T25 11 2013 by Sahir Vayappat

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KARZAI VOLTE-FACE LEAVESS US AGREEMENT IN PERIL An assembly of Afghan elders endorsed a crucial security deal yesterday to enable US troops to operate in the country beyond next year, but President Hamid Karzai left the matter up in the air by refusing to say whether he would sign it into law. >A11

MONDAY, November 25, 2013 / 21 MUHARRAM 1435 AH

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HISTORIC N-DEAL In a breakthrough

PLANE CRASH

HM sends condolences to Putin MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has sent a cable of condolences to President Vladimir Putin of Russia for the victims of the plane crash in the city of Kazan, capital of the Russian Republic of Tatarstan. In his cable, His Majesty expressed his sincere condolences and sympathy to President Putin, families of the victims and the people of Russia. — ONA

pact with world powers yesterday, Iran agreed to curb its nuclear programme

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OMAN

INDIA

WORLD

Employees on private sector rolls rise

Tehelka staff quizzed, hard discs seized

Egypt enacts new law to restrict rallies

Oman’s private sector witnessed a nearly 20 per cent growth in the workforce in the ﬁrst half of 2013, compared to the same period in 2012. According to report, private sector workforce increased by 19.3 per cent at the end of June 2013, compared to the same period of 2012. >A3

A Goa Police team returned from the capital yesterday after questioning Tehelka’s managing editor Shoma Chaudhury and three witnesses but did not establish any contact with the magazine’s founder Tarun Tejpal, accused of sexually assaulting a junior colleague. >A9

Egypt’s president signed a new bill into law yesterday restricting rallies and public gatherings, a move likely to raise questions about the army-backed government’s credentials. The new law will require people to get permission from the police before gathering in the future. >A14

CABLES

HM sends greetings MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has sent a cable of greetings to Zeljko Komsic, Chairman of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the occasion of his country’s National Day. In his cable, His Majesty expressed his sincere greetings along with his best wishes to President Komsic and his country’s people. His Majesty the Sultan has also sent a cable of congratulations to President Abdullah Yameen of Maldives on his being elected as new president of the Republic. In his cable, His Majesty expressed his congratulations along with his best wishes of success to Yameen in leading his people towards prosperity and the friendly relations between the two countries further progress. — ONA HM receives message from Somalia >A3

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

OMAN LEGAL COLUMN

The term ‘basic wage’ removed; maximum pension is 80% of salary I would like to place some questions concerning the new pension scheme for the private sector: i. If I have completed 23 years of service and my age is 45 years, and the basic salary is OMR3,600 plus allowances (OMR1,000), what will be the calculation? ii. If I have completed 27 years of service and my age is 49 years, basic salary is OMR4,000 plus allowances (OMR1,200), what will be the calculation? In both cases, age is not 60 years, so calculation is on the basis of full salary of OMR4,600 and OMR5,200 respectively or for only OMR3,000. Can this amount be discounted in both cases while in one case the age is less than 60 years but the service is more than the required duration? Abdul Ghafoor Yousuf Al Balushi

Times of Oman, in association with Khalifa Al Hinai Legal Consultants, will answer the legal queries of readers every Monday. Questions can be sent to readersclub@ timesofoman.com Some of the provisions of the Social Insurance Law promulgated by Royal Decree 72/91 have been recently amended by Royal Decree 61/2013 and accordingly the minimum pension is raised from the present OMR150 to OMR202.500. The maximum pension limit remains 80 per cent of the average monthly salary. The phrase ‘Basic Wage’ has been removed from the Law and it has been replaced by the word ‘Wage’ which is deﬁned as follows: The deﬁnition of ‘wage’ spelled out in paragraph (8) of Article (2) of the Social Insurance Law referred to shall be replaced by

the following definition: “Wage means the amount given to the insured in cash, in kind, periodically or regularly against his/her work no matter how it is defined or the total basic wage plus the allowances defined in accordance with a decision made by the minister following the approval of the Board of Directors. The expression ‘Basic Wage’ shall be replaced by the word ‘Wage’ wherever it appears in the Social Insurance Law referred to. The computation of the pension has also been revised through amendment (replacement) of Article 27 of the Social

Insurance Law as follows: Article (27): The old age pension shall be computed at 3% of the average monthly wage paid on the basis of insurance contribution during the last ﬁve years of the subscription period in insurance or the period of subscription if was less than that multiplied by the number of full subscription years at a minimum of OMR202.500 monthly and at a maximum of 80% of the average monthly

average of the wage referred to. You may make your own calculations of the pension amount based on the above amendments or approach the Public Authority for Social Insurance (PASI) to get exact figures from them. The eligibility conditions for pension, however, remain the same and they are as follows: Article (21/1): Termination of the services of the insured on reaching sixty years of age as long as his service period is 15 years as minimum for male worker or on reaching fifty five years of age for the female worker as long as her service period is 10 years as minimum. Article (21/2): Termination of the service of the insured before reaching sixty years of age as long as his service period is 20 years as minimum for male worker or before reaching fifty five years of age for the female worker as long as her service period is 15 years as minimum. Article (21/3): Termination of the service of the insured after reaching sixty years of age for

male worker or before reaching fifty five years of age for the female worker as long as the service period is 15 years as minimum out of which 36 consecutive months during the last five years prior to the termination of service. As per the amendments, the calculations will be based on gross salary (please refer to the definition given above) and not on the basis of basic salary. The amendments to the Law will be with effect from July 1, 2014. Kindly approach the PASI on the possibility of discounting the pension amounts. Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this column are for general guidance purposes only. They are based on facts presented to us and are not substituted for expert legal advice. Readers are advised to seek legal assistance for specific legal issues. Times of Oman and Khalifa Al Hinai Advocates & Legal Consultancy do not assume any responsibility towards anyone on this matter.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

OMAN

Oman’s national competitiveness will be based on our ability to source and apply knowledge and skilled talent. His Highness Sayyid Faisal Al Said >A4

B R O T H E R LY R E L AT I O N S

His Majesty receives message from Somalian president

DIPLOMATIC TIES: His Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said with Dr Mohammed Noor Ga’al, the Envoy of the President of the Federal

Republic of Somalia. — ONA

Staff on private sector rolls rise During the ﬁrst half of 2013, the private sector witnessed a nearly 20 per cent growth in the workforce compared to same period in 2012

REJIMON K. reji@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: The Sultanate’s private sector witnessed a nearly 20 per cent growth in the workforce in the ﬁrst half of 2013, compared to the same period in 2012, says a report issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI). According to the NCSI’s Q2 Economy Review report, private sector workforce increased by 19.3 per cent at the end of June 2013, compared to the same period of 2012, to reach a total of 1,675,918 employees. “The percentage of the expatriate workforce holding valid labour cards increased by 21.9 per cent to reach 1,498,777 employees while the number of Omanis working in the private sector increased by 1.5 per cent to reach a total of 177,641 employees,” the report says. According to the NCSI monthly data compiled till the end of September, the total number of national workforce in the private

EXPAT DATA

The percentage of the expatriate workforce holding valid labour cards increased by 21.9 per cent There has been a 2.9 per cent increase in the Egyptian workforce while the number of Nepalese workers in Oman dipped by 0.9 per cent

sector numbers 179,525 out of which 36,719 are women. Recently, a Royal Decree effected some changes in the pension system for the insured Omanis working in the private sector. According to the amendments, the Omanis who are insured and are working in the private sector will be eligible for a higher pen-

sion at the end of their service. The pension for the Omanis insured with the Public Authority for Social Insurance (PASI) will be calculated on the basis of their gross salary, instead of basic salary. According to the Royal Decree, the changes will come into effect from July 1, 2014. Meanwhile, the NCSI data also reveals that there are 1,515,611 expatriates working in the Sultanate, out which 1,347,729 are male. Comparing the September data with August, the statistics reveal a 0.7 per cent increase in the number of expatriate workforce. In August, there were 1,505,130 expatriates working in the Sultanate. Interestingly, the data reveals a 2.9 per cent increase in the Egyptian workforce in the Sultanate. In September, the number of Egyptians was 24,843 and in August, it was 24,147. However, a comparison between September and August data reveals that there has been a dip in the number of the Nepalese workforce. “There is a dip of 0.9 per cent in the number of Nepalese workforce. In August, when there were 13,010 Nepalese working in Oman, in September the number was only 12,896,” the data says. Last week, the Embassy of Nepal was opened in Muscat to render its services to its citizens and boost the relations with the Sultanate.

MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has received a written message from President Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud of the Federal Republic of Somalia. The message was received by His Highness Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers, when he received in his office yesterday Dr Mohammed Noor Ga’al, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Envoy of the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia. During the meeting, the special envoy conveyed sincere greetings of the Somalian president along with his best wishes to His Majesty the Sultan on the occasion of the 43rd Glorious National Day. He also conveyed thanks on behalf of Somalian leadership for the Sultanate’s support and positive stance towards his country.

Stability in Somalia The conversation during the meeting reviewed the efforts being exerted for stabilising the situation in Somalia and the results achieved in this sphere. The conversation also touched on the fraternal ties between the two brotherly countries, as well as a number of current issues at the regional arena. Sayyid Fahd asked the guest to convey the greetings of His Majesty the Sultan to the Somalian president along with His Majesty’s best wishes to him and wished the brotherly country further stability and progress. The meeting was attended by Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs and Hassan Mohammed Seyad Bari, ambassador of the Federal Republic of Somalia to the Sultanate.— ONA

E N E R G Y A LT E R N AT I V E S

Solar power plant to boost Oman’s energy resources Times News Service MUSCAT: US-based company Astonfield and the Omani Rural Areas Electricity Company recently signed the first agreement to generate electricity from renewable energy resources like the sun in Oman. Astonfield, in cooperation with the local firm Multitech, will establish a pilot solar power plant in the state of Al Mazyunah in the Dhofar Governorate, which will begin commercial operation in mid-2014 with a 303 KW capacity. The power purchase agreement for the Al Mazyunah Solar Energy Project marks a turning point in electricity generation in Oman and showcases how US technical expertise can meet Oman’s unique power demand situation. Oman has one of the highest potentials for turning solar radiation into energy, and this pilot project will

FUTURE POSITIVE: The commercial operation will begin in mid-

2014 with a 303 KW capacity output.

determine the speciﬁc advantages and challenges of operating in the Sultanate. Astonﬁeld will install two different types of solar energy generation technologies to evalu-

ate the best method for energy production, using the company’s vast experience in the domain to tailor the project to Oman’s speciﬁc environment.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

OMAN DAMAGE CONTROL AFTER NATURE’S FURY After two days of unstable conditions, the weather returned to normal yesterday and the authorities swung into action to clear the debris from the roads and start repairs of the damaged roads. Below left, the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO), in coordination with the Directorate-General of Education in the Governorate of South Al Batinah and Sultan of Oman Parachutes, yesterday transferred 60 teachers in the wilayat of Al Rustaq to schools in Yasb in Wadi Al Sahtan and Haat in Wadi Bani Ouf as the roads leading to the schools were damaged. — ONA

‘We will compete on global stage’ The ﬁrst Oman Competitiveness

We’re determined to respond to the changes around us and ensure Omanis second to none; our competitive edge will guarantee our place on the global stage

Forum will focus on the ability to source and apply knowledge, and build sustainable and high-quality infrastructure and education system services

Sayyid Faisal Al Said Co-Chair of Paiped’s OCF2013

Times News Service MUSCAT: The world is changing rapidly and it is clear that countries like Oman need to become more competitive. The nature of competitiveness is changing too; it is no longer based on low costs facilitating the manufacture and export of goods. In response to this shift, the Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development (Paiped) is organising the ﬁrst Oman Competitiveness Forum from December 1 to 4. “Oman’s national competitiveness will be based on our ability to source and apply knowledge, skilled talent, build sustainable and high-quality infrastructure and transport services, develop an education system that responds to the needs of the 21st century, create a regulatory framework led by informed and entrepreneurial-minded civil servants and putting in place a range of public services that support the growth of the Sultanate’s business com-

munity,” remarked His Highness Sayyid Faisal Al Said, Co-Chair of Paiped’s OCF2013 Organising Committee. He added, “We’re determined to respond to the changes around us and ensure Oman’s offer is second to none; our competitive edge will guarantee our place on the global stage — and driving this is central to Paiped’s agenda.” In addition to representatives from the World Economic Forum, OCF2013 has attracted over 20 international experts who will examine the core elements that can help make Oman competitive. It will also highlight actions that can help the Sultanate improve its performance and ultimately enhance its national competitiveness. “As people become more mobile and companies more selective about where they locate, competitive nations as well as cities are becoming magnets for talent and investment. Businesses, students and tourists increasingly have the

freedom to choose where in the world they make their mark. And if Oman isn’t on their radar, then we’re losing out. These are the very issues we’ll focus on at OCF2013,” commented Paiped’s Director General of Research and IT Services, Azzan Al Busaidi. “National proﬁles are becoming ever more important,” suggested Sayyid Faisal. “Countries have to differentiate themselves from the competition.” “It’s apparent,” argued Sayyid Faisal, “That we live in a world where many countries are similarly placed in terms of infrastructure and quality of life. “However, national objectives are best achieved through distinction. In simple terms, we need to take a critical look and ask ourselves: Why should companies invest here or tourists visit, rather than go to other places for investment and tourism? It all boils down to how competitive our national offer is.”

S O C I A L W E L FA R E

Shell invests OMR290,000 to train 80 Omanis for jobs Times News Service MUSCAT: Shell Development Oman (SDO) recently inked a pact for four new training programmes worth OMR291,250. These programmes are conducted as part of SDO’s ‘Training for Employment’ social investment initiative and are aimed at helping young unemployed Omanis secure jobs. Slated to begin in December, these programmes will give 80 young Omanis a chance to lead their lives independently. SDO’s ‘Training for Employment’ initiative is aimed at providing young Omanis with the necessary skills to enhance their employment and self-employment potential. As part of this initiative, SDO works closely with the Oman Society for Petroleum Services (OPAL) to secure available jobs in the marketplace. Upon successful completion of their training, trainees are guaranteed employment and competitive salaries in reputable private sector establishments. Commenting on this ceremoNCSI REPORT

Sultanate’s population grows 4.98% MUSCAT: The National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) issued the 5th information report on the Sultanate’s population, featuring many demographic indicators based on the official statistics and census exercises, to serve as a simpliﬁed reference for researchers and others interested in this area. The report pointed out that the Sultanate’s population increased by six persons every 10 minutes in 2012. The normal birth rate stood at 20.6 per 1,000 people against 2.3 per 1,000 people. The rate of population growth in the Sultanate stood at 4.98 per cent annually during the decade 2003-2013 while it increased by 11 per cent in case of expatriates. The rate of expatriates stood at 44 per cent of the total population, compared to 24 per cent in 2003. A total of 50.7 per cent of Omani population was male, and 49.3 per cent female. As for the expatriates, the number of males was ﬁve times that of females. When it came to the total population in the Sultanate, the males accounted for 65 per cent. The sex ratio stood at 183 males to 100 females. Of the total number of Omanis, 67 per cent were below 30 years of age, while in case of expatriates, the 20-59 year age group accounted for 91 per cent of their population. Most of the expatriates in the Sultanate — 87.2 per cent — were employed. — ONA

ny, John Blascos, general manager and Shell Country chairman, said, “The signing of these programmes demonstrates our commitment to creating job opportunities for young Omanis. By working closely with the OPAL and other partners, not only will we be filling important gaps in the job market, but will be filling them with suitable and well trained candidates ready to put their new skills to work.” Also commenting on the significance of this event, Irshad Al Lawati, the CEO of OPAL, expressed his satisfaction saying: “We highly appreciate the role of Shell and their continuous contribution to develop and increase the level of Omanisation.” He further emphasised OPAL’s determination to continue this joint effort and highlighted the effectiveness of the role played by the oil and gas sector and the other allied sectors in contributing to employment of Omani youth. The first programme, ‘Sales and Marketing Skills’, is designed to train 25 secondary school graduates suffering from hereditary

blood disorders. This six-month long programme aims to provide practical guidance to those new to sales and marketing. The participants will learn skills such as how to approach customers, achieve targets and communicate effectively. The second programme, ‘Welding’, is designed to train 15 individuals from different socio-economic and educational backgrounds. This six-month long programme provides participants with the skills and knowledge necessary in any welding and fabrication job. It will enable candidates to deal with health and safety at work, identify welding tools and machinery, report and record work effectively. The third programme, ‘Metal Structure Making,’ is designed to train 15 individuals from different socio-economic and educational backgrounds. This programme will teach participants skills such as how to perform fabrication works, perform track welding, perform visual inspections and understand calculations.

BRIEFS

SQU’s used books sale to continue till December 5

MUSCAT: The annual sale of used books being organised by the Sultan Qaboos University features around 45,000 copies of 1,000 titles in Arabic and English covering the ﬁelds of literature, science and humanities. What makes the used books fair unique this year is that all the books are priced at, OMR1 or less. The heavy discounts and special prizes offered is expected to attract more buyers, particularly students and researchers. The sale of used books will continue until December 5, excluding public holidays and weekends.

Shura to discuss budget MUSCAT: Majlis Al Shura will hold its regular session tomorrow. Sheikh Ali bin Nasser Al Mahrouqi, the Secretary General of the Shura, will approve, at the beginning of the session, the minutes of the previous session held on November 20 and will hear the statement of Darwish bin Isma’eel Al Balushi, Minister Responsible for Financial Affairs, on the draft of the State General Budget for the ﬁscal year 2014.

Consumer meet begins MUSCAT: The four-day meeting of the Consumers Union began yesterday under the chairmanship of Jim Guest, president, chief executive officer of Consumers Union in the presence of Dr Said bin Khamis Al Ka’abi, chairman of the Public Authority for Consumer Protection (PACP), members and employees of the Consumers Union. In his opening speech, Dr Al Ka’abi lauded the efforts being exerted to protect the consumers around the world, expressing his conﬁdence that this meeting will achieve success. — ONA

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013 Hindi ﬁlm Gunday, which was shot in Oman, is based on the lives of two small time thieves who later join the coal maﬁa.

OMAN

Another film crew comes calling With an increasing number of Bollywood movies being ﬁlmed overseas, Paiped is looking to position Oman as a destination for big budget Bollywood ﬁlm shoots

Times News Service MUSCAT: After Once upon a time in Mumbai Dobara, shooting for yet another big budget Bollywood movie took place in Oman last week. Top Indian movie stars Priyanka Chopra and Ranveer Singh F E L I C I TAT I O N F U N C T I O N

Essay contest winners lauded Times News Service MUSCAT: Winners of the essay contest on Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) were felicitated at a function held at the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque recently. The essay on the topic, ‘Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) – His Life as a Husband and a Father’ was organised by the Sultan Qaboos Higher Centre for Culture and Science, Diwan of Royal Court. Said bin Nasser Al Maskary, member of State Council, gave away the prizes. The ﬁrst-prize winners in the four categories: Non-Muslims under 21, non-Muslims above 21, Muslims under 21 and Muslims above 21, are Arun Alvin Philips, Alwardas Lalitha, Zulqarnain Ahmed and Asma Shabbir while second prize winners include Raka Ghosh Dastidar, Dr Rajan Philips, Maryam Aftab Kola and Massrat Shaikh. The third prize winners are Sunil D’Cruz, Muhammed Hussein, Wafa Hamood and Al Senani.

were in Oman to complete the shooting of the ﬁlm, Gunday written and directed by Ali Abbas Zafar and produced by Aditya Chopra. The director, who has already shot parts of the ﬁlm in Durgapur, Kolkata and Mumbai in India, shot its last schedule in Nizwa, Quriyat

and Bandar Al Khiran. The film is expected to be released on February 14 next year and the first trailer of the film was released this weekend. Gautam Roy of V4 Entertainment said that the team was in Oman for a period of five days to complete a song for their movie. “I would like to thank the Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Development (Paiped), Ministry of Tourism and the Royal Oman Police for their support in helping the project,” he said. He also made a mention of the support received from Akbar Mustafa Sultan, the vice chairman of the Mustafa Sultan Enterprises, a prominent business group in Oman with diversified business interests, and Universal Travels

and Tours for their logistic support. With an increasing number of Indian movies being filmed overseas, Paiped in Oman is looking to position the country as a destination for big budget Bollywood film shoots. Retro look It is believed that Gunday is based on the lives of two small time thieves who later join the coal mafia. The movie is set in the 70s era and the leading actors will be seen in a 70s retro look. The star cast of the movie includes Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor. Irrfan Khan was selected for the role of an intelligence agent in the film. Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor

will be playing the role of gangsters by the name of Bikram and Bala. Arjun and Ranveer are going through a fitness regime, including lots of physical exercises to become suitably fit for the role. The movie also has music composer Bappi Lahiri presenting his melodies. Prior to this, Oman’s beauty was showcased in the Bollywood movie Once upon a time in Mumbai Dobara starring Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha. Following the release of the film, Oman received a lot of coverage in the media all over the world. The stars who shot for the movie in Oman were heard praising the stunning locales of the country.

PROMOTING OMAN: Gautam

Roy of V4 Entertainment said that the team was in Oman for a period of ﬁve days to complete a song for their movie.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

REGION OUTCOME HAILED

‘Important message to Israel; peace only choice in the region’ RIYADH: Some Arab countries spoke out in support after Iran reached a nuclear deal with global powers yesterday. Iraq and Syria were quick to praise the deal as was the Palestinian Authority which welcomed it for putting pressure on Israel. The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain also welcomed the deal. “The cabinet hopes this would represent a step towards a permanent agreement that preserves the stability of the region and shield it from tension and the danger of nuclear proliferation,” the UAE said in a statement. Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa also welcomed the accord: “The agreement removes fears from us, whether from Iran or any other state.” The Palestinian Authority praised the accord, which it sees

as a welcome evidence of Washington taking diplomatic action in spite of Israeli resistance. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s spokesman Nabil Abu Rdaineh said it sent an “important message to Israel, to realise that peace is the only choice in the Middle East” and should galvanise world powers to push for a Palestinian-Israeli deal. He also said Palestinians want “a Middle East that is free of nuclear weapons”. Israel is presumed to have the region’s only nuclear arsenal, which it neither conﬁrms nor denies. Iraq was quick to praise the agreement. Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki hailed “a major step for the region’s security and stability.” The Syrian government of Assad also praised a deal it said proved the importance of diplomacy to resolve regional disputes. — Reuters

A major step for the region’s security and stability. Nuri Al Maliki, Iraqi Prime Minister

Breakthrough pact will bring stability Over the next six months, Iran and the

KEY POINTS OF THE AGREEMENT

US, China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany will negotiate a more comprehensive deal

GENEVA: Iran agreed to curb its nuclear programme in a breakthrough deal yesterday that world powers claimed was the biggest step in decade-long efforts to deny Tehran an atomic bomb. Tehran boasted that the agreement, which offers Iran limited sanctions relief, recognised its right to enrich uranium—which it says is for peaceful purposes—but Washington denied the deal made any such reference. Israel slammed the deal as an “historic mistake” failing to ensure the Islamic republic could not acquire nuclear weapons. The six world powers involved in the marathon talks however hailed the preliminary agreement, which seemed unthinkable only a few months ago and at least temporarily warded off the prospect of military escalation. “Today, the United States together with our close allies and partners took an important ﬁrst step toward a comprehensive solution that addresses our concerns with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear programme,” US President Barack Obama said. Under the deal between Iran and the ﬁve permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany announced at 3:00am Geneva time (0200GMT), Tehran will limit uranium enrichment— the area that raises most suspicions over Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons drive—to low levels. It will neutralise its entire stockpile of uranium enriched to medium 20-per cent purities— close to weapons-grade—within six months, US Secretary of State John Kerry said in Geneva, where he and other foreign ministers helped nail down the deal. Iran will also not add to its stockpile of low-enriched uranium, nor install more centrifuges or commission the Arak reactor. UN atomic inspectors will also have additional, “unprecedented” access, Kerry said. In exchange the deal will afford

the White House has described as a ‘limited, temporary, targeted, and reversible’ manner to the tune of around $7 billion, but the ‘vast bulk’ of oil, ﬁnance and banking sanctions will remain in place.

Iran has committed to neutralise its entire stockpile of uranium enriched to 20 per cent, which is close to weapons-grade and therefore an area of top concern. Half of this will be diluted to 5 per cent or under. The rest will be oxidised so it can contribute to making fuel for the Tehran Research Reactor, which produces medical isotopes. Iran will build no new locations for enrichment, and halt progress towards commissioning a reactor at its Arak plant that would produce plutonium that could also be used in a nuclear bomb. Iran will not reprocess or construct a facility capable of reprocessing spent fuel from the Arak reactor in order to extract plutonium. Iran will allow daily site inspections by experts from the UN nuclear watchdog IAEA at two of its enrichment facilities—Fordo and

Iran some $7 billion (5.2 billion euros) in sanctions relief and the powers promised to impose no new embargo measures for six months if Tehran sticks by the accord. This represents “limited, temporary, targeted, and reversible relief while maintaining the vast bulk of our sanctions, including the oil, ﬁnance, and banking sanctions architecture,” the White House said. Hassan Rowhani insisted “Iran’s right to uranium enrichment on its soil was accepted in this nuclear deal by world powers”. But Kerry was adamant: “This ﬁrst step does not say that Iran has the right of enrichment, no matter what interpretative comments are made.” Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said the recognition was implicit, as diplomats who were at loggerheads only hours earlier tried to sell the deal to their do-

The United Nations Security Council and European Union will not impose any new nuclear-related sanctions for six months.

They will suspend US and EU sanctions on Iran’s petrochemical exports and associated services such as insurance or transportation, and on gold and precious metals and associated services. They will also suspend US trade restrictions on Iran’s auto industry and associated services and licence the supply and installation in Iran of spare parts for ﬂight safety.

An agreed amount of revenue from sanctioned Iranian oil sales held abroad will be repatriated.

A general view of the heavy water plant in Arak, 320 kms south of Tehran. – AFP ﬁle photograph

Natanz—and hand over information about the design of its Arak reactor.

The P5+1 powers and Iran will establish a ‘joint commission’ to work with the International Atomic Energy Agency and monitor implementation of the agreement. In return, the P5+1 will ease sanctions in what

mestic audiences. Russia said there were only winners and no losers in the deal, while Iran’s other ally China said the Geneva document will support stability in the Middle East. France, the member of the socalled P5+1 group that had expressed the most reservations over Iran’s commitment in a previous round of talks, called the deal “a step in the right direction”. Over the next six months, Iran and the United States, China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany are to negotiate a more comprehensive deal. Crucial “It is now crucial to ensure punctual implementation of the agreement reached and to continue working, on the basis of the trust that is being built, towards a deﬁnitive settlement of this issue,” European Union President Herman Van Rompuy said.

Joel Rubin, director of policy for the foundation Ploughshares Fund, warned that the hardest work may still lie ahead. “This is going to challenge all of the feelings, and conceptions and ideologies and emotions that have been pent up in the US, in the West and in Israel and elsewhere for decades. It’s going to be a very, very hard task,” he said. The deal was reached at the third meeting of the P5+1 and Iran since Rowhani replaced Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in August and said he was ready for crunch talks. Iranians, many of whom see the nuclear programme as a source of national pride, are impatient to see a lifting of sanctions that have more than halved Iran’s vital oil exports since mid-2012. “The structure of the sanctions against Iran has begun to crack,” Rowhani said after the Geneva signing. — AFP

BAN REMAINS

Sanctions still in force: US DUBAI: The nuclear deal signed yesterday will not allow any more Iranian oil into the market, or let western energy investors into the country, but it does freeze US plans for deeper cuts to Iranian crude exports, Washington says. US and EU sanctions on Iran’s energy sector, which have prevented western energy companies from dealing with Tehran, and slashed its oil exports from 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) to around 1 million bpd, will remain in place. “In the next six months, Iran’s crude oil sales cannot increase,” a fact sheet posted by the White House on the US State Department’s website said. “Under this ﬁrst step, the EU

crude oil ban will remain in effect and Iran will be held to approximately 1 million bpd in sales, resulting in continuing lost sales worth an additional $4 billion per month, every month, going forward.” US lawmakers had planned further cuts in Iran’s oil exports but Washington has pledged not to impose new nuclear-related sanctions over the next six months, so long as Iran sticks to its side of the deal. US sanctions effectively bar Iran from repatriating earnings from oil exports, forcing customers to pay into a bank in their country. Under the terms of the deal, Iran will be allowed access to $4.2 billion of oil export revenues.

But nearly $15 billion will still ﬂow into accounts overseas over the next six months, according to the US government. The US government has also suspended some restrictions on gold and precious metals trade and lifted sanctions on Iran’s petrochemical exports that were imposed earlier this year. Iran is home to some of the world’s largest oil and gas reserves but US energy ﬁrms have been barred by Washington from Iran for nearly two decades. Despite the landmark deal, US restrictions on trade, including those banning long-term investment or provision of technical services to Iran’s energy sector, are still in place. — Reuters

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

675,000

people followed Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s updates from Geneva about the latest in the intensive negotiations

REGION

‘Smiling’ Zarif hailed as hero

REACTIONS

Thousands shower the Iranian foreign minister with thanks on the social media

A NEW DAY: Iranians look at newspapers displayed outside a kiosk in the capital Tehran a day after

a deal was reached on the country’s nuclear programme. The pros and cons of the deal abounded online. The Internet-savvy and charismatic Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif regularly posted updates from Geneva, keeping nearly 675,000 followers informed of the latest in the intensive negotiations. – AFP

The biggest breakthrough in a decade-old standoff The preliminary accord has been widely praised as a step towards making the world safer but Israel criticised the deal as giving Iran too much and failing to guarantee it would not get the bomb.

US PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

US SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN KERRY

Today, the United States—together with our close allies and partners took an important ﬁrst step toward a comprehensive solution that addresses our concerns with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear programme.

This ﬁrst step, I want to emphasise, actually rolls back the programme from where it is today, enlarges the breakout time, which would not have occurred unless this agreement existed. It will make our partners in the region safer. It will make our ally Israel safer.

RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN A breakthrough step has been made, but only the ﬁrst on a long and difﬁcult path. As the result of talks... we managed to get closer to untying one of the most difficult knots in world politics.

FRENCH PRESIDENT FRANCOIS HOLLANDE

IRAN SUPREME LEADER AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI

FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTER LAURENT FABIUS

God’s grace and the support of the Iranian nation were the reasons behind this success. Resistance against excessive demands should be the criteria for (nuclear) officials.

The accord “conﬁrms Iran’s right to civilian nuclear energy but rules out access to the nuclear weapon.”

The interim accord reached overnight is an important step in the right direction... towards stopping Iran’s military nuclear programme and therefore normalising our ties.

EUROPEAN UNION PRESIDENT HERMAN VAN ROMPUY IRANIAN PRESIDENT HASSAN ROWHANI This agreement beneﬁts all regional countries and global peace. Constructive engagement (in addition to) tireless efforts by negotiating teams are to open new horizons.

It is now crucial to ensure punctual implementation of the agreement reached and to continue working, on the basis of the trust that is being built, towards a deﬁnitive settlement of this issue.

RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEI LAVROV

ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU

“Nobody lost, everyone ends up winning... We are convinced that Iran will cooperate with the (International Atomic Energy Agency) agency in good faith.

What was achieved yesterday in Geneva is not a historic agreement but rather a historic mistake.

ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER AVIGDOR LIEBERMAN CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER WANG YI

This agreement will help to uphold the international nuclear non-proliferation system, (and) safeguard peace and stability in the Middle East.

This agreement is the greatest diplomatic victory of Iran, which has gained recognition for its socalled legitimate right to enrich uranium.

BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY WILLIAM HAGUE

UN LEADER BAN KI-MOON

The deal is “good for the whole world, including Middle Eastern countries and the people of Iran themselves.

The accord ‘could turn out to be the beginnings of a historic agreement for the peoples and nations of the Middle East region and beyond’.

TEHRAN: Iranians hopeful that a nuclear deal with world powers will ease their economic woes found a hero in Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, showering him with thanks on the Internet. Many had stayed up all night, glued to satellite channels and computer screens for updates on exhaustive negotiations in Geneva that stretched into a ﬁfth day in the early hours of yesterday. When news broke out—at around 05:30 am local time—that an historic agreement had been clinched by Iran and six world powers, joyful messages ﬂooded the Internet. “Thank you negotiators! Thank you Mr Zarif,” Tehran student Ahmad tweeted. “God bless you smiling man,” read a message on Zarif’s Facebook page, referring to his custom-

WINNING SMILE: Foreign Minis-

ter Mohammad Javad Zarif. – AFP

ary expression. “Your smile has made a nation happy.” The rollercoaster ride in Geneva was followed each step of the way by Iranians back home, to see if Zarif could break a nuclear impasse which has affected their lives for the past decade. Hamed Mohammadi, a private sector employee, said he hoped the deal would translate into a strengthening of Iran’s currency, the rial. “If the rial bounces back, goods will gradually become less expensive,” he said. Those sanctions are not affected by the Geneva deal but many Iranians are now optimistic of a change

in dealings with the outside world. “Livelihoods on the line” Media outlets made it easier this time to keep Iranians up to date on the latest round of talks—the third such gathering since President Hassan Rowhani, a reputed moderate and regime insider, took office in August. That included state television which—unlike previously—kicked off news bulletins with live reports from Geneva and voiced support for Zarif and his negotiating team. Mohyeddin—a carpet seller who like most colleagues in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar is close to Iranian politics and foreign policy—said he hoped for a full nuclear agreement within a year. “Business has been bad and must be revived. It will not happen until all sanctions are lifted,” he said. In street debates, an elderly man dressed to beat the first major cold wave of the season defended the deal in a public debate with a younger man on a packed metro. “I have seen war. I have experienced its suffering and devastation. We endured that but the sanctions can not go on,” said the man. “Our livelihoods are on the line,” he said, referring to the economy, battered by an official inflation. — AFP

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

INDIA BRIEFS

Pranab tells top cops not to judge policy formulation

LARGEST HUMAN DROPLET Volunteers make a largest human droplet to spread awareness to donate blood in Sirsa, Haryana, yesterday. Blood deﬁcit in the country is growing despite donation going up to twice the level that existed in 2007, a government official said. - PTI

NEW DELHI: President Pranab Mukherjee has told top police brass of the country that it would be inappropriate on part of investigative agencies “to sit in judgement over policy formulation”. This was the point also articulated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram during a CBI event recently. “Everything must be done to prevent corruption and ensure accountability and probity in public life. But it would be inappropriate for police agencies to sit in judgement over policy formulation,” the president was quoted as saying by the Rashtrapti Bhavan yesterday. Pranab, who spoke on a number of issues which pose a regular challenge to day-to-day policing, said district and local administration “must notice communal tensions in their initial stages and take necessary measures to contain them quickly.”

Restrictions on gold cited as reason for rise in smuggling THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala has been witnessing a spurt in smuggling of gold through its airports this year as the yellow metal has become lucrative for smugglers following the hike in the import duty on it to 10 per cent. In the last eight months alone, nearly 90 to 100 kg of gold has been seized by customs ofﬁcials from passengers who arrived in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode airports. According to B. Girirajan, President of All Kerala Gold and Silver Merchants Association, fall in availability of gold following restrictions imposed by the Centre is the prime reason for the increase in smuggling.

Polling in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram today BHOPAL/AIZAWL: Over 4.7 crore voters will seal the fate of 2,725 candidates in fray for 270 assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram where polling will take place today amid tight security. In MP, voting will be held in 53,896 polling booths in 51 districts to elect a 230-member Assembly. A total of 2,583 candidates are in fray, including Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is contesting from Budhni and Vidisha seats. The BJP is ﬁghting for an unprecedented third consecutive term in the state. Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla of the Congress and all his 11 ministers are among 142 candidates who will be contesting for the 40-member assembly. - Agencies

AAP without ideology, BJP venomous: Sonia Making use of witty adages in her

Can policies be made without ideology? Till the time you are not dedicated to an ideology, you will not be able to serve the people Sonia Gandhi

speech, the Congress president attacked the BJP for ignoring the development in Delhi while crediting Dikshit for changing the face of the capital WOOING VOTERS: Congress president Sonia Gandhi addresses an

Congress President

election rally in New Delhi, yesterday. – PTI

NEW DELHI: Congress president Sonia Gandhi yesterday indirectly attacked the opposition, including the BJP and the AAP, saying while one was “spreading venom in society” the other “had no ideology”. “Certain narrow-minded elements have been spreading venom in the society. It is not only the main opposition party but some others are also involved in this. One should ask what is your ideology,” Sonia said in her address at a rally in Shastri Park area of northeast Delhi. The northeast constituency of Delhi — dotted with slums and having a sizeable Muslim population — is a stronghold of the party. “Can policies be made without ideology. Till the time you are not dedicated to an ideology, you will not be able to serve the people,” she said. She urged the people to

compare the track record of Congress with that of its opponents. Referring to the BJP prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi’s recent criticism of former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, the Congress chief said: “I want to ask all of you, did they spare the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhiji ... no they did not. Did they spare Nehruji? He was a great freedom ﬁghter. They did not stop criticising Indiraji.” Baseless allegations “Those people who did not spare the architects of our nation, would they spare Manmohan Singhji, Sheila (Dikshit)ji and Congress governments,” she said. Targeting the BJP and its predecessors, she said: “Right since

independence, they have levelled baseless allegations against the Congress.” Making the use of witty adages in her speech, Sonia attacked the BJP for ignoring the development in Delhi while crediting Dikshit for changing the face of the national capital.“People from every section see the development in Delhi but our opponents are blind to it,” Sonia said. “They (the opposition) may not appreciate it (development) but the people know,” she said. “I am also a resident of Delhi. We are witness to the development of Delhi in 15 years,” she said. “Has Delhi changed since the ﬁrst government under Sheila Dikshit ... yes, it has changed ... people vote for development,” So-

nia said.She said “Delhi Metro is world famous now”, and “officegoers no longer have to travel in crowded buses”. Modi hits back Meanwhile, hitting back at Sonia Gandhi, BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi yesterday said no party can be “more poisonous” than Congress as it has thrived on “poison of power” for almost half a century. Modi also charged Congress with treating the poor merely as a vote bank and said in a democracy, a chai wallah, a pan wallah, a labourer or a farmer can become prime minister. A day after Sonia said BJP was a party of poisonous people, Modi said Rahul Gandhi had once recalled that his mother Sonia had compared power to poison. -Agencies

A L L E G AT I O N

Money given to media houses to defame us, says Kejriwal NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) yesterday claimed that Rs1,400 crore was distributed in some media houses to defame the party and openly attacked the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for paying the money. The allegation comes in the wake of a sting operation by media portal mediasarkar.com, which showed some AAP members allegedly accepting donations without proper veriﬁcation. “I am told Rs.1,400 crore has been distributed to a few media houses. Who are these media houses?” tweeted AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. Clean chit to members The party also held a press conference here yesterday in which it gave a clean chit to all its members featured in the video and reiterated it would sue the media portal’s chief executive officer Anuranjan Jha as well as some other media houses. “We will soon be ﬁling civil and criminal defamation cases

against the media portal and some channels that have been telecasting the sting operation,” lawyer Prashant Bhushan, an AAP leader, said. “Portions have been edited and deleted to show AAP candidates in bad light. There is political motivation behind the operation. All our members are honest and innocent,” party leader Yogendra Yadav said. The party also said it has appealed to the Election Commission and the Delhi Election Commission to devise rules during election time for media houses so that such sting operations could be certiﬁed before being telecast. “The EC will take a decision on it,” added Yadav. The sting that came out Thursday showed AAP leaders, including Shazia Ilmi, candidate from south Delhi’s R.K. Puram, accepting donations without proper veriﬁcation days before the Dec 4 Delhi assembly polls. Meanwhile, the state unit of the BJP yesterday lodged a complaint with the Election Commission,

alleging that Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal is enrolled as a voter in three places — two in Delhi and one in Uttar Pradesh. The letter dated November 22 said Kejriwal has voter identity cards issued from Sahibabad constituency in Uttar Pradesh, and Seemapuri and New Delhi constituencies in the national capital. The Sahibabad and Seemapuri cards bear the same identiﬁcation numbers. Information “We have obtained the information from the official websites of the chief electoral officers of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi,” said BJP member Satish Upadhyay. Upadhyay and fellow party member Harish Khurana had written the letter. “Kejriwal has violated the election laws and he is liable to be penalised if the available facts on the website are correct,” he added. “It is requested that immediate inquiry is conducted and penal action initiated against Kejriwal.” - Agencies

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

INDIA THE SIEGE

Five years on, no lessons learnt from Mumbai attacks: Book MUMBAI: The author of an acclaimed new book on the 2008 Mumbai attacks warns India has failed to learn the lessons of the deadly assault by militants — even ﬁve years after they traumatised the city. Adrian Levy, whose book The Siege highlights striking failures in Indian authorities’ response to the attacks, said he feared security had barely improved since the three-day onslaught that left 166 people dead. “Because there’s been no postmortem of any calibre, there are no lessons learnt,” said Levy, who spent four years researching and writing the book with fellow British journalist Cathy Scott-Clark. Poor resources “The feeling you get from the police, the intelligence agencies, is that they would struggle again. Not from lack of ability but poor resources, lack of political will,” he said. The Siege gives a blow-by-blow account of the attack on Mumbai’s luxury Taj Mahal Palace hotel, one

of several high-profile targets that were overrun on November 26, 2008. Despite their lack of preparedness, the book says Indian authorities received 26 prior US intelligence alerts that such an attack could occur, with all but one of the targets identified. Levy described as “dismal” the 64-page report by the Pradhan Commission, a two-man probe set up to examine the attacks, which was precluded from cross-examining intelligence services, politicians or the National Security Guard (NSG). He contrasts this report with the thorough reviews of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States and the July 2005 bombings in London, which led to “systemic changes” in security operations. “India too often just walks on, it doesn’t reflect,” said Levy. The young gunmen who conducted the attacks, from the group Lashkar-e-Toiba, came to the shore of south Mumbai after hijacking an Indian trawler out at sea. They launched their assault on

Adrian Levy, whose book ‘The Siege’ highlights striking failures in Indian authorities’ response to the attacks, said he feared security had barely improved since the three-day onslaught that left 166 people dead

the Taj and Oberoi Trident hotels, a popular cafe, a busy train station and a Jewish centre, with the dramatic scenes unfolding on televisions around the world. The poor equipment and World War II-era weapons used by Mumbai’s police were widely criticised after the attacks, but Levy said the force remained “under-funded, under-armed”. He details how members of the special force NSG were 12 hours late on the scene from New Delhi, owing to “political inﬁghting and incompetence in the home ministry”. “The frustration that built up

Goa police quiz Tehelka staff, seize hard discs The only thing I would say to everybody involved is that they should speak the truth fearlessly and I really hope some justice and truth comes into this case finally Shoma Chaudhury Managing Editor of Tehelka INVESTIGATION: Goa police team headed by investigating officer Sunita Sawant arrives at the of-

ﬁce of Tehelka in New Delhi, yesterday. – PTI

The young Tehelka journalist in her complaint to Shoma had said Tejpal assaulted her twice in the elevator in the magazine’s ThinkFest conference in Goa earlier this month

NEW DELHI: A Goa Police team returned from the capital yesterday after questioning Tehelka’s managing editor Shoma Chaudhury and three witnesses but did not establish any contact with the magazine’s founder Tarun Tejpal, accused of sexually assaulting a junior colleague. “We have not established contact with Tarun Tejpal yet,” Deputy Inspector General of Police O.P. Mishra said at a press conference at the police headquarters in Panaji. He said the police team met and examined Shoma and other Tehelka employees in Delhi. “They have also taken relevant documents in possession and some electronic items,” he said. Media persons warned Mishra also warned that media persons and houses naming the victim and putting out indicative as well as salacious details of the case in the public domain could be prosecuted. A three-member Goa Police team, which arrived in the national capital on Saturday, questioned Shoma for over nine hours at the magazine’s south Delhi office. Her other colleagues — Shougat Dasgupta, G. Vishnu and Ishan Tankha — were questioned for around four hours yesterday at Goa Sadan in New Delhi. “I was questioned for about nine hours. I fully cooperated and shared every document that is relevant ... it was a good experience. I

hope (for) clarity in truth and justice,” Shoma told reporters after the questioning. Asked about the three colleagues, who too were quizzed, she said: “The only thing I would say to everybody involved is that they should speak the truth fearlessly and I really hope some justice and truth comes into this case finally.” The victim had mentioned the names of the three in her email to Shoma. According to sources, Goa Police have seized the central processing unit (CPU) of Chaudhury’s computer as well as her laptop and iPad along with the CPU of Tejpal’s computer. Some CDs and a few hard discs were also seized from the Tehelka office. “Goa Police also seized the joining and transfer letter of the victim,” said a Delhi Police source. But Tehelka denied seizure of any documents. The young Tehelka journalist in her complaint to Chaudhury had said Tejpal sexually assaulted her twice in the elevator in the Club House section of the Grand Hyatt five-star resort during the news magazine’s highprofile ThinkFest conference earlier this month. Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women (NCW) Sunday asked Mumbai police to ensure security of the woman journalist. The NCW spoke to the Mumbai police after a statement was issued by the woman, who is based in Mumbai, that she fears

“intimidation and harassment” as Tejpal’s family is putting pressure on her family. Concerned “NCW is concerned following the statement and have spoken to Mumbai police joint commissioner (Crime) Himanshu Roy to ensure the girl’s security,” said NCW member Nirmala Samant. She said Mumbai police have assured her that they will provide all necessary protection to the woman in case she approaches them. “NCW is there to ensure her safety and security,” Samant said. The matter came to light after intra-office communication between Tejpal, Shoma and the woman was leaked to the media last week. Shoma too has been accused of trying to hush up the matter. Tarun Tejpal, 50, is the founding editor of Tehelka, known for its hard-hitting investigations into sexual violence against women and gender inequality, as well as into corruption and other lawbreaking. With the media newly sensitised to sexual assault cases after a string of widely publicised gang-rape cases this year, the incident has been front-page news and the magazine has been accused of hypocrisy. In an email to staff of the New Delhi-based magazine, Tejpal admitted that “a bad lapse of judgement, an awful misreading of the situation, have led to an unfortunate incident that rails against all we believe in and ﬁght for”. But Tejpal has denied the assault allegation and offered to cooperate with police. - Agencies

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was one of the things that allowed us a wide range of access to people desperate to tell their story,” Levy added. Piecing together He and Scott-Clark conducted hundreds of interviews piecing together a chronology with the help of text messages, CCTV footage, police and court documents, and recordings from wiretaps on the gunmen’s phones. The Siege relates how men from the ISI helped the attackers and boasted of a super-agent working in New Delhi, known as “Honey CBI COURT

Judgement in Aarushi, Hemraj murder case today GHAZIABAD: After over ﬁve and a half years, a CBI court here will pronounce its judgment today in the Aarushi-Hemraj double murder, one of India’s most sensational criminal cases in which the girl’s parents, both dentists, are the prime suspects. After the crime took place May 15, 2008, the case was investigated by UP Police. During the probe, police suspected the involvement of Aarushi’s parents, Rajesh and Nupur Talwar. Rajesh Talwar was arrested May 23, 2008. However, a fortnight after the murders, the case was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) May 31, 2008. The bureau submitted its closure report on December 29, 2010, when it could not establish the sequence of events.In the absence of reliable evidence, the investigation agency said: “No one can be accounted accused.” On February 28, 2011, a CBI special magistrate passed an order in which the closure report was rejected. The CBI’s investigation ofﬁcer, A.G.L. Kaul, said during his testimony that on the basis of the circumstances, he was convinced that the dentist couple killed their daughter. -IANS

Bee”, who allegedly provided key information. The ISI has officially denied any involvement in the attacks. Also explored in-depth is the role of David Headley, an American who spent two years scouting Mumbai for the attackers, and was sentenced by a US judge in January to 35 years in jail. The book says that there is “overwhelming evidence” that Headley, was working not only for Lashkar-e-Toiba but also the US intelligence community, which hoped he could lead them to Osama bin Laden. “In time, Headley would have had access to the inner circles of Al Qaeda. So that was a very enticing proposition for the US,” Levy said. Many of the US intelligence warnings of an attack on Mumbai appear to have been based on Headley’s information, although their source was not revealed. Levy believes India was “right to feel irate” about Washington’s “failure to come clean about Headley or their own self-interest”.

The only gunman to survive the siege, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, was tried in Mumbai and hanged late last year, aged 25, for “waging war” against India, murder and terrorist attacks. Pakistan charged seven men in 2009 for involvement in the attacks, but has said it needs to gather more evidence before proceeding further. A top state prosecutor in the case was shot dead in May. The man accused by India and the United States of masterminding the attacks, Hafiz Saeed, remains a free man. Along with the “villains” of the story, The Siege also tells of the heroic acts by those caught up in the horror. They included lowly paid Taj staff who formed a human shield to evacuate guests, and a US Marine who ushered more than 200 people to safety — down 21 flights of stairs and under live fire. “There were incredible stories from very ordinary people who behaved extraordinarily,” said Levy. -AFP

A10

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

PAKISTAN TREASON CASE

Musharraf’s party puts off plan to challenge special court The move was delayed to collect information about the three members of the special trial court with regards to their sentiments about former president Pervez Musharraf Pervez Musharraf

ISLAMABAD: All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) has put off its plan to challenge the composition of the three-judge special court constituted by the government for trying its leader Pervez Musharraf for treason under Article 6 of the Constitution. The party through its legal panel had decided to challenge the composition of the special bench on Friday. The move was delayed to collect information about the three members of the special trial court with regards to their sentiments about Musharraf and their activeness in the anti-Musharraf lawyers’ movement. “We have decided to challenge

the composition of the bench and it would be done once the evidence regarding these judges with regards to the former president is collected, as most of them have anti-Musharraf sentiments and played an active role in the movement against the former president,” said Ahmed Raza Kasuri, one of Musharraf’s lawyers. He said that the past developments with regards to Musharraf trial show that there is bias against their leader as the government referred the case to the Supreme Court without any Constitutional ground. For a fair trial, one of the basic requirements under article 10-A of the Constitution is that the judges

should be neutral, unbiased and independent, said Qasuri. “It is our constitutional right to challenge the composition of the bench if we feel that we could not receive justice from a certain judge or composition of judges.” The composition of the court can be challenged at any stage of the trial and that was why APML has delayed it and was collecting background information about the members of the bench, he added. Earlier, the APML information secretary Asia Ishaq had stated that the former president’s lawyers will challenge the special court before initiating the trial as all the three judges have records to be involved in the anti-Musharraf law-

yers’ movement and they would be inﬂuence the neutral trial. On the request of the government, Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad ChaudhAry forwarded ﬁve names one from each High Courts to the government and selected three of them. These three judges include Faisal Arab of Sindh High Court, Syed Tahira Safdar of Balochistan High Court and Yawar Ali of Lahore High Court. — Exclusive, in arrangement with Express Tribune

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PTI men forcibly search trucks for Nato supplies Around 100 workers from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party set up checkpoints in the northwestern city of Peshawar on a main road leading to Afghanistan UP IN ARMS: Supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami and Pakistan

PESHAWAR: Club-wielding activists from Imran Khan’s political party forcibly searched trucks for Nato supplies in northwest Pakistan yesterday in protest at deadly US drone strikes. Around 100 workers from the former cricket star’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party set up checkpoints in the northwestern city of Peshawar on a main road leading to Afghanistan. They stopped trucks and hauled drivers from their cabs to check their paperwork, following a call by Khan at a rally on Saturday to block supplies to Nato forces in Afghanistan in protest at the drone attacks. The activists, carrying the PTI’s green and red ﬂag, broke open truck containers to check their contents, an eyewitness at the scene said. The PTI heads the government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, of which Peshawar is the capital. But authority for the highways lies with the federal govern-

Tehreek-e-Insaf party hold up placards while listening to the speech of their leaders, during a protest in Karachi, yesterday. Some hundreds of supporters of the two parties demonstrated against drone strikes by the United States. — Reuters

ment, which has so far made no move to block Nato supplies. Muhammad Faisal, a police ofﬁcial, said the PTI activists’ actions were illegal but he was powerless to act. “The protestors are doing unlawful acts by checking documents and screening goods, they don’t have authority,” he said. “But we can’t take action against them because we have no instructions from the government. If the government orders us, we will stop this illegal activity.” PTI activist Asghar Khalil, 28, said they were heeding their leader’s call to action and would not stop until Washington promised to end drone strikes. Khan has long opposed the US campaign of drone attacks targeting Taleban militants in the tribal areas. He has intensiﬁed his rhetoric since a US drone strike killed Pakistani Taleban chief Hakimul-

lah Mehsud on November 1. Khan says that attack was a deliberate attempt by Washington to sabotage efforts towards peace talks with the militants, who have killed thousands in a six-year campaign of violence. “They are doing unlawful acts. They broke the sealing of my container and forcibly examined the goods,” Faiz Muhammad Khan, a truck driver transporting sanitary items to Afghanistan, said. “If they want to block supplies for Nato forces, they should stop it in Karachi or at the border.” Pakistan is a key transit route for the US-led mission in landlocked Afghanistan, particularly as Nato forces prepare to withdraw by the end of next year. Nato supplies were suspended on Saturday because of a major PTI rally, which was held on the route used by the trucks. — AFP

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

A11

ASIA BRIEFS

THOUSANDS FLEE AS INDONESIA VOLCANO ERUPTS Villagers sit on a truck as they evacuate to a safe spot, as Mount Sinabung spews ash into air at Aman Teran village in Karo district in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province, yesterday. The volcano erupted eight times in just a few hours, ‘raining down rocks’ over a large area and forcing thousands to ﬂee their homes, an ofﬁcial said, while adding that there were no known casualties from the latest eruptions. - Reuters

Japan warns China over new air zone TOKYO: Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida warned yesterday that “unpredictable events” could follow China’s unilateral declaration of an air defence zone over waters including disputed Tokyo-controlled islands. A Japanese ruling party leader also urged Beijing to help prevent a “touchand-go situation” after China said on Saturday it was setting up the “air defence identiﬁcation zone” over the islands in the East China Sea to guard against “potential air threats”. Kishida said Japan cannot accept the Chinese measure, which he said was “a one-sided action which warrants us to assume the danger of unpredictable events on the spot”. He added Japan was considering making stronger protests to Beijing “at a higher level”.

Factory owner to be charged over deadly ﬁre

Karzai volte-face leaves US security agreement in doubt

due next April

the president to debate the pact which outlines the legal terms of continued US military presence in Afghanistan. It voted in favour and advised Karzai sign it promptly. But Karzai, in his ﬁnal remarks to the four-day meeting, said he would not sign it until after a presidential election due next April. “If there is no peace, then this agreement will bring misfortune to Afghanistan,” he said. “Peace is our precondition. America should bring us peace and then we will sign it.”

KABUL: An assembly of Afghan elders endorsed a crucial security deal yesterday to enable US troops to operate in the country beyond next year, but President Hamid Karzai left the matter up in the air by refusing to say whether he would sign it into law. The gathering, known as the Loya Jirga, had been convened by

Presidential polls The president did not elaborate, but has previously said a free and fair vote is needed to guarantee peace in the country and his spokesman later said Karzai had not changed his mind. As the meeting ended, assembly chairman Sibghatullah Mojeddedi told Karzai: “If you don’t sign it, we will be disappointed.” Karzai responded “Fine!” and left the stage.

The Afghan president made clear that he would not sign the deal until after a presidential election

If there is no peace, then this agreement will bring misfortune to Afghanistan Hamid Karzai President

Failure to clinch the deal could mean a full US pullout, leaving Afghanistan to ﬁght the Taleban insurgency on its own. US troops have been in Afghanistan since leading a drive to remove the Taleban in late 2001. US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Defence Secretary

Chuck Hagel, said the deal must be signed by year-end to begin preparations for a post- 2014 presence. In his remarks, Karzai acknowledged there was little trust between him and US leaders while saying signing the pact was broadly in Afghanistan’s interests. Backing from the Jirga, handpicked by his admin-

istration, had been widely expected. Most speakers were muted in their criticism of the thorniest issues in the document, including a US request for immunity for its troops from Afghan law. A former US ambassador to Afghanistan, Ronald Neumann, said Karzai is known to use 11th hour demands to press for concessions from the US during negotiations. “He has to be the one ... to sign off on this loss of Afghan sovereignty. He knows intellectually that this is in Afghanistan’s interest, but at the same time it’s distasteful to him,” Neumann said. The deal took a year to bash out and Karzai’s volte-face threw the entire process into doubt just hours after both sides announced they had agreed on its terms. Even in Afghanistan, where some view the security agreement with the United States with contempt, many officials were unsettled. - Reuters

DHAKA: Bangladesh police said yesterday they plan to charge the owner of a garment factory over a ﬁre that killed 111 people as they wrap up an investigation 12 months after the tragedy. Police officials said charges would be laid against 15 people including owner Delwar Hossain, security guards and managers over the ﬁre that swept through the Tazreen factory that supplied clothes to Western retailers including Walmart. “Delwar and his wife, who is the co-owner of the factory, are going to be charged with causing death due to negligence,” a police investigator of the case, said.

Thailand capital tense as political rivals stage rally BANGKOK: Tens of thousands of pro- and anti-government demonstrators massed in rival rallies in Bangkok yesterday, as Thailand grappled with its most potent revival of street politics since bloody protests in 2010. By the evening police estimated that about 90,000 opponents of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her crisishit administration had gathered in three sites in the city’s historic centre, calling for her government to be toppled. -Agencies

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

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Congo mission a model for other peacekeepers

THE INDEPENDENT

or years, a UN peacekeeping force in Congo was a glaring testament to the organisation’s fecklessness. The largest such force in the world, with 19,000 troops, the “stabilisation mission” cost $1.5 billion a year but utterly failed to pacify eastern Congo, which has been a battleground for warlords and the armies of neighboring powers for nearly two decades. At its low point a year ago, the UN blue helmets watched passively as a vicious force of defectors from the Congolese army occupied and ravaged the city of Goma. Now, at last, the UN Congo mission has a victory to savour — as well as a potential model for future peacekeeping missions. This month a special UN “intervention brigade,” made up of 3,000 soldiers from Tanzania, South Africa and Malawi, joined the Congolese army in routing the defectors, whose M23 militia had been wreaking havoc for 18 months. Fleeing to Uganda, which, along with Rwanda, had been their sponsor, the rebels disbanded and were disarmed. Their military commander, Sultani Makenga, who is wanted for war crimes, is being held by the Ugandan army. A peace deal between Congo’s government and the rebels fell through last week, prompting Uganda to warn that the M23 could revive. But thanks to the United Nations’ unprecedented use of muscle, the region has its best shot at peace in years. The force, authorised last March by the UN Security Council, is the first with a mandate to undertake offensive operations. Its presence helped discipline the Congolese army and — combined with heavy pressure from the United States and European Union — induced Rwanda to cease its support for the rebels. Encouragingly, the capable Brazilian commander of the UN force, Gen Carlos Alberto dos Santos Cruz, has been saying he intends to follow up by taking on the score of smaller militias still operating in eastern Congo. The most significant is the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, which was formed by ethnic Hutu extremists who carried out the 1994 genocide against Rwandan Tutsis. Until that force is eliminated, Rwanda will retain an incentive — an excuse, some say — for backing Congolese proxies. In the meantime, the success in Congo ought to prompt some reflection in the United Nations’ department of peacekeeping operations, which oversees nearly 100,000 troops all over the world. Many of its operations have been embarrassing failures: Consider the mission in southern Lebanon, which since 2006 has stood by while the Hezbollah militia has deployed tens of thousands of missiles aimed at Israel, despite a Security Council mandate to “ensure that its area of operations is not utilized for hostile activities of any kind.” More forces prepared to take the offensive could prevent such debacles or even reverse them; that is what has happened in Congo. - The Washington Post

NEW ORDER

Rethinking the shape of global institutions PASCAL LAMY/ IAN GOLDIN

What value our natural world?

he ﬁrst ever meeting of the World Forum on Natural Capital in Edinburgh has provoked much ire among some environmentalists. Because the natural world is heart-stoppingly beautiful – the contention goes – and because it is both our physical home and a source of emotional succour, any talk of economic value is not only grossly inappropriate but outright damaging. To make the point, protesters dressed as auctioneers congregated outside the conference centre yesterday offering Ben Nevis, Loch Ness and similar to the highest bidder. A neat stunt. The only snag is that the argument is wrong. It is not that the natural world is not a glory beyond price; it is, of course. But there is, nonetheless, much to be gained from calculating the value of clean air, say, or virgin forests, and also the loss from their destruction. To clinch the case one need look no further than the intractable problem of climate change, highlighted once again this week by the wranglings at the UN summit in Warsaw. With a proper price on carbon, not only would emissions be fewer but there also might be more funding available for dealing with the damage already caused. For as long as nature is ascribed no value, it will continue to be treated as valueless. The Edinburgh forum is, then, a real step along the road towards a proper appreciation of the natural world. For too long, such concerns have been a matter of morality alone; as long as they remain so, “green crap” (as the Prime Minister may – or may not – have described the environmental levies on energy bills) will remain discretionary. Steadily growing pressure over the past few decades may have improved both public awareness and business practice. But it is not until environmental considerations are built into company strategies, into national accounting and – hardly less crucially – into the prices that consumers pay that we will see real progress. But there is a broader point here, too. To divide the world into caring environmentalists and rapacious business people was never constructive. Nor is it a betrayal to approach the natural world in economic terms. Rather, it is the green movement joining the mainstream – which is just where it should be. - The Independent

Oman’s GDP growth during first half is commendable Refer to the report ‘Growth rate robust in first half of 2013’, published in the Times of Oman. It is heartening to know that the Omani economy has witnessed a remarkable growth across various sectors, including financial, industrial, oil and tourism sectors, during the first half of 2013. According to the economic review published by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the gross domestic product (GDP) at current prices registered a growth rate of two per cent during the first half of 2013, over the same period of 2012, increasing from OMR15,220.5 million in the first half of 2012 to OMR15,527.5 million during the same period of 2013. Coming at a time when poor global demand for

oil has depressed the commodity’s prices, the performance is commendable. Ramnaresh Chaurasia Al Ghubra

Take care of yourself when the weather turns foul Refer to the report ‘Weather’s fury claims nine lives’, published in the Times of Oman. It is unfortunate that nine people lost their lives due to adverse weather despite the best efforts of the government. It is also true that had it not been for the efforts of a combined team of Royal Army of Oman (RAO), Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO), Royal Oman Police (ROP) and Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA), the number of lives lost could have been substantially

Not only do more than 190 countries now belong to the UN; publicly funded international institutions have proliferated, with not one multilateral institution having been shuttered since WWII. The result is an inefficient and confusing amalgam of overlapping mandates

hen the United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions were established nearly seven decades ago in the aftermath of World War II, economic and political power was concentrated in the hands of a few “victor” countries, making it relatively easy to reach consensus on how to restore international order. But, since then, global governance has become increasingly muddled, impeding progress in areas of worldwide concern. Not only do more than 190 countries now belong to the UN; publicly funded international institutions have proliferated, with not one multilateral institution having been shuttered since WWII. The result is an inefficient and confusing amalgam of overlapping mandates. Meanwhile, significant portions of the international system lack sufficient funding to deliver meaningful progress in critical areas – a problem that will only worsen as the needs and expectations of an ever-expanding global population grow. In this context, progress on global issues like climate change, cybercrime, income inequality, and the chronic burden of disease are proving elusive. To be sure, the efforts of many publicly funded bodies have a real and lasting positive impact on the world. Indeed, international institutions have spearheaded breakthroughs in a wide range of areas, including health, finance, economics, human rights, and peacekeeping. But such institutions are largely perceived as inaccessible, inefficient, and opaque, leading national governments to neglect them. As their legitimacy and funding diminish, so does their effectiveness. Overcoming twenty-first-century challenges will require a comprehensive review and renewal of international institutions. In its report Now for the Long Term, the Oxford Martin Commission for Future Generations – a group of experienced leaders and scholars (including us) convened to help formulate responses to global challenges – proposes mechanisms for undertaking this process. For example, embedding sunset clauses in the governance structures of publicly funded international institutions would ensure regular reviews of organizational performance and purpose. Institutions that have fulfilled their mandate or proved unable to respond effectively to changing demands should be shuttered, and their resources redirected to more productive endeavors. In order to escape that fate, existing institutions must adapt to shifting global power dynamics. This means increasing representation not only for the major emerging economies, such as China, India,

READERS’ FORUM “Insure with New India and be secure”

The great secret of power is never to will to do more than you can accomplish. HENRIK IBSEN

and Brazil, but also for countries like Nigeria and Indonesia. International affairs and international organisations largely operate under mid-twentieth-century arrangements, which has two serious shortcomings. First, countries with a diminishing stake retain disproportionate power. Second, global decision-making now involves four times as many countries as it did in the immediate post-war era, not to mention a plethora of non-governmental organizations and civil-society groups, making for a messy – and often unproductive – process. With the world’s problems becoming increasingly complex and interconnected, global decisionmaking processes must be as streamlined and efﬁcient as possible. When numerous committees meet in parallel, the countries with the largest teams of experts dominate proceedings, effectively locking most countries out of key decisions and impeding meaningful dialogue. In order to increase the productivity of global negotiations, the Oxford Martin Commission recommends creating coalitions of motivated countries, together with other actors, such as cities and businesses. As outcomes improve, international bodies’ legitimacy would be strengthened, which over time would enhance countries’ willingness to delegate powers to them. Moreover, the commission proposes creating voluntary platforms to facilitate the creation of global treaties in vital areas. For example, a taxation and regulatory exchange would help countries to tackle tax avoidance and harmonize corporate taxation, while promoting information sharing and cooperation. Likewise, a cyber-security datasharing platform could prove vital to understanding, preventing, and responding to cyber attacks. As governments learn to collaborate with one another and with other actors, such as businesses and civil-society groups, faith in the power of international cooperation would be restored. In such an environment, breaking the gridlock on urgent global issues would be far easier than in the current atmosphere of disillusionment and mistrust. The simple fact is that with interconnectedness comes interdependence. In order to protect the global commons, world leaders must pursue shared solutions as inclusively and efficiently as possible – a process that can be accomplished only through international institutions. Failure to do so would threaten the tremendous progress that globalization has facilitated in recent decades. The necessary changes will not happen overnight. But if governments, businesses, and civil society work together, they are feasible – promising a more sustainable, inclusive, and prosperous future for all. - Project-Syndicate

higher. The officials did a great work saving so many people and taking them to safety. Thankfully, the weather has by and large cleared by now. However, we should not forget that it is the duty of every citizen and resident to take care of themselves and stay safe when the weather turns adverse. Shaji Joseph Muscat

Weak link in Kerry’s plan for Palestine economy Refer to the write-up “Zone C holds the key to ‘Plan B’ for Palestine”, published in the Times of Oman. During the 1990s, the occupied West Bank, with a total area of 5,500 square kilometres, was divided into three zones, named A, B and C, all of which

were meant to be handed over to the Palestinian Authority’s full control by 1998. But Zone C, which constitutes more than 61 per cent of the area of the occupied West Bank and contains most of the natural resources, including water aquifers still remains under Israeli control. Any development work there needs Israeli authorisation which may take a decade or even more. According to a World Bank report, Israeli-imposed limits on Palestinian activities in this area cost the Palestinian economy about $3.4 billion a year. So if Kerry is serious about his peace plan, which hinges on revitalising the Palestinian economy, he needs to work on opening up Zone C to Palestinian development. Sarfaraz Haque Al Khuwair

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

TIMES OF OMAN

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

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PERSPEC IVE Signiﬁcance of Japanese Emperor’s ﬁrst India trip J

BRAHMA CHELLANEY

With these natural allies seeking to add strategic bulk to their rapidly multiplying ties, Akihito’s tour is the most significant visit to India by any foreign leader in recent years

apanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, in a rare overseas trip, are scheduled to begin a tour of the Indian cities of New Delhi and Chennai on November 30. The imperial couple’s weeklong visit is likely to mark a defining moment in Indo-Japanese relations, fostering closer economic and security ties between Asia’s two leading democracies as they seek a pluralistic, stable Asian order. Traditionally, a visit from the Japanese emperor – except for a coronation or royal anniversary celebration – signified a turning point in a bilateral relationship. While the emperor is merely the “symbol of the state” under Japan’s US-imposed postwar constitution, he retains significant influence, owing to Japanese veneration of the imperial dynasty – the world’s oldest continuous hereditary monarchy, the origins of which can be traced to 660 BC. The emperor’s overseas visits remain deeply political, setting the tone – if not the agenda – for Japan’s foreign policy. Consider Akihito’s 1992 visit to China – the first such visit by any Japanese emperor. Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping’s government – grateful for Japan’s reluctance to maintain punitive sanctions over the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and eager for international recognition, not to mention Japanese capital and commercial technologies – had extended seven invitations over two years. Akihito’s trip, which came at the height of Japan’s pro-China foreign policy, was followed by increased Japanese aid, investment, and technology transfer, cementing Japan’s role in China’s economic rise. The improved diplomatic relationship lasted until the recent territorial and other bilateral disputes. Although no Japanese emperor has visited India before, the bilateral relationship runs deep. In traditional Japanese culture, India is Tenjiku (the country of heaven). Today, Japan is India’s largest source of aid and has secured a key role in supporting infrastructure development, financing projects like the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor, the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, and the Bangalore Metro Rail Project. With these natural allies seeking to add strategic bulk to their rapidly multiplying ties, Akihito’s tour is the most significant visit to India by any foreign leader in recent years. Indeed, it is expected to be one of the last foreign trips for the 79-year-old emperor, who has had several major surgeries in the past decade. Akihito’s travel schedule contrasts sharply with that of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Despite having had open-heart surgery during his first term, India’s 81-year-old leader has sought to offset his low domestic political stock by flying more than one million kilometers on overseas trips – including visits to Japan, China, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand,

and the United States in the last six months alone. The paradox of Akihito’s tour – for which Singh has appointed a special envoy with ministerial rank to oversee preparations – is that Japan is investing substantial political capital to build a strong, long-term partnership with India’s government at a time when India is gripped by policy paralysis. Japan’s leaders are perhaps counting on the continuity of India’s strategic policies, which would require the Indian government that emerges from next year’s general election to sustain the momentum of cooperation. But, more important, Japan is adjusting to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing regional environment, characterised by rising geopolitical competition with China. In a historical reversal, Japan has found itself on the defensive against the increasingly muscular foreign policy of its former colony and old rival. This situation is forcing the Japanese government to reconsider its postwar pacifism, revise its defence strategy, and increase its military spending. In this context, Japan knows that a deeper strategic collaboration with India – which is also seeking to blunt increasing military pressure from China – is its best move. In modern history, Japan has had the distinction of consistently staying ahead of the rest of Asia. During the Meiji era, in the second half of the nineteenth century, it became the first Asian country to modernise. It was also the first Asian country to emerge as a world power, defeating Manchu-ruled China and Czarist Russia in separate wars. And after its defeat in World War II, Japan rose from the ashes to become Asia’s first global economic powerhouse. With per capita GDP of more than $37,000, Japan still ranks among the world’s richest countries, specialising in the highest-value links of global supply chains. And income inequality in Japan ranks among the lowest in Asia. Nonetheless, almost two decades of economic stagnation have eroded Japan’s regional clout. This raises the question of whether Japan’s current problems –sluggish growth, high public debt, and rapid population aging – presage a similar trend across East Asia. Similar problems are already appearing in South Korea, while China has been driven to loosen its one-child policy and unveil plans for economic reforms aimed at reviving growth. For India, Japan is indispensable as both an economic and a security partner. It is central to India’s “Look East” policy, which has evolved into more of an “Act East” policy, whereby the original strategy’s economic logic has been amplified by the larger geopolitical objective of ensuring Asian stability and a regional balance of power. It is in this light that Akihito’s historic visit should be viewed. - Project-Syndicate

Concealment key to modern slavery

JOAN SMITH

he horriﬁc case of the three women freed from a London house could provide a means to break the silence that keeps victims trapped If you are shocked by the proposition that there are slaves in modern Britain, think again. Today’s “slaves” are not out in the open, like the Africans transported to the US in the 18th and 19th centu-

ries, and except in most extreme cases they do not wear chains. They live in unremarkable houses and ﬂats where they are forced to do hard physical labour, provide sexual “services” or, in some cases, both. Last week’s announcement that police had rescued three women from alleged domestic servitude in south London is startling because of the time-scale, which apparently covers three decades. Not much is known about this extraordinary case but it has focused attention on a problem which is mostly hidden from view. Concealment is the key to modern slavery. According to the International Labour Organisation, almost 21 million people are victims worldwide, with women and girls outnumbering men. Trafﬁcking for prostitution and sexual exploitation has received a great deal of attention but forced labour is actually more common, especially in the domestic and agricultural sectors. I have interviewed

victims of both and in each case they were tricked by trusted family members or friends. Last year I met a 41-year-old woman from the Caribbean who spent almost a year in domestic servitude with a middle-class Nigerian family. “Crystal” agreed to talk to me for my book The Public Woman because she wanted people to understand what is going on behind closed doors in this country. She was allowed out of the house only with a woman from the same island, who had been promised her freedom once she trained Crystal as her replacement. They spent 18 hours a day washing walls and ﬂoors, ironing, sweeping up leaves – and doing it all again if the couple was dissatisﬁed. “These people could have killed me and no one would have been the wiser,” Crystal told me. Traffickers encourage their victims to believe that the police won’t help them, and they use tried and tested methods to break down their self-esteem.

I was reminded of a harrowing interview I did with a Ukrainian woman in her early twenties. She had been sold by her father and uncle, without her knowledge, to a gang who brought her to London and sold her on to Russian gangsters. “They were saying I’m illegal and they could kill me because I didn’t exist here,” she told me. “They said I’m their property, I will be with them for the rest of my life – I’m not human, just something that can be bought.” It is this daily experience of intimidation and abuse – what a senior police officer calls “invisible handcuffs” – which prevents so many victims contacting the authorities. A case-worker for a non-governmental organisation which helps South Asian victims of domestic violence told me they do not know that domestic violence is a criminal offence, and they have no idea where to go if they manage to escape. - The Independent

Salute to a gentleman cricketer

OOMMEN KURUVILLA

HEN the last match of the Test series between India and the West Indies was in progress in Mumbai I was thinking of writing in this column why the Indian government should not delay honouring Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar — a genius among cricketing geniuses and a gentleman among gentlemen — with the highest civilian honour. Small wonder, I was pleasantly surprised at the announcement after the series was over that Bharat Ratna was awarded to Sachin along with CNR Rao, a renowned scientist. It’s, beyond doubt, a well-deserved honour for Sachin who is not just a cricketing great. He has by now gone beyond cricketing boundaries. He is a symbol of inspiring hope, uprightness and, above all, an example of how to be humble in times of success and how to stay persistent and determined amid failures. There has been a certain je ne sais quoi about Sachin. Is it his gentlemanly charm? Is it his unmatched humility every time he broke a record? Or is it because of a character that oozes gratitude and modesty? Or is it a right combination of all these qualities? Whatever, Sachin is not just a role model cricketer but a gem of a human being as well. His teammates, coaches, teachers and all those who have followed his career closely would vouch for it. He has been able to practise his father the late Ramesh Tendulkar’s advice to be a good human being ﬁrst and foremost and everything else would follow in time. Sachin has been known for his textbook shots but little did he know that he had become a textbook himself for millions of his countrymen to emulate not only in cricket but in other aspects of life as well. He has never questioned an umpire and never lost his cool whatever the provocations. He did not show even a tinge of displeasure when he was given out in the Kolkata Test of the recent series in what many people thought was an erroneous piece of umpiring. In the ﬁnal Test when he was snapped up by Windies skipper Darren Sammy at the slips, he did not wait

for the umpire to show the exit sign; he walked graciously back to the pavilion. His farewell speech at the presentation ceremony was, understandably, choked with emotion. But the surprise was how he articulated his words to thank pretty much everybody who helped him reach where he is today. When he harked back to his “most beautiful” moment, the time when he first met his wife, Anjali, almost all people in the stadium, not least the womenfolk, were trying to hold back tears. He said his wife, a medical doctor by profession, sacrificed her career to look after the family so he could concentrate on his cricketing career. It’s a pleasant feeling to know that there are wives out there like Anjali at a time when women insist their men take equal responsibility for every household duty, be it cooking or changing nappies of their babies. This is, of course, not to lionise irresponsible husbands. Thank you, Anjali, for helping Sachin attain the pinnacle of success in the fairest way possible, thus making it possible for him to be a true ambassador of India. Though his speech was extempore, he had made a list of people to thank in front of over a billion viewers worldwide to make sure that he wouldn’t miss anybody. Gratitude is a great quality that many people swat aside when they reach the top. But not Sachin. For him, it has been a strong pillar. His speech at the stadium revealed as much. He spoke of his “wonderful journey between the 22 yards for 24 years”. As an expression of his gratitude to the game of cricket, he went back to the pitch after the match, and touched the soil in reverence. Everybody knows that Sachin has broken record after record in the past 24 years of his cricketing career. But that’s not the only reason he has been given the nation’s highest civilian honour. His is a tale of inspiration for the children, youth and even the elderly. His life has been a lesson in determination, fightback, patience, courage, obedience, gentlemanliness and, above all, humility. His life, therefore, is not hemmed in by the cricketing firmament. There had been a murmur in certain quarters that Sachin had kept mum when the spot-fixing scam had been raging. In the farewell speech he did hint at the danger of spot-fixing that has, of late, bedevilled Indian cricket when he spoke of the “right spirit and right values”. 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.

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TODAY IN HISTORY 1921

Hirohito becomes regent of Japan.

1923

Transatlantic broadcasting from England to America commences.

1951

A truce line between UN troops and North Korea is mapped out at the peace talks in Panmunjom, Korea.

1963

The body of assassinated President John F. Kennedy is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

1964 Eleven nations give a total of $3 billion to rescue the value of the British currency.

1992

Czechoslovakia Assembly votes to partition the country into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

HISTORYORB.COM Graphic News /

Graphics

OPINION POLL FROM OUR ARCHIVES FOUR-DAY ART EXHIBITION

MUSCAT: Muscat Art Group (MAG) – are allladies artists’ group – is organsing an art exhibition, which will be held at the Oman Fine Arts Society. The four-day exhibition is open from 9.30am to 1pm and from 4pm to 9pm daily. The exhibition will be opened tomorrow at 6.30pm by Juma bin Ali Al Juma, secretary general of the Tender Boards, Muscat and it will be opened to the public from Monday. According to a press note, some members of the MAG are active, successful artists based in Muscat, while others are dabblers of the art.

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

WORLD

11,420

recorded deaths in Syria of children aged 17 years and under according to a new study by the Oxford Research Group

BRIEFS

Jagger all set to become a great-grandfather

MONKEY BUFFET

LONDON: He may still be strutting about onstage giving his fans Satisfaction — but at 70 the Rolling Stones’ frontman Mick Jagger is about to become a great-grandfather, his daughter conﬁrmed yesterday. The British singer’s grand-daughter Assisi, 21, is due to give birth early in the new year, her mother Jade Jagger told the Sunday Times newspaper. “It is true. I am going to be a grandmother,” the 42-year-old socialite told the broadsheet. Jagger has seven children by four different mothers. Jade is his only daughter with his ﬁrst wife, the Nicaraguan model and human rights campaigner Bianca Jagger, who he wed in 1971 and divorced eight years later.

A monkey eats fruits during the annual ‘monkey buffet’ in Lopburi province, some 150km north of Bangkok, Thailand, yesterday. More than 2,000 kilogrammes of fruits and vegetables were offered to the monkeys during the annual festival to help promote tourism in the area. — AFP

Portuguese police kill restaurant hostage-taker LISBON: A hostage-taker barricaded himself inside a Portuguese restaurant yesterday and set off explosives, killing a police officer before he was shot dead, the gendarmerie said. Six others including four police were injured by explosives in the seven-hour ordeal in a restaurant in central Portugal, gendarmerie spokesman Jorge Goulao said. The man, described as of eastern European origin, originally entered the restaurant in Pinhal Novo to eat but then pulled out a gun and threatened customers demanding money. Most of the customers at “The Refuge” eatery were able to ﬂee and alert the police.

Thousands of Ukrainians rally for EU trade treaty KIEV: Tens of thousands of pro-Western Ukrainians rallied in the capital Kiev yesterday to protest against the government’s decision to scrap a landmark EU trade treaty. The protestors, waving European Union and opposition party ﬂags, marched through the centre of the city chanting pro-Western and anti-government slogans. Police said that rally organisers had notiﬁed the authorities that up to 100,000 protestors were expected, but its own estimate was 20,000 people.

Egypt brings in a new law to restrict rallies The new legislation will require protestors to get advance permission from

Approval rating of Greek neo-Nazi party jumps

the police before

ATHENS: Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn has seen a jump in its approval rating despite the indictment of several of its members following the murder of an anti-fascist rapper, a poll showed yesterday. In the survey by Metron Analysis for the Ethnos daily, 6.7 per cent of respondents said they would vote for Golden Dawn were elections to be held. After taking into account the 32.5 per cent of respondents whose vote intentions are currently unclear, Metron Analysis said Golden Dawn would probably pick up 10 per cent of the vote. — AFP

according to a draft

gathering in the future,

CAIRO: Egypt’s president signed a new bill into law yesterday restricting rallies and other public gatherings, a move likely to raise fresh questions about the armybacked government’s democratic credentials.

This is quite dangerous ahead of elections — in normal times also, but (particularly) ahead of elections Ziad Abdel Tawab Official, Cairo Institute for Human Rights

Protestors on streets Thousands of anti-government protestors were on the streets of Cairo and other cities when the new bill was announced on state media, as they have been regularly in the nearly three years since autocrat Hosni Mubarak was ousted. The new legislation will require

them to get advance permission from the police before gathering in the future, according to a draft. “This is quite dangerous ahead of elections — in normal times also, but (particularly) ahead of elections,” said Ziad Abdel Tawab of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights, adding it could disrupt

public meetings including debates and rallies. President Adli Mansour’s approval of the law came as a 50-member committee prepared to vote on an amended constitution that will be put to a referendum expected in coming months. Parliamentary and presidential elections are due next year. Plea to reject draft Rights groups had urged Mansour to reject the draft presented to him by the cabinet installed after the army overthrew Mubarak’s successor, president Mohamed Mursi, in July. “The draft law seeks to criminalise all forms of peaceful assembly, including demonstrations and public meetings, and gives the state free hand to disperse peaceful gatherings by use of force,” read a joint statement issued on Friday by 19 Egyptian organisations. — AFP

B R I T I S H T H I N K- TA N K R E P O R T

‘Syrian conﬂict has claimed lives of over 11,000 children’ LONDON: More than 11,000 children have died in Syria’s civil war, including 128 killed by chemical weapons in a notorious attack and hundreds targeted by snipers, a British think-tank said yesterday. The Oxford Research Group, which specialises in global security, said in a new study that there were 11,420 recorded deaths of children aged 17 years and under. The report, entitled Stolen Futures: The hidden toll of child casualties in Syria, analyses data from the beginning of the conﬂict in March 2011 until August 2013.

SAD SAGA: Syrian children collect items from debris in a street of

the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, yesterday. — AFP

Chemical weapons The think-tank added that, of the 10,586 children whose cause of death was recorded, 128 were killed by chemical weapons in Ghouta, near Damascus, on August 21,2013, in an attack that the United States and other world powers blamed on President Bashar Al Assad’s regime. Syria has since agreed to destroy its entire chemical weapons arsenal as part of a deal to head off US military strikes. The think-tank added yesterday that 764 children were summarily executed and 389 were killed by sniper ﬁre in the conﬂict. Explosive weapons have caused more than 70 per cent

of the child deaths, while small arms fire accounts for more than a quarter, according to the study. “What is most disturbing about the findings of this report is not only the sheer numbers of children killed in this conflict, but the way they are being killed,” said report co-author Hamit Dardagan. “Bombed in their homes, in their communities, during dayto-day activities such as waiting in bread lines or attending school; shot by bullets in crossfire, targeted by snipers, summarily executed, even gassed and tortured. “All conflict parties need to take responsibility for the protec-

tion of children, and ultimately ﬁnd a peaceful solution for the war itself.” Oxford Research Group added that the number of boys killed outnumbered girls killed by a ratio of about two to one. Those children in older age groups were targeted more often than younger children. Boys aged between 13-17 years old were the most frequent victims of targeted killings. “The data we analysed indicates that bombs alone ended the lives of ten thousand Syrian children in 30 months of war,” added Dardagan. — AFP

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

WORLD Watching others play on TV? Good for your health! A study, published in the international journal Frontiers in Autonomic Neuroscience, showed that when watching a ﬁrst person video of someone else running, heart rate, respiration, skin blood ﬂow and sweat release all increased

NEW YORK: Watching sport can make you fitter, according to research yesterday that said viewing other people exercise increases heart rate and other physiological measures as if you were working out yourself. The study, published in the international journal Frontiers in Autonomic Neuroscience, showed that when watching a first person video of someone else running, heart rate, respiration, skin blood flow and sweat release all increased. They returned to normal at the conclusion of the “jog”. Researchers said that importantly, for the first time, it was shown that muscle sympathetic nerve activity increased when people watched physical activity. “Recording this nerve activity provides a very sensitive measure of the body’s physiological responses to physical or mental stress,” said one of the lead researchers Vaughan Macefield, from the School of Medicine at the University of Western Sydney. “We know that the sympathetic nervous system — which supplies the heart, sweat glands

We know that the sympathetic nervous system — which supplies the heart, sweat glands and blood vessels, as well as other tissues — increases its activity during actual exercise. Now we have shown that it increases when you are watching a moving scene as if you were running yourself Vaughan Maceﬁeld Researcher, School of Medicine at the University of Western Sydney

and blood vessels, as well as other tissues -- increases its activity during actual exercise. “Now we have shown that it increases when you are watching a moving scene as if you were running yourself.” During the study, very ﬁne needles were inserted into an outer nerve of nine volunteers to record the electrical signals of nerve ﬁbres directed to blood vessels, providing a very sensitive measure of the body’s physiological responses to physical or mental stress. The participants were initially shown a static image on a computer screen while the re-

searchers monitored their muscle sympathetic nerve activity and other physiological parameters. These measurements remained constant while watching the non-moving landscape image, but that changed when shown a 22-minute video shot by a runner on a vigorous jog. “Although these changes were small, they were all appropriate physiological responses to exercise,” said Rachael Brown, who conducted the study with Maceﬁeld, considered a top world expert in recording human sympathetic neurones in health and disease. — AFP

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

WORLD LATVIANS MOURN DEAD A girl lights a candle near the collapsed supermarket in Riga, Latvia, yesterday. Seven people were still missing after the roof of a supermarket collapsed in the capital on Thursday, but rescuers say there is no chance of ﬁnding more survivors even as they continue to comb the wreckage. The tragedy has stunned the nation of two million people, with the government declaring three days of national mourning. — Agencies

BRIEFS

Qatar donates $350m to Yemen for compensation

US envoy Caroline is ‘no stranger’ to Japan But some critics have voiced concern at having a diplomatic novice in the important post at a time of high tensions between Japan and a rising China.

Kennedy’s arrival in Tokyo has been hailed in Japan. But some critics have voiced concern at having a diplomatic novice in the important post at a time of high tensions between Japan and a rising China Caroline Kennedy

TOKYO: Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of the late US president John F. Kennedy, says she was initiated into the intricacy of Japan’s arts and culture long before becoming US ambassador in Tokyo. “Growing up, Japan seemed to be a faraway place,” the 55-yearold lawyer, who was educated at Harvard and Columbia, said in an interview with the mass-circula-

tion Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun published yesterday. “But during my ﬁve years working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, I loved to walk through the Japanese galleries, and I became more familiar with Japanese arts and culture,” she added, according to the daily’s English edition. “I have long admired Japanese

civilisation and I know that America has no more important ally than Japan,” she said. “America has no truer friend than Japan, and there is no more important place I could serve my country than in Japan.” Caroline’s arrival in Tokyo, which came a week before the 50th anniversary on November 22 of her father’s assassination in Dallas, has been hailed in Japan.

Honeymoon in Kyoto Caroline and her husband, exhibit designer Edwin Schlossberg, spent their 1986 honeymoon in Kyoto and Nara. She told Yomiuri she had always wanted to return to Japan, adding she was especially honoured to be the envoy at a crucial time for the US-Japan alliance. She was quoted by Yomiuri as saying she was interested in learning more about Japanese poetic traditions. “I am eager to play ‘Hyakunin Isshu’, “ she said, referring to a Japanese card game based on a collection of 100 ancient “waka” poems and often played during a New Year holiday break. — AFP

DOHA: Qatar has donated $350 million to a fund to compensate civilians and security force members in south Yemen who were forced out of their jobs, the UN special envoy said yesterday. “The south was marginalised under the former regime, its residents discriminated against and its resources plundered,” Jamal Benomar said at a ceremony marking the donation. “Southerners have been made several false promises, but this is the ﬁrst time concrete action has been taken to recompense them, which means we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. Thousands of southerners lost their jobs after North and South Yemen united in 1990. He also said he hoped for further donations. The fund for southerners is one of three compensation funds.

Newsman among six killed in violence across Iraq BAGHDAD: A television journalist shot dead in north Iraq was among six people killed nationwide yesterday, amid a surge in unrest the authorities have failed to quell. In the restive northern city of Mosul, gunmen shot dead Alaa Edwar, a Christian journalist working for Nineveh Al Ghad, a local television network backed by provincial Governor Atheel alNujaiﬁ. Edwar was gunned down near his home in east Mosul, police and medical sources said. Two separate shootings killed an off-duty soldier and a civilian in Mosul, while a roadside bombing targeting a security patrol in Nineveh’s west killed an army captain. In southern Baghdad, meanwhile, gunmen killed a restaurant owner, and a gun attack targeting an army checkpoint in Balad north of the capital killed a soldier.

Malians vote in crucial parliamentary elections BAMAKO: Malians voted yesterday in parliamentary elections intended to seal the troubled west African nation’s return to democracy. The polls mark Mali’s first steps to recovery after it was plunged into chaos by a military coup in March last year, and finalise a process begun with the election of its first post-conflict leader in August. “I wanted to express my joy at coming to vote,” President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita said after casting his ballot in the capital Bamako. Some 6.5 million Malians are eligible to cast ballots for a new national assembly, with more than 1,000 candidates running for 147 seats — but turnout initially looked weak across the country. — AFP

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013 013

OMANI CHIEF EXECUTIVE WINS REGIONAL HONOUR

MARKE

The World Finance has named Harib Al Kitani, Oman LNG’s Chief Executive Officer, as its ‘Oil and Gas Chief Executive Officer of the Year’ forr the Middle East region. >B2

Most Gulf stock markets gain on historic Iran nuclear accord The BGCC200 Index of Gulf shares, Kuwait’s gauge and Qatar index rose 0.4% each, while Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index declined 0.3%

DUBAI: Gulf stocks advanced, with Saudi Arabia’s benchmark gaining the most in a week after Iran signed an accord with world powers on its nuclear programme. The Tadawul All Share Index increased 0.5 per cent, the most since November 17, to 8,380.67 at1:32pm in Riyadh. Saudi Basic Industries, the world’s second-biggest chemicals maker, rose 1.4 per cent, while Bank Al-Jazira climbed the most in three week. The BGCC200 Index of Gulf shares, Kuwait’s gauge and Qa-

tar’s rose 0.4 per cent each, while Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index declined 0.3 per cent, Bahrain’s measure dropped 0.3 per cent and Oman’s MSM30 fell 0.1 per cent. The Iranian accord breaks a decade-long diplomatic stalemate, setting limits on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme in exchange for relief from sanctions. The crucial agreement with Iran, which is separated from the Gulf by the Strait of Hormuz, is the ﬁrst to be reached since the country’s atomic energy work came under

international scrutiny in 2003, and may help avert a nuclear arms race in the region. “The Iran deal is very good as it will beneﬁt the GCC economies in the long term,” Tariq Qaqish, who oversees about Dh500 million ($136 million) as head of asset management at Dubai-based Al Mal Capital PSC, said by phone yesterday. “It will enhance the trade between the Gulf and Iran.” Shares of Sabic climbed to SR109.5, while Bank Al-Jazira jumped 2.5 per cent, the most since November 3, to SR36.3. US stocks rose for a seventh week, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) to the longest stretch of gains in almost three years, as improved data on employment and retail sales offset growing concern over a cut in monetary stimulus. Dubai’s benchmark stock index rose to the highest in almost two

The Iran deal is very good as it will benefit the GCC economies in the long term. It will enhance the trade between the Gulf and Iran Tariq Qaqish Head of asset management at Dubai-based Al Mal Capital

weeks on bets the emirate will win the right to host the World Expo 2020. Shares in other Gulf markets climbed as Iran signed the crucial nuclear accord. Dubai’s benchmark index, alrady up 77 per cent this year, lost 0.5 per cent. Emaar Properties PJSC, builder of the world’s biggest shopping mall by ﬂoor space, rose 0.3 per cent and Dubai Investments was poised for the highest close since October 2008. Dubai is one of four cities competing to host the World Expo and results will be announced on November 27. A successful bid would be a major milestone in Dubai’s recovery from a property crash in 2009 that wiped as much as 65 per cent off home prices. It would boost economic growth by 0.5 of a percentage point per year and by about two percentage points in 2020, Bank of America said in a September 26 report. — Agencies

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

MARKET Regional honour for Oman LNG CEO World Finance has named Harib Al Kitani, Oman LNG’s CEO, as its ‘Oil and Gas Chief Executive Officer of the Year’ for Mena region

Times News Service MUSCAT: The World Finance has named Harib Al Kitani, Oman LNG’s chief executive officer as its Oil and Gas Chief Executive Officer of the Year for the Middle East region. Al Kitani, the only Omani national to make the shortlist was preferred ahead of three other chief

executives of oil and gas companies operating in the region, speciﬁcally in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The recognition comes barely two months after Al Kitani successfully shepherded the full integration between Oman and Qalhat LNG companies bringing together two world-class corporations to

Harib Al Kitani – Supplied photo

enhance supply of liqueﬁed natural gas (LNG) from the Sultanate to the global energy market. September 1 marked the ﬁrst day on the fusion which operates under the name of Oman LNG.

According to the International Gas Union (IGU), Oman supplies a critical three per cent of liquefied natural gas to meet rising demand in international LNG trade and its volumes are pivotal in keeping the balance of supply and demand. Natural gas possesses a list of properties that combine to make it a more desired energy option such as its non-toxic nature, ability to float on water, being odourless and colourless, and lighter than air when burned. These attributes have also fuelled increase in its demand. Last year, revenue generated through exports of liquefied natural gas cargoes from Oman were in excess of $5billion, second only to income accruing to the country

from its sale of oil. The LNG industry is also a significant contributor to a steadily increasing quality of life for citizens and residents in the Sultanate of Oman through its execution of a wide swath of social investment programmes that addresses many economic and social needs. Export of first cargo Export of Oman’s first cargo was in 2000 and since then proceeds from the blossoming trade have supported what some observers have described as an ambitious diversification programme that has spurred growth in other important sectors of the economy including tourism, agriculture and the spread of vital infrastructure that

support business and daily life. “Throughout his career, Al Kitani has developed all of the leadership qualities necessary to lead the Omani natural gas evolution. His work and pedigree in the LNG sector have been a pivotal driving force behind the recent integration between Qalhat and Oman LNG and this partnership with Al Kitani at the helm can only go from strength to strength. World Finance congratulates Al Kitani and wish him and Oman LNG much success for the future in these exciting times in the global gas industry,” said Alexander Redcliffe, editor-in-chief of the World Finance and leader of its selection panel in London announcing the award.

END OF THE YEAR

Islamic banking assets in GCC likely to exceed $515b Times News Service MUSCAT: Global Islamic banking assets with commercial banks reached $1.54 trillion in 2012, according to Ernst and Young’s Global Islamic Banking Centre. This includes both Islamic banks and Islamic windows of conventional banks. The annual growth of the industry remains at 16 per cent, which is faster than the growth of conventional banking system assets in each of the core Islamic ﬁnance markets. “There are six markets that are systemically important to the future internationalisation of the Islamic banking industry. They are Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, the UAE, Qatar, Indonesia and Turkey. Of the top 15 Islamic banks with a capitalisation of $1billion or more, 13 of them are located in these rapid growth markets. With trade patterns shifting decisively in favour of these rapid growth markets, this is a huge opportunity for Islamic banks,” said Ashar Nazim, partner at Global Islamic Banking Center of Excellence. The industry, however, has recently experienced a slowdown caused by two major developments. The continuing economic and political setbacks in some of the Islamic ﬁnance markets have adversely impacted overall busi-

6% Is the annual growth of the industry, which is faster than the growth of conventional banking assets in each of the core Islamic ﬁnance markets

ness sentiments, including the ﬁnancial services sector. In addition, the large scale operational transformation that many of the leading Islamic banks initiated approximately 18 months ago, continue to consume time and investment. Saudi and UAE In the GCC, Islamic banking assets reached $452 billion in 2012 and are expected to exceed $515 billion by the end of 2013. Saudi Arabia was the biggest market with an estimated $245 billion in assets in 2012. The UAE Islamic banking assets, including windows were estimated at more than $80 billion and Qatar’s Islamic banking assets reached $53 billion in 2012. A common theme across leading GCC Islamic banks is the fun-

damental repositioning of their balance sheets and their business following the global financial crisis in 2008. Going forward, many Islamic banks are looking to expand regionally, where a sizeable amount of their revenues are expected to be generated from outside their local market. “The progress of the industry is not without challenges. Large scale and technology-enabled transformation around customer centricity remains a critical consideration for Islamic banks which intend to become mainstream in their respective markets. The rapid growth of Islamic banks over the years has also been costly due to increased operational complexity as the banks transform from operating in a single market to becoming multijurisdiction businesses. These factors have had an impact on profitability, which although is improving, still remains approximately 18 per cent lower than their conventional banking peers. A significant change is required to sustain and improve performance.

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

MARKET Blueprint of ICV strategy on Dec. 18 A fact-based approach has been followed to analyse the consolidated seven-year demand of all participating oil and gas ﬁrms in terms of goods, services and associated workforce

Times News Service MUSCAT: The Ministry of Oil and Gas and the major oil and gas companies operating in Oman have completed a comprehensive review of their In-Country Value (ICV) development strategy. De-

tails of the review and associated business opportunities will be announced at a high-proﬁle seminar to be held in Muscat on December 18, said a press release. The aim of this review is to build on the successes to date by identifying new pan-industry develop-

ment opportunities and future local workforce requirements with the objective of doubling the oil and gas industry’s current ICV contribution. The review has been carried out by the Ministry of Oil and Gas, OPAL, Petroleum Development Oman, Daleel Petroleum, Oman Gas Company, Oman LNG, Oman Oil Company Exploration and Production, Orpic, Oxy, BP Oman and Petrogas covering the upstream and downstream scope. A fact-based approach has been followed to analyse the consolidated seven-year demand of all participating oil and gas companies in terms of goods, services and associated workforce. The local market capability and

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

capacity have been assessed against the industry demand in order to identify the main gaps, constraints and henceforth opportunities for further ICV development. Comprehensive roadmap The results of the study have allowed us to deﬁne an overarching strategy and a comprehensive roadmap that provide guidance and perspective to ICV development in Oman while co-ordinating the efforts of all stakeholders involved. The strategy comprises a ﬁrst set of 53 supply chain development opportunities. These opportunities consist of expanding or launching new industries, activities or products in response to the demand of the oil and gas industry.

The opportunities are addressed to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), well-established Omani companies, or foreign direct investments. The opportunities are balanced between the development of raw material, manufacturing, assembly, blending, fabrication and services. Those opportunities would create between 10,000 and 15,000 new jobs. The strategy also deﬁnes a local workforce education and training programme based on the analysis of 228 skills aiming to increase Omanisation levels in targeted areas and improve competency levels to internationally recognised standards. The programme suggests educating and training

36,000 Omanis in the upcoming seven years to fulfil the oil and gas industry demand with a main focus on semi-skilled, skilled and managerial positions. As a result of this analysis, the Ministry of Oil and Gas and the oil and gas companies in Oman are holding a strategic seminar on ICV with the objective of launching the Oil and Gas industry ICV Oman Blueprint Strategy. The seminar will address local and international suppliers, wellestablished Omani companies and SMEs, investors and entrepreneurs. During the seminar, the operators will lead separate workshops to share with the audience a first wave of opportunities out of the 53 identified.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

MARKET MSM index ends lower

OMAN STOCKS

MUSCAT SECURITIES MARKET

INDICES Index .................................................High .................Low..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff % MSM30 Index ........................................6,781.04 .............. 6,762.90 ................... 6,762.99 ................... 6,772.48.................. -9.49 .................. -0.14 Financial Index .....................................8,237.60 ...............8,199.02 ....................8,199.63 ...................8,223.97............... -24.34 .................. -0.30 Industrial Index ................................. 10,054.79 .............10,037.93 ................. 10,037.93 .................10,041.93..................-4.00 .................. -0.04 Services Index .......................................3,628.12 ............... 3,617.20 ................... 3,621.46 ................... 3,617.20....................4.26 ................... 0.12 MSM SHARIAH INDEX....................1,066.58 ............... 1,065.18 ....................1,065.91 ...................1,064.86.................... 1.05 ................... 0.10 Trading Summary Volume ................Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded 30,774,399 ................11,693,516 ..................1,373 ................13,845,559,618 ................ 14 ......................16 ....................29 .........................59

Gulf Investment Services was the most active in terms of volume as well as turnover. Areej Vegetable Oil was the top gainer yesterday MUSCAT: The MSM 30 Index ended lower at 6762.99 points, down by 0.14 per cent. MSM Shariah Index closed at 1065.91 points, up by 0.10 per cent. Gulf Investment Services was the most active in terms of volume as well as turnover. Areej Vegetable Oil was the top gainer and closed up by 9.88 per cent, while National Gas was the top loser and closed down by 2.29 per cent. Altogether 1,373 trades were executed in yesterday’s session generating a turnover of OMR11.7 million with over 30.77 million shares traded. Out of 59 traded stocks, 14 advanced, 16 declined and 29 were unchanged. Omani investors were net buyers for OMR91,000 while foreign investors were net sellers for OMR91,000 worth of shares. Financial Sector Index down by 0.30 per cent at 8199.63 points. ONIC Holding, Oman United Insurance, Al Sharqia Investment, Al Anwar Holding and Global Financial Investment increased by 2.68 per cent, 2.09 per cent, 1.82 per cent, 1.72 per cent and 0.62 per cent, respectively .DIDIC, Bank Dhofar, Ahli Bank, Bank Sohar and Al Madina Investment declined by 1.88 per cent, 1.12 per cent, 1.01 per cent, 0.95 per cent and 0.65 per cent, respectively. The Industrial Sector Index marginally down by 0.04 per cent at 10,037.93 points. Areej Vegetable Oil, Oman Fisheries, Salalah Mills, National Aluminium Products and Al Anwar Ceramic increased by 9.88 per cent, 0.96 per cent, 0.73 per cent, 0.56 per cent and 0.36 per cent, respectively. Oman Textile Holding, Sweets of Oman, Al Hassan Engineering, Galfar Engineering and Votlamp Energy declined by 1.43 per cent, 1.26 per cent, 1.15 per cent, 1.02 per cent and 0.84 per cent, respectively. Services Sector Index up by 0.12 per cent at 3621.46 points. Al Maha Marketing was the only gainer in the sector and was up by

Altogether 1,373 trades were executed in yesterday’s session generating a turnover of OMR11.7 million with over 30.77 million shares traded

1.91 per cent and closed at 21.59. National Gas, Oman National Engineering, Renaissance Services and Sharqiyah Desalination declined by 2.29 per cent, 1.73 per cent, 0.55 per cent and 0.10 per cent, respectively. Etisalat Etisalat has told Pakistan it will not pay the $800 million it owes the government from buying a stake in the country’s state telecom operator until a property dispute is entirely resolved, two senior finance ministry sources said. The money owed, which dates back to last decade, would provide vital funds for Pakistan’s cash-strapped government, but Etisalat will not pay up until affiliate Pakistan Telecommunication receives ownership of the final 10 properties out of about 3,000 it is due. Matteo Stefanel, a senior partner at emerging markets-focused private equity firm Abraaj Group, has left the company. Stefanel had joined Dubai-based Abraaj in 2008 and was head of special situations group, managed accounts and real estate at the firm, which has about $7.5 billion in assets under management. He was also responsible for a number of the firm’s partner companies. – United Securities/Bloomberg News

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24 Security Name ....................................................Volume .....Turnover ... Trades ......... High.........Low ..........Close ......... Prev. .......... Diff. ............ Diff .............Last ..........Last ............Last ................Market Cap.........Par ........................................................................................................................................................................................ Pr. ............ Close ........... RO ............... % .................Pr ..............Bid ............ Offer ............................................value

REGULAR MARKET .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... ONIC. HOLDING .............................................1,347,391 ............619,341............102 ............0.464 ......... 0.450 ............0.460 ............ 0.448............ 0.012 .............2.679 ............. 0.462 ............ 0.462 ............. 0.464............... 79,774,695.000 ......0.100 OMAN UNITED INSURANCE ........................3,095,212 ........1,205,475.............114 ............0.394 ......... 0.384 ............0.390 .............0.382............ 0.008 .............2.094 ............. 0.392 ............ 0.392 ............. 0.394.............. 39,000,000.000 ......0.100 ALMAHA PETROLEUM PRODUCTS MAR. .............5,620 ........... 121,330.................9 .......... 22.500 .......21.500 ..........21.590 ...........21.185 ........... 0.405 ............. 1.912............. 21.500 ..........21.600 ........... 22.000 .......... 148,971,000.000 ......1.000 AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING .............434,212 ............. 97,080.............. 72 ............0.226 ......... 0.223 ............0.224 ............ 0.220............ 0.004 ............. 1.818 .............. 0.224 ............0.224 ............. 0.225...............18,816,000.000 ......0.100 AL ANWAR HOLDING ...................................... 873,146 ...........309,622.............. 86 ............0.356 ......... 0.350 ............0.354 ............ 0.348............ 0.006 ............. 1.724.............. 0.356 ............ 0.356 ..............0.358 ..............42,480,000.000 ......0.100 OMAN FISHERIES .............................................. 52,111 ................5,468.................7 ............0.105.......... 0.104 ............ 0.105 .............0.104 ............ 0.001 .............0.962 ............. 0.104 ............ 0.104 ..............0.106 ............... 13,125,000.000 ......0.100 SALALAH MILLS ..............................................102,000 ........... 141,270.................2 ............ 1.385.......... 1.385 ............ 1.385..............1.375 ............ 0.010 ............. 0.727...............1.385 ............ 1.390 ..............1.425 ...............66,705,843.640 ......0.100 GLOBAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT ..................263,611 ..............42,775...............19 ............0.164.......... 0.162 ............ 0.162 .............0.161 ............ 0.001 ............. 0.621...............0.163 ............ 0.162 ..............0.163 ..............32,400,000.000 ......0.100 NATIONAL ALUMINIUM PRODUCTS ..................57,000 ............. 20,634............... 11 ............0.362 ......... 0.362 ............0.362 ............ 0.360............ 0.002 .............0.556 ............. 0.362 ............ 0.362 ............. 0.364...............12,152,864.900 ......0.100 GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ..................13,118,500 ....... 2,535,007............ 128 ............ 0.195.......... 0.193 ............0.194 .............0.193 ............ 0.001 ............. 0.518.............. 0.194 ............ 0.194 ..............0.195 ................11,415,584.098 ......0.100 OMINVEST ..................................................... 166,344 ............. 75,452.............. 23 ............0.456 ......... 0.448 ............0.454 .............0.452 ............ 0.002 .............0.442 ............. 0.454 ............ 0.454 ..............0.456 ............ 138,983,020.000 ......0.100 AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ............................. 210,670 ............116,676...............19 ............0.554 ......... 0.552 ............0.554 .............0.552 ............ 0.002 .............0.362 ............. 0.554 ............ 0.554 ..............0.556 .............130,239,984.096 ......0.100 ACWA POWER BARKA ......................................127,913 ..............78,756...............12 ............0.620 ......... 0.612 ............ 0.616..............0.616 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.612 ............0.608 ..............0.612 .............. 98,560,000.000 ......0.100 AL JAZEERA SERVICES .....................................137,387 ............. 70,887...............12 ............ 0.518.......... 0.512 ............ 0.516..............0.516 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.518 ............ 0.518 ............. 0.520............... 31,581,404.868 ......0.100 AL JAZEERA STEEL PRODUCTS .......................... 70,268 ............. 22,100...............13 ............0.316.......... 0.314 ............ 0.314 .............0.314 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.314 ............ 0.314 ..............0.316 ................39,217,959.440 ......0.100 ASAFFA FOODS .....................................................1,800 ................1,980................. 1 ............ 1.100.......... 1.100 ............ 1.100..............1.100 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............1.100 ............ 1.100 ..............1.120 ............. 127,338,750.000 ......0.100 BANK MUSCAT ................................................691,117 ...........420,826.............. 39 ............0.612.......... 0.608 ............0.608 .............0.608............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.608 ............ 0.608 ..............0.612 ......... 1,308,574,495.872 ......0.100 DHOFAR INSURANCE ........................................56,140 .............. 16,112.................7 ............0.287 ......... 0.287 ............0.287 .............0.287............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.287 ............ 0.276 ..............0.295 ...............57,400,000.000 ......0.100 HSBC BANK OMAN ...............................................8,646 ................1,504................. 1 ............ 0.174.......... 0.174 ............ 0.174..............0.174 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.174 ............ 0.173 ..............0.174 ............348,054,425.460 ......0.100 NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ............................... 52,500 ..............16,065.................3 ............0.306 ......... 0.306 ............0.306 ............ 0.306............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.306 ............0.302 ............. 0.306............ 339,055,650.000 ......0.100 NAWRAS .......................................................1,151,564 ...........653,368...............31 ............0.568 ......... 0.566 ............0.568 .............0.568 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.568 ............ 0.568 ..............0.570 ............ 369,736,322.640 ......0.100 OMAN CEMENT ............................................ 404,249 ........... 320,161...............18 ............0.792.......... 0.788 ............ 0.792 .............0.792 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.792 ............ 0.792 ............. 0.800.............262,051,186.320 ......0.100 OMAN CHLORINE .............................................20,000 ............. 13,040................. 1 ............0.652 ......... 0.652 ............0.652 .............0.652 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.652 ............0.640 ..............0.652 ...............40,275,361.604 ......0.100 OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE ...........3,007,475 ...........897,008............ 177 ............0.302 ......... 0.296 ............0.298 ............ 0.298............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.296 ............ 0.295 ............. 0.296.............. 59,600,000.000 ......0.100 OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ...................... 101,118 ...........156,222...............19 ............ 1.545.......... 1.540 ............ 1.545..............1.545 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............1.545 ............ 1.540 ..............1.545 ......... 1,158,750,000.000 ......0.100 RAYSUT CEMENT ...........................................100,000 ...........196,500.................7 ............ 1.965.......... 1.965 ............ 1.965..............1.965 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............1.965 ............ 1.965 ..............1.985 ............393,000,000.000 ......0.100 SOHAR POWER ....................................................... 100 ................... 275.................3 ............2.800 ......... 2.745 ............2.750 .............2.750 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 2.800 ............ 2.655 ............. 2.800............... 60,777,750.000 ......1.000 TAAGEER FINANCE ............................................. 1,929 ................... 299................. 1 ............ 0.155.......... 0.155 ............ 0.155..............0.155 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.155 ............ 0.153 ..............0.155 ...............36,735,000.000 ......0.100 UNITED POWER ...................................................3,087 ................3,934.................3 ............ 1.275.......... 1.270 ............ 1.275..............1.275 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 1.270 ............ 1.270 ..............1.300 ................. 4,445,859.975 ......1.000 OMAN CABLES INDUSTRY ................................. 93,650 ........... 194,953...............17 ............2.085 ......... 2.070 ............2.080 .............2.085........... -0.005 ...........-0.240 ............ 2.080 ............ 2.065 ............. 2.080............ 186,576,000.000 ......0.100 OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING ..............406,504 ............. 78,248.............. 35 ............0.194.......... 0.192 ............ 0.192 .............0.193 ............-0.001 ........... -0.518..............0.193 ............ 0.193 ..............0.194 .............. 23,400,000.000 ......0.100 RENAISSANCE SERVICES ................................394,593 ...........286,485...............12 ............0.728.......... 0.724 ............ 0.728 .............0.732 ........... -0.004 ...........-0.546 ............ 0.724 ............ 0.724 ..............0.728 .............205,364,762.512 ......0.100 AL MADINA INVESTMENT ..............................754,963 ............115,881.............. 53 ............ 0.155.......... 0.153 ............ 0.153..............0.154 ............-0.001 ...........-0.649 .............0.153 ............ 0.152 ..............0.153 ...............28,812,874.320 ......0.100 VOLTAMP ENERGY ............................................62,735 ............. 29,435.............. 20 ............0.472 ......... 0.466 ............0.470 .............0.474 ........... -0.004 ...........-0.844 ............ 0.466 ............ 0.466 ..............0.470 .............. 28,435,000.000 ......0.100 BANK SOHAR .....................................................18,400 ................3,846.................2 ............0.209 .........0.209 ............0.209 .............0.211 ........... -0.002 ...........-0.948 ............ 0.209 ............0.208 ............. 0.209............229,900,000.000 ......0.100 AHLI BANK ...................................................... 335,100 ..............65,681...............18 ............0.199.......... 0.196 ............ 0.196 .............0.198 ........... -0.002 ........... -1.010 ..............0.196 ............ 0.195 ..............0.196 .............247,722,469.400 ......0.100 GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. ....................248,118 ............. 72,522.............. 60 ............0.295 ......... 0.292 ............0.292 .............0.295........... -0.003 ........... -1.017 ............. 0.292 ............0.292 ............. 0.293............... 76,976,678.212 ......0.100 AL HASSAN ENGINEERING ............................. 561,250 ........... 144,201...............41 ............0.260 ......... 0.256 ............0.257 ............ 0.260........... -0.003 ........... -1.154 ............. 0.257 ............ 0.257 ............. 0.260...............19,328,456.000 ......0.100 DHOFAR INT.DEV.AND INV. HOLD. ......................102,400 .............64,304.................4 ............0.628 ......... 0.620 ............0.628 ............ 0.640............-0.012 ........... -1.875 ............. 0.620 ............0.620 ..............0.628 ............ 125,600,000.000 ......0.100 SUM: ...............................................................................28,638,823 ........9,214,722........ 1,202 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ...................................................................................TRADED SEC. ......................39.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

PARALLEL MARKET ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... AREEJ VEGETABLE OILS AND DERIV ..................... 7,588 ..............27,831............... 11 ............3.670 ......... 3.500 ............3.670 ............ 3.340............ 0.330 .............9.880 ............. 3.670 ............ 3.670 ............. 0.000...............16,882,000.000 ......1.000 BANK NIZWA ...................................................539,717 ..............56,199.............. 25 ............0.105.......... 0.103 ............0.104 .............0.104 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.104 ............ 0.104 ..............0.105 ............156,000,000.000 ......0.100 CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. ........................6,000 ...................432.................2 ............0.072 ......... 0.072 ............0.072 .............0.072............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.072 ............ 0.072 ..............0.073 .................6,120,000.000 ......0.100 GULF MUSHROOM PRODUCTS ......................... 25,000 ..............10,550................. 1 ............0.422 ......... 0.422 ............0.422 ............ 0.422............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.422 ............0.424 ............. 0.430................. 9,558,806.400 ......0.100 OMAN EDUCATION TRAINING INV. .......................4,500 ................... 756.................2 ............0.168.......... 0.168 ............ 0.165..............0.165 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............0.168 ............ 0.166 ..............0.170 ...............11,550,000.000 ......0.100 OMAN FIBER OPTIC ....................................................32 ....................116................. 1 ............ 3.610.......... 3.610 ............ 3.010 .............3.010 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............3.610 ............ 3.010 ............. 0.000................14,279,611.570 ......1.000 OMAN REFRESHMENT ................................. 220,000 ........... 517,000.................2 ............2.350 ......... 2.350 ............2.350 ............ 2.350............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 2.350 ............2.350 ............. 2.400.............117,500,000.000 ......0.100 SEMBCORP SALALAH .....................................926,593 ........ 1,779,066.............. 82 ............1.925...........1.915.............1.920 .............1.920 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............1.915 .............1.915...............1.920 ............. 183,277,814.400 ......1.000 SHELL OMAN MARKETING ....................................600 ................1,422................. 1 ............2.370 ......... 2.370 ............2.370 .............2.370............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 2.370 ............ 2.370 ............. 2.380............ 225,150,000.000 ......0.100 SHARQIYAH DESALINATION ................................... 569 ................2,795.................2 ............4.920 .........4.900 ............ 4.915 ............ 4.920........... -0.005 ........... -0.102............. 4.900 ............4.600 ............. 4.900............... 32,046,507.760 ......1.000 BANK DHOFAR ...................................................47,689 ..............16,888.................8 ............0.358 ......... 0.354 ............0.354 .............0.358 ........... -0.004 ............-1.117 ............. 0.354 ............ 0.354 ..............0.358 ............428,385,354.834 ......0.100 SWEETS OF OMAN .............................................13,000 ............. 12,280.................8 ............0.948 .........0.944 ............0.944 .............0.956 ............-0.012 ........... -1.255 ............. 0.944 ............ 0.932 ............. 0.960.................6,608,000.000 ......0.100 OMAN TEXTILE HOLDING ...................................3,300 ................... 910.................2 ............0.277 ......... 0.275 ............0.276 ............ 0.280........... -0.004 ........... -1.429............. 0.275 ............ 0.275 ..............0.278 ................. 1,656,000.000 ......1.000 OMAN NATIONAL ENGINE. INVT. .......................... 5,150 .................1,751.................2 ............0.340 .........0.340 ............0.340 ............ 0.346........... -0.006 ........... -1.734 ............. 0.340 ............0.340 ............. 0.380.............. 27,200,000.000 ......0.100 NATIONAL GAS ................................................. 29,600 .............. 17,685...............10 ............0.600 ......... 0.590 ............0.598 .............0.612 ............-0.014 ...........-2.288 ............ 0.590 ............ 0.590 ..............0.594...............17,940,000.000 ......0.100 SUM: ..................................................................................1,829,338 ....... 2,445,680............ 159 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ...................................................................................TRADED SEC. ...................... 15.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BONDS MARKET ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. RENAISSANCE SERVICES BONDS3.75................306,000 .............32,948.................5 ............0.108.......... 0.107 ............0.108 .............0.106 ............ 0.002 ............. 1.887.............. 0.108 ............0.000 ..............0.108 ...............45,699,301.224 ......0.100 BANK MUSCAT CONV. BONDS 4.5 .................................. 18 ........................2.................2 ............0.105.......... 0.105 ............ 0.105 .............0.105 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.105 ............ 0.105 ..............0.108 ................31,788,656.655 ......0.100 BANK MUSCAT CONVERTABLE BONDS7 ..................135 ....................157.................2 ............ 1.160.......... 1.160 ............ 1.160..............1.160 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ..............1.160 ............ 1.160 ..............1.200 ................18,742,126.960 ......1.000 BANK SOHAR BONDS 4.5 ..............................................65 ........................ 7................. 1 ............0.104 ......... 0.104 ............0.104 .............0.104 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ............. 0.104 ............ 0.104 ..............0.110 ................. 7,436,000.000 ......0.100 SUM: ..................................................................................... 306,218 .............. 33,113...............10 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. ...................................................................................TRADED SEC. ........................4.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

AUTOMOTIVE

GLOBAL MEET

Carmaker Fisker ﬁles for bankruptcy CALIFORNIA: Fisker Automotive, whose sleek, sporty electric cars caught the eye of Justin Bieber and other celebrities, has ﬁled for bankruptcy protection. The California-based company also announced it had entered an asset purchase agreement with Hybrid Tech Holdings. “After having evaluated and pursued all other alternatives, we believe the sale to Hybrid and the related Chapter 11 process is the

best alternative for maximising Fisker Automotive’s value for the beneﬁt of all stakeholders,” Marc Beilinson, Fisker’s chief restructuring officer, said in a statement. “We believe that the Fisker Automotive technology and product development capability will remain a guiding force in the evolution of the automotive industry under Hybrid’s leadership.” Fisker was started in southern California in 2007 by former Aston

Martin and BMW designer Henrik Fisker and German business partner Bernhard Koehler. While it did not have the expected success with its sleek hybrid Karma sports car — which it billed as “a bold expression of uncompromised responsible luxury” — it did attract interest from the likes of stars such as Bieber, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ashton Kutcher. With a price tag of about $100,000, the 2012 Karma sedan boasts an all-

electric ‘Stealth Mode’ and a fuelassisted ‘Sport Mode’, according to the company’s website. Having struggled ﬁnancially for some time, Fisker announced in April that it was laying off 75 per cent of its workforce. What happens next remains to be seen. The Wall Street Journal quoted a spokeswoman for Hybrid Technology as saying it was “committed to building upon the Fisker legacy.” - AFP

KOM workshop to focus on science, technology parks Times News Service MUSCAT: Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM), in cooperation with the International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP), will host Oman’s ﬁrst international workshop dedicated to the development of science and technology parks. The IASP-Asian Divisions workshop will take place from December 11 to 12, at the Grand Hyatt Muscat and will highlight various trends in Science and Technology Parks (STPs), said a press release. “Science and technology parks are the keys to successful innovation. In terms of economic development, they support the government and industry in the development of high technology and in terms of advancing understanding and knowledge. Science and technology parks also facilitate sharing of ideas not only on an economic level but on a social and cultural level and serve as successful launch pads for new companies,” said Eng. Mohamed Al Maskari, KOM director-general of KOM. Held under the theme ‘Propelling the STP impulse’, the IASPAsian Divisions workshop will take place via three consecutive workshops- STPs serving entrepreneurs and fostering local successful businesses; building, creating and sustaining infrastructure in the long term; and STP governance. The workshop, while offering a unique opportunity for participants to meet experts from science and technology parks, will

Mohamed Al Maskari - Supplied picture

deal with a wide range of topics, helping attendees understand the economic role of STPs and the need to propel STPs into a key position for them to play an active role in interacting with their regional communities and national policy makers. “The IASP-Asian Divisions workshop is designed to enhance cooperation between Asian countries in the science and technology park industry and encourage collaborations between STPs and universities on a local and international level. It will deal with a wide range of topics which are pivotal in understanding STPs’ role in their regional economic environments. “Speakers will discuss the importance of entrepreneurship and supporting the local business people; building and sustaining infrastructures,” said Luis Sanz, IASP director-general.

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W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SECTION

MOVING YOUR CONTENT TO A NEW iPAD >B6

E-

IMES TECH STUFF

SMART SMOKE ALARM The Protect is certainly a vast improvement over any smoke alarm. It speaks calmly, and does not shriek. It delivers low-battery warnings via voice, rather than annoying chirps. It gently pulses with light, rather than blinking furiously and ambiguously. >B6

Painting with a stylus, despite what Steve Jobs had said earlier While you can use this app with your bare finger, if you use a stylus it’ll feel almost as if you’re drawing in real life, not digitally on a screen

If you’re no painting expert, the app is still simple and entertaining to use. It has many different controls for painting effects but the menu system makes it a breeze to navigate

KIT EATON

HEN he introduced the iPhone and iPad, Steve Jobs asserted the touch-screen devices didn’t need a stylus because humans come with 10 great touchscreen controllers sticking out of our palms: ﬁngers. He was proved right, and most new smartphones and tablets don’t require a stylus to work their touch screen. But some apps work better with a stylus, particularly painting apps. SketchBook Pro, a $5 app for iPad and Android, takes the prize for this category. It’s a comprehensive sketching and painting program from Autodesk, a company with decades of expertise making design software. This powerful app comes with a variety of painting

and drawing tools that you can use to create sophisticated works. If you’re no painting expert, the app is still simple and entertaining to use. It has many different controls for painting effects — pen and brush shapes, sizes, stroke pattern and so on — but the menu system makes it a breeze to navigate. You never get lost. And while you can use this app with your bare ﬁnger, if you use a stylus it’ll feel almost as if you’re drawing in real life, not digitally on a screen. SketchBook Pro also has a few extras, like the ability to timelapse record your painting in progress, that could be used by teachers to show how an expert would create a particular image. The app is impressive all around. Brushes 3 is an art app that is deﬁnitely more about painting than sketching, given the wide variety of brush effects, including a simulated airbrush and one akin to painting

with oils on a heavy canvas. The interface on Brushes 3 is straightforward, but not overly basic. All sorts of settings let you control how the paint is applied to your image, but these are buried beneath a much simpler set of controls that make it easy to change brush effects and colour — the chief things you use when painting. The app is free on iOS. For a similar painting experience on Android, Line Brush is worth a try. It also has a simple and appealing interface that conceals some powerful painting effects, and though it is a bit more basic than Brushes, it’s worth a look.

The app is free. Android device owners should also check out Infinite Painter, a much more complex app than Line Brush. Like Brushes 3 and SketchBook, Infinite Painter has a comprehensive settings section that lets you control all sorts of details about how you paint on the screen. This app is set up to make it easy to use a stylus. User interface nuances, like the way you select the intensity of a colour by tapping on the icon and then using a sort of sliding control, seem designed to make sure you keep the stylus in your hand and don’t use your fingers. A free version has a few limits compared with the

$5 full version. Zen Brush, on iOS, is also an app that has styluses in mind. It’s a particularly good companion for tablet styluses that have a brushlike extension, because the app is about making Japanese-style calligraphy and painting. In some ways it’s more basic than the other apps mentioned here because there are fewer settings; it is aimed at producing images with few colours that feel as if they’ve been painted in ink. You can change the background and ink colours, but the choices are from a limited list. What this app does well is recreate the sensation of painting with a brush. It also has an elegant inter-

face, and built-in sharing options so you can show off your artwork on Twitter. The app’s not for everyone, and you may find its choices limit the artwork you can produce, but it’s definitely worth its $3 price. Creating layers Lastly, Layers is an iOS app that’s about drawing and painting. This app’s emphasis is on creating layers of painted patterns that stack up on top of each other to produce your final image, but it’s otherwise similar to Sketchbook Pro. The app gives users great control over the brush effects, and its small icons are easier to press with the tip of a stylus than clumsy human fingers. One issue is the app’s price — at $5, it’s expensive. I also found that sometimes the curves you paint come out looking like a bunch of small straight sections rather than one smooth, flowing shape. Try out these apps with your finger first, if you want — you may find that tempts you into buying a stylus so you can paint more realistically. Quick call MSNBC has overhauled its iOS app; the new version lets you stream live video of your favorite shows or news programmes as they are broadcast. You can also catch up with previously broadcast shows. The app is free. — The New York Times News Service

GADGET GALLERY

A camera that offers instant gratification and prints IT’S GREAT TO SEE party pictures instantly on your smartphone, but you can’t easily hang those shots on your refrigerator or tuck one into the frame of a mirror. You can order prints, of course, if you don’t mind waiting. The new Fuji Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic offers some instant gratification, and it adds a few modern features to the sort of instant film camera introduced by Polaroid in the late 1940s. Like the instant cameras of the 1970s, when you take a shot with the Mini 90, a motor whirs and a piece of undeveloped film slides out. As you watch, an image gradually appears. The Mini 90 adds some features not commonly found on cameras of this sort. Settings include “party,” which matches a slow shutter with a flash. The option, more commonly called night mode, allows backgrounds to be seen, giving you the ability to photograph your spouse on a balcony and have the city lights appear in the background. There is also a “kids” setting for faster-moving subjects; double exposure, which puts two images in one shot; and bulb, which holds the shutter open as long as you keep the button pressed. There is even a brightness adjustment, so you can fine-tune the automatic exposure, and a force-

flash option, so you can use the flash to fill in shadows in bright sunlight. It’s simple to use and produces richly colourful 1 3/4-by-2 1/2-inch images that you can hand out on the spot. Those images are often fun, but are usually of mediocre quality. The framing eyepiece is inaccurate — especially close up — so you don’t always capture what you aim at. Expect a lot of re-dos.

Ryan Cooper, Olivia D’Abo, Dave Fennoy and David Lodge.) Caught in a government conspiracy, Noah stumbles on an artiﬁcial intelligence that gives him the power to inhabit the bodies of prehistoric creatures, like an archaeopteryx, smilodon or spinosaurus. With the app, which is available free on iOS and Android devices, the animals burst from the book; tap the screen and they will ﬂy, roar and run across the page.

Graphic novel with teeth (and claws)

Enhanced sound, with Wi-Fi, Android

COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS have embraced the digital realm, incorporating entertaining features like motion and sound to attract new readers. But one startup, Anomaly Productions, is taking a bigger step, adding augmented reality to the pages of its sci-ﬁ graphic novels. Last year, the publisher introduced “Anomaly,” a hefty 370-page tome that the company says was the longest original full-colour graphic novel ever published. The epic story was written by the company’s founders, Harry M. Brittenham, an entertainment lawyer who is known as Skip, and Brian Haberlin, a comic book artist and writer. Using a type of mapping technology that recognizes augmented images on the page, “Anomaly” provides additional details, back story and more than 50 3-D models via an accompanying mobile app.

THE SCEPTRE SPEAKER SOUNDBAR SB301523 is a

“Anomaly” was followed by “Shifter,” which was published on Nov. 15 and sells for $30. Initially, “Shifter” included augmented-reality content on 14 of its 224 pages. And as it did with “Anomaly,” the publisher plans to add digital content as time goes on. An additional

eight digital pages of “Shifter” will come out on Nov. 22, followed by 10 or more pages early next year. The bonus content includes 3-D images and voice-overs from actors, including Wil Wheaton, who portrays Noah, the story’s protagonist. (Other actors include

smart idea at a reasonable price — a soundbar with Wi-Fi and the Android operating system built in, so you can get TV shows and video from the Internet without adding another box. While the idea is good, the execution is half-baked. The roughly 30-inch-long bar is an unusual design, in that it has no grille covering the two 2 3/4inch and two 1 1/2-inch speakers. It gives it a sleekly utilitarian look, but may make the working parts vulnerable to curious (and destructive) children. It is lightweight, at 5 pounds, which can make wall mounting easier. The sound is clear, loud and pleasant, but it lacks the roomshaking bass of soundbars that come with a separate subwoofer. Because the speakers are so

close together, the sound is almost monaural. However, there are several sound settings to adjust quality. The bar uses software called SRS WOW to increase the fullness of the sound and enhance the stereo effect. It makes a noticeable difference, but it still won’t match higher-end multispeaker sound bars. And the price is right — it lists for $200, but I have found it online for $100. One hitch in the execution is the built-in Android interface, which moves at a glacial pace. Even worse is trying to navigate the web using the included standard remote. Because you have to enter a lot of text when looking for videos or using apps, you really need a keyboard. I tried it with a Favi SmartStick Keyboard Controller, which was a vast improvement, but would add $40 to the cost of the system. Another consideration facing potential buyers has nothing to with the soundbar itself, but the quality of available video that is free and easily available online. Outside of YouTube, I couldn’t easily ﬁnd much worthwhile. If you have video subscriptions, like Netﬂix, there is an Android app that will let you get to your movie queue through the soundbar. — The New York Times News Service

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

E-TIMES TECH TIP

Now quickly search for a ﬁle or folder in your PC Need to quickly search your computer for a ﬁle or folder? On a Windows 8 (or 8.1) machine, press the Windows key and start typing your keywords in the search box. On a Windows 7 system, press the Windows key to bring up the Start menu - and its search box. On recent versions of Mac OS X, press the Command key and the space bar to open the Spotlight search bar in the upper-right corner of the screen. Press the Option and Command keys along with the space bar to get a full search window. HELP FILES

Moving your content to a new iPad

A SMART SMOKE ALARM THAT KEEPS ITS COOL The Protect is certainly a vast improvement over any smoke alarm. It speaks calmly, and does not shriek. It delivers low-battery

Anyone who has ever set up wireless speakers or similar products will be familiar with the process. Nest declined to say how long the battery will last, but when it is almost out of juice, the device tells you it’s running low

warnings via voice, rather than annoying chirps. It gently pulses with light, rather than blinking furiously and ambiguously

JENNA WORTHAM

he last apartment I lived in was a certiﬁable ﬁre hazard. It was mostly my fault - I ripped out the smoke detector my landlord had installed because it was so sensitive that even a steamy shower would set off its ear-splitting beeping. Smoke alarms are old-world tech in an era when most of the devices that wind up in our pockets and homes tend to be sleek, efficient and deliberately nonintrusive. Most states in the United States require smoke detectors in homes, however, so we have to deal with them. Many of us either ignore them, or, as in my case, dismantle them. But the Nest Protect, a combination smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector, presents a third option. You might actually want to use it. The Protect is the second major product release from Nest. In 2011, the company put out a smart thermostat that collects data about its environment and adjusts heating and cooling levels depending on whether anyone is home to save energy, and, ultimately, money. That device thrilled consumers and critics alike, setting sky-high standards for the company’s next offering. Beautiful design For the most part, the Protect impresses, especially when it comes to its packaging. Tony Fadell, the chief of the company, led the team that created Apple’s original iPod and iPhone, and it shows in the simple beauty of the Protect. Its surface is covered in an eye-pleasing beehive mesh design, and at its centre is a round LED-lit ring that softly glows blue, green, yellow or red, depending on the situation in your home. It’s roughly the size of a CD and weighs not much more than that, and the device comes in an eggshell white or a soft matte black. The Protect (which went on sale Monday both online and in certain retail stores, and costs $129) is

certainly a vast improvement over any smoke alarm I’ve ever lived with. It speaks calmly, and does not shriek. It delivers low-battery warnings via voice, rather than annoying chirps. It gently pulses with light, rather than blinking furiously and ambiguously. When it detects rising levels of smoke or carbon monoxide, it gently begins to chime and flash marigold yellow, while a soothing female voice gently intones, “heads up.” In the event of an emergency, or high levels of smoke or carbon monoxide, that light switches to red and the voice urgently speaks up and lets you know there’s an emergency. Once the smoke subsides, the Protect chimes again, flashes green and tells you the smoke is clearing. Its superiority as a smoke detector lies in its civility and carefully programmed demeanour. Setting up the Protect was a snap. After un-boxing it, you just yank a tab to activate it, and pair it with the application for your Apple or Android phone or tablet to start getting real-time updates about smoke and carbon monoxide levels. Anyone who has ever set up wireless speakers or similar products will be familiar with the process. Nest declined to say how long the battery will last, but when it is almost out of juice, the device tells you it’s running low. If there’s an emergency, the app will ping you with a notification that the alarm has gone off and whether the issue has been resolved. The app also displays a handy help guide during an emergency and even a shortcut for calling 911. The only thing the app can’t do is shut off the alarm. You have to do that manually, which is a regulatory requirement, according to Nest. I did run into some problems with the Protect, like getting it to connect to my home network, but it was hard to determine which snags were the result of buggy hardware and software or merely one-off stumbles. It was difficult, too, to know how sensitive the Nest Protect was

compared with my last smoke alarm. Small spritzes of the fake smoke supplied by Nest rarely set the thing off but huge blasts of it sent the device into a frantic emergency mode that could be remedied only by rushing the thing outside into cool, smokeless air. But I was pleased to note that small, harmless amounts of particulate matter in the air — perhaps the equivalent of making popcorn — weren’t enough to trigger a false alarm. Nest promises you can silence its alarm by waving your hand, but I often found that to be nearly impossible. Nest says that it can take up to 10 waves to hush the alarm, as a safety precaution. I often spent 10 seconds frantically flapping my hands in front of the device, only to give up and tap the button in the centre, which will also shut it off and up. When the device is not in use, it tests itself every 10 minutes and reports its condition to the app so you can see it is working, even though there is no discernible activity. It also is outﬁtted with a motion-detection sensor that will activate and turn on a night-light when its owners walk by at night. The Protect is meant to work in conjunction with Nest’s thermostat, connected through Wi-Fi. I wasn’t able to install the thermo-

stat into my rental apartment, but the company says it can feed data to help the thermostat learn more about its owner’s habits. In an emergency, for example, it can tell the thermostat to turn off the heat. And if you have more than one Protect installed in your home, the alarms will specify where the problem is in the house when they are set off. Glimpse of the future It is a bit thrilling to watch the machine spring into action. It feels very much like a glimpse of the future, in the same way that touchscreen tablets did at ﬁrst, and automated ﬂoor sweeping devices do. Tony Stark would probably own a Nest Protect and it’s reminiscent of the impressive efficiency of prehomicidal HAL 9000 in “2001: A Space Odyssey.” It delivers on the promise of living in a connected home of the future, one that is powered by gleaming and pristine machinery that is programmed to work intelligently and effectively. In addition, the app is refreshingly minimalist, and not bogged down by unnecessary information. It clearly shows you the status of your home (green for good, red for trouble) and lets you see mini-status reports for each time an alarm went off, which is neat. So is it worth it to make this purchase? Admittedly, it gave me

peace of mind to check my phone during the work day and while I was out of town and see that reassuringly serene emeraldcolored ring signalling that all my worldly possessions had not been burned to a crisp. But the biggest questions about the Nest Protect are also the kind of philosophical ones familiar to the modern consumer of major tech purchases. Do you really need a smart lock, fridge or Internet-connected toilet? Is spending the same amount of money that you’d pay for a few pairs of shoes or two weeks’ worth of meals at Chipotle for a device you will most likely barely use or interact with worth it? Buying the Nest Protect makes more sense if you already own, or plan to buy, the Nest thermostat. Nest is slowly but surely rolling out an ecosystem of smart-home products that when networked, will upgrade all the remedial technology still left in your home But as it is, I have neither. And although I’d happily recommend it to my friends who are becoming parents and buying their ﬁrst homes, I will probably pass on becoming a Nest Protect owner until I am at that stage in my life. Until then, I am happy to live with the lessthan-perfect smoke detector that is already installed in my apartment. - The New York Times News Service

Q: I just got an iPad Air. How do I move all my stuff over to it from my older iPad including the cellular data plan? A: Apple offers two ways to move your content from one iPad to another: iCloud or iTunes. To use the iCloud method, you need to be running at least iOS 5, have an iCloud account and be connected to a wireless network with the iPad plugged into its charger. You can turn on iCloud by tapping the Settings icon from the iPad’s Home screen, and then select iCloud. The option for turning on iCloud Backup is in the Storage & Backup area; you get ﬁve gigabytes of storage free and can buy more from Apple if needed. Once you have backed up the older iPad’s settings and content to iCloud, turn on the new iPad Air and go through the setup screens, where you will get an option to restore the data from a previous iCloud backup. Once you log in with your iCloud (Apple ID) name and password, you can download the backup to the iPad Air. With the iTunes method, start with backing up the old iPad’s contents to the computer. Connect the two devices with the iPad’s USB cable (or sync with iTunes over a Wi-Fi connection). When the iPad icon appears in iTunes, click the Summary tab and then click the Back Up Now button. When the backup is ﬁnished, connect the iPad Air to the computer with the USB cable and choose the option in the iTunes window to restore the iPad from the previous backup. Transferring your prepaid cellular data account depends on your carrier. AT&T lets you move it yourself when you go to Cellular Data in Settings and log into your account with your previous AT&T user name and password. For iPads with Sprint service, you can set up an account on the new iPad and contact Sprint Customer Care.

‘Help Desk’ swindles abound Q: I recently got a call from someone claiming to be from Microsoft. He said that my Windows was corrupted and I should go to my computer and he’d help me fix it, but I hung up. Is this some type of new fraud or is Windows really having problems? A: Microsoft does not make unsolicited telephone calls for computer technical support and warns its customers not to trust unknown callers or provide them with any personal information. No matter how urgent or convincing the caller sounds, you should decline all offers of help — especially for “remote assistance” or software installations. These swindlers are out to install malicious software on your PC, swipe financial information or even steal your identity. You can file a complaint in the Consumer Protection area on the Federal Trade Commission’s website at www.ftc.gov.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ROUND-UP N O B L E I N I T I AT I V E

Park Inn Muscat lends a hand to typhoon Haiyan victims

Hyundai makes biggest mass market rank gain Hyundai ﬁnished as the ﬁfth best mass market brand, moving up six spots since the 2012 J.D. Power US Sales Satisfaction

MUSCAT: Staff of Park Inn by Radisson Muscat has lent a hand to the recent super typhoon Haiyan that hit Tacloban City in the Philippines. The Responsible Business Team of the hotel led by Alaa Ahmed, RB Coordinator, visited the Philippine Embassy to give the hotel donations of basic needs such as clothes, non perishable items and cash. The hotel is also grateful for the warm welcome from the

Deputy Head of Mission /Minister and Consul General, Hyayceelyn Quintana. The donations were received by the FILCOSOC community who organise the funds. “We are saddened by this catastrophe. Our heartfelt condolences to our Filipino friends who lost their loved ones. I would like to thank our staff who contributed to this initiative,” said Rabih Zein, GM at Park Inn by Radisson Muscat.

Index StudySM

MUSCAT: Hyundai’s dedication to enhancing customer buying experience resulted in the industry’s largest rank improvement in the recently announced J.D. Power 2013 US Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) StudySM. Hyundai ﬁnished as the ﬁfth best mass market brand, moving up six spots since the 2012 study. Hyundai’s

FIELD EVENTS

rejected in favour of the selling brand and dealership (satisfaction among rejecters) and was ﬁelded between July and September 2013. Hyundai’s ability to understand people’s desires and respond quickly to the changing needs of its customers by offering products with futuristic global design and cutting-edge technology has touched the hearts of millions of customers worldwide and is moving fast towards becoming the most beloved brand across the globe. Hyundai provides new values and experiences to customers of

FREE CAMP

MuscatEventz to organise CEO Field Day MUSCAT: MuscatEventz is organising an exciting event — CEO Field Day in which about 500 top management officials from different companies, along with their spouse are expected to take part in a day long event on February 1, 2014. Muscat Eventz (ME) is a very young company which was started just two years ago and led by Majeed Al Asfoor (chairman), Sawsan Al Rahma (vice-chairperson). It has made remarkable place of its own in the market giving a tough competition to the other event organising companies. The company has achieved a lot of its own goals and targets laid. The company has organised several events like Jai Hind Indo-Oman Event, Valentine’s Day Event and promoted many happening events in Muscat. The company started its ﬁrst ever portal www.muscateventz. com on March 1, 2011. MuscatEventz is a Web portal dedicated to promoting and connecting individuals, organisations and the

score improved 27 points to 677 in the 1,000 point scale, the second biggest point move among the 19 non-premium brands. The 2013 US SSI Study is based on responses from 29,040 buyers who purchased or leased their new vehicle in April or May 2013. The study is a comprehensive analysis of the new-vehicle purchase experience and measures customer satisfaction with the selling dealer (satisfaction among buyers). The study also measures satisfaction with brands and dealerships that were shopped but ultimately

today through its ‘Modern premium’ brand direction, that are unique to the brand and also go beyond what customers expect by combining exceptional performance with reasonable price and emotional elegance. Hyundai as a brand has made signiﬁcant strides on the back of sophisticated product design, quality, safety technology and exceptional value. Hyundai has a strong presence in the passenger vehicles category in Oman with its wide range of sedans and SUVs each in various trim variants. Hyundai sedan range includes Accent, Elantra, Sonata, Azera, Genesis and Centennial apart from the trendy Veloster and i10, i20, i30, i40 — the core of cutting edge ‘i’ series cars from Hyundai as a response that global customer needs. Hyundai SUV range — Tucson, Santa Fe, Grand Santa Fe and Veracruz are deﬁnitely the pick of the lot. OTE Group is the exclusive dealer of Hyundai’s range of vehicles in Oman.

community with events and happenings in Oman. Conceived to provide an online forum for all events, the company has been a part of numerous successful events. Majeed Al Asfoor, quoted, “We are honoured to have this kind of event in Muscat where all top management people will be participating and can build good rapport between the companies.” The event ‘CEO Field Day’ will

be one of the most happening events ever to be held in Oman with top management of more than 500 companies expected to take part in this event. This event will make the top management feel very young and energetic reminding them of their college days. They will be participating in ﬁeld/track games like 100m race, shot-put, javelin throw and other exciting games. Along with these games, they will enjoy various types of entertainment like music, dances, magic show, etc. Gifts and awards are there for the winners of various sports/games to be held. Celebrity sportspersons of Oman and India will be invited to be a part of this event. Sawsan Al Rahma, vice-chairperson commented, “We should often have this kind of event as life is stressful and this will improve the ﬁtness level of the people and will also create interest in sports and games activities and naturally there will be improvement in their work.”

Badr Al Samaa Group holds free diabetes screening MUSCAT: Badr Al Samaa healthcare group organised a free diabetes screening campaign on World Diabetes Day on November 14, from 9am to 5pm across all their eight branches in the Sultanate. Camp witnessed more than 3,000 attendees across their eight branches, of which almost 10 per cent new diabetic cases were diagnosed. Participants were facilitated with free RBS; blood pressure and body mass index. Moreover, the medical experts guided the patients about the preventive measures they could adopt against diabetes. The main objective of the campaign was early detection and treatment, thereby can prevent and delay complication and intervention of risk factors like obesity, smoking, physical inactivity and unhealthy diet. Frequent urination, low energy, weight loss, excessive thirst, non healing ulcer; recurrent boils are

L AT E S T M O D E L

the warning signs for diabetes. A high percentage of the individuals who are living with Type2 diabetes are not even aware of the fact that they are suffering from this condition. The private sector has a key role to play in this regard. Heart and blood vessel disease often go hand-in-hand with diabetes. Prevention is better than cure. “We should focus on primary prevention programme

like awareness campaign and life style modiﬁcation like diet and exercise. Diabetes diet; medically known as medical nutrition therapy for diabetes recommends, eating a variety of foods in moderate amounts and sticking to regular mealtimes along with lifestyle modiﬁcation like regular exercise and stress management,” said Dr Basheer, senior critical care specialist, Badr Al Samaa, Ruwi.

BUSINESS SOLUTION

All-new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo debuts in the Sultanate MUSCAT: Al Jenaibi International Automobiles, the official BMW Group importer in Oman, has unveiled the all-new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo; the latest addition to the BMW 3 Series line. On a global level, the BMW 3 Series continues to be BMW Group’s best-selling model series consistently accounting for more than a quarter of the company’s global sales. In 2012, every fourth BMW sold was a 3 Series. The success story of the BMW 3 Series over the past 37 years has made it the world’s best-selling premium car. The all-new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo adds an innovative new concept to the already successful 3 Series line-up. It combines a unique combination of a sporty and elegant coupé design with excellent versatility, increase in space and hallmark BMW driving enjoyment. Inside the cockpit, this slick new model featuring four doors with frameless windows and a coupéstyle downward-sloping rooﬂine

making it immediately recognisable as a member of the latest generation BMW 3 Series line-up. Generous interior dimensions allow the passengers in every seat to sit back and enjoy an impressive feeling of space and unbeatable freedom of movement signiﬁcantly more comfortable. The cocooning nature of the interior, complemented by its design forms, colour scheme and materials, creates a lounge-style ambience which allows passengers to enjoy short trips and long journeys alike in relaxed comfort. The rear of the all-new BMW

3 Series Gran Turismo is highlighted by horizontal surfaces and lines emphasising muscular width and unshakable road holding. Another highlight is the rear active spoiler — the ﬁrst of its type on a BMW — which automatically extends at speeds over 110km/h and retracts at speeds under 70km/h. It can also be manually controlled from the driver side window switch control. When deployed at high speeds, the spoiler increases downforce on the rear axle and ensures perfect stability when driving fast. Commenting on the launch of the new vehicle, Divy-

endu Kumar, managing director of Al Jenaibi International Automobiles, said: “We are excited to launch the all-new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo in Oman. This impressive vehicle will be a great addition to our BMW product portfolio offering our customers both practicality and driving comfort. With this new addition, we reassure our customers that we will always offer them the best and premium vehicles.” An extensive selection of driver assistance systems and mobility solutions, offered under the BMW ConnectedDrive programme, allows the new BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo to set the benchmark in its segment in terms of safety, convenience and in-car infotainment. The all-New BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo will debut with the 320i engine variant, which features the BMW 2.0-litre fourcylinder TwinPower Turbo engine generating 135kW/184 hp and accelerates from 0 to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds.

M E M B E R S H I P PAC K AG E

Residents of Barr Al Jissah enjoy new membership packages MUSCAT: Barr Al Jissah Residences held a morning tea for the lady residents of Barr Al Jissah Residences recently to launch additional membership packages specially designed with them in mind. Residents of this premium development gathered in the opulence of the Al Bandar Hotel, Shangri-La where they enjoyed an elegant morning coffee as they

were briefed on the new package available to them. The management of the Residences was delighted to include an additional Couples package to the existing Family package, to suit the lifestyle needs of the community. Commenting upon the new packages, Wanda De Wet, marketing manager said, “The community here at Barr Al Jissah is built on a partnership and we thoroughly

value the opinions of our residents. When it came to our attention that there was an interest in a restructuring of our membership packages we immediately began exploring workable options with the Shangri-La. We are delighted to say that the new package was very well received.” Home owners and tenants at Barr Al Jissah Residences can avail of the membership pro-

gramme which gives them access to premium services and facilities at the Shangril-La Hotel at very competitive prices. This includes enjoyment of the pool, health club, jacuzzi and spa facilities as well as discounted rates on all food at the resort’s restaurants, as well as certain treatments at the ShangriLa’s Chi Spa. Residents are also entitled to access passes for their visitors at a nominal day rate.

Boost your business with Tata trucks and buses MUSCAT: With a legacy stretching as far back as 1945, Tata vehicles have the proven design and performance features that professionals demand. Tata Motors’ versatile and proven performers have proved their worth across the world. Tata owns the Daewoo Commercial Vehicles Company and the British premium car maker Jaguar Land Rover. For over three decades in Oman, Al Hashar & Co. has remained the sole distributor of Tata’s wide and versatile range of vehicles. Customers are ready to vouch for the performance of the range of Tata business vehicles, “These vehicles are not only cost-effective, reliable and comfortable, they can also be customised for local conditions — and therein lies their appeal with business users in Oman,” says a satisﬁed owner. The Tata Motors European Technical Centre is an automotive design, engineering and research company based at the campus of the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom. It was established in 2005 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Motors. It was the joint developer of the World Truck. Tata Motors’ UK subsidiary, Tata Motors European Technical Centre, has bought a 50.3 per cent holding in electric vehicle

technology firm Miljøbil Grenland/Innovasjon of Norway, which specialises in the development of innovative solutions for electric vehicles, and plans to launch the electric Indica hatchback in Europe. Tata trucks range is available from 3.5 ton to 11 ton chassis payload to suit the different applications of all business needs. Tata trucks are famous for their robust design and sturdy structure. The Tata Xenon Pickup is the perfect combination of ruggedness, comfort, performance and looks available in 4x2 & 4x4 options. The pick-ups handle tough terrains and heavy loads with ease. Tata buses are available in 29 seater, 45 seater and 67 seater capacity with AC and non-AC variants. Tata Marcopolo buses are available with new stylish exteriors, comfortable interiors and more powerful engines. Tata Motors has more than 55 years of experience in auto manufacturing. It is the world’s second largest bus manufacturer and fifth biggest truck maker, having significant worldwide presence in 30 countries and five continents. It has associations and joint ventures with international companies like Cummins, Marcopolo, and Hispano, amongst others, to manufacture world-class automobiles.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ROUND-UP Vacheron Constantin line launched in Oman

GOLD SPONSORSHIP

The full line of Vacheron Constantin

BankDhofar supports global surgical meet in Oman

watches will be available at Mistal and customers will also have the option of ordering custom-made watches DEDICATED SECTION: Dharmesh Khimji displays the exquisite collection of Vacheron Constantin

watches to His Highness Sayyid Taimur bin Shabib Al Said. — A. R. Rajkumar/ TIMES OF OMAN

MUSCAT: Mistal Boutique in Darsait launched an exclusive partnership with Swiss watchmaker Vacheron Constantin on Thursday. Mistal, the designer watch and jewellery boutique which is part of the Ajit Khimji Group, dedicated a section of its store to the luxurious line of watches, which was founded in Geneva in 1755. His Highness Sayyid Taimur bin Shabib Al Said inaugurated the Vacheron Constantin watch corner. “It’s very exclusive. It’s the ﬁrst time there is a watch corner in the

Middle East. It’s a new concept here. We’re very proud to be associated with Vacheron Constantin,” said Dharmesh Khimji, managing director, Ajit Khimji Group. The full line of Vacheron Constantin watches will be available at Mistal and customers will also have the option of ordering custom-made watches according to their own personal desires. Khimji said he expects the line to do very well in Oman, as there are a number of watch col-

lectors and a growing number of Omanis are becoming familiar with the brand. Vacheron Constantin watches have been worn by a number of legendary ﬁgures including Napoleon Bonaparte, Pope Pius XI, the Duke of Windsor and Harry Truman. The most famous collectors commissioned their own models, such as Sir Bhupindra Singh, the Maharaja of Patiala, who acquired a pocket chronograph clock watch with alarm, date and moon phases

dated 1909, and the famous American car maker James Ward Packard, who ordered in 1918 a quarter and half-quarter repeating pocket chronograph clock watch with Grande and Petite Sonnerie. “We are very proud to have partnered with Mistal. We think they have the right knowledge about watch-making and they carry the right brands for Vacheron Constantin,” added a spokesperson for Vacheron Constantin.

MUSCAT: As part of the objective to expand its corporate social responsibility endeavours, BankDhofar sponsored the eighth International Surgical Conference held earlier this month. The surgery department at the Royal Hospital organised the conference with the participation of 1,000 persons from various medical personnel under the auspices of Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Saidi, Minister of Health. BankDhofar, in its role as gold sponsor for the event, reafﬁrmed its commitment to raising awareness on health issues and highlighted the importance of hosting such an event for Oman’s medical community. Commenting on the bank’s partnership with the event, Sami Omar Al Zadjali, head, Marketing and Corporate Com-

munications, BankDhofar said, “Our participation in this event underscores the importance that we, as a major financial institution, play in raising Oman’s profile as a country offering premier health care. Through this event, we are also demonstrating how BankDhofar is diversifying its social initiatives to various fields and industries.” He added that BankDhofar’s involvement in the event reflected the bank’s keenness to take Oman to the forefront of latest technological advancements in the field of medical surgery. The event itself saw eager participation from delegates locally and internationally. “Our close association with the event is a testament to our support for the community and different levels and varying capacities,” said Sami.

BRIEFS

Bank Nizwa sends warm accolades to His Majesty

The children also actively participated in the show. Maria Gopi proposed the vote of thanks.

Beat stress, beat diabetes through yoga: Art of Living

MUSCAT: The entire team at Bank Nizwa, crafted a very warm message to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said to congratulate him on the glorious 43rd National Day of the Sultanate. The message was created in partnership with Makala Advertising and Publicity and features in a very special Golden Greetings book, which will be presented to the nation’s great leader to commemorate the special occasion. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jamil El Jaroudi, CEO, Bank Nizwa said, “Under the visionary leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said our nation has achieved great strides backed by the strong support provided to the educational bodies, health organisations and by potent investments made in improving the Sultanate’s infrastructure and industries. It is with immense pride that we celebrate this momentous occasion and express our deep gratitude to His Majesty. We, at Bank Nizwa are committed to channelise our operations towards realising His Majesty’s vision of prosperity and progress for Oman.”

MUSCAT: The word stress itself puts stress on people’s minds these days. Such is the profound play of it in modern lives. People perceive stress in different ways and for different events. But the hard fact is it does affect mankind by its effects at the cellular level. So it is no surprise then that stress is one of the major trigger factors for diabetes too. Stress hormones may also alter blood glucose levels directly. One among the many therapies available for mankind to handle stress is the time tested yoga therapy. Numerous researches published in leading medical journals all over the world have indeed cited the benefits that yoga can have on a person’s health in terms of tackling stress. Yoga with its holistic outlook takes care of weight issues, promoting flexibility and strength to muscles and joints, activating the glandular functions thereby helping an efficient and qualitative functioning of insulin. Art of Living, Oman Chapter will be conducting a free yoga session for the public on November 27, 5.30pm at the Art of Living Centre, Mosaic Heights next to OIFC Building, Muttrah.

Indian School Al Seeb holds workshop on Mobile Robotics

‘Raag Manjari 2013’ held at Indian School Muladha

MUSCAT: A workshop on Mobile Robotics was conducted at Indian School Al Seeb on and November 11 and 12 by Prateek Gupta from Innovians Technologies. This workshop provided school students a base to mobile/GSM robotics and rich hands-on experience on designing three different kinds of robots (Manual Robot, Line Follower Robot and Mobile Controlled Robot) in a single workshop. At the end of this workshop, a small competition was organised among the participants and winners were awarded with a ‘Certificate of Excellence’ and ‘Certificate of Merit’ was given to all workshop participants from Innovians Technologies. In the closing ceremony, one of the participants Aritra Ghosh of Class XI expressed his sincere gratitude and admiration to Prateek Gupta on behalf of all the participants for giving them a rare opportunity to explore learning across disciplines. Principal Nagesh Kelkar distributed the certificates to the winners and congratulated the team for their excellent performance. Prateek Gupta presented a certificate of appreciation to principal from Innovians Technologies for organising the workshop.

MUSCAT: Indian School Muladha campus got enlivened as the festive air of the grand finale of Raag Manjari 2013. The annual literary and cultural competition stirred up the school community. The event meant to provide a dais for the best of education, exposure and experience the true spirit of competition had a flying start with the preliminary rounds held on November 6 and 7. The students were given an opportunity to exhibit and experience the elation of finding his or her hidden talents, and the inherent and imbibed talents and creative abilities of the students were unearthed through a wide array of items. The prelims were held in seven different venues for sub junior I, sub junior II, junior, senior and super senior categories. The literary items like essay writing, poetry writing, story writing in English, Hindi and Malayalam and Spelling Bee in English for different categories were also conducted as a part of the inter-house competitions. The campus was filled with competitive spirit when group events like quiz, dumb charades, anthakshari were held when the various houses vied with one another for the championship. The best participants from around 1,500 students who contested in individual items like light music, recitation and elocution in English, Hindi and Malayalam, western music, Arabic song, Just a Minute, folk dance, declamation and news reading were selected for the finals. Around 700 students competed in the finals for the same which was held on November 13 and 14. A variety of individual and group events awaited the students in the finals. Fancy dress, classical music, classical dance, group songs, group dances, pantomime, digital symposium, fashion show, rangoli, etc, was the major attractions of the finals.

Children’s Day celebrations held at Indian School Rustaq MUSCAT: Indian School Rustaq celebrated Children’s Day with great enthusiasm and spirit on November 14 at the school premises. All the students and teachers were present on the occasion. Principal Suja Jacob welcomed the gathering. Veena Reji spoke on the signiﬁcance of this day. Teachers had organised a cultural programme to entertain the students. It included songs, speeches and a humorous skit. The children appreciated the programme with thunderous applause. Asa Rajkumar compered the programme. A magic show was also organised for the children on their special day. Wakeel, the magician from Muscat, left the children spellbound with his various tricks.

to Jawaharlal Nehru, the ﬁrst prime minister of India lovingly called Chacha Nehru by children. All the cultural items were organised and performed by the teachers. Special assemblies were held at different levels which had informative play, dance, songs, recitation, speech, games, etc. Portrait competition on Chacha Nehru was conducted for Classes V - XII. A handwriting competition was conducted for primary classes. The school campus buzzed with excitement and joy as the beautifully dressed-up children attended various activities organised for them. Scintillating dances performed by the teachers enthralled the students. Students were really mesmerised by the melodious songs sung by the teachers.

ISM organises special cancer awareness seminar

MUSCAT: Indian School Muscat (ISM) organised a Special Awareness Seminar in its new multipurpose hall on the dreaded disease cancer, on November 16, for the entire teaching staff of the school. Specialist surgeon Dr Rajyashree N. Kutty, MS, Gen Surgery, from Barakath Al Noor Clinic was the resource person. In her informative and inspiring talk she put across the message ‘Early detection is the key for complete cure and healthy life’. The seminar began with a warm welcome note by the Principal Srinivas K. Naidu. In his welcome speech he quoted B. Dyson, Ex-CEO, Coca-Cola, to reaffirm that health indeed is of vital importance to all and highlighted the need for such awareness programmes in schools. He thanked Dr Rajyashree for being generous enough to spare her extremely precious time to enlighten the teachers with life long care. Dr Rajyashree focused her talk mainly on breast care for ladies of all ages, and advised the erudite audience to undergo regular medical examinations to be on a safer side. She shared her vast cancer prevention and treatment experience through various life examples and suggested that it was better always not to wait for the symptoms to appear, but to be under regular medical supervision as the symptoms of this ailment appeared in a much later stage. The seminar enriched every one and the expression on every face was of great relief and consolation. Vikram Singh, HoD, Social Sciences, proposed the vote of thanks.

Al Injaz Private School celebrates Children’s Day

Indian School Al Seeb celebrates Children’s Day

MUSCAT: Children’s Day was celebrated with gaiety and fervour at Indian School Al Seeb (ISAS) on November 14. It was a fun-ﬁlled day for the students. The teachers made the day special, as they had a lot of colourful activities to entertain the students. Nagesh Kelkar, Principal, ISAS along with HoDs lit the lamp and paid rich ﬂoral tributes

MUSCAT: Al Injaz Private School, Al Khuwair, celebrated Children’s Day on November 14 at the Al Ansab school premises, with a variety of programmes. The programmes began with a welcome note by the chief guest and the director of the school, Amita Sharma, followed by the prize distribution ceremony for various competitions held in the school during the academic year 2013-14. Peppy, foot tapping dance programmes as well as remarkable circus show were presented by the students to show ‘All In Joys at Al Injaz’. The highlight of the evening was the famous fairy tale ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ enacted by the students of Grade I and II. The parents were ecstatic with the performance of their children. Al Injaz Private School, Al Khuwair, has classes from Kindergarten to Grade II.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ROUND-UP Ford develops smart car that avoids collisions Upon detecting any slow-moving objects, stationary objects or pedestrians ahead, the system ﬁrst warns the driver and then the system automatically takes control to avoid a collision if the driver fails to act in time

MUSCAT: Ford has taken huge steps in engineering and developing vehicles that go much beyond being smart. They are in many ways playing an important role in assisting drivers with more comfortable and secure driving experiences. In its latest endeavour Ford has developed a new ‘crash-proof’

car that avoids collisions and even parks itself. A new ‘Obstacle Avoidance’ technology allows the car to take control of the steering wheel when it detects the risk of a collision, whether from another vehicle or a pedestrian. The technology uses three radars, ultrasonic sensors and a camera to scan the road ahead. Upon detecting any slow-moving objects, stationary objects or pedestrians ahead, the system ﬁrst warns the driver and then the system automatically takes control to avoid a collision if the driver fails to act in time.

While vehicles that automatically brake upon detecting pedestrians are becoming increasingly common, Ford’s system is unique because it can also steer the car out of the way. “If the system detects a slowmoving or stationary object in the lane ahead it ﬁrst displays a warning and then sounds a chime,” a Ford spokesman explained. “Then, if the driver does not steer or brake the car will apply the brakes automatically while scanning for gaps either side of the hazard — effectively taking control of the electronic power steering to

avoid any near-fatal collisions.” The new vehicle also incorporates Ford’s ‘Fully Assisted Parking Aid,’ which allows a driver standing outside the car to push a button and watch the vehicle park itself. “Parking in today’s cities can be stressful and difficult,” said Barb Samardzich, Ford’s vice president of Product Development in Europe. “We want to make it as easy, efficient and accurate as possible.” Ford already offers a parallel parking assist feature in its vehicles, but it requires drivers to remain behind the wheel and keep a foot on the brake. The new technologies are currently being tested on a Ford Focus at speeds of more than 38 mph and were demonstrated for the ﬁrst time at Ford’s facility in Lommel, Belgium. It is expected to be available to consumers within ﬁve years. Ford is currently leading a consortium of 29 partners in a research initiative dubbed “interactIVe” (Accident Avoidance by Active Intervention of Intelligent Vehicles), which seeks to develop technology and vehicles that promote accident-free traffic. Ford vehicles are brought to you by Arabian Car Marketing Co.

EQUIPMENT DELIVERY

Simplex Infrastructure takes delivery of Hyundai construction equipment MUSCAT: Hyundai Construction Equipment, the fastestgrowing construction equipment by brand, has this week handed over the keys of its world class wheel loaders to Simplex Infrastructure Limited, Oman. This is the latest stage of the highly successful partnership between the two high proﬁle organisations. Simplex received delivery of Hyundai wheel loaders from Al Wasit Group Chairman Abdul Qader at an official handover ceremony, held at the Alwasit showroom in Ghala-Azaiba, Oman. Senior Technical Direc-

tor of Simplex, Badal Rudra and Himanshu Bhatt, AGM accepted the wheel loader keys. While handing over the keys of the Hyundai wheel loaders, general manager of Hyundai Middle East, Tony Cho commented, “We are proud to be associated with Simplex as an official partner and are delighted to hand over our premium range of construction and earth moving equipment. “We are certain that the 9S Series design, reﬁned levels of operator comfort and cutting-edge technology will be certainly appreciated.”

MEDICAL COURSE

WTM 2013

Oman Air stand gets record visitors MUSCAT: Oman Air has hailed the success of this year’s World Travel Market (WTM) after receiving more visitors to its stand than at any time over the last three years. The success of Oman Air’s participation at WTM mirrors that the Sultanate of Oman’s tourism promotion, led by the Oman Ministry of Tourism and Oman Air, which latest research shows has seen the country’s income from tourism rise to over $1 billion dollars for the ﬁrst time in its history. Nearly 50,000 delegates gathered at London’s ExCel Centre from November 4 - 7, where more than 180 countries and regions, with over 5,000 exhibitors, were showcased. Over the course of the full event, it is expected that more than £2 billion in industry deals will have been facilitated at WTM this year. Ideal platform Oman Air’s dramatic, two-storey stand at WTM provided an ideal location for formal and informal meetings, social gatherings and casual enquiries throughout the course of the four-day event. The national airline of the Sultanate of Oman hosted a multitude of representatives from the travel trade and the media to discuss the airline’s future plans, potential partnerships and Oman’s vision for increased tourism. Oman Air’s delegation, headed up by Chief Commercial Officer Abdulrazaq Al Raisi, were also pleased to offer the carrier’s trademark hospitality at a 20th anniversary reception on the stand, at which more than 60 guests met staff from Muscat and London. Usama Karim Al Haremi, senior manager corporate communications and media, headed up Oman Air’s media relations and marketing drive at the event and commented, “World Travel Market 2013 was a great success for Oman Air and we were delighted to welcome unprecedented numbers of visitors to our stand. Our reception provided an excellent focal point for our hospitality and visitor numbers were fur-

European-Gulf partnership’s post-graduate course in clinical diabetes organised ther boosted by the presence of cartoonists, who offered guests the chance to take home a unique caricature of themselves with an Oman Air aircraft. “And, whilst the social side of the show exposed Oman Air’s brand to thousands of visitors, we were also able to achieve a great deal in terms of hard business. We forged new partnerships, further strengthened existing relationships and made many new contacts which will benefit both Oman Air and the Sultanate of Oman in months and years to come.” World Travel Market also provided a forum for a range of debates, seminars and announcements, one of the most significant of which, for Oman Air, was the publication of research findings by both Euromonitor International and the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO). The Euromonitor International report, ‘Middle East – Overview’, showed that the Middle East and Africa was the second most dynamic region for the value growth of luxury goods between 2007 and 2012, reaching $15.2 billion and predicted to grow between 2012 and 2017 by a further 37 per cent. Analysis of the figures showed that luxury brands, as well as high-end experiences that offer comfort and personalised entertainment, are especially favoured by Middle East consumers. Furthermore, this penchant for luxury explains the widespread domination across the Middle

East of four- and five-star hotels and resorts in key destinations. The report added that the region’s focus on luxury was also reflected in Middle East airlines’ large-scale investment in their world-class business class operations. Usama Karim Al Haremi added, “Euromonitor International’s report is a clear reflection of Oman Air’s experience. Over the last four years, we have experienced exceptionally high demand for our premium products and services, which have also been recognised in a wide range of international awards programmes. “We have made very significant investments in our business class passenger experience, and we look forwarded to adding to this with the arrival, from next year, of the first of the 20 aircraft we currently have on order. Having built our formidable reputation on a combination of luxury, choice and convenience, we look forward to enabling many more air travellers to experience Oman Air’s outstanding hospitality.” Tourism report Meanwhile, the UNWTO report, ‘Tourism Highlights 2013’, showed that, for the first time, Oman recorded revenues of more than $1 billion from international tourism in 2012. At a time when tourism is collapsing in a number of other Middle East markets, Oman’s revenues of $1.09 billion from tourism are now fourth largest in the GCC. Oman now accounts for 2.3 per

cent of all international tourism to the Middle East. Usama Karim Al Haremi further commented, “A key part of Oman Air’s mission is to raise international awareness of the unparalleled beauty and hospitality that Oman offers to visitors and to encourage people from around the world to discover the Sultanate for themselves. The latest figures published by the UNWTO are therefore extremely encouraging and show that Oman Air and its partners at the Ministry of Tourism are achieving our aims. The increase of Oman’s airport sector, together with the expansion of Oman Air’s fleet, will enable us over the next few years to welcome many more visitors and we look forward to seeing tourism numbers continue their impressive growth.” The greater visitor numbers to Oman Air’s stand was mirrored elsewhere at WTM, which saw an overall delegate increase of 5 per cent. The first day (of the event recorded invite-only visitor attendance up by 12 per cent on last year, to almost 9,000, with a 7 per cent increase — to 18,292 visitors — recorded on the second day, which is traditionally the busiest, as it is the first day that the show is open to the whole travel industry. A further 5 per cent increase was recorded on the third day of the event and significant visitor increases were also seen on the last day, which was open to the general public.

MUSCAT: Over a hundred doctors and healthcare professionals working in diabetes centres across the GCC took part in a three-day programme designed to update their scientific knowledge in diabetes management and to find a common platform to address the worsening problem in diabetes, especially in the GCC. The course developed by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) and the Gulf Group for the Study of Diabetes (GGSD) has been funded by Lilly. The course ran from November 21 to 23 and provided much needed post-graduate continued education for the next generation of diabetologists across the GCC, with around 30 regional and international speakers updating participants on the latest research findings and treatment methods for patients with diabetes. “The EASD is celebrating this year its 49th anniversary. Our collaboration with Lilly has always been centred on supporting diabetes medical research and education for doctors. With this one of a kind collaboration, we are today extending our expertise in medical education to the GCC region, with the help of our partner in this region, the GGSD,” said Professor Leszek Czupryniak, secretary of the EASD Postgraduate Education Committee and Chair of EASD Extra-European Education. Dr Abdulrazzaq Al Madani,

president of the Gulf Group for the Study of Diabetes explained that the success of the first course held last year has shown the importance of customised medical education that addresses specific doctor’s needs in the region. He said: “We know that managing diabetes complications is a subject of high interest in our region and we have aimed through this workshop to share best practices form Europe and by internationally renowned speakers, with the hope of inspiring our colleagues with effective solutions.” In 2011, EASD, GGSD and Lilly announced a three-year partnership agreement to provide post-graduate continued medical education for next generation diabetologists across the GCC with the first sessions held last year in the UAE. Huzur Devletsah, Lilly managing director for the Middle East region, explained as well that this collaboration is one of the several tailor made projects for the GCC region supported by Lilly, a leader in diabetes management and solutions since 1923. Participating and hosting this event, Dr Noor Al Busaidi, director of the Diabetes and Endocrine Centre, and president of Oman Diabetes Association showed her support to this event and encouraged expertise sharing in the field of diabetes which will strengthen the medical knowledge and applied solutions for better diabetes care across the Sultanate and the GCC region.

ONLINE CONTEST

A’Saffa Foods launches ‘Innovative Recipe Challenge’ MUSCAT: A unique online contest launched by A’Saffa Foods called the ‘Innovative Recipe Challenge’ from November 8 to December 8, 2013 is something cooking enthusiasts can look forward to. The contest is aimed at honouring some of the best cooked recipes using A’Saffa products. Contest registration Contestants can submit a recipe that contains at least one A’Saffa product in the ingredients. Recipes will be voted by A’Saffa officials

on various parameters like originality of the recipe, ease of preparation and presentation. Contestants submitting one of the top three winning entries will receive a plethora of goodies generously given by A’Saffa Foods. Contestants have to log onto https://www. facebook.com/asaffafoodssaog to get more information on cooking rules and upload a picture of the ﬁnal dish along with the recipe. “A’Saffa Foods brand mission is to constantly innovate and offer our customers something exciting.

This recipe contest is a way to connect to as many people as we can. We have been working towards incredible milestones this year and with this contest we will be creating one more,” said Sidhartha Lenka, head of Sales and Marketing, A’Saffa Foods. Customer reach A’Saffa Foods through their social media outreach programme like their prior initiative ‘Let Us Achieve Their Dreams’ intends to reach out to more people through

its interactive social media campaigns, updates, online contests, opinion polls, etc. This will encourage people to gain access and more information on A’Saffa Foods through the Facebook page. A’Saffa Foods social media initiative is a step that has come as a result of the organisation’s keenness towards engaging and interacting with their consumers. Online users will have access to A’Saffa Foods press releases and important information on the Facebook page, and it will include a wealth of

information about A’Saffa Foods’ product availability and variety. A’Saffa Foods is conﬁdent it will quickly establish a strong market share in Oman due to the taste and superior quality of the products and the conﬁdence that families can have when buying products from Oman’s biggest chicken producer. A’Saffa Foods has been a pioneer in the production of quality poultry products since the company established its operations in 2001 and is now an acknowledged leader in

the poultry market in Oman and rapidly growing its international presence in the GCC and beyond. Quality assurance One of the keys to the taste and quality of A’Saffa Foods chicken products is the fact that all chickens at the state of the art facility in the south of Oman are fed on 100 per cent natural feed — that plays a major role in the superb taste of the chickens and ensures that consumers are buying a natural and tasty product.

B10

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ROUND-UP Kapil Sharma enthrals Muscat with rib-tickling comedy

MEDICAL EXPERT

Internal medicine specialist joins Nova

Kapil’s impeccable timing, rapid delivery and spontaneity, which often results from impromptu jokes, make him the unquestioned ‘King of Comedy’ on the small screen

STAFF REPORTER MUSCAT: It is said that laughter is the best medicine. It was witnessed on November 22 when the king of comedy, Kapil Sharma with his immaculate comic timing made the huge audience at Qurum Amphitheatre, burst into peals of laughter. The event was organised by Roar Entertainment. Kapil Sharma was accompanied by none other than Sunil Grover who is perhaps the most favourite comic character currently owing to his renowned role as Gutthi on the Comedy Nights with Kapil aired on Indian television’s Colors channel. Enchanting performances The constant warnings of rain in Oman and the slight drizzle did not deter people ranging from youngsters to couples tagging their months-old babies along

with elders to witness the rib tickling performances of the immensely talented Kapil Sharma and Sunil Grover. The wonder night started with the enthralling performance of Teji Sandhu who struck the right chord with the audience and set the mood for the evening. Even though it started to rain, people braved it and sat through to enjoy the fun ride that was about to begin. Then Sunil Grover aka Gutthi entered the stage and was applauded by the doting and well turned out crowd. He entertained the audience with a few gimmicks. After that, the star of the evening Kapil Sharma entered singing Teri Deewani originally sung by Kailash Kher. The crowd went berserk seeing the ‘Lord of the Comedy’ performing live on stage. He addressed the audience and said, “Thank you very much for your love. This is my ﬁrst visit to Muscat. You all are staying in a beautiful country. I am impressed by the discipline maintained here.”

RECRUIT SMARTEN UP DRIVE SAFE A TIMES OF OMAN HANDS-FREE DRIVING INITIATIVE

Rib-tickling humour Kapil’s impeccable timing, rapid delivery and spontaneity, which often results from impromptu jokes, make him the unquestioned King of Comedy on the small screen. Kapil Sharma’s brand of humour relies heavily on insulting or mocking others and he did not disappoint the audience and lived up to the expectations turning the event into a laughter riot. Comedy lovers were wooed by his non-stop roller coaster ride of jokes whether it was marriage jokes based on Karwa Chawth, naughty children’s activities at school, comparisons drawn between old movies and new movies, imitating Amrish Puri, his epic Shamsher Singh character or his famous tagline Babaji ka Thullu. From the time of his entry till the end of the show it was a nonstop entertainment, whenever he got on stage. It is a known fact that Kapil Sharma is also a versatile singer in Punjabi and Hindi language apart from his humour skills. So he showcased that by imitating

well known singers like Jagjeet Singh, Late Bhimsen Joshi, S. P. Balasubramanium, Ghulam Ali and Anup Jalota while punching his jokes in between. Next, Sunil Grover came riding on a horse dressed as Gutthi. He also enacted on acts for which he is famous and loved by the people. Whether it was his “Juice me” or his signature song Aap aaye humare ghar mein....phool khile hain gulshan gulshan or his unusual way of introducing himself and the rest of the people around to guests on the show, Gutthi by his antics had the audience in splits. Teji Sandhu, who has sung in albums like Blue Eyes, Gori and Yaad Kadi Kadi also mesmerised the audience with his melodious voice. Muscat’s audience was enlivened and amused in this spectacular event. Everyone had a smile on their face when they emerged out. Kapil Sharma with his trademark charm, his comic one liners and above all with his heartfelt performance, stole every one’s heart. Neha Sujanani from Roar Entertainment beaming on the huge

success on the show said, “We had several calls from morning inquiring if the show is on. We were constantly getting weather updates from local sources and the ROP had not cancelled the show, so we decided to go for it. The spirit was seen in the crowd that came prepared with umbrellas and raincoats to watch the show, a big kudos to all of them.” People present at the event were enthralled by the performances which was evident when Mrinalini, who stays at Ruwi said, “Kapil Sharma indeed is a blessing in disguise for having brought in endless laughter in this present world of misery and grief! God Bless him! It was worth buying the ticket.” Shweta, a housewife who stays at Al Khuwair said, “Besides being adroit in humour skills, this Lord of Comedy also owns an appealing cuteness which thoroughly magnifies the impact of his acts. I enjoyed the show to the core and I hope Roar Entertainment continue to entertain us with these kinds of entertaining artists.”

MUSCAT: Dr Esmat Mohammed Salih Mahmood, an internal medicine specialist has joined Nova Medical Centers recently. Dr Esmat is a graduate from the Baghdad Medical College and has an MSc. degree in public health from the Netherlands. He has completed a course in industrial health from the prestigious London School of Hygiene and Topical Medicine in London and brings to Nova over three decades of experience in treating diseases linked to diabetes mellitus, obesity, and nutrition. “We are thrilled to welcome Dr Esmat on board,” said Dr (Col) K. M. Harikrishnan. “His experience and expertise is a wonderful asset to not just our polyclinic, but to the local community,” says, Dr Harikrishnan, senior consultant, General and Laparoscopic Surgery, Nova. Dr Esmat says, “As an internist, I am able to enjoy ongoing, long-term relationships and follow my patients over the course of years. I strive to take an approach where my patients and I function as a team to address health issues, recognising that each patient is an individual with different backgrounds, preferences and beliefs.” Dr Esmat will be seeing patients at Nova Medical Centers in Al Khuwair.

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SECTION

RECRUI JOB POSTINGS

QUOTES One machine can do the work of ﬁfty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man. — Thomas A. Edison Remember that you are needed. There is at least one important work to be done that will not be done unless you do it. — Catherine Pulsifer

Work and acquire, and thou hast chained the wheel of chance. — Ralph Waldo Emerson

B12

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ROUND-UP baituna home ﬁnance for new project in Seeb

FOOD PRODUCTS

Oman’s ﬁrst Mangalore Store all set to open on November 28 in Ruwi Times News Service

baituna home ﬁnance is aimed at offering citizens and residents easy access to mortgage ﬁnance, thereby contributing to the revitalisation of the real estate sector and enhancing its role in the national economy

MUSCAT: Bank Muscat and Vantage Modern Project company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to provide attractive baituna home ﬁnance for Vantage residential units in the wilayat of Seeb. Said Al Badai, DGM – Branches, and Amur Al Maamari, promoter of Vantage Modern Projects, signed the MoU at the bank’s head office. Said Al Badai said: “The real es-

tate sector is a major component of the national economy and Bank Muscat is committed to extending all possible support to achieve the objective of a ‘home for every family’, especially youth. baituna home finance is aimed at offering citizens and residents easy access to mortgage finance, thereby contributing to the revitalisation of the real estate sector and enhancing its role in the national economy.” Amur Al Maamari said: “The objective of Vantage Modern Project is to provide quality homes at affordable prices. We are happy to join hands with Bank Muscat in extending attractive home deals for Omanis. The synergy between the two institutions will benefit citizens across Oman to

bank’s network of 138 branches. All leading property developers are associated with the bank, hence baituna facilitates access to prime residential projects in Oman. The residential segment in Oman assumes importance in light of the growth in population as well as the buoyant economy. The deregulation granting property ownership rights to GCC nationals and expatriates has also attracted Oman as an investment destination. baituna home ﬁnance facilitates purchase and construction of new homes as well as land for residential use. Finance is offered to Omani nationals, GCC nationals and expatriates. The bank also undertakes reﬁnancing of housing loans.

RECOGNITION

AC A D E M I C D E L E G AT I O N

The Wave, Muscat receives students and researchers

MUSCAT: The Wave, Muscat, Oman’s lifestyle destination, recently received three delegations of engineering students: Two from Caledonian Engineering College and another from the University of Applied Sciences, Munich in Germany. The students, who are specialising in engineering and architecture, are studying the different engineering and architectural design elements in tourism developments, and opted to take The Wave, Muscat as a case study in Oman. The Caledonian students’ visit aimed to give them an insight into the project’s components as well as to familiarise them with the different standards used to protect the environment in general and marine life in particular. One of the areas of specific focus for the civil engineering students was the artificial breakwater, which was constructed around Almouj Marina, and which is considered one of the world’s longest artificial breakwaters. The students listened to a detailed explanation about the project as a pioneering integrated tourism complex in the Sultanate. They were briefed about the high standard in specifications and how they are implemented in the follow-up process for every part of the project in coordination with the concerned parties. The students also learnt about the importance of The Wave, Muscat in the promotion of Muscat as a world-class tourism destination.

fulfil their dream homes.” baituna home finance is among the lowest interest rate with the maximum loan tenure up to 25 years for Omani customers. With extended loan tenure and the lowest interest rate, Bank Muscat offers the best home finance deals in the Sultanate. Citizens and residents can also benefit from easy and convenient credit approval across the bank’s 138 branches in the Sultanate. baituna home finance is designed to help families fulfil their dream homes. baituna offers the most convenient mortgage plans to suit everyone’s needs with simplified documentation, flexible repayment options, insurance coverage and processing across the

MUSCAT: Oman’s ﬁrst Mangalore Store is set to open its doors to eager customers in Ruwi on November 28. Located near K M Trading in Ruwi, the store will stock exclusive Mangalorean food products. Rajendra M. Shetty of Mangalore Store said, “We decided to open the store considering that there is a sizeable population of people from in and around Mangalore living in Oman.” Around 20,000 people from the Mangalore headquartered Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts of Indian state of Karnataka are estimated to be living in Oman. “People of this region are very particular about their food habits and their cuisine. Cooking techniques and ingredients that are part of Mangalorean cuisine are very different from other parts of India. So at the Mangalore Store you will ﬁnd ingredients that are a must for Mangalorean dishes. Besides, we also plan to store snacks that are preferred by the people of the region,” Shetty said. Mangalore and the places around it can be rightly described as the melting point of cultures and languages with many communities living there. In keeping with their tastes, the owners of the store have

made sure to make available what is popular with the people of the region. Kori (chicken) rotti, rice chakli, fried kokum, Mangalore rice kuchige (mutta and vadi variety), chilli byadgi, chilli round, bafat powder, masala powders (chicken ghee roast, fish fry masala, chicken kundapuri, chicken kabab, chicken sukka, coorg chicken, chicken curry, biriyani, chicken stew, chicken curry pulimunchi, chicken manchurian, chicken lollypop, chilli chicken, fish curry, fish fry, mutton korma), banana chips plain, banana chips chilli, banana chips pepper, potato chips masala, potato chips salted, corn flakes chewda, fried rice snacks – masala, fried rice snacks — plain, fried rice snacks — tingalwada, Sonte, sally, thin sev, macroon, batar, wheat halwa, banana halwa are among the snacks you will find at the store. Tamarind, hodalu, kurmura, papad, pickles (cut mango, Caravanda, mixed vegetable, hog plum, prawn, tuna, mackarel), birinda squash, coffee powder, among others will be available. “Different popular brands of the masalas will be available,” Shetty said and added, “With Christmas around the corner Kuswar, normally an assortment of up to 22 sweets and baked items will also be made available.”

One of the visiting students, Hanan Al Harthiyah, commented: “On the visit to The Wave, Muscat, we could study the impacts of the breakwater and its importance to preserve the environment. The breakwater will protect the development from the high waves from the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Oman, and will help promoting marine life, as is really an interesting case study for engineering in Oman.” On the international front, the students from the University of Applied Sciences in Munich opted to use The Wave as a case study for their studies in architecture in Oman. The visit was organised to give the students an in-depth look at the various aspects of Omani architectural engineering and the applications of these principles in the development of The Wave, Muscat. Through their degree course at the university, the students have the opportunity to undertake ﬁeld trips to study various forms of international architecture. The architectural engineering at The Wave, Muscat is interesting as an example of the fusion of international, modern accents and techniques in design and construction, with the more traditional architectural motifs found in Omani architecture. The core purpose of the visit was to study this fusion when applied to the various residential property designs at the development.

NBO wins ‘Middle East HR Excellence Award’ for recruitment programme MUSCAT: National Bank of Oman (NBO) recently won the prestigious ‘Middle East HR Excellence Award – Recruitment Programme’ for 2013 during a gala dinner and ceremony honouring the top regional human resource management achievements at the Ritz-Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre. The awards were presented by Humaid Mohamed Obaid Al Qatami, Minister of Education and Chairman of the Federal Authority of Human Resources in the United Arab Emirates. Nasser Al Hajri, general manager and chief human resources officer, National Bank of Oman, received the award. National Bank of Oman won the recognition in the Recruitment Programme Category for its clearly deﬁned strategies, goals and implementation for talent acquisition. The award also recognised the bank’s ability to demonstrate WISE INVESTMENT

Property show for NRIs from Nov. 29 MUSCAT: Indus NRI Investment Show will be held in Muscat. NRIs looking for investment in real estate India would have access to ﬁrst hand information on upcoming and current real estate projects, as a range of property options, from residential apartments, plots and bungalows, to commercial properties would be on display. More than 75 projects across various metros, tier I and tier II cities are on display during the exhibitions. Reputed and leading developers and builders across India and other parts of world are participating in the exhibition and offering a wide range of properties for the NRIs.

the ways in which the initiative or people practice being aligned to business priorities. National Bank of Oman was competing with Du Telecom and Etihad Airways in the ﬁnal round for the Recruitment Programme

category. Based on the submission and demonstration, the bank was declared the winner. The HR Summit and Expo was attended by 2,748 HR professionals, making it truly the largest HR event in the Middle East. The

flagship event recognises the best performing organisations which demonstrate superior people management strategies that are aligned to global best practices. Awards have been shortlisted by a panel of internationally recognised and respected judges from a variety of industry sectors and disciplines. Commenting on the award, Nasser Al Hajri, said: “This significant recognition for National Bank of Oman is a reflection of our strong commitment to hiring talent who deliver significant value proposition for the bank and its customers.” “As we continue to focus on aligning our HR practices and policies with the bank’s business objectives, the next few months will see introduction of several initiatives which will further strengthen the NBO proposition for its employees,” added, Nasser Al Hajri.

TRADE SHOW

Imtex to offer cost-effective hardware solutions to Omani businesses MUSCAT: The expansive settings of the Oman International Exhibition Centre will be transformed into an exciting showcase of cutting edge machinery, industrial equipment, machine tools and hardware when the second Imtex Oman trade show opens. The three-day event, which runs from December 2 to 4, 2013, has been organised by well-known Omani event management ﬁrm, Global Exhibitions & Conferences (GEC), in cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Also extending highproﬁle backing for the fair are the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK), and Oman’s Industrial Innovation Centre. Imtex Oman is an integrated

trade expo that provides a common platform for the display of the latest offerings from the world of machinery, equipment, tools and hardware manufacturing. Exhibitors representing a wide selection of brands from around the world will showcase a new generation of competitive and cost-effective solutions for the Sultanate’s rapidly diversifying industrial and economic base. Product segments to be featured at Imtex Oman include machinery, electrical products, machine parts, cables, control equipment, generator sets, pollution control systems, construction tools, cutting tools, cleaning machinery, drilling machinery, moulding machinery and cranes. Signiﬁcantly, the event is

taking place against a backdrop of a massive inﬂow of investment funding for mega industrial, infrastructure and free zone projects, the implementation of which will require contractors to be wellequipped and technologically adept if they wish to successfully compete for these contracts. C. J. Paul, CEO of GEC commented, “Imtex Oman provides an excellent opportunity for local companies to sample from the widest array of the hottest trends, technologies and products that have newly come to market. It’s only by staying abreast of the latest technological advances in their respective domains can Omani businesses hope to maintain their competitive edge.”

E D UC AT I O N

MoU signed between Bayan College and Limkokwing University Malaysia MUSCAT: Bayan College, the ﬁrst private college in Oman to offer degrees in Media Studies recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, Malaysia. Salim bin Ali bin Nasser Al Siyabi, chairman of Bayan College and Dr Jassim M Jaber, dean of Bayan College visited the Limkokwing University Campus upon invitation and met Prof Emeritus Tan

Sri Dato Sri Paduka Dr Lim Kok Wing the Director, founder and president and academic staff. The MoU laid the foundation for joint ventures, cooperation, mutual beneﬁts in exchanging students, teaching materials, training and joint research projects. Dr Jassim said the visit will contribute in enhancing the progress of Bayan College and assist in the development of programmes and activities. The opportunity will

broaden prospects for exchanging experiences and will improve quality of education. Bayan College Muscat operates under the supervision of the Ministry of Higher Education, Oman and is affiliated with Purdue University – Calumet, Indiana, USA. The college offers specialised programmes in Journalism, Broadcasting, Public Relations, Advertising, English Professional Writing and English Literature.

Limkokwing University is amongst Malaysia’s leading private universities with campuses in Asia, Africa and Europe and students from more than 150 countries. The university specialises in innovative multimedia design and creative media courses and is officially recognised as Malaysia’s University of Transformation and Malaysia’s University of Innovation by the Government of Malaysia.

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM COM MONDAY, NOVEMBER R 25, 2013

SECTION

SPOR YOUR GAME

PACQUIAO VICTORY LIFTS FILIPINO SPIRITS For a brief moment in the devastated ated Tacloban, those who lost their homes, mes, their livelihoods and even loved ones in the storm forgot their misery as they watched a free broadcast of Pacquiao’s overwhelming points victory over Rios. >C5

Johnson rips hapless England Cook’s dismissal

Warner’s Trott comments ‘disrespectful’

triggered England collapse as Mitchell Johnson was named man of the match

BRISBANE: Rejuvenated Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson blitzed England with a haul of five for 42 to lead his country to an emphatic 381-run victory in the first Ashes Test yesterday. It was a first win in 10 Tests for Australia after losing a series 4-0 in India and another in England 3-0 this year, and a first triumph in eight Ashes contests since the Perth test in 2010. The weather, which delayed play twice for more than two hours, at one stage looked like extending the sometimes fractious contest into a fifth day before Johnson stepped up to polish off the final English batsmen in the Gabba twilight. England’s hopes of any kind of result at Brisbane had been slim at best when they were set a record 561 to win and lost two second innings wickets for only 24 runs on Saturday evening. They were shattered when the dismissal of captain Alastair Cook for 65 triggered a collapse from 142 for four to 160 for eight in the 45 minutes between the two weather disruptions. The victory was a confirmation of a renewed sense of confidence in the Australia team after a miserable year and will strengthen their belief that they can stop England winning a fourth successive Ashes series. “As a team, we’ve copped a fair bit of criticism of late, and our performances have probably deserved that,” said Australia captain Michael Clarke. “The win is very important, very special to us, it’s a great way to start the series. “We’ll enjoy it, no doubt about that, but we’re seven or eight days away from the second test match and we know England will come back harder.” Left-arm quick Johnson, who took 4-61 as the tourists were skittled for 136 in their first innings and contributed 103 runs with the bat, was named Man of the Match after claiming his eighth Test fivewicket haul. Cook said England would re-

BRISBANE: England captain Alastair Cook branded Australian batsman David Warner “disrespectful” yesterday after a tempestuous final couple of days in the first Ashes Test at the Gabba. Australia won the contest after a day punctuated by chatter and finger-pointing between the two sides in the middle. But it was Warner’s comments in the press conference on Saturday, that underpressure England’s batsman Jonathan Trott’s dismissal had been “weak”, that attracted Cook’s ire. “I think for any

professional cricketer, really, yeah,” he said when asked if the comment was disrespectful. “On the pitch it’s pretty much a war, isn’t it anyway? So there’s always going to be a few words on the pitch. “I think that’s the way people want to watch cricket being played. Tough, hard cricket. On the pitch is ﬁne.” Cook said he thought the testiness between the two teams was the result of playing back-to-back Ashes series this year, a measure taken to take the Australia hosted series out of its place in the calendar next

SCOREBOARD

Australia 1st innings: 295 (B. Haddin 94, M. Johnson 64; S. Broad 6-81) England 1st innings: 136 (M. Carberry 40; M. Johnson 4-61) Australia 2nd innings: 401 for 7 declared (D. Warner 124, M. Clarke 113; C. Tremlett 3-69) England 2nd innings: A Cook c Haddin b Lyon 65 M Carberry b Harris 0 J Trott c Lyon b Johnson 9 K Pietersen c sub (Sabburg) b Johnson 26 I Bell c Haddin b Siddle 32 J Root not out 26 M Prior c Warner b Lyon 4 S Broad c Haddin b Johnson 4 G Swann c Smith b Johnson 0

group and come out fighting in the second Test in Adelaide but needed to take a long, hard look at how they dealt with Johnson. “We’re going to have to be really honest with ourselves about how we go about trying to play him,” he said. “We can’t brush the issue, he’s hurt us in this game and we’re going to come back and show our ability in the next game. It’s just one loss, it’s a five-match Test series so there’s plenty of time to fight back. We’ve done it before.” England made a reasonable start to the day but Kevin Pietersen (26) and Ian Bell (32) lost their wickets with shots they need not have played. As in the first innings when England lost six wickets for nine runs in one spell, though, it was spinner

C Tremlett c Bailey b Harris 7 J Anderson c and b Johnson 2 Extras (lb-2, w-1, nb-1) 4 Total (all out; 81.1 overs) 179 Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Carberry), 2-10 (Trott), 3-72 (Pietersen), 4-130 (Bell), 5-142 (Cook), 6-146 (Prior), 7- 151 (Broad), 8-151 (Swann), 9-172 (Tremlett), 10-179 (Anderson) Bowling: Harris 19-4-49-2, Johnson 21.1-742-5 (1w), Siddle 15-3-25-1 (1nb), Lyon 20-646-2, Smith 4-0-15-0, Watson 2-2-0-0 Result: Australia won by 381 runs Toss: Australia Umpires: Aleem Dar (PAK), Kumar Dharmasena (SRI) TV umpire: Marais Erasmus (RSA) Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL)

Nathan Lyon (2-46) who really got the ball rolling for the hosts. Hailstorm Cook, who scored 235 not out in his second innings in the last Ashes Test at the Gabba, had played a composed and deﬁant innings with just three boundaries before a dramatic hailstorm forced the players off the ﬁeld. Six balls after the resumption, Lyon got a little bit of extra bounce out of the surface and Cook caught a top edge with an attempted cut with Brad Haddin taking the catch behind the wickets. England were only able to add only six runs for the next three wickets with Matt Prior (4), Stuart Broad (4) and Graeme Swann (0) quickly following their captain back to the pavilion.

to the limited overs World Cup. “I think when you play each other for quite a few games in a row, the niggles can increase,” he said. It’s competitive cricket.” Cook’s Australian counterpart Michael Clarke said he thought the sledging came about because both teams wanted to win so badly but that it was not a sign of a lack of respect. “I think we all respect the game, the traditions the history. Australia versus England has always been competitive no matter which team has won.” — Reuters

Lyon, who later got his first chance to lead Australia in the victory song despite being given the task last January, had Prior caught at leg slip by David Warner after just eight minutes in the middle. A bullish Broad lasted just three deliveries and five minutes before he got the faintest of touches to a Johnson delivery which again Haddin snaffled up. Swann lasted just two balls before a meek fend at a Johnson snorter saw the ball fly into the hands of a diving Steve Smith in the slips. England regrouped sufficiently to survive until the rain started falling again but the storm passed reasonably quickly and the players were back out with an hour of play remaining. Chris Tremlett blocked for seven runs until a rising Ryan Harris ball came off the splint of his bat into the hands of George Bailey at short leg. That left Joe Root (26 not out) and James Anderson as England’s last two batsmen and fittingly it was Johnson who dealt the coup de grace by dismissing his fellow quick caught and bowled to trigger the celebrations. “To get a five-for in a Test match in an Ashes series is unbelievable feeling,” said Johnson, who has been lampooned in song for the last four years by England’s Barmy Army of fans. “All the boys just racing in and getting in a huddle was a great celebration for us. It was just a great moment, something I’ll never forget. We need to celebrate tonight because it has been a while.” — Reuters

MITCHELL JOHNSON

9/103 MAN OF THE MATCH: Mitchell Johnson was at his ﬁery best as he

tore into England’s resistance to hand Australia opening win. – AFP

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SPORTS

Sammy stuns India

ODI SERIES

Chasing 288, the tourists were under pressure at 185 for 5 but Darren Sammy — partnered by Lendl Simmons (62) — led a superb counter-attack and helped West Indies beat India and level the series

TIME TO REJOICE: Pakistan debutant Bilawal Bhatti, left, Umar

Akmal., right, and Saeed Ajmal celebrate victory. – AFP

Debutant pair spur Pakistan to victory CAPE TOWN: Debutants Bilawal Bhatti and Anwar Ali spurred Pakistan to victory after their team had been in deep trouble in the ﬁrst One-day International against South Africa at Newlands yesterday. The newcomers shared an eighth wicket stand of 74 to rescue Pakistan from a precarious 131 for seven, then shared ﬁve wickets as Pakistan won by 23 runs. Pakistan made 218 for nine in their 50 overs after winning the toss. Despite a half - century from returning veteran Jacques Kallis, South Africa were bowled out for 195. Bhatti (39) and Ali (43 not out) prospered after Pakistan’s recognised batsmen struggled

against a strong South African pace attack. For the first time since South Africa began their rise to the top of the Test rankings, the hosts fielded all three of their leading fast bowlers — Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel — in the same ODI side. With Jacques Kallis returning for his first ODI since February 2012, South Africa applied relentless pressure as Pakistan struggled. Steyn took three for 33 and Morkel three for 39, while Philander claimed one for 37. Bhatti finished with three for 37, while Ali took two for 24. — AFP

SCOREBOARD

PAKISTAN N Jamshed c Kallis b Steyn 24 A Shehzad c De Kock b Kallis 35 M Hafeez c Amla b Steyn 5 S Maqsood c Tahir b Kallis 22 Misbah-ul-Haq c De Kock b Morkel 13 U Akmal c De Kock b Philander 0 S Afridi b Steyn 26 B Bhatti lbw b Morkel 39 A Ali not out 43 S Ajmal c Duminy b Morkel 3 J Khan not out 0 Extras (b-2, lb-1, w-5) 8 Total (9 wkts, 50 overs) 218 Fall of wickets: 1-49 (Jamshed), 2-58 (Hafeez), 3-73 (Shehzad), 4-97 (Misbah), 5-98 (Akmal), 6-124 (Maqsood), 7-131 (Afridi), 8-205 (Bhatti), 9-213 (Ajmal) Bowling: Steyn 10-2-33-3 (2w), Philander 10-0-37-1 (2w), Morkel 10-0-39-3, Duminy 5-0-23-0, Imran Tahir 7-1-30-0, Kallis 8-0-53-2 (1w) SOUTH AFRICA G. Smith st U Akmal b Hafeez 12

H. Amla b J Khan 3 Q. de Kock b Bhatti 19 J. Kallis b A Ali 50 A. de Villiers b S Afridi 10 J. Duminy c U Akmal b S Ajmal 49 D. Miller c U Akmal b A Ali 4 V. Philander c S Maqsood b S Ajmal 14 D. Steyn b B Bhatti 15 M. Morkel b B Bhatti 17 Imran Tahir not out 0 Extras (w-2) 2 Total (all out 48.1 overs) 195 Fall of wickets: 1-12 (Amla), 2-20 (Smith), 3-62 (De Kock), 4-79 (De Villiers), 5-115 (Kallis), 6-123 (Miller), 7-155 (Philander), 8-168 (Duminy), 9-192 (Steyn) Bowling: Junaid Khan 8-0-38-1, Anwar Ali 6-0-24-2 (1w), Mohammad Hafeez 10-0-34-1, Bilawal Bhatti 7.1-0-37-3, Saeed Ajmal 10-0-28-2, Shahid Afridi 7-0-34-1(1w) Result: Pakistan won by 23 runs Series: Pakistan lead the three-match series 1-0

VISAKHAPATNAM: Darren Sammy’s blitzkrieg knock of 63 not outoff 45 helped West Indies draw level with India with a 2-wicket win, here yesterday. Chasing 288, the tourists were under pressure at 185 for 5 but Sammy — partnered by Lendl Simmons (62) — led a superb counterattack and helped West Indies beat India at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium. Sammy hit four fours and as many sixes. India scored 288 for 5 from their 50 overs after being put in to bat and the West Indies chased down the total with three balls to spare. The visitors did not get off to a good start, losing two wickets — Johnson Charles (12) and Marlon Samuels (8) — in the first six overs with the score only at 23. But opener Kieran Powell (59) and Darren Bravo (50) put together an important 100-run partnership for the third wicket to put the Windies’ chase back on track. The Caribbean side lost a few wickets in the middle overs but another good 82-run partnership continued their chase against the climbing run rate. Lendl Simmons (62) and Darren Sammy (63 not out) took the Windies from 185 for 5 to 267 for 6. However, two quick wickets in the death overs poised the match for an exciting finish but Sammy made sure the visitors reached the target. Medium pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, offie Ravichandran Ashwin and Mohammed Shami scalped two wickets each while Mohit Sharma took one.. Kohli misses ton Earlier, Virat Kohli missed out on a hundred by just one run before skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s fiery knock propelled India to a challenging total. Electing to bowl, unsure of how the wicket would behave after two days of incessant rains, the West Indies kept India under pressure for most of the time but the hosts scored 62 runs off the last five overs to steal the thunder from the Caribbeans. Kohli showed calmness to soothe the nerves but only to fall victim to a rash pull as India were in danger after losing two wickets for 15 runs in the batting powerplay. But once again captain cool

DARREN SAMMY

63* 45 balls 4 fours, 4 sixes

SCOREBOARD

INDIA R Sharma c Sammy b Rampaul 12 S Dhawan lbw b Permaul 35 V Kohli c Holder b Rampaul 99 Y Singh c Samuels b Sammy 28 S Raina c DJ Bravo b Rampaul 23 MS Dhoni not out 51 R Jadeja b Rampaul 10 R Ashwin c Charles b Holder 19 B Kumar not out 1 Extras (lb-1, w-9) 10 Total (for 7 wkts, 50 overs) 288 Fall of wickets: 1-21 (RG Sharma, 4.5 overs), 2-69 (Dhawan, 13.2), 3-138 (Yuvraj Singh, 27.4), 4-203 (Raina, 37.2), 5-209 (Kohli, 39.6), 6-240 (Jadeja, 46.3), 7-287 (Ashwin, 49.5) Bowling: Ravi Rampaul 10-0-60-4; Jason Holder 10-0-63-1; Dwayne Bravo 8-0-54-0; Veerasammy Permaul 10-0-55-1; Sunil Narine 10-2-39-0; Darren Sammy 1-0-11-1; Lendl Simmons 1-0-5-0 WEST INDIES J Charles c & b Kumar 12 K Powell st Dhoni b Ashwin 59

Dhoni stood to the task with an unbeaten 51, his 50th ODI halfcentury, to give India a decent total to defend. Dhoni slammed three sixes and four boundaries in his 40-ball

M Samuels c Dhoni b M Sharma 8 D Bravo c Dhoni b Ashwin 50 L Simmons lbw b Jadeja 62 D Bravo c Dhawan b Kumar 18 D Sammy not out 63 J Holder c Dhoni b Shami 7 S Narine c sub (Rayudu) b Shami 0 V Permaul not out 0 Extras (lb-7, w-3) 10 Total (for 8t wickets, 49.3 overs) 289 Fall of wickets: 1-14 (Charles, 2.4 overs), 2-23 (Samuels, 5.4), 3-123 (DM Bravo, 22.1), 4-147 (Powell, 26.1), 5-185 (DJ Bravo, 34.3), 6-267 (Simmons, 46.6), 7-285 (Holder, 48.2), 8-285 (Narine, 48.5) Bowling: Bhuvneshwar Kumar 9-1-56-2; Mohit Sharma 6.3-0-48-1; Mohammed Shami 7-0-55-2; Ravichandran Ashwin 10-1-37-2; Suresh Raina 7-0-42-0; Ravindra Jadeja 10-1-44-1 Umpires: Vineet Kulkarni and Rod Tucker (Australia) TV umpire: Anil Chaudhary Match referee: David Boon (Australia)

knock in an entertaining 47-run seventh wicket partnership with Ravichandran Ashwin. Earlier, Sharma had a rare off day at his mother’s home town when he was taken at second slip

to bring an end to a dream run, during which he scored one double ton, two 100s and an equal number of half-centuries in his last five outings. After Sharma’s dismissal India crawled to 48/1 in the first powerplay. The West Indies clearly had an upperhand dismissing the other opener, Shikhar Dhawan, with an addition of another 48 runs. Included in place of Narsingh Deonarine, Veersammy Permaul made Indians sweat under the scorching sun reducing them to 69/2 after Dhawan miscued one against the turn to be caught at slip. Having remained under cover with the ground under water, the outfield and the wicket was very much unlikely of the belter that the ACA-VCA Stadium used to offer. The mighty Indian batting lineup had to fight for every run in the first 25 overs, in a phase where Permaul and Sunil Narine had put them the visitors an edge. Kohli had a stroke of luck when on 64 when skipper Bravo dropped him off his own follow through. Suresh Raina got an easy reprieve on 13 after being dropped by Lendl Simmons in an easy catch as the Windies fielding looked ordinary. — Agencies

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SPORTS Impossible to play better: Pellegrini Manchester City shredded the Premier League’s meanest defence with a 6-0 thrashing of Tottenham Hotspur while Manchester United’s surge up the table stalled after a 2-2 draw at Cardiff City

LONDON: Manuel Pellegrini is yet to ﬁnd a cure for Manchester City’s travel sickness but at home his side look unstoppable and he said “it was impossible to play better” after yesterday’s 6-0 Premier League rout of Tottenham Hotspur. The Chilean also said Sergio Aguero was one of the world’s top three players after his two goals helped City demolish the north London club at The Etihad. Pellegrini’s ﬁrst few months at City have been puzzling with fantastic home performances, namely a 4-1 hammering of champions

KIM’S SPECIAL: Cardiff City’s Korean midﬁelder Kim Bo-Kyung, left, celebrates after scoring a late equaliser during their English Premier

League match against Manchester United at Cardiff City Stadium yesterday. – AFP

Manchester United, mixed in with results like a 1-0 defeat at bottom club Sunderland. A sixth home win in six put Manuel Pellegrini’s team in fourth place on 22 points. United were poised to move above them when they led Cardiff in south Wales with goals from Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra. The visitors were then denied a fourth consecutive league victory when Kim bo-Kyung’s late header earned Cardiff a deserved share of the spoils to leave United in sixth spot with 21 points, seven behind leaders Arsenal.

After yesterday’s carving up of the Premier League’s tightest defence, however, it seems that City are now ready to start asserting themselves in the title race. “It is impossible to play better than this. We are working to have one style of playing and continue in the same way,” Pellegrini, whose side boast the only 100 per cent home record in the country, told the BBC. “All my teams normally score a lot of goals. Real Madrid scored more than 100 in a whole season. Here in Manchester City not only (Sergio) Aguero and (Alvaro) Ne-

gredo are incredible but others too and Fernandinho and (Samir) Nasri did really well also today. “All of them are comfortable in this style, all creative players. I don’t believe in stats in football. Football has some relation with mathematics but not always. “We’re thinking just about each game, now we play in the Champions League on Wednesday and after we see what happen with others teams, how many points they drop, and I’m absolutely sure we will also win matches away.” City have won only once away from home in the league this sea-

D AY O F U P S E T S

Holders Suwaiq and Seeb stumble out of HM’s Cup MUSCAT: Defending champions Suwaiq stumbled out of His Majesty’s Cup of the Sultanate’s premier football championship yesterday. On day of upsets, which also saw former winners Seeb bite the dust, two-time champions Suwaiq were stunned by Salalah in a 2-1 victory at the Seeb Stadium. Seeb, whose last of three consecutive titles came way back in 1998, were defeated by a similar 2-1 margin by second division outﬁt Al Rustaq at Ibri Youth Complex. Al Nasr, who are looking for their ﬁfth crown, however survived a scare before clinching a 2-1 win over Mirbat in Salalah. In other round of 32 matches, Al Shabab defeated Sur 3-2 via penalties after a goalless draw at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Al Mudhaibi blanked Al Bashayir 3-0 at Nizwa Sports Complex and Al Wuhda edged Yanqul 1-0 at Sur Sports Complex.

UPSET OF THE DAY: Action from the match between Suwaiq and Salalah in His Majesty’s Cup Foot-

ball Championship played at Seeb Stadium yesterday. – TIMES OF OMAN/Ismail Al Farsi

FORMULA ONE

Vettel ends season record high in Brazil SAO PAULO: Sebastian Vettel ended the 2013 Formula One season in typically record-breaking style yesterday when he claimed a commanding victory in the Brazilian Grand Prix ahead of his retirement-bound Red Bull teammate Mark Webber. It was Vettel’s ninth successive victory since the Hungarian GP at the end of July, his 13th of the season and the 39th of his career. This meant he extended his own record of consecutive wins in a season, equalled Italian Alberto Ascari’s historic record of nine straight wins stretched across two seasons from 1952-1953 and also equalled fellow-German Michael Schumacher’s total for one season, set with Ferrari in 2004.

Webber came home second, 10.452 seconds behind the 26-year-old four time champion, with in third two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Ferrari. Jenson Button finished fourth for McLaren ahead of Nico Rosberg of Mercedes, Sergio Perez in the second McLaren and Felipe Massa, who marked his final race with Ferrari by finishing seventh. German Nico Hulkenberg finished eighth ahead of luckless Lewis Hamilton, who suffered a collision, a puncture and a drivethrough penalty in his Mercedes, and 10th place Australian Daniel Ricciardo, in his final race for Toro Rosso before replacing Webber at Red Bull. On the first dry day of the week-

end, with an air temperature of 19 degrees Celsius and a track temperature of 24, there was high tension in the build-up to an emotional finale to the 2013 season. On lap four Romain Grosjean, who started sixth, was forced to retire with a blown engine, his first non-points finish in six outings. Vettel had the race in his grip and by lap 13 following a flurry of pit stops he led Webber by almost half a minute. Behind, Massa was given a drive-through penalty for crossing the pit-lane entry area, but after receiving instructions to come in, he drove straight on - and backed off from his normal speed to slow Hamilton — until lap 35 amid loud protestations.

“This is unbelievable, FIA,” screamed Massa as Hamilton patiently regained fourth and with it a considerable boost to Mercedes bid to ﬁnish second, ahead of Ferrari, in the championship. On laps 47 a collision between Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas resulted in left rear damage to the latter’s Williams and Hamilton’s right rear tyre being punctured. Hamilton was blamed and had to serve a drive-through penalty, a puzzling decision, but one that spiced up the teams’ scrap for second in the title race. The combinations of accidents and penalties enabled Button to climb to fourth with 10 laps remaining, his and the team’s best result of one of their worst years. — AFP

son where goals have not been quite as forthcoming. They have already scored 34 league goals this season, however, including 13 in their last two home matches — the kind of scoring form City displayed when they won the title under Roberto Mancini in 2011-12. Kim stalls United United, who had seen Wayne Rooney controversially escape a red card, were on course for the Champions League places until Kim stole in to head home a Peter Whittingham free-kick in the 91st

minute. Surprise 3-2 victors over Manchester City earlier in the season, Cardiff inched three points clear of the bottom three thanks to Kim’s goal, while United were left in sixth place, seven points behind leaders Arsenal. Rooney angrily kicked out at Jordon Mutch in the early stages of the game in Cardiff, but referee Neil Swarbrick only showed him a yellow card and in the 15th minute the England striker put United ahead. Cardiff ’s fans were furious that Rooney had been allowed to stay on the pitch, but they saw their side draw level in the 33rd minute with a beautifully constructed goal. Gary Medel found Whittingham, who helped the ball on to Mutch, and the recipient of the kick from Rooney released Fraizer Campbell to beat goalkeeper David de Gea with a ﬁrst-time ﬁnish. The hosts’ joy was short lived, however, as Patrice Evra restored the champions’ lead on the stroke of half-time when he headed home from Rooney’s left-wing corner. In response, Campbell saw a feathery chip come back off the bar, but United looked to have escaped until they gave away one free-kick too many and Kim dispatched Whittingham’s centre to send the stadium into raptures. For United, extending their unbeaten run to 10 games provided scant consolation, particularly as Kim’s goal prevented them from supplanting Manchester City in the top four. — Reuters

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SPORTS Shihabâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s probe into challenges faced by volleyball in Sultanate theoretical thesis that has been produced for academic gains but a sincere attempt

The book is not just a

Shihab also interviewed the ofďŹ cials of the organisations who in one way or the other have been contributing to the sport. The most important being the Ministry of Sports Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Sultan Qaboos University, various sports clubs as well as Ministry of Education and Minister of Higher Education. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was important to get in touch with these ministries, clubs, educational and services institutions and it was very vital for my study to learn from their experience as administrators and organisers of volleyball events,â&#x20AC;? he explained.

by a passionate practitioner and follower of the sport to study the real challenges facing volleyball in Oman

N what is been seen as a ďŹ rst of its kind in Oman, a new study on volleyball looks into the operational system of the sport in the Sultanate and suggests the ideas to develop it further in the country. Though primarily conducted as a scholastic study and published as an academic book, done as it is by an experienced player, coach, instructor and administrator, Shihab Al Riyami, it is a well-researched document that not only delves into the boon and banes of volleyball in Oman but also explores the ways that will lead to the growth of the game. Aptly titled Omanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Volleyball Challenges: Between fact and development, published by Germanyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lap Lambert Academic Publishing Company, the book, as mentioned by author himself, is â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;a primary study that investigates the challenges and obstacles facing the development of volleyball in Omanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. And it is not just a theoretical thesis that has been produced for academic gains but a sincere attempt by a passionate practitioner and follower of the sport to study the real challenges facing volleyball in Oman. In reaching his conclusions, Shihab drew on his vast experience as a player, coach, coach instructor and administrator as well as extensive interactive sessions

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I sincerely believe that my study will lead to a better understanding of the challenges facing our sport in Oman Shihab Al Riyami Author

he had with innumerable and wellinformed contacts that he developed thanks to his involvement in the sport. And the outcome of his hard work, as explained by the author himself, is â&#x20AC;&#x2DC; a greater understanding of the challenges facing the development of volleyball in Omanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My book delves into the current volleyball situation in Oman. I have also done a comparative

study of similar volleyball researches done in neighbouring countries,â&#x20AC;? explained Shihab. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I sincerely believe that my study will lead to a better understanding of the challenges facing our sport in Oman. And most importantly, I was able to come up with suggestions to improve the sport not just in Oman but other parts of the world as well.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;And this would not have been

possible without the cooperation of all the volleyball experts I contacted for my study and who gave me their valuable time for the sake of the game they love dearly,â&#x20AC;? Shihab, who himself is familiar with each and every aspect of the sport, said. Detailed research For the record, Shihabâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s playing career lasted more than 15 years

having represented various clubs and university teams as well as the national teams. As a coach, he served the Omani clubs and the national teams as well as varsity and army teams for over a decade. Shihab, who also served on various committees of Oman Volleyball Association between 2003 and 2008, frequently travels around Middle East and Asia attending Asian Volleyball Confederation workshops and conducting international coach courses as a world body FIVBâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s instructor. Speaking about the efforts he put into his research, Shihab said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I worked really hard because I was making a very sincere effort to ďŹ nd what is ailing our sport and what is needed to overcome those challenges.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had interviewed as many as eighty-one volleyball specialists. All of them have vast experience in the sport and also as athletes, coaches as well as administrators. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And incidentally all of them played multiple sports but specialised in volleyball and dedicated their entire lives for the sport.â&#x20AC;? Not limiting himself with the individuals, who were involved with the sport as players and coaches,

The ďŹ ndings Asked about the overall outcome of his research and his suggestions for volleyball growth in the Sultanate, Shihab said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I tried to go deep into all aspects of Oman volleyball and study it all levels, from how it is being run, how it is being played and also the way the sport is being marketed and promoted.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I dedicated a chapter, with supporting inputs from experts, to each of these aspects,â&#x20AC;? Shihad, who thinks the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;real boonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; is the talent available in Oman, added. Talking about the bane, he said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;What we lack is lack of suitable education programme for coaches, which in turn is resulting in shortage of qualiďŹ ed coaches and trainers.â&#x20AC;? He also laments lack of proper marketing and sponsors which is having an adverse impact on the sport. Shihabâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s study also found shortcomings in Omanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision for sports in general and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why he dedicated the entire ďŹ rst chapter on governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision, involvement and support to sports in general while other chapters talk exclusively about Omanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strategy in volleyball and the mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think the government and volleyball governing body are very important for the development of the sport. Based on my ďŹ ndings I have also suggested an action plan for the Oman Volleyball Association. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the modern world of marketing, promotion and sponsorship are very vital and so is the role of the media,â&#x20AC;? he said while adding: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hopefully my research will contribute to volleyball development in Oman.â&#x20AC;?

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SPORTS

Pacquiao lifts Filipino spirits For a brief moment in the devastated city of Tacloban, those who lost everything in the storm forgot their misery as they watched a free, live broadcast of Pacquiao’s points victory over Rios

MACAU: The storm-battered Philippines was celebrating a much-needed victory yesterday after national boxing hero Manny Pacquiao defeated American Brandon Rios in a comeback ﬁght he dedicated to victims of Super Typhoon Haiyan. For a brief moment in the devastated city of Tacloban, those who lost their homes, their livelihoods and even loved ones in the storm forgot their misery as they watched a free, live broadcast of Pacquiao’s overwhelming points victory over Rios in Macau. “I’m so happy that he won. This is a win for all Filipinos. It will surely uplift our spirits, especially the victims of typhoon (Haiyan),” said Mario Penaﬂor, 41, amid the joyful crowds in Tacloban. Such was the elation that army chief Lieutenant General Noel Coballes said special military honours may be extended to Pacquiao, a reserve lieutenant colonel MEGA EVENT

in the army, for his latest victory. “We will see what we can give him when he arrives,” Coballes said. “He brought joy to the Filipinos especially during this time of crisis,” the general added. President Benigno Aquino’s spokesman, Herminio Coloma congratulated Pacquiao, saying: “Just like Manny, we will triumph over our current problems by working together... In the face of a tough ﬁght, he has displayed the strength and the character of the Filipino.” Super Typhoon Haiyan has left almost 7,000 dead and missing after its rampage through the central Philippines earlier this month. The World Boxing Organisation (WBO) international welterweight title clash was broadcast in four public areas in Tacloban to lift the spirits of residents who suffered the brunt of Haiyan’s fury. Whole families, including children and the elderly, packed

PEOPLE’S COMEBACK! Manny Pacquiao, right, of the Philippines competes against Brandon Rios of

the US during a welterweight boxing bout in Macau yesterday. – AFP

into Tacloban’s main sports stadium, which served as a major evacuation centre during the storm, to watch the clash. Spirits were high despite the grim evidence of the storm’s destruction — the damp seats, the

stadium’s ruined ceiling — that more than two weeks on, still surrounded them. The crowd proudly sang their national anthem as it was played in Macau, then cheered their hero on wildly through the ﬁght.

The celebration began in the last round as Pacquiao’s victory became obvious, with the stadium ﬁlling with jubilant cheers and laughter. Battered nation needed a Pacquiao victory.

Rainier Panquinco, 29, who lost his home in the storm, said: “It’s a super good day. For awhile, I forgot my suffering.” He had prayed hard for Pacquiao and did not line up for relief goods yesterday just so he could watch the fight. “It will give us hope here in Tacloban, and in Leyte and Samar,” he said, referring to the two islands that suffered the worst of the typhoon. Even those who could not watch the fight seemed to feel uplifted. In Palo town, outside of Tacloban, many people could not even listen to the clash on the radio due to the lack of electricity. Resident Neil Lagumbay, 38, said he heard about the fight’s results from a neighbour. “Of course, I’m very happy that Manny won although I expected a knock out,” he said. “It will boost the morale of the people here.” Pacquiao, 34, a former champion in an unprecedented eight weight divisions, had sought to redeem himself against Rios in Macau after losing his last two fights. The boxer, who has parlayed his sports fame into election to Congress and a fortune in commercial endorsements, had previously vowed not to let his countrymen down. “This is not about my comeback,” he said in the ring immediately after the verdict yesterday. “This is about my people’s comeback from a natural disaster and a natural tragedy.” - AFP QUALIFIERS

WEEKEND SPORTS

Sultanate to host Special Games

Afghanistan, Ireland in World T20

MUSCAT: Oman will play host to Special Games for the differently abled athletes from December 21 to 26. This was announced by the Ministry of Social Development and a statement from the ministry official Younis Al Mashari detailed that the Games will host athletes from the entire Middle East and North Africa region. The mega event will have competitions in tennis, bowling and track and ﬁeld events and will be held in the lines of Paralympics.

DUBAI: Afghanistan reached their third successive World Twenty20 yesterday to complete a memorable year, which also saw the war-hit nation break through to a maiden World Cup. Also securing their place at the World T20 tournament were Ireland, who downed Hong Kong by 85 runs in Abu Dhabi for their seventh qualifying win. Afghanistan defeated Kenya by 34 runs in Sharjah to give the Asian side their sixth win in seven matches. - AFP

Oman Bicycle Club’s trip to Musannah MUSCAT: Millennium Resort Musannah welcomed the Oman Bicycle Club for a weekend of sports and family activities at the resort’s leisure facilities. After making the 130-km ride from Muscat to Al Musannah,

the group of 16 cyclists toured Al Musannah with a local guide, stopping to capture the beautiful surroundings for a photography competition later in the evening, before returning to the resort for activities on the beach which in-

ISG STUDENTS EXCEL AT CBSE SWIM MEET The students of Indian School Al Ghubra (ISG) have done their school proud at the CBSE National Swimming Championships held at Rishikul Vidyapeth, Sonipat, Haryana. The under-14 girls team comprising Rhea Shah, Pooja K.S., Delzine Irani, Simran D. Ved and Sai Jaahnavi bagged silver in the 4x100m medley relay and bronze in the 4x100m freestyle relay. In the under-16 individual category Rhea Shah clinched 200m freestyle bronze while Vigneshwar Madhan bagged three bronze medals in 50m and 100m butterﬂy and 50m freestyle. Twenty-four students who took part in the event were accompanied by their teachers P.L. Azad and Miss Dorine Todd. — Supplied photo

cluded kayaking, stand-up paddling, paddle go-karts in the water and sand cycling on beach bikes. Families then competed against each other at the resort’s on-site 18-hole mini-golf course before retiring for the evening with a

three-course meal in the resort signature restaurant Al Bahar. On the second day, the group embarked on a 140km loop of Al Musannah that included part of Stage 1 of the 2013 Tour of Oman cycling race.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

SPORTS ISC TENNIS

Sanskar storms into under-10 final MUSCAT: Sanskar Dubey earned his place in the final of the under-10 singles title at the Falcon Insurance Company-sponsored Annual Tennis Tournament organised by the Indian Social Club Muscat when the second seed toiled to a hard-fought victory over Abbinav Sankar in the semifinal. The victory helped Sanskar to lined-up a summit clash against top seed Ayaan Malhotra. Sanskar had to come up with an extraordinary effort and nerves of steel to overcome the determination of third seed Abbinav Sankar who stretched the second seed before bowing out fighting in the tie breaker. If the first semifinal between Ayaan Malhotra and Vivek Kolluru gave an exhibition of the abundant talent that the two possess, the second semifinal tested the nerves and temperament of Sanskar and Abbinav. Sanskar and Abbinav matched

Dames Jeanne is winner

each other stroke for stroke before the former achieved victory with a 6-5 (7-4) score in the tie-breaker. After breaking each other in the first two games, it went to serve until three-all when Abbinav broke Sanskar to take the lead but was broken straight back. Both displayed control and held their serve until 5-games all. Sanskar held on to a marginal lead in the tie-breaker and swept to victory. In first round action from the men’s singles, R. Murali conceded the match in favour of Pranav Vinod after lead 2-0 due to a recurring injury in his playing arm. Second seed Percy Pereira advanced to the last eight with a comfortable 8-0 victory over Venkatesan Babu. Suhail Khan also scored a convincing 8-0 victory over Viswanathan and Armaan Sattikar beat Hemachandra Ail 8-0 to advance to the quarterfinals.

In a keenly contested Muscat to Khasab Bank of Beirut Chairman’s’ Cup race, Lee Overlay were beaten on corrected time by the lowest rated boat in the ﬂeet, Dames Jeanne

MUSCAT: Sailing with professional crew Cookson 50, owned by Mr Adrian Lee, CEO of Lee Overlay Partners, and winner of the Dubai-Muscat Race, took line honours in the 230-mile Muscat to Khasab Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup yacht race but had to settle for second place behind Dames Jeanne in the IRC. In a well-contested race that started off Marina Bandar Al Rowdha in Muscat and ended in northern province of Musandam, Lee Overlay were beaten on corrected time by the lowest rated boat in the ﬂeet, Dames Jeanne, a UAE based yacht skippered by Jean Phillipe Girard.

Jean Phillipe was a previous competitor of the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup, taking part in the 2012 race, in which he was unfortunately forced to retire due to adverse weather conditions. The same fate happened in this year’s Dubai to Muscat race, but it is a testament to the popularity of the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s cup that his crew continued to Muscat to enter the Muscat-Khasab event. According to a press release issued by the organisers, seven boats including a British entry, a Kuwaiti entry, two UAE entries and three from Oman entered in the IRC racing boat class. Vying for a share of the $50,000

prize fund, generously donated by The Bank of Beirut, the 2013 ﬂeet made the most competitive race that the Muscat Regatta has seen to date. Dubai based communications company, Xtra-Link equipped the yachts with the latest satellite communications equipment for the second year running, including Thuraya XT satellite phones and hi-tech tracking devices, which allowed race fans, all over the world, to view the race live on the regatta website. As always the excellent support of the regional navies, coastguard and police ensured there were no security concerns, and race orgnisers GWM inspected all the boats prior to the race to ensure there were no safety issues, added the press statement. All the sailors were unanimous in their praise and described the race as ‘A truly great event’. Their enthusiasm was evident from their expressed desire to compete for the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup in the coming years. “Our aim is to promote interest in the conservation of Omani

maritime heritage, nurture sailing as a healthy and enjoyable sport and bring regional and international sailors to Oman,” said Ramy Zambarakji, Managing Director, Bank of Beirut Oman. “As sailing has traditionally been one of the sports of preference for Omanis, the Bank’s objective is to promote young Omani boat enthusiasts and encourage them to make their mark in elite sailing events around the world.” He went on to say that the Bank also aims to highlight Oman as a world class sailing destination and support the development and growth of sailing clubs. The sponsorship also demonstrates the Bank’s quest for excellence and commitment to the very highest standards. Results (with prize-money breakup): Line honours: Lee Overlay Partners $10,000. Ist IRC: Dames Jeanne $16,000; 2nd IRC: Lee Overlay Partners $8,000; 3rd IRC OMSF 3 $3,000. Ist Farr 30: OMSF 3 $5,000; 2nd Farr 30: OMSF 4 US$3,000; 3rd Farr 30: OMSF 5 $2,000; 4th IRC Bin Toak $2,000; Dolce Vita $1,000.

YOUTH PROGRAMME

Hassan to represent Oman as ‘sports reporter’ at Asiad FAHAD AL MUKRASHI

fahd@timesofoman.com MUSCAT: The Oman Olympic Committee (OOC) has selected an ambitious young Omani to represent the country as a ‘sports reporter’ at the 17th Asian Games to be hosted in South Korean city of Incheon from September 19 to October 4 in 2014. The OOC gesture, which has come as a reward for winning a contest, is a ‘dream come true’ for 18 year-old Hassan Al Balushi. Speaking to Times of Oman about the contest and his subsequent selection, Hassan said: “I am very delighted with this opportunity to represent the country. I won the competition named ‘Run and Learn’ organised by Oman Olympic Committee at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher in 2012. The contest also involved writing sport reports during the season.” Expressing his gratitude to the OOC, Hassan said this is ‘very good gesture’ from the Olympic body and it will boost the morale of the talented young Omanis. At the Incheon Asiad, Hassan will be covering sport events as a representative of the Sultanate. During the Asian Games programme, the young reporters will

I am very delighted with this opportunity to represent the country. I am looking forward to the Games Hassan Al Balushi be provided intensive theoretical and practical training in print media, photography, television, radio and new media reporting of sport. The young reporters will also get an opportunity to interact with and learn from the guest lectures to be delivered by experts from international media organisations as well as senior Olympic officials. Hassan is eagerly looking forward to the experience of being part of the programme which will

see participation of 500 to 1,000 students from across Asia. “I am looking forward to the Games. He will work hard and try to add something to the Omani sports journalism while representing the Sultanate,” he said. Hassan already participated in a workshop organised in China by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) for the young reporters of Asian countries like Oman, Kazakhstan, Bhutan, Maldives and Magnolia.

Hassan is thankful to the OOC for the support he has been receiving as well as the care accorded to other young Omanis Hassan, who is currently doing business major at Mazoon College, is hoping to become a successful businessman and a bright sports journalist in future. His advice to the fellow youngsters: “Find out what talent you have and try to develop them. Set your goals and strive to achieve them.”

SECTION

LIFE & STYLE

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

WHAT’S THE B I G MESSAGE? SUZANNE COLLINS’ ‘HUNGER GAMES TRILOGY’ SPEAKS TO A GENERATION OF TEENAGE READERS LIKE NO OTHER LITERARY CREATION

he idea for The Hunger Games famously came to Suzanne Collins as she was channel-hopping at home in Connecticut, late one evening in the mid-2000s. She found herself flicking back and forth between a reality TV contest and footage of the war in Iraq, musing on that uncomfortable juxtaposition, and on the desensitising effect of the modern media. “I was tired,” Collins recalled later, “and the lines began to blur in this very unsettling way, and I thought of this story.” Ever since Harry Potter was republished with alternative dust jackets for grown-ups, young adult fiction has been a boom sector. Remarkably, its largest market is not teens, but 19 to 44-yearolds, which has earned the genre another tag: ‘new adult’. Collins earned $55 million (£34 million) last year, which puts her in the same income bracket as J K Rowling and Twilight author Stephenie Meyer. That success has carried over to the box office, where the 2012 film version of the 2008 Hunger Games novel grossed almost $700 million worldwide and made Jennifer Lawrence a megastar. Its sequel, Catching Fire, was released last week, and promises to break box-office records. Collins’ creation has been followed to the screen by several more adaptations of dystopian teen novels, including the bestselling Divergent trilogy by US author Veronica Roth, which also features a feisty female lead. Without the culture and conflicts of the 2000s, The Hunger Games might never have come into being, nor have touched such a nerve with readers. Yet its origins can be found in a war fought a generation earlier. Collins’ father, an officer in the US air force, was sent to serve in Vietnam in 1968, around the time she turned six. “Even though my mom tried to protect us — sometimes the TV would be on, and I would see footage from the war zone,” Collins has said. “I was little, but I would hear them say ‘Vietnam’, and I knew my dad was there, and it was very frightening.” The experience had such an effect on Collins that her latest book, Year of the Jungle, is an illustrated memoir of that period aimed at readers of around the age she was when her father was away fighting overseas. Its narrator, a young schoolgirl named Suzy, is confused to hear that her father has been sent to a “place called Viet Nam” to participate in “something called a war”. Collins Snr returned safe, though he suffered nightmares. In the early 1970s, the air force posted him and his family to Brussels, where he would take his four

children on regular and comprehensive tours of the local battlefields. Collins learned that her grandfather had been gassed during the First World War, her uncle wounded by shrapnel in the Second. Her father had previously taught history to cadets at the West Point military academy. He had a gift for storytelling, his daughter thought, and a “sense of exactly how much a child could handle, which is quite a bit”. Collins’ work could, therefore, be seen as an attempt to continue her father’s project, of teaching young people about the horrors of war. Her first book series, before Year of the Jungle or The Hunger Games, was The Underland Chronicles, in which two children tumble through a vent in their basement to find a fantasy world torn apart by a conflict between species. (Though many children die in the course of The Hunger Games trilogy, the books are decidedly anti-violence, so there is an awful irony to the fact that Collins and her family live in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, the site of a horrifying act of violence against children.) Katniss Everdeen’s signature skill is archery, which she has learned as a child to hunt for food for her family’s table. That, too, is an echo from Collins’ father, who grew up during the Depression, hunting and foraging for food that his family could not otherwise afford. It wasn’t until after she turned 40 that Collins published her first book, inspired by a meeting with the children’s writer James Proimos, who would later illustrate Year of the Jungle. The first of five Underland Chronicles, Gregor the Overlander, was published in 2003. The series was successful, but not so successful that its author could give up her day job, so she juggled the writing of The Hunger Games with work on a Nickelodeon show for preschool children, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!. The Hunger Games was published in September 2008 and went on to spend 100 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list, where it was joined by Catching Fire the following year, and the final book of the trilogy, Mockingjay, in 2010. Collins has adapted the books for the screen personally. Last year, Amazon revealed that she was the best-selling Kindle author of all time. Yet she remains an elusive media presence, presumably suspicious of the sensationalism that her novels satirise. She rarely, if ever, grants on-camera interviews. Like Katniss, she is a reluctant celebrity — but, also like Katniss, an increasingly powerful one. — Tim Walker/The Independent

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

EXTRA

If you are happy and you know it, log on to ‘Happier’

Can this new social network help us feel better about ourselves?

here are plenty of reasons why we use social networks: to catch up with friends, to share photos, to link to thought-provoking articles or funniest cat videos and to brag about our bikini bodies/beach holidays/beautiful children —sometimes all in the same post. Few of us, I’d wager, log on because we want to feel worse. And yet a number of studies link our use of Facebook, Twitter and other websites to a lowering of mood. Recent research by the University of Michigan suggested that the more people checked Facebook, the worse they felt about their own lives. Comparing one’s own life to the magical worlds in which others claim to live can have an adverse reaction on users’ mental health. Despite that we all know lives can appear so much more livelier on Facebook and that the idyllic beach break might have been marred by a building site next door (carefully edited out of shot in the sun-drenched selﬁes), it’s easy to get sucked into feeling jealous. What to make, then, of a growing social network called Happier, which asks users to be always positive in the hope that, in doing so, such happiness will rub off on everybody else? Won’t this exacerbate our Fomo (fear of missing out) and envy, as we see others having a beatiﬁc time? “In our community, users smile at each other’s moments — a much kinder way than a ‘like’ — and try to really support and encourage each other,” says Happier’s co-founder Nataly Kogan, who also likes to be known as the chief happiness officer. Happier feels like a mix between Twitter and Facebook. You can use the “discover” option to see what users are writing and you can follow any of the network’s posters without seeking permission from them. You can write your own moments by clicking the site’s “share happy” button and there are no restrictions on the number of characters, so you can gush away, although the vast majority of people don’t. The overwhelming feeling is that people are having a great time. Just like in those smug posts on Facebook that are, apparently, making us so glum. “Facebook and Twitter are great companies and I use both of their products,” Kogan says. “But I think there is a lot of negativity and snark on both, and one of the things we are working really hard to create on Happier is a positive, supportive community where people encourage each other, even when their days aren’t great.” More than 1.5 million “moments” have been shared to date and there have been 2.5 million Facebook-like-equivalent smiles since the social network launched in February. Kogan won’t disclose Happier’s user numbers but she was reported to have said in July there were more than 100,000. “We are a small and fast-growing company,” she says.

Kogan says there are two core scientiﬁc principles underpinning Happier.com. She draws on a Harvard study that says expressing gratitude and writing it down makes people healthier, more energetic, less stressed and less anxious. It helps people to sleep better, too. She also quotes Dr Nicholas Christakis and Professor James Fowler, researchers at Harvard and the University of San Diego, who found that each additional happy friend increases a person’s probability of being happy by about 9 per cent. However, the experts at the University of Michigan aren’t necessarily convinced. “Although we do not yet have deﬁnitive evidence for our hypothesis, our working model is that it is the passive use of Facebook — that is reading posts — that leads to increased sadness,” John Jonides, Michigan’s professor of psychology and neuroscience, says. “We suspect that people read about the good lives, or at least the lies about the good lives, that others are leading, and by social comparison they don’t perceive themselves to be as well off. Based on this working model, I would predict that Happier might lead to the same state of af-

fairs, but it is early days in this research to be confident about this prediction.” The users of her site have certainly embraced her definition of what does make people happy — sharing, encouraging, appreciating the mundane. During the time I spent on Happier, I encountered no negativity and Kogan tells me that the site is only policed for spam and abuse. That means the overwhelming majority of people are joining in the spirit of things and that, by questioning it, we perhaps need to spend more time on it. Then again, what if moaning makes people happy (after all, a survey by OnePoll.com in 2008 showed moaning, drinking and taking pleasure in the misfortune of others to be quintessentially British)? “I doubt moaning makes a lot of people happier,” she says, laughing. “But the great thing about Happier is that if you’re sharing a genuine moment that made you happier, it doesn’t really matter what it is. One of the things we truly believe at Happier is that you don’t need to be happy to be happier. Our community encourages people to try and find something to smile about anyway.” —DAVID CROOKS/THE INDEPENDENT

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

ENTERTAINMENT CINEMA SCHEDULE

BAHJA CINEMA Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley 5:45pm; CP No: 1056 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action/ Sci–Fi) (12+) 11:30am, 8:30, 11:30 pm; CP No: 1076 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (Romance)(PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 9:00pm; CP No: 1089 Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley 2:00, 4:15pm; CP No: 1056 Free Birds 3D (Animation/Comedy) (PG) Voice Overs: Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Dan Fogler 11:30am & 1:30pm; CP No: 1044 Thor 3D (Action /Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins 3:15, 11:45pm; CP No: 1037 Killer Joe (Crime/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple 7:15pm; CP No: 1086

Elysium (Action /Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster 2:15, 7:45, 9:45pm; CP No: 1055 Thor 2D (Action /Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman 4:30, 6:45pm; CP No: 992 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Romance/Drama) (12+) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson 5:00, 9:00, 11:45pm; CP No: 1075 Free Birds 3D (Animation/Comedy) (PG) Voice Overs: Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Dan Fogler 1:30pm; CP No: 1043 Killer Joe (Crime/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple 3:00pm; CP No: 1085 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (Romance) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 3:15, 8:30pm; CP No: 1088 The Pact (Horror/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien 11:45pm; CP No: 1081 Thor 3D (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman 11:30pm; CP No: 992 Captain Phillips (Action/Biography) (PG) Cast: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi 6:00pm; CP No: 1005

Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley 5:30, 9:30pm; CP No: 1057 Thor 3D (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins 3:15, 7:30, 11:30pm; CP No: 1038 Ram Leela (Hindi) (Romance/Drama) (12+) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone 3:30pm; CP No: 1065 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action/ Sci–Fi) (12+) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth 4:30, 9:00, 11:45pm; CP No: 1077 Killer Joe (Crime/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple 3:00, 7:15pm; CP No: 1087 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (Romance) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 4:45, 10:30pm; CP No: 1090 The Pact (Horror/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien, Mark Steger 11:45pm; CP No: 1082 Singh Saab The Great (Hindi) (Action) (PG) Cast: Sunny Deol, Urvashi Rautela 9:00pm; CP No: 1093 Nadodimannan (Malyalam) (Drama)

PLAZA 1 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 6:30pm; CP No: 1092 Singh Saab The Great (Hindi) (Action) (PG) Cast: Sunny Deol, Urvashi Rautela 3:30 & 9:30pm; CP No: 1097 PLAZA 2 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (Romance) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 3:30 & 9:30pm; CP No: 1092 Singh Saab The Great (Hindi) (PG) Cast: Sunny Deol, Urvashi Rautela, Amrita Rao 6:30pm; CP No: 1097

Thor 3D (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) 3:15; CP No: 1037 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action/ Sci–Fi) (12+) 11:00pm; CP No: 1076 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 8:00pm; CP No: 1089

(PG) Cast: Dileep, Ananya, Mythili 6:00pm; CP No: 1098 Irindam Ulagam (Tamil) (PG) Cast: Arya, Anushka Shetty 7:30pm; CP No: 1102

PLAZA 3 Ram Leela (Hindi) (Romance) (12+) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone 3:30 & 9:30pm; CP No:1069 Krrish 3 (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Hritish Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut 6:30pm; CP No: 1026

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action / Adventure) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth 2:00, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30 & 11:55pm; CP No: 1336 (12+) The Pact (Horror / Mystery / Thriller) Cast: Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien, Mark Steger. 8:00, 10:00 & 11:55pm; CP No: 1368 (12+) Killer Joe (Crime / Thriller) Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple 6:00pm; CP No: 1367 (12+) Free Birds (Animation / Comedy) Voice Overs: Woody Harrelson, Owen Wilson and Dan Fogler 2:00pm; CP No: 1340 (PG) Bad Grandpa (Comedy) Cast: Johnny Knoxville, Jackson Nicoll and Greg Harris 4:00pm; CP No: 1338 (15+)

Thor 3D (Action /Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins 5:00pm; CP No: 1040 Ram Leela (Hindi) (Romance/Drama) (12+) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone 11:15pm; CP No: 1067 Nadodimannan (Malyalam) (PG) Cast: Dileep, Ananya, Mythili 8:15pm; CP No: 1100

Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action /Sci–Fi) (12+) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth 3:30, 6:00, 8:45, 11:30pm; CP No: 1078 The Pact (Horror/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien 5:15, 11:45pm; CP No: 1083 Ram Leela (Hindi) (Romance/Drama) (12+) Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone 9:00pm Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley 3:00, 7:00, 11:45pm; CP No: 1058 Thor 3D (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins 3:15, 5:00, 7:00pm; CP No: 1039 Nadodimannan (Malyalam) (Comedy) (PG) Cast: Dileep, Ananya, Mythili 9:00pm; CP No: 1099

Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action /Sci–Fi) (12+) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence 5:30, 9:00, 11:45pm; CP No: 1079 Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster7:00pm; CP No: 1059

Elysium (Action/Sci-Fi) (12+) Cast: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster 1:30, 5:00pm; CP No: 1060 Thor 3D (Action/Sci-Fi) (PG) Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman 7:00pm; CP No: 1041 Captain Phillips (Action/Biography) (PG) Cast: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi 2:30pm; CP No: 1010 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Action) Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth 9:00, 11:45pm; CP No: 1080 Gori Tere Pyaar Mein (Hindi) (PG) Cast: Kareena Kapoor, Imran Khan 9:00pm; CP No: 1091 The Pact (Horror/Thriller) (12+) Cast: Caity Lotz, Casper Van Dien, Mark Steger 11:45pm; CP No: 1084 Singh Saab The Great (Hindi) (Action) (PG) Cast: Sunny Deol, Urvashi Rautela 6:15pm; CP No: 1096 Nadodimannan (Malyalam) (Drama) (PG) Cast: Dileep, Ananya, Mythili 3:30pm; CP No: 1101

Film Information - 24540856 / Advance Booking - 24540855 Website: www.albahjacinema.net

STARS CINEMA Film information 24791641 / 24786776 Nadodi Mannan (Mal) (Comedy) Cast: Dileep, Ananya, Mythilli and Archana Ravi 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30pm (Cinema Main) Irandam Ulagam (Tamil) (Romance) Cast: Arya, Anushka Shetty and Selva 3:45, 6:45 & 9:45pm (Cinema – 2) Masala (Telugu) (Action/Comedy) Cast: Venkatesh, Anjali and Sahzan Padamsee 3:45, 6:45 & 9:45pm (Cinema - 3); CP No: 1347 Idukki Gold (Mal) Cast: Vijaya Ragavan, Prahap Poten & Babu Anthony 3:45, 6:45 & 9:45pm(Cinema - 4); CP No: 1345

For More Information 24789032, 24786776 Website: www.isurf.co.om

ACES ON BRIDGE

SUDOKU

From printed page to internet delivery

3 8

6 5 3 6 2

1 5

9 4

1 9 6 4 3

1 6 8 5 3 6 5 9

2 5 7 5 1 4 8 6 9 3

HOW TO PLAY Fill the empty cells with the numbers 1 to 9, so that each number appears once in each row, column and area. — Seven Galaxies

1 9 3 2 8 7 6 4 5

5 8 4 6 3 9 2 7 1

7 2 6 5 4 1 8 3 9

9 3 5 7 6 8 1 2 4

8 4 1 3 5 2 9 6 7

2 6 7 1 9 4 3 5 8

3 5 9 4 1 6 7 8 2

4 7 8 9 2 3 5 1 6

Previous puzzle Solution

MARMADUKE

CROSSWORD

B I G NAT E

ACROSS 1 5 8 11 12 13 14 15 17 18 20 22 23 27 29 30 33 34 35 36 37 38 42 45

Crumbly soil Rowing tool Just out Estimate Kind of vaccine Rural elec. provider Provide capital Swipes — kwon do “Turn! Turn! Turn!” composer Makes a faux pas First name in advice Skip past Solemn promise Boss, in Swahili Call again Floating downriver Cut of beef Sub — (secretly) Game show sound Cabin Leafed through Rubbed out Baseball’s —

Piniella 46 Walkthroughs (2 wds.) 49 Kind of physicist 51 Sequel’s sequel 52 Ill-wisher 53 Pays, as the bill 54 Skillet 55 In good shape 56 Salad ﬁsh

26 28 29 30 31 32 33 35 37 39

Put out a runner Durable wood Urban transport Country addr. Yale alumnus Aykroyd or Rather Carryall Winter apple Vietnam’s capital Rocker — John

40 Major artery 41 Pairs 43 Elizabethan collar 44 Flaky 46 Brief swim 47 Narrow inlet 48 Feminine principle 50 Worthless coin

BORN LOSER

DOWN 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 16 19 21 24 25

Of the moon More weird Give it — — Kittens’ cries Displease Adjust the wheels Determine, as a ref Utmost degree Morn’s counterpart “What — that?” Leap in a tutu Jimmy Countess’s spouse Party animal — tai (rum drink) Wayfarer’s refuge

Answer to previous puzzle

THE oldest bridge publication is Bridge Magazine from England. It started in May 1926. Earlier this year, to lower production costs and make it easier to publish a bigger magazine in full colour, Bridge Magazine went to online-only delivery. You print it out, say, on three-hole punched paper and store each issue in a ring binder. Aimed at tournament players, it contains hands that you can bid with your partner, and bidding problems that you can answer to try to win one of four book prizes from Master Point Press. There are various quizzes. This one comes courtesy of Patrick Jourdain and Ron Tacchi. South gets to six hearts, but when West stupidly doubles, South runs to six no-trump. How should he plan the play after West leads the club queen? There was no auction given in the magazine. In this sequence, North’s two no-trump is the Jacoby Forcing Raise. Three hearts promises a strong hand. Four clubs and ﬁve diamonds are control-bids (cue-bids). Clearly, West has king-queenthird or-fourth in hearts. The declarer, Andrzej Oglobin from Poland, won with his club king, played a diamond to the board and led the spade 10. When East covered with the queen, South took his four spades and three other diamonds. When West kept three hearts and one club, declarer cashed the club ace, then played a heart to his jack. West won with his queen, but had to lead away from the king-six of hearts into South’s ace-10. Details are at bridgeshop.com. — By Phillip Alder

6 1 2 8 7 5 4 9 3

WITH LOVE

UMAIMA FATIMA S. KAZI November 25, 2006

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

KIDSPOT

H E A LT H C A P S U L E

C10

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

FIND-IT-ALL Y O U R B I R T H D AY

BORN today, you are a tenacious individual with a great deal of willpower and vision. This combination serves you well in many situations and can almost guarantee your success in whatever endeavor your decide to pursue. The key to your full development and ultimate contentment, of course, is the ability to stick with things until they have paid off in full — and this you have in spades! You are never afraid of making a personal sacriﬁce or of incurring hardship in the name of progress, personal development, learning or accomplishment. You are often blessed with a clear vision of the future — and you have a way of turning the impossible into the possible! You are a warm and welcoming individual, and you make friends at the drop of a hat — though, in private, you certainly don’t like everyone equally! It is very unlikely, however, that someone really rubs you the wrong way; you know how to get along with almost anyone. Also born on this date are: Christina Applegate, actress; Amy Grant, singer; Carrie Nation, activist; John F. Kennedy Jr., publisher; Joe DiMaggio, baseball player; Ricardo Montalban, actor; John Larroquette, actor; Karl F. Benz, auto maker.

PRAYER TIMINGS

W E AT H E R

WORLD

Max 33 Min 28 Max 3 Min -2

Max 28 Min 16

Max 35 Min 28 Max 8 Min 2

Max 34 Min 29

Max 5 Min 1

Max 41 Min 26

Max 42 Min 29

Max 36 Min 29

SAGITTARIUS S [[NOV. 22-DEC. 21] Max 31 Min 17

Max 28 Min 25

Max 21 Min 11

Max 32 Min 24 Max 23 Min 13

— www.met.gov.om

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

[DEC. 22-JAN 19]

AQUARIUS [JAN. 20-FEB. 18] You have a great many supporters, but none of them can do what you know how to do so well. This gives you a certain conﬁdence.

PISCES [Feb. 19-March 20] You may have overdone it a bit a while back, leaving you feeling empty or unwell in some way. It’s time to be more disciplined.

GULF Abu Dhabi Doha Dubai Kuwait Manama Riyadh

27 26 25 25 24 27

19 21 21 16 20 13

WORLD Athens Baghdad Beijing Berlin Boston Cairo Colombo Frankfurt Hong Kong Istanbul Johannesburg Kuala Lumpur Lisbon Paris Perth Singapore Tokyo Toronto

17 21 10 4 0 30 31 6 22 16 29 33 15 8 24 32 18 4

12 13 3 0 -3 20 23 3 15 9 16 24 8 3 13 25 10 -2

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (Route 36) Dept Destination Arrival Time Time 15:00 Quriyat 16:30 15:00 Sur 18:00 15:00 Jaalan 19:30 TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41) 06:30 Sohar 06:30 Buraimi 08:00 Buraimi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Buraimi 16.00 Sohar 16.00 Buraimi TO SINAW (Route 52) 17:30 Sinaw

TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

Operating Days Daily Daily Daily

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (Route 36) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily 05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily 05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

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

Daily Daily Daily via Ibri Daily Daily Daily Daily

20:50

Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41) 07:00 Sohar 07:00 Ruwi 13:30 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 17:00 Ruwi TO SINAW (Route 52) 07:00 Ruwi

08:55 11:40 20:20 14:55 17:40 19:20 22:15

Daily Daily Daily via Ibri Daily Daily Daily Daily

10:25

Daily

08:40 11:00

Daily Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54) 14:30 Nizwa 14:30 Yanqul

16:50 19:30

Daily Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54) 06:00 Nizwa 06:00 Ruwi

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54) 08:00 Nizwa 08:00 Al Araqi

10:20 12:30

Daily Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54) 15:40 Nizwa 15:40 Ruwi

17:55 20:20

Daily Daily

TO SUR (Route 55) 07:30 Sur 14:30 Sur

12:00 18:45

Daily Daily

TO SUR (Route 55) 06:00 Ruwi 14:30 Ruwi

10:45 19:00

Daily Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (Route 62) 06:30 Fahud 06:30 Yibal

10:30 11:15

Daily Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (Route 62) 12:30 Fahud 12:30 Ruwi

13:15 17:30

Daily Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (Route 100) 07:00 Salalah 20:00 10:00 Marmul 20:30 10:00 Salalah 23:30 19:00 Salalah 07:40

Daily Daily Daily Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (Route 100) 07:00 Ruwi 19:50 10:00 Marmul 13:15 10:00 Ruwi 22:30 19:00 Ruwi 07:30

Daily Daily Daily Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101) 06:00 Marmul

Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101) 06:00 Marmul

16:30

Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (Route 102) 15:00 Salalah 07:00

Daily

ARIES [March 21-APRIL 19] You are eager to get to know someone better, but you mustn’t rush things. Focus on presenting yourself in the most natural light.

TAURUS [APRIL 20-MAY 20] You have a tendency to be rash under certain circumstances, and those very circumstances may exist today. Use caution; be patient.

GEMINI [MAY 21-JUNE 20] You’re eager to get out and explore the world around you, but you may be required to stay closer to home as domestic issues beckon.

CANCER [JUNE 21-JULY 22] The time has come for you to move on, perhaps, and bid farewell to a chapter that has brought you great contentment. More such cycles lie ahead.

LEO [JULY 23-AUG. 22] You may ﬁnd yourself in unfamiliar territory. In your eagerness to get back to what you know, you may have to risk much.

VIRGO [AUG. 23-SEPT. 22] It’s a good day to listen to what others have to say, to assess the situation and to get the lay of the land. Be passive, but engaged.

LIBRA L [[SEPT. [S S 23-OCT. 22] You may be called upon to represent those whose common notion is not all that conventional or popular — yet. Its time will come!

SCORPIO S [[OCT. 23-NOV. 21] You may be at the beginning of a journey and not even know quite where you are headed, but your instincts will see you through.

5:20pm 6.28am

High tide Low tide

2:09am 7:11pm

16:50

SALALAH TO DUBAI (Route 102) 15:00 Dubai 07:00 TO DUBAI (Route 201) 06:00 Sohar 06:00 Dubai 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Dubai 15:00 Sohar 15:00 Dubai

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

Daily Daily Wed,Thur Wed,Thur Daily Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily 07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily 07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201) 07:30 Sohar 07:30 Ruwi 13:00 Sohar 13:00 Ruwi 15:30 Sohar 15:30 Ruwi

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

Daily Daily Thur-Fri Thur-Fri Daily Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204) Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily 16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily 16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

LISTINGS

PHARMACIES Round the clock Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24783334; Appolo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24782666; Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24702542, Salalah: 23291635; Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra: 24503585; Ruwi 24811715 Muscat Region Apollo, Al Hamriya. Tel: 24787766 Muscat, A Seeb Market. Tel: 24421691 Muscat, Al Khuwair. Tel: 24485740 Muscat, Al Hail South. Tel: 24537080 Dhofar Region Muscat, Al Nahdha Road, Salalah. Tel: 23291635 HOSPITALS Al Amal Medical & Health Care Centre: 24485052 Atlas Hospital: Ruwi: 24811743/ Ghubra: 24504000 Al Musaﬁr Specialised Medical Clinic: 24706453 Hatat Polyclinic LLC, Ruwi: 24563641, Azaiba: 24499269, Sohar: 2683006 Al Raffah Hospital: 24618900/1/2 Al Massaraat Clinic & Laboratory: 24566435 Al Makook Medical Coordinance Centre: 24499434 Apollo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24787766, 24787780 Capital Polyclinic: 24707549 Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic, Ruwi: 24799760/1/2 Capital Clinic, Seeb: 24420740 Ceregem National Raak: 24485633 Dr Harub’s Clinic: 24563217 Elixir Health Centre: 24565802 Emirates Medical Centre: 24604540 1st Chiropractic Centre: 24472274 Hamdan Hospital: 23212340 International Medical Centre LLC: 24794501/2/3/4/5 Kims Oman Hospital: 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency: 24760123 Lama Polyclinic, Sohar: 26751128, MBD: 24799077, Al Khuwair: 24478818 Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital: 24568870 Muscat Private Hospital: 24583600 Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair: 24477666 Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC: 22004000 ROYAL OMAN POLICE Emergencies and inquiries: 9999 General Directorate of Passport and Residence: 24569603 Directorate General of Customs: 24521109 Traffic violations inquiries: 24510228 Public Relations Admin: 24560099 ACCOMMODATION Al Bahjah Hotel: 24424400 Al Bustan Palace: 24764000 Al Khuwair Hotel Apartments: 24478171 Al Madina Holiday Inn: 24596400 Al Maha International Hotel: 24494949 Al Fanar Hotel: 24712385 Al Falaj Hotel: 24702311 Al Qurum Resort: 24605945 Azaiba Hotel Apartments: 24490979 Beach Hotel: 24696601 Bowshar Hotel: 24491105 Coral Hotel Muscat: 24692121 Crowne Plaza Muscat: 24660660 Crystal Suites: 24826100 Golden Tulip Seeb: 24510300 Grand Hyatt Muscat: 24641234 Haffa House Hotel: 24707207 Hotel Muscat Holiday: 24487123 InterContinental Muscat: 24680000 Majan Continental Hotel: 24592900 Marina Hotel: 24711711 Midan Hotel Suites: 24499565 Mina Hotel: 24711828 Muttrah Hotel: 24798401

Nuzha Hotel Apartments: 24789199 Oman Dive Centre: 24824240 Park Inn: 24507888 Qurum Beach House Hotel: 24564070 Radisson Blu Hotel: 24487777 Ramee Dream Resort Seeb: 24453399 Ramee Guestline Hotel: 24564443 Ruwi Hotel: 24704244 Safeer Hotel Suites: 24691200 Sheraton Oman Hotel: 24772772 Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa: 24776666 The Chedi Muscat: 24524400 The Treasurebox Muscat Hotel: 24502570 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:

MONDAY

Min

L O N G D I S TA N C E B U S T I M I N G S ( O M A N NAT I O NA L T R A N S P O R T C O M PA N Y S A O C ) * S U B J E C T T O C H A N G E

You may be tempted to call it quits, but that would be unwise at this time. Be patient and see what transpires in the next few days.

Sunset Sunrise (Tomorrow) 12:39pm 8:03am

SEA STATE: Slight over all of Oman coasts with maximum wave height of 1.25 metres. HORIZONTAL VISIBILITY: Good over most of the Sultanate. THE NEXT 48 HOURS OUTLOOK: Stable weather with mainly clear skies over most of the Sultanate.

Max

OMAN

CAPRICORN

11.59pm 3.04pm 5.25pm 6.39pm 5.09am

AIRLINES

ainly clear skies over most of Sultanate with chances of early morning low clouds along the coastal areas of Oman sea. EXPECTED WIND: Over most of the Sultanate the wind will be northerly to northwesterly light to moderate.

Max 41 Min 26

You are conﬁdent that others will rally to your defence if what you do brings you under ﬁre. Your instincts are keen.

Dhuhr Asr Maghrib Isha Fajr (Tomorrow)

24784545, Swiss International Airlines: 24796692, Thai Airways: 24705934, Turkish Airlines: 24703033 MUSEUMS Bait Al Baranda: Corniche (seafront opp ﬁsh market), Open from Saturday to Thursday 9am to 1pm and 4 to 6pm Natural History Museum: Al Khuwair, Tel: 24604957, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm; Thursday: 9am to 1pm Museum of Omani Heritage: (former Omani Museum), Madinat Al Alam, Sat-Wed 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday 9am to 1pm, Tel: 24600946 Armed Forces Museum: Bait Al Falaj, Tel: 24312651, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm; Thurs 9-12pm and 3-6pm; Fri 9-11am and 3-6pm. Al Hoota Caves 24498258; Turtle Beach 96550606/96550707 Children’s Science Museum: Shatti Al Qurum, Tel: 24605368, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pm Oman-French Museum: near Muscat Police Station, Tel: 24736613, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pm Bait Al Zubair, Muscat: Tel: 24736688, Al Saidiya St., Muscat museum@baitalzubairmuseum.com Open from Sat to Thurs: 9:30am to 6pm. National Museum Ruwi: Tel: 24701289, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pm Sohar Fort Museum: Tel: 26844758, Open from Saturday to Wed: 8 to 1:30pm Thurs: 9am to 1pm Muscat Gate Museum: at Al Bahri Road, Muscat open from Sat to Wed 8am to 2pm

TUESDAY FLT NO

ARRIVALS FROM

JEDDAH 0005 RIYADH 0010 SALALAH 0035 DACCA/CHITTAGONG 0130 DACCA 0130 ISTANBUL/BAHRAIN 0300 ABU DHABI 0330 BAHRAIN 0335 DUBAI 0355 DOHA 0405 DUBAI 0415 RIYADH 0645 ABU DHABI 0650 SALALAH 0655 BAHRAIN 0700 DOHA 0700 JEDDAH 0725 DUBAI 0800 DUBAI 0800 BOMBAY 0805 LONDON-HEATHROW 0820 JAIPUR 0850 HYDERABAD 0910 LUCKNOW 0915 SHARJAH 0915 BANGALORE 0920 LAHORE 0920 BANGALORE 0925 COCHIN 0925 TRIVANDRUM 0930 DUBAI 0940 MADRAS 0940 ABU DHABI 0955 DOHA 1010 TRIVANDRUM 1035 COCHIN 1050 DUBAI 1105 COLOMBO 1135 MALE 1205 KATHMANDU 1210 DELHI 1220 SALALAH 1225 MUKHAIZNA 1230 BANGKOK 1240 CALICUT 1305 DUBAI 1330 KARACHI 1340 ABU DHABI 1345 KUALA LUMPUR 1350 BANGKOK 1400 SALALAH 1425 ISLAM ABBAD/SIALKOT 1430 KHASAB 1440 DUBAI 1545 BAHRAIN 1555 LAHORE 1630 BOMBAY 1700 CALICUT 1705 DOHA 1725 MUKHAIZNA 1730 HYDERABAD 1740 DELHI 1745 BAHRAIN 1810 SHARJAH 1915 SALALAH 1930 KUWAIT 1955 DUBAI 2025 TEHRAN 2050 DUBAI 2055 BANGALORE/HYDERABAD 2105 AMSTERDAM/DOHA 2115 CHITTAGONG 2115 DELHI 2125 BOMBAY 2130 DOHA 2135 COCHIN 2140 MADRAS 2145 AMMAN 2200 MADRAS 2200 COLOMBO 2225 KATHMANDU 2235 BAHRAIN 2240 LONDON-HEATHROW/ABU DHABI 2240 SALALAH 2245 AHMEDABAD 2300 ABU DHABI 2300 AHMEDABAD/BOMBAY 2310 DOHA 2315 DOHA 2320 ZURICH/DUBAI 2320 BAHRAIN 2325 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 2325 DUBAI 2330 FRANKFURT/ABU DHABI 2330 BOMBAY 2340 CAIRO 2355 KUWAIT 2355 ABU DHABI 2355 DAMMAM 2355

WY676 WY682 WY816 WY924 BG021 NL768 4H583 EY384 GF560 ET624 EK866 QR1132 FZ041 TK778 WY412 WY686 WY638 WY902 WY658 WY668 WY644 WY114 WY122 WY692 WY154 WY324 WY674 WY432 WY142 WY132 FZ043 WY602 WY202 WY422 WY102 WY274 PK191 WY236 WY268 G9113 TG507 EK862 WY252 EY382 QR1128 9W530 WY918 WY3302 WY604 WY242 WY904 IX549 IX337 WY606 WY632 WY632 WY906 IX817 WY3304 KU677 QR8550 FZ045 WY656 WY346 WY3922 WY204 WY292 WY328 WY664 WY232 WY610 WY246 WY216 WY284 EY386 GF564 WY3306 SV534 G9117 WY914 WY614 FZ047 WY312 WY224 WY624 AI973 6.00E+81 QR1130 WY386 9W534 WY254 WY814 AI907 WY374 UL205 WY338 BA073 GF566 WY916 EY388 AI985 WY662 QR1134 LX242 WY717 WY654 LH618 WY612 9W540 WY696 WY406 WY636 WY648

JEDDAH 0005 RIYADH 0010 BANGKOK 0010 SALALAH 0035 DACCA/CHITTAGONG 0130 LAHORE 0130 DACCA 0130 ABU DHABI 0330 BAHRAIN 0335 ADDIS ABABA 0350 DUBAI 0355 DOHA 0405 DUBAI 0415 ISLAM ABBAD/BAHRAIN 0605 AMMAN 0610 RIYADH 0645 ABU DHABI 0645 SALALAH 0655 BAHRAIN 0700 DOHA 0700 KUWAIT 0705 FRANKFURT 0705 MUNICH 0705 DAMMAM 0715 ZURICH 0720 KARACHI 0720 JEDDAH 0725 TEHRAN 0730 MALPENSA 0740 PARIS 0750 DUBAI 0800 DUBAI 0800 BOMBAY 0805 BEIRUT 0820 LONDON-HEATHROW 0820 JAIPUR 0850 GWADUR 0910 HYDERABAD 0910 LUCKNOW 0915 SHARJAH 0915 BANGKOK/KARACHI 0935 DUBAI 0940 MADRAS 0940 ABU DHABI 0955 DOHA 1010 TRIVANDRUM 1035 KHASAB 1045 MUKHAIZNA 1045 DUBAI 1105 DELHI 1220 SALALAH 1225 TRIVANDRUM 1230 CALICUT 1305 DUBAI 1330 ABU DHABI 1345 ABU DHABI 1345 SALALAH 1425 MANGALORE/ABU DHABI 1440 MUKHAIZNA 1445 KUWAIT 1525 DOHA 1530 DUBAI 1545 BAHRAIN 1555 ISLAM ABBAD 1600 JAALUNI 1700 BOMBAY 1700 CALICUT 1705 LAHORE 1715 DOHA 1725 HYDERABAD 1740 DUBAI 1740 DELHI 1745 TRIVANDRUM 1750 BANGALORE 1805 ABU DHABI 1810 BAHRAIN 1810 MUKHAIZNA 1845 RIYADH 1900 SHARJAH 1915 SALALAH 1930 DUBAI 2025 DUBAI 2055 CHITTAGONG 2115 COCHIN 2120 DUBAI 2120 DELHI 2125 BOMBAY 2130 DOHA 2135 MALE 2135 COCHIN 2140 MADRAS 2145 BANGKOK 2150 MADRAS 2200 COLOMBO 2210 COLOMBO 2225 KATHMANDU 2235 LONDON-HEATHROW/ABU DHABI 2240 BAHRAIN 2240 SALALAH 2245 ABU DHABI 2300 AHMEDABAD/BOMBAY 2310 DOHA 2315 DOHA 2320 ZURICH/DUBAI 2320 ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM 2325 BAHRAIN 2325 FRANKFURT/ABU DHABI 2330 DUBAI 2330 BOMBAY 2340 DAMMAM 2355 CAIRO 2355 ABU DHABI 2355 KUWAIT 2355

FLT NO

DEPARTURES TO

ETD

FLT NO

DEPARTURES TO

AI986 LX243 QR1135 WY811 BA072

BOMBAY DUBAI/ZURICH DOHA BANGKOK ABU DHABI/LONDONHEATHROW BOMBAY ABU DHABI/FRANKFURT MADRAS LUCKNOW TRIVANDRUM RIYADH COCHIN BOMBAY BANGALORE HYDERABAD COLOMBO JAIPUR DUBAI SALALAH ISLAM ABBAD LAHORE BAHRAIN MALE ABU DHABI DOHA DUBAI/DACCA CHITTAGONG/DACCA BAHRAIN/ISTANBUL DUBAI DUBAI DELHI DOHA ABU DHABI BAHRAIN MUKHAIZNA DUBAI SALALAH DUBAI KARACHI CALICUT SHARJAH BANGKOK HYDERABAD SALALAH DUBAI ABU DHABI DELHI CHITTAGONG BOMBAY ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM DUBAI ABU DHABI DOHA COCHIN KHASAB COCHIN BAHRAIN KATHMANDU MADRAS AMMAN MUKHAIZNA DOHA FRANKFURT LONDON-HEATHROW CALICUT ZURICH PARIS CAIRO KUWAIT TEHRAN SALALAH ISLAM ABBAD/SIALKOT MUNICH MALPENSA DUBAI JEDDAH DUBAI LAHORE SALALAH KUWAIT RIYADH BAHRAIN BAHRAIN DOHA DAMMAM SHARJAH SALALAH DUBAI ABU DHABI DUBAI HYDERABAD AMMAN BEIRUT DOHA/AMSTERDAM TRIVANDRUM DOHA BOMBAY JEDDAH MADRAS DELHI BAHRAIN COLOMBO ABU DHABI

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QR1135 LX243 BA072 0025 SG062 9W539 LH619 WY251 WY267 WY685 WY201 WY431 WY235 WY691 WY643 WY273 WY601 WY901 WY657 WY323 WY637 NL769 WY667 4H584 BG022 ET625 EK867 FZ042 WY241 QR1133 EY385 TK779 WY3301 GF561 WY917 WY813 WY603 WY903 FZ044 WY345 WY823 WY291 WY215 PK192 G9114 WY815 WY231 WY327 WY905 WY283 WY385 WY373 WY605 WY631 WY245 WY717 WY203 WY311 EY383 EK863 WY3303 QR1129 9W533 WY655 WY337 WY3921 WY223 WY253 WY663 IX554 WY101 IX350 WY609 WY609 WY405 WY3305 WY913 IX818 KU678 FZ046 WY675 QR8551 WY613 WY623 WY915 WY647 WY681 GF565 EY387 WY653 WY661 WY695 WY821 G9118 SV534 WY923 WY611 TG508 WY635 FZ048 WY671 9W529 QR1131 6.00E+82 WY673 AI908 AI974 GF567 UL206 EY381

DOHA 0020 DUBAI/ZURICH 0020 ABU DHABI/LONDON-HEATHROW

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ARRIVALS FROM

WY676 WY682 WY924 BG021 4H583 TK776 EY384 GF560 EK866 QR1132 FZ041 WY686 WY638 WY902 WY658 WY668 WY674 WY602 FZ043 WY202 WY102 WY274 WY236 WY268 G9113 WY346 WY342 WY282 WY226 WY212 EK862 WY252 EY382 QR1128 9W530 IX443 WY604 WY372 WY384 WY332 WY242 WY904 WY3302 WY818 IX337 WY606 WY324 WY632 WY826 WY812 WY906 PK259 WY918 FZ045 WY656 PA450 WY204 WY292 WY664 WY3304 WY232 WY246 GF564 G9117 WY914 WY646 WY614 WY434 FZ047 AI977 KL441 WY312 AI973 6.00E+81 QR1130 9W534 WY254 WY414 AI907 UL205 WY338 GF566 BA073 WY916 SG061 EY388 AI985 WY662 QR1134 LX242 WY654 WY717 WY612 LH618 9W540 WY406 WY648 WY636 WY696

9W539 LH619 WY251 WY267 WY211 WY685 WY225 WY201 WY281 WY235 WY371 WY273 WY601 WY901 WY345 WY341 WY657 WY383 WY637 WY667 4H584 BG022 TK777 EK867 FZ042 WY241 QR1133 EY385 GF561 WY3301 WY603 WY903 FZ044 WY323 WY291 G9114 WY815 WY231 WY905 WY605 WY631 WY245 WY311 WY203 WY717 EK863 EY383 QR1129 9W533 WY917 IX442 WY655 WY337 WY253 WY413 WY3303 WY663 WY113 WY101 IX350 WY153 WY131 WY405 WY645 WY433 WY913 PK260 WY121 WY141 FZ046 WY675 WY613 PA451 WY915 WY647 WY681 GF565 WY653 WY661 WY695 G9118 WY923 WY611 WY635 FZ048 AI978 WY411 WY421 KL442 9W529 QR1131 6.00E+82 WY673 AI908 AI974 GF567 UL206 EY381

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AHMEDABAD BOMBAY ABU DHABI/FRANKFURT MADRAS LUCKNOW RIYADH BOMBAY TEHRAN HYDERABAD DAMMAM KUWAIT JAIPUR DUBAI SALALAH BAHRAIN KARACHI ABU DHABI LAHORE DOHA CHITTAGONG/DACCA CHITTAGONG/DACCA ADDIS ABABA DUBAI DUBAI DELHI DOHA ABU DHABI BAHRAIN/ISTANBUL MUKHAIZNA BAHRAIN KHASAB BILLUND DUBAI SALALAH DUBAI ISLAM ABBAD KUALA LUMPUR CALICUT TRIVANDRUM GWADUR/TURBAT SHARJAH BANGKOK HYDERABAD LAHORE SALALAH BANGALORE MALE COLOMBO DUBAI ABU DHABI DELHI ZANZIBAR/DARESSLAM BOMBAY CHITTAGONG ABU DHABI DUBAI MUKHAIZNA DOHA COCHIN BAHRAIN KATHMANDU JAALUNI COCHIN MADRAS DOHA TRIVANDRUM LONDON-HEATHROW CALICUT DUBAI DUBAI CAIRO MUKHAIZNA SALALAH MANGALORE ABU DHABI/KUWAIT DUBAI JEDDAH DOHA DUBAI DUBAI SALALAH KUWAIT RIYADH BAHRAIN ABU DHABI BAHRAIN DOHA DAMMAM KUALA LUMPUR SHARJAH RIYADH SALALAH DUBAI KARACHI/BANGKOK ABU DHABI DUBAI MEDINA TRIVANDRUM DOHA BOMBAY JEDDAH MADRAS DELHI BAHRAIN COLOMBO ABU DHABI

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

EXTRA MOST HANDMADE GOODS COULD PROBABLY BE MACHINE MADE

HANDMADE In an age when human handicraft items can be sold at a premium, which products should qualify as handmade?

his is the problem confronting executives at Etsy, the online marketplace for all things vintage and handmade, which has not allowed factory-made products to be sold on its site since it was founded in 2005. But last month, Etsy announced new policies that would allow sellers to apply to peddle items they produced with manufacturing partners, as well as to hire staff and use outside companies to ship their goods — all provided that the sellers demonstrated the “authorship, responsibility and transparency” intrinsic to handmade items. By easing the deﬁnition of “handmade,” Etsy is trying to accommodate individual vendors who are having more and more trouble keeping up with their growing volume of customers. But many Etsy users are outraged by what they see as Etsy’s abandonment of its commitment to human handicraft, with some jumping ship for purer artisan sites like Zibbet. Yet Etsy’s latest move is entirely in line with the history of handmade goods, a history that is more complicated than the simple term “handmade” implies. The artisans have run head-on into the problem that led to the Industrial Revolution: Making things by hand is slow. Really slow. Nearly 4,000 years ago, when Assyrian women wove fancy cloth for their menfolk to sell hundreds of miles away in what is now Turkey, the problem was already there. We have the women’s letters to prove it. “About the fact that I did not send you the textiles about which

you wrote, your heart should not be angry,” wrote one wife, as translated by the Assyriologist Klaas Veenhof. She couldn’t finish the textiles because she had to stop and weave new outfits for her daughter’s coming-of-age ceremony — but “whatever textiles I can manage I will send you with later caravans.” Like the Etsy artisans, these women worked for their own profits. They liked to keep them, too. In one letter, a wife asked her husband to hide the silver she earned inside a bale of wool to avoid notice by the tax collector. With their profits, these women ran their households and bought raw materials — which sometimes included slave girls to increase production — to make more cloth. After all, handmade goods require many hands; machines, there were none. Unless you call the hand loom a machine. The ancient Assyrian loom already had mechanical aids in the form of a complex of wooden bars and thread loops to open the passages for the weft thread to go across the cloth. The women no longer had to use their fingers to part each pair of threads. And what about the hand spindle, a mere stick with a bit of pottery or an apple stuck on the end? Its whirling speeds up the process of thread-spinning enormously. But spinning the thread took much longer than weaving it. (At least one Middle Kingdom Egyptian wall painting of clothmaking shows a worker saying to the thread-makers, “Hurry up!”) It was that bottleneck — lack of thread for the weavers — that led to some of the most important machines of the Industrial Revolution, such as the spinning jenny. Since then, machines have

essentially made all the thread and yarn we buy to knit and crochet and sew our handmade sweaters, doilies and dresses. Oops. Are those crafts then not “handmade”? I have friends, hand-weavers, who spin their yarn from hand-processed fibre. But they use a spinning wheel, a laboursaving invention developed in the Middle Ages. Does that yarn not count as handmade? Using a spinning wheel to make thread does seem quaint and old-fashioned enough to qualify, especially set against the giant mills of today. But by that logic, everything made by an earlier, outmoded technology could count as handmade. The truth is that almost none of the objects that we think of as handmade truly are. And that has been the case for thousands of years — long before Etsy announced this latest change to its website. A fully handmade item, like the fragment of Egyptian linen from 2,500 BC. that I came across in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, is a testament to human skill. Fine as silk, 200 threads to the inch, the linen had been hand-split and spliced end to end to make the thread. But that kind of artistry is a rare treasure today, as time is short and machines, ranging from the simple to the complex, are with us to stay. Ultimately, it is the human care, effort and ingenuity used to create an object that is important, and not if it fits the exact definition of “handmade.” Just because an object includes manufactured parts doesn’t mean it can’t reflect the touch of an individual creator’s hand: the subtly uneven knit, the finger-marked clay, and all the other happy unmechanical surprises of human quirkiness. —Elizabeth Wayland Barber/The New York Times News Service

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2013

EXTRA WHAT IS DANGEROUS FOR YOUR CHILDREN AT HOME WILL BE DANGEROUS ON A TRIP

Salman’s kindness meant a lot to me: Elli Avram

ong ago, I carried two seatbelts in my luggage. When the car that we rented for a month to drive around Turkey had no seatbelts in the back, as my husband and I had been warned, we took the two in my baggage to a body shop, paid to have them installed, and strapped our children in. For years, when I counselled families about travel, I would bring up those seatbelts — What’s dangerous for your children at home will be dangerous on a trip. Travelling safely with children means taking familiar precautions in unfamiliar settings, as well as learning to handle some unfamiliar precautions and exotic risks — all while trying to make sure everyone has a good time. Many children on the road during the holidays fall into a category known in travel medicine as VFR (visiting friends and relatives). They are “the group of patients that carry the highest risk of contracting medical problems while travelling abroad,” said Dr. Stefan Hagmann, a paediatrician who is director of the Bronx Centre for Travel and International Health at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Centre. Yet as parents, we don’t always see where the dangers lie. “The degree of expertise that families have in preparing for a trip is very variable,” said Dr. John C. Christenson, director of the paediatric travel medicine clinic at Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health in Indianapolis. Talking about healthy travel, he said, can involve “what type of clothing they should have, what type of insect repellent they should have, what do they know about the country and how safe it is.” Car accidents are probably the greatest threat to travelling children, just as they are a leading cause of injury and death at home. Roads in the developing world often are in poor condition; cars don’t always have seatbelts; signs may be in unfamiliar languages; and the rules of the road may be a little (or a lot) different. For small children travelling to developing countries, it’s important to be vigilant about animal bites, especially where rabies is still a problem. “I talk to the kids about how animals in many countries are not pets the way they are here,” said Dr. Elizabeth D. Barnett, a professor of paediatrics and director of the international clinic at Boston Medical Centre. I remember lying awake during a long-ago vacation, worrying because my 3-year-old daughter had been bitten by a monkey. It wasn’t a serious bite, but I had a friend contact the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, only to be reassured that rabies was not a risk there at the time. We were lucky: Bites can be dangerous, and monkeys do carry diseases.

B O L LY W O O D

BOLLYWOOD aspirant Elli Avram of Swedish-Greek origin, who has been eliminated from the Bigg Boss — Saath 7 house, can’t hide her gratitude for the warmth that the reality show’s host and Bollywood star Salman Khan’s extended to her. “I don’t know why he was so nice to me. He is a big superstar. And his kindness meant a lot to me,” said Elli, who was evicted Saturday. “I think he sensed that I was all alone in ‘Bigg Boss’ house. The only foreigner. He helped me feel comfortable in Bigg Boss by just the way he spoke to me. Of course, I soon became comfortable in there. I’ve learnt a lot of Hindi in there,” she added. She comes away from Bigg Boss with a good feeling about most of the inmates. “My friends say, I ﬁnd everyone to be good and likeable. But I can’t help it. I don’t have unkind thoughts about anyone inside the Bigg Boss house. Yes, there were stressful moments and ugly scenes with some of them. But it was soon okay,” she added. “If you ask me, who my special friends are I’d say Hazel Keech. She was the ﬁrst to leave Bigg Boss house.

My sister my most blunt critic: Deepika Padukone

THE HEALTHY TRIP Parents travelling with small children in countries where the water supply is not safe need to be rigorous about the old Peace Corps mantra: boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it

In a 2013 review of travel-related infections in children, Christenson and his colleagues noted the increasing numbers of children now travelling to developing countries. Depending on where they’re going, children, like their parents, may need anti-malaria medication and immunizations against diseases like typhoid, yellow fever and Japanese encephalitis (found all over Asia). They also need to be up-to-date on regular immunizations, since those diseases, including ﬂu, measles, meningitis, polio and hepatitis A, will be more prevalent in the

developing world. In fact, travelling babies as young as 6 months can get an early measles vaccine to keep them safe. Hagmann was the lead author of a 2010 study in the journal Paediatrics ﬁnding that children who were sick after international travel were more likely than adults to be hospitalised — and more likely to have gone without a pretravel health visit. Still, “kids who get sick overseas tend to get sick with illnesses they would have gotten at home, ear infections rather than malaria or tsutsugamushi fever,” said Dr. Karl Neumann, a New York City paediatrician who maintains a website and electronic newsletter about travelling with children. He suggests a “modern medical kit” that might include a filled prescription for antibiotics and contact information for home doctors. Parents travelling with small children in countries where the water supply is not safe need to be rigorous about the old Peace Corps mantra — boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it. If children do get diarrhoea, they need to keep drinking ﬂuids; if they start to get dehydrated, or develop fevers, severe stomach pains or bloody diarrhoea, it’s time to seek medical help. Skin problems are common during and after travel. In a large

review of skin conditions in young travellers, published online this month, Hagmann and his colleagues noted that children suffered insect bites and infections, including a parasitic infection, cutaneous larva migrans, that was common in travellers to the Caribbean, and sometimes picked up by running barefoot on the beach. There were other animal bites as well, and the familiar and preventable sunburns. Neumann points out that children on cruise ships are at risk: “It’s often in the winter; kids have lost their tan from the previous summer and are quite prone to sunburn.” The first rule of travel medicine is to see a doctor and get advice at least a month before you leave, so the immunisations can take effect. Consult the CDC websites about travel with children and the specific countries you’ll be visiting. Finally, remind doctors, even months after your return, that you were travelling should any medical issues arise. Those who practice in this field believe that travel with children can be managed to make it safe and healthy. “I encourage people to go to exotic different places,” Christenson said. “I always tell them you can go most everywhere around the world with a child. The important thing is you need to be prepared.” —Peri Klass/The New York Times News Service

ACTRESS Deepika Padukone, who has been appreciated for her performance in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s latest offering Goliyon Ki Raasleela — Ram Leela, says her younger sister Anisha Padukone is her most blunt critic. She is always very honest, and “I don’t mind it,” Deepika said. “She is very honest about her opinion. She is my most blunt critic and she speaks her heart. Even if she is criticising me, I don’t mind it because she is very honest and she wants me to do well. As far as Ram Leela is concerned, she just loved the ﬁlm,” Deepika told IANS. The 27-year-old, who is riding high on a string success, says she is not ready for a relationship. “I don’t think I am ready for a relationship at the moment. It’s just that I am in a happy space right now and not ready to be in a relationship,” said Deepika.

Varun gets interactive with fans via mobile chat ACTOR Varan Dhawan, who made his Bollywood debut with Student Of The Year, got up, close and personal about his life and career with his fans via a mobile chat. The 26-year-old used social communication application WeChat to connect with his fans. The actor, who is brand ambassador of WeChat, held a group chat session with his fans and answered queries related to his personal life as well as the projects he is working on, said a statement.

People associate with Bollywood stars: Lara ACTRESS Lara Dutta, who hopes to set new fashion trends with her latest range of self-designed saris, believes people have a strong connect with all that Bollywood stars do. Bollywood sets many trends — in terms of clothes, hair, accessories, colours, music and dance. It makes Lara happy. “It is great to see Bollywood celebrities contributing to so many different trends in so many different ways. I think this is one of the reasons that people associate with Bollywood glamour,” she said here. The 35-year-old started designing last year when she created a whole line of saris for women who are keen to strike the right balance between traditionalism and modernity. She has recently launched her second sari range in association with Chhabra 555. — IANS

W W W.T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M M O N DAY, N OV E M B E R 2 5, 2 0 1 3

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M O N D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

FOR RENT

3 Bedroom Villa with Maid room at Qurum 16. #24566217 / 24564686 3 Bedroom Villa Muttrah, near Oman House. Contact 99896838 Office for rent in Hamria. #99896838

Family room in Al Khuwair. Contact 95933961

ﬂat in Al Amerat 1/5 ﬂoor consists of 3 rooms, Majlis, hall and 3 water closets for 300/- O.R. #95522405

2 BHK ﬂats in Al Khuwair. Contact 97616158

3 BHK in Al Hail North. #99330385

Furnished 1BHK Darsait Indian bachelor R.O 180/-. #93289652 3BHK flat for rent in Ghubra. Contact 99792181 2BHK flat for rent in Al Khuwair. Contact 99792181 3 independent Ware houses of 400,900 and 1200 SQM in Ghala area for rent. Contact 93731363 Single room flat for rent, Behind Kims Hospital Ruwi. #96659544 One BHK at Honda Road. #98087644 For rent : shops, basement location Honda Road.#96942749 / 92433127 Villa of one floor in Al Qurum 20 near to PDO with 3 rooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 sitting rooms with partition wall in between and kitchen. Contact 97897951 2 BHK at North Azaiba, 2 Bedrooms, 1 hall & dining, kitchen, 3 bathrooms. Contact 99224748 / 99425665 2 Storey Villa, 11 rooms good for company accommodation. Contact 99664703 Rooms or Apartments attach bathroom in Qurum family or bachelors. Contact 99664703 Flat shop & Office for rent 1 Bedroom, 2 bedrooms at Ruwi Rex road & Hamriya. Contact 97236696 New 3 Building in Darsait near to Muscat IS. Contact 99102255 Flat for rent 5 Bedrooms +1 office + Majlis at Al Hail behind Ramiz centre. Contact 99412719 Mubarak

1BHK flat in Honda road. #99792181 For rent flats 1 BHK , 2BHK location Ruwi area, Honda Road. Contact 97293708 / 97331431 2BHK flats in Al Khuwair. Contact 99057348 / 99776071 Studio Flat RO 130 & 2 BHK Flat RO 200, behind Wadikabir Indian School. Contact 99376454

New show room flats store in Azaiba, Wadi Kabir. Contact 24485240/24485241/93651633 Office & residence at Al Hail North, after Al Bahjah, new building. Contact 99768094 2 BHK beautiful flat with split A/Cs, near PDO Gate No. 2 at Qurum. Contact 94057023 1BHK flat available at near Oman house at reasonable rent. Contact 93231403 1BHK RO 250/- adjacent to Indian Nursery Darsait Bldg #1619, way #1322. Contact 99476728 Office room for rent, prime location. Contact 24713253 / 99187422

2BHK apartment at the wave Muscat. Contact 99725900/99237971 Penthouse room, Muttrah Souk. Contact 99022790 / 24713253 Home for rent Amerat with airconditioners 2 Council of +2 hall+3 Bedrooms SR 400 is required to continue 99357441 2 BHK with 3 toilets – 1 no. (new building near Darsait lulu), 2bhk with dining & sitting rooms – 1 no. (near Darsait lulu), 3BHK – 2 nos. (new building near Wadi Adi round about). Ready to occupy. Contact – 96330717 / 96179644

1,2,3 BHK Flats & Villas. #92144045 1 BHK with AC MBD area. #91162431

Penthouse for Executive at Muttrah. Contact 24713253 / 99187422

3 BHK Rex road 350/-RO last. Contact 91162431

Spacious 2 BR Flat in Wadikabir. Contact 99713489

1 BHK with AC, MBD area commercial. Contact 92144045

For rent Covered Storage area Al Khuwair area (1100 m2). Contact 94408361

1,2 BHK with AC, ISD School & ISM. Contact 92144045 2 BHK with AC, Ghubrah 325/RO. Contact 92144045 1 BHK with AC Wadikabir 210/-RO. Contact 92144045 GF semi furnished ﬂat with A/C & parking 3BKH, 3 bath, 1 store Mumtaz, Ruwi, 500PM#99241044 2 BHK ﬂat for rent in Honda road, Ruwi and Mabela, split a/cs, lift, dish & security systems are available. Contact: 99367448 / 24833972/ 24833974.

2 Bedrooms ﬂat, sitting room, Kitchen and 2 bathrooms, Al Ghubra South, stadium side RO 350. Contact 99310551 1BHK with Split AC in Darsait, opp Muscat Municipality. #95217539

Shop 110 SM near Honda rd signal. Contact 92123344

Big ﬂat Azaiba 18 Nov Ground Floor, 3 Bedrooms, big living room, 3 bathrooms with AC 550 RO Family only. Contact 92479515

1 BHK with AC & Curtains new bldg, near Khimji Mart MBD. Contact 99024039 / 99061408

Villa for rent : villa with 2 rooms, 2 bathrooms, Majlis, kitchen with all the air condition. Contact 99174909

1 & 2 BHK Al Qurum. # 99024730

Luxurious 2 bedroom ﬂats with split air conditioners available for rent in Mumtaz area. Way no. 3358, Building No. 3940. Contact 24564460 / 61

4 BR Villa Al Ghubra. #99024730 2 BHK & 1 BHK ﬂats & shop space for rent in MBD area 1 BHK Flat & shop for rent in Wadi Adai area 1BHK ﬂat & 350sq meter shop space available in Al Khoudh area. Contact 93994403/ 93994402

Room for rent Wadi Kabir family working lady R.O 160/- to RO 100/Contact 98216752 1 BHK with AC, MBD area. #92144045A

Flat for rent in Wadikabir. Contact 96440598 New 1 room hall R.O.275 at Qurum 1 room at Ruwi or Wadi Al Kabeer R.O.160/-Contact: 99358589/97079146

Office spaces for rent in Al Hail on the main road, on the same building of Al Khamis Shoes at Al Hail 99870010 / 96177505

9 flat & 6shops for rent near Al Nasser cinema (flats with A/C & security system) flats will BE LET, only for staying families. Shops will not be given for Godown purposes. Contact 99460792/99700683/99413809

Shop and store in Mabaila. Contact 99355330

Independent Qurum/ Hail rooms. Contact 95529970

Villa of twin villa for rent with AC in Bowshar 4BR Majlis family hall maid room. Contact 99715495

Spacious 2BHK, Opp. Oman House. R.O 250/-. Contact 95076261

1, 2 BHK and Studio Flat in Azaiba. Contact 97630529/ 99428143 2 BHK for rent in North Darsait. Contact 94101134 1 BHK flat for rent in Mumtaz area, Way no. 3360, for Immediate occupancy rent RO 275/-.#96715569 Flat near Muscat IS Darsait. Contact 95158570 1,2,3 BHK flats & Villas. #92144045 1 BHK with AC for Commercial MBD area. Contact 92144045 1 BHK flat Wadikabeer 240/-. Contact 99358589 / 97079146 Shops, Basement Store, Wadi Al Kabeer. #99441193 / 93004802 1 and 2 BR Brand New Flats in Azaiba. Contact: 96793675 We Have Villas, Flats, Shops, Offices for in Ghala, Bousher, Qurum, Ghubra good location. CONTACT 93782735 5 BHK Twin Villa for rent in Mabela with A/C. Contact 97890260

Al Mawaleh : ﬂats for rent BRAND NEW in Shadin Complex (Behind Al Bahja Mall) + garden + swimming pool + gym, 1Bedroom 400/ RO 2 Bedroom 450/RO 3Bedroom 550/RO. Villa for rent behind City Center 5 bedroom + 5 toilet+ 1 living room + Garden + parking area + split a/c 600/RO. Contact : 93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Azaiba : • Villa for rent 4 bedroom + 5 toilet + 2 living room + split a/c + garden + maid room + 850RO. #93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Ghubra : Office Space (Near Ghubra round about) 100 square meter + 250 square meter (Per square meter 5/RO). #93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Grand Muscat Mall : Flats for rent 2 bedroom + 1 living + 3 toilet + laundry room + garden Pool + Central a/c + shaded parking + 24 hrs maintenance + security rent 700/ RO and 1 bedroom 550/RO. Contact : 93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Khuwair : Showroom for rent (Behind KFC) on service road 300 square meter (13/RO Per square meter). # : 93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705

M O N DAY, N OV E M B E R 2 5, 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE

M.V. FOR SALE

FOR SALE

FOR RENT Boushre Al Mona : Villa for rent inside complex 3 bedroom + maids room + 2 living room + small garden + private parking+ split a/c 800/RO. #93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Qurum : Villa for rent inside Rabiat complex (Behind BMW showroom) 5 bedroom + 6 toilet + maids room + store room + garden + parking + split a/c 800/RO. Contact : 93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705 Wadi Kabir : Flats for rent BRAND NEW (Near Indian School) 3 bedroom + 1 living room + 3 toilet + kitchen + split a/c 450/RO and 2 bedroom 350/RO. Contact : 93294877 / 93294878 / 97080705

FOR SALE Shop for sale, 2 running textile shops for sale at Seeb High Street, 1 shop in Dhofar building, Ruwi Contact 99326339

Restaurant for sale in Ruwi Plaza Hotel, opp. Bank Muscat, Ruwi High street. Contact 99326339

Nissan X Trail 2008 model, automatic transmission, done 228000kms.Price negotiable. Contact 99881516.

Coffee shop in Suncity hotel, near Ruwi bus stand. Contact 99326339 Running Building material business for sale with showroom 105 sqmt & inventory of tiles sanitary etc. at mabella saneya lane 2. Contact 96402091. 9 No’s of Split Unit A/C 1.5 ton for sale in Ruwi CBD Area. #98048952, 99235462, FAX 24799943 Running Parlour for sale in Muscat. Contact 98567238 / 95316155 Well running fully furnished perfume shop at Qurum business district with office for sale 91385009 Ladies Parlour with new equipments for sale prime location- Al Ghubrah North & Al Amerat. Attractive price offer. Interested parties call 96761960.

Toyota Previa model 2007, 7 Seater RO 3500. Contact 96306885

Ford Edge , 2012, KMs 14,000+ (Fully Automatic) Expat Lady driven, full warranty and service records available, RO 10,500/- negotiable. Contact 98192903

FOR SALE Spare parts shop for sale at Shell petrol pump in Barka, with wooden counter, racks, asking amount RO 5000/-. Contact 93535394 2 Houses ﬁrst line from the Beach at Kibwent Zanzibar RO 122000. Contact Owner 99348943 For sale king size bed with mattress & sofa3, +1,+1, TV stand with curios kindly. Contact 94106408 Brake and axle repair shop for sale in Wadi Kabir Sanaya. Contact 93741151 / 99773190 Running prime Café for sale or management. Contact 95709427 / 95208505

Beauty Parlour for rent / sale in Al Hail. Contact 93740129 First Grade LLC Company. With full ﬂedged steel fabrication & painting unit. In addition highly specialized line of business & with construction activity for sale. Contact 99858578 Furnished running coffee shop in Ruwi High Street area with 30 seat sitting arrangement along with 9 visa clearance looking for suitable parties for sale/rent basis. Contact 93663671 Camp for sale Including Porta cabin, kitchen & Dining facilities with RO plant. For more information. Contact Nasser 99808067

Prado 2012, km 49, 000 4 cyl TXL Classic. Contact 99443695 Ford Focus 2003 model Manual. Ford Taurus 2002 model Automatic. Contact 99104947

Nissan Sunny for sale 1.6 L, made in Japan, model 2011. CONTACT 97385534

KIA Carnival 2004, 1500 RO company service, good condition. #95190627

Mazda 6, silver Gray 2003, 125000 km Dealer Maintained RO 2100, Nissan Sunny white 2004, 185000, excellent condition RO 1600. Contact 92697489

Prado 2012, Kia Carnival 2012, Kia Cerato 2011, Toyota Camry 2009. Contact 92912353

Suzuki Swift 2007, 1550 RO, Subaru Legacy 2004, full option RO 1800. Contact 99612197

2008 model Mitsubishi Lancer, very good condition single, expat used 180,000 km, RO 1600/-. Contact 99780417

Mitsubishi Lancer 1999 model registration till October 2014. Contact 92712423

Suzuki Alto 2011, Mazda 6 2006. Contact 99794399

Honda City 2005 manual gear, full power option RO 1700/-. Contact 93289652

M O N D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION SITUATION WANTED VACANT

SITUATION WANTED SIT. WANTED Indian male, 30 yrs, looking for Job of an Accountant having 9.5 years of experience, having knowledge of Tally, Oracle based ORION, Quickbooks looking for suitable position very soon. Contact : 92629133 ERP Engineer Indian male with more than 7 years of experience, currently working SOAG company in Oman. Contact 95851254. Email:shajith_oadc@omzest.com

ACCOUNTANCY

DOMESTIC HELP

A Muscat based well established electrical contracting company having running projects in Muscat and Salalah airports looking for a managing partner from the similar ﬁeld.” Contact 93284290

Required Housemaid, full time visa available with accommodation knowledge of looking advantage any Nationality. Contact 96926322

Required Accountant with 4 yrs experience in Hotel. Send your CV : birdymaan@hotmail.com Required Accountant with Min.5 to 8 years experience for manufacturing Company and knowledge of up to Finalization and experience in ERP, Tally & MIS Report and MS Office. Send CVs to vacancyinoman123@gmail.com

BEAUTY Urgently required Indian beautician with or without Gulf experience, good salary + accommodation + food. Contact: 92284899, 92139922

CATERING Wanted kitchen helper. #95529970 Looking for General Cook experienced in Arabic, eastern, and Indian causing and waiter with visa. Contact 99190190

Housemaid (full time) required for a Malayalee family. Contact 95405033 Urgently required Keralite house maid at Al Khuwair. #93267065

ENGINEERS/TECH Require AC Technician for immediate appointment, must know all type of AC works including split, Ducted & Chiller and experience in ducting works. Contact 24811425 fax 24810592 Required Mechanical Engineer with 5years+ experience in Piping and ﬁttings in oil and Gas ﬁeld sector with the ability to source new International manufacturers and evaluate the quality of the product. Interested candidate can send their CV : gopal@anpressoman.com Urgently required in following position: Civil Engineer 1 no. with 5 yrs experience, Mechanical Engineer 1 no. with 5 yrs experience, Diploma in Civil 1 no. with 10 yrs experience, Driver 1 no. Light. Contact 92222245 / 99466540 Email: oartradingandcont@gmail.com

DRAUGHTSMAN Required a Civil Draughtsman cum Site Co-ordinator with driving license for a reputed ﬁrm in Oman. Email : mfbarka1@omantel.net.om / Fax : 26881211

DRIVER Required Graphic Designer, with minimum 2 years experience in Oman driving license with car preferred. Contact 91111675 Email: enquiry@brightstarmuscat.com

DRIVER Required Indian Heavy Driver, JCB & Excavator Operator (GCC license). Diesel mechanic with D/L. Contact 99454425 Experienced Omanis needed for (1) Outdoor administration and PRO work.(2) Driver for deliveries to customers. Contact 99592317 Urgently required Expatriate Heavy Duty Drivers, for a reputed establishment, (labour clearances ready) for immediate employment. Applicants with local release NOC with Omani Driving License send their CV’s to salejob98@gmail.com / walk in for a personal interview calling on 99274321. Driver cum Mechanic Urgently Required. Must be Reliable and Responsible and ideally have a diploma or similar in mechanics. Good salary including accommodation and health cover. To apply, please send an email to gainternationalllc@gmail.com

DOMESTIC HELP Housemaid required full time for Malayalee family, Salary RO 150. Contact 95618320

Require a Sales Engineer preferably BE Mechanical with 10 years experience in marketing oilﬁeld accessories. Candidates with Gulf experience & GCC driving license may please mail CV: msindco@gmail.com

Required Manager, Assistant Manager, Cashier cum receptionist, head waiter, Indian cook, Chinese cook, Accountant for a very reputed restaurant in Oman. Candidates should have a minimum experience of 5 years in the catering industry. Email CV to recruit.oman2014@ gmail.com

MISC English speaking experienced Philipino Lady Tailor for cutting and stitching of ladies Gowns/ Abayas etc. Contact 92545269 / 92227165 Email : ahdmct@gmail.com Wanted Carpenter, Gas cutter, Spray painter. Contact 99343242, Tel: 24817174/ fax 24812706 Email : chandrasekharmct@gmail.com Wanted experienced Philippino lady tailor. Contact 99466062 Omani Security Staff required for an International School in Al Khuwair. Contact 92347333 Required experienced HSE Officer with PDO and logistics experience. Contact: telljobs@gmail.com

OFFICE & SECRETARIAL Urgently required Female Secretary having Bachelors Degree, excellent computer & correspondence skills, proﬁcient with MS Office. Email : trade@omanmed.com

Grade 1 construction Company require Civil Engineer with 7-10 years experience. Contact omaniantrad@gmail.com

Require male Secretary for Managing Partner of a construction company. Email : omaniantrad@gmail.com

MEDICAL Urgently required female Ortho Dentist for dental clinic in Al Ghubrah. Contact 91381820 Email: care@alameendental.com Required Pharmacist, Asst Pharmacist with valid MOH license. Email : trade@omanmed.com Assistant Pharmacist with MOH license to work in capital. Email : saif695@yahoo.com Doctors are invited to run a new Clinic in Salalah as partner or rent. Contact 97413418/ 93955020 Wanted a Lady GP & Dental for a clinic. Contact 95645488 Wanted for a reputed Polyclinic female GP, Gynecologist, Dentist with MOH license. Forward CV to shazadmr@gmail.com Required a Pharmacist B Pharm. and Dentist (MOH License Holder) for a reputed polyclinic in Oman. Contact: 99621372, 97076009 mailalrawdahpolyclinic@gmail.com Required Asst. Pharmacist with MOH license for a Pharmacy in Capital area. Contact 92820570

MANAGER Young Ind Male MBA 6 yrs exp as Supervisor. Contact 93893868

M.Tech computer Science, Indian male with 3.5 years experience in Web Design seeking suitable placement. GSM 96303055, aditya.khandkar@gmail.com.

MANAGER

Wanted Computer Hardware technician and AC Technician. Contact 97014234 / 99447257/ 24504281 Email: mansur75@hotmail.co.uk

ADVERTISE NOW! 24726666 EXT: 461 / 413 /430 / 431 / 456

Mechanical Engineer, one year experience in oman, seeking suitable placement : Contact : 92016055. Rameer@gmail.com

Required Document controller, female, Omani with least 3 years experience. Contact 97716506

SKILLED / UNSKILLED Required an experienced Grader Operator (ﬁnal) with valid Oman license. Contact 99207592, Fax 24593333

SALES / MARKETING Urgently required Business Development Executive – lady -with good communication skills and account background to deal with branded malls for a Muscat office of UAE Company. Send CV to admin@wacllcoman.com Business Development Executives (Advertising/Media Sales) with pleasing personality, engaging communication skills and Oman driving licence. Email: deemaild@gmail.com

SALES / MARKETING Required qualified young personalities for Marketing executive Gents/ Ladies to carry out décor & Sales of premium class Chocolate. Minimum 2years experience required in the same field. Send CV to 24399922 Urgently required Sales Personnel with experience. Apply only who can join immediately. Email jobvaciuc@gmail.com rience Sales Executive for Int’l Courier Company in Muscat. Walk in interview from 20/11/2013 to 26/11/2013 for office location please call 99747466 Experience individual required for Marketing Department in Electromechanical Contracting Company in Oman. Send CV to jobs.oman@outlook.com Required full-Time Kitchen Designer – Design Sales Consultant :-Qualified candidates must have previous kitchen design experience(min 3 years). We are looking for highly organized professional individuals passionate about design and success driven. Interested Candidates kindly send in your CV’s to amritharajeev345@gmail.com Degree or Diploma holder in Mechanical Engineering with experience in Structural Steel Sales and Marketing . Apply thru email : recruitoman10@gmail.com Sales Executives required for a fast growing multinational building material company with valid Oman driving license. Preference will be given to candidates having 1-2 yrs experience in selling hard / exotic woods. Send CV by Email stating salary expectation & recent photograph to : sales@musandum.com Urgently we are looking sales man for mobile shop. Contact97366673/24551196 Email: smpaeds@gmail.com Looking for an expatriate lady for a book shop in Qurum area for immediate appointment. Requirements are good spoken & written English, honest, dedicated, educated with pleasing personality to deal with European & American customers and must be able to work independently. Eligible candidates can contact at 99037554 or write to logisticsshipping7@gmail.com

Urgently required a Salesman for Electronics & A/C spare parts should have 2 years experience and Omani license. Contact 99371544 Email alihamdanaaft@ gmail.com

Required: Executives – International marketing & Store-Keeper - Experience in Marble, Granite or ceramic industry with minimum 5 years’ experience preferred. Send detailed CV with expected salary sudakv@gmail.com or faxed to +968 26750186.

Landscaping Executive with knowledge of sourcing /growing plants and ﬂowers. Contact 24792173/74 Email: advance@omantel.net.om

Reputable company looking for showroom Sales and Marketing staff for enquiry please contact 96207440 or send your CV to business137@ymail.com

Indian male, 26, MSc Computer Science, technical experience in VB, .Net, PHP, HTML and MySQL, 2 years experience in trouble shooting, seeks suitable positions. Contact 92712912, ishakphassan@rocketmail.com Indian Male 24 years, B.Tech in Information Science & Engineering with one year experience. Contact 96946929 Keralite, 21 years Exp. (11 years in OMAN/UAE) in Accounts, Admin., Purchase, Sales, Projects, Imports and Tally ERP with Driving License, looking for a suitable position. Contact: 93 00 79 66. Filipino Tower Crane Operator with 6 yrs experience in GCC is looking for a suitable job in Muscat, Contact: 96750918 BBA Hons, 7years of working experience as a field supervisor and field support coordinator looking for suitable position, holding Omani driving license. Call: 97127321. Indian male, B.Tech (Mech.), MBA, MLM (Master of Labour Management), more than 15 yrs. experience and 2 yrs. in Oman as Plant Manager with valid Oman D/L. Exposure in Production, Quality Control and Admin seeks suitable placement. #91301625 Indian male, B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering, 15 yrs. experience as Plant Engineer, Quality Control Manager and Factory Manager with valid Oman D/L, seeks suitable placement. Contact: 91013578 Indian male B.com 4 years experience in motor vehicle sales man. Seek suitable placement #99421537 An Expatriate Indian Male, BA graduate, with an experience of working 2 years in Gulf, in construction field worked as admin and supervisor, with a knowledge of Fire and Safety, seeking for a good opportunity. E-Mail : sanil4484@gmail.com, #93380746 / 00919920179117 Indian Male (M. Tech)- 2 years experience as a Business Develop Manager looking for suitable post Contact#91362515 Indian Male (M. Tech) -2 Years experience as DBA looking for suitable post. Contact#97826674 Indian Female MBA - 3 Years experience as an Accountant looking for suitable post Contact: 91362516 Purchase/Logistics/Supply Chain/ Coordinator. Diploma Holder. 7 Years experience. Technical background also. Oman D/L. Good English/Computer knowledge. Looking Suitable position. 94440370 Young, dynamic, hard working, 25, male, acca finalist with driving license, seeking for immediate replacement,1 year accounting experience and currently working in Audit Firm. Contact.97654769, email id: abdullahnoor.alam@.yahoo.com 26 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 2yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat. Kindly contact him on 98201476 or email at venkat230684@gmail.com

Indian male (28), 6 months experience in van sales in diary field in Muscat, seeks a suitable placement. Contact 92987415 ERP Engineer Indian male with more than 7 years of experience, currenly working SOAG company in Oman. Contact 95851254. Email:shajith_oadc@omzest.com Indian male 25, having CA inter cleared with B.com having five years of experience in accounts and auditing, presently working in oman looking for a better placement. Mob 98097009, Email: rameesnm@gmail.com Indian male,M.Com, with 2 year experiences (one year in oman) in accounting up to finalization. experience in tally ERP 9,Peachtree & Ms office. Contact no 92046986 mail: shaneel.moni@gmail.com Indian Male, having 17 years experience in sales, currently working with Omani MNC since last 7 years, handling export & local sales, with valid Omani D/L is looking for senior position. Contact 96246981 Senior Accountant , Indian Female, B.com , CA Articles ,10+ exp. in Oman , Accounts & Finalization Etc. Immediate joining , release available , having Omani driving license. Contact – 95054843 24 yrs female with driving license, b.b.a plus I.A.T.A,3 years experience seeking suitable position in secretarial , business development, admin, hr ,procurement, travel. Contact 95337828 or e -mail at hibhak@gmail.com. CIVIL ENGINEER(FRESH),Indian female seeks suitable placement in reputed firm. contact-92956291,91233057 Indian Male, 27, Bachelor of Engineering Computer Science, 5years experience in technical software support, with excellent English and Computer knowledge seeking job on urgent basis.Contact : 95041196 Indian Male, BE Electrical Engg, fresh candidate looking for jobs in Oman. Having valid Omani driving license. Contact: 97845958 M.C.A., Male 25, Java devoloper,2 years Exp in Web Application Development. Knowledge in JAVA ( JSE, JEE MODULES ) and Oracle Database seeking suitable job. Contact Number : 94246345 Email Id:mulagala.seven@gmail.com 26 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 2yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat.# 98201476 or email at venkat230684@gmail.com Indian male, M.Com with 2 years experiences (one year in Oman) in accounting up to finalization, experience in tally ERP 9, Peachtree & Ms office. Contact no 92046986. Email: shaneel.moni@gmail.com Indian Male, 24 years MBA FINANCE 3 years experience in accounting and financial sector, currently working in Muscat. Contact : 98486125 26 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 2yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat.Kindly#him on 98201476 or email at venkat230684@gmail.com Indian Male, Mcom, 30 yrs having 8 years GCC experience in Accounts of Construction and Trading Field with valid Qatar and Oman license, adequate knowledge in ERP and Tally softwares, presently working in Muscat-Oman seeks suitable opportunities in Accounts and Finance Dept #98483181 or mails to noushiforme@yahoo.com Poly Tech (mechanical) Male, 23 years Working in Bangalore in the field of quality control, boiler and power plant, good computer knowledge and specialized in Vehicle mechanic seeking job in any technical field.Contact: 99743709 / 97350857

M O N DAY, N OV E M B E R 2 5, 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE ACCOUNTING & AUDIT SERVICES. GSM : 9880 5474 / email: acctsserv2013@gmail.com Indian male M.Com CA Inter 1st group passed Accountant 3 years in Oman 12 years India, tally knowledge. Contact 98334532 Looking for a JOB in INTERNAL AUDIT. Have two years employment visa and can join on immediate basis. Nawaz Meraj, MBA, CIA, CFE, 94289294, Available Till 27-112013. Chartered Accountant, Female, B. Sc. Accountancy (Special) Graduate with 8 years of experience seeking suitable opportunities. #93957919 Indian male, 27 yrs, 5 yrs Oman experience in the field of Accounts, confident of handling accounts upto finalization, seeks suitable placement. Contact 97013048, ravoof1407@gmail.com GENERAL MANAGER / Unit Head, with qualifications and vast experience in manufacturing, business development, operations and finance, seeks key role in reputed organization. CONTACT: 93215961 EMAIL:malveajohn@hotmail.com Indian female 23 yrs, MBA (Finance & HR), PGPFM, currently on visit, looking for suitable placement. Contact 95931988 Indian male 29, M.Com (I) 2 yrs experience in Accounts 15 months experience Oman, looking for suitable placement in Accounts. Contact 97167962 Accountant Indian male, 28 yrs , MBA, B. Com having 5+ years exp & D/L seeks immediate placement . Contact 93397327 Email: rijurenuka@gmail.com Indian female B.Com Travel & Tourism having 4 years of experience in tour operation & Hotel Industry urgently, seeking job in Front desk reception, office assistant or secretarial jobs. Now in Oman on visit visa. Can join immediately. Contact 95054319 Email rohinimathew@ymail.com Finance Manager (Group) 25 Years experience including 20 years in Oman MBA(U.K), CA Inter (India) CMA(Canada). Contact 95631834 / 96920328 / 91335205 Pakistan Lady having 15 years experience in Banking, Looking any suitable job in Account and finance. Contact 97331572 British Qualified and experience having British driving license, looking for accounts and finance job. Contact 97461987 nIndian male BBM 22 years seeking suitable placement mail. #92292547 Email: stabinstalin@ gmail.com ACCA Graduation (U.K) , 25 yrs male, 3 yrs experience in relevant field, looking for suitable placement currently on visit visa. #97268263 Chartered Accountant from India, post qualification experience 21years, working in Muscat since July 2011, at a senior position in a group of SME’s seeks suitable change. Contact 94201290 Email: chakjain37@yahoo.com Indian Female 25 yrs cost and management Accountant and M.Com with 1 yrs experience, seeking suitable placement presently on visit visa. CONTACT 92376754/ 96040125 Email anjumathews88@gmail.com Accountant Indian male, 28 yrs, MBA, B.Com having 5+ years exp & D/L seeks immediate placement. Contact 93397327 Email: rijurenuka@gmail.com Indian Male 23 years Qualification in NCVT Mechanical Course and Professional Diploma in finance Accounting requires a suitable placement any field. Contact 91031950 Email sinojmukundan@gmail.com Indian Female 23 yrs, MBA (Finance & HR), PGPFM, currently on visit, looking for suitable placement. Contact 95931988 Indian male Accountant, M.Com total 5 years experience 4 years Oman experience, seeking suitable placement. Contact 96156896 Email : aramathnibu@gmail.com Indian male 23 years, on visit visa having M.Com in management with first class looking for suitable placement. Contact 94265170

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

15 years experienced Indian accounts and ﬁnance professional with Omani driving license is looking for suitable position. The incumbent graduate with certiﬁcations in DPCS & PGDCA. Please Contact 93422557

Indian female B.Tech Civil Engg, 3 years experience (6 months in Oman) in QS, estimation, Cost control and planning, seeks suitable job. Contact 92047375 Email: vinujosephcm@gmail.com

Indian Male B.Com finance with 8 years experience in Accounts with valid Oman D/L. Contact 91064275 Manager / DY. Manager Accounts, Indian male aged 43 yrs, well experienced in accounts & finance, inclusive 3 yrs in Dubai, independently handling accounts upto finalisation, seeking placement in oman, no location constraints. contact : 98100734 email : charoos@rediffmail.com Real estate accounts & finance / administration experienced indian male seeking a suitable role in real estate companies, with 23 yrs experience in handling accounts, reporting, real estate administration etc. in middle east, ready to relocate anywhere in Oman. mob : 97256935 email: ganrajagopalan@yahoo.co.in Part time Accountant available. Contact 99013963 Chief Accountant well experienced with reputed Group, seeks placement. #95598477 / 98803439

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ADMIN/HR

Accounts Manager, Commerce Graduate, 12 yrs experience in industries, audit & tax, 6 yrs in Oman, looking for suitable placement. Contact 96621642, a.b.vasoya@gmail.com

Administrator, Admin Assistant, Office Secretary, Admin clerk Indian 7 years experience in Muscat. Contact 96337160

ARCH/ INTERIOR Iraqi Architect 23 years experience 7 years in Oman, seeking replacement. Contact 97608513 Cad Drawings Architectural detail drawings, interior exterior drawings 3D views. Contact 99610110

Indian female B. Com, MBA in Finance & HR, 1.5 yrs experience with valid D/L seeking suitable placement. Contact 97097547. Email : dhiya1988@gmail.com Highly Competent HR Professional with MBA(HR), 8+ yrs of exp (Oman, India & Africa) in Construction, Energy & Mechanical Industry is looking for Job. Immediately Available. Contact: 95930705 / 93206650 Email: get.rashid92@gmail.com

ADMIN/HR DRAUGHTSMAN

Senior Accountant, M.Com 12 years Oman experienced Finalization, Administration, management, Material & cost control, business development with Oman D/L. Call 91162345

Admin qualiﬁed female HR professional with MBA(HR), BE, PGDBM, 5 years of experience seeking suitable role in HR proﬁle, valid Oman D/L. Contact 94129462

Senior Accountant 7 years experience Indian female. # 96228351 Email : kokils81@yahoo.co.in

Indian female 29, MSc Analytical Chemistry & B Ed, having experience in Teaching (Chemistry & Physics), Office Administration and in Chemical Analysis, seeking suitable placement. Contact 00968 96374066 / 93522354 Email : priyankavipin84@gmail.com

Indian male 30 yrs , 6+yrs experience in Oman well experienced in oil & Gas construction companies in accounting (fin) & payroll (HR) fields seeking suitable placement. Contact 96979350 An Experienced MBA with skills in Accounts, Sales and Marketing is available in Oman for appropriate Job. Contact 92393258 Indian male 37 years, B.Com Graduate having 10 years experience in Oman independent handling upto finalization, having driving license. Contact 92258853 Indian male, 33 having 6 years experience in Accounts up to finalization, purchase with valid Oman D/L. Contact 99517013 Indian male 27 yrs, 5 years of Oman experience in the field of Accounts up to finalization looking for suitable placement. Contact 98732736 Email: rizwanravoofa@gmail.com Senior Accountant, 39 yrs Oil & Gas experienced. Contact 93858725 Indian male 37 years, B.Com Graduate having 10 years experience in Oman Indian handling up to finalization, having driving license. Contact 92258853 Indian female 22 yrs, B.Com Graduate CPT passed CA Inter doing M.Com final year doing (Tally, MS Office). # 96124193 / 99663957 Email : anishasasi@gmail.com Indian male Accountant M.Com, MBA 7 years experience seeking a suitable position. Contact 93029334 Email: heams.merlin@gmail.com Indian female, Accountant, B.Com 3 years experience (1.6 years) Oman Tally, Busy. Contact 96498424 ACCA qualified + advanced dip in business & accounting 5+ yrs experience in accounts & finance (1.3 yrs Oman exp) looking for suitable change. Contact 95174220 Email: accafarrukh@yahoo.com Accountant, Indian male having valid Oman driving license AGE 31, B.com graduate with, 10years of computerized accounting experience in India, U.A.E &Oman presently working as accountant in Oman seeking suitable jobs. Contact +96894058639/ +96895704584 Accountant Indian female B.Com Tally PGDCA 8 year’s exp in Oman. Contact 99058722 / 98896522

Indian female, seeking suitable placement in HR / Office Administration / Indoor sales / Accounts assistant. Contact: 91323935. Indian male 29 MBA from UK with more than 5 yrs exp as logistics coordinator (2 yrs in Muscat) holding valid Omani D/L, seeking for suitable placement. Contact – 98476634 / rahulksoman@gmail.com Indian Male 31, MBA (HR), B.Com having 9 yrs experience in HR/ Administration, 7 yrs experience in Gulf, Seeking suitable placement in Oman. Contact 92073145 Email sudheesh reghunath@gmail.com Indian male, 10 years experience in Purchase & Administration. BSc & PGDCA. Pursuing MBA. 6 Years in Oman, seeking suitable placement. Contact – 96461336 University topper M.PHIL, M.SC operations manager female with 6+ years experience seeking job in admin operations /HR. #91387047 Indian male, 29 yrs, LLB/ PGDHRM having 4 yrs exp in HR & Admin in Oman looking for a suitable vacancy. Contact 97866249 Experienced MBA IS Management Indian male with 16 years experience in Procurement & Administration in GCC, looking for a suitable placement, well versed in Purchase inventory, Safety modules and events experienced in office management, Administrative support and analytical skills on visit visa. Contact 98354262 Over 14 years of Gulf experience in Admin /HR/ Logistics Office Manager / Executive Secretary ﬂuent in Eng/ Arabic with D/L. Contact 95824598 Indian female with 17 yrs Gulf experience in Administrator & Executive Secretary looking for suitable placement. Contact 98587275 Indian female, M.Com, experience in SAP, well versed in computer, looking for jobs in Accounts / Admin / or as Sales / Purchase Coordinator works, on visit visa. Contact# 96062415 / 99102677 Electronics & Communication Engineer, MBA (HR & Marketing), Indian Female with experience. Contact 96963961

Canadian Educated Citizen, Male 45, With 17 years of experience in Finance & Accounts including 3 years of GCC Experience, is looking for a suitable Job in Finance. Contact 98711999 Email- bijou.thomas@yahoo.com

Canadian female, CHRP certiﬁed 5years experience in Canada in customer service recruitment and HR policies and procedures. Contact 97385772 Email: mathewsdliza@gmail.com

Indian male Accountant,B.Com with 6 yrs experience in Oman, seeks suitable placement. Contact 91057862. e_mail umct777@ gmail.com

Indian male 38 yrs: PG in HR with 14 yrs exp HR & Admin looking for job, possess Oman driving license. Contact 91322516, cvoman5@gmail.com

MEP Draughtsman, 4 years experience in Oman, Seeking suitable placement. Contact 96250818 Indian male 24years, (M.Tech) structures fresher seeking design job in a reputed company currently available on visit visa. Contact 91345502

DESIGNER Indian male 26 yrs, 4 years experience in designing Animation, Photoshop illustrator, CorelDraw ﬂash Maya (3D) after affects, looking for suitable placement. # 93537409 Email : omerp7@gmail.com

DRIVER Six years driving experience Dubai Eden company, 2 years experience Gourmet Cola Pakistan Pvt Ltd, 4 years contact at this number for light vehicle driver : 00968 95634500 Omani male age 28, looking for job of Driver/Guard. Call 97784121 Light Driver with car need job, Pakistani. Contact 98104631 Light Duty Driver, Looking for suitable job. Contact 94364781 Wanted Driving job. # 96741993 Light Driver. Contact 98077981 / 98946925

ENGG. / TECHNICAL Engineer with Management Background 23 yrs of exp ( 10 yrs in GCC), Worked as GM in Building/ Finishing material, Building maintenance/ Contracts, Interior Fit- out, valid D/L available on salary + profit sharing. Contact 93859365 Indian Male 24, 1 year experienced Engineer with D/L. Looking for better challenged job. Gsm: 92436708 Email: leenas.jerry@gmail.com 4 years experience in Oil & Gas Instrumentation & Control Design Engineer with BE&ME Contact: 95930521 divyaranim@gmail.com Civil Engineer Iraqi more than 25 years experience. #97464904 BE - Electrical Engr Indian male 2+ yrs experience seeking suitable placement, presently on visit visa. Contact 95483624 / 99102153 Electrical Engineer with 4.6 yrs experience in contracting field in India, technical skills in Auto Cad, MS Office, PLC & SCADA looking for suitable placement. Contact 98034809 Email varunrameshan@gmail.com Civil Engineer (Diploma), looking for a suitable placement. Contact 95200650 Diploma Civil Engineering Indian male with 5+years Oman experience in executing Civil projects, seeking suitable placements. Contact 97697470 Diploma Civil Engineer 24 yrs experience 5 yrs in Oman, seeking suitable job. Contact 92801578 Email kajialamgir@hotmail.com

Telecommunication Engineer (male-29) with six years experience in the ﬁeld of telecom switching seeking a suitable job, currently in India. Contact +91-9645106945, Oman: 96979784. Indian male, 31 yrs, Diploma in Electrical Engg, 8 yrs experience in Oman as material approval coordinator / controller seeks suitable placement. Contact 95839964, suitable for sales engineer/ purchase officer. HSE Adviser, Qualiﬁcation : Diploma Safety (Minimum 1 Year) NEBOSH, OSHA, minimum 3 years Gulf experience (Oil and Gas). Candidate must Speak & Write English. Contact : 92503125 & 92048058 Land line : 23279474 , Email : hralezco@ hotmail.com Dip Civil Engr + PGDCM 9 yrs exp in Oman in Roads & Sewer & building valid D/L. Contact 93590464 BE Electronics & Communication Engineer Indian male, 25 years, seeking suitable placement holds valid Oman driving license. Contact 97434543 Email : dz4216@gmail.com Pak male, 25 years, having 3 years Diploma of Associate Civil Engineer with 2 years experience looking for suitable placement, # 92273197; Email: yasir_usman1989@yahoo.com Electrical Engineer, 22 years experience, out of 13 years in Gulf experience in construction sector with valid Oman D/L and CEP seeks suitable placement.# 94220631

Diploma Mechanical Engineering 25 yrs Indian male 6 years experience in Quality control India. Contact 97312111 Email sultan9817@gmail.com / coolrazak151@rediffmail.com B.E Mechanical, Indian male, 26 yrs, on visiting visa, having 3 years experience in Piping Projects as QA/ QC Engineer/ Site Engineer. Contact 968 98766298 Email- nagesh.saps@gmail.com Indian male ITI, holder 13 years experience in Electrical Eng & network in India present staying in visit visa. Contact 98061783 MEP Engineer/QS/QC Inspector with 8+ yrs GCC Exp. in Plumbing, Fireﬁghting and HVAC # 95526218 Indian male 27 yrs B.Tech Automobile, 5.5 yrs experience both in Toyota & Suzuki, Looking for Service Engineer jobs. # 92449426 Email: praveennair_s@yahoo.com 47 Years Male Diploma holder in Mechanical engineering, looking for a job 20 years experience in fabrication & site work. Contact 00968 92646603 (Oman) / 0091 9423448329 (India) BE Mechanical Engineer, Indian male Looking for suitable opening in Sales, Structural design, Production, MEP and Oil and Gas sector. # 91323520. Email shuaibmohammed62@gmail.com Indian Male, B.Tech, 4 years experience in Teaching & Admin, C+C++, JAVA, SQL, Expert in Ms Office urgently, seeking for suitable jobs. Contact 97411930 Email iliyashaji@gmail.com

Purchase Officer 28 yrs Indian, Diploma in Mech Engg 5+2 yrs experience in Purchasing, Vendor development sourcing, ERP Software with valid Oman driving license, seeks suitable placement. Contact 92208296 Email : oikala.1985@gmail.com

B.Sc Civil Engineer 7 years exp Oman D/L. Contact 98502082 Email hajo2000@hotmail.com

Civil Engineer Diploma, total 5 yrs, experience (3 yrs. in Oman). Contact 93399126

Diploma in Civil Engineer 4 years experience in Oman now available in Oman, Looking a job. Contact 97415597 Indian male 25 years, B.Tech in Electronics & Communication Engineering (Automation or Instrumentation Engineer) with 1+ year India experience in Automation PLC, SCADA, DCS, HMI AC & DC Drives, Seeking suitable placement. Contact 92151143/ 92151143

Indian male 25 years, B.Tech in Electronics & Communication Engineering (Automation or Instrumentation, IT or Telecommunication Engineer) with 1+ year India experience in Automation PLC, SCADA, DCS, HMI AC & DC Drives, seeking suitable placement. Contact 92151143 , Email : ibkhanmd@gmail.com 25 Years Indian male DME holder 4 years experience in Structural & Piping ﬁeld. Procurement & Project coordination. Contac 99861593 Electronics Engineer in Oman on visit visa, seeking job.# 92009640 Masters in Civil Engineering (Indian) 22 years experience having building, Roads, Pipeline works, looking suitable position. Contact 93054949 / 98070040 Email: duggirala_km@yahoo.com Indian male-Electrical Engineer - on visit visa - seeks suitable placement - contact: 97295197 Email:rakeshns90@gmail.com

3 years experience Indian post Graduate Automation and Control Engineer seeks suitable job. Contact 99016434

B/E Electronics Engineer having 3.5 years of Indian experience in Planning, Construction, Telecommunication, Hardware Networking, Marketing. Contact 92629307 Indian male B-Tech Mechanical Engg, seeks suitable placement, now on visit. Contact 91214585

INFORMATION TECH PMP, SAP Certiﬁed in Basis having skills in SolMan, BW, BPC looking for a job Call:96067579 Female 24 Years, BE in Comp Science, seeking suitable placement. Contact 93031466 Email:ninnumenon@gmail.com

Electronics & communication Engineer holding Oman D/L experience in Huawei system 3G & 4G, great knowledge in RF planning & optimization. Email : mumooo12@hotmail.com Mob 97620210

Indian male, 30yrs, IT hardware eng g, 11yrs experience, store keeping & sales looking for suitable placement with Omani D/L. Contact 92064352

Indian 24 yrs, male B.E-ECE having 2.5 yrs exp as NOC Engineering Telecom, with certiﬁcation of CCNA & MCTS, seeks suitable job in IT & Telecom. Contact : 99689445 mail: thousi4jb@gmail.com

Experienced Operations Manager with 12 yrs experience in CCTV, ACCESS control system, Control & Automation systems and IT business, seeking senior position. Contact 98823248

Srilankan BTEC Quantity Surveyor with 6 years experience (Including Gulf), Looking for a suitable placement. Contact 98357512 Email: lebbeah@yahoo.com

Female, MS(Computer Science) 5+ years in Software Programming and Testing experience in MNC. Contact 91299232

Indian male 5 years experience in Gulf, Mechanical Engineer (Welding Inspector) CSWIP 3.1 Certiﬁed, seeking suitable placement. Contact +91 8125224797 Email : azhar_mechengg@yahoo.com Indian female Master of Science, Chemical Engineering seeking suitable placement. Contact 92292547 Email: prinsha.p@gmail.com

IT professional Indian male, 20 yrs experience in IT & ﬁnance, software, hardware, development, ERP Implementation & system, network administration seeks suitable placement. Contact 93760896 Indian female B Tech Electronics and Communication having 3 years work experience in IT Field, Having advanced Diploma in Web designing, seeking suitable placement. Contact 96147541, Email : vipinvnathan@gmail.com

M O N D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

SITUATION WANTED SITUATION WANTED SENIOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROFESSIONAL (MBA) with 14 years of experience in Real Estate & Hospitality Industry, India & UAE. I have worked for International Property Consultants like “Jones Lang LaSalle, CBRE & International Airport Infrastructure giants like GMR Infrastructure Ltd. I posses sophisticated Sales & Marketing techniques such as Solution based Selling, Revenue/Profit Enhancement. Expert in Key National & International Account Management, Customer Relationship Management, Team Leadership/Training & Development, Contract Negotiations & Deal Structuring. Currently looking for a suitable Placement in Muscat. Please contact +968 97466613 sujith.menon1978@yahoo.com

INFORMATION TECH IT Administrator, 5Yrs exp D/L, seeks placement. Contact 91383289 30 years, Indian male, IT professional with 6 years experience including GCC in hardware, networking & office administration seeks suitable placement. Contact 95096961. B.Tech (ECE) + 2 years in IT Support and 1 year ASP.NET developer looking for suitable opening in IT Sales, development & Marketing. Contact 95278688. Filipino male W/9yrs exp in systems /network support, B.S comp eng, W/CCNA, plus 5yrs exp in Qatar .looking for suitable job and currently on visit visa. # 91319643 Email: hikaph2002@yahoo.com IT Technical System support/ Hardware Engineer on visit visa. Contact 98221577 / 93320458

SECRETARIAL/OFFICE Secretary / Document Controller male 6 yrs Exp in Oman & 11 yrs in India visa transferrable and ready to join immediately. Contact: 93410135, Email: happylife.qhse59@gmail.com Indian male, 34 yrs, PGDBA in Operations Management with 14 yrs experience as Manager Administration & Sales Coordination seeks immediate placement. Contact 92769725 Male 15 years Gulf experience in Office Coordinator, Administration, Documentation with good computer skills and valid Oman Driving License. Contact 95149624 Indian female diploma 2years experience as system administrator seeking suitable position in IT/ clerical section on visit visa. Contact 95434765 Email: anuajay191@gmail.com

Indian male 27 years old, Masters in Computer Applications with 4+ years experience, Key skills: Oracle Pl/sql and .net Seeking Suitable placement.Contact +919538345624 sujithchennat@gmail.com

Indian Female, 6 years experience in Secretarial, Administration, Coordination holding Oman Driving License seeking suitable placement. Contact 95196052, 95269592.

MISCELLANEOUS

SALES / MARKETING

37 Yrs Male with 17 yrs experience in Logistics 6 yrs in Oman 1 yr experience in HR Management with qualification in Business Administration Material management, HR Management SAP Knowledge, seeks suitable placement. Contact 96304057 Warehouse Supervisor with Gulf experience computer knowledge and D/L, seeks job. Contact 92770250 Pakistani Young Male with Omani driving license wanted job. Contact 97058416 Store Keeper Keralite having Gulf experience and Computer knowledge, Seeks suitable post. Contact 92770250 Indian female 25 years, MSC MICRO Biology, Looking for placement in food or medicine industry or laboratory experience one year in dairy farm. Contact 92255983 GCC /oil field experienced Indian graduate, purchase /sales /admin / operations coordinator knowledge in office functions /store inventory fluent English, Arabic, Omani D/L. Contact 99086007

MEDICAL Pharmacist with MOH License 10 years Gulf experience in retail sector capable of managing retail network. Contact 98667088 Nursing caregiver, qualiﬁed & experienced Nurse & Assist Nurse seeks good placement at home / clinic. Contact 92989109 email: medicoport@gmail.com

MANAGER/ SUPER Indian male, M.Com 15 yrs experience (5 yrs in Oman) in banking corporate & retail loans admin manager, seeks suitable placement. Contact 94248518 Email : rayan2801@gmail.com 20+ yrs exp Senior Manager experienced in purchase, sales, admin & accounts seeks immediate placement. Contact 97073942 12+ yrs experienced Purchase Manager seeks immediate placement. Contact 98942117 20+ Yrs exp Senior Manager with release & D/L, seeks immediate placement. Contact 97073942 7 years experience gulf electric plumping foreman, Indian Kerala. Contact 96375336 Email: shadam@gmail.com

Pakistani male, 24 years BSc CCNA 1.5 year experience. # 97475611 29 Indian Female MBA in supply chain and logistics, 5 yrs experience seeking placement. 94402043, 96500790 Ten years sales experience need job. Contact 95266485 29 years male, MBA, 4years experience in sales, marketing and admin + Oman driving license needs a job. Contact 92236980 / 92223661 Email: shah_anwarss@hotmail.com MBA, Marketing executive, gulf experienced, oman driving license seeks placement, phone : 98011696 MBA Marketing, 26 yrs, 3.5 years experience in marketing and sales of Auto parts (Corporate & Market) Packaging products and exports. Good command in MS office and English. Seeking a suitable placement in reputed organization. Currently on employment visa. Contact: 97448162 Email: Flies26@yahoo. com Seeks a job: Native American - male - in Muscat seeks employment, seeking all customer services opportunities. Contact 94475783 5 Years experienced, Male Insurance Customer care Executive, ﬂuent in English with total experience of 12 years in other ﬁelds, 31 yrs, looking for suitable job vacancy. Contact 90993099 Highly Professional, 11 yrs experience in real estate, business development, Customer services, Sales & Marketing, has held senior positions with MNC’s in India, single woman, Indian National, seeks suitable placement. Contact 93593450 Email anitakuruvilla@yahoo.com Indian male 31yrs, 6 years experience in Sales & marketing in Oman, have Omani D/L looking for a suitable placement. Contact 92148170

SALES / MARKETING

Indian Male, Age 27, B.Tech in Computer Science, Valid GCC Driving License, Presently in Oman, 2 year experience in Marketing, Looking for Sales & Marketing. GSM: 93468441 Sri Lankan 22 yrs Diploma in UK, having exp. in customer services Teller Sales Marketing in UK UAE, seeking suitable placement. Contact 97409533 Female Indian MBA having 2 years experience in Sales & Marketing Oman, seeks better placement having valid GCC Oman driving license. Contact 94213211 Email : april9tea@gmail.com

MISCELLANEOUS

Indian male Graduate 40 years, having 10 years experience in Sales, Marketing and Purchase, with Oman Driving license, seeks suitable senior placement. Contact 92133277

MBA (Marketing and HR) & B.Tech (Electronics and Biomedical Engineering) with 1.5 years experience in marketing and media ﬁeld. Contact 96175799 Email: aadil.azis@gmail.com

Indian Male, having 17 years experience in sales, currently working with Omani MNC since last 7 years, handling export & local sales, with valid Omani D/L is looking for senior position. Contact 96246981

Indian Male, B.Tech, 8 years Experience in Teaching & Admin, web developing ,c,c++,java,HTML,DHT ML,programming,looking for suitable position Contact 98290053, 97068258 Email: vasanth.blessy@gmail.com

Fresh MBA marketing with Omani D/L looking for suitable placement in marketing contact: 96632102 Email: Ammarali_629@yahoo.com Indian male, 8 Years experience, seeking suitable placement in Sales & Marketing. 97385230, sagar.devlekar6@gmail.com Male, 27, A.M.E having 3 yrs of experience in Sales & Marketing with D/L seeking suitable placement. Contact 97097545, Email : dhibu2809@gmail.com Indian male 30 years B.Com Graduate with 7 years experience in Oman with Sales & Marketing of Consumer electronics and Automotive ﬁeld, seeks suitable placement. Contact 96406480

B.Tech Mechanical, 26yr Indian male having 4 yr experience in plant construction,structural fabrication & erection in India. # 0091 9546418417 E-mailmail2umesh89@gmail.com Mechanical Engineer with 5+ years experience in project management and estimation of oil and gas projects. Looking for suitable change. Contact: 95974435 Civil Quantity Surveryor, Diploma in Civil Engineering, 2 years QS and site experience in building projects, looking for suitable post in Oman. Contact: 91378212/92959092. Email: mohamednishil@gmail.com

Sharing accommodation available at Muttrah, opp. to Oman house for Executive bachelors/ Indian family. Contact 93497309 / 92350595. Twin sharing Room available with Good facilities contact 92128689 Furnished room for non cooking bachelor near Softy Ice cream, Ruwi. Contact 91066224 / 93786490 Furnished room for Exe bachelor at Rex road. Contact 92873832 Furnished bachelor accommodation Wadikabir. Contact 93681617 Spacious furnished room attached balcony near Al falaj hotel-Ruwi for Indian bachelor & room for lady (Al Maya Wadi kabir) - 96761960 Sharing accommodation available for an Executive Bachelor in a decent apartment in Al Khuwair. Contact 93209511 Sharing accommodation available for an Executive Bachelor in Al Khuwair (near Zawawi Mosque). Contact 96160245 Room for rent Al Khuwair 115 RO Bachelors. Contact 99077395

Indian male 29 yrs, BCA 8 years experience in Banking Sales Services Marketing, seeks placement. Contact 97110838 Indian male, 10 years experience in sales & marketing seeks placement. Contact 91386462 Email: riyadh.rahman@gmail.com

Indian, male, B.Sc having 16 years experience in marketing with valid Oman driving license seeks suitable placement. Contact 92722408

Opp O.K. Centre. Single Room with separate Bathroom for Indian Noncooking Exe. Bachelor. RO.120/- incl. W&E. Contact 99502581.

Indian male MBA, Seeking job in Sales, Marketing, Purchase & Admin. Contact 97475649

Indian Expat B.Com MBA( Finance) with 5.5 years in GCC having valid Oman driving license, seeking opening in Marketing/ Sales / Customer services. Contact 97881402

1 Bedroom attached toilet RO 140, 1 Bedroom RO 100 bachelors/ Family in Al Khuwair. Contact 95154331

MBA in Sales and Marketing having 7yeras experience having Omani driving license, Looking for any suitable job. Contact 94370614

MBA in Sales and Marketing having 7 years experience having Omani Driving license, looking for any suitable job. Contact 94370614 Sales Executive 15 years FMCG Sales experience in GCC with GCC D/L, Indian looking job. Contact 92121691 26 years, Looking for position in Marketing, Purchase Sales, 5 years working experience in Oman. Contact 00968 98957661 Indian male, 36 yrs, MBA, 10 yrs experience in Marketing training service in India seeks immediate employment. Contact 95867656 / 97783606, pinaki1000@rediffmail.com B.Com, MBA, Indian Senior Business Executive, 35 yrs experience seeks employment in Administration, Sales, Marketing, Logistics, Supply Chain. Call Menon : 98774861, email : prakashmenon10@hotmail.com Fresh MBA graduate with Omani D/L, looking for suitable placement in Marketing. Contact 92013737. Email: ayazafar@gmail.com. Highly qualiﬁed senior level Executive with 15+ yrs exp. in Business development, sales & marketing & operations in GCC (6 yrs in Oman) looking for challenging position. Contact 95499501 M.B.A marketing, 13 yrs experience in sign board, advertising & telecommunication. #96220975

Young Male Graduate BA Hons (Marketing)- United Kingdom with 2 years experience & driving licence seeks suitable placement in Business development/Brand management/Logistics. Call 96402727 27 years Indian male 8 years’ Indian market experience in the ﬁeld of Event Management, Sales & Customer Service, looking for a challenging opportunity in Muscat in relevant ﬁeld. # 96167803 Indian male, MCA, MBA-HR, B.Com with 9.5 yrs. Exp. looking for a suitable opportunity as IT Project Head & SAP HR Consultant (Multi tasking) presently come on visit visa in Oman, Contact GSM : +968 92801761 E-mail : rishhi@msn.com

Indian male Executive Secretary having vast experience in admin, logistics. Well versed with computer seeks suitable placement. Contact : 99514286 Indian male 25, having CA inter cleared with B.com having ﬁve years of experience in accounts and auditing, presently working in oman looking for a better placement. Mob 98097009, Email: rameesnm@ gmail.com MBA in Marketing, Banking, logistic, Procurement, Inventory control, total 4 years experience. Visa expires Dec 30, 2013, seeks suitable placement, Contact 97468157

Sharing accommodation for a small Indian Veg. family, 2 rooms, bathroom, kitchen for a non cooking Executive bachelor, near Honda road. Contact 97362057 Opp O.K. Centre. Single Bed space with attached Bathroom for Indian Non-cooking Exe. Bachelor. RO.75/incl. W&E. Contact 92605811. Furnished room in Ruwi & W/K. Contact 99794399

Spacious room with attached bath for family / Executive bachelors near ISD Darsait. Contact 99434987 Non cooking, Indian bachelor, opp. OK Center. Contact 99595733 Room for rent in Ruwi. #95372192 Labor camp accommodation – Ghala behind Komatsu #99414644 Furnished Room, CBD, Non cooking executive bachelors, free Wi Fi, Advance deposit. Contact 95934642 Furnished Room for one non-cooking bachelor in Ruwi, RO. 90 incl E& W. Contact 99754857

TRANSPORTATION

Indian Male, Having Gulf Experience More than 3 Years in Account Assistant looking for suitable jobs In Accounts . Contact : 95581902

Transportation. Contact 93405941

Male B.Com graduate 3 years experience seeks immediate placement as accounts asst or admin asst. Please # 96754380 or 93393769.

Transportation. Contact 99077348

Transportation available. Contact 95570429

Car with driver available. #99526610 For transportation. # 98782075

Pakistani Male 24, MBA Finance with 2 years experience looking for any suitable Placement. (Finance/ Accounts/Marketing/Admin). Contact 97464465

GOOD NEWS

Single room, furnised with ac & attached bathroom available on temporary or permanent basis. Call fm gsm only. Gsm 9880 5474

Planning Engineer having M Tech in Construction Management with 2 years experience. Currently employed for a reputed company construction company in Oman. Proﬁcient in Primavera P3 and P6. Mob; 98278801 / 99461643 e-mail id; asifkutiady@gmail.com Female 23 Indian Graduate in Computer application and Diploma in Java technology, seeking for a suitable placement in IT sector currently on visit visa. Contact 99809810 / 92105790

Indian male BBA marketing having Oman driving license experience seeking suitable job. Contact 98009183

MISCELLANEOUS Indian male 25 yrs, with 2 years experience in Oman as Sales man looking for a suitable placement. Contact 95285270

ACC. AVAILABLE

Transportation. Contact 91310107 Transportation. Contact 99508282

Art of living happiness program to relax your body and mind and to overcome stress through various breathing techniques from 2nd Dec’13 to 7th Dec’13 from 7:30 pm to 10:15 pm at Al Khuwair. Contact 94039695 / 95429685 Health, happiness and energy workshop free 2 hours workshop to learn practical breathing techniques to learn practical breathing techniques to handle mind and negative emotions. On 30th Nov 13 from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm at Al Khuwair. Contact 94039695 / 95429685 Genuine Ayurvedic treatments & massage, ayurvedic clinic, Al Khuwair. Contact 24478618/ 97263637/ 94008839 Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain, backache, paralysis, massage, steam bath, obesity, spandylitis etc, ideal care Ayurvedic, clinic Azaiba. Contact 99639695 FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know more about Islam, please call: 99425598, 96050000, 99353988, 99253818, 99341395, and 99379133. For ladies: 99415818, 99321360, 99730723 Orvisit: www.islamfact.com Ayurvedic treatment for backache paralysis arthritis etc. & massage All Season (Vaidyaratnam). #24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980

BUYING/SELLING Office & House hold Furniture & Electronics items.#99834373 / 96642500 Office & House hold Furniture & Electronics items. #99834373 / 96642500 Good Quality Wooden Kicking blocks available 1.2 mtr & 2.6 mtr length. Contact ahastco123@yahoo.com , Ph: 99318152 Wanted for purchase a medium size licensed poultery farm in Seeb or Barka areas. Contact + (968) 99315293/+(968) 95884763 We Buy all types of Wooden Scraps. mail- ahastco123@ yahoo.com ,Ph: 24458759/ 98539316/ 99318152

MATRIMONIAL Nair boy, 28/168 cms Kritiga chowa dosham from Pathanamthitta. Working in Oman. Seeking suitable alliance, contact 9515 6435 Nair Boy, Age 34, Sudhajathakam, Star Pooyam, from Palakkad, well Settled in Muscat, looking for suitable alliance. #95461965 & 98221147 Nair Girl 28 164 cm Bharni, MSc. Alleppey dist, seeks suitable alliance. Contact +91 4792339509 Hindu Ezhava Girl, 25 yrs, B.Tech ECE looking for suitable proposal (preferred Civil Engineer). Contact 94376201 Alliance for educated Sunni Muslim girl 26 years from Bangalore preference for professionals contact :syedkhalid123@hotmail.com

Transportation. Contact 99509283 26 year Indian Chartered Accountant male with 2yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat. Kindly # him on 98201476 or email at venkat230684@gmail.com Indian male Executive Secretary having vast experience in admin, logistics, well versed with computer seeks suitable placement. Contact : 99514286 Diploma Holder, 7 Years experience in Purchase/Logistic/Supply Chain/ Coordinator. Technical background with Oman D/L. Good English/Computer knowledge, looking Suitable position. 94440370 Indian female M.com/ICWAI(inter) seeking suitable placement nshkumari30@gmail.com Contact:24831091/98506722 Having experience in sales with Omani driving license, looking for a suitable position Contact 99834931 26 years Indian Chartered Accountant male with 2 yrs of experience is seeking suitable placement in Muscat. Contact him on 98201476 or email at venkat230684@gmail.com

Transportation. Contact 99664703

MISCELLANEOUS

Keralite RC Girl 26 years 160 cm working MOH. Contact 92365310

MANPOWER

Indian Male, 30.Y. Looking for Job of an Accountant having 9.5 years of experience, having knowledge of Tally, Oracle based ORION, Quick-books Looking for suitable Position very soon. Contact on: 92629133 Indian female MSC Nursing with 3 years experience presently in Oman seeks suitable placement.#95190177, email:anilmath@gmail.com Indian male executive secretary having vast experience in admin. Logistics. Well versed with computer seek suitable placement. #99514286 Accountant, young, Indian male B.com having 2 years of experience in Tally ERP.9 and ready to join immediately, Contact 95534746 Project Engineer Indian male 26 having 5.5 years experience in oil & gas ﬁeld with 2 years gulf experience and valid Oman driving license. 15 Years experienced light duty indian driver knowing electrical work . #97413721

We can provide (supply) for 6 months or 1 year cleaners, Office boys and helpers. Contact 94151939/ 95788339 Email: alkindi07@yahoo.com Housemaid, male / female cleaners, house boy, light / heavy driver, sales girl, accountant, all skilled & unskilled workers from India, Sri Lanka. Contact Mr. Jerry 95175192, mail:, oman.manpower@yahoo.com We supply manpower locally for contracting companies, masons & helpers. Contact Nasser: 99786772

M O N DAY, N OV E M B E R 2 5, 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE SITUATION WANTED CARGO

TOURS

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise with Buffet, & Land Tours Al Ainain Marine Tours-Contact 98029602, 92808636

We arrange Tours to Jabel Alakhdar / Shames wahiba Sands. Contact 99839898

BUSINESS

RENT A CAR

Running prime café for sale or management. Contact 95729427/95208505 Seeking an investing partner to run an existing Hospitality business. (Cafe & restaurant). Contact 95517471 Looking for Omani partner for business development services. Contact 93194825 Email: edumass4@gmail.com We want to buy car war work shop Muscat or nearby Muscat. Contact with detail mobile 93535394 CANADIAN company. for immigration & manpower is looking for a partner in Oman with license !For contact evro21@gmail.com 0097333054453

LOST Banu Das Rakhal has lost Bangladeshi passport No AC 7479328. Finder please handover to ROP. Fadhal Karim Abu Alkhir has lost Bangladeshi passport No B 1533903. Finder please handover to ROP

FOR HIRE

NRI

Party & Wedding equipment rentals. Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting, Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crockery, Glassware, Chaﬁng Dishes, Ice Sculptures, to Large Sound Systems and spectacular lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222 for Catering and Croyden 9623 5555 for Sound & Light. www.tunesoman.com, E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

A well running Civil contracting company LLC doing ministry work, looking for new sponsor and investor or partner.#96726115 Restaurant + coffee shop with seating capacity of 50 people and potential to make 90 (with mezzanine in running condition doing excellent business in a prime business location at Wattayah is available for purchase / investment. Interested parties may please call on 97414513 or 96344753

At Udupi high quality Royal designed ﬂats with good facilities for elderly people & children’s. This is the booking time with unbelievable prices 3BHK & 2BHK Cont 96440811

Cranes and excavators available on hire. Contact 99209427 25/ 50 seater Buses for rent/ leasing with drivers in PDO Speciﬁcation. Contact 99839898

Crane Trailor Hiab. CONTACT 99354909 For Rent Truck Tipper 18 m. Contact 95120774

Silver Car - Car Rental with good rate, Latest saloon cars & 4WDs are available. Contact 96166155 / 24488737 ADVERTISE NOW! 24726666 EXT: 461 / 413 /430 / 431 / 456

M O N D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 3

DAILY GUIDE

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

COMPUTER

SERVICES

WEBSITE

CLASSES

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles polishing, carpet shampooing, maintenance. Contact ABU QABAS99320217 /24788722 Split & Window A.C Servicing & repairing. Contact 99380307 Split /window A/C SERVICING 5/10R.O. Contact 95084850 Door to Door Computers repair specialist laptop software Website cartridges. Contact 99199376 Marble polishing & crystallization building cleaning ﬂoor, ﬂoor polishing, carpet, sofa shampooing pest control, anti termite, shifting, maintenance. Contact 99504275

Learn To use all APPS of your phone by an APPS EXPERT Course duration 2 weeks Course fees 30 RO #92174669 Learn Drawing & painting for children. (MBD area Ruwi) #95308320

WEB, ERP and Business Intelligence (BI) creation and management at rock bottom price. Contact: http//webviewoman

SERVICES General Cleaning, Carpet Shampooing, Floor Polishing services. Ocean Center.# 24707833/ 99344723 Pest Control Treatments. Ocean Center. Contact 24707050/ 99344723

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