

with recent photograph to

info@mawaridoman.com

or fax no 24127484/ Tel: 24127485

Tyre / Spare parts outdoor Sales Executive with experience required

driving license and NOC. Send CV to

ptf_25@hotmail.com

Wanted part time female Sales Executive with D/L for a reputed

company. Contact 94688874

A leading marketing company is

looking for outdoor Sales Execu-tives on part time or full time basis

in Salalah. Contact 92760281 /

96436719

Looking for Outdoor Salesman for

heavy equipment spare parts.

Contact - 93292015,

Email: mail.om@gulfcenter.co

Urgently required Sales and Marketing Executive for Graphic de-

signing company. Contact: 96727631

mail: smartgraphic518@gmail.com

Minimum 2 years of experience

with valid gulf light driving license

interested candidates please

Contact: 99222086 /98585851

Required male or female candidate with 5 years experience in renting

of properties. Interested candidates

may please mail to

alqurumprop@gmail.com

DRIVER

Urgently Required: Male – handles overall store operations of the Su-

permarket, Prior Experience a MUST,

knowledgeable in MSOffice. Send CV

to chanda@dolphin-oman.com or

fax to 244-92718.

Indian Female MBA, 3 years experi-

ence in Admin MIS, Family Visa.

Contact 98234427,

jkjsmith01@gmail.com

A Lady with 5 years experience in

HR/Admin is looking for suitable job

and can join immediately.

Contact : 94465835

Indian female, 29 yrs, MBA (HR) 4

yrs exp in HR & Admin seeking suit-

able placement. Contact: 95619537

Indian (male) MBA (MHA) with 5+

years of experience in HR. Looking

urgently for suitable position.

Ph-96395254, 24813065

Email-shm1691@gmail.com

Indian female with 1 half years ex-

perience in MBA / HR seeks suitable

placement. Contact 99257214

Indian female with 10 yrs of experi-

ence in HR/Banking/Operations

seeks a suitable placement.

Can be contacted on 98919015 or

sherianne.coelho@gmail.com

Quantity Surveyor for Mechani-cal, Electrical BOQ preparation and

verification required for part time as-

signment on immediate basis. Please

Contact-tgi17@omantel.net.om

MEP Engineer on urgent basis

required for immediate placement.

Please contact tgi17@omantel.net.om

Urgently required: HSE Engineer with an experience minimum in

5 years in building construction,

MUST have NOC and immediately

join. Apply, fax 00968–24605955,

emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com,

sbeoman@yahoo.com

Urgently required Project Engineer for a reputed Construction Company

in Muscat with Civil Engineering

Degree/Diploma, 6 to 10 years expe-

rience, holding Oman/GCC Driving

License.E.mail: assaud@omantel.net.

om or FAX: 24953530

Fire and Safety Technician with

NIFE or equivalent Diploma holder

preference to those having D/L. Send

CV to visionansara@gmail.com

Required a part time steel Struc-tural Design Engineer for a reputed

steel fabrication company in

Muscat. Interested person may

Contact : 99451158

IND male WEB developer 5 yrs exp

B.Tech (comp science) PHP, HTML

MYSQL Java script CSS.

Contact: 95990529

Email: renjith341@gmail.com

Required Beautician for a parlor

in Ghubra. Contact: 94241385 /

97244766

Wanted experienced Beautician

for beauty parlor in Al Amerat 3.

Contact: 91107337 Indian male 2+yrs oman exp in HR.

joing immediatly. release available.

Contact :93671437

ADMIN

CATERING

Required Civil Engineer (build-

ings) Oman experience 5+ years,

BOQ+ Tendering + site supervision.

Contact: 95218004

Email: alhilalint@yahoo.com

Urgently Required: Civil Engineer with an experience minimum in

5 years in building construction,

MUST have NOC and immediately

join. Apply, fax 00968–24605955,

emails sbc@steelbuildingsllc.com,

sbeoman@yahoo.com

Construction Company in Oman

urgently requires following candi-

dates: BE Civil Engineer, minimum

3-5 years gulf experience & Civil site foreman, minimum 5 years gulf

experience, diploma not required.

Email: applyforoman@gmail.com

Leading Construction Company requires Quantity Surveyor (QS)

with 4-6 yrs Gulf experience. Send

your CV : qsmuscat2015@gmail.com

(NOC required).

Construction Company in Oman

urgently requires the following:

B.Sc Civil Engineer, minimum 3-5

yrs Gulf experience. Civil Site Fore-man, minimum 5 yrs experience with

operating knowledge of Tally. Please

Email CV ; applyforoman@gmail.com

Grade”A” company in interior

Designing looking for: Operations manager Sales executive Qs Inte-rior Designer CVs to be emailed to :

alzahi.oman@gmail.com

Designer required for wooden

joinery company with excellent

knowledge of 3D Max, 2D Autocad.

Contact: 94249047

Email: mfqazi@gmail.com

Professional Teacher Qualified

M.Com Post Graduate in finance for

teaching Accounting subject.

Contact: 91251210

English Teachers wanted imme-

diately locations Muscat, Salalah,

Ibri, Nizwa, Buraimi, Khabourah and

Khasab. Contact : 91979343

Email: eaglesmuscat@gmail.com

Indian male 38 yrs Senior Chef de.

De. Party pastry exp 15 yrs in five

star hotels, 10 yrs exp Oman get NOC

looking for job in hotel & bakery.

Contact: 96460519

MISCELLANEOUS

Required urgently experienced Gardener and building care taker. Contact: 99231676

Well established company in

selling chocolate, Arabian sweets

and fresh flowers, opening ITS first

branch in Muscat seeking:

1- sweets and chocolates Sales man 2- flower arranger (Asian/

Filipino Nationality)

Contact: 94490011

Email: labelleoman@gmail.com

A company from UAE require 2 merchandisers in retail food

supply, store keeper with English

and invoicing experience. Email:

yesterdaysun@hotmail.com

Driver with 8 years experience

looking for job. Contact: 98130645 /

94342106

Indian (Kerala) light driver seeking

for job, 12 years experience Oman.

Contact: 98175321

Pakistan male (27) light driver

seeking job, 4 years experience in

Oman. Contact 96346582

Light duty driver with 2 yrs experi-

ence looking for job. #96342684

Light driver. Contact: 96961993

Indian (Kerala) light driver seek-

ing for job, 5 yrs experience in

Oman. Contact: 98029273

Looking for driving job. Contact: 98219182

Driver: 15 years Driving Experi-

ence in Saudi Arabia, Looking for

suitable place, Contact.. 91624908,

93540898

Driver available with car and with-

out car Education, B. A exp. 5 years,

language Hindi, Arabic, English.

Contact: 98522914

Bangladeshi male light driver seeking suitable placement 1 yr

experience. Contact: 94158238

Driver available with car driver &

without car. #96771598 / 94039796

Driver, 42 yrs seeks for suitable

job KSA, 12 years Oman 4 years,.

Contact: 95796030

Heavy duty driver with PDO

license, 5 yrs Intl. exp. # 95546585

Light driver. Contact:95779594

Driver looking for job. #99507039

Pakistani driving available.

Contact : 96913836

Wanted driver. Contact: 95112461

Driver heavy duty required urgent-ly for trailer. Oman / GCC experience

must. Those ready for immediate

joining. Contact: 99310859

MEDICAL

Require Quality Caregiver for an

elderly Mother. Contact: 99425200

Required MOH licensed lady G.P Dentist Pharmacist, Asst Pharma-cist for Salalah based pharmacy

and clinic. Contact: 92732491 Email:

clinicrecruitment2015@gmail.com

Urgently wanted Lady Ayurveda

Therapist. Contact: 91590083 /

92798678

Vacancy Lab Technician for inquiry

or send CV zmczahara@yahoo.com

Contact 24571094 Fax: 24571097

Required Prometric passed nurse to

join clinic from end August.

Contact: 99352793

ADVERTISING

Looking for JOB. I have done BS

Hons in Mass communication and

media, Specialised in Public Rela-

tions and Advertising. I have upto

1 year of experience. Immediate

Available. Open for any JOB.

Sultan Zafar #97034134

Accountant 8 yrs experience

looking part time job.

Contact 99867456

Indian Accountant: Male, M com,

7 Yrs experience in Accounts up to

finalization, having knowledge

of ERP, Tally, seeks suitable

placment.Contact 93950138

Email: lijinrajan123@gmail.com

Motivated and energetic male 25

having 4 years of experience in

finance with Master’s degree in Eco-

nomics and CAT Certified seeking

opportunity in Accounts/finance/

audit in a reputable organization.

Cell no: 00968-94626209

E-Mail: omerjawedshah@gmail.com

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

Urgently required experienced sub-contractors for Marble Flooring /

Marble Cladding / Grinding / Carving

works. Contact 92884177 / 99485595

Urgently required a silk Screen printer with good knowledge and

release letter or NOC. Contact:

93280288 or send CV to

albayanstamps@gmail.com

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5 D5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

MEDICAL

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

Indian male, B.E ( computer science

engineer), MBA (finance), OCA certi-

fied, having 5 years of experience in

oracle Dba/ oracle apps Dba, seeks

a suitable position in the field of IT.

Contact: 96212062

email: zubairkhan11@gmail.com

Well experienced MOH Licensed

Indian GP Doctor looking for locum /

permanent position in the

Capital area. Contact 98140024

email:drgpoman@yahoo.com

Indian male, B.com, diploma in ma-

terial management, 12+ years exp in

international / local purchase, ware

housing 4 logistics seeks suitable

placement NOC available.

Contact: 96477638 / 96477638

Production Manager 13 years

experience in cast Aluminium fab.

field and good track record seeking

for a suitable job. NOC ready in Hand.

Contact: 96392319

Indian male, with 8 yrs exp. in

Oman (BA- Graduate) working as

a project Sales Coordinator, with

Oman D/L, looking for suitable job,

ready to join immediately with NOC.

Contact 95245057

ENGG. / TECHNICAL HOSPITALITY

Female Dentist Indian, Prometric

passed 63%,4 years of work experi-

ence, immediately available to join.

Contact 97469553,

nazianbaig@gmail.com

Indian male GP doctor, 12 years

experience parametric passed with

74% seeks suitable post.

Email: ppdr2020@gmail.com.

Contact 97985325

Indian female Dentist MOH Oman

passed seeking a suitable place-

ment in capital region.

Contact– 91377681

hashimsarawat@gmail.com

Lab Technician, Civil (8yrs Gulf ex-

perience) looking for a suitable job

(NOC available) Contact-93344378

TOURS & TRAVELS

25 Indian female B.S.C. Fashion

Technology. 5 years experience in

textile industry as a merchandiser

and good in fashion marketing.

Currently available on visit visa,

seeking for a suitable job.

Contact : 96990368.

Email: simmy.missy@gmail.com

Civil Engineer, Diploma, Male 25,

3 years experience in site, CAD, 3d,

MS Project, Seeking job in Oman. #

92875345, jubincivileng@gmail.com

Indian male accountants, 12 years

experience, tally also. Looking for a

part time/ full time job in accounts

or purchase. Contact- 98983122

Indian Female 2yrs exp. in

Accountant 5 yrs exp. in Electronics,

seeking suitable Job.

Contact: 97162705,93705090

Indian male, 14 years Experience in

maintenance & Supervisor in hotel

field (Electrical, Ac Mechanical &

Plumber). NOC available #95253640

email = hareeshma24@yahoo.com

Female Candidate: Having experi-

ence (ISRO India) in Administration

(seeking suitable opportunities

&presently in Oman Mob:97239854,

Mail:asherlalitha@yahoo.com

Diploma civil Engineer seek-

ing jobs(positions suits me:

civil engineer ,site engineer,qa/qc

engineer,land surveyor ,total sta-

tion, auto level,draftsman (autocad,

microstation) mob:97239854,

Mail:asherlalitha@yahoo.com

MOH Indian Dentist 10 years experi-

ence in Oman. Can speak Arabic, has

driving license. Contact 98995321

or ventureoman007@gmail.com

BRANCH-HEAD, MBA-BBA, Indian

Male having experience in UAE,

India, Oman total 5 years (including

MNC), looking for similar or same

openings.NOC available.

Mobile :92700670,

E mail:catanalur131@gmail.com

Qualified Native speaking male

English Teacher with 18 years

experience seeks position. Salary

Negotiable. Whatsapp on +968 9334

1047 / +968 93952732 or e-mail me

on nadgov@gmail.com

Indian female, IATA, B. Sc, look-

ing for suitable placement.Con-

tact-95514305, E mail id-

raveendranmala@gmail.com

ACCOUNTANT, Indian male, 29

years, 8 years experience. Presently

working in Oman as a Senior Ac-

countant with Oman Driving license.

NOC available seek suitable opportu-

nity. GSM: 98184170

Iraqi Civil Engineer, 12 years expe-

rience with Omani driving license.

Contact: 94695595

Degree holder Civil Engineer hav-

ing 10 years experience with driving

license looking for better position.

Contact 98451844

Email: zahid_ruet@hotmail.com

Indian male, 38 years old, DME –

Mechanical Maintenance Technician

11 years Oman experience. Ready for

NOC, VISA transfer, ready to join im-

mediately, Mob +968 95612870,

Email: seeniselvan@gmail.com

Indian male, 34 years old, DEE –

Electrical Supervisor 10 years Oman

experience. Ready for NOC , VISA

transfer and valid Oman driving

license light, ready to join imme-

diately. Contact +91 9740679094,

kulasekar1980@gmail.com

MBA having 4years Gulf experience

in Coordination with contracting com-

pany .NOC Available. Ph: 95405885

Indian female, BE, Civil engineer

with 1 year experience looking for

suitable vacancy, on visit.

Contact 95139583,

Email : aisushetty09@gmail.com

Indian male Safety Officer, 4+

years experience diploma in fire &

safety Eng seeks suitable post.

Contact: 98843139

Electrical Engineer, B. Sc degree,

Filipino, 15 years experience in oil

& gas, power plant, substation, EPC

projects, testing & commissioning,

O & M with Oman D/L light.

Contact: 97090934

Electrical Engineer Indian male 29

years, having 5 years of experience

in industrial automation and utility

maintenance in India (MRF Tyres)

seeking suitable placement.

Contact: 92789995

Email: akhilabrahamlktr@gmail.com

Structural Engineer of 2 years &

7 months experience, specialized

in Structural Design and Site Su-

pervision looking for a job. Contact:

94634906 / 94370767

Email: muazomer45@gmail.com

Indian Civil Engineer (buildings)

available immediately as supply

contract. Contact: 93263834

Indian Male, IT Support Engineer,

2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experi-

ence. Contact 97311847

Btech computer science graduate

2015 passout.. Android application

marketing.. Having good communi-

cation skills and mindset to work in

a team. Contact 91024385

Engineer with 3 yrs experience in

Indian in MEP, HVAC& mechanical

maintained field on visit visa looking

for suitable job. Contact 99191535

Email: fareed029@gmail.com

B.E in ECE worked as Junior Scientist

Trainee in Chennai worked as System

Admin in Berik Honda Nagger coil

worked at Technical Support in Sam-

sung Service, presently in Bangalore.

Contact : 0091 7026267513

Indian female, B.Tech biotechnology with strong computer

skills and 2 years experience as

associate research analyst (Media

Monitoring) in Nasdaq Oman seek-

ing growth oriented jobs. Contact

92044603 /918056169148 or

angeline.babithac@gmail.com.

MISCELLANEOUS

SKILLED / UNSKILLED

SALES / MARKETING

12 yrs exp FREELANCE 2d, 3d

Draughtsman (holding Omani driv-

ing license). Contact : 93790601

Sudanese male, 31 year, have 3 year

Diploma in Electrical Engineer, 6

years experience in construction and

electrical plant.

Mobile No ; +96894549609

Freelance Graphic Designer availa-

ble to assist in Photoshop, Illustrator,

InDesign and Corel Draw Projects.

Contact : 95811820

Indian Female Lawyer 36 Yrs

having 11 yrs experience presently

working in Oman as Legal Advisor

seeks placement in Legal/HR/Admin

NOC available Contact-94436960

Email: famidakhan123@gmail.com

23, Male, ACCA Affiliate, 2 years+

experience in Audit and Finance

in audit firm, Looking for suitable

permanent placement, NOC release

Available. Contact: #95140445

a.saran891@gmail.com

MBA - (F), M.Com, B.COM. Indian fe-

male having knowledge of accounts

with Tally looking for part time or

full time job. Presently on family

visa. Contact :- 91892264.

Email:- yashicapandya@gmail.com

Indian Female 10 years exp as cook

in Oman. South Indian & Gujarati

special looking for part-time job

Contact 96733187.

Indian male-28 Years, Diploma in

Electrical Egg, having gulf experi-

ence. Specialization on Electrical

Installation and Maintenance, Opera-

tion. 7 years experience seeks for

suitable placement.

Mob – 968-95334580. E-mail

-sunilkumar257.sk23@gmail.com

Seeking Teaching Position. Quali-

fied and experienced Native English

speaking teacher seeking posi-

tion in Muscat, I have a Teaching

Diploma , two Honours Degrees

and a CELTA Certificate. Position

at Language school will be suit-

able. Will e-mail CV. Whatsapp only

+96893952732

MBA (F), B.COM. Indian female

having knowledge of accounts with

Tally looking for full or part time

job. presently on family visit visa.

Contact :- 96259171.

Email:- bhumicapandya@gmail.com

Indian female MCA, 24 years seek-

ing suitable job. Contact 93439467

IT professional MCA Oracle certi-

fied 6 months training of PLSQL

data warehousing, PHP, 3 months

trained seeking job at good com-

pany. Contact: 95694330 Email:

monakashyap001@gmail.com

B.E Computer Science, Indian male

looking for suitable job in the field

of software or information technol-

ogy having good knowledge in Java,

ASP. Net, MS Sql, MS Word.

Contact: 91986919 Email:

dileep2468.a@gmail.com

Indian male 25 yrs exp in Adminis-

tration, Telecom, Optical Fiber Com-

munication, Networking, MS Office.

Seeks any job. On visit visa.

Contact 91385373 /

sridharbsnlma1455@gmail.com

Network system Engineer B.E / ECE

+ CCNA & Ms certified with 4+ yrs exp

looking for a job. Currently in Oman

on visit visa. Contact: 92589502

IT

MISCELLANEOUS

MISCELLANEOUS

Indian male MBA 7 years experi-

ence in Hospitality industry, opera-

tion, sales & marketing looking for

suitable vacancy. Contact 92115860

Email vibin.py@gmail.com

MBA from UK with 9 yrs experience

in London, Dubai & Mumbai. Special-

ized GCC experience in top real estate

co & bank with driving license. NOC

available. #968 95168205,

dubaihomes1@gmail.com

Indian 44 yrs, 16 yrs Indian Army

5 and Half years in Oman exp ware

house, seeks suitable placement in

store, ware house or sales having

Oman driving license.

Contact: 94050311

B. Com & MBA Graduate on visit

visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact : 97372624 ,email :

sivaraj.gurukripa@gmail.com

Indian male 27yrs , diploma,3yrs

exp in oman in sales & supervisor ,

oman driving license holder, looking

for suitable placements.

GSM -96489211

B.Tech (MECH) MBA (Marketing)

having 20 years of experience in

sales, marketing, projects presently

working in Oman seek suitable place-

ment N.O.C available and ready to join

immediately. Contact: 91257781

email: rajrathsing@yahoo.com

Indian male 45+ yrs , 20 yrs exp as

sales supervisor in India looking for

indoor sales /stores /cashier or any

suitable placement can speak Hindi

, English, Malayalam, Tamil, kan-

nada can join immediately on visit

visa. Contact 93086105/33016546

Young Bangladeshi male 26 know-

ing coffee shop work as watering

sandwich making juice marking

etc presently in Bangladesh if any

employer need please Contact

behalf of candidate with his brother.

Contact: 92278538

Management professional experienced in profitable manage-

ment with organization skills with

over 21+yrs exp. in Bombay, Saudi

Arabia, Dubai, UAE & in Oman11 yrs

as GM Publications, Printing, Media

& Advertising in entire operations,

Sales marketing & etc. Looking for a

reputed organization for a challeng-

ing position any industry, can Join

immediately with NOC. Contact :

+968 98864706/99574638

Mail : akdas_uae@yahoo.com

4 Years experienced (Money

exchange services & Hospitality

services in Oman & India) - Indian

male 27 years, graduate in Hospital-

ity science, fluent in English, Hindi

& Arabic seeks suitable placement.

Contacts: 91383167

Female Postgraduate searching

suitable job. Contact 97792820

Filipino Male looking for a job &

have experience in sales, waiter,

barista, technical support / customer

service with good communication

skills. Contact 91789465

Indian Female with over 9 yrs

experience with good

communication skills seeks jobs in

customer service or sales field.

Contact : 96108289,

Email - shijipaul84@gmail.com

Part- Time Accountant, well experi-

ence senior accountant ,doing all

type of accounting works, Finaliza-

tion, Budgeting available.

Contact: :98803439

13 Years UAE experienced in MNC &

reputed firms logistics distribution

looking for a suitable placement, on

visit visa contact 99838743,

gani.dawood@gmail.com

Male Indian BBM Graduate 8 years

experience in logistics and ware

housing in a reputed company valid

driving license NOC available

looking for suitable position.

Contact : 96311786

Email: ubinfs@gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING

Indian male 31 visionary business

strategist having over 8+ years of

global experience seeking a chal-

lenging position that utilizes my

years of experience currently on

visit. Contact: 91902154

Looking for Sales Assistant job

(having Oman driving license).

Contact: 95872634

Pakistani male 34 yrs Intermedi-

ate 2 yrs exp in sales & marketing

in Oman. Looking for suitable job.

Contact - 92146864

Indian male seeking job, 8 years

experience in Qatar in clerical/ad-

ministration/documents controlling

fields. Willing to work in customer

care or sale also. Qatar driving

license available. Job preferred in

Sohar and surrounding cities.

Contact 93285117

Indian male. 27, Post Graduate, 5+

yrs exp in Oman in Sales & Credit

Control, with valid Oman driving

License, NOC available, looking for

suitable placements. Ph: 9199 3376

Indian Male, B.Com Graduate,

23, with experience in Sales looking

for suitable placements. .

Contact 98371144

Looking for job as Mason, pipe fit-

ter, Electrician and Aluminum fixer

available. Contact: 93015630

Indian male Diploma, Civil engineer

4.3 year experience at building

construction and consulting

company with Oman driving licence

and N.O.C available

seeking suitable placement

Contact 95989500

email cv.shihabedappal@gmail.com

Civil Engineer B.E, 5.5 years experi-

ence with Omani D/L.

Contact: 96785311

Indian 24 yrs male, 2 years experi-

ence in Site Engineer (Diploma in

Civil Engineering), Now on visit visa

in Oman. Contact: 94050311

Indian Male, Diploma in Civil Engi-

neer working as a Project engineer

with 7years of experience looking

for suitable job. Contact- 92636569

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D6 S U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

Indian male auto cad draughtsman

(civil) 8 years experience seeking for

part time job Mobile 99070584,

E mail: remluvp@gmail.com

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian

male,29 years.8 years experience

.Presently working in Oman as a Sen-

ior Accountant with oman Driving

license. NOC available, seek suitable

opportunity. GSM: 97705854

Sudanese male (B.Sc Computer Sci-

ence) (Diploma Computer Engineer-

ing) 6 yrs. experience DBA Oracle PL-

SQL , MS SQL-server, MS visual studio

VBA, network. Contact :91415886

Syrian male 3yrs. exp in IT support,

Networking, Security systems, Serv-

er support, IT sales and marketing.

Valid Omani D/L seeking suitable

placement. Contact 91033395

Indian Male, 34 years old, DEE –

Electrical Supervisor 10 years Oman

experience. Ready for NOC , VISA

transfer and valid Oman driving

licence light, ready to join immedi-

ately, Mob +91 9740679094,

kulasekar1980@gmail.com

24 years, Indian Chartered Account-

ant male with 3 yrs of experience

is seeking suitable placement in

Muscat, currently on visit visa &

ready to join immediately. Kindly

contact him on 98201476 or email at

lokeshkaluri@gmail.com

Indian Male, 38 years old, DME –

Mechanical Maintenance Technician

11 years Oman experience. Ready for

NOC , VISA transfer, ready to join im-

mediately, Mob +968 95612870,

seeniselvan@gmail.com

BSc Graduate, INDIAN male ,

seeking suitable jobs.

GSM: +91-8589820233.

MAIL ID: prajinap45@gmail.com

Young Indian Chartered Account-

ant, female, Having 6 years experi-

ence in Oman and India. Accounts

and Finance Manager, Auditor.

Urgently seeking suitable positions.

Contact 92530131,

jobcareer44@gmail.com

Tunisian women looking for a job,

khnows english,frensh, italian and

arabic. Contact: 91171838

Indian male 25 years B.tech comput-

ers (Having 3 years of experience in

customer service/Admin/IT Support)

looking for suitable position. Visa

Transfer/NOC Available immediate

to join. Contact: 98402389,

Mail: naresh6672@gmail.com

Manager, Young Indian Male, MBA,

BBA. Having excellent manage-

rial experience (around 5 years) in

leading Multi-National-Company.

Looking for suitable positions.

Contact: 92700670,

fardhaan@gmail.com

Available for part time accounting

job, contact 99196621

Indian Female MA. B.Ed. with One

year three months Teaching

experience. Subject: EnglishSeeking

for a Better placement.

Now working in Oman.

Contact 93961142, 92184408,

Email:-anoopkesavan78@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

MISCELLANEOUS

PART TIME ACCOUNTANT, Indian

male, M. Com, 35 years, 12 Years

exp. in Accounts, 8 years in Oman.

Knowledge upto finalization. Having

valid D/L, seeks suitable Placement.

GSM: 96249124

Egyptian Civil Engineer, total expe-

rience 7 years - 2 years experience

in Oman. I am looking for Project

Engineer, I have good experience in

site & office works.

Contact number:91148708

Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a

Suitable Job in Telecom / Network-

ing. 1 year sales experience. MSc.

Communications Engineering &

Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com.

Filipino Male looking for a job &

have experience in sales, waiter,

barista, technical support / customer

service with good communication

skills. # 91789465

ACCOUNTING – Indian male seeking

accounting job with 2 years

experience in accounting.

Contact: 94263445, E mail –

contactantonyxavieranand@gmail.

com

Sudanese male: 27 yrs, 2 years ex-

perience in accounting, other experi-

ence (purchasing – HR - Coordinat-

ing and Office Management), looking

for a job Omani Driving License,

NOC. Contact: 94174403

24 year Indian Chartered Account-

ant male with 3yrs of experience is

seeking suitable placement in Mus-

cat, currently on visit visa & ready

to join immediately. Contact him on

98201476 or email at

lokeshkaluri@gmail.com

Sudanese male (B.Sc, computer sci-

ence) (diploma computer engineer-

ing), 6 yrs. experience DBA oracle

PL-SQL, MS SQL - Server, MS visual

studio vba, network.

Contact 91415886

Syrian male 3yrs. exp in IT support,

Networking, Security systems, Serv-

er support, IT sales and marketing.

Valid Omani D/L seeking suitable

placement. Contact 91055584

Over 15 years experience in Gulf.

Interior Architect, Lebanese Nation-

ality, on visit visa seeking a suitable

Placement. 96268005.

PRODUCTION OPERATOR – Indian

male seeking production operator or

related jobs with 4 years of experi-

ence in oil & gas field.

Contact 94263445.

Email: tonyxavier4u@gmail.com

Indian Keralite Male 35 looking for

Scaffolding supervisor post having 5

years of Supervisor and HSE experi-

ence in GCC Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Fluent in English Arabic and Hindi .

Contact 96155921, or mail

fysal.nellaya@gmail.com

Indian Male 28 yrs, having 7 years

Gulf + Indian experience in HR and

Admin field, looking for suitable place-

ment. Contact: 97914340,

Email: rajkv3086@gmail.com

Indian Male 28 years MSM, B. Com

having 6years experience in Gulf and

India as a HR and Admin looking for

suitable placement.#97914340.

Email: rajkv30@gmail.com

B.Sc. Mechanical Engineer Suda-

nese 3 yrs of exp. In industrial field

available in muscat on vist visa

seeking suitable job .

Contact: 95868922, Email:

almouthanaosman@yahoo.com

IT system and Printer engineer ME,

5Years bank IT Management exp in

India looking for full time job visit

visa contact 94462150

Indian male with 8 yrs experience in

FMCG in Oman as Sales Supervisor

looking for suitable placement.

NOC available. Gsm: 96495206

24 year Indian Chartered Account-

ant male with 3yrs of experience is

seeking suitable placement in Mus-

cat, currently on visit visa & ready

to join immediately. Contact him on

98201476 or email at

lokeshkaluri@gmail.com

MCA IT Professional Indian Female

seek placement in Teaching/ Non

Teaching field. Presently on visit

visa. 9588 7051,

ashwininakod@gmail.com

ACCA Affiliate, Indian, 2.5Years

experience in Audit/ Finance in Big

6 Audit Firm and Oil Accounting in

PDO, For Permanent Placement for

Finance or Accounts or Audit. Re-

lease NOC Available on hand.

Contact #95140445,

a.saran891@gmail.com

Finance ACCA Affiliate, Worked as

an Auditor with 2.5 Years Experience

in reputed firm, Handled independ-

ent audit/finance assignments, Look-

ing for permanent placement, NOC

available. Contact 95140445.

a.saran891@gmail.com

Piping Design Engineer, Indian

male 27, looking for suitable place-

ment in Piping Design & Engineer-

ing. Having 7 years of experience in

AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS

(11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact :

97351786 / 96143708, E-mail :

mohammednazeer07@gmail.com

Sudanese male (B.Sc Computer sci-

ence) (diploma computer engineer-

ing) 6 yrs. experience DBA Oracle pl-

sql, MS sql-server ,ms visual studio

vba, network. Contact :91415886

Indian Male, Graduate, 11 years

Sales experience in Lighting /

Industrial products, ready to join im-

mediately. GSM: 9710 5356

Indian heavy duty driver with 8

years experience in oman available

with NOC. GSM : 93601943

GSM : 94496457

Indian male, 28 yrs MBA (HR/M) 2

years experience in Indian Oman in

HR & admin seeks suitable place-

ments. NOC available.

Contact 97484159

Email: rameshkapa86@gmail.com

M.Sc 3+ years exp from France &

India in IT Support Engineer / Hard-

ware & Networking / Server support

/ scientific system support looking

for suitable positions. Indian, male

on visit visa, contact 98898781/

anoopys@gmail.com

Looking for managerial post (full

time ), More than Ten years of expe-

rience in Team Development ,Train-

ing, planning, Administration, Sales

& Marketing, Advertisement and

Credit Control and Logistics. Contact

91076608 / 99322748. Release &

noc available

Indian male, 34years having 10

years of experience in Sales, Sales

Coordination and Administration.

Experienced in SAP and

MS Office. NOC available.

Contact # 94686594

Indian Male MBA Marketing/HRM

3 year experience with Omani D/L,

seeking suitable jobs.

Contact: 97424188

email: dharwesh@gmail.com

Indian, Male, 23 years, BE Electri-

cal, having 2 years experience in

Electrical Works-H.T. cabling etc, &

Construction, looking for a suitable

placement. Contact +968 96927880

(Oman), +91 9765376109 (India),

Email: rahulrevi6@gmail.com

Indian Female M.Com with Com-

puter Skills and Four Month Experi-

ence as Accountant ,Currently On

Family Visa Looking for a Suitable

Placement, Available Immediately.

Contact : 95846642,

Email : dhanyashree91@yahoo.com

ACCA Affiliate, Experience in audit/

finance of 2.5 years in Big 6 Firm

and Oil industry, looking for suitable

permanent placement, Release NOC

available. Contact: #95140445

a.saran891@gmail.com

B.Tech Computer Engineer Wanted

job to work on(IT/Banking/Admin-

istrator/Technical/Office works)

having NOC with the limited time

from (04/06/2015 to 13/06/2015).

Mobile:98402389

email:naresh6672@gmail.com

British Beauty Therapist looking

for suitable position. #:97175240

Highly Qualified & Experienced

Finance Manager Pakistani with

USA , UK & Canadian Degrees , CPA

,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA ,IFA- Financial

Consultants Canada , Corporate An-

alyst USA Professional of Banking ,

Audits ,ERPs & Profit Maximizations

( NOC available ) call 94 504505 –

94403270

27 year Indian female who has 4

years of experience with logistics

function in distribution of spares

for both heavy machinery & wind

turbine parts. Kindly contact me on

+91 9790769104

E-mail: joemohana@yahoo.co.in

Indian male Executive Secretary

having vast experience in admin,

logistics & procurement well versed

with computer .seek suitable place-

ment. Contact : 99514286

Indian male MBA (U.K), 10 Years

of experience in Admin, Sales, HR,

stores and logistics seeks suitable

placement. Contact 99271903.

Indian Female MCA, 4 plus Years

of experience in Web designing, Ad-

min, P.A, seeks suitable placement.

Contact 99486374

8 Years successful experience,

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian

male,29 years. Presently working in

Oman as a Senior Accountant

with oman Driving license seeks suit-

able opportunity. GSM: 97705854

7 and half years experience working

accounts / inventory manager looking

suitable job. Contact: 96991782

Email: srinivasu.sp@gmail.com

Indian female , MCA BCA, certifica-

tion PL SQL , 6months training PHP,

date warehouse looking for suitable

placement. #95694330 Email:

mondkashyapodl@gmail.com

B.Com with more than 5 yrs exp.

looking for an accounts part tome

job work. know with tally.

Email-shilpa_62@yahoo.com

Part- time accountant, well experi-

ence senior accountant , doing all

type of accounting works, finaliza-

tion, budgeting available.

Contact : 98803439

Indian male, looking for a part time

accounting job. Having additional

knowledge & experience in

HR admin & purchase.

Contact 99196621

Indian Female, 24yrs, M.COM (Ac-

counts) having 3yrs experience

in Accounts, HR, Administration,

Customer Service. Good Computer

Proficiency. Seeking Suitable Posi-

tion. Visa Transfer/NOC Available.

Contact: 99654913

HSE Advisor, NEBOSH IGC, Indian

male, 4 years experience in con-

struction and oil fields, seeking suit-

able jobs. Gsm: 97458900,

Mail: miroshbabu@gmail.com

Highly Experienced Finance Man-

ager, CPA ,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA , Pro-

fessional of Banking, Audits , ERPs

Sap , Management as Team Leader

and Problem Solver call 94 504505

/ 94403270

Indian male MBA Finance presently

OMAN IN visit visa, 26 years, look-

ing for an accountant job.

Contact 95240641, email Id

mohammadabdulazharuddin@

gmail.com

Admin Executive, 31, Indian Male,

having 9+ years exp. in reputed

companies. Seeking suitable place-

ment in any gulf region. Contact

+968 99276601 & 97693456. email :

muralimahdav77@gmail.com

MEP Quantity Surveyor-Estimation-

Project, 10 Years Experience

(3 years in Oman). Having NOC &

Oman D/L, looking for suitable job,

Contact - 98291626

Indian house maid looking full time

job. Contact : 98254909

B.E. Civil Engineer age 27, total 3

years of experience in Mumbai look-

ing for placement asap in oman now

on visit visa of 1 month ph 9571 3441

Email. Khatrialeem@gmail.com

Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP, MCITP

having Bachelor degree and 6 years

of experience in Networking looking

for job. 96760618 /

varghese.manthara@gmail.com

Sudanese male, 31 year old, have 3

year Diploma in electrical engineer,

5 years experience in different activ-

ities . Mobile No ; +96894549609

ACCA affiliate, with 2.5 years

experience in Big6 audit firm and

Oil industry, looking for permanent

placement in Accounts/Audit.

Release available Contact :95140445

a.saran891@gmail.com

Indian Female, Commerce Gradu-

ate, Total 9 yrs of experience in

India. worked as Accounts Assistant

and Business executive seeking for

suitable placement.

Tel : 96173533/24222457

Email : topranidivya@gmail.com

Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP, MCITP

having Bachelor degree and 6 years

of experience in Networking looking

for job. 96760618 /

varghese.manthara@gmail.com

Female Executive Assistant/Execu-

tive Secretary with 27+ experience,

worked with top management/Board

in financial services with shorthand

skills & Omani driving license,

seeks suitable placement.

call 95941515

B.E. Civil Engineer from India with

3 years of experience looking for

suitable vacancy in oman now on

visit visa. Contact 9571 3441,

Email . Khatrialeem@gmail.com

Indian male 21 IT Eng. networking &

computer hardware diploma, 1 year

experience, currently on visit visa

looking for a suitable job.

Contact 96036273

email: faizanfarooqui23@gmail.com

Indian, 32 years, completed M.A.

English, M.Sc. Psychology and B.Ed

in English. Searching for suitable job

in the field of teaching. To

Contact: 00968 99869535

Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com

Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a

Suitable Job in Telecom / Network-

ing. 1 year sales experience. MSc.

Communications Engineering &

Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com

26 years Indian male with MBA &

PGDFM, Total 3.8 years experience

in Administration, seeking suit-

able placement in any gulf region.

Holding Oman valid driving license.

Contact :94501423

DAILY GUIDES U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5 D7

SITUATION WANTEDCARGO

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise

with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain

Marine Tours Contact- 98029602,

92808636

RENT A CAR

TOURS

DRIVING

Learn driving with professional

only automatic. Contact 94022250

TRANSPORTATION

Taxi in Muscat for any where and

any time just send whatssapp be-

fore one hour and we will confirm to

you your appointment ,We have also

travel in Muscat. what you wait for

call: 99887282

Email: Awraqmuscat@yahoo.com

Pick & drop anytime in Al Khuwair.

Contact 99764307

Transportation. Contact: 96538078

Transportation. Contact:98522914

Transportation. Contact 99508282

Transportation. Contact: 98244078

Pick & Drop any time. Contact:

97014786

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D8 S U N D AY, J U LY 2 6 , 2 0 1 5

ACCOUNTANT: Indian male 25 hav-

ing 4years experience in accounting

& having well knowledge in tally.

Contact:968094535881,

0091 9037622048

Email: vishnuraj889@gmail.com

ACCA Affiliate, 2.5years experience

in Audit/Finance in Global Big6

Firms and Oil company in Oman,

Looking for suitable permanent

placement. Release NOC Available.

Contact: #95140445,

a.saran891@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTEDSERVICES

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of

your marble. Contact 24793614/

99314807

House shifting. Contact 99708138

House shifting packing.

99657644 / 98518013

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile

polishing, pest control & anti-ter-

mite treatment, general cleaning

painting, Plumbing, Electrical,

shifting. Contact Mundhir

Al-Rizaiqi trading. L.L.C.

# 24810137, 99450130

Water proofing ABUQABAS-

Contact 99320217/24788722

AC servicing maintenance fixing.

Contact: 99540621

WEBSITE

WEB, ERP and Business Intelli-

gence (BI) creation and man-

agement at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

CLASSES

CLASSES

COMPUTER

IELTS preparation course, unlock

your educational and career oppor-

tunities with eagles to; achieve your

required band. Contact 91979343.

Split & window A.C servic-

ing & maintenance. Contact

93769089/95323517

Air condition maintenance split

and window services AC specialist

ducted and package type unites.

Contact: 98667326

GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet

& sofa shampooing, Contact

99314807/24792998

Split & widow unit A.C servicing &

repairing. Contact: 99557080

Split & window unit A.C servicing &

maintenance.

Contact: 96236476

Window & split unit A.C servicing &

maintenance. Contact : 93769089 /

95323517

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance.Contact ABU QABAS-

99320217 /24788722

Carpet, Sofa Shampooing. Ocean

Center LLC. Contact: 99884591

A/C Maintenance & servicing, fridge,

washing machine & dish washer re-

pairing, painting & cleaning services,

electrical & plumbing.

Contact: 99447257 / 97014234 /

24504281

Pest control Treatments, termites,

cockroaches, bedbugs Ocean Center

LLC. Contact: 99344723

Hair dressing, facial massage &

other beauty treatment for women.

Contact: 94689448

FOR LADIES

SITUATION WANT-MANPOWER

SITUATION WANT-MATRIMONIAL

Syrian CSI boy 30/184, working in

a Automobile dealership at Muscat,

inviting proposals.m4marry ID:

3951195 Ph: 0091- 9656439949 /

94946429292

Indian male Roman Catholic Divor-

cee 40 yrs working in Muscat seeks

suitable alliance from widow/ divor-

cee/single. Contact: 96059801

Muslim boy, 32 years MBA, studied

and working in Oman as Sales

manager in a reputed organisation,

Tableeg Jamath invites proposals

from educated girls in Gulf prefer-

ably Malayalees. Contact 99357458

and 92656899

RC SC girl (Kerala) 28 yrs, 154cm

BSC Nurse working in Oman (SQUH)

seeks alliances from professionaly

qualified employers.

Contact: 96228192

Kerala Christian Orthodox boy 29/185 Staff Nurse MOH Muscat

seeks suitable alliances.

Contact: 99461264

GOOD NEWS

Genuine Ayurvedic treatments

& massage, Ayurvedic clinic at

AL Khuwair. Contact: 24478618 /

97263637 / 93309131

Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain,

backache, paralysis massage, steam

bath, obesity, spondylitis IDEAL ,

CARE Ayurvedic Clinic 18 November

street, Azaiba. Contact 99639695 /

99117987

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know

more about Islam, please call:

99425598, 96050000, 99353988,

99253818, 99341395, and

99379133. For ladies: 99415818,

99321360, 99730723

Orvisit: www.islamfact.com

Ayurvedic treatment for backache,

paralysis, arthritis etc & massage,

All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact 24475280 / 95371554 /

92504980

www.siddhayur.comAdmission Open: CAMBRIDGE /

BILINGUAL CURRICULUM

admission started in Al Burj Private

School, Azaiba for KG and Grade I to

IV. Please register soonest.

Contact: 93211417 / 92887809.

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text,

should be done till 12.00 noon for next day’s publication.

* Subject to space availability

BE civil Engineer with a vast

experience of 18 years in Oman

seeks immediate placement as

General Manger /Partner. contact @

joboman2015@gmail.com.

Indian male 23 yrs B. Tech Civil

having 2 years exp, currently on

visit visa looking for suitable job.

Contact: 98031034,

Email: musheer786.mm@gmail.com

Indian male Autocad Draughtsman

(Civil) 8 years experience seeking

for part time job. Contact : 00968

99070584.

Email: remluvp@gmail.com

Indian male, 14 yrs experience in

maintenance & Supervisor in hotel

field (Electrical, Ac Mechanical &

Plumber). N O C available. Contact :

95253640, E mail =

hareeshma24@yahoo.com

BE Electrical Engineer, with 2 yrs

exp. well knowledge in construction

field on visit visa.

Contact -98269366

Indian female, Ph. D in Mech. Engg,

B.Sc, B.Ed, M.Sc & M.Phil in Physics

having 6 yrs Malaysia University/

College teaching exp +1 yr experi-

ence for research fellow seeking

good position in Oman. Contact

97793859 / 93621114,

sreejayarejil@gmail.com

SITUATION WANTED

SIT. WANTED