44167

MONDAY, September 7, 2015 / 23 Dhul Qa’ada 1436 AH timesofoman.com wtimesofoman.com facebook.com/timesofoman twitter.com/timesofoman blog.timesofoman.com ISO 9001:2008 Certified Company

S CA N T H I S Q R CO D E TO I N STA N T LY

L AU N C H T H E V I D EO

His Majesty sends greetings

Multi-specialty hospital in Muscat to be opened soon

MUSCAT: His Majesty Sul-tan Qaboos bin Said has sent a cable of congratulations to President Dilma Rousseff of the Federal Republic of Brazil on the occasion of her country’s National Day.

In his cable, His Majesty the Sultan expressed his sincere congratulations along with his best wishes of good health and happiness to President Rouss-eff and the friendly Brazilian people further progress and prosperity. -ONA

HM cables >A6

REJIMON K reji@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: A multi-specialty 100-bed hospital worth OMR15 million, built by Lifeline Hospi-tals, a VPS Group unit, will be opened by the end of this year, the top official of the group said.

“As part of our expansion plans, the new multi-specialty hospital will open by the end of this year in Al Khuwair, Muscat. It will cater to patients from all segments and will have all kinds of modern treatment facilities,” Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, manag-ing director of the VPS group, told the Times of Oman in an ex-clusive interview.

The new hospital to be opened in Al Khuwair will be the third Lifeline hospital in Oman. The group already operates one each in Salalah and Sohar.

“Our market study reveals that Oman will be needing more healthcare facilities in the com-ing days. By bringing special-ist treatment to Oman, we are confident that we will be able to fill the demand gap,” Sham-sheer added.

“We are aware that, unfor-tunately, patients are forced to wait in hospitals for their turn to receive specialized treat-ment. Entry of new hospitals can ease the situation,” Sham-sheer said. At present, the VPS group has 14 hospitals in the region with 7,500 employees and 650 medics, and are ready to open the new ones in Qatar, Kuwait and in West London in the coming years. >A4

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

Omani man arrested for ‘passport fraud’Times News Service

MUSCAT: An Omani national was arrested by the Directorate General of Inquiries and Inves-tigations officers in Seeb, for al-legedly deceiving expatriates by promising them to help get Oma-ni passports.

An official said, “The suspect told the expatriates that he would get them Omani passports in exchange of money. As part of the deal, he asked them to pay OMR25,000 in instalments.”

“The suspect then asked the expatriate and his family to come to the passport building wear-ing the national dress to take the

delivery of passports. He showed them two passports and asked the head of the family to give the money. The two passports he was offering as part the deal belonged to someone else. The expatriate got suspicious and reported the case to police,” added the source.

After investigations, Royal Oman Police (ROP) sleuths ar-rested the man. They found a wireless radio and three vehicles from his possession.

On questioning, the suspect confessed to his crime. He also confessed to two other similar crimes he committed in the past. Those cases were registered with the Muttrah ROP.

F O R D U P I N G E X P A T S

SALEH AL SHAIBANYSaleh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Prominent Omanis and Syrian residents in the Sul-tanate are pleading for urgent donations to help thousands of people made homeless by the con-flict as fierce fighting rages on be-tween IS and government forces.

The world was shocked last week by the pictures of Syrian toddler Aylan Kurdi, whose body washed up on a Turkish holiday beach after his family’s bid to escape violence at home ended in heartbreaking tragedy. Thou-

sands of Syrians are risking their lives to reach the West to escape the crisis and those who make it, end up living in squalid environ-ment as refugees.

“Nobody wants to leave the comfort of his own home and go abroad but the problem is that they are forced to do it because they don’t have homes any more. Houses are being bombed and some are forced to leave home because they fear persecution by the IS,” Mohammed Hakeem, a Syrian living in Oman, told Times of Oman.

“It is heart wrenching to watch

a beautiful boy sleeping but de-void of happiness. Families are torn apart looking for a safe haven to raise their children. This is not anymore an issue of immigrants but of human rights denied,” Malak Al Shaibani, the Direc-tor General of National Business Center, said.

A ministry of foreign affairs official told Times of Oman that Syria was a priority for it, “as any country that needs urgent help”.

He added: “We don’t publicise our support to brotherly coun-tries but we have been doing it from the very beginning. Syria is our priority as any country that needs urgent help. We don’t aban-don our friends in their moment of need.”

Charity organisations in Oman say they have already started a do-nation drive in collaboration with international charities to help Syrians as well as the refugees and the process is still active and will continue. >A6

Moved by the plight of Syrian refugees,

charitable organisations in Oman are doing

their best to help them overcome the crisis

HOMELESS: Boys from Damascus hold onto the fence of a newly opened reception camp for mi-grants near the village of Roszke, in Hungary on Sunday. -Reuters

OMANIndians buying assets

1NRIs living in Oman are buying property in India following the rupee dip. >A3

REGIONHouthi bases bombed

2Saudi-led coalition jets bombed a Houthi military positions in Sanaa. >A7

MARKETBank credit surges

3Oman’s commercial banks have achieved a 9.15% credit growth. >B1

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

C7All eyes on the iPhone

Rescue teams still looking for three peopleREJIMON K/FAHAD AL GHADANIreji@timesofoman.comfahadnews@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Police rescue teams are still looking for three people who were lost in floods caused by heavy rainfall on Friday, a senior official told Times of Oman.

Rescue operations“We are still continuing our search and rescue operations to find one [person] who drowned in Ibri Wadi, one in Watayah and also for the person who was swept away in [the] Muttrah Corniche flood wa-ters,” the senior police official told Times of Oman. The flash floods triggered by heavy rains on Friday have claimed four lives. >A6

F R I D A Y R A I N

HELP THEM

A2 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

OMAN Srinivas K Naidu, principal, Indian School Muscat and M P

Vinoba, Principal of Indian School Ibri were conferred the

‘CBSE Mentor Award to the Principals for the year 2014

ISM, Ibri principals honoured >A4

ROP parade marks officers’ graduationNIZWA: Royal Oman Police (ROP) on Sunday conducted a pa-rade to mark the graduation of the 65th batch of new police recruits at the parade ground in the Sultan Qaboos Academy for Police Sci-ences in Nizwa.

The graduation ceremony was held under the patronage of Maj. Gen Sulaiman bin Mohammed Al Harthy, Assistant Inspector Gen-eral of Police and Customs for Administrative and Financial Af-fairs, in the presence of a number of senior officers of the ROP and Teaching and Training Authority at the Academy.

The graduation ceremony started with a military salute to the chief guest. Then, the com-

mander of the parade took per-mission from the chief guest to inspect the front column of graduates. After that, the gradu-ates performed military march before the main dais in slow mo-tion. The chief guest distributed the awards for excellence to the top graduates of the 65th batch of new police recruits.

The graduates then sang the ROP anthem and proclaimed thrice ‘Long Live His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, the Su-preme Commander.’ The Com-mander of the column then took permission from the chief guest for the column to dismiss, signal-ling the conclusion of the gradua-tion protocols.– ONA

R O P C E R E M O N Y‘Lawyers shortage to be over by next year’

Times News Service

MUSCAT: The shortage of law-yers at the Appeals Court and the Supreme Court, is expected to be over by the end of next year, said Dr Hamad bin Hamdan Al Rabiai, Vice Chairman of the Oman Law-yers Association (OLA) and mem-ber of the lawyers admission com-mittee affiliated to the Ministry of Justice.

Talking to Al Shabiba, the sister publication of Times of Oman, he said there has been a significant increase in the number of gradu-ates of law schools.

1,000 lawyersCurrently, there are 1,000 lawyers registered with the Ministry of Justice. Al Rabiai attributed the decrease in the number of lawyers working at advocacy firms and of-

fices to the decision banning them from practicing law unless they are full-time lawyers and not em-ployed in public jobs.

He noted that the association

members support the ruling, since it reassures the public that lawyers are not preoccupied with other matters. In 2012, the Ministry of Justice issued a decision permit-

ting the advocacy offices to seek the assistance of expatriate law-yers until 2016, in light of the diffi-culties the nation’s law firms faced in hiring lawyers who are fully devoted to the profession and who are allowed to plead at the Appeals and Supreme Courts.

Job preferences“The other challenges in attracting Omani lawyers are that they prefer to work in the legal departments of the government and private es-tablishments, instead of advocacy firms and offices. The experience that Omani lawyers acquire at the advocacy offices will qualify them to run their own advocacy offices in the future,” he said.

Regarding support the Oman Lawyers Association (OLA) pro-vides Omani lawyers, Al Rabiai said that the OLA assists lawyers in their jobs and in improving the professional quality. This included external visits organised for them, he said, adding that this month a number of lawyers will visit France to participate in exchanges with French lawyers.

Training sessions“We also organise training ses-sions for lawyers. The Oman Law-yers Association has accorded top priority and significance to cementing the principles and tra-ditions of the profession and the freedom of lawyers in performing their duties.

The Oman Lawyers Association also participates in the draft laws and legislation referred to it by government departments, when concerned with their opinion,” he said.

A senior advocate

attributed the

decrease in number

of lawyers working

at advocacy firms to

the decision banning

them from practising

law unless they are

full-time lawyers

The challenges in attracting Omani lawyers are that

they prefer to work in the legal departments of the

government and private establishments, instead of

advocacy firms and offices.

Dr Hamad bin Hamdan Al RabiaiVice Chairman of the Oman Lawyers Association

Doctors perform landmark surgery

MUSCAT: A medical team at Sul-tan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH) has successfully planted a valve inside the Aorta and Mitral valves through a catheter. In a first of its kind surgery, a small open-ing, less than 5 cm, was made at the chest of a pregnant woman.

The cardiac surgery team was led by Dr Hilal bin Ali Al Sabti, CEO of the Oman Medical Spe-cialty Board and senior consult-ant cardio-thorathic surgery at SQUH. He was assisted by Dr Adel bin Hashim Al Kindi, Dr

Tariq Alam Eddin, Dr Hatim bin Ali Al Lawati, Dr Nasser bin Ab-dullah Al Kimani and Dr Surish Chingodi. During the three-hour long surgery, the team managed to plant two new valves.

This the first time a valve has been planted inside a valve through a catheter surgically. The Aorta and Mitral vales of the pa-tient, who is now pregnant, was damaged eight years before the surgery. This achievement has added to the previous achieve-ments made by SQUH.– ONA

M E D I C A L R E C O R D

CARDIAC MILESTONE: This is the first time a valve has been

planted inside a valve through a catheter surgically.

GRADUATION CEREMONY: The graduation ceremony was held

under the patronage of Maj. Gen Sulaiman bin Mohammed Al

Harthy, Assistant Inspector General of Police and Customs.– ONA

A3

OMANM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Share your world with us on Instagram

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY SHARE YOURPHOTOGRAPHS

Declining rupee triggers NRIs’ property buying

Times News Service

MUSCAT: The decline in value of the Indian rupee over the last few months is luring NRIs living in Oman to purchase more than one property in India, according to participants of the India Home Fair, which was conducted by HDFC, India’s largest home loan bank, at Al Falaj Hotel in Muscat past weekend.

The two-day fair displayed properties and real estate devel-opments by more than 40 build-ers in different parts of India. “We had a very good response, as 1,200 people visited the fair and around 25 units were pur-chased on the first day, despite the heavy rains in Muscat,” said Ab-himanyu Kukreja, Oman Country Head of HDFC.

Safest optionHe added that this is the right time for NRIs to buy property in India, as prices on the Indian property market have stabilised and the rupee is weak, which gives more power to the Omani Rial. “NRIs in Oman mostly prefer investing in property, as it is one of the saf-

est options and offers a good re-turn, since the capital value of any property appreciates,” he added.

The Indian rupee was recorded at Rs173.144 to OMR1 on Sunday morning.

In fact, a depreciating ru-pee makes properties in India nearly 20 per cent cheaper for NRIs, compared to prices a few months ago.

“Plus, there is always a feeling

of returning home, since NRIs don’t receive citizenship in this region, so property investment becomes a natural choice. And, moreover, investing in local mar-kets is not an easy option,” said property dealers who participat-ed in the fair.

According to dealers, proper-ties in Bengaluru, Pune, Chen-nai and Delhi feature in the top four destinations list for NRIs in Oman.

“This shows that they are look-ing for cities which will give them good returns,” they added.

World Bank forecastThe World Bank has forecast remittances in the developing world would reach $440 billion in 2015, with India having topped the chart last year with an inflow of $70bn.

Abhimanyu Kukreja also in-formed that for the benefit of NRIs in Oman, they have the op-portunity to meet with all ma-jor builders from various states in India.

“When selecting builders, we had taken special care so that only those developers who have a re-puted name in the market would be allowed to participate in this exhibition.

“For its part, HDFC has many novel schemes aimed at prospec-tive real estate buyers. All home loan schemes from the bank were explained at the exhibition ven-ue,” he added.

The major cities represented at the India Home fair included Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Nag-pur, Ahmedabad, Pune, Punjab, Calcutta, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Chennai, Coimbatore, Trivan-drum, Cochin, Trichur, Calicut, Bangalore and Mysore.

India Home Fair organisers in Muscat

say this is the right time for NRIs to buy

property in India, as prices in the Indian

property market have stabilised and the

rupee is weak, which gives more

power to the remittances

GraphicsSource: Central Bank of Oman

RUPEES PER OMANI RIALAugust September

172

171

173 BUY

SELL

25

173.1

172.7

27

171.9

171.4

1

172.9

172.3

171.9

172.4

2 6

173.1

172.6

A4 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

OMAN 9 male artists are required as ‘Extras’ for Arena di

Verona’s sumptuous opera production of ‘Turandot’

which will open the ROHM’s 2015-2016 season.

ISM, Ibri principals honouredTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Srinivas K Naidu, principal, Indian School Muscat and M P Vinoba, principal, Indian School Ibri, were conferred the ‘CBSE Mentor Award to the Prin-cipals for the year 2014’ by the In-dian government.

The two educationists received the award from the Human Re-sources Development Minister Smriti Zubin Irani at a function held in Delhi.

In all, 16 principals of CBSE schools from India and abroad were selected for the award this year.

The mentor awards recognise principals who go an extra mile in their endeavour to promote excel-lence in schools.

Thirty-four teachers from across India and abroad were conferred the CBSE award for their innovations in classroom teaching. The selection of the awardees is based on academic ef-ficiency, desire for improvement, genuine interest, reputation in the community, love for children, perseverance and commitment towards the field of education.

Sixteen mentors were awarded for regular visits to clusters of schools for promoting quality.

Srinivas K. Naidu was ap-pointed as the Mentor Principal by CBSE during the academic year 2013-14. He is tasked with the mentoring of Indian School Al Seeb, Indian School Nizwa, Indi-an School Ibri, Indian School Sur and Indian School Jalan.

I N D I A N S C H O O L S

NATIONAL HONOUR: Srinivas K Naidu, principal, Indian School

Muscat and M P Vinoba, principal of Indian School Ibri were

conferred the ‘CBSE Mentor Award to the Principals for the year

2014’– Supplied photo

Teachers unveil their hidden artistic talents

SARAH MACDONALDsarah@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Each wall in the hall-ways of TAISM (The American International School of Mus-cat) is decorated with the stu-dents’ artwork, and now some talented teachers have been ex-hibited their work, too, thanks to a project aimed at promoting art and dialogue.

Called ‘The Hidden Artists,’ the project was started by high school art teacher, Raymond Montoya. In conversations with other teachers he found that a number of them painted, drew, made sculptures and did other types of art in their free time so he began displaying their art, one teacher at a time, on the walls, too.

“At first my primary goal was to present the faculty to the parent community and student commu-nity in a light they hadn’t experi-enced before,” he said.

At first Montoya found it chal-lenging to get the teachers to come forward and display their work for the public to see since they are not professional artists who are used to having their work exposed and open to scrutiny.

First exhibitionThe first exhibition was by high school biology teacher Chris Charnitski, whose colourful paint-ings are inspired by microscopic amoeba shapes, cell structures and other features of the subject he teaches.

“I finally talked (Chris Charnit-ski) into it…and it was amazing how his work was received by the students. They couldn’t believe

their science teacher was an artist as well,” Montoya said.

He quickly realised that having the teachers’ art on display was a way for the students to understand that their teachers are people with diverse interests and skills that go beyond the classroom.

He hoped they would also be in-spired to take up hobbies and be-come lifelong learners who don’t just focus on their careers but have other passions.

“It’s a perfect model for stu-dents in that they begin to see that

people can be more than their job. There are so many facets to the in-dividual. They, too, should develop interests outside of their profes-sional goals,” he said.

The exhibitions continued with high school English teach-er Stephen Ringo, who makes sculptures from found objects like wood and plastic. Then el-ementary school art teacher Jacob Kriefall displayed his collage art, and Montoya exhibited his own work, which is largely print mak-ing and some constructions. Cur-

rently grade one teacher Denise Serna has a collection of drawings on display.

The work is professionally framed and carefully hung. The teachers are also required to write artists’ statements about their work, as they would in a gallery.

The artists’ statements revealed the teachers’ artistic inspirations and involvement in art. For some art had been a passion since child-hood, even if they had kept it hid-den, Montoya said.

“What I find is that when they actually do it and they get the feed-back, it opens up a whole new part of their lives and it encourages their work but it also encourages them to share their work,” he said.

Montoya said the project is also a way for students and teachers to have conversations about art.

The students can learn a lot about their both their teachers and the importance of art thanks to the exhibitions.

‘The Hidden Artists’ project has proven to be so popular that Mon-toya already has teachers schedule to unveil their talents until March, when he is considering having a themed group exhibition.

“‘The Hidden Artists’ brings light to a wealth of art in Muscat that goes unseen and untapped,” he concluded.

Called ‘The Hidden

Artists,’ the project

was started by high

school art teacher,

Raymond Montoya.

He realised that

having the teachers’

art on display was a

way for the students

to understand that

their teachers have

diverse interests

ART ATTACK: Raymond Montoya, ‘The Hidden Artists’ organiser. (Below) Chris Charnitski’s art work

on display at TAISM.–Supplied photo

SCAN THIS QR CODE TO INSTANTLY VISIT

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

ROHM seeks male extrasfor ‘Turandot’ Times News Service

MUSCAT: Want to play the role of a soldier, a peasant, a manda-rin, an executioner, or a prince? The Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) is looking to cast an additional nine men as ‘extras’ for Arena di Verona’s sumptu-ous opera production of ‘Turan-dot’, which will open the 2015- 2016 season.

Auditions for these roles will be held on September 15, at 6pm at the Royal Opera House Muscat. ROHM is looking for men, aged approximately 18–45 years, height between 1m72 – 1m90 and who should have an average build.

The ROHM needs the selected artist to be available for all sched-uled rehearsals (although this does not necessarily mean you will be required at all times) and performances (please note that you may also be required to come in slightly earlier for some re-hearsals to get into costume).

Rehearsal scheduleSeptember 16: 16.00 – 20.30 Studio Rehearsal, September 17: 16.00 – 20.30 Studio Rehearsal, September 18: Day Off, Satur-day September 19: 16.00 – 20.30 Studio Rehearsal, September 20: 16.00–20.30 Studio Rehearsal, September 21: Day Off, Sep-tember 22:18.00 – 21.30 Studio Stage Rehearsal, September 23: 14.00 – 17.00 + 18.30 – 21.30 Stage Rehearsal, September 24: 14.00 – 17.00 + 18.30 – 21.30 Stage Rehearsal, September 25: 14.00 – 17.00 + 18.30 – 21.30 Stage Rehearsals, September 26: 14.30 – 16.30 + 18.00 – 21.30 Stage Rehearsals, September 27:

14.00 – 17.00 + 18.30 – 21.30 Stage Rehearsals, September 28:15.00 – 19.00 Stage Rehearsal, Septem-ber 29: 15.00 – 19.00 Stage Re-hearsal, September 30: Day Off, October 1: 19.00 Performance 1, October 2: Day Off, October 3: 19.00 Performance 2, October 4: 19.00 Performance 3.

“If you would like to take part in this production please send us a full length photograph of your-self plus one headshot photo-graph to extras@rohmuscat.org.om with a covering e-mail telling us a little about yourself (includ-ing your name, age, height, cloth-ing size and contact telephone number) and why you would like to be involved,” said an ROHM release. The selected applicants will be informed via e-mail short-ly after the audition. Applicants will need to be based locally and be able to provide a copy of an ID card. The closing date for apply-ing is September 14.

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

New hospital to cover all sectors

“Our hospital will be having plans to cover patients from all sectors. We are planning to have health management organisa-tion (HMO) schemes so that low-paid workers will also get qual-ity treatment at affordable cost,” Shamseer said while adding that there is still more room to im-prove the insurance-medical sec-tor relations.

“Majority of the issues will be

resolved as the mandatory in-surance schemes are activated,” Shamseer added.

In a move to improve the health sector, the government had set aside OMR1.6 billion for the health sector, amounting to 11.3 per cent of the total govern-ment expenditure.

This is for setting up 11 hospi-tals and primary health centres across the country.

M E D I C A L F A C I L I T I E S

< FROM

A1

DRAMA & DANCE: The ROHM

needs the selected artist to

be available for all scheduled

rehearsals.–File photo for illustration only

A5

OMANM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Tweet all about it

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH TWITTER PAGE

‘Crude oil price fall will not affect Oman infrastructure investment’

TARIQ AL HAREMItariqh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Investment in infra-structure in Oman will continue despite a dip in oil prices, in-creased participation in an up-coming trade event indicates, ac-cording to officials organising the Infra Oman’s 5th international trade event for infrastructure and industrial projects.

Infra Oman will see around 200 companies participating, com-pared to the 70 last year, according to Salim Omar Al Hashmi, chair-man, Al Nimr Expo.

Crude oil prices have been hit-ting a new low to the detriment of the ongoing and future projects in the Sultanate.

However, Infra Oman’s 5th in-ternational trade event for infra-structure and industrial projects

provides the platform on which projects are set to be implemented in the coming years.

As the Sultanate is pushing ahead with its rapid development with the construction of major infrastructure projects in many parts of the Sultanate, more devel-opment projects costing billions of dollars will be implemented dur-ing the next few years.

Big investorsHowever low the crude oil prices are, it will not affect the upcoming projects as far as big investors are concerned.

“The private sector is not affect-ed. You see different ITC related projects which are continuously being built in Oman. Some big investors are not bothered about the crude oil prices; they are still going ahead with their projects,”

said Sherwin Sevillena, CEO of Al Nimr Expo.

“The government will take it slow based on next year’s oil price, but they will not stop,” he said.

According to data of the Minis-try of Oil and Gas, as of July 2015, the average yearly crude oil price stood at $59.94 while at the end of 2014, it was $103.23.

Currently, the price of a barrel is approximately $45.

Backing up the success of Infra Oman, Salim Omar Al Hashmi, Al Nimr Expo’s Chairman, said for an investor, Oman is a land of oppor-tunity and the exhibition provides the platform on which SMEs and large corporations could heavily invest in the Sultanate’s projects.

“Oman’s market is irresistible and the country is blessed. There would not be this many partici-pants ,” said Al Hashmi.

“The companies keep com-ing back and every year, Infra Oman is growing, so companies will not participate if there is no outcome from the exhibition,” echoed Sevillena.

It is estimated that over 200 lo-cal and international exhibitors will be present at the exhibition from countries such as Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Indo-nesia, the United Arab Emirates and many more.

The exhibition will focus on construction requirements, green and future buildings, heavy equip-ment and technologies, hotel and tourism projects, and industrial free zones among others. These will include infrastructure pro-jects such as roads, airports, rail-ways and ports.

Infra Oman will also com-prise companies related to waste

management, power and renew-able energy as well as fire safety and security.

OpportunityJenitha Martin, Managing Direc-tor of Exhibition in Al Nimr Expo, said, “The event is also meant to provide local and international companies the opportunity to in-troduce a range of their products, equipment, technologies, concepts and services to their target cli-ents.”

Al Nimr also announced that the 2016 exhibition will be held at the new exhibition centre where they will separate industries into re-spective categories. Infra Oman will hold the exhibition from 5 to 7 October, 2015 and Dr. Rasheed Al Huraibi, Chairman of the Tender Board, will preside over the inau-guration.

As Oman pushes

ahead with its rapid

development with

the construction of

major infrastructure

projects, more

development projects

costing billions

of dollars will be

implemented during

the next few years

You see different

ITC related projects

continuously being

built in Oman. Some

big investors are not

bothered about the

crude oil prices; they

are still going ahead

with their projects

Sherwin SevillenaCEO of Al Nimr Expo

For an investor,

Oman is a land of

opportunity and the

exhibition provides

the platform on which

SMEs and large

corporations could

heavily invest in the

Sultanate’s projects

Salim Omar Al HashmiChairman, Al Nimr Expo

Oysters find new home as experiment a successTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Almouj Marina at Al-mouj Muscat recently announced a set of successful results in its landmark Oyster Long-lines Eco-experiment. The project, the first of its kind in the Middle East, has successfully introduced oyster long-lines to Almouj Marina and grown viable sized oysters in just six months.

The success of the eco-exper-iment could have a huge impact on the world’s oyster industry, that has witnessed a rapid decline in the oyster population over the last decade.

A long-line is a rope anchored at the bottom of the sea at both ends with the middle maintained at the surface of the water by buoys. The oysters are attached to “droppers” from the surface line, allowing good water move-ment and facilitating growth. Lines have also been used to grow scallops and seaweed. The lines utilised in the Almouj Marina venture are the longest ever used for such a project, being approxi-mately 100 metres in length.

Milestone moment Khalil Abu Jaber, Marina Man-ager of Almouj Marina, said, “The success of this venture is a milestone moment for Almouj Marina, as we continuously im-plement eco-friendly practices to ensure clean water. As the Sul-tanate’s premier marina, we con-stantly look for ways to support Oman’s marine environment and develop sustainable projects that will benefit local communities.”

Spearheaded by Dr. Olivier Guelorget, Aquaculture Advisor to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and Project Manager of the Oyster Long-lines Eco-exper-iment, no deaths were recorded among the Almouj Marina oys-ters, a stunning result when com-pared to the 25 per cent mortality rate in juvenile oysters adapting to environmental conditions.

The breakthrough experiment has also had a positive impact on surrounding waters where

researchers have recorded an in-crease in biodiversity.

Additionally, the oysters’ func-tion as natural filters and have left Almouj Marina free of chemical and microbiological contamina-tion. Rigorously researched and thoroughly planned, the break-through venture could bring further benefits to Oman which include the continued diversifica-tion of the Sultanate’s fishing in-dustry and the potential creation of a new source of revenue for lo-cal fishing communities.

Dr. Olivier Guelorget com-mented, “As the population of oysters continues to decline globally, the importance of such a breakthrough cannot be over-stated. The oysters introduced to Omani waters have developed rapidly, shown high quality shells, were successfully tested in sever-al major hotels and restaurants in Muscat, and were preferred over imported oysters of France. The exceptional growth of the oysters and the increase in biodiversity is a testament to Oman’s potential as a sanctuary for molluscs and other wildlife. Our success could herald a new era for the global oyster industry by helping to reju-venate its population.”

Wayne Shepherd, General

Manager of Mourjan Marinas added: “We take preservation of the environment into serious consideration when we build and manage our marinas, and the success of this experiment is evidence of that. We are proud to be a part of these conservation activities which reflect Mourjan Marinas’ commitment to creating eco-friendly environments across all of our facilities.”

Initially launched in May 2014, the first experimentations were carried out at the bottom of the marina. Since then, more than 10,000 spats have been in-troduced with the hope that the project will diversify the local economy and supplement the livelihoods of Omani fishermen. As the experiment moves for-ward, plans are already underway to have Almouj Marina’s oysters officially classified as the Omani Oyster and given protected status.

The Sultanate was chosen to host the experiment, given the natural productivity and health of its coasts, which were perfectly tailored to growing shellfish and seaweed. As the landmark pro-ject enters a new phase, hopes are high that the successful growth of delectable oysters will be the first of many milestones to come.

O Y S T E R L O N G - L I N E S E C O - E X P E R I M E N T

BIG YIELD: The project, the first of its kind in the Middle East, has

successfully introduced oyster long-lines to Almouj Marina and

grown viable sized oysters in just six months. – Supplied photo

Embassy to host business meet for Indian companiesTimes News Service

MUSCAT: A business meet will be hosted by the Indian Embassy in Muscat to enable Indian compa-nies participating in a trade event in the Sultanate to interact with their Omani counterparts.

The event is expected to pro-vide a platform for exchange of information and ideas about doing business in these sectors, includ-ing setting-up joint ventures.

A composite Indian delegation comprising around seven health-care institutes and hospitals and 15 companies from the food in-dustry are participating under the banner of the Trade Promotion Council of India (TPCI) at the Oman Medhealth & Wellness ex-hibition and Food & Hospitality Ex-hibition, respectively, at the Oman International Exhibition Centre, Muscat from September 7-9, 2015.

Omani companies dealing in the aforementioned health and food sectors are also invited to inter-act with Indian companies at the

Oman International Exhibition Centre during the working hours from 7-9 September, 2015.

The Trade Promotion Council of India, a registered non-profit trade body recognised by the De-partment of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry of India has anchored the participation of 15-Indian companies from food processing and commodity industry as part of ‘India Pavil-ion’ at Food & Hospitality Oman Exhibition, to display their prod-ucts, technology, and ingredients to explore business opportunities available in the Sultanate.

The delegation includes com-panies like Bhagwati Lacto veg-etarian exports Ltd; Daulat Rice & General Mill; Drrk Foods Pvt Ltd; Grm Overseas Ltd; K. Rice Interna-tional; Keventer Agro Ltd; Lekh Raj Narinder Kumar; Le Nissi Impex Pvt Ltd; Mohan Mutha Polytech; Rajesh Industries; RP Basmati Rice Ltd; Snj Trade Link Pvt Ltd; Sona Cereal Products Ltd; Umachi Foods & Commodities Pvt Ltd and

Veer Overseas Ltd. among others.Further, seven Indian hospitals

and health-care institutes are par-ticipating in the Oman Medhealth & Wellness exhibition to showcase their cost-effective and cutting-edge technology, products and equipment and medical prowess to enter the Omani market.

The visiting healthcare institutes include Cethar hospital; Narayana Hridayalaya, Health Travellers Worldwide; Arc International fer-tility & Research Centre; Global Health City; Prashanth Super Spe-cialty Hospital; and India Tourism Dubai etc. They deal in all types of medical equipment and can pro-vide international level healthcare services and pharmaceuticals.

Medical tourism sector in India has been witnessing immense pro-gress through its innovative com-petencies and credibility. The food processing industry in India ranks fifth in production, consumption, and export. There is a huge poten-tial for bilateral collaboration in these sectors.

T R A D E T I E S

Photos: TALIB AL WAHIBI/Times of Oman

A6

OMANM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Oman is doing a lot through the Oman Charitable Organisations.

We work with international organisations like the Red Cross

and UN bodies though we don’t publicly announce it

Maryam Al Zedjali, chairperson of Dar Al Atta’a Charity

HM receives thanksMUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has received a cable of thanks from President Park Geun-hye of the Republic of Korea in reply to His Majes-ty’s congratulatory cable on the occasion of her country’s 70th Independence Anniversary.

In her cable, she expressed her appreciation for His Maj-esty’s support on promoting relations and joint cooperation between the people of two coun-tries. She wished His Majesty good health and happiness, and the Sultanate further progress and prosperity.

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said has received a cable of thanks from President Simon-etta Sommaruga of the Swiss Confederation in reply to His Majesty’s congratulatory cable on the occasion of her country’s National Day.

In her cable, she expressed her utmost thanks and best wishes for His Majesty and the Omani people. -ONA

C A B L E S

Career guidance for students at exhibition

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Students and parents are being called upon to visit the forthcoming EduTraC exhibition from October 12 to 14, 2015, to be launched under the patronage of Minister of Civil Services Sheikh Khalid Al Marhoon.

The second edition of EduTraC will give students an opportunity to learn about the available ac-credited universities as well as gain insight into the career path they are willing to go.

Said Al Rahbi, Director of Qualifications Equivalence and Recognition at the Ministry of Higher Education, said, “Higher education plays an important role in the development of human resources.”

The exhibition will feature 160 leading higher education institu-tions from 18 countries, including the Sultanate of Oman, the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), Canada and Germany, which will offer an ideal platform for students seeking to pursue their studies in local and international universities.

In addition, a career guidance centre will be available to advise students about their options and their potential employment once they have graduated.

Dr. Nasser Al Ghanbousi, DGM at the National Career Guidance Centre (NCGC) at the Ministry of Education, said, “A National Ca-reer Guidance Centre specialist team will be available at the expo to advise students on higher edu-

cation options and their prospects for future employment.”

The Oman Academic Accredi-tation Authority (OAAA) will or-ganize a seminar to highlight the Oman Qualification Framework Project at the exhibition centre, with officials recommending those visiting the exhibition to get an insight on the project.

Quality educationFurthermore, the OAAA strives to offer the highest quality of edu-cation in Oman in order to equip the students with the tools and knowledge needed to compete in both the local and international markets.

“The OAAA’s primary objec-tive is to ensure that academic programmes offered in Oman are

of high quality standards and that graduates possess the knowledge and skills that will enable them to compete in the local, regional and international labour markets,” said Dr. Nasser Al Hinai, Director of the Foundation Programme of the OAAA.

“Therefore, we are delighted to participate in EduTraC Oman and promote OAAA’s vision to be an internationally recognized au-thority for accreditation and pro-motion of quality in higher educa-tion in Oman.”

Arab countriesWhen questioned about the lack of Arab countries participating in this year’s EduTraC Oman, Al Rahbi replied that “most students prefer to study abroad.”This year only three Arab coun-tries are participating, namely, Oman, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates, with a total of 19 higher education institutes and universities.

44 universitiesThe UK alone, on the other hand, will feature 44 universities.

Kate Clarke, Managing Direc-tor at Al Ahlam Higher Educa-tion Services, Oman’s leading UK higher education counselling agency, said, “A dedicated ‘Study in the UK’ pavilion will host rep-resentatives from 44 universities across the UK, offering educa-tional advice to visitors.”

“We want to make sure that students from Oman can ac-cess information about studying in the many accredited colleges and universities across the UK,” she added.

The second edition

of EduTraC will

give students an

opportunity to

learn about the

available accredited

universities as well

as gain insight into

the career path they

want to opt for CAREER INSIGHT: The exhibition will feature 160 leading higher

education institutions from 18 countries. – Taleb Al Wahibi

“Oman is doing a lot through the Oman Charitable Organisations. We work with international or-ganisations like the Red Cross and UN bodies though we don’t publicly announce it. Dar Al Atta’a has helped and we did a campaign for Gaza as well as helped Syrian refugees in the Zatari camp pro-viding 1,000 caravans. We also set up a medical laboratory in Nablus in the Palestine,” Maryam Al Zed-jali, chairperson of Dar Al Atta’a Charity, said.

Popular Facebook group “What’s Happening Muscat, Oman(WHMO)?” is keen to help.

An admin of the group said, “One of our Omani members is seek-ing approval for WHMO so that we can come together as a group and make a difference. We do have some amazing members who are keen to help. So until we have the correct approvals we can’t do any-thing officially.”

Other prominent Omanis say the Sultanate is not oblivious

to the calamity suffered by the Syrian people.

“Continuous death, destruction and pain of the Syrian people are catastrophe for all of us. We cannot sit back without offering a hand and prayers. We hope for quick resolution to their differences,” Dr Ahmed Al Naamani, the Dean of Modern College of Business & Sci-ence, told Times of Oman.

Syria Help CampaignPeople in the Sultanate Oman can help Syria through Oman Chari-table Organisation’s “Syria Help Campaign”.

Donations can be made through a bilingual online portal [www.donate.om] run by Information Technology Authority which is designed for transparency, con-venience, simple and user-friend-liness. This website/portal is sup-ported by the Ministry of Social Development Affairs.

“The Donations Portal guiding principles allow citizens as well

as the residents of the Sultanate to make direct donations using their bank credit cards to the respective bank accounts of the charitable organisations,” according to ITA press statement.

As an alternative to visiting the Portal online, donors now have the option to donate via the mobile app, which is easily downloaded from the online portal or Android’s Play store.

Last month, Syrian foreign min-ister Walid Al Moualem met with his Omani counterpart in Muscat, Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah for talks on ways to end the civil war in his country. In the meeting, the two agreed it was time to bring together “constructive efforts” to end the four-year crisis.

J O I N H A N D S

OMR150,000 loss

Meanwhile, an official from one of the insurance companies said that annually, the loss incurred for four major insurance companies in Oman due to flash flood and rain would be around OMR150,000

“In our company we receive an insurance loss of around OMR30,000 annually for non-mo-tor sector. For the last three years it’s the case,” Philip K Philip, CEO of Muscat Insurance Company and Muscat Life Assurance Com-pany, told Times of Oman.

According to the insurance company official, even though the number of motor sector loss claims could be high, the claim amount will be low. Meanwhile, even if the number is low in the non-motor sector, the claim amount will be high.

In 2007 Gonu, the loss suffered to the economy was around OMR1 billion. Out of that the insured loss was some OMR300 million.

After that the loss occurred by the recurrent flash floods are around OMR30,000 annually.

A single Muttrah Souq business had claimed a loss of OMR100,000

in the flash floods.Meanwhile, the official also

added that recurring rain and flash floods are forcing international reinsurance companies to impose stricter regulations and increase the premiums in Oman.

“When premiums are increased, then it will be passed on to the cus-tomers. It means that for clients to insure their properties will be-come costlier,” Philip added.

Some of the reinsurance compa-nies are also hinting at withdrawal from the market, the official said.

According to a US study, climate change is bringing small risks that tropical cyclones will form in the Gulf for the first time, in a threat to cities such as Dubai or Doha which are unprepared for big storm surg-es, a US study said on Monday

The researchers found a new model that may predict the fre-quency and intensity of rare super storms dubbed “grey swans”.

However, Kerry Emanuel co-author of the study said that study they focused on the Gulf itself; it is not immediately applicable to Oman.

R A I N

Oman tourism portal in three languagesTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Comprehensive tour-ism website of the Sultanate of Oman, www.omanvisitors.com, is now available in three interna-tional languages — Arabic, Eng-lish and Italian, and is supported by a large number of social media channels.

The portal features a design that meets the requirements of the visitor, since it is a unified portal through which one can dis-cover various tourist sites in the Sultanate of Oman.

It also gives access to dynamic and comprehensive information regarding attractions and rec-reational activities, tourism and cultural experiences, heritage and other events.

The tourism portal platform is to launch its social networking tourist destination on the «Face-book» and «Twitter» and «You-Tube» and «Instagram» channels, which will open the way for the visitors to send comments and views and share experiences at various tourist destinations in the Sultanate.

The portal includes a search function for hotels that provide a

comprehensive list for special of-fers and available rooms to ensure that a visitor can avail of updated and immediate information be-fore deciding to book his holiday.

Innovative design The aim of this innovative hos-pitality services’ design is to pro-vide data regarding the facilities available through the activation of electronic access to the reser-

vation services and functions of new hotels.

Anyone visiting the portal will have access to tools and search filters, enabling one to choose the place and book his holiday. Book-ing.com is a strategic partner of the portal.

Bader Mohd Al Azri, the super-visor of the portal, said, “The por-tal contains information regard-ing all the facilities, services and

tourist destinations in the Sultan-ate and is a guide for tourists from the moment he or she arrives and till the moment they depart.

It also publishes a portal monthly newsletter that includes many tourism related news in ad-dition to other bulletins issued continuously about hotel deals in Oman. There is also a full team to answer any queries or questions submitted by portal visitors.

C O M P R E H E N S I V E I N F O R M A T I O N

< FROM

A1

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

< FROM

A1

COMPREHENSIVE LIST: The aim of this innovative hospitality services’ design is to provide data

regarding the facilities available. – Supplied photo

Oman helping Syrians through charitable trusts

A7

REGIONM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

BOMBARDMENT: Smoke billows from buildings after reported air-strikes by the Saudi-led coalition

on arms warehouses at Al Dailami air base, controlled by Yemeni Houthi rebels and their allies, on

September 6, 2015, north of the capital Sanaa. — AFP

Saudi-led alliesbomb Houthi rebels in Sanaa

SANAA: Saudi-led coalition jets bombed a Houthi military posi-tion and army bases in the Yeme-ni capital Sanaa through the night and into on Sunday morning in what appeared to be further re-taliation for the killing of dozens of coalition soldiers two days ago.

The air strikes targeted troops loyal to former president Ali Ab-dullah Saleh, an ally of the Hou-this, and a Houthi base in what was the Al Imam University, a re-ligious school in northern Sanaa, residents said.

Residents said explosions could be heard all night and build-ings had been levelled, but the bombing stopped around noon. A Reuters reporter said there were unconfirmed reports of two deaths.

The Al Sabeen maternity and children’s hospital said it had also sustained damage, with patients trapped inside by the bombard-ment, and appealed to interna-tional organisations to help it evacuate patients.

“The hospital had been badly damaged due to the bombard-ment of areas around it,” the Houthi-run state news agency quoted a hospital statement as saying.

The Saudi-led coalition says it does not target civilian facilities. But on Saturday, at least 27 mem-bers of two families were killed in Sanaa by air strikes targeting Houthi positions in the city, ac-cording to hospital officials.

It was the heaviest toll suffered by the Saudi-led alliance since it began its air war in March to try to restore Hadi to power after the Houthis began advancing on his main base, the southern port city of Aden.

Hadi was installed in 2012 un-der a Gulf Arab-sponsored deal that saw Saleh, Yemen’s leader of three decades, step down after months of street protests. He fled Sanaa when the Houthis seized the city almost a year ago.

UAE forces were important in helping Hadi’s forces drive the Houthis and their allies out of Aden, a big win for the Arab coalition.

But security has yet to be re-stored in the port city, where uni-dentified vandals dug up several

graves and smashed headstones at a cemetery that Britain, the city’s former colonial ruler, had maintained after it left some 50 years ago, a local official said.

A local Yemeni official accused

the Houthis of hiring the vandals to destabilise the city and prevent order returning.

The Houthis say Al Qaeda is operating in areas under Hadi’s control. — Reuters

The air strikes

targeted troops loyal

to former president

Ali Abdullah Saleh,

an ally of the

Houthis, and a Houthi

base in what was the

Al Imam University,

a religious school

in northern Sanaa,

residents said

HELPING HAND: Wounded Yemeni people on wheelchairs wait at

the international airport in the southern embattled city of Aden

before being evacuated to Sudan on September 5, 2015 during a

joint operation of the Sudanese and Yemeni Red Crescent Socie-

ties to evacuate wounded people. — AFP

AMMAN: More than 250 people injured in Yemen’s conflict were flown in to Jor-dan on Sunday for hospital treatment, a medical official said, with emergency ser-vices at home overwhelmed with casualties.

The 266 patients included many young civilians, wom-en and children, said Fawzi Al Hammuri, chairman of Jordan’s Private Hospitals Association.

It was the largest group of Yemeni wounded to arrive in Amman since August under an agreement struck between private Jordanian clinics and the Yemeni gov-ernment.

“Most of the wounded are young civilians,” he said, adding that they have been admitted to 10 private hospi-tals in Jordan.

According to Hammuri, most of the wounded had bone injuries, while others had chest and stomach wounds caused by gunfire,

explosions, bombs or burns.They were flown in from

Yemen’s second city Aden on two Yemeni planes, said Hammuri,

Yemeni exiled president Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi’s government is picking up the hospital tabs, said Hammuri, who estimated the total cost at $5 million.

In August, 180 Yemenis arrived in Jordan in two separate batches for medical treatment in the kingdom.

More than 4,500 peo-ple have been killed in the conflict, including hundreds of children, according to the United Nations.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned in August that health services in impoverished Yemen were “nearing collapse”.

Following a visit to Yemen in August, the top United Nations aid official, Stephen O’Brien, said the “scale of human suffering is almost incomprehensible”. — AFP

Jordan receives more than 250 victims of Yemen war

On Friday, the Houthis had attacked a weapons

storage facility in Marib, where the Saudi-led

allies had been massing troops and equipment in

preparation for an assault on Sanaa. The attack

killed 45 soldiers from the United Arab Emirates,

five Bahrainis, 10 Saudis and four Yemenis

Traffic bans imposed in Tunis over bomb plotTUNIS: Tunisian authorities warned of possible car bomb-ings in the capital Tunis and banned traffic in parts of the city after receiving intelligence reports about potential attacks, the state news agency TAP said on Sunday.

The North African country is under a state of emergency after two deadly extremist mili-tant gun attacks on tourist sites this year.

Armed extremists also often carry out attacks on the armed forces in remote areas in Tuni-sia but have not previously at-tempted mass killings with car bombs. An Interior Ministry source told TAP that a potential assault involving car bombs and attackers with bomb belts had meant to target strategic points in the capital, without giving further details.

“Orders have been given to intensify patrols and searches by the police and the army in certain parts of the capital and the suburban neighbourhoods,” TAP said, citing the Interior Ministry source.

Authorities closed off access to the main Avenue Habib Bour-guiba in the centre of the city and several other main streets, the agency reported.

Four years after its upris-ing ousted autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali and inspired the “Arab Spring” protests, Tu-nisia has a new constitution, free elections and a coalition government with secular and extremist parties.

But more than 3,000 Tuni-sians have left to fight for Islam-ist militant groups in Syria, Iraq and neighbouring Libya. Some of those extremists have threat-ened to return home and carry out attacks on Tunisian soil.

In March, extremist gunmen killed 21 tourists in an attack at the Bardo Museum in Tunis, and 38 foreigners were killed in an assault on a Sousse beach ho-tel in June. — Reuters

E X T R E M I S T R E B E L S

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

Iraq deploys new F-16s into action against IS groupBAGHDAD: Iraq has put F-16 warplanes acquired from the United States into action against the IS group for the first time, the commander of the air force said on Sunday.

“Fifteen air strikes were car-ried out in the past four days,” Staff Lieutenant General Anwar Hama Amin told AFP following a news conference in Baghdad.

“Smart weapons” were used in the strikes, Amin said, without specifying the type.

Defence Minister Khaled Al Obaidi told the news conference that the strikes had achieved “im-portant results” and that the jets will have “an impact on the con-duct of operations in the future.”

Amin told the news conference that the F-16 strikes had taken place in Salaheddin and Kirkuk provinces, north of Baghdad.

Source of tensionThe first four Iraqi F-16s arrived from the United States in mid-Ju-ly, out of a total of 36 Washington has agreed to sell to Baghdad.

The purchase had been a source of tension, with Baghdad repeat-edly complaining that they have not been delivered quickly enough.

Insecurity in Iraq, where IS seized significant territory in June 2014, had delayed the delivery of the jets, with the first batch being sent to Arizona, where Iraqi pilots have been training.

F-16 crashAn Iraqi pilot was killed when his F-16 crashed during training in Arizona earlier this year.

F-16 jets are much more sophis-ticated than other aircraft in Bagh-dad’s arsenal and will boost Iraq’s capacity for air strikes, which are currently carried out by ageing Sukhoi Su-25 jets, Cessna Cara-van turboprop aircraft and various helicopters. — AFP

B O U G H T F R O M U S

Anwar Hama Amin

A8

INDIAM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Our Parliamentary Board will decide

whether to project anyone as chief

ministerial candidate or not

Rajnath Singh, Home Minister

JANAMASHTAMI CELEBRATIONS‘Govindas’ form a pyramid to break the Dahi Handi on the occasion of Janmashtami in Surat on Sunday. Mumbai saw subdued Dahi-Handi celebrations on

Sunday, in the backdrop of restrictions on height of pyramids and curbs on decibel levels. A 29-year-old person was killed while trying to tie the Dahi Handi at

Bhiwandi in adjoining Thane district while 109 persons were injured in the celebrations in Mumbai, police said. - PTI

Ananya Nanda of Odisha wins Indian Idol Junior trophyMUMBAI: Odisha girl Ananya Nanda lifted the trophy of the sec-ond season of singing reality show “Indian Idol Junior” here on Sun-day night.

Ananya, 14, who defeated Nahid Afrin and Nithyashree Venkatara-manan received the price money of total Rs1 million.

A self-confessed fan of Shreya Ghoshal and Arijit Singh, the lit-tle singing star considers veteran music composer Anandji of the Kalyanji-Anandji duo as her lucky charm. The grand finale of the Sony show saw all the three per-manent judges including Sonakshi Sinha, Vishal Dadlani and Salim Merchant boosting the morale of the top three contenders.

The 28-year-old Tevar actress enthralled the audience with a dance routine on her popular numbers Saree Ke Fall Sa, Rani Tu Main Raja, Pon Pon, Tamanche Pe disco and Party All Night.

Another major highlight of the finale night was a special visit by Sonakshi’s father actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha,who also inter-acted with the children.

Stand-up comedian Kapil Sharma, who is gearing up for the release of his debut film Kis Kisko Pyar Karu promoted the film on Indian Idol Junior set. - PTI

S I N G I N G R E A L I T Y S H O W

Grand alliance in Bihar a sinking ship: Prasad

PATNA: Bihar’s JD(U)-RJD-Congress alliance has turned into a sinking ship after Samajwadi Party’s exit, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Sunday.

“The grand alliance is a sink-ing ship as its captain Mulayam Singh Yadav has deserted it ahead of Bihar Assembly polls,” he told reporters.

Prasad trashed Janata Dal(United) state unit president Bashisth Narayan Singh’s alleged remark that the SP chief had walked out of the grand alliance under pressure from the Bharatiya Janata Party and said it was an “in-sult” to Mulayam Singh Yadav.

He said Singh’s remark reflected the “desperation” in the alliance.

Asked if Mulayam’s decision to exit the coalition was the outcome of reported meetings between top SP and BJP leaders recently,

Prasad, Union Minister for

Communication and Informa-tion Technology, shot back, saying “in that case RJD supremo Lalu Prasad should then explain why he along with the SP chief had re-ceived Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his daughter’s wedding earlier this year.

“What to make of the photo of Lalu and Mulayam receiving the Prime Minister at Lalu’s daugh-ter’s wedding function earlier this year?” Prasad said, noting that such meetings between leaders had no bearing on political deci-sions. He claimed the RJD su-premo was now trying to mollify his SP counterpart by giving a few more seats from JD(U) and Con-gress quotas.

Prasad assailed Chief Minis-ter Nitish Kumar for criticising Modi’s Rs 1.25 lakh crore package

for Bihar and following that up with his own Rs 2.7 lakh crore vi-sion document for development of the state over the next five years.

The Minister wondered why Ni-tish had been demanding a special package for Bihar from the Centre when he had the capacity to raise funds for his own package.

Prasad accused Kumar and Lalu of trying to prevent the Prime Min-ister from fast-tracking Bihar’s de-velopment to sustain their politics rooted in “dynasty, opportunism and patronage to corruption”.

Lalu, he alleged, was speaking the language he used to speak in the 1990s to “create social strife and put different castes on a colli-sion course”.

The Union Minister claimed the wind of change blowing in Bihar was slowly transforming into a

storm in favour of the NDA.“The momentum is clearly

swinging in the NDA’s favour and it does not matter whether our adversaries are three or 30,” he asserted.

Meanwhile, the BJP Parliamen-tary Board will soon take a deci-sion on whether to project some-one as chief ministerial candidate in Bihar polls, senior party leader Rajnath Singh said on Sunday.

“Our Parliamentary Board will decide whether to project anyone as chief ministerial candidate or not,” he said.

Asked about the number of seats which the party will contest, the Home Minister said discussions among the alliance partners were on and a final decision will be tak-en soon.

The term of the 243-member Bi-har Assembly comes to an end on November 29.

The Election Commission is likely to announce the schedule of the high-voltage Bihar Assembly polls in the next few days.

After ruling the state for ten years, Chief Minister Nitish Ku-mar is seeking a third term this time in alliance with RJD and Congress after he walked out of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in June, 2013 snapping 17-year-old ties with BJP.

BJP, which had almost swept the state in the Lok Sabha polls in alli-ance with Ram Vilas Paswan’s LJP and Upendra Kushwaha’s Rash-triya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), is hoping to repeat its performance and slamming Kumar for aligning with Lalu Prasad, a convict in fod-der scam case. - PTI

Union Minister Ravi

Shankar said the

grand alliance is a

sinking ship as its

captain Mulayam

Singh Yadav has

deserted it ahead of

Bihar assembly polls

The momentum is clearly

swinging in the NDA’s

favour and it does not

matter whether our

adversaries are 3 or 30

Ravi Shankar PrasadCommunication and Information Technology minister

GSAT-6 put in orbital

slot successfully

CHENNAI: The Indian space agency on Sunday said it had suc-cessfully positioned the country’s military communication satellite GSAT-6 in its orbital slot.

According to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), GSAT 6 has been successfully positioned in its orbital slot of 83 degrees East and co-located with INSAT 4A, GSAT 12, GAAT 10 and IRNSS1C on Sunday morn-ing, after carrying out four drift arresting manoeuvres.

The satellite was launched by India’s heavy rocket geosynchro-nous satellite launch vehicle-Mark II (GSLV) and put into geo transfer orbit (GTO) on August 27.

One of the advanced features of GSAT-6 satellite is its antenna - the largest satellite antenna re-alised by ISRO and utilised for five spot beams over the Indian mainland, which exploit the fre-quency reuse scheme to increase frequency spectrum utilisation efficiency.

The satellite provides commu-nication through five spot beams in S-band and a national beam in C-band for strategic users.

The satellite’s life expectancy is nine years. ISRO is planning to launch 2,200 kg INSAT-3DR meteorological satellite next July with its GSLV rocket.

According to ISRO, with two back-to-back successful missions carrying indigenous cryogenic stage, the GSLV has matured into a reliable launch vehicle and has paved the way for its future operational missions, providing India self-sufficiency in launching higher capacity satellites into geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO).The 2016

July launch would be followed by the GSAT-9 satellite launch in May 2017. The prestigious Chan-drayaan-2 Mission is designated to be launched by GSLV in 2017-18 time frame.

According to ISRO, the GSLV is well on its way towards inter-national and commercial opera-tions. Work is already in progress on the joint effort with NASA for the launch of NISAR satellite into a polar orbit by 2020-21.

This mission will demonstrate the versatility of the GSLV for launch into various orbits.

While technical criticalities of the complex GSLV system have been overcome, challenges are being taken up for improving the payload capability from the pre-sent 2,117 kg to the design target of 2500 kg, ISRO said. - IANS

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

19 killed in lightning strike as heavy rains lash Andhra Pradesh

VIJAYAWADA/HYDERABAD: Nineteen people died after they were struck by lightning in sepa-rate incidents in five districts of Andhra Pradesh which was lashed by heavy rains on Sunday.

The incidents occurred in Krishna, Guntur, East Godavari, Prakasam and Nellore districts.

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has announced ex-gratia of Rs400,000 to each of the victim killed in lightning while interact-ing with district collectors through a tele-conference in Vijaywada.

Six persons were killed in Prakasam district, five in Nellore district, four in Krishna district, two each in Guntur and East Go-davari districts.

In Prakasam district, six per-sons, including three women, were killed while four others were in-jured when they were struck by

lightning in separate incidents.Out of the six victims, two wom-

en died when the bolt struck them when they were working in a cot-ton field while rest of the victims included two farmers from Chan-nareddypalli and Muppalla vil-lages, and a 27-year-old man from Chavatapalem, said District Rev-enue Officer Noor Basha Kashim.

Another victim, a borewell op-erator, died in Vemulkota village, added Markapur sub-inspector of police A. Venkateswarlu.

In Nellore district, five people died after they were struck by lightning, SP Gajarao Bhupal said.

His deputy Tirumaleshwar Reddy said the deceased included a father-son duo who were struck by bolt in Venkatachalam mandal under Nellore rural sub-division.

In Krishna district, four agri-cultural labourers, including a

woman, were killed when light-ning struck them while they were working in open field, said District Revenue Officer (DRO) Saibaba.

Miraculous escapeIn Guntur, women cricketers of Andhra Pradesh and Tripura had a miraculous escape when lightning struck ACA stadium in afternoon where they were playing a match.

The cricketers rushed out from the ground and took shelter in the ACA Academy building.

A tree outside the building caught fire after it was hit by bolt. In East Godavari district, Surayakantham of Dwarapudi village and Adapa Subbarao of Mandapeta were killed when lightning struck them while they were returning from their work in evening, said Circle Inspec-tor of police,Ramachandrapuram, G. Pulla Rao. - PTI

S E P A R A T E I N C I D E N T S

FLOODED: People wade through a flooded road following heavy rains in Hyderabad on Sunday. - PTI

SPACE MISSION: ISRO’s com-

munication satellite GSAT-6

was launched from the space-

port of Sriharikota, recently.

- PTI file photo

A9

INDIAM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Love us on Facebook

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH FACEBOOK PAGE

15-year-old prodigy from Tamil Nadu holds five world recordsCHENNAI: Fifteen-year-old prodigy K. Vilasini is a holder of five world records, including the highest IQ and IELTS (Interna-tional English Language Testing System). Pursuing her first year B.Tech Degree in Computer Sci-ence at Kalasingalingam Univer-sity in Srivilliputhur.

Vilasini’s precocious talents were evident when she was just 11 years of age. She also interacted with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on ideas to serve the country.

“When she was 11 years old we realised her talent and got her to take up all opportunities that came her way. One such was the world record in IELTS,” her mother S. Sethu Ragamaliga said.

Vilasini had also been invited to take part in 11 International con-ferences as a keynote speaker, chief among which was the Google India Summit in New Delhi, she said.

“She has the world record in highest IQ with IQ level at 225, is the youngest CCNA (Certified

Network Associate) World re-cord holder, youngest Exin Cloud Computing world record Holder, youngest CCSA (Certification in Control Self-Assessment) World Record holder,” she added.

On Vilasini’s interaction with the PM as part of Teacher’s day celebrations, Ragamaliga said it was a pleasant surprise when the family got a call from the PMO last week that their daughter had been selected. “It was one of the proud-est moments in our lives”, she said.

“After the formalities, she un-derwent so many rehearsals. As a mother I was so happy that my daughter, representing Tamil Nadu, was shortlisted to converse with Modi,” she added.

The nationally televised inter-action with students of various schools across the country saw Vilasini posing a question to the PM on ideas to serve the country.

Modi replied in Hindi that one does not need to be a politician or be in civil services and one can just

serve the country by conserving fuel, electricity and food.

To a question whether Vilasini was unhappy since Modi had re-plied in Hindi, Ragamaliga said, “it is a problem of those who do not understand that language.”

“As a mother I am very happy that my daughter interacted with the Prime Minister. Though it was a live telecast, I was not able to see how my daughter spoke as I was in an adjacent room. I later saw it on news channels,” she said. - PTI

E X T R A O R D I N A R Y T A L E N T

New numbering system in Rs1,000 note to check counterfeit currencyNEW DELHI: A new numbering system and seven new security features will be incorporated in all currency notes, especially in high denomination Rs1,000 and Rs500 notes, in order to check the menace of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN).

The Bhartiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Pvt Limited (BRB-NMPL) and Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL) have initi-ated steps for introduction of the revised number pattern, official sources said.

Initially, it will be made part of Rs1,000 and Rs500 currency notes and, by May next year, cur-rencies of all other denominations will have this feature, they said.

Besides, the government has approved seven new security features, details of which are not yet known, in the bank notes, the sources said.

The Reserve Bank of India has also asked the banks to stamp fake notes detected over the counter as “Counterfeit note” and impound them immediately.

Banks found not following the procedure will be penalised.

They have also been instructed to issue a receipt for counterfeit notes to the tenderer of the FICN, they said.

As per the estimates, fake Indi-an currency notes of face value of Rs 30 crore have been seized.

National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been made the nodal agency for FICN cases as the government treats this menace as ‘economic terrorism’.Central security agencies are alarmed at the new routes being taken by the spy agency to unleash the economic terror.

Fake currency seizuresMeanwhile, Gujarat tops the list of five Indian states that are con-sidered the “safest” for circulating counterfeit currency notes — ac-cording to the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).Of the 30,354,604 counterfeit notes seized across

the country, 87,47,820 were recov-ered from Gujarat in 2014.

Chhattisgarh followed close on the heels with the seizure of 7,386,900 fake notes, while Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Har-yana saw recoveries of 5,437,600, 3,249,000 and 1,696,850 counterfeit notes.

Police officers monitoring the circulation of fake notes suspect that the neighbouring countries are pushing such notes in India which have a greater resemblance to India’s high denomination Rs1,000 and Rs500 notes.

The officers said that they have been noticing for the past few months that differences between

genuine and counterfeit notes were reducing and that around five such differences have actually disappeared.

“The paper being used to make the fake notes is now more similar.The stiffness is almost the same.The security thread (in the right half ) on fake notes also resembles that on the genuine currency.

“The watermark (the por-trait of Mahatma Gandhi in light and shade) has also been nearly matched,” an officer, who did not want to be named, said.

“The identification mark on the left of the note looks quite similar in counterfeit and genuine notes.The optical variable ink also looks similar,” he added.

Of the 30,354,604 counterfeit notes seized across the country, those in the Rs1,000 denomina-tion was the highest at 19,895,000.

The recovery of notes in the Rs500, Rs100 and Rs50 de-nominations across India was 9,490,500; 938,800 and 25,000.

However, the seizure of other fake Indian currency was was a mere 5,304 pieces. The NCRB data said that Chhattishgarh is the state from where highest 7,224,000 fake notes of Rs1,000 denomination were recovered.

“All the border areas in India have been facing the problem with the circulation of fake notes trade and the drug trade,” said the of-ficer. - Agencies

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

K. Vilasini

Modi slams critics for trying to mislead armed forces on pension

FARIDABAD: Prime Minis-ter Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed people trying to “mis-lead” the armed forces over the government’s OROP decision and made a veiled attack on Congress saying the party has no right to raise questions since it did nothing in 40 years.

A day after the government an-nounced implementation of one rank-one pension (OROP) which will have a recurring expense of around Rs8,000 to Rs10,000 crore, Modi said it was a “diffi-cult” decision which could have ramifications which are yet to be ascertained.

He said some people are try-ing to “mislead” the armed forces, particularly on the issue of pre-mature retirement and the setting up of a commission as proposed in the decision.

“Jawans in the army have to re-tire after 15-17 years of service. A few people think they will not get OROP....they are misleading you by terming it as VRS (voluntary

retirement scheme).... But if any-body gets OROP jawans will be the first.... Those injured, those who had to compulsorily leave they will get OROP. And the Prime Minister who loves the army cannot even think of depriving such people of OROP benefits,” he said at a rally here.

BenefitsNoting that around 85 per cent of the army constituted of jawans, he said that those who have to compulsorily retire after 15-17 years will benefit the most from this decision.

“There is no need to be misled.”Referring to the commission

proposed to be set up, he again said that the armed forces should not be misled on the issue also as this is not any pay commission.

“This commission is there to ad-dress any shortcomings, if any, to see if any small changes are need-ed,” he said, adding the commis-sion is proposed to be set-up as the

issue is complex. “Even those who proposed Rs 500 crore for OROP could not understand the issue,” he said in an apparent reference to the previous government.

In an apparent attack on Con-gress, he said, “Those who did nothing for 40-42 years, do they have any right to ask questions? They only misled you and commit-ted sins.

“They want to score political points....Oneupmanship will not help the nation,” he said.

“There’s a new fashion that when the government takes a good decision it is questioned by those who do not want development,” he said.

Modi recalled that the issue was pending for the last 42 years and so many governments came but none found a way out.

“Only lip service was provided. It was difficult to implement. For me also it was not an easy deci-sion but I have high respect for the armed forces. Whatever promise I

had made is being implemented....the ramifications it will have are yet to be known,” he said.

He noted that he had made the pledge while addressing a rally of ex-servicemen in Rewari in Harya-na on September 13, 2013 as BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate.

“The previous government pro-posed Rs 500 crore. We thought may be it could go up to Rs 600-700 crore but while calculating new things came up. While I un-tangled every aspect of the issue we calculated that there would be an expense of around Rs 8,000-Rs 10,000 crore.”

Attacking those criticising his government, Modi said he came to power on May 26, last year and was responsible only since then while some people were misleading.

This decision is inspired by pat-riotism, he said, telling the armed forces that the government “is yours, is there to look into your grievances and will stand by you whenever required”. - PTI

Referring to the

commission

proposed to be set

up, Prime Minister

Narendra Modi again

said that the armed

forces should not be

misled on the issue

as this is not any

pay commission

There’s a new

fashion that when the

government takes a

good decision it is

questioned by those

who do not want

development

Narendra ModiPrime Minister

NEW DELHI: Agitating ex-servicemen on Sunday called off their indefinite hunger strike after Modi’s announcement that One Rank-One Pension will cover all those who took premature retirement but decided to continue their protest till all their demands were met.

Welcoming Modi’s clarification on extension of OROP to those who retired prematurely, a major sticking point in resolving the stand-off between the government and defence veterans, leader of agitating ex-servicemen Major General (Retd) Satbir Singh said revision of pension after a gap of five years, as announced on Saturday, was unacceptable and stressed on an yearly review.

Singh warned that ex-servicemen will be “forced” to resume their “hunger strike till death” if there was no satisfactory resolution of the pending issues by the govern-ment. The government’s decision to appoint a one-member judicial commission to examine various aspects of the OROP has also been re-jected by the agitators as they demanded a five-member committee comprising three ex-servicemen, one serving member from the armed forces and a representative from the Ministry of Defence.

Addressing a press confer-ence at Jantar Mantar, Singh said the committee should function directly under the Defence Minister and submit

its report within one month.Singh said it was agreed

during the negotiations that the base year for calculation of pension would be 2013-14 and not calender year 2013.

Pressing for March 31, 2014 as base date,Singh said if government sticks to the calender year, than December 31 should be the basis for fix-ing the benefits.

“We have called off the hunger strike but protest will continue till all our major demands are met,” Singh said,adding a massive ‘Gaurav rally’ will be organised here on September 12 for “quick reso-lution” of the pending issues.

“We are confident that in the next 15 days or a month the government will issue a letter about OROP imple-mentation. If the government does not follow any point of view or if it goes against our satisfaction, then we will resume our hunger strike till death,” he said. - PTI

Army veterans to continue stir

PROTEST: Members of Unit-

ed Front of Ex-servicemen

continue their indefinite

hunger strike for implemen-

tation of OROP scheme, in

Nagpur on Sunday. - PTI

INITIATIVE: A customer hands a bundle of Indian rupee currency

notes to a teller at a financial institution in Mumbai. The govern-

ment has approved seven new security features, details of which

are not yet known, in the bank notes to check counterfeit currency,

the sources said. - Reuters file photo

A10

PAKISTAN M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

DEFENCE DAY FESTIVITIESWomen take a selfie while visiting an exhibition organised by the Pakistan Air Force in Peshawar, on Sunday. Pakistanis are celebrating the golden jubilee of

Pakistan Defence Day in memory of the martyrs of the 1965 war against India. — Reuters

Pakistan urged to act against Taliban rebelsISLAMABAD/KABUL: Afghani-stan asked Pakistan to act against Afghan Taliban militants operat-ing on its territory during weekend talks in Kabul, while Pakistan said the South Asian neighbours need-ed to build trust, officials said after the meetings.

The Afghan Taliban, ousted from power by a US-led coalition in 2001, has been gaining ter-ritory in its insurgency against the government led by President Ashraf Ghani.

Conduct attacks Afghanistan and Pakistan have long accused each other of shel-tering Taliban fighters and other extremist militants who conduct attacks inside their territory, charges both deny.

“We reiterate our position and state facts, asking Pakistan to take action against terrorist groups in-side its territory that declare war against our people,” a spokesman for the Afghan president’s office said in statement on Sunday.

Pakistan said after the meetings that both countries should work together to restore trust, and that an agreement had been reached to end a blame game over a spate of attacks. — Reuters

I N SURGENCY

Zardari condemns Altaf for ‘negative politics’

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: Pa-kistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said on Saturday that Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain’s ‘negative politics’ was detrimental to his own party’s interests.

In a statement issued by Zard-ari’s spokesman Senator Farhat-ullah Babar, the PPP co-chair-man was quoted as advising the MQM to join the country’s main-stream politics and work for the progress and prosperity of Sindh and Pakistan.

Unnecessary speechesZardari also advised Altaf to de-sist from ‘unnecessary’ speeches and statements. The PPP leader told the MQM chief that making incendiary remarks and ‘accusa-tions’ almost every day was in appropriate for a man in his po-

sition. Zardari lamented that the MQM had reneged on its promis-es made to the PPP. “But the PPP has always kept its promises to the MQM.”

He said his party had always put forward two conditions every time they had a dialogue with the MQM: “There will be no discus-sion on division of Sindh, and cooperation will be ensured to make Karachi a peaceful city.”

The PPP co-chairman said his party’s stance had always been clear that they would not let any-one divide Sindh.

He also said the PPP had al-ways tried to work in harmony with all the federal and provincial governments.

Meanwhile, the MQM’s Rabita Committee said in a statement that whether it was develop-ment in Karachi’s urban areas or offering employment, Zard-ari had never fulfilled any of his promises.

They lashed out at the PPP co-chairman in response to his ear-lier statement.

“The MQM was in power with the PPP in Sindh for five years, Zardari never fulfilled any writ-ten agreements,” said the coor-dination committee statement. “Zardari has realised that Sindhis are leaving behind corrupt politi-cians of the PPP and are joining the MQM. Like the urban areas, people of rural Sindh have also rejected the PPP.”

The MQM statement said that like Punjab, the PPP was seeing a dark future for the party in Sindh and was, therefore, playing the ‘Sindh’ card. — Express Tribune

The PPP co-

chairman was

quoted as advising

the MQM to join

mainstream politics

and work for the

progress of Sindh

and Pakistan

Altaf Hussain Asif Ali Zardari

Founder:Chairman / Editor-in-Chief:

Deputy Editor-in-Chief:Chief Executive Officer:

Telephone: Fax:

E-mail:

Telephone: Fax:

E-mail:

Telephone: Fax:

E-mail:

Printed and published by: Post Box:

Postal Code:

E D I T O R I A L

A D V E R T I S I N G

C I R C U L A T I O N

Essa bin Mohammed Al ZedjaliMohamed Issa Al ZadjaliAnees bin Essa Al Zedjali Ahmed Essa Al Zedjali

2472666624813153editor@timesofoman.com

2472666624812624advertising@timesofoman.com

2472666624818270circulation@timesofoman.com

Muscat Media Group 770112

#TRENDING

Paul Vallely

We lack moral imagination. It took a photograph of a dead child – in his smart red top, bright blue shorts and

new lace-up shoes – to open our eyes to the reality of the biggest refugee crisis since the Second World War. The statistics had not done it. Nor had the news that 700 boat people had died in a single accident in the Mediterranean. Nor, even, had the reports that 71 migrants had suffocated in the back of a refrigerated lorry. But the image of one three-year-old lying lifeless on a beach has turned a political tide.

Suddenly everyone agrees that “something must be done”. But there is little agreement on what that something might be. Different groups parade solutions to fit their different prejudices. How are we to pick a path through this moral maze?

The public focus is on how many migrants are entering Europe, what should be done with them and where they should be resettled. But if this is the pressing issue it is only a small part of the problem. There are two bigger difficulties.

The first is what can be done about the forces which are driving these people to flee their homes? Until recently the cameras of the British media have focused mainly on Calais, from where several thousand Eritrean, Sudanese and Nigerian migrants have been attempting to enter the UK illegally. But the biggest group of migrants flocking to Europe is, like the dead child Aylan al-Kurdi, from Syria. The second biggest is from Afghanistan. The harsh truth is that British policy in both Syria and Afghanistan, as in Iraq and Libya, played a part in creating the crisis and is now characterised by impotent paralysis. At this level the UK has been part of the problem and not part of the solution.

The second issue concerns how to assist those fleeing war in ways which keep them near enough to their homes to be able to return when the fighting is over. The British Government has a far more honourable record on that: it is spending as much as the rest of the European Union put together to help the four million

Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries such as Lebanon and Jordan. Thanks to the Government honouring its pledge to allocate 7p of every £10 of national income on aid, Britain is leading the way in providing food, shelter, medicines and education in those camps.

Even myopic opponents of aid such as the Daily Mail accept this is money well spent, and better than allowing large numbers of foreigners into the UK. But other governments are not doing their bit. The United Nations’ appeal for funds has reached only a third of what is needed. Food rations for Syrian refugees have been cut in half in Lebanon. Other governments must donate more.

And yet the image of Aylan, face-down on a Turkish beach, has switched the focus from the four million in those camps to the comparatively smaller number of people already on the move. Suddenly, David Cameron was wrong-footed. Germany is anticipating taking 800,000 refugees by the end of 2015. Sweden took 81,000 last year. Even Iceland has announced it will take 10,000. It is clearly unfair for Britain to take none.

Yet this is not just about numbers – it’s also about money. The inflow of migrants has laid bare the unfairness of the Dublin Regulations which insist refugees must claim asylum in the first EU country in which they land. Frontline countries (Italy, Greece, Bulgaria and Malta) are bearing disproportionate burdens. A better system to share costs must be found – for those countries, and to support the camps in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Egypt for the millions of Syrians of whom there are no poignant photographs. All this points to the need for a more comprehensive EU-wide system.

We should not be afraid of such numbers. The cold fact is that more than 500 million people live in the EU. The 350,000 migrants who have entered Europe so far this year represent less than a 10th of 1 per cent of the total population. Our continent has the means to absorb such a tiny percentage with relative ease.

But first we need to exercise our moral imagination and develop a coherent, continent-wide approach. - The Independent

MSM30 INDEXOmani stock market fell to 5,736 on

August 24 2015 and after a slight growth,fell again to similar levels

Source:Muscat Securities Market

6,591

5,736

Aug24

Jul22

5,905

Aug30

5,746

Sept06

Experts on China economy behind the market crashThis refers to the online story, Global markets awaiting China data (September 5). The world, it seems, has been caught on the wrong foot over China’s financial crisis. The reason for this is that experts for many years had been crying wolf over an impending ‘bubble burst’ of the world’s second largest economy. In my opinion,

everyone thought its economic run would continue for a long time to come. — Salman Ali, Ruwi

Mankind moving backwards in terms of use of intelligence This refers to the online story, New num-bering system in Rs 1,000 note to check counterfeiting (September 6). It is indeed very important to crack down on fake currency. However, I cannot understand why people produce such notes! Humans, in my opinion, have lost the difference between right and wrong due to technol-ogy. It is much easier to produce such items. The mankind, in my opinion, is moving backwards in terms of the use of intelligence.— Sundeep Lal, Muscat

‘Equals’ not worth seeingThis refers to the online story, Kristen Stewart sci-fi ‘equals’ fails to impress crit-ics (September 6). Its not hard to imagine why this is so. The actress, despite all the

fuss over the Twilight series, is nowhere near the great actresses of our times. For me, this film is not worth the money.— Shams Badar, Muscat

T I M E S O F O M A NM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5A12

It took a dead child’s photo to open our eyes

ONLINE HOT PICKS

READERS’ FORUM

www.newindiaoman.com

NEW INDIA ASSURANCEProtect the welfare of your

workforce through New India’s WORKMEN

COMPENSATION POLICY.

CLIPPINGS PICTOGRAPH

Ministry issues specifications of national flagMUSCAT: The Ministry of Information has given out the specifications and measurements of the national Flag. Accord-ingly, it has said that the flags to be used on private and public buildings (from the first floor and above) should be of 3.50m x 2m, while the length of the flagpole used should be 10m.

1870: The last British troops to serve in Austria are withdrawn. 1907: The luxury liner Lusitania leaves London for New York on her maiden voyage.

1937: The Soviet Union accuses Italy of torpedoing two Russian ships in the Mediterranean.

1976: A Soviet pilot lands his MIG-25 in Tokyo and asks for po-litical asylum in the United States.

M O S T R E A DTIMESOFOMAN.COM

M O S T P O P U L A R V I D E O

M O S T S H A R E DFACEBOOK.COM/TIMESOFOMAN

A code of ethics now mandates TV channels and radio stations

to ensure that there be no extremities in views broadcast.

Pakistani media is characterised by its nonchalant blurring of lines

between fact and opinion and between opinion and analysis

bit.ly/mediacodeofethics

KAMRAN REHMAT

The disappearance of cash represents a dangerous threat to liberty. A Google search for “war

on cash” produces 109 million results ranging in negativity from skeptical to outraged. In Britain,

at least, physical currency is losing the so-called war

bit.ly/waronhardcash

MARK GILBERT

In a backhanded way, the widespread criticism of the police, courts and prisons is a great compliment to them,

their reward for whatever role they played in restoring social tranquility to the point where

abuses or excesses by the authorities loom larger

bit.ly/criticismofuspolice

CHARLES LANE

F R O M O U R A R C H I V E S

T O D A Y I N H I S T O R Y

Passengers travelling on ear-ly morning flights in and out of the capital are coping with delays three times a week as maintenance work forces bosses to close the runway at Muscat International Airport

AUGUST 2000

Scan this QR code to send letters to the Readers’ Forum, 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).

I N S T A G R A M O F T H E D A Y INSTAGRAM.COM/TIMESOFOMAN

TIMESOFOMAN.COM/VIDEOS

1 Three die, two missing as Sultanate hit by rain’s wrath

bit.ly/omanhitbyrainwrath

2 CNN explores nine reasons to visit Omanbit.ly/cnnomantourismtips

3 Saudi Arabia satisfied with Obama’s assurances on Iran dealbit.ly/saudisatisfiedbyobama

4 ‘Companies should adapt to work-life merge era in Oman’bit.ly/worklifemergeera

5 Indian students in Oman suffer lack of coaching centresbit.ly/lackcoachingcentres

1 OMR 36,000 gold theft in Oman foiledbit.ly/goldtheftfoiled

2 Omagine project contract to be awarded soon in Omanbit.ly/omaginecontractaward

3 Home business licences made easy via ‘Invest Easy’ portalbit.ly/homebisenesslicence

4 Why does Oman have to count the costs every time it rains?bit.ly/omanraincosts

5 Royal Oman Police find missing boy’s body, traders count lossesbit.ly/missingboybodyfound

T I M E S O F O M A N . C O M / O P I N I O N

TOTAL PAGE LIKESTOTAL VIEWS

22,971,728 219,656

T W E E T W E L I K E

@HenryCooksonStuck in a sand storm #biblical #unheardof #oman #desert https://instagram.com/p/7SeByCREV1/

Photo: O.K. Mohammed Ali

«

SHARE THIS!

A13

SPECIALM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

HEADING TO SAFETY: Trekkers and climbers making their way up a trail leading to the village of Gorak Shep and Everest Base Camp deep in the Kumbhu region of the Sagamartha National Forest in north-

eastern Nepal, a few days before a 7.8-magnitude quake struck on April 25 killing more than 8,800 people across the Himalayan nation and triggering a deadly avalanche on Mount Everest that killed 18

people including foreign climbers. - AFP

KATHMANDU: Ang Kami Sherpa is one of Nepal’s most experienced “ice doctors” — the mountaineers who brave Mount Everest’s treacherous Khumbu icefall to prepare it for the climbing season — but even he is more nerv-ous than usual this time round.

Sherpa is among a group of ice doctors who returned to the 8,848-metre (29,029-foot) moun-tain in August — four months after a huge earthquake that triggered a deadly avalanche at its base camp.

They are readying the route for the autumn season, when even

in a normal year only a handful of climbers attempt the summit, most opting for the more favour-able conditions of spring.

This year, Japan’s Nobokazu Kuriki is the only climber planning an attempt on the summit, although a six-person support team is ex-pected to accompany him to Camp 2, about 6,400 metres high and usu-ally around two days of trekking be-yond base camp.

At 63, Sherpa is more familiar with Everest than most, having kicked off his mountaineering ca-reer in 1975 when he assisted Ja-

pan’s Junko Tabei in her success-ful bid to become the first woman to summit the peak.

But this time, the veteran ice doctor says even he is worried after April’s quake, which killed nearly 9,000 people, 18 of them on the world’s highest peak.

“Our job is more difficult this year, the mountain has changed (after the quake),” Sherpa said by phone from Everest base camp, where the ice doctors have already begun work. “There is always a risk up here but we are a little more scared this year.”

Highly-skilled mountaineers like Sherpa are the first men on the peak every season, using ropes and ladders to build a route across plunging crevasses and constantly shifting ice. This year the dangers are even higher than usual with Nepal still experiencing regular aftershocks, further increasing the risk of avalanches.

The avalanche that hit on April

25 was the second in as many years after 16 Nepali guides lost their lives on the icefall in 2014, spark-ing a shutdown of the peak.

Aftershocks and avalanches Many in the mountaineering com-munity question the wisdom of asking the elite climbers to brave aftershocks and avalanches for the sake of a single summit hopeful.

An ice doctor can earn $3,500 in a season, sometimes more in tips from foreign mountaineers, a large sum in a country where the aver-age annual income is about $705.

Mountaineering is a huge rev-enue earner for impoverished Ne-pal, home to eight of the world’s 14 peaks over 8,000 metres.

Everest alone attracts hundreds of climbers during the April to May spring season, when weather conditions are deemed ideal.

Ang Dorjee Sherpa, president of the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), which manag-

es the peak, said there was no op-tion but to send the route-setters up once the government issues a permit for the mountain. “It is our job to set the route, regardless of the number of climbers,” he said.

“Tourism as a whole has suf-fered a downfall, at least if there is an Everest summit this year, it will help send out a positive message.”

Every day the ice doctor and his team set off from base camp before dawn, often working for over 12 hours at a stretch.

Although Sherpa developed his skills on the job, in recent years, ice doctors have enrolled at the nearby Khumbu Climbing Centre, set up by US mountaineer Conrad Anker in memory of renowned al-pinist Alex Lowe who died in 1999.

“The ice doctors know the mountain the best, they are highly experienced,” said Ang Tsher-ing Sherpa, president of Nepal’s mountaineering association.

“They are the backbone of

mountaineering on Everest, all oth-er climbs depend on the initial risk they take.” US veteran mountaineer and Everest expert Alan Arnette said days get shorter and colder as winter approaches, making sum-mits less likely. “Spring Everest expeditions have a 66 per cent suc-cess (rate) compared to 29 per cent in the autumn,” Arnette said.

Nevertheless, Japanese climber Kuriki said he was determined to climb in the autumn and hoped to summit in mid-September.

Kuriki’s last attempt on Everest in autumn 2012 ended when he needed to be rescued from Camp 2, and he eventually lost nine of his fingers to frostbite. As he ascends, the ice doctors will continue to monitor the route, watching the clock anxiously until he returns.

“I have done this for so many years, but this year feels different somehow,” ice doctor Sherpa said.

“We hope that nothing will happen.” - AFP

Nepal’s ‘ice doctors’ are mountaineers who

brave Mount Everest’s treacherous Khumbu

icefall to prepare it for the climbing season

MILESTONE: A sign showing the way to Everest Base Camp high in the Khumbu Glacier, one day after an earthquake-triggered avalanche swept through parts of the base camp killing scores of people in this

picture taken on April 26, 2015. - AFP file photo

SCAN THIS QR CODE TO INSTANTLY VISIT

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

COLLAPSED GLACIER: A collapsed glacier and the site of an ava-

lanche seen in the Khumbu icefall from Everest Base Camp in this

photograph taken on April 18, 2014. - AFP file photo EVEREST BASE CAMP: A general view of Everest Base Camp in Nepal in this photograph taken on May 17, 2009. - AFP file photo

I have done this for so many years,

but this year feels different somehow.

We hope that nothing will happen

Ang Kami Sherpa, Ice doctor

A14

WORLDM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Share your world with us on Instagram

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY SHARE YOURPHOTOGRAPHS

Cyprus rescuers save 114 Syrians after boat trouble

NICOSIA: Rescuers in Cyprus on Sunday saved more than 100 refugees fleeing the war in Syria after their boat ran into trouble overnight off the Mediterranean island, authorities said.

The 114 people, including 54 women and children, had been aboard a small fishing boat about 40 nautical miles from the south-ern Cypriot port of Larnaca at the time they struck trouble, said a source in the island’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre.

Three arrestedCyprus police said they had ar-rested three people who had ad-mitted to smuggling the refugees, of whom more than half were transferred to a reception camp outside Nicosia on Sunday.

The boat had departed from the Syrian port town of Tartus and stopped in Tripoli, in northern Lebanon, authorities said.

Interior Minister Socrates Hasikos told reporters the refu-gees had been headed for Greece, with some hoping to travel on to other parts of Europe.

The boat was mainly carrying

Syrian refugees, but also some Lebanese and Palestinians from Syria, Hasikos said.Cyprus, a member of the European Union, lies just 100 kilometres (60 miles) off the Syrian coast but has so far avoided a mass influx of refu-gees from the country’s conflict, with most preferring to bypass the island to reach the European mainland.

Late on Saturday night, the boat’s captain sent a distress sig-nal as the vessel was listing be-cause its engine stopped working, prompting the police and army to launch a rescue operation, author-ities said.

All of those on board the strick-en vessel were safely brought ashore to Larnaca by 7:00 am (0400 GMT) on Sunday, police said. Some of them received first aid at the port, but “there were no serious injuries warranting a transfer to the hospital,” the inte-rior minister said.

Reception campOn Sunday afternoon, three buses carrying 87 of the refugees reached the reception camp at Kokkinotrimithia outside Nico-sia, officials said.

Outside the centre, men and women were seen walking in past

high barbed-wire fences, some carrying children and babies in their arms. Official news agency CNA said some others had asked for asylum and been taken to an asylum centre outside Larnaca.

Police spokesman Andreas An-gelides said the three people ar-rested were expected to appear in court on Monday.

Police said the three suspects - aged 47, 33 and 28 -- faced charges of people trafficking.

Local newspaper Phileleftheros reported that the boat’s captain was among them.

“From the existing informa-tion it appears that each refu-

gee paid more than 3,000 euros ($3,345) each” for the journey, Angelides said.

Last September, some 345 Syr-ian and Palestinian refugees were rescued by a cruise liner in stormy waters off the island’s coast and housed for several months be-fore their camp was closed. Two months later, about 220 Syrian refugees crammed onto a fishing boat were rescued off the coast of Turkish-occupied northern Cy-prus after hitting rough seas.

Europe has been facing an un-precedented influx this summer of people seeking refuge, many of them from war-torn Syria. — Reuters

Cyprus police said

they had arrested

three people who

had admitted to

smuggling the

refugees, of whom

more than half

were transferred

to a reception camp

outside Nicosia

on Sunday

French favour Syria strikes, oppose soft refugee rules PARIS: A majority of French people are against softening rules to access refugee status, a poll showed on Sunday even as thou-sands poured to the streets to show their solidarity with migrants seeking asylum in Europe.

Around 8,500 people marched in Paris on Saturday carrying ban-ners such as “Refugees welcome”. Other demonstrations took place in several cities across the coun-try. But a poll conducted by Odoxa for Le Parisien-Aujourd’hui en France daily showed 55 per cent of the 1,000 people surveyed were opposed to an easing of rules for migrants asking for refugee status, including Syrians fleeing civil war.

Less hospitableThirty-three per cent thought France was less hospitable to war refugees than Germany, which opened its door to several hundred thousands of migrants in the last months, while 44 per cent thought they are on the same line.

The picture of three year-old Aylan Kurdi’s body washed up in the Aegean resort of Bodrum spawned sympathy and outrage at the perceived inaction of devel-oped nations in helping refugees.

Anti-IS coalitionFrance is now considering join-ing a coalition conducting air strikes on IS group in Syria, Le Monde said on its website on Sat-urday, quoting an unnamed “high level source”.

Such a decision would likely be broadly endorsed politically, con-servative candidate to presidency Alain Juppe said on Sunday.

“I think there could be quite a large agreement on this,” he told reporters from Europe 1 radio, iTele TV and Le Monde daily when asked whether there would be a consensus if President Francois Hollande was to decide air strikes on Syria. In the Odoxa poll, 61 per cent said they would back France taking part in a coalition sending ground troops to Syria to fight the IS group. — Reuters

C O N F L I C T

ESCAPE FROM WAR: Refugees fleeing the war in Syria sit on a bus as they are driven to the Kokkinotrimithia refugee camp, West of Nico-sia in Cyprus, yesterday, a few hours after they were rescued as their boat ran into trouble overnight off the Mediterranean island. — AFP

Emotional welcome for bemused migrants in Germany after ordealMUNICH: Having braved dan-gerous journeys to escape war, tired refugees from Syria and other conflict zones were stunned to receive a hero’s welcome as they arrived in Germany over the weekend.

In crowded train stations, hun-dreds of well-wishers cheered the often baffled newcomers, waving “welcome” signs as the migrants got out of packed trains in Munich, Frankfurt and other German cities.

Crowds of people holding bal-loons and snapping smartphone pictures gave them water, food and children’s toys as the record influx has sparked an unprec-edented volunteer response.

“Say it loud, say it clear, refu-gees are welcome here,” chanted people at Frankfurt’s railway sta-tion overnight, as trains arrived with refugees who had travelled from Hungary through Austria.

In the southern city of Munich, Germany’s main hub for arrivals, a 47-year-old local woman in the crowd on Sunday waved to a Syr-ian family arriving on the latest of dozens of special trains.

When the family with three children neared the police barri-cade looking sceptical, the woman handed them a bag, with choco-lates, toys and an envelope inside.

“There’s a bit of money inside,” said the woman in English, before the Syrians, grateful smiles on their faces, were led on to be regis-tered, the next step in their uncer-tain journey.

Offered clothesArriving on another train, two boys, perhaps seven or eight years old, pushed out their chests like football stars and beamed smiles as they traversed the throng of ap-plauding people.

In Munich’s railway station hall, large tables offered clothes and food to the new arrivals, staffed by some 90 helpers -- in-cluding several Arabic speakers -- working four-hour shifts.

“We have more than 1,000 volunteers who have signed up on lists and online and are ready to help,” said one of them, Colin Turner.

From the train station of the Bavarian state capital, the refu-gees have been taken by bus or local train to temporary shelters, including a school, a tennis centre and two halls of the Munich con-gress centre, which has room to house about 1,000 people.

Largest numbersGermany, Europe’s biggest econ-omy, has taken in by far the EU’s largest numbers of refugees amid the biggest refugee crisis since World War II.

The total number is expected

to reach 800,000 this year -- four times last year’s total -- at a cost of about 10 billion euros ($11 bil-lion) to the state.This weekend alone, some 17,000 migrants were expected to have passed through Bavaria, federal police said.

While Germany has seen a spate of xenophobic rallies and at-tacks against foreigners, especial-ly in the former communist East, many people believe the country, given its dark wartime history and current wealth, has a special obli-gation to help refugees.

In an ugly incident Saturday night, several dozens far-right protesters rallied outside Dort-mund railway station against the newcomers.

Five people were hurt, in-cluding three police, when they clashed with anti-fascist activists.

However, the main focus was on the far larger crowds of well-wishers in many German cities.

At Frankfurt railway station overnight, food, water and clothes

were piled high for the new ar-rivals, while hundreds of people thronged the platforms.

An Egyptian man who gave his name as Mustafa and said he had been living in Frankfurt for 20 years, held up an Arabic-language cardboard sign saying “warm welcome”.

They’re afraidLara Sabbagh, a volunteer for an organisation called Kleeblatt based near Frankfurt, acted as a translator for some of the Syrian refugees. She told bystanders to stop taking photographs, saying: “They’re afraid. They say they’ve just fled from their country and their ruler and don’t want to be photographed.”

She added that many of the mi-grants didn’t “understand all the commotion here. They asked me, ‘What are all these people doing here? What do they want?’ They didn’t understand that people were here to welcome them.” — AFP

E X O D U S

BRAVING THE ODDS: Migrants wave as they arrive at the main railway station in Munich, southern Germany, on Sunday. — AFP

SCAN THIS QR CODE TO INSTANTLY VISIT

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

‘No evidence Mexico students were cremated in bonfire’MEXICO CITY: Independent foreign investigators refuted Sun-day the Mexican government’s conclusion that 43 students ab-ducted last year were incinerated in a landfill, tearing apart the of-ficial probe into a case that caused international outrage.

Urging the authorities to keep looking for the students snatched by corrupt police a year ago, ex-perts from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said there was no evidence that they were cremated in a bonfire.

After a six-month investiga-tion, the panel released a nearly 500-page report that raises ques-tions about the official account of a crime that sparked protests and the biggest crisis of President En-rique Pena Nieto’s administration.

The document also calls for a probe into the actions of fed-eral police and soldiers during the night of September 26-27, when municipal officers from the south-ern city of Iguala shot at buses that had been seized by the students.

The young men were mostly freshmen from a teaching college known for its leftist activism and practice of commandeering buses to move around Guerrero state.

The commission suggested that prosecutors open a new line of in-vestigation into whether the stu-dents were attacked because they may have taken a bus criminals used to transport heroin.

Definitive conclusionThe medical and legal experts from Spain and Latin America said they “regret not being able to offer the families, the government, Mexican society and the world a definitive conclusion about what happened to the 43 missing students.”

The attorney general’s office concluded late last year that Iguala police, with officers from neigh-boring Cocula, abducted 43 young men and handed them over to the Guerreros Unidos drug gang.

Citing confessions from gang members, then attorney general Jesus Murillo Karam said the stu-dents were killed and stacked in a funeral pyre that burned for 14 hours in Cocula’s landfill before their ashes were thrown in a near-by river.

The charred remains of only one student were identified in a bag found in the water.

But the commission hired a fire expert who concluded that it would have taken 60 hours, some 30 tonnes of woods, 13 tonnes of tires and 13 tonnes of diesel to cre-mate 43 bodies

Small firesJose Torero, a Peruvian-born pro-fessor at the University of Queens-land in Australia, wrote that such a blaze would have consumed vegetation and trash around it, but only evidence of small fires were found.

“There is no evidence indicating the presence of a fire of the size of a (funeral) pyre for the cremation of even one body,” Torero wrote.

Human rights groups and par-ents of the victims have accused the authorities of rushing to de-clare the students dead. — AFP

F O R E I G N I N V E S T I G A T O R S

After a six-month investigation, the panel released a nearly 500-page report that raises questions about the official account of a crime that sparked protests

A15

WORLDM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Annual US pillow fight turns bloodyNEW YORK: An annual pil-low fight among freshman at the United States Military Academy turned violent and left 30 cadets injured, the school’s superinten-dent said on Saturday.

The event, part of a tradition for first-year students at the service academy in West Point, New York, is intended as a way to help them relax and build team spirit after a summer spent preparing for a gru-elling programme, according to a statement released by Lieutenant General Robert L Caslen, Jr, su-perintendent at the academy.

“I take full responsibility for all actions that occur here at West Point to include the event on Au-gust 20, 2015,” Caslen said. “We remain committed to the develop-ment of leaders of character.”

The brawl turned bloody after many of the cadets stuffed helmets and other hard objects into the pillow cases resulting in injuries that included concussions, a bro-ken nose, a dislocated shoulder, broken bones and a cheekbone fracture, according to Caslen’s statement and a report in the New York Times.

All the injured, including 24 with concussion, have returned to campus and that “appropriate ac-tion” will be taken when the inves-tigation is finished, Caslen said.

“While these spirit events do oc-cur, we never condone any activity that results in intentional harm to a teammate,” Caslen said.

Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Kasker, an academy spokesman, said there were no plans to can-cel it. Upperclassmen supervis-ing the freshmen had required the cadets to wear helmets, but many put the helmets in their pillow cases instead.

The tradition dates back to at least 1897, as there was a 1901 congressional inquiry on hazing. The 2013 fight was cancelled af-ter a cadet put a lockbox in a pil-low case during the 2012 event and hurt other cadets, the report said. -Reuters

The event, part of a tradition for first-year

students at the service academy in West

Point, New York, is intended as a way to

help them relax and build team spirit

after a summer spent preparing for a

gruelling programme

SCAN THIS QR CODE TO INSTANTLY VISIT

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

I take full responsibility for all actions that occur here

at West Point to include the event on August 20, 2015

Lieutenant General Robert L Caslen, United

States Military Academy, West Point, New York

A16

WORLDM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Tablet lovers add us on Google +

dd +

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY ADD IN GOOGLE+

Thai junta-backed council rejects constitution draft

BANGKOK: A council appointed by Thailand’s junta on Sunday rejected a draft constitution, a move expected to delay a return to democracy following last year’s military coup.

Critics had pilloried the docu-ment as divisive, anti-democratic and aimed at prolonging military rule. But its rejection in a vote by the National Reform Council (NRC) means the painstaking process of drafting a charter will have to start again, potentially pushing back the timetable for elections to 2017.

Of the 240 NRC members who voted, 135 were against the docu-ment and 105 in favour. “Those in favour were less than half of NRC members, it means this NRC meeting has voted against” the charter, NRC chairman Tienchai Kiranan said in a televised count.

The army seized power from an elected government in May last year, promising to calm the coun-try after years of street protests and acrimony by political rivals. The junta has said a new charter — Thailand’s 20th since it aban-doned absolute monarchy in 1932 — holds the key to bridging those

divides before democratic elec-tions can be restored, provision-ally in mid-late 2016.

For years the kingdom has been split between pro-democracy sup-porters of ex-premier Thaksin Shi-nawatra’s populist parties and a conservative, royalist elite backed by the military and judiciary. Shi-nawatra-backed parties have won every election since 2001 but have been ousted by two coups and seen the removal of three prime minis-ters by the courts.

Opponents of the charter see it as a blatant attempt to perma-nently entrench the military’s political power and say it would prevent genuine democracy from taking root. They point to Section 260 that allows the military to replace any elected government with an appointed 22-member “crisis” panel at any time in the five years after the charter is

enacted — if unrest or political deadlock, as the military sees it, requires such a move.

The panel would be stacked with military top brass and other unelected officials, effectively guaranteeing the army’s grip on power.

Ahead of Sunday’s vote the toppled Peau Thai party labelled the charter “dictatorial” saying it would destroy democracy and plunge the kingdom into even “deeper political polarisation”.

But analysts say the vote to re-ject it is also politically helpful for the junta as it sets back the date for a return to civilian rule. The junta now has a month to appoint a new charter drafting committee. “They (committee) will then draft a new charter within 180 days and then it will go to a national refer-endum,” NRC member Paiboon Nititawan said. -AFP

The rejection in a

National Reform

Council vote means

the drafting process

will have to start

again, potentially

delaying 2017 polls

KEY VOTE: Thai National Reform Council members vote on the

new draft constitution at Parliament in Bangkok on Sunday. -AFP

MARKEWWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5B

DIGEST VIDEO

S CA N T H I S Q R CO D E TO I N STA N T LY L AU N C H T H E V I D EO

Top stories in one minute with our new daily Digest

Oman’s bank credit surges ahead by 9% to OMR18b

A E JAMESbusinesseditor@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Oman’s commer-cial banks have achieved a 9.15 per cent growth in total credit at OMR17.897 billion for the first seven months of 2015 from OMR16.397 billion for the same period of last year, according to the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).

The incremental credit growth of all banks in absolute terms was

OMR1,500.8 million in a year.It is more or less in line with the

loan growth seen last year and was mostly driven by the corporate sector. Hamoud Sangour Al Zad-jali, executive president of Central Bank of Oman earlier said that the credit growth for the whole year would be in double digits and would probably hover around 10 per cent. Total deposits of Om-

ani banks also rose by 6.48 per cent for the first seven months of 2015 at OMR18.342 billion, from OMR17.226 billion for the same period last year, according to the Central Bank of Oman.

Oman has seven conventional banks — Bank Muscat, Nation-al Bank of Oman, BankDhofar, HSBC Bank Oman, Bank Sohar, Oman Arab Bank and ahlibank.

Because of continued low oil prices, the banks will be more con-servative in lending in the second half and focus more on the credit quality rather than quantity. Un-der such a scenario, the overall credit growth may show a mar-ginal slow down.

Total assets of commercial banks by end-July 2015 touched OMR28.094 billion, showing a

growth of 11.22 per cent over the same period last year.

Interest rateMeanwhile, the short-term in-terest rates in the country are expected to harden in the com-ing months, with Oman govern-ment raising debt funds to cover deficit in view of falling oil prices. The liquidity within the financial system has been absorbed as the government has raised OMR500 million so far this year — OMR300 million in July and OMR200 mil-lion in February — by way of de-velopment bond issues. Also, the Sultanate’s government is in an advanced stage to float the coun-try’s first sovereign sukuk or Is-lamic bond worth OMR200 mil-lion, which will take the total debt issue to OMR700 million. If the government of Oman continues borrowing, bank liquidity will be tightened and the lending rates will not remain at the same level.

In the last couple of years, Omani banks had ample liquid-ity, resulting in a low interest re-gime. A couple of Omani banks have started offering personal loan for nationals below four per cent per cent. But banks would not be able to continue such a low rate, if money market situation is tightened.

Total deposits of

Omani banks also

rose by 6.48 per cent

for the first seven

months of 2015 at

OMR18.342 billion,

from OMR17.226

billion for the same

period last year,

according to the CBO

Oman signs pact for developing renewable energy

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Oman’s Rural Areas Electricity Company (Raeco) on Sunday signed a consultancy services agreement with CESI Middle East for supervising the construction of the country’s re-newable energy projects.

The projects will be located in Dhofar and Al Wusta Governates, with feasibility studies on going for determining their final loca-tion. CESI Middle East is a global leader in technical consulting and engineering. With a focus on working to-wards a more sustainable future, securing a less polluted environ-ment the Sultanate of Oman has consistently sought to move past its dependence on fossil fuels to meet the energy needs of its cur-rent population.

CESI will be providing Raeco with the expertise to implement renewable energy systems across the different projects, in-turn sav-ing manpower, spare parts and most importantly, reducing the consumption of diesel fuel. With Oman having one of the highest levels of solar energy densities in the world, receiving up to 7,900 gigawatts from the Sun per day, Raeco chose an industry leader to utilise this significant advantage and oversee the construction.

S O L A R P R O J E C T S

ROBUST GROWTH: The incremental credit growth of all banks in absolute terms was OMR1,500.8

million in a year, according to the Central Bank of Oman. — Times file picture

B2

MARKETM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

TO ADVERTISECall: 24726666

Registration for Oman’s 2015 Entrepreneurship Award beginsTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Organising committee of the Sultanate’s 2015 Entrepre-neurship Award began registra-tion on Sunday, which will con-tinue till October 8. To make the registration easy and accessible, the committee said it will be done online through its official website www.theaward.om.

Tariq Al Farsi, chief executive

officer of the Al Raffd Fund and head of the organising committee said: “the award comes in line with the directives of His Majesty Sul-tan Qaboos bin Said to enable the Omani youth to effectively con-tribute to the development of their national economy and diversifica-tion of its resources.”

“The foundation of the award reflects the government’s persis-tent commitment to creating a

supporting environment for entre-preneurship. At the same time, it represents a qualitative leap in the Sultanate’s efforts to build a strong national entrepreneurship foun-dation,” added Al Farsi.

The award this year maintained the same three main categories: Entrepreneurship Award, En-trepreneurship Award for SMEs, and Entrepreneurship Support-ers Award. However, it introduced

new subcategories making the overall number of awards 18.

Some changes were made to the subcategories based on feedback of the first edition.

The new additions come to bet-ter fit the nature of the activities of the private and public organi-sations. On the other hand, some other categories were split to help assessors evaluate the real perfor-mance of each initiative without

having to distract their focus on some unnecessary details.

Badriya Al Hinai, project man-ager of the award, said the Entre-preneurship Award highlights the importance of supporting Omani entrepreneurs and giving them the priority to succeed and flourish. “The award promotes the initia-tives of the supporting organisa-tions and their commitment to support the national efforts to de-

velop entrepreneurs,” she added.On the registration process, Al

Hinai said: “In order to register for the award, applicants need to visit its official website (www.theaward.om) and fill in the regis-tration form. After verifying their data the applicants will receive an SMS with their user name and password which will enable them to proceed with the following steps of the registration.”

O N L I N E

‘Projects funded by development bank not affected so far’

MEHDI AL LAWATI

MUSCAT: Projects financed by Oman Development Bank (ODP) have not been affected by the slump in oil prices, though it did force the government to shrink its expenditure.

“Although the government de-cided to cut its aid to ODB’s loans by half, we have not raised the in-terest rate,” said Khamis Hamood Al Sabahi, senior corporate credit manager at ODB.

LogisticsAccording to Al Sabahi, non-performing loans has seen a huge drop through the years.

“In the past, the rate was around 60 per cent to 65 per cent, while today it is less than 9 per cent. Only 3 per cent of the loans paid after 2006 are non-performing,” he added.

Asked about bank’s plan to add logistics to its financing list, he

said: “We have sent our recom-mendations to concerned author-ities and we are awaiting approv-al. Should they give us a green light, we will then have to study

our expenditure and others.” Al Sabahi has also added that

the bank is looking to finance pro-jects in other sectors, without dis-closing any further.

Construction sectorCommenting on complaints from entrepreneurs in construction sector of not getting any funding neither from ODB nor Al Rafd Fund, he said, “Construction sec-tor is not a priority to us.”

According to Al Sabahi, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) make around 90 per cent of the approximately 4,500 projects the bank funds every year.

Asked about commercial banks’ concerns over financing SMEs’ projects, he said: “The risks are mainly associated with new projects and not those which need to expand.”

Khamis Hamood

Al Sabahi, senior

corporate credit

manager at ODB, said

that the bank has

not raised interest

rate even though the

government decided

to cut its aid to ODB’s

loans by half

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

UNAFFECTED: Oman Development Bank’s senior corporate credit manager said that the non-performing loans has seen a phenom-enal drop through the years. – Times file picture

In the past, the rate was around 60% to 65%, while today it is less than 9%. Only 3% of the loans paid after 2006 are non-performing

Khamis Hamood Al SabahiSenior corporate credit manager, ODB

B3M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

MARKET

National Gas inks distributionagreementwith UAE firm

Times News Service

MUSCAT: National Gas Com-pany through its wholly-owned subsidiary in the UAE has signed an exclusive distribution agree-ment with Gulf Petrochem, UAE, to distribute their full range of in-dustrial lubricants in Oman and the UAE.

The agreement was signed by senior officials of both companies at Gulf Petrochem’s corporate of-fice in Hamriyah Free Zone in Sharjah, said a stock market filing.

Gulf Petrochem is a Sharjah based ISO 9001: 2008 certified lube and grease manufacturer with business interests in the UAE, Oman, India and Western African region. The company also has substantial presence in termi-nalling and bunkering operations in the United Arab Emirates.

National Gas aims to establish itself as a preferred supplier of full range of quality industrial lubri-cants in Oman and the UAE with able support of Gulf Petrochem.

I N D U S T R I A L L U B R I C A N T S Business conditions in Oman to improve within a year: Study

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Majority of employed respondents in Oman believe that business conditions will improve in a year’s time, according to a sur-vey conducted by a leading job site.

About 51 per cent of employed respondents in the Sultanate of Oman believe that business con-ditions are either good or very good, while 9 per cent believe that business conditions are either bad or very bad, said the survey con-ducted by Bayt.com – a leading job site, jointly with YouGov.

Over a third of Oman respond-ents believe that the country’s economy has improved in the last six months, while 10 per cent be-lieve that it has receded.

As many as 40 per cent of re-spondents believe that the econo-my has remained the same. Addi-

tionally, 49 per cent of respondents expect the economy to improve in the next six months, while one in four expect it to remain the same, said the survey report.

“When looking at the region in its entirety, the outlook is a posi-tive one,” said Suhail Al Masri, vice- president of sales, Bayt.com. “When it comes to jobs, the out-look is positive as well. Now is a

good time for professionals to fo-cus on job search strategies, and brand themselves online.”

The survey found that while 35 per cent of Oman respondents say that their savings have declined in comparison to last year, the ma-jority of residents have a positive outlook on the future of the coun-try’s economy, as well as their own financial future.

Also, 30 per cent of Oman re-spondents believe that their or their family’s current financial situation is better now than it was six months ago, and 40 per cent believe that it remained the same. About 17 per cent believe that their financial situation is worse. The future outlook is positive too: 53 per cent of respondents believe that their personal financial situ-ation will improve in the next six months, while 24 per cent believe that it will remain the same. When it comes to cost of living, 64 per cent of respondents expect it to increase, while 21 per cent expect it to remain the same.

Further, 35 per cent of Oman respondents say that their sav-ings have decreased in compari-son to last year. About one in four respondents (26 per cent) claim that their savings have increased, while 33 per cent claim that they have remained the same.

As many as 44 per cent of those surveyed in Oman are planning to invest in a motor vehicle in the next 12 months. Of those, 42 per cent are planning to buy a new ve-hicle, while 39 per cent are plan-ning to buy a used one.

Property investment When it comes to investing in property, 30 per cent of Oman re-spondents are planning to invest in the next 12 months, while more than half have no plans to invest. Of those who are planning to buy property, 28 per cent will invest in an apartment, while 47 per cent plan to buy a villa/townhouse/bungalow and 21 per cent will purchase commercial property. Majority (58 per cent) of respond-

ents who are planning to invest in property in Oman plan to buy new property in the next 12 months, while 19 per cent will invest in pre-owned property.

Job perspectivePresently, 43 per cent of the re-spondents surveyed believe that there are plenty of jobs available in Oman, with 22 per cent claim-ing availability across multiple industries and 21 per cent claim-ing availability across a limited number of industries. Besides, 37 per cent believe that there are few jobs available in Oman. In regards to future availability of jobs, 38 per cent of Oman respondents expect job availability to increase in the next six months.

In Oman, 44 per cent of em-ployed respondents feel that the number of employees in their companies over the past six months has increased, while 19 per cent believe the opposite to be true. Over the course of the next six months, 46 per cent of em-ployed Oman respondents expect the number of employees in their organisation to increase.

Data for the Bayt.com Consum-er Confidence Index survey was collected online from July 27 to August 2, with 8,882 respondents from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qa-tar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria.

As many as 51% of

respondents in Oman

believe that business

conditions are either

good or very good,

while 9% believe that

business conditions

are either bad or

very badCONFIDENT: Over a third of Oman respondents in the survey believe that the country’s economy has improved in the last six months, while 10 per cent believe that it has receded. – Times file picture

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

Central bank chief to open Crowe Horwath workshop

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Hamood Sangour Al Zadjali, executive president of Central Bank of Oman, is sched-ule to inaugurate the IFRS (In-ternational Financial Reporting Standards) workshop at Hormuz Grand hotel on Tuesday.

The workshop is organised by Crowe Horwath, one of the top ten global accounting network operating in Oman.

“The history and development of international standards for accounting and auditing relates back to the late 1960s, but never have they reached greater promi-nence than today as the world moves closer towards interna-tional convergence,” said Davis Kallukaran, managing partner of Horwath Mak Ghazali, the Oman member firm of Crowe Horwath International.

“With more than 100 countries

requiring or accepting Interna-tional Financial Reporting Stand-ards, the likelihood of companies around the globe using the same accounting standards in their fi-nancial reporting is becoming a reality,” added Kallukaran.

Harmonising accountingIFRS began as an attempt to har-monise accounting across the European Union (EU), but the value of harmonisation quickly made the concept attractive around the world.

They are sometimes still called by the original name of In-ternational Accounting Stand-ards (IAS).

New standards are being in-troduced, existing ones are being amended or deleted on an yearly basis to take care of the develop-ments in the commercial world.

Lately quite a few changes are made to the existing standards

in response to the complex ways and means in which financial reporting is used to convey dis-torted pictures of the financial performance of business entities.

“This workshop is specially tuned to update the finance pro-fessionals in the banking and non-banking financial institu-tions. Lot of changes are hap-pening in the financial reporting system,” said P. R. Pillai, director banking advisory services with Crowe Horwath Oman.

New standards“In response to those challenges, new standards IFRS 14 related to rate regulated activities and IFRS 15 relating to revenue from contract with customers have been introduced.

Amendments have also been made to IAS ,1,16,19, 27,28,34, 38, 41 and IFRS 5,7,10 and 11, added P. R Pillai.

A C C O U N T I N G

Hamood Sangour Al Zadjali, executive president of Central Bank of Oman. – Supplied picture

Indian trade team visiting the Sultanate

Times News Service

MUSCAT: A composite Indian delegation comprising seven healthcare institutes, hospitals and 15 companies from food in-dustry are participating under the banner of Trade Promotion Council of India (TPCI) at Oman Medhealth & Wellness exhibition and Food & Hospitality Exhibi-tion respectively at Oman Inter-national Exhibition Centre from September 7 to 9.

As part of ‘India Pavilion’, Indian participants will display products, technology, and ingredients to ex-plore business opportunities avail-able in the Sultanate. Seven Indian hospitals and healthcare institutes are participating in Oman Med-health & Wellness exhibition to showcase their cost-effective and cutting-edge technology, products/equipment and medical prowess with a view to enter to Omani mar-ket for doing business in Oman.

B U S I N E S S T O U R

Spanish trade delegation visiting OmanMUSCAT: Trade mission from Spain will arrive in the Sultanate of Oman on September 13, according to Economic and Trade Office of the Spanish embassy in Muscat. The mission is organised by the Madrid Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The chamber will bring a delegation of four companies representing the following products: Com-prehensive management of turnkey projects, trans-portation, manufacturer of chemicals for construction, manufacturer of hospital furniture, treatment of urban wastewater, and purification of industrial waste water to name a few. The visit seeks to continue to build on the close bilateral relationships that exist between the two countries. During the mis-sion, the representatives will meet potential distributors and agents.

Omantel names chief financial officerMUSCAT: Martial Caratti has been appointed as chief financial officer (CFO) of Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel). He brings 30 years of experi-ence, most of them spent as chief financial officer for in-ternational telecom groups. He was part of the €43 bil-lion acquisition deal. Martial is a chartered accountant and holds bachelor degree in Finance and Accounting. - Times News Service

B R I E F S

Survey found that while 35% of Oman respondents say that their savings have declined in comparison to last year, the majority of residents have a positive outlook on the future of the country’s economy

B4

MARKETM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

MUSCATSECURITIES MARKET

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6

REGULAR MARKET .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................OM0000004933 ...........AL SUWADI POWER .................................................. 172,136 .............37,010......................15 ............0.215 ........... 0.217 ...........0.215 ............0.215 .............0.210 ........... 0.005 ............. 2.381 ................0.217 .............. 0.215...................0.217 .................. 153,597,363 ........0.100

OM0000001087 ............OMAN UNITED INSURANCE ............................... 100,000 ........... 25,000........................4 ........... 0.250 ...........0.250 ...........0.250........... 0.250 .............0.247 ........... 0.003 ..............1.215.................0.250..............0.247...................0.252 ..................25,000,000 ........0.100

OM0000002796 ...........BANK MUSCAT .............................................................. 38,167 .............19,077........................6 ........... 0.498 ...........0.500 ...........0.498 ........... 0.500 .............0.496 ........... 0.004 ............. 0.806 ................0.500..............0.498...................0.500 ................1,145,911,299 ......0.100

OM0000003026 ...........OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ..........................22,683 .............37,269..................... 10 ............1.640 ........... 1.650 ...........1.640 ............1.645 ............. 1.640 ........... 0.005 ............. 0.305 ................1.650 .............. 1.650...................1.660 ................ 1,233,750,000 ......0.100

OM0000001160 ............NATIONAL GAS ............................................................... 2,097 .................. 654........................3 ............0.312 ........... 0.312 ...........0.312 ........... 0.322 .............0.322 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.312 .............. 0.316...................0.328 ..................16,100,000 .........0.100

OM0000001525 ............OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE .............. 152,500 ........... 25,955........................9 ............0.170 ........... 0.171 ............0.170 ........... 0.170 ............. 0.170............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.170 .............. 0.170...................0.172 .................. 34,000,000 ........0.100

OM0000001533 ............OMINVEST .................................................................... 350,975 ......... 162,150........................7 ........... 0.462 ........... 0.462 ...........0.462........... 0.462 .............0.462 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.462..............0.462...................0.466..................255,422,079 .......0.100

OM0000002200 ...........AHLI BANK ............................................................................393 .....................75........................ 1 ............0.190 ........... 0.190 ...........0.190 ........... 0.190 ............. 0.190 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.190 .............. 0.191...................0.200 .................270,756,867 ........0.100

OM0000002275 ...........SHELL OMAN MARKETING ...................................89,000 .......... 182,450........................9 ........... 2.050 ...........2.050 ...........2.050........... 2.050 .............2.050 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................2.050............. 2.000...................2.050 .................194,750,000 ........0.100

OM0000002366 ...........AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ....................... 26,000 ............... 2,615........................5 ............0.101 ........... 0.101............0.100 ............0.101 ............. 0.101 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.100 ..............0.095................... 0.101 ....................3,030,000 ..........0.100

OM0000002549 ...........BANK DHOFAR ............................................................ 275,000 ........... 66,275......................16 ............0.241 ........... 0.241 ...........0.241 ........... 0.241 ............. 0.241 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.241 ..............0.238...................0.241 ..................372,279,580........0.100

OM0000002820 ...........GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ......................... 278,986 ........... 29,294......................15 ............0.105 ........... 0.105 ...........0.105 ........... 0.105 ............. 0.105............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.105 ..............0.104...................0.105 .................... 6,178,538 ..........0.100

OM0000003711 ............SOHAR POWER ................................................................ 5,259 ................1,781........................6 ........... 0.334 ...........0.340 ...........0.334........... 0.338 .............0.338 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.340............. 0.340...................0.350................... 74,701,380 .........0.100

OM0000003968 ...........OOREDOO.........................................................................13,000 ...............9,264........................3 ............0.712 ........... 0.716............0.712 ............0.712 ............. 0.712 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.712 .............. 0.712...................0.720................. 463,472,292 .......0.100

OM0000004735 ...........SEMBCORP SALALAH ................................................10,680 ............. 27,181........................4 ........... 2.545 ........... 2.545 ...........2.545........... 2.545 .............2.545 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................2.545 ..............2.545...................2.595..................242,938,561........1.000

OM0000004768 ...........AL MADINA TAKAFUL .................................................2,000 ...................172........................2 ........... 0.085 ........... 0.087 ...........0.085 ........... 0.087 .............0.087 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.087 ..............0.086...................0.087...................15,225,000 .........0.100

OM0000004925 ...........AL BATINAH POWER ................................................ 146,770 .............31,423......................13 ............0.214 ........... 0.215 ...........0.214 ........... 0.214 ............. 0.214 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.215 .............. 0.215...................0.218 ..................144,425,910 ........0.100

OM0000005005 ...........ALMAHA CERAMICS ...................................................77,361 .............39,459......................18 ........... 0.506 ........... 0.512 ...........0.504........... 0.510 ............. 0.512............-0.002 ........... -0.391................0.504..............0.504...................0.510 ...................26,775,000 .........0.100

OM0000002168 ............AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ................................. 19,500 ...............6,864........................2 ........... 0.352 ........... 0.352 ...........0.352 ........... 0.352 .............0.354 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.565 ...............0.352 ..............0.354...................0.370..................104,267,216 ........0.100

OM0000003398 ...........BANK SOHAR................................................................ 364,000 ............61,692......................12 ............0.170 ........... 0.170 ...........0.162 ............0.169 ............. 0.170............-0.001 ........... -0.588 ...............0.164 ..............0.164...................0.170 ................. 243,603,360 .......0.100

OM0000003224 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES ..................................... 486,310 ...........80,222..................... 30 ............0.165 ........... 0.167 ...........0.164 ............0.165 ............. 0.166............-0.001 ........... -0.602 ...............0.164 ..............0.164...................0.168 ................... 47,957,418 .........0.100

OM0000001707 ............OMAN CABLES INDUSTRY ......................................93,000 .......... 179,224..................... 28 ............1.930 ........... 1.930 ...........1.920 ............1.925 .............1.940 ...........-0.015 ........... -0.773................1.930 ..............1.920...................1.930 ..................172,672,500........0.100

OM0000002440 ...........AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING ............ 98,000 .............10,532......................11 ............0.108 ........... 0.109 ...........0.106 ........... 0.107 ............. 0.108 ...........-0.001 ........... -0.926 ...............0.109 ..............0.108...................0.109 ....................9,630,000 ..........0.100

OM0000001681 ............OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING ........... 422,585 ........... 44,371..................... 23 ............0.106 ........... 0.106 ...........0.104 ........... 0.105 ............. 0.106 ...........-0.001 ........... -0.943 ...............0.104 ..............0.104...................0.105 ................... 12,796,875 .........0.100

OM0000001483 ............NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ................................. 120,637............ 36,060........................5 ........... 0.300 ...........0.300 ...........0.290 .......... 0.299 .............0.302 ...........-0.003 ........... -0.993 ...............0.299..............0.295...................0.299 ................ 400,872,365 .......0.100

OM0000003521 ............GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. .................. 201,982 ............19,494..................... 29 ........... 0.097 ........... 0.097 ...........0.096........... 0.097 .............0.098 ...........-0.001 ........... -1.020 ...............0.097 ..............0.096...................0.097...................28,128,122 .........0.100

OM0000004248 ...........SMN POWER HOLDING ........................................... 50,000 .............37,600........................ 1 ............0.752 ........... 0.752 ...........0.752 ........... 0.752 ............. 0.760 ...........-0.008 ............-1.053................0.752 .............. 0.752...................0.760 .................. 150,125,971 ........0.100

OM0000001517 ............HSBC BANK OMAN .................................................... 793,949 ............91,548........................8 ............0.115 ........... 0.118............ 0.115 ............0.115 ............. 0.117 ............-0.002 ............-1.709 ................ 0.118 .............. 0.118...................0.126 ..................230,035,971 ........0.100

OM0000001772 ............AL ANWAR HOLDING............................................... 728,268 ......... 129,053..................... 62 ............0.176 ........... 0.180 ...........0.176 ............0.177 ............. 0.181 ............-0.004 ........... -2.210 ...............0.177 .............. 0.176...................0.177 ...................26,563,275 .........0.100

OM0000002374............UNITED FINANCE ..................................................... 277,791 .............35,557......................11 ............0.128 ........... 0.128 ...........0.128 ........... 0.128 ............. 0.131 ............-0.003 ........... -2.290 ...............0.128 ..............0.128...................0.134 ................... 39,777,912 .........0.100

OM0000003661 ............VOLTAMP ENERGY ....................................................... 5,463 ............... 2,251........................6 ............0.412 ........... 0.414 ...........0.412 ........... 0.412 .............0.424 ...........-0.012 ........... -2.830 ...............0.414 .............. 0.414...................0.422 ..................24,926,000 ........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 5,424,492... 1,431,570...................374 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ...... 31........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

PARALLEL MARKET ................................................................................................................................................................................. OM0000001053 ............OMAN TEXTILE HOLDING ......................................67,491 ............ 23,077......................13 ........... 0.344 ...........0.344 ...........0.340 .......... 0.342 .............0.342 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.344............. 0.340...................0.350....................2,052,000 ..........1.000

OM0000001400 ...........OMAN FLOUR MILLS ............................................... 120,700 ............59,310........................4 ........... 0.492 ........... 0.492 ...........0.488 ........... 0.492 .............0.492 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.488 ..............0.488...................0.492...................77,490,000 .........0.100

OM0000004420 ...........BANK NIZWA ................................................................ 1,788,360 .......108,811..................... 47 ........... 0.060 ...........0.062 ...........0.060........... 0.061 ............. 0.061............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.061 .............. 0.061...................0.062 ..................91,500,000 .........0.100

OM0000004511 ............ALIZZ ISLAMIC BANK.................................................. 5,000 ..................340........................ 1 ........... 0.068 ........... 0.068 ...........0.068........... 0.066 .............0.066 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.068 ..............0.067...................0.068...................66,000,000 ........0.100

OM0000005963 ...........PHOENIX POWER ...................................................... 400,070 ........... 59,330..................... 67 ............0.149 ........... 0.149 ...........0.148 ........... 0.148 ............. 0.149............-0.001 ............-0.671................0.148 .............. 0.148...................0.149 ..................216,465,016 ........0.100

OM0000001368 ............CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. .....................11,419 .................. 388........................3 ........... 0.034 ........... 0.034 ...........0.034........... 0.034 .............0.036 ...........-0.002 ........... -5.556 ...............0.034..............0.034...................0.036....................2,890,000 ..........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 2,393,040 ..... 251,256................... 135 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........ 6........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BONDS MARKET ................................................................................................................................................................................. OM0000005971 ............B.MUSCAT COMPL. CONVR. B.B.3.5 .....................44,167 ...............4,187........................4 ........... 0.094 ........... 0.095 ...........0.094........... 0.095 .............0.094 ............0.001 ............. 1.064 ................0.095 ..............0.095...................0.098................... 30,795,353 .........0.100

OM0000004628 ...........BANK SOHAR BONDS 4.5 ..........................................63,007 ............... 6,301........................ 1 ........... 0.100 ........... 0.100 ...........0.100 ........... 0.100 .............0.100 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.100 ..............0.100................... 0.110 .................... 7,150,000 ..........0.100

OM0000004867 ...........BANK MUSCAT C C B 4.5 ...........................................26,986 ...............2,645........................ 1 ........... 0.098 ........... 0.098 ...........0.098........... 0.098 .............0.100 ...........-0.002 ........... -2.000 ...............0.098 ..............0.100................... 0.110 ...................31,324,982 .........0.100

OM0000004602 ...........BANK MUSCAT CONV. BONDS 4.5 ....................... 50,000 ...............5,450........................ 1 ............0.109 ........... 0.109 ...........0.109 ........... 0.109 ............. 0.112 ............-0.003 ........... -2.679 ...............0.109 ..............0.106...................0.109 ...................32,999,653 .........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 184,160.............18,583........................7 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ........ 4........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

ISIN ......................................SECURITY NAME .................................................................. VOLUME ..... TURNOVER ............TRADES ......OPEN PRICE ......HIGH ............. LOW ........ CLOSE PR. ...PREV. CLOSE...DIFF (RO).........DIFF % ............. LAST PR .....LAST BID .............LAST OFFER ........MARKET CAP .PAR VALUE

O M A N S T O C K S

INDICESIndex .................................................High .................Low ..................... Value ............... Prev . Value.......... Diff ...............Diff %MSM30 Index .........................................5,747.01 ............... 5,738.70 ................... 5,746.30 ................... 5,749.38 .................. -3.08 .................. -0.05Financial Index .................................... 6,892.29 .............. 6,866.64 ....................6,877.15 ...................6,896.67 ................ -19.52 .................. -0.28Industrial Index ....................................7,505.32 ...............7,473.33 ....................7,478.73 ................... 7,508.12 ................-29.39 .................. -0.39Services Index ...................................... 3,224.32 ...............3,216.82 ...................3,224.29 ................... 3,216.55 .....................7.74 ...................0.24MSM SHARIAH INDEX.......................907.60 ..................907.00 ....................... 907.31 ...................... 907.80 .................. -0.49 .................. -0.05

Trading SummaryVolume ................ Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up ............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded8,001,692.....................1,701,409 ..................... 516 ............... 14,507,639,809 .................. 5 ......................18 .................... 18 .........................41

MSM index closes flat

MUSCAT: Oman shares edged down on listless activity. The MSM 30 Index opened the week with low trading activity and closed on a flat note at 5,746.30 points, down by 0.05 per cent. The MSM Sharia Index closed also closed down 0.05 per cent at 907.31 points.

Bank Nizwa was the most ac-tive in terms of volume while Shell Oman led in terms of turno-ver. Al Suwadi Power, up by 2.38 per cent was the top gainer, while the top loser was Construction Materials, down by 5.56 per cent.

As many as 516 trades were executed in the session generat-ing a turnover of OMR1.7 mil-lion with more than 8 million shares changing hands. Out of 41 traded securities, 5 advanced, 18 declined and 18 remained unchanged. Omani investors were net buyers to the tune of OMR65,000 worth of shares fol-lowed by GCC and Arab investors at OMR37,000 while foreign in-vestors sold shares amounting to OMR102,000.

Financial Index retreated 0.28 per cent to close at 6,877.15 points. Oman United Insurance and Bank Muscat increased 1.21 per cent and 0.81 per cent respec-tively. United Finance, Al Anwar Holding, HSBC Bank, NBO and Oman & Emirates declined 2.29 per cent, 2.21 per cent, 1.71 per cent, 0.99 per cent and 0.94 per cent respectively.

Industrial Index ended nega-tively at 7,478.73 points, down by 0.39 per cent. Construction Ma-terials, Voltamp Energy, Galfar Engineering, Oman Cables and Al Anwar Ceramics declined 5.56 per cent, 2.83 per cent, 1.02 per cent, 0.77 per cent and 0.56 per cent respectively.

Services Index advanced 0.24 per cent to end at 3,224.29 points. Al Suwadi Power and Omantel advanced 2.38 per cent and 0.30 per cent respectively. SMN Pow-

er, Phoenix Power and Renais-sance Services declined 1.05 per cent, 0.67 per cent and 0.60 per cent respectively.

Dubai stocks fallDubai stocks declined with most Middle Eastern equities after the United States jobless rate dropped to a level the Federal Reserve considers to be full em-ployment, bolstering the case for an interest-rate increase and de-pressing demand for riskier as-sets. Saudi equities rose.

The DFM General Index re-treated 0.8 per cent to close at 3,542.14, following six weeks of losses, the longest streak in al-most four years.

Emaar Properties, the real es-tate developer with the biggest weighting on the gauge, led the descent with a 1.9 per cent drop. Stocks in Saudi Arabia reversed losses after the desert kingdom’s central bank governor said the nation will stick with its curren-cy peg.

Equities across emerging mar-kets fell last week after US La-bour Department data showed unemployment in the world’s largest economy fell to 5.1 per cent, the lowest since April 2008. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index slumped 3.9 per cent in the five days through September 4, its 15th decline in the 19 weeks since April. Monetary policies in the six-nation Gulf Coopera-tion Council are additionally in-fluenced by Fed data because most currencies in the region are pegged to the dollar.

“A Fed rate hike is going to add to selling pressure and volatil-ity globally, and Mideast markets always follow," Hisham Khairy, the Dubai-based head of institu-tional trade at Mena Corporation Financial Services, the emirate’s biggest brokerage, said by phone. Dubai’s trading volume was low.

– United Securities/Bloomberg News

Al Suwadi Power, up by 2.38 per cent, was the

top gainer, while Construction Materials was

the top loser, down by 5.56 per cent

Global stock markets await China's trade, inflation dataSHANGHAI: Global stock mar-kets will be on edge in the coming week as China announces a slew of data investors will comb for clues about slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy.

The government is scheduled to release monthly trade and infla-tion figures, as well as industrial output, fixed-asset investment and retail sales in the coming days.

An official Chinese manu-facturing survey last week sent world markets into a tailspin, as investors gave vent to worries China’s economy is headed for a ‘hard landing’.

Although analysts cautioned not to read too much into the monthly release of the Purchas-ing Managers’ Index (PMI), Chi-nese growth is clearly slowing and more weak data could be an excuse to sell.

“There is a risk (of overreac-tion) because investors’ confi-dence level is at a very fragile stage. Any data that’s not on the good side, investors will react more than they should,” Jack-son Wong, associate director at Simsen International Financial Group in Hong Kong, said.

China’s economy expanded 7 per cent in each of the first two quarters, slowing from 7.4 per cent growth last year, which was its weakest since 1990.

But investors were alarmed by authorities’ surprise lowering of the yuan currency’s central rate against the United States dollar by nearly five percent in a single week last month.

In a bid for more sustainable growth, Chinese policymakers are seeking a tectonic shift to do-mestic consumption and away from state-led investment. “Pes-simism over China’s short-term

outlook is overdone and a growth pick-up in the second half is al-ready in the pipeline,” ratings agency Fitch said on Friday.

“But expectations for the econ-omy’s growth potential in the medium term are shifting lower as the scale of the restructuring challenge becomes clearer.”

ANZ Banking Group forecasts China’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth will slump to an annual 6.4 per cent in the third quarter, before rebounding to 6.8 per cent in the October to De-cember period — but still below the government’s full-year goal of around 7 per cent.

“Further aggressive monetary easing and proactive fiscal policy, along with financial liberalisa-tion, are needed to maintain GDP growth” at the official target, it said in a research report.

Market bottom China last month reduced interest rates and cut the amount of money banks must hold in reserve to try to bolster its economy and end the

country’s worst stock market rout in almost two decades.

Japanese bank Nomura is forecasting ‘weak’ trade data for August with exports falling 7 per cent year-on-year and imports dropping 10 per cent. Consumer price inflation could tick up to 1.8 per cent for the month on higher pork prices, though the threat of deflation remains, it said.

But many analysts expect Chi-na to avert a hard landing, even though economic growth will definitely slow this year.

“China’s economy has certainly been weak this year and still faces further downward pressures, but we think fears of an economic hard landing due to stock market gyrations are exaggerated,” UBS economists Donna Kwok and Wang Tao said in a research re-port. “While it is difficult to con-firm whether GDP growth was re-ally close to 7 per cent as reported, it has certainly not grounded to a halt. Neither is it in the process of falling apart as widely proclaimed by some China bears.” - AFP

E C O N O M Y

WEAK GROWTH: China's economy expanded 7 per cent in each of

the first two quarters, slowing from 7.4 per cent growth last year,

which was its weakest since 1990. – Bloomberg News

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

E- IMESTECH STUFFTECH STUFF

BBLACKBERRY TO BUY GOOD TECHNOLOGY BlackBerry agreed to buy Good Technology for $425 million, gaining new mobile device- management customers while removing one of its competitors in that business. Good Technology, based in Sunnyvale, California, builds applications to help employees work securely from their personal phones. It counts all of the G7 governments and the world’s 10 largest banks and law firms among its 6,200 customers, BlackBerry said in a statement on Friday.

M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

T E C H N E W S

Acer inspires consumers by

showcasing versatile products

Acer launched a number of exciting products at the next@acer event at IFA Berlin. Acer announced the availability of its anticipated Predator gaming product line, an industry-leading portfolio of gaming devices spanning desktops, note-books, tablets and monitors featuring pioneering tech-nologies such as the 6th generation Intel® Core™ processor. Additionally, Acer showcased its versatile two-in-one Aspire Switch series laptops, notebooks, convertibles and smartphones. “Today, you will witness how our cross-platform offering of Predator gaming products represents our relentless pursuit of design and technological excellence,” said Celeste Gibbens, Mar-keting Manager Middle East & Africa, Acer. “Our understanding, R&D talent and passion about the people who use our products ensures that we delve deeper so that we can deliver a best-in-class experience for all our customers. The Acer range today fea-tures a product that suits every aspect of our consumers’ lives.” Empowering Gamers to Conquer New Worlds with Pioneering Technologies Power packed, the Predator G6 and G3 desktops are unstoppable war machines that feature an intimidating ar-mor-covered design on the chassis, while powered by 6th genera-tion Intel® Core™ processors, up to 64GB DDR4 system memory, and NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX graphics. — Times News Service

‘Energy storage’ set for growth in coming years

Epson unveils latest range of

professional photo printers

Microsoft plans to revamp

compus at headquarters

Epson announced the latest in its range of professional photo printers, theSureColor SC-P800. Ideal for pro-fessional photographers and artists, the printer produces superior-qual-ity, true-to-life photos with smooth gradations and tones. This A2 model also comes with an optional roll pa-per unit, meaning photographers and artists can now easily create fantastic prints on larger formats such as ban-

ners. This professional printer creates long-lasting, high-quality photos to sell, exhibit or include within portfolios. The SC-P800 can also be used to produce a range of other high-quality docu-ments including synopses, presentations and renderings. The printer uses Ultrachrome HD ink, a new nine-colour ink-set, which was first used in the SC-P600 A3+ photo printer. The ink-set produces a large colour gamut and the deepest blacks on the market1, meaning users can print photos with a stunning range of accurate colours and dense blacks. Furthermore, the ink-set has improved light fastness, meaning prints will be more dura-ble and will last even longer. The SC-P800 is the successor to the hugely-successful Stylus Pro38xx Series of photo printers. This new model is the first and only A2 desktop printer on the market with a roll paper option. — Times News Service

BACK in May, Tesla turned heads when it announced plans for a new battery product that would allow homes

and large-scale commercial op-erations to store energy from solar panels or serve as a backup power source during grid outages.

A report released on Wednesday highlights the leaps and bounds this new industry — dubbed energy storage — is already making and predicts its continued growth in the coming year. The US Energy Stor-age Monitor report, which is part of a series of documents published quarterly by GTM Research and the Energy Storage Association, says that energy storage deployment rose six-fold in the second quarter over first-quarter levels. It’s a big jump, says Ravi Manghani, a senior energy storage analyst with Greentech Me-dia Research — but it’s not wholly unexpected. “We’re talking about an industry that’s very new and re-cent,” he says. “In that sense, we do expect some quarters to have much bigger jumps, as we are having this particular quarter.” The introduc-tion of technologies such as the Tesla battery help make these gains possible, he said.

The finding highlights a growing national interest in batteries and in energy storage generally. No won-der: The ability to store energy and distribute it at a later time could help utility companies meet their customers’ electricity needs on de-mand, which reduces the possibility of putting too much — or too little — power on the grid on any given day.

Developing better storage tech-nologies is also increasingly impor-tant as renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar plants, ex-pand across the country. One of the biggest problems with renewable sources is that they can only gener-ate power intermittently. Solar pan-els, for example, don’t work at night, when the sun isn’t shining. Expand-ing these resources depends on finding ways to store energy as it’s generated so it can be used at a later time. The Energy Storage Monitor

reports that 40.7 megawatts of en-ergy storage were deployed in the second quarter of this year. During the same period last year, fewer than 5 megawatts were deployed.

The report breaks down energy storage across the country into three segments: residential, which includes private homes; nonresi-dential, which includes commer-cial and industrial deployments; and utility-scale, which can involve large- or small-scale projects that

store energy to the power grid.Utility-scale deployments made

up the majority of the energy stor-age reported for this quarter, ac-counting for about 87 per cent of the market.

According to the report, one of the major reasons for the increase is a new 31.5-megawatt energy storage project opened in Illinois by a company called Invenergy.

Residential energy storage, on the other hand, only accounted for

about one per cent of all the de-ployments — though it grew by 61 per cent from last quarter. The new Tesla battery is partly to thank for that, Manghani says. “The behind-the-meter nonresidential and resi-dential deployments have largely come from Tesla’s systems,” he says.

Even though Tesla just publicly announced its Powerwall battery in May, it’s been deploying energy storage systems for several years in a kind of pilot programme, accord-ing to Manghani. Many of these systems were deployed in Califor-nia, which he says accounts for the largest residential and nonresiden-tial energy storage markets in the United States. So far, there haven’t been any utility-scale deployments from Tesla power packs. In the lat-ter part of this year and next year, Tesla may become a major player in these kinds of large-scale op-erations — but it won’t be the only one. Plenty of other companies are deploying similar batteries. The In-venergy project, for instance, uses an energy storage system developed by BYD America. However, Tesla’s $3,o00 battery “has given a price target for other competitors to go af-ter, at the same time it has definitely gotten the conversation more main-stream,” Manghani says.

The report predicts a total of 220 megawatts of energy storage will be deployed in 2015, making it the big-gest year yet for energy storage. And by 2019, the authors predict that number will jump to 858 megawatts.

Those expansions should boost all segments of the market, in-cluding the still relatively small residential market, Manghani says. Already in California, one of the biggest markets in the country for energy storage, there are talks of finding practical ways to distribute stored energy across the grid.

These conversations “point to-ward the fact that industry is ma-turing,” Manghani says. “That it’s no longer talking in hypothetical terms, but looking at the actual ways in which these systems can be de-ployed and participate on the grid.”

— Washington Post-Bloomberg News

US Energy Storage

Monitor report,

which is part of a

series of documents

published quarterly

by GTM Research and

the Energy Storage

Association, says

that energy storage

deployment rose

six-fold in the second

quarter over first-

quarter levels.

Microsoft is considering a multibillion-dollar revamp of its headquarters campus in suburban Seattle, seeking to foster more collabora-tion among employees and attract young engineers, according to people with knowledge of the plans. The software giant has hired architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP as part of the effort at its Redmond, Washington, offices, said the people, who asked not to be named because the plans aren’t public. Skidmore Owings designed Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, and is helping Microsoft with a makeover of its much smaller campus in Mountain View, Cali-fornia. Microsoft hasn’t yet decided whether to move forward with the Redmond overhaul, said one of the people familiar with the matter. “We continually work on Microsoft campus plans to anticipate future needs,” the company said in a statement. A representative at Skidmore Owings’s San Francisco office didn’t return calls and e-mails for comment. The potential updates would be aimed at shifting away from private offices toward the more open-plan work spaces that are favored by today’s technol-ogy companies, said the people. Microsoft has been in Redmond since shortly before going public in 1986, a time when suburban campuses were in vogue. It now occupies about 80 buildings on roughly 500 acres (202 hectares). — Bloomberg News

SLOW DOWNENJOY THE RIDE

Elon Musk, co-founder and chief executive officer of Tesla Motors. — Bloomberg News

It’s a big jump. But it’s not wholly unexpected. We’re

talking about an industry that’s very new and recent. In

that sense, we do expect some quarters to have much

bigger jumps, as we are having this particular quarter.

The introduction of technologies such as the Tesla

battery help make these gains possible.

Ravi ManghaniSenior energy storage analyst, Greentech Media Research

B6 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

ROUND-UPTaste freedom in Toyota Fortuner TRD Sportivo

MUSCAT: “Find beauty in the freedom that lies outside of the everyday,” exhorts a Toyota For-tuner enthusiast. “Beyond the mundane, beyond the routine is where you know yourself to be tru-ly alive. You live in a world full of constraints - break out and discov-er what you have not yet explored. You know no boundaries, which is why you drive your Fortuner. It is the conqueror of cities, the tamer of the wild off-road. Follow your heart, every terrain is yours to master. Refined yet muscular, powerful yet agile, rugged yet com-fortable, the Fortuner gives you ul-timate freedom of versatility.”

Indeed, the Fortuner arouses similar sentiments in many a heart. And these get a fillip with the variety of up-to-the-minute

additions that adorn the Fortuner TRD Sportivo — a stylish front bumper, rear and roof spoiler, an imposing TRD Sportivo emblem and a muffler cutter are some of them. Livening up the entire pack-age is a TRD side tape stripe. The Fortuner TRD Sportivo’s splen-did form is further adorned with chrome radiator grille, HID head-lamps and magnificent 17” Alloy Wheels, says a press release.

Interestingly, TRD means Toyota Racing Development. It is meant for Special Edition vehi-cles, with high-performance parts and accessories that are used by Toyota racing teams, worldwide.

Engineered for the discerning driver, Fortuner TRD Sportivo’s comfortable cabin is equipped with an ergonomic interface – a horizontal-theme instrument panel set within strikingly beau-tiful black woodgrain panelling. Abundant storage space and rich appointments reinforce the high-class feel of the luxurious 4WD.

Everything is within easy reach

- the steering wheel has controls for audio, MID and bluetooth, apart from cruise control. The bluetooth integrated CD/MP3 player audio system is equipped with a 6.1” display.

The other high-end flourishes include a dual auto air-condition-er, 6-way power driver seat, back view camera, headlamp cleaners, retractable outer mirrors with turn signals and a side-step. Gen-erous cabin space can be quickly re-arranged to accommodate vari-ous combinations of people/lug-gage. Three rows of leather seats comfortably seat seven adults. The third and second row seats can be folded and stowed away – freeing up even more luggage space!

A genuine 4-Wheel Drive, the Fortuner TRD Sportivo is equipped with an advanced large displacement engine and tough chassis for an uncompromising performance, whether on-road or off-road.

At the heart of the vehicle is a V6 4.0-litre, 24-valve VVT-i engine

that delivers output of 235 HP and torque of 38.3 kg-m in SAE net. The 5-speed Automatic Trans-mission engine, incorporating advanced electronics technology, provides optimum shift control, making the Fortuner TRD easier to drive.

Advanced safety features in the Fortuner TRD Sportivo include an Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) that prevents wheels from locking and skidding, especially while braking in difficult condi-tions. Driver and front passenger airbags protect the front seat pas-sengers in case of heavy impact. Additionally, the rear parking sen-sors, headlamp leveling, anti-theft engine immobiliser, crash safety body with crumple zones reassure and protect occupants.

All specifications listed above are standard Toyota equipment. Safety kit (fire extinguisher, warn-ing triangle, tyre pressure gauge & first aid kit) is a dealer installed non Toyota item provided on Toy-ota models as standard equipment. The vehicle specifications may change without prior notice. Pic-tures and colours may differ from actual specifications of the vehi-cles. For further details & to ascer-tain availability of stocks, please visit your nearest Toyota show-room. All model grade descrip-tions are grade names given by Saud Bahwan Automotive (SBA) and are meant for differentiation purposes only.

In Oman, the nationwide parts and service network of SBA sup-ports Toyota’s outstanding prod-uct quality. No wonder then that today, Toyota is one of the most trusted and well-known brands.

Interestingly, TRD

means Toyota Racing

Development. It is

meant for Special

Edition vehicles, with

high-performance

parts and accessories

that are used by

Toyota racing teams,

worldwide

Infoline wins award

for best government

call centre project

MUSCAT: Infoline, a leading Business Process Outsourc-ing (BPO) service providers in Oman, was recognised for its best government projects at an award ceremony held in Dubai recently.

Vocalcom, a leading global provider of omnichannel cloud-based contact centre software and sales acceleration technol-ogy for enterprises, contact cent-ers, BPOs, and collection agen-cies worldwide, hosted the event, says a press release.

Vocalcom is a strategic technol-ogy partner of Infoline in Oman, and in partnership has success-fully installed cloud based contact centres for various government departments directly serving the citizens of the country. Infoline by implementing cloud contact cen-tre has enabled government de-partments to open new and inno-vative communication mediums for servicing citizens of Oman across 24x7 basis.

Infoline is responsible for in-

stalling cloud contact center across financial, retail, govern-ment and other sectors and pro-viding IT support from its office in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. Key differentiator which makes Infoline stand apart is the avail-ability of trained Vocalcom engi-neers in Muscat and committed business hours support as per contractual agreements with its clients.

Once integrated with Vocal-com’s solutions, Infoline offer its clients multi channel cloud cus-tomer services management por-tal with a single consistent view that incorporates everything from phone, web chat, email, SMS and social networks. This will be in addition to its existing value add-ed applications such as ERP, CRM and IT help desk solutions.

Both companies have a mu-tual understanding of improv-ing customers’ businesses and transforming the omnichannel customer experiences.

R E C O G N I T I O N

Bahwan Travels supports Travel Trade seminar in SalalahMUSCAT: Bahwan Travel Servic-es, one of the flagship companies of the Suhail Bahwan Group and the largest travel consortium in the Sultanate of Oman, supported a seminar for the Travel Trade in Salalah recently.

The seminar was attended in large numbers by the travel trade of Salalah, says a press release.

The seminar, organised by In-dia Tourism in association with Air India, showcased India as an exciting tourist destination for Omani nationals and other resi-dents of Oman.

I. R. V. Rao, assistant director,

India Tourism Dubai office, who spoke on the occasion, said that India was uniquely positioned on the tourism map of the world of-fering diversity in terms of scenic beauty, cultural, historical and gas-tronomical experiences.

He also highlighted the E-visa service for Omanis and foreigners visiting India that can be obtained online in less than 15 minutes.

Nadeem Ulde, head of Sales, Bahwan Travels, said: “Salalah is an important market for us with increasing number of people from Dhofar region visiting India and other countries.

“We have appointed a dedi-cated holiday travel consultant to strengthen our team in Salalah.”

Bahwan Tourism also show-cased a range of holiday products for India ranging from beach holi-days in Goa, Ayurveda resorts in the backwaters of Kerala, histori-cal journeys in Delhi – Agra to ad-venture holidays in the Himalayas.

In addition to Rao, B. P. Kulkar-ni, country manager Oman, Air India, Manpreet Singh, president, Indian Social Club and Masoud Al Balushi, divisional sales manager, Oman Air, Salalah also spoke on the occasion.

I N D I A N T O U R I S M

Latest issue of ‘Mediate’ is outMUSCAT: Oman’s media land-scape has undergone a massive disruption over the past year, with digital and social media establish-ing itself as the industry’s new frontier, the latest issue of Mediate 2015/2016 has found.

The resulting upheaval of the digital and social wave is impact-ing not only media entities them-selves, but also client choices and advertising spends and this has been welcomed by experts, who say this is the best thing that has happened to a fossilised industry in years.

Communication channelLaunched by Sabco Media, which offers a unique cross-platform of communication channels and is one of Oman’s leading media hous-es, Mediate 2015/2016 is packed with a wealth of information, in-depth analysis and interviews with key media sector influencers, says a press release.

SurveyThis year’s edition features annual Media Consumption Survey, which has found that smartphones are the preferred medium for consuming media, while newspaper readership con-tinues to decline in preference for “on the go” digital news.

“I had to personally grapple with and accept that digital and social media platforms are much more powerful than I could have imagined,” said Eihab Abutaha, the CEO of Sabco Group – Com-

munications. Oman, as well as our region, is very different today in terms of the media landscape, with consumers using mobility and convenience to consume their news and information, as well as engage on social media.

“It is our smart devices and measuring how we use them that are key to playing the digital con-sumer game.

“This makes our Media Con-sumption Survey even more important this year as we have measured how people in Oman consume media regardless of its platform – digital or otherwise.”

Mediate covers all sectors of the media in Oman, including adver-tising agencies, multimedia firms, exhibition companies, market re-search, media buying/planning, photography, PR services, as well as print and production houses.

Strategic objectivesAvailable from a variety of book-stores across the capital includ-ing Family Bookshop, Al Batra Bookshop and Sultan Center/Qu-rum, Mediate is designed to help corporations and industry profes-sionals to identify, evaluate and select preferred partners based on strategic objectives.

Hybrid media directory“Mediate remains true to its promise in remaining a hybrid media directory that profiles businesses involved in Oman’s changing media landscape,” Abu-taha added.

M E D I A I N D U S T R Y

A’Saffa invites entries to ‘Online Recipe Contest’

MUSCAT: A’Saffa Foods, the Sul-tanate’s largest fully integrated poultry and allied food producer, invites cooking enthusiasts and amateur chefs to participate in the second edition of its unique ‘Online Recipe Contest’ on Face-book. Beginning yesterday (Sept 6), the contest is open to all resi-dents aged 18 years or above, and comes to a close on October 3.

Contestants will have to submit a recipe that includes at least one A’Saffa product in the ingredients. Recipes will be judged on origi-nality, ease of preparation and ap-pearance, says a press release.

The contest will be held in two phases. In the first phase, the con-

testants will have to upload an original recipe devised by them in word or PDF format along with three pictures of preparation on the A’Saffa Facebook page. In the second phase, the top 6 reci-pes will be chosen by the judges, and the originators of these reci-pes will then take part in an on-ground cooking event that will take place on October 16; wherein the theme will be given to the contestants on the spot. Three winners will then be chosen, and awarded certificates and fine-dining vouchers from Volare (1st prize: OMR75; 2nd prize: OMR50; 3rd prize: OMR25).

“A’Saffa Foods brand mission

is to constantly innovate and of-fer our customers with something new and exciting. This recipe contest is a way to connect to as many people as we can. We have been working towards incredible milestones year on year, and with this year’s contest we hope to be achieving yet another feat,” said Sidhartha Lenka, head of Sales and Marketing, A’Saffa Foods.

Each and every A’Saffa Foods social media initiative is a step to-wards further engaging and inter-acting with their consumers, and informing them about the good-ness, purity, freshness, halal and 100 percent natural attribute of the brand. For more information

about the contest please visit the brand’s official facebook page on https://www.facebook.com/asaf-fafoodssaog.

A’Saffa’s past initiatives and the Online Recipe Contest ena-bles viewers to engage themselves with all the information on the brand on Facebook and is testa-ment to A’Saffa’s dedicated follow-ing in the online space. Through their social media outreach pro-grammes like the recently con-ducted initiative ‘Let Us Achieve Their Dreams 2’, updates, online contests, opinion polls to name a few, A’Saffa intends to reach out to as many people as possible in the Sultanate and beyond.

C U L I N A R Y S K I L L S

ahlibank picks MyHassad Daily winnersMUSCAT: ahlibank announced the names of the MyHassad daily prize draw winners.

Al Abdulla Yousuf Al Hadi from Al Khuwair branch, Khalid Said Mohammed Al Zeidi from Ibri branch, Ali Marhoon Salim Al Yaqoobi from Main branch, Salim Khalfan Hashil Al Habsi from Ibra branch and Abdullah Nasser Ali Al Araimi from Sur branch were the lucky winners of OMR1,000 each for the week, says apress release.

MyHassad savings account continues to successfully satisfy the existing customers and at-tract new ones.

MyHassad Saving Scheme was introduced in July 2008 as an ex-tension of the bank’s tradition of product innovation. Opening

MyHassad Saving account is simple and easy.

Customers need only to open their MyHassad account with OMR100 for their chance to win OMR1,000 in the next working day’s draw hence their chance to “open today and win tomor-row” continues. Further en-hancements in March 2009 al-

low customers to participate in the OMR10,000 monthly draw, by maintaining a minimum OMR250 during the month.

Effective from June 2010 cus-tomers can also transfer their salaries to MyHassad saving ac-count and will be eligible to enter in the daily, monthly draw as per the balance maintained.

This highlights the commit-ment of the bank to its long-term MyHassad account holders.

As one of the leading banks in the Sultanate, ahlibank pledges to provide innovative, efficient and secure products and services to give their valued customers a con-venient banking experience.

Opening an account with ahli-bank is the first step towards smarter and convenient banking services. ahlibank accounts de-liver an extensive and compre-hensive range of benefits, person-al banking services and instant access through Online and SMS Banking. The bank’s EMV (Chip) debit card provides global access to funds both at ATMs and shop-ping outlets.

S A V I N G S S C H E M E

Customers need only to open their MyHassad account with OMR100 for their chance to win OMR1,000 in the next

working day’s draw hence their chance to “open today and win tomorrow” continues

B7M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

ROUND-UPLove us on Facebook

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH FACEBOOK PAGE

RECRUIT

www.facebook.com/timesofoman

SEND US YOUR VIEWS AND COMMENTS

BankDhofar and Haya Water ink agreement

MUSCAT: In line with its endeav-ours to provide the most preferred corporate banking solutions, best services and most innovative prod-ucts, BankDhofar recently signed an agreement with Haya Water to provide an online integration payment solution for Haya Water customers via BankDhofar’s Cash

Deposit Machines (CDMs).The agreement was bilaterally

signed recently by Abdul Hakeem Omar Al Ojaili, acting CEO of Bank-Dhofar and Eng. Hussain Hassan Abdul Hussain, CEO of Haya Water at the Haya Water headquarters in Al Ansab, says a press release.

Commenting on the agreement,

Abdul Hakeem Omar Al Ojaili, BankDhofar Acting CEO, said: “This strategic partnership with Haya Water aims to enhance the payment system and to ease the financial transactions for the com-pany’s customers.

“It also demonstrates our con-tinuous efforts to provide a full range of corporate banking ser-vices and unique products that are tailored to fulfil the needs and re-quirements of all our customers.”

As per the agreement, BankD-hofar will set up a comprehensive and fully-integrated online pay-ment system, including an onsite Full-Function-Machine (FFM), and will create a bill payment fa-cility for Haya Water customers. The project will enable the access system, used for auto load collec-tion, to be integrated directly with BankDhofar for payments. The

system will be used to ease the payment process for tanker driv-ers and eliminate the manual steps that are being followed at present.

BankDhofar is considered one of the best banks in the region, ca-tering to customers’ needs and re-quirements, and setting the stand-ard for best customer experience within the banking industry in the Sultanate through innovative products and creative solutions. The combination of BankDhofar’s executive management’s vision and comprehensive operational strategy following best interna-tional banking practices, provision of outstanding customer experi-ence, in addition to their commit-ment to community development and contribution to the growth of the national economy, has placed BankDhofar at the top of the list of best banks in the region.

As per the agreement, BankDhofar will set

up a comprehensive and fully-integrated

online payment system, including an onsite

Full-Function-Machine, and will create a bill

payment facility for Haya Water customers

55 Sohar Aluminium multi-functional technicians graduateSOHAR: Under the patronage of Hamed bin Khamis Al Amri, undersecretary at the Ministry of Manpower, Sohar Aluminium (SA) graduated two batches of multi-functional technicians dur-ing a special ceremony held at Crowne Plaza Sohar.

The 55 employees successfully completed a six month in-depth development programme at the SA Training Centre which allowed them to be promoted from opera-tors to multi-functional techni-

cians, says a press release. On the occasion, Eng. Said bin

Mohammed Al Masoudi, CEO of SA, said: “Today marks a very im-portant milestone for Sohar Alu-minium as we witness 55 of our employees enhance their profes-sional skills through hard work and dedication but above all, ambi-tion to grow and progress in their careers. Congratulations to one and all.”

“From the onset, Sohar Alu-minium has been committed to

recruit, train and develop Omanis in order to operate, maintain, su-pervise and manage our facilities to the highest calibre. This was the

strategy that led to the develop-ment of a dedicated SA Training Centre on site that offers a wide range of courses for our employees

starting from basic levels to post-graduate degrees.

The Centre has been fundamen-tal in our efforts to employ well-trained Omanis, enabling us to surpass a 70 per cent Omanisation rate,” he added.

TourFollowing the ceremony, visitors were invited to go on a tour to the Sohar Aluminium smelter where they were given an overview of the company’s various operational

units. The tour was concluded at the Training Centre where they got to meet with the trainers and see the significant training capability that the centre can offer.

The visitors were also taken to the Aluminium Craft Centre, the first Omani small enterprise (SME) to produce Aluminium handicrafts, initiated by Sohar Aluminium in cooperation with the Public Authority for Craft Industry (PACI), as part of the company’s CSR programme.

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

Dossier Construction Awards set for Sept. 9MUSCAT: All arrangements have been finalised for the Dos-sier Construction Awards & Summit 2015 which will be held at InterContinental Muscat on September 9.

Billed as the construction event of the year, the Dossier Awards & Summit targets con-struction, infrastructure and real estate industries in Oman.

Industry performers, best practices, technologies and pro-ject excellence will be felicitated at the event through an awards ceremony. It will also drive the exchange of knowledge within the industry through an intellec-tual forum in the form of a sum-mit, says a press release.

There has been a heavy rush to file nominations for Dossier Construction Awards this year following which the deadline for filing nominations had to be ex-tended. The leading companies in the construction sector in Oman are participating in the event. The event will be marked by the presence of those who have demonstrated leadership and dedication to the innovation and progress of construction field and those who are in the construction and contracting sector in Oman cannot afford to miss it.

The prestigious event is held under the auspices of Ministry of Transport and Communica-tions and Public Authority for

Electricity and Water and en-dorsed by Muscat Municipality, Omran, Duqm Special Economic Zone Authority and Oman Rail. Doka is the platinum sponsor and Mercedes-Benz is the gold spon-sor. The event is being organised in association with leading con-sultants Atkins, Renardet and KEO. Advantage Austria is the supporting organisation. Larsen and Toubro, Oman, SharqSohar Group, Athaiba Furniture Fac-tory, Oman Cables Industry, BEC Group, Voltamp Energy, Carrier, NBO, Taylor Woodrow Oman, Hasan JumaBacker Trading & Contracting, URICH Switch-gear, Marine Technology Com-pany, BASF and Al Tamman Real Estate are the silver sponsors. Said Salem Al-Wahaibi Group of Companies is the strategic spon-sor. Falcon Insurance Company, Al Hassan Group, Shamel In-ternational, Hyundai Elevators-Techno elevators are the support partners. Times of Oman and Al Shabiba are the media partners and RMP is the printing partner. KPMG is the validating partner. The event is powered by NAMA Group. Target is the Lanyard partner.

The event is instituted by Dossier-Construction magazine, Oman’s first and only business-to-business (B2B) magazine on the construction sector, pub-lished by United Media Services.

S U M M I T

B8

ROUND-UPM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Love us on Facebook

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH FACEBOOK PAGE

Mitsubishi opens new Quick Service Centre

MUSCAT: General Automotive Company (GAC), the official dis-tributors of Mitsubishi vehicles in Oman, formally opened a new quick service centre in Mabelah recently. The new service centre will be of great benefit to Misubi-shi owners in the area, offering them a more convenient facility to service their vehicles closer to home, says a press release.

Commenting on the launch of the new centre, Yasser Zerik, the

National Service Manager said, “We have a strong commitment towards our customers and our aim is to continually provide them with the highest standards of ser-vice at all times, no matter where in the country they are located. Previously customers from the area were required to bring their cars to our main service centre in Azaiba. With the launch of this facility, customers need only do so for major service and other complex jobs; all minor service re-

quirements can be fulfilled at the Quick Service Centre.”

The new facility is located on Al Salam Street in the Mabelah Industrial Area. The 9-bay facil-ity is well equipped and operated by highly-trained technicians to conduct all minor service jobs on Mitsubishi vehicles.

The service centre even boasts a wide range of readily available spare parts and a dedicated tyre centre to cater to any vehicle’s wheel alignment and tyre balanc-

ing requirements. The new Quick Service Centre

will operate from 8am to 5:30pm from Saturday to Thursdays and will offer all quick service facilities by appointment.

“With this new facility, equipped with complementing tools and facilities,we are in a good position to offer world class Mitsubishi ser-vice to our ever expanding custom-er base. It will allow us to provide better and faster services to our customers in Mabelah and help improve their overall ownership experience; no doubt seeing our af-ter-sales service take a qualitative leap in the area and better comple-ment the brand’s high manufac-turing quality and market leading position,” added Yasser.

GAC has always operated with a focus on establishing long-term partnerships with its custom-ers. At each of its service centres, including the new facility in Ma-belah, GAC’s objective is to pro-vide world-class levels of services that ensure customer’s vehicles are kept operating at peak per-formance with the quickest pos-sible turnaround time. In doing so GAC ensures that your Mitsubishi spends the minimal possible time being serviced and enjoys a long trouble-free life.

The 9-bay facility in

Mabelah Industrial

Area is well equipped

and operated by

highly-trained

technicians to

conduct all minor

service jobs on

Mitsubishi vehicles

Bank Muscat card campaign evokes good responseMUSCAT: An exciting promo-tion bringing together over 60 leading restaurants, cafes, spas and retail outlets across Oman in rewarding Bank Muscat custom-ers with an attractive value prop-osition of discounts has evoked good response.

The 6-month campaign was launched by the flagship financial services provider in the Sultan-ate on May 31 runs till December 31, says a press release.

The exclusive experience for Bank Muscat customers at Oman’s popular restaurants, ca-fes, spas and retail outlets reflects the bank’s year-long activities lined up to reward customers in celebration of the Sultanate’s 45 years of Renaissance under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said.

Bank Muscat customers can avail discount at the outlets by simply settling the bill with his/her Bank Muscat debit card. The list of outlets offering the discounts can be viewed on the bank’s website www.bank-muscat.com/cards or any of the bank’s social media channels.

This is the first time a promo-tional campaign of this magni-tude is launched in Oman, at-

tracting the active participation of almost all popular restaurants, cafes, spas and retail outlets across the Sultanate.

Unique opportunitiesTime and again, Bank Muscat takes the lead in launching novel campaigns and promotions that continuously enhance value as well as create unique opportuni-ties that enrich life for custom-ers. With the participation of almost all popular restaurants across the Sultanate, the debit card campaign offers an exclusive dining experience.

Bank Muscat cards, which spell convenience and security, is the preferred mode of payment in Oman. The wide range of Bank Muscat cards provide a secure option to pay for a host of trans-actions. The campaign reiterates the bank’s commitment to pro-mote tourism and the hospitality sector in Oman.

Bank Muscat cards provide convenience and flexibility for customers in their day-to-day transactions at shopping malls, restaurants or holiday abroad. Embedded with an electronic chip, the cards ensure maximum protection and peace of mind.

PROMOT I ON

Galfar Engineering awarded ‘Contractor of the Year 2015’

MUSCAT: Galfar Engineer-ing and Contracting has been awarded with ‘Contractor of the Year 2015’ by the Oil and Gas Year magazine published under the auspices of the Ministry of Oil and Gas of the Sultanate of Oman.

This award expresses the ap-preciation and confidence that the fraternity has expressed in Galfar’s commitment towards de-livery of projects as well as its ex-ecution capabilities and its con-tinued commitment to society by the way of Omanisation and gen-eration of the much required In country Value (ICV) while main-taining HSE and quality stand-ards, says a press release.

Galfar has been actively en-gaged with the oil and gas indus-try to provide contracting ser-vices including EPC services and has executed many prestigious projects for many of the oil and gas production companies. These include the Petroleum Develop-ment of Oman, British Petroleum and Occidental of Oman, Daleel, amongst many others.

Services include earthworks, well location construction, well hook ups and all related mechani-cal, electrical and instrumenta-tion work. Various EPC contracts and construction contracts have been executed over recent. The company has a fabrication facility at Nizwa (U & R Certified), serv-ing as central hub to the needs of fabrication of pressure ves-sels, piping spools, pipe supports, structures, launcher – receivers, tanks, manifolds, SS and DSS fabrication including coating and calibration services.

Galfar’s efforts towards Omani-sation have resulted in producing many excellent Omanis who have risen through the ranks and are now positioned well within its company. Through the past dec-

ades, apart from recruitment of Omanis as skilled and unskilled, Galfar has made progress in at-tracting college and university graduates to contribute to the development and advancement of the company’s operation sys-tem across the company’s vari-ous sectors of operations such as oil and gas, road and bridges, civil and utilities as well as in many support functions. Today, Galfar prides itself in employing almost 4,000 nationals, the largest in the construction and private sector in the Sultanate in all facets of its operations.

Galfar’s ICV initiative has thoughtfully integrated core areas in procurement and on redefining

the overall framework towards developing local capabilities. Led by a select team of top manage-ment, the ICV initiative is effec-tively supported by the authori-ties especially the Ministry of Oil & Gas. Year to date its local pro-curement stands at 80 % and local subcontracts at 70 % of its total spending towards procurement and subcontract respectively.

Following the principles set forth by the government Galfar’s In-Country Value Strategy is founded in increasing In-Country spending on goods and services and our ICV results are impres-sive with a major percentage of our purchase and sub-contracting having local involvement. Apart from goodwill and demonstrating social responsibility a strong ICV policy also lends Galfar a compet-itive edge with many clients, giv-ing due weightage to ICV in vari-ous the evaluation stages of bids.

Galfar has a long-standing com-mitment to the highest standards for the health and safety of our employees, and subcontractors as well as to the protection of the environment in the communities in which we live and work.

Over the past stakeholders had been made aware of the moments of pride for us when we achieved the various milestones in terms of man-hours worked without lost time injury (LTI).

Galfar crossed 43 million man-hours without LTI in its oil and gas projects. We continue our efforts ceaselessly to protect the environment and the people and strive ahead towards a better tomorrow. Through delivery of projects to the satisfaction of all stake holders, they will continue to strive to make Galfar an obvi-ous choice as the most preferred contractor in the Sultanate of Oman.

ACCOLADE

This award expresses

the appreciation and

confidence that the

fraternity has expressed

in Galfar’s commitment

towards delivery of

projects as well as its

execution capabilities and

its continued commitment

to society by the way

of Omanisation and

generation of the much

required In country Value

(ICV) while maintaining

HSE and quality standards

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

SPOR SY O U R G A M E

SECTIONC M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

WHO’S THE BOSS? >C9

ISNER WILL ‘ROLL THE DICE’ AGAINST FEDERERJohn Isner beat Roger Federer in the greatest win of his career three years ago. Now the hard-serving American will try to duplicate that effort to reach a US Open quarterfinal. >C5

INSIDE LIFESTYLE

Watson retires from Test cricket

LONDON: Australia all-rounder Shane Watson quit Test cricket with immediate effect on Sun-day, accepting defeat in his battle against injuries that have ravaged his career.

The 34-year-old announced the decision after sustaining a calf in-jury in Saturday’s one-day victory over England that ended his tour, Cricket Australia (CA) said on their website.

“I announce my retirement from Test cricket today with a heavy heart,” Watson, who finished his 59-match Test career with 3,731 runs and a 35-plus average, said in a CA statement.

“I have given my all to be the best I can be, physically, technically and mentally, and while I have not al-ways achieved the personal goals that I set myself in Test cricket, to have played over 50 Tests and to have captained my country is more than I ever dreamed of.”

Watson, who remains available for one-dayers and Twenty20 Inter-nationals, played his last Test in the Ashes opener at Cardiff before being dropped from the Australian side who lost the series 3-2 last month.

Two other members of Australia’s losing Ashes party — Michael Clarke and Chris Rogers — have also an-nounced their international retire-ments. “On this tour I have seen how the next generation of young Aus-tralian cricketers are ready to take the game forward,” Watson said.

“I hope to continue to represent

my country in both shorter for-mats of the game, and I believe that I still have a significant amount to contribute.”

Since his 2005 Test debut against Pakistan, regular ham-string and back injuries have tak-en toll on Watson’s body and his stock has fallen considerably over

the last couple of years. Once the golden boy of Australian cricket, Watson lost his place at the top of the batting order and his bowling, which earned him 75 Test wickets and was once considered essential to the team balance, has also lost some of its bite.

“He has been an outstanding

contributor to the team on and off the field and a great thinker on the game as well as a hugely talented cricketer,” coach Darren Leh-mann said. “Behind the scenes he has done so much work with our younger players and that has been something that has impressed me.”

Skipper Steve Smith said he was among those who benefitted from Watson’s experience.

“It has been a pleasure to play alongside Shane and he has been a huge influence on my career and the team as a whole,” said Smith.

Conversion rate An Ashes winner in 2013-14 and a member of the Australia side that lifted this year’s World Cup, Wat-son’s career has been blighted by a variety of injuries.

Shifted up and down the batting order, including a relatively suc-cessful period as an opening bats-man, Watson’s career Test figures of 3,731 runs at an average of 35.19 and 75 wickets at 33.68 meant he could not be considered a great all-round-er of his times.

When fit, the strapping Watson looked the picture of a modern pro-fessional athlete.

But a failure to convert promis-ing starts into hundreds — he got to fifty 28 times in his Test career yet scored just four centuries — and a recurring tendency to get out lbw, saw him become something of a figure of fun, even among Australia supporters, some of whom were of-ten riled by his repeated inclusion in the side.

“I haven’t achieved certainly all the things I dreamed of achieving in Test cricket — average 50 with the bat and in the 20s with the ball. That’s obviously the dream as an all-rounder to achieve and obviously I didn’t get anywhere near that,” Wat-son later told reporters.

“Of course I didn’t convert the 50s into 100s that I certainly would’ve (liked to), but it’s certainly not through lack of trying.”

“I was doing everything I could. It just wasn’t meant to be in that re-gard,” Watson said.

Watson also had his run-ins with Australian management, notably when, at the time when South Af-rican coach Mickey Arthur and captain Michael Clarke were at the helm, he was one of four players dropped from the squad during the 2013 tour of India for not doing their ‘homework’ after failing to provide a written report on how to improve the team’s performance. - Agencies

The 34-year-old

announced the

decision after

sustaining a calf

injury in Saturday’s

one-day victory

over England that

ended his tour

Skipper Smith unrepentant as row over Stokes rages on

LONDON: Australia captain Ste-ven Smith had no qualms about his part in the controversial dis-missal of England’s Ben Stokes for obstructing the field in the second One-day International (ODI) at Lord’s on Saturday.

World Cup-holders Australia won by 64 runs to go 2-0 up in the five-match series.

But that was all overshadowed by the exit of Stokes during Eng-land’s unsuccessful run chase.

In the 26th over, Stokes struck a straight drive which was stopped by bowler Mitchell Starc. Left-arm paceman Starc then hurled the ball back hard towards Stokes who, leaning back back and turn-ing his head away, stopped it with a hand taken off the bat.

Australia appealed, believing Stokes had prevented a possi-ble direct hit run out on his own stumps, and on-field umpires Kumar Dharmasena of Sri Lanka and former England batsman Tim Robinson referred the issue to third umpire Joel Wilson.

The relevant cricket Law or rule talks about “wilful obstruc-tion” and does allow batsmen to protect themselves from injury

West Indian official Wilson gave Stokes out for 10, sparking the unusual sound of a chorus of boos at the ‘home of cricket’.

Smith could have withdrawn

the appeal. But he saw no reason why he should and said the close-at-hand view of wicketkeeper Matthew Wade strengthened him in his original decision.

“Wadey had a good view of it from behind the stumps, and he said straightaway that he thought the ball was missing Stokesy and was going to go on and hit the stumps” said Smith.

“The way I saw it, he was out of his ground, and he wilfully put his hand out — which is the rule ... and he got given out by the third um-pire,” added the captain, who top-scored with 70 when batting con-ditions were at their toughest in an Australia total of 309 for seven.

“If you look at it ... the ball was going towards the stumps, and wasn’t even going to hit him.

“So I think he’s put his hand out to stop the ball.”

Dharmasena doubts The booing, of Starc especially, continued until the end of the match, which came when Eng-land captain Eoin Morgan was out for 85, the highest score in a total of 245.

Smith added: “I thought that was quite disappointing.

“The umpire deemed it to be out. So I think we’ve just got to move on from that, and continue playing the game of cricket.”

Morgan had his own eye-wit-ness view of events as he was the non-striker when Stokes was giv-en out to spark a collapse that saw four wickets lost for 46 runs.

“The guy throws the ball in your direction from five yards, and all you can do is flinch,” he told Sky Sports after Stokes became only the second England batsman af-ter Len Hutton to succumb to this rare form of dismissal.

“He was given out...I think it was a natural reaction to protect himself as much as anything else. My interpretation of it was that his reaction wasn’t deliberate.”

Morgan also revealed that Dharmasena’s initial instinct was to rule not out but that official felt that confirmation by the televi-sion umpire was required.

“Kumar told me that they didn’t think it was out ... and the third um-pire has disagreed. I feel the ball was thrown so fast you can only re-act in a way that defends yourself.

“How you can interpret that is open. But certainly, I didn’t think it was deliberate.”

Australia great Shane Warne was among those who felt Stokes has been unfortunate, amid fears that Saturday’s incident could set a dangerous precedent.

“We didn’t like to see what hap-pened at Lord’s...Feel for Stokes,” Warne tweeted. - AFP

D I S A P P O I N T I N G

TWO DIFFERENT VIEWS: Australia captain Steve Smith, left, and England skipper Eoin Morgan.

Factbox on Australia all-rounder Shane Watson who quit test cricket with immediate effect on Sunday:

* Born on June 17, 1981 at Ipswich, Queensland* Made his Test debut at Sydney in 2005 against Pakistan* Played his last Test in the Ashes opener against England at Cardiff in July, scoring a total of 49 runs and failing to take a wicket* Finished Test career with 3,731 runs from 59 matches with a 35-plus average* Battled recurring back, hamstring, calf and hip problems for large part of his career* Captained Australia in one Test, against India in Delhi in 2013* Hit four Test centuries and his highest score of 176 came against England at The Oval in 2013* Also took 75 wickets with his right-arm pace bowling, often giving his team crucial breakthroughs and lending balance to the squad* Has played 190 One-day Internationals, scoring 5757 runs with a 40-plus average and 90-plus strike rate* Has taken 168 ODI wickets, his best bowling figures being 4-36 against Paki-stan at Brisbane in 2010* Has scored 1,164 runs and taken 39 wick-ets in 49 Twenty20 Internationals. - Reuters

F A C T B O X

“I have given my all to

be the best I can be,

physically, technically

and mentally. To have

played over 50 Tests

and to have captained

my country is more

than I ever dreamed of

Shane WatsonAustralia all-rounder

C2

SPORTSM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Stay ahead of the curve with

WhatsNews

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY INSTALL WHATSNEWS

Oman team placed in tough group at West Asia Football Championship

MUSCAT: Oman and arch-rivals the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are placed in the same group for the West Asia Football Cham-pionship, which scheduled to be played in Doha from September 30 to October 14.

The draw of the under-23 cham-pionship was conducted at Radis-

son Blu Hotel in the Qatari capital on Sunday when the participating teams were divided into three dif-ferent groups. Oman and the UAE are placed in Group C along with Syria. Meanwhile, Iran and Saudi Arabia clubbed in Group B which also comprises Bahrain.

The hosts Qatar head the four-

team Group A and the group also consists of Jordan, Palestine and Yemen. Oman will play their first match against the UAE on Oc-tober 4 before completing their group engagements on October 7 against Syria.

Meanwhile, Hamad Al Azza-ni-coached Oman Olympic (un-

der-23) squad are continuing the preparations for the championship with an international in Muscat. The camp concludes on Tuesday.

The team will resume training after the Eid Al Adha holidays during which they are also sched-uled to play a friendly match with visiting Palestine team.

U 2 3 T O U R N E Y

TOUGH DRAW: A file photo of Oman under-23 team. – Supplied photo

Nico Rosberg promises to keep fighting

MONZA: Nico Rosberg vowed to keep on fighting after an en-gine failure at the Italian Grand Prix dealt a hammer blow to his Formula One title hopes on Sunday and left him 53 points adrift of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton.

The deficit means the Ger-man will still be behind the double world champion in the standings even if he wins the next two races and Hamilton — who has triumphed in seven of 12 so far — draws a blank.

With seven races remain-ing, the points gap also means Hamilton does not have to win another race this season to take a third championship.

“It’s a fact that it’s taken a massive step in the wrong di-rection,” Rosberg told reporters after his car’s engine blew two laps from the finish at Monza while he had been in third place and challenging for second. Hamilton won the race.

“It’s been the biggest loss that I’ve had in one day in the whole season, so that’s very bad.

“But I keep going, giving up doesn’t exist for me, just keep fighting and now I’ll just try and win the next couple of races,” Rosberg added.

The prospects of that happen-ing do not look great, with Ham-ilton’s victory at Monza last year setting off a run of five wins in succession for the Briton.

Very unluckyRosberg, by contrast has previ-ously won only one of the re-maining races — Brazil last year.

“The whole weekend just went wrong completely, very unlucky I think,” said Rosberg, who was slower than Hamilton in practice at Monza and then saw his weekend compromised by having to use an older engine after a problem emerged before qualifying.

The engine he raced with had already been used in five previ-ous race weekends, whereas Hamilton enjoyed the benefits of a new and upgraded power unit.

“Just so many repercussions of this engine issue...it wasn’t even an engine issue, it was ac-tually a chassis issue, that meant we had to change the engine, and then it was a difficult race as a result,” said Rosberg. - Reuters

B I G G E S T L O S SHamilton dominantes as Rosberg retires in Monza

MONZA: Lewis Hamilton won the Italian Grand Prix to take a 53-point lead in the Formula One championship on Sunday after Mercedes teammate and closest rival Nico Rosberg retired with his car in flames.

The Briton had to wait several more hours, however, for the result to be confirmed after a stewards’ enquiry into low tyre pressures on his car.

With some rivals calling for the reigning champion to be disquali-fied, the stewards ruled Mercedes had followed the specified proce-dures and decided to take no fur-ther action. Apart from that scare, Hamilton’s was an afternoon re-markably free of pressure in all other aspects.

He enjoyed a commanding cruise to the top step of a podium, standing high above a throng of Ferrari fans who had hoped to ac-claim one of their own as winner but had to make do with Sebastian Vettel finishing runner-up.

It was Hamilton’s 40th career victory, one less than his boyhood hero Ayrton Senna, and seventh of the season.

“This weekend’s been just fan-tastic, a perfect weekend for me,” said the Briton, who dominated practice, started from pole posi-tion, led from the first corner and set the fastest lap.

“I don’t know if I have ever had a weekend like this. This circuit is such a special one for me...when you stand on top of that podium you feel an incredible pride, in-credibly proud to be amongst the greats who have stood there.

“The sea of fans is just unlike anything I’ve seen.”

He had led from start to finish, with his points advantage in the championship gaining a sudden boost when team mate and clos-est rival Rosberg retired two laps from the end with flames flicker-ing from the engine.

Vettel finished a massive 25 sec-onds behind while Brazilian Fe-

lipe Massa took third for Williams a mere 0.3 ahead of his Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas.

A Hamilton disqualification would have put both Williams drivers on the podium and that team’s head of engineering Pat Sy-monds felt that should have been the case.

“There’s a list of penalties for sporting infringements, technical infringements are disqualifica-tion,” he said.

The win was Hamilton’s third in Monza and also made him the first driver since compatriot Damon Hill in 1994 to take back-to-back wins at the historic Italian circuit,

whose future on the calendar re-mains in doubt.

He had been unaware of the tyre pressure issue until after the fin-ish, when stewards said the left rear tyre — measured before the start — had been 0.3 PSI below the minimum specified by Pirelli.

Rosberg’s tyre had even less pressure but the German was past caring, his hopes literally going up in flames when the German pulled over with smoke and flames bil-lowing out from the rear of his car while in third place.

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, on the front row with Hamilton, strug-gled to get away with cars swerv-ing around on either side. The Finn was last into the first corner but fought back to take fifth place. Force India’s Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg were sixth and seventh with Australian Daniel Ricciardo eighth for Red Bull.

Sweden’s Marcus Ericsson was ninth for Sauber and Russian Da-niil Kvyat 10th for Red Bull. - Reuters

The Briton had to wait

several more hours,

however, for the

result to be confirmed

after a stewards’

enquiry into low tyre

pressures on his car

NO PRESSURE: Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates on the podium after winning the Italian Formula One Grand Prix at the

Autodromo Nazionale circuit in Monza on Sunday. – AFP

MONZA: F1 stewards called for Pirelli and the sport’s gov-erning body to provide clear guidance about tyre pressure measurements after Lewis Hamilton’s Italian Grand Prix win was called into question.

Stewards summoned a Mercedes representative after

Hamilton took the chequered flag because both the team’s cars had started with tyre pressures below the minimum specifica-tion. They ultimately decided to take no further action, with the champion’s win upheld.

In the Briton’s case, his left rear tyre was 0.3 PSI (pounds

per square inch) below the specified minimum while Nico Rosberg’s was 1.1 PSI too low.

The stewards said in a state-ment: “Nevertheless, the stew-ards recommend that the tyre manufacturer and the FIA hold further meetings to provide clear guidance.” - Reuters

F1 stewards call for guidance on tyre pressures

C3

SPORTSM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Oman Air to be presenting sponsor of NBO Golf Classic Grand Final

MUSCAT: Oman Air has an-nounced that the airline will be-come the presenting sponsor for the forthcoming NBO Golf Classic Grand Final. This will be the third year that Oman Air has committed to the prestigious European Chal-lenge Tour tournament as a pre-senting sponsor and official airline.

After two hugely successful years, theNational Bank of Oman (NBO) Golf Classic, which was the penultimate event on the Eu-ropean Challenge Tour schedule, has been elevated to become the season-ending NBO Golf Classic Grand Final,which is open only to the top 45 players on the Road to Oman Rankings and is set to be played from November 4 to 7 at the stunning Almouj Golf at The Wave, Muscat.

Oman Air has now announced their commitment to the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final as a present-ing sponsor and official carrier for the tournament. The airline will be transporting the 45 qualifiers, their management, caddies and supporters from all over the world to Muscat.

“We are honoured and privi-leged to be the Presenting Spon-

sor for this prestigious tourna-ment,” said Oman Air CEO Paul Gregorowitsch.

“The NBO Golf Classic Grand Final has certainly put the Sultan-ate on the world golf and tourism map and has created an opportuni-ty for Oman business and tourism to benefit from the exposure the event has brought. Our involve-ment in the Grand Final is consist-

ent with our support of sport in the Sultanate as an Official Partner to the Oman Football Association. We will be continuing that support through various unique sporting activities in the public village dur-ing the NBO Grand Final.”

Ahmed Al Musalmi, CEO of NBO, commented: “We are de-lighted to welcome Oman Air as Presenting Sponsor. They have

shown considerable support for the past three years to our commit-ment to the tournament which has created considerable advantages to international business, tourism and golf for Oman.

“The overwhelming success of the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic in 2013 and 2014, helped create the introduction of the Road to Oman Rankings, which has add-

ed to the global promotion of the Sultanate as a must-visit business, tourism and golf destination.

“The Road to Oman has taken in 25 tournaments in 19 differ-ent countries worldwide, mix-ing historic tournaments such as the Barclays Kenya Open and the Rolex Trophy with newer events in developing golfing nations such as Slovakia, Turkey and China.

“Its global reach has provided a boost to Oman’s golf tourism, showcasing all the benefits Oman has to offer.”

“We have achieved all this while remaining committed to our Omani national golfers who will compete in the 36-hole NBO Omani Championship, which will be played in conjunction with the NBO Golf Classic Grand Fi-nal,” he said.

The winner of the 2015 NBO Golf Classic Grand Final will re-ceive $52,800 while the top 15 players on the Road to Oman Rankings following the conclu-sion of the Muscat event will be promoted to play on next season’s European Tour.

The leading player on the rank-ings will receive not only the honour of being crowned Euro-pean Challenge Tour No. 1, but a $32,500 share of a $65,000 Bonus Pool for the top three, plus an en-graved Rolex watch.

Besides Oman Air, the 2015 NBO Golf Classic Grand Final is supported by Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa, Tanuf Water, Wicked Tents and Al Turki.

Oman Air has

announced their

commitment to the

NBO Golf Classic

Grand Final as a

presenting sponsor

and official carrier

for the tournament

DEAL SEALED: Oman Air CEO Paul Gregorowitsch, second right, and NBO CEO Ahmed Al Musalmi, third left, pose for a group photo along

with Sultanate’s motorsport star Ahmad Al Harthy and other officials after the signing ceremony. – O.K. MOHAMMED ALI/Times of Oman

Sanad achieves satisfying result

as Oman gain from Genk races

MUSCAT: Sanad Al Rawahi achieved a satisfying result as Oman karting racers concluded their participation in the fourth round of the Rotax Euro Chal-lenge in Genk, Belgium on Sunday.

According to information re-ceived here, the Omani racers did well despite being hit badly by technical problems in the prac-tice and qualifyings rounds.

The technical issues prevented Sanad Al Rawahi and his sibling Abdullah as well as Khalid Al Wa-haibi performing to their optimum in their respective categories in the run up to the final day’s races.

However, Sanad managed to finish in a creditable 12th place in the DD2 class.

In the 16-lap final race, he clocked 14:53.359, around 13.476 second behind the eventual win-ner Roope Markkanen of Finland.

Earlier in the pre-final race, San-

ad was placed in 24th place when timed 11:30.200 in the 12-lap race.

Meanwhile, Abdullah Al Raw-ahi in the Seniors category and Khalid Al Wahaibi in the Juniors category had the opportunity to make it to the final race through Second Chance Heat. However, both the racers failed to advance.

In the Seniors, Abdullah com-

pleted seven of the 10 laps in a time of 6:53.216 to finish in the 13th place in the Second Chance Heat. In the Juniors, Khalid Al Wahaibi was stopped after the fifth of the seven-lap race after shortcutting track. Until then the young Omani showed good speed and clocked 5:42.962 in the five laps he had completed.

R O T A X E U R O C H A L L E N G E

TOUGH OUTING: Abdullah Al Rawahi in action at Genk circuit in Belgium. – Supplied photo

Czechs qualify, Turkey stun the Dutch

RIGA: The Czech Republic quali-fied for Euro 2016 as one of the top two teams from qualifying Group A after holding off a late fightback to beat hosts Latvia 2-1 on Sunday.

David Limbersky and Vladmir Darida scored the first-half goals to lift the Czechs to 19 points, out of the reach of third placed Turkey (12 points) and Netherlands (10) with two matches to play next month.

Iceland, on 18 points, can secure their berth when they host bottom placed Kazakhstan, needing only draw. The Czechs finished nerv-

ously as they dealt with a late rally from Latvia, who pulled a goal back through Arturs Zjurzins with 17 minutes left and then gallantly tried without success to find an equaliser.

In Konya, the Netherlands’ hopes of making the finals hung by a thread on Sunday after last year’s World Cup semifinalists were con-vincingly downed 3-0 by a well-organised hosts Turkey.

In front of 40,000 Turkish sup-porters creating a hostile atmos-phere in the packed-out Konya arena, Turkey combined cohesion

with physicality as the Dutch fell short in every department.

An early strike by Oguzhan Ozyakup of Besiktas was followed by a second from Barcelona’s Arda Turan and then a killer third from Burak Yilmaz.

With the Czech Republic clinching qualification on Sunday and Iceland set to take the second automatic qualification spot going in Group A, Turkey and the Neth-erlands are in a straight fight for third and likely entry into the play-offs for the finals in France. - Agencies

E U R O 2 0 1 6

C4

SPORTSM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

India raring for Iran test

BENGALURU: With India poised to face formidable rivals Iran in their upcoming World Cup qualifi-er, midfielder Eugeneson Lyngdoh is keen to test his mettle against the top ranked team in Asia.

“It is natural. You want to test

yourself against the very best. Tell me who doesn’t want to play Argen-tina,” Lyngdoh said before India’s practice session at the Sree Kan-teerava Stadium here on Sunday.

“Moreover, this also gives us an opportunity to give our opponents a hard fight,” he added.

Iran are the strongest team in

Asia, placed at 40th in the FIFA rankings, whle India are placed at the 155th spot.

But despite the obvious gap in quality and pedigree of the two teams, Lyngdoh is confident that the Indians are ready for the fight.

“In football anyone can win, any-one can lose. We have a plan and we

will follow that. We will give it our best shot and hope for a positive re-sult,” the 28-year-old asserted.

“Our coach (Stephen Constan-tine) has been motivating us to give it our best shot and that has installed in us a mentality. We are raring to go.”

The two teams head into Tues-

day’s clash with contrasting results from their last internation-al matches.

While India had a goalless stale-mate against Nepal in an interna-tional friendly, Iran registered a convincing 6-0 win over Guam.

India saw their chances of trav-elling to the 2018 World Cup go haywire after losing their last qual-ification match 1-2 in Guam. But Lyngdoh insisted that everything is not yet lost.

“We are still on track for our qualification if we get results our way. But we are focused on the game. Iran are a good side and we have to be on our level best if we have to get points out of them,” the Pune FC midfielder stated.

The Indian team has been utilis-ing several innovative techniques during training.

These include the recently bought GPS systems which pro-vide information about the physi-cal condition and work rate of a player during matches and train-ing sessions.

“We have been working very hard recently and with the inno-vative GPS System implemented, we have been able to identify and hone our fitness level,” Lyngdoh remarked.

“Against Iran, obviously we have to work hard. But, we are ready for that.” - IANS

Iran are the strongest

team in Asia, placed

at 40th in the FIFA

rankings, whle

India are placed at

the 155th spot. But

despite the obvious

gap in quality and

pedigree of the two

teams, midfielder

Lyngdoh is confident

that the Indians are

ready for the fight

READY FOR THE FIGHT: Indian captain Sunil Chhetri, right, leads his teammates during a practice ses-

sion at Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru. – PTI

STRONG TEAM: Iran team warm up during a training session ahead of their World Cup qualification match against India at Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday. – PTI

Chelsea move bearing fruit for PedroMADRID: Chelsea forward Pedro Rodriguez has admitted his move from Barcelona last month will enhance his chances of playing a major role at next year’s European Championships with Spain.

The 28-year-old started as the European champions took a big step towards qualification by end-ing Slovakia’s 100 percent record in Group C with a 2-0 win on Sat-urday. Pedro left Barca after a dec-ade at the Camp Nou in which he won 20 trophies to get more play-ing time after falling behind the star front three of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

And he made an instant impact with the English champions as he scored and set up Diego Costa for another goal in Chelsea’s only win of the season so far on his debut at West Bromwich Albion.

“I am happy with how my time has started at Chelsea,” he said on Sunday. “When you have more minutes you can play at a different rhythm with more confidence and a different mentality. I am sure the move will be very good for me to play both at Chelsea and with the national team.”

Victory over Slovakia moved Spain back to the top of the group thanks to their better head-to-head record and was widely re-garded as the best showing by Vi-cente del Bosque’s men since their embarrassing exit at the group stages of last year’s World Cup.

“The game yesterday was one

of the best playing in our style,” added Pedro.

“There was a lot of first-touch football and we were always look-ing to attack against a Slovakia side that hadn’t lost a game. It is possibly our best game since the World Cup.”

The one negative of the night for the hosts were the whistles

directed at Gerard Pique by the home fans in Oviedo. Barcelona defender Pique has been an out-spoken supporter of the drive for Catalan independence.

And Pedro defended his old teammate, who was part of the Spain sides that won the World Cup in 2010 and European Cham-pionships two years later.

“We don’t like it that a profes-sional player who has always been committed with the team is whis-tled at home.

“I hope this topic is resolved quickly, we are all with him. He has always defended this shirt and the colours as he should. He has great personality and he showed that on the field.” - AFP

M A J O R R O L E

INSTANT IMPACT: Spain’s forward Pedro Rodriguez, right, vies with Slovakia’s midfielder Lukas

Tesak during the Euro 2016 qualifying match against Slovakia in Oviedo on Saturday. – AFP

Del Bosque defends misfiring Diego Costa

OVIEDO: Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has given strong backing to Diego Costa even after the Chelsea forward drew another blank in Saturday’s Euro 2016 qualifying victory at home to Slovakia.

Holders Spain leapfrogged the Eastern Europeans to the top of Group C thanks to a 2-0 success in Oviedo but Costa again failed to score and has netted just one goal in eight ap-pearances since opting last year to play for La Roja instead of his native Brazil.

The 26-year-old did win a penalty, converted by Andres Iniesta after Jordi Alba’s early header, but otherwise struggled to make any impact on Slova-kia’s well-drilled defence before making way for Paco Alcacer 15 minutes from time.

“Of course I would like him to score but he did some good work,” Del Bosque told a news conference.

“Against a team playing so defensively the player who has the most difficult job is the one in his position,” he added. “He moved well, he kept the defend-ers busy. We have to be patient. A lot of the time when he gets the ball he has his back to goal.”

With seven of 10 matches played, Spain and Slovakia each have 18 points, with the Span-ish, who lost 2-1 in Zilina in Oc-tober, top due to a better head-to-head record.

Ukraine, who won 3-1 at home to Belarus earlier on Sat-urday and are assured of at least a playoff berth, are third on 15 points, 11 ahead of Belarus and Luxembourg.

The nine group winners and runners-up and best third-placed side qualify for the fi-nals in France, while the eight remaining third-placed teams contest playoffs for the last four berths. - Reuters

S P A I N C O A C H

C5

SPORTSM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Love us on Facebook

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH FACEBOOK PAGE

Isner ready to ‘roll the dice’ against Federer

NEW YORK: John Isner beat Roger Federer in the greatest win of his career three years ago. Now the hard-serving American will try to duplicate that effort to reach a US Open quarterfinal.

Isner advanced after only 75 minutes on Saturday, leading 6-3, 6-4 when Czech opponent Jiri Vesely retired with a neck injury.

That put Isner in the path of 17-time Grand Slam winner Federer, who dispatched German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 after just 93 minutes.

“I’m going to go out there and roll the dice,” said Isner, whose lone win in five tries over the 34-year-old Swiss legend came in a 2012 away Davis Cup tie.

“That was the best win of my career and one of the best matches I’ve ever played, hands down. I played extremely well that day and I needed to to beat him. I’m going to need to do that again on Monday.”

Big-serving Isner has played 93 service games in a row at the US Open without allowing a break, ral-lying from triple break point down in the sixth game of the second set versus Vesely to sustain the streak, aided by two of his 21 aces.

“Definitely conserved a lot of energy. I’ll be able to leave it all out there on Monday, win or lose,” Is-ner said. “I have been on and off the court pretty quickly my first three

matches. That bodes well for me. Same goes for him, but he’s gener-ally in that position.”

World No. 2 Federer, who has not won a Slam title since Wim-bledon in 2012, has defied time with runs to the Wimbledon final this year and last.

“As he gets older he seems to keep getting better,” Isner said.

“It’s unbelievably impressive what he’s continuing to do. He is playing at a very high level right now. I have the utmost respect for him. At the same time, I feel like I can challenge him on Monday.

“It’s what I work so hard for, to get an opportunity like this. I’m go-ing to have fun with it. At the same time, I’m going to go out there and believe that I can win.”

Isner rates Federer with the best

returners in the sport, especially with a new chip-and-charge tactic in his portfolio.

“He has that chip return that no one else has. That’s the shot that gets him in points,” Isner said.

“From that, his talent and skill and everything, everything takes over. He’s able to get a lot of balls back, and he uses his incredible skill and athleticism to win points after that.”

Isner will face Federer in the same Arthur Ashe Stadium where they first met in 2007 in a third-round match. Isner took the first set in a tie-beaker and Federer took most everything thereafter.

“Absolutely no pressure on me that day, and I honestly probably didn’t believe I could beat him, ei-ther,” Isner said.

“I was happy to be on that court. I was fresh out of college and no one knew anything about me. He certainly didn’t. I won one set, which was incredible. Didn’t win much after that.”

Isner will skip the US Davis Cup team tie to stay in the 2016 World Group in two weeks at Uzbekistan, needing to rest his knees and know-ing he would not be 100 percent.

It was tough to stay away after he dropped the deciding point to Andy Murray in a 3-2 loss at Brit-ain in this year’s first round and dropped a fifth set 15-13 to James Ward in the same tie.

“What makes it incredibly tough is that I feel personally responsible that our team is in this position,” Isner said. “I didn’t do my part in February.” - AFP

Isner rates Federer

with the best

returners in the sport,

especially with a

new chip-and-charge

tactic in his portfolio

HOPING TO DO IT AGAIN: John Isner wants a repeat of 2012 Davis Cup outing when he defeated Roger Federer. – AFP

GETTING BETTER WITH THE AGE: Swiss legend Roger Federer. – AFP

Players praise Serena’s mental toughnessNEW YORK: Even with her pow-erful serve and formidable physi-cal gifts, Serena Williams is get-ting the most praise from fellow US Open players for her mental toughness and confidence when facing adversity.

World No. 1 Williams is try-ing to complete the first calendar Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988 by winning the US Open for a 22nd Slam singles crown to match Graf’s Open Era record, two shy of Australian Margaret Court’s all-time record.

“She’s just a beast,” said Ameri-can Donald Young, who won Sat-urday to reach the fourth round.

“I think she turns it on whenever she wants to. It’s tough. It’s a lot of pressure. The way she’s handling it is like a true champion.”

Williams struggled early in her past two matches, even dropping the first set against Bethanie Mat-tek-Sands before rallying to win the last eight games and advance to a fourth-round meeting with US 19th seed Madison Keys.

“Serena is inspiration for eve-ryone who is on the tour, for sure. She’s kind of big champion,” said Czech fifth seed Petra Kvitova.

“We know how big a fighter she is. We need to be fighters in the tennis world as well. People play-ing her, they really know that if they win a set it’s not the end. She always lifts her level higher.”

Williams has been pushed to three sets 10 times in 24 Slam matches this year and won them

all, eight of them after she dropped the first set.

“I have nothing but admiration for her,” Young said. “She’s just an awesome player. She can come back. She has done it so many times in her career. She has been there. Once you know what it feels like, you can repeat it.”

No playing down the Slam Three-time defending champion Williams, who holds all four ma-jor titles, has tried to downplay the calendar Slam and pump up the “Serena Slam” four in a row al-ready done.

But the buzz of fans, sellout crowds for her matches and talk around Arthur Ashe Stadium says

more about how the tennis world regards what Williams is on the verge of achieving.

“I guess in her mind she’s trying to play it down,” said Aussie Sa-mantha Stosur, who beat Williams in the 2011 US Open final — Ser-ena’s most recent loss on the New York hardcourts.

“It’s amazing regardless, wheth-er it stays the way it is or whether she gets the calendar Slam and makes it five in a row. Either way, everybody else has got to admire. I mean, if I was in that position, I’d probably try and play it down too and not think of it as such a huge deal and want it playing on my mind all the time.”

Self belief and confidence is a

major part of Serena’s game, said Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard.

“She just has that belief. She knows she’s so good,” Bouchard said. “She just fights and finds a way. Even the greatest player of all times loses sets or is down in a match. It just shows all of us we have to fight for every point no matter what. Even if you are the greatest of all time, people are not just going to give it to you.”

Incredible achievement British qualifier Johanna Konta, a fourth-round surprise packet, would enjoy seeing Williams lift the trophy next weekend to finish the calendar Slam — and she’s a big Graf fan.

“That would be freaking amaz-ing,” Konta said. “I admire Steffi Graf because that’s who I grew up watching, but I admire Serena Williams, because, I mean, who doesn’t admire Serena Williams?

“I’d love for her to achieve that. I don’t know really of anyone who wouldn’t. It’s an incredible achievement and one that I can only kind of watch and admire.”

US 13th seed John Isner, into the last 16 with a Saturday win, said Williams has created her own great expectations.

“Most important thing is staying positive out there and just believing. That’s what we’ve seen from Ser-ena,” Isner said. “It’s pretty incred-ible. She has done it so much that we’ve come to expect it. That’s what makes her a great champion.” - AFP

A L L A D M I R A T I O N

A TRUE CHAMPION: Serena Williams

NEW YORK: Victoria Azarenka added a new word to the tennis lexicon Saturday after her US Open win against Angelique Kerber — ‘pinish.’

The two-time runner-up won a third-round thriller 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 on a sixth match point, having trailed 2-5 in the first set.

During changeovers in the Arthur Ashe Stadium contest,

the 20th-seeded Belarusian was spotted consulting a series of motivational, self-help tips.

When asked to reveal one, she said, ‘pinish.’ “It was my coach’s idea — it’s a combina-tion of ‘punish’ and ‘fin-ish,’” said Azarenka, who is coached by Sascha Bajin, the former longtime hitting part-ner of Serena Williams. - AFP

Azarenka fights to ‘pinish’

C6

SPORTSM O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Tweet all about it

SCAN THIS TO INSTANTLY LAUNCH TWITTER PAGE

LONDON: England’s early quali-fication for next year’s Euro 2016 finals in France has given manager Roy Hodgson the rare luxury of being able to experiment with his selections well ahead of the tour-nament kicking off.

England’s 6-0 win over San Marino on Saturday maintained their perfect record in Group E with seven wins out of seven and they became the first country to take their place alongside the French hosts in the expanded 24-team finals.

It was the earliest England have ever qualified for any major tour-nament apart from when they hosted the World Cup in 1966 and the European championship in 1996, and skipper Wayne Rooney now wants them to win every match in their qualifying group for the first time.

With a home game to come against Switzerland on Tuesday followed by October’s double-head-er against Estonia at Wembley be-fore signing off with a visit to Lithu-ania, England could well make it 10 wins out of 10 and preserve their long unbeaten run in both World Cup and Euro qualifiers which dates back 26 matches to a 1-0 loss to Ukraine in October 2009.

Hodgson told the BBC: “I’m not sure early qualification gives us any particular advantage because we are going to take a lot of time to plan and improve anyway.

“What it could do is give me the opportunity for experimentation because we did not get that ahead of the World Cup when we had to win our last two qualifiers to get to Brazil.”

Although England failed to get out of the group stage in the World Cup last year, they are now unbeat-en in their last 12 internationals.

They were always likely to emerge unscathed from a Euro qualifying group against the likes of San Mari-no, Estonia, Lithuania, Slovenia and Switzerland, but younger players have impressed Hodgson during the course of the campaign.

Liverpool defender Nathan-iel Clyne, 24, looks like being England’s best right-back since Gary Neville while Jonjo Shelvey, 23, has played his way back into the squad after some fine

performances for Swansea. Ever-ton defender John Stones and his club mate Ross Barkley, also 21, who scored his first goal for Eng-land against San Marino and now has 14 caps, look set for long inter-national careers.

Young forwards like Harry Kane, 22, of Tottenham Hotspur, and Raheem Sterling, 20, of Man-chester City, also provide options for Hodgson in attack.

Rooney, meanwhile, may not have made a blistering start to the season with Manchester United, but the skipper, who will be 30 next month, is still a key figure as far as Hodgson is concerned.

Rooney equalled Bobby Charl-ton’s all-time England record of 49 goals against San Marino before Hodgson swapped him for Kane with nearly an hour played.

Some have criticised Hodgson for taking him off when the record was there to be broken, but the manager explained: “The substi-tution was planned with a view to Tuesday night against Switzerland.

“It would be nice if Wayne got his 50th goal against Switzerland, but one thing for certain is that he will get it.

“It is not as if this was his last game and his only chance. “If this was his last game for England and he needed that one goal, then I wouldn’t have taken him off.”

Rooney added: “I’m delighted to have equalled the record, now I’d like to break it, but more impor-tantly I hope we can make it 10 wins out of 10.” - Reuters

It was the earliest England have ever

qualified for any major tournament apart

from when they hosted the World Cup in 1966

and the European championship in 1996

RARE LUXURY: The early qualification has given Roy Hodgson ‘the opportunity for experimentation’.

I’m delighted to have equalled the record, now I’d like to break it, but more importantly I hope we can make it 10 wins out of 10

Wayne RooneyEngland captain

TIME TO EXPERIMENT

Is the number of

international matches

England are now

unbeaten and they

were always likely

to emerge unscathed

from a Euro qualifying

group against the likes

of San Marino, Estonia,

Lithuania, Slovenia

and Switzerland

12

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

GearSECTIONC L I F E S T Y L E M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are soon to be old news, as Apple is all set to launch the next gen

of its iPhone series. But do they really pack a punch? With the market abuzz with all sorts of rumours,

we’ve already covered some on what could come up from Cupertino this time around. >>

By Faisal Mohammed Naim

LIFESTYLEC8 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

>> The wait is finally over; they are here – the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. With the launch date just around the corner, sensations run high and the market is rife with all sorts of speculations. The dreamy Joes are dreaming of it to be the per-fect smartphone ever, while the disillusioned quite-hard-to-be-convinced ones are taking it to be a mere incremental, nothing phe-nomenal upgrade.

Phenomenal or not, excitement is definitely in the air – no other phone is able to incite such curi-osity as the iPhone. Tech pundits have been speculating about the latest iPhone installments since long, and the leak business has been in full swing.

The launch event is to be held on September 9, 2015, at San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, a huge venue that can hold a reported 7,000 peo-ple. Apple sent out invitations to analysts and the press recently, and while the iPhone 6s isn’t mentioned by name, the event is almost certainly the launch event for Apple’s 2015/16 iPhones.

According to experts, the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are expected to be incremental updates ( just as the hard headed blokes thought), unlike the big changes we saw Ap-ple implement last year. Still, there will be plenty of key updates to the phones and this should result in excellent sales once again.

A more powerful chipset with faster LTE chip is expected to de-but inside the new iPhones, along-side Apple’s Force Touch display technology, and 12MP camera with 4K video capture – also be-ing labelled as the “biggest cam-era jump ever”, according to blog-ger John Gruber, who describes a “weird two-lens system where the back camera uses two lenses and it somehow takes it up into DSLR quality imagery.”

Force Touch, the technology currently used inside the Apple Watch’s display, is said to be one of the iPhone 6s’ big USPS. And while it doesn’t sound all that im-pressive; it’s just another way to interact with the display of your phone, there are actually plenty of reasons to be excited about the advent of Force Touch in iPhone. For instance, with a Force Touch display, you’ll be able to do things like drop pins in Apple Maps and scroll through items faster, rather than swiping. Other things could involve quickly responding to a notification, or changing volumes on a track or video.

Apple isn’t changing the dis-play size, retaining the same 4.7in and 5.5in for both models. Sources close to Apple have also confirmed the new iPhones will look pretty much identical to the iPhone 6, according to 9to5Mac’s Mark Gurman.

A Youtube channel ‘Unbox Therapy’ has also analysed a leaked iPhone 6s’ back panel, specifically altered to make it more durable. This is allegedly in response to the Bendgate fiasco which occurred after the iPhone 6 launch; users found the metal chassis could bend and distort relatively easily.

The video claims that there are key design differences from the iPhone 6 shell which suggest the new model will be tougher and more resilient. Stress points prone to weakening on the older device have allegedly been rein-forced or modified.

According to experts, the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus are expected to be incremental updates, unlike the big changes we saw Apple implement last year

According to inside sources, Apple is pushing for the big-gest order of iPhones ever for Q4 2015. Apple wants its suppliers to build 85-90 million iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus units before the close of Q4 2015; the biggest initial order Apple has ever placed with its suppliers.

Another report cites predic-tions from tech analysts who claim the new iPhone 6s may be “too expensive” compared to pre-vious models. Based on leaked information detailing the next iP-hone’s ultra-tough aluminium al-loy construction, analysts predict that the cost of production will be raised significantly.

Quite interestingly, the hand-set in the invitation, is simply referred to as “the new iPhone”, meaning it could be either the iP-hone 6s or, as some reports have suggested, the iPhone 7. We have our fingers crossed.

faisal@timesofoman.com

PHO

TO

S: S

UPP

LIED

, SH

UT

TER

STO

CK

LIFESTYLEC9M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

ConclusionBose chooses to do less

with the SoundLink Mini, but is very good

at the few things it does do. Beats, on the other hand, offers more op-tions, but is generally

problematic and not so good in quality, when it comes to dropouts, call

quality, and even the sound quality.

Lifestyle Verdict: Though Beats scores over Bose in more categories, still

in this match, Bose is clearly the winner.

faisal@timesofoman.com

TECHSUPPORT

B Y F A I S A L M O H A M M E D N A I M

Bose SoundLink Mini Beats Pill 2.0vs

ver since the portable speakers swarmed the markets, the bat-tles among the audio brands have intensified even more (actually intensified to such a

level that it is creating a whole lot of confusion for aficionados while deciding on which one to go for). Every other day, every other brand comes up with ‘in-some-way new’, trendy looking sound bar (so much so that you can’t even remember which is from whom).

Today we bring for you a head on comparison of two of the best in-sound-bars. Choice is yours.

Build & DesignThe Beats Pill 2.0, is sleek, slightly hip, and it’s available in a bunch of fun colours. It looks like an oversized pill, only with a flat foot on the bottom to keep it from rolling off the table.

The Bose SoundLink Mini on the other hand, well, is a Bose product. The company isn’t exactly known for their bold design choices, opting for the more safe and reserved look in nearly every example.

While Beats may have the advantage when it comes to looks, it doesn’t take the win in the build department. The Pill might be flimsy, but it’s nowhere near as solid as the SoundLink Mini.

Mini: Pill:

ConnectivityBoth speakers offer Bluetooth connectivity with roughly a 30ft range. Both also offer a 3.5 mm aux-in jack for plugging your fa-vourite non-Bluetooth devices in. Pairing is fairly easy with both, though Beats does get a point for allowing NFC pairing — something you can’t do with the SoundLink Mini.

Looking at the controls, the race heats up. While the Bose Mini offers more buttons, even to the point of providing dedicated mute and Bluetooth buttons, it completely lacks playback controls. The Pill 2.0 on the other hand has fewer buttons, but it packs more functionality into its multi-function button which controls playback via a system of double and triple taps.

Mini: Pill:

Battery LifeBoth the Pill 2.0 and the Sound-Link Mini claim up to 7 hours of playtime.

The SoundLink Mini does a whole lot of things right, but it pulls a classic Bose when it comes to charging. The only charging method is via the included wall charger, meaning whenever you’re out of juice it’s time to look for an outlet and hope you packed the charger.

The Pill, on the other hand, does the saner thing and allows USB charging, using the micro USB standard that at this point is so ubiquitous that the included USB cable is barely even necessary.

Mini: Pill:

Sound QualityBoth of these speakers are fair-ly small in size and therefore can’t hope to be compared to their larger siblings, but there’s a very clear difference between the two: the Bose Mini sure doesn’t sound small; it can get pretty loud, and impressively so, considering the size.

The Pill 2.0, on the other hand, sounds quite on the contrary. Bass is nearly non-existent, mids are alternately honking and woofy-sounding, and the highs are simultaneous-ly harsh and lacking in detail. For the final nail in the coffin, it doesn’t even get loud. Simply put, there is no contest here.

Mini: Pill:

Scan to seethe comparison

FIND-IT-ALLC10 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

ROYAL OMAN POLICE

Emergencies and inquiries: 9999

General Directorate of

Passport and Residence 24569603

Directorate General

of Customs 24521109

Traffic violations inquiries 24510228

Public Relations Admin 24560099

EMBASSIES IN OMAN

Afghanistan 24698 791/4

Algeria 24605 593

Bahrain 24 605 074/133

Bangladesh 24 698 660

Brazil 24640100

Brunei 24 603533

China 24 696782

Cyprus 24 699815

Egypt 24 600 982/411

France 24681 800

Germany 24835000

India 24684500

Indonesia 2469 1050

Iran 24 696 944/7

Iraq 24603642

Italy 24693727

Japan 24 601 028

Jordan 24692760/1/3

Kazakhstan 24 692418

Kenya 24 697664

South Korea 24 691490

Kuwait 24 699628

Lebanon 24 693208

Libya 24603466

Malaysia 24698329/643

Morocco 24696152/3

Nepal 24696177

Netherlands 24603706

Pakistan 24603439

Palestine 24601312

Philippines 24605335

Qatar 24 691 153/2/4

Russia 24602894

Saudi Arabia 24601705

Senegal 24694139

Somalia 24697977

South Africa 24647300

Spain 24691101

Sri Lanka 24697841/2

Sudan 24697875

Switzerland 24603267

Syria 24697904

Tanzania 24601 174

Thailand 24 602684/5

Tunisia 24603486

Turkey 24697050/1/2

UAE 24400000

United Kingdom 24609000

United States 24643400

Yemen 24600815

PHARMACIES

Round the clock

Al Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi 24783334

Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24782666

Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi 24702542

Salalah 23291635;

Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra 24503585

Muscat Region

Apollo, Al Hamriya 24787766

Muscat, A Seeb Market 24421691

Muscat, Al Khuwair 24485740

Muscat, Al Hail South 24537080

Dhofar Region

Muscat, Al Nahdha Road,

Salalah 23291635

HOSPITALS

Al Amal Medical & Health Care

Centre 24485052

Atlas Hospital

Ruwi 24811743/

Ghubra 24504000

Al Musafir Specialised

Medical Clinic 24706453

Hatat Polyclinic LLC,

Ruwi 24563641

Azaiba 24499269

Sohar 2683006

Al Raffah Hospital 24618900/1/2

Al Massaraat Clinic &

Laboratory 24566435

Al Makook Medical

Coordinance Centre 24499434

Apollo Medical Centre,

Hamriya 24787766, 24787780

Capital Polyclinic 24707549

Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic,

Ruwi 24799760/1/2

Capital Clinic, Seeb 24420740

Ceregem National Raak 24485633

Dr Harub’s Clinic 24563217

Elixir Health Centre 24565802

Emirates Medical Centre 24604540

1st Chiropractic Centre 24472274

Hamdan Hospital 23212340

International Medical

Centre LLC 24794501/2/3/4/5

Kims Oman Hospital 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency 24760123

Lama Polyclinic, Sohar 26751128

MBD 24799077

Al Khuwair 24478818

Magrabi Eye and

Ear Hospital 24568870

Muscat Private Hospital 24583600

Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment

Centre, Al Khuwair 24477666

Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC 22004000

AIRLINE OFFICES

Muscat Airport Flight information

(24 hours) 24519456/24519223

Aeroflot 24704455

Air Arabia 24700828

Air France 24562153

Air India 24799801

Air New Zealand 24700732

Biman Bangladesh Airlines 24701128

British Airways 24568777

Cathay Pacific 24789818

Egypt Air 24794113

Emirates Air 24404400

Ethiopian Airlines 24660313

Gulf Air 80072424

Indian 24791914

Iran Air 24787423

Japan Airlines 24704455

Jazeera Airways 23294848

Jet Airways 24787248

Kenya Airways 24660300

KML Royal Dutch Airlines 24566737

Kuwait Airways 24701262

LOT Polish Airlines 24796387

Lufthansa 24796692

Malaysian Airlines 24560796

Middle East Airlines 24796680

Oman Air 24531111

Pakistan International

Airlines 24792471

Qatar Airways 24771900

Qantas 24559941

Royal Jordanian 24796693

Saudi Arabian Airlines 24789485

Singapore Airlines 24791233

Shaheen Air 24816565

SriLankan Airlines 24784545

Swiss International

Airlines 24796692

Thai Airways 24705934

LISTINGS

LONG DISTANCE BUS TIMINGS (OMAN NATIONAL TRANSPORT COMPANY SAOC) *SUBJECT TO CHANGE

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (ROUTE 36)

15:00 Quriyat 16:30 Daily

15:00 Sur 18:00 Daily

15:00 Jaalan 19:30 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

06:30 Sohar 08:50 Daily

06:30 Buraimi 11:00 Daily

08:00 Buraimi 14:30 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 15:45 Daily

13:00 Buraimi 17:40 Daily

16.00 Sohar 18.35 Daily

16.00 Buraimi 20:20 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

17:30 Sinaw 20:50 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

14:30 Nizwa 16:50 Daily

14:30 Yanqul 19:30 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

08:00 Nizwa 10:20 Daily

08:00 Al Araqi 12:30 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

07:30 Sur 12:00 Daily

14:30 Sur 18:45 Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (ROUTE 62)

06:30 Fahud 10:30 Daily

06:30 Yibal 11:15 Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Salalah 20:00 Daily

10:00 Marmul 20:30 Daily

10:00 Salalah 23:30 Daily

19:00 Salalah 07:40 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:50 Daily

SALALAH TO DUBAI (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Dubai 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

06:00 Sohar 08:30 Daily

06:00 Dubai 11:30 Daily

13:00 Sohar 15:30 Wed,Thur

13:00 Dubai 18:30 Wed,Thur

15:00 Sohar 17:35 Daily

15:00 Dubai 20:55 Daily

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily

07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily

07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

Dept Destination Arrival Operatingtime time days

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (ROUTE 36)

05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily

05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily

05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (ROUTE 41)

07:00 Sohar 08:55 Daily

07:00 Ruwi 11:40 Daily

13:30 Ruwi 20:20 Daily via Ibri

13:00 Sohar 14:55 Daily

13:00 Ruwi 17:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 19:20 Daily

17:00 Ruwi 22:15 Daily

TO SINAW (ROUTE 52)

07:00 Ruwi 10:25 Daily

TO YANQUL (ROUTE 54)

06:00 Nizwa 08:40 Daily

06:00 Ruwi 11:00 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (ROUTE 54)

15:40 Nizwa 17:55 Daily

15:40 Ruwi 20:20 Daily

TO SUR (ROUTE 55)

06:00 Ruwi 10:45 Daily

14:30 Ruwi 19:00 Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (ROUTE 62)

12:30 Fahud 13:15 Daily

12:30 Ruwi 17:30 Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (ROUTE 100)

07:00 Ruwi 19:50 Daily

10:00 Marmul 13:15 Daily

10:00 Ruwi 22:30 Daily

19:00 Ruwi 07:30 Daily

TO MARMUL (ROUTE 101)

06:00 Marmul 16:30 Daily

DUBAI TO SALALAH (ROUTE 102)

15:00 Salalah 07:00 Daily

TO DUBAI (ROUTE 201)

07:30 Sohar 10:50 Daily

07:30 Ruwi 13:40 Daily

13:00 Sohar 16:15 Thur-Fri

13:00 Ruwi 19:10 Thur-Fri

15:30 Sohar 18:45 Daily

15:30 Ruwi 21:35 Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH/SHARJAH (ROUTE 204)

16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily

16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily

16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

PRAYER TIMINGS

Dhuhr 12.10pmAsr 3.38pmMaghrib 6.25pmIsha 7.36pm Fajr (Tomorrow) 4.34am

WEATHER

330

Maximum

290

Minimum

TEMPERATURE

50-80%RELATIVE HUMIDITY

CINEMA SCHEDULE CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 3 YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE CINEMA | BOX-OFFICE COUNTER OPENS 30-MINUTES PRIOR TO THE SCREENING OF THE FIRST SHOW

CITY CINEMAContact (10 am to 6PM) 24567664 | 68. www.citycinemaoman.netfacebook.com/citycinemaoman

SHATTIThe Transporter Refueled (PG12) (Action, Crime)Cast : Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol3:45, 7:45, 9:45, 11:45 pmWelcome Back (Comedy, Crime) (Hindi)Cast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia2:15, 8:45 pmPurgatory (Horror, Mystery) (TBC)Cast: Emilio Rivera, Taylor Nichols2:00, 11:45 pmBarbie Rock ‘N Royals (Animation)(PG)Voice Overs : Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni2:00, 5:15 pmHitman – Agent 47 (Action, Crime)(PG12)Cast : Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware5:45, 9:30, 11:30 pmSouthpaw (Action, Drama)(15+)Cast : Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams3:35, 7:00 pmPhantom (Action, Drama)(HINDI) PGCast : Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif6:00 pm

MUSCAT GRAND MALLThe Transporter Refueled : 2D (Action, Crime, Thriller ) (PG12)Cast: Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol3:00, 5:00, 10:00 & 11:55PMGold Class : 2:15, 9:15 & 11:15PMThe Games Maker: 3D (Family) (PG)Cast: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Cavanagh10:45AM & 3:00PMBarbie in Rock ‘N Royals : 2D (Animation) (PG)Cast : Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni10:00AM, 11:40AM & 1:15PMGold Class : 12:30PMHitman: Agent 47 : 2D (Action, Crime) (PG12)Cast : Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware1:00, 7:00 & 11:45PMGold Class : 4:15PMWelcome Back : 2D (Comedy, Crime, Drama) (TBC)

Cast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham,Dimple Kapadia7:00PMGold Class: 6:15PMLila & Eve 2D (Drama, Thriller) (12+)Cast: Jennifer Lopez, Shea Whigham5:15PMSouthpaw 2D (Action, Drama, Sport ) (15+)Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams12:30 & 9:30PMPhantom 2D (Action, Drama, Thriller) (PG)Cast : Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif9:00PM

AZAIBAThe Transporter Refueled - 2D Action Cast: Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol3:30, 7:15, 9:15, 11:15 PM (PG12)Hitman: Agent 47 – 2D (PG12) Action Cast: Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware5:15, 10:05, 11:55 PMPhantom - 2D (PG) Action, Drama, Thriller Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif5:00, 7:40, 9:15, PMLoham – 2D (TBC) ActionCast: Mohanlal, Andrea Jeremiah, Siddique4:00 PMBarbie in Rock ‘N Royals – 2D Animation12:00, 1:30, 2:15 PM (PG)

The Games Maker – 3D (PG) Adv, FamilyCast - Joseph Fiennes, Tom Cavanagh12:00, 3:00 PMDynamite – 2D (PG) Action, Romance Cast - Vishnu Manchu, Pranitha Subhash5:00 PMPurgatory – 2D (12+)Horror, MysteryCast - Emilio Rivera, Taylor Nichols 12:45, 6:15 PMSavaale Samaali – 2D (PG) Action, DramaCast - Ashok Selvan, Bindu Madhavi7:45 PMWelcome Back – 2D (TBC) Comedy, CrimeCast - Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia 12:30, 2:00, 7:45, 10:30 PM

RUWIScreen 1Welcome Back (Comedy) - TBCCast: John Abraham, Shruti Hassan, Nana Patekar, Anil Kapoor, Paresh Rawal3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PMScreen 2Phantom (Action) – PGCast: Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif3.45, 9.45 PMThe Transporter Refueled (Action) - PG12

Cast: Ed Skrein, Ray Stevenson6.45 PMScreen 3Brothers (Drama/ Sports) – 12+Cast: Akshay Kumar, Jackie Shroff3.45, 6.45 PMThe Transporter Refueled (Action) - PG12Cast: Ed Skrein, Ray Stevenson, Gabriella9.45 PM

SOHARHitman: Agent 47 - 2D (PG12) Action, Crime, Cast: Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware6:45, 10:00, 11:45 PMPhantom - 2D (H) (PG) Action, DramaCast: Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif7:35 PMLoham - 2D (M) (PG) ActionCast: Mohanlal, Andrea Jeremiah, Siddique5:15, 7:30The Transporter Refueled - 2D Action Cast: Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol2:30, 7:30, 9:30, 11:30 PM (PG12)Welcome Back - 2D (TBC) Comedy, CrimeCast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia4:30, 8:30, 11:20 PMThe Games Maker - 3D (PG) AdventureCast: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Cavanagh

2:45, 4:45 PMBarbie in Rock ‘N Royals - 2D (PG) Cast : Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni2:00, 3:40 PMPurgatory - 2D (12+) Horror, MysteryCast: Emilio Rivera, Taylor Nichols2:00, 10:20, 11:55 PMA Walk in the Woods - 2D (15+) Adventure Cast: Robert Redford, Nick Nolte3:30, 5:30 PM

BURAIMIThe Transporter Refueled– 2D (Action) 4:45, 8:15, 10:00, 11:45PM (PG12)Hitman: Agent 47 – 2D (Action, Crime) (12+)Cast: Rupert Friend, Zachary Quinto6:30, 9:45PMBarbie Rocks N Royals– 2D (Animation) 5:45PMLet Us Pray – 2D (Action / Thriller) (18+)Cast: Lake Bell, Pierce Brosnan, Owen Wilson4:30, 11:30PMPhantom – 2D (Action / Thriller) (PG)6:10PMPaayum Puli – 2D (Action) (12+)Cast: Vishal Krishnan, Kajal Aggarwal 7:15PMWelcome Back – 2D (Action / Thriller) (TBC)Cast: John Abraham, Shruti Hassan

8:45, 11:30PM

SURThe Transporter Refueled (Action) (PG12) Cast: Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol5:30, 10:00, 11:45 PMHitman: Agent 47 (Action) (PG12)Cast: Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware9:45 PMThe Game Maker (3D) (Adventure) (PG) Cast: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Cavanagh5:00 PMBarbie in Rock ‘N Royals (PG) Cast: Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni4:00 PMWelcome Back (Hindi) (Comedy) (TBC) Cast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia7:15, 11:30 PMPhantom (Hindi) (Action | Drama) (PG) Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif, Rajesh Tailang7:15 PM

SALALAHHitman Agent 47 (2D) (PG12) (Action) 10:05AM, 12:15, 11:55PMThe Transporter Refueled (2D) (Action) 10:45AM, 1:15, 7:15, 9:30, 11:45 PM (PG12)Barbie in Rock ‘N Royals (2D) (PG) (Animation) Voice Overs: Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni10:15, 11:45AM, 4:00PMWelcome Back (2D) (TBC) (Comedy/Crime/) 4:00, 9:00, 11:15PMCast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Dimple KapadiaNo Escape (2D) (12+) (Action/Thriller) Cast: Lake Bell, Pierce Brosnan, Owen Wilson12:30, 3:00, 7:40 PMPurgatory (2D) (12+) (Horror/Mystery) Cast: Emilio Rivera, Taylor Nichols2:30, 5:45PMPhantom (2D) (PG) (Hindi) (Action/Drama) 6:45PMCast: Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif, Rajesh TailangThe Games Maker (3D) (PG) (Adventure) 10:15AM, 2:00PMCast: Joseph Fiennes, Tom Cavanagh, Megan CharpentierDynamite (2D) (PG) (Telugu) (Action) Cast: Vishnu Manchu, Pranitha Subhash, J. D. Chakravarthy5:00PM

BAHJA CINEMAFilm information 24540856 / Advance Booking

24540855

Website: www.albahjacinemaoman.com

No Escape (Action/ Thriller ) Cast: Lake Bell, Pierce Brosnan, Owen Wilson2.00 & 6.00 pmCP No: 2278 ( 12+ )Transporter Refueled (Action/Thriller/Crime) Cast: Ed skrein, Ray Stevenson, Gabriella Wright4.00, 8.00, 10.00 & 11.55 pmCP No: 2280 ( PG 12)Purgatory (Drama/ Horror) Cast: Oona Chaplin, Sergi Mendes, Ana Fernades10.00 & 11.55 pmCP No: 2283 ( 12+ )Lila & Eve ( Drama / Thriller ) Cast: Jennifer Lopez, Shea Whigham, Viola Davis4.00 & 8.00 pmCP No: 2284 ( 12+ )Barbie Rock ‘N Royals: ( Animation)Voice Overs: Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni, Bethani Brown2.00 & 6.00 pm

CP No: 2277 ( PG )

STAR CINEMAFilm information 24791641 / 24786776

Website: www.isurf.co.om

Loham (Mal) ( Act ) Cast: Mohanlal, Andrea & Renji Panikkar9:30 pm at Cinema Main; 3-45 pm Cinema-3; 6-30 pm Cinema-2 Thani Oruvan (Tamil) ( Act\Drama )Cast: Jayam Ravi, Nayanthara & Arvind Swami3-00 pm Cinema Main; 6-45 & 9-45 pm Cinema-3 Savaale Samaali (Tamil) (Rom/Act)Cast Ashok Selvan & Bindu Madhvi 6-45, 9-45 pm Cinema-4Paayam Puli (Tamil) (Rom/Drama) Cast: Vishal & Kajal Agarwal 6-30 pm Cinema Main; 3-45 pm Cinema 4 ; 9-30 pm at Cinema -2Dynamite (Telugu) (Act) Cast: Manchu Vishnu, pranitha & Achu 3-00 pm at Cinema 2 Next Change: Double Barrel (Mal) Yatchan (Tamil)

Programmes are subject to change

2:00, 5:15 pm 3:30, 7:15, 9:15, 11:15 PM 3.30, 6.30, 9.30 PM

@MGM @SHATTI @AZAIBA @RUWI

Barbie Rock N Royals (Animation)(PG)Voice Overs: Kelly Sheridan, Chiara Zanni

12:30 & 9:30 PM

Southpaw (Action) (12+)Cast : Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams

The Transporter Refueled - 2D (Action/Crime/Thriller) (PG12)Cast : Ed Skrein, Loan Chabanol, Ray Stevenson

Welcome Back (Comedy) – TBC Cast: John Abraham, Shruti Hassan, Nana Patekar, Anil Kapoor, Paresh Rawal

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 lifestyle@timesofoman.com

JIYA ANAND TOPRANI September 7, 2014

WITH LOVE

Ok, so you have decided to go for a used car, instead of a new one (the reasons are plenty — the used ones these

days are as good as new, this might be your first car, and you want to get acquainted with the finer intri-cacies of driving on a used one first before graduating to a new one, blah, blah, blah) – and you just cannot wait to lay your hands on the one you recently came across at one of the used car showrooms.

Everything seems to be just perfect about that car, but wait a minute – have you really checked everything? As much as you might like to dream about what you want in a car, it’s best to think more prac-tically about your needs — not just at present, but in the future, too. Here are a few simple things to remember and steps to take, that will assist you to choose the right car and you won’t be ripped-off too.

Set Your BudgetWork out how much you can af-ford to spend, and don’t forget to include registration, insurance, and regular maintenance and run-ning costs. Both for insurance, and if you’re going to get a loan, shop around to get the best rate.

Do Your ResearchIt’s important to have a thorough look at what’s out there before buy-ing a used car. To get an idea of a model’s current market price, spend some time searching used car ads online or in your local newspaper. Be wary if you find a used car with a price much lower than the market suggests. If you’re determined to take it further, have the car checked thoroughly. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Find the Right CarBrowse cars by body type, make or price to find out which make and model might suit you.

Read the expert reviews on the Internet about the car you’re looking for, and check the latest car news to see if a new model is coming, which can substantially reduce the price of previous models when it arrives.

Contact The SellerAnd when you do, don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions like:

Thorough InspectionMake sure you have a thorough look at the car yourself, and have an in-dependent mechanic or automotive centre to check it out properly. It could save you big expenses by re-

vealing mechanical problems and previous damage.

-time, never in the dark or in rain that could conceal body marks, dents, rust and other defects.

and the interior carpet for rust and signs – such as welding marks — which may show the car has been in a crash.

oil leaks on top of the engine, and

check the amount of oil. If the level is low, the owner hasn’t been look-ing after the car properly.

white mayonnaise-like substance — this is an indication of a dam-aged head gasket which can be very expensive to put right.

sure they’re in good condition with plenty of tread.

wheel and look along the length of the car. Both front wheels should be directly in front of the rear ones – if they’re not, it could mean the car has been in a crash and ended up with a slight-

— check the gaps between the body panels are equal — if they’re not, the car could have been refitted badly, or may have been involved in a crash.

-belts work correctly, the steering wheel and dashboard are bolted on correctly, the front seats move properly and all switches work.

which will make is easier to reveal problems like poor starting or too much smoke.

Test Drive the Car Before you set off, turn the steer-ing wheel from one lock to the other to make sure there is no screeching, banging, or knocking.

and then try to drive off very gen-tly. It should hold the car back.

engine, and don’t let the seller dis-tract you by talking or turning up the radio.

surfaces as possible.

gear change is slick and smooth.

between the top and middle of the pedal’s travel.

Negotiate and Renegotiate The price is the price, but there’s of-ten leeway for bargaining.

with the car, or any work that might need getting done with, and calculate how much this could add to the price.

price with the seller.

is, make a lower offer and then say nothing. They can only turn you down, accept your offer, or name another price closer to yours.

Seal the Deal

order, and that you have original versions (never photocopies) of everything: registration papers, service history and logbook.

just a deposit, get a receipt and make sure the seller’s full details are on it.Never give or send money to the seller without seeing the car, or without getting a receipt with all

-mon these days and scamsters may ask you to send money by

-ceed until you have seen the car and dealt with the seller in person.

faisal@timesofoman.com

LIFESTYLEC11

DRIVE SLOWER LIVE LONGER

ALONG WITH GOOGLE’S CORPORATE overhaul that will see the company renamed Alphabet, the Internet behemoth is changing its logo.

The new, much rounder, de-

recently. It is the fifth revamp -

most radical to date.

range of our products to the evo-lution of their look and feel. And today we’re changing things up once again,” the company said

on its blog. “Once upon a time,

you reached from one device: a

across many different platforms, apps and devices — sometimes all in a single day.

you whenever and wherever you need it, whether it’s on your mo-bile phone, TV, watch, the dash-board in your car, and yes, even

is revamping its blue single let-

one.” -Agencies

T E C H N O T E

Are They Worth the Dough?By Faisal Mohammed Naim

Google Gets a Makeover

LIFESTYLEC12 M O N DAY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

Smart Bike Valourby Vanhawks gives

directions, reroutes to

avoid traffic, and tracks

riding metrics.

The Internet of Things (IoT), also called Internet of Everythingor Network of Everything, is the network of physical objects or “things” embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and connectivity to enable objects to exchange data with the production, operator and/or other connected devices. Although devices are now connected more than ever, the full potential of it has still not been realised and may take a good amount of time before we see it actually realised.

The ‘Internet of Things’ will generate

Of value over the next decade.

There will be approximately

Things globally by the end of 2020.

Extreme Networks estimates that

People will have Internet access.

Internet-Connected MirrorWe are looking to bring a product to market

that can make your life easier, while doing

something you already spend time doing

each day, looking at a mirror.

Smart Slow CookerEnjoy remote access to all

your slow cooker’s functions,

no matter where you are.

The Internet of Everything

Smart Garbage CansBigBelly alerts when it needs to be emptied

so smarter collection decisions can be made.

Smart Home Security Canary is a complete security

system packed into a single, device. It adapts to your

home over time and sends intelligent notifications

with HD video directly to your smartphone.

BY THE NUMBERS

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

CONNECT H E D A I LY G U I D E

D

D4 VACANCY CARGO D8

M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

RENT D2

*Classified Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon

for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

1BHK near Oman house behind

Khimji H.O . Contact : 95865686

Spacious 1BHK flats in Darsait near

ISD. Contact : 99369081

Twin villa for rent in Bowshar, near

Muscat Private Hospital.

Contact 92760281

Brand new 2 bedroom flat for rent

in Mabela. Contact 92460281

Villa for rent - Al Seeb/Al Mawelah

- Block 5 - 4 bedrooms with attached

bathrooms, Majlis, 2 halls, kitchen

and storeroom, split Ac and car park.

Contact 99564616 / 99498448

New flats 1 room and living room

with accessories & 2 rooms and

living room with accessories in

Wadi Kabir. Contact: 92130703 /

96045478

New flats for rent in Darsait,

Al Sahal. Contact : 99311525

New flats for rent in Darsait

Al Sahal. Contact: 99777351

Flat for rent in Wadi Kabir near

Indian Primary School 2 BR & 1K.

Contact: 92222922

2 bedrooms flats at Muttrah 2 flats

available Oman house.

Contact: 99319149

Flat for rent in Hamriya.

Contact: 99341112

Shop / flat 2 bedroom 1sitting room

for rent at Al Hamriya main road.

Contact: 97236696

Two shops in Muttrah Souq, for rent

more details pleas.

Contact: 91214849 / 95729711

600 SQT commercial flat for rent,

opposite Oman flour mill Darsait. For

more details please

Contact: 91214849 / 95729711

1BHK near Al Nahdha Ruwi.

Contact: 99617786

One bedroom apartment at Al Hail

South. Contact: 99336255

Flat for rent at WK near Jabir

Bin Zeid mosque monthly rent

R.O 250/- , 12 chq payable on 1st.

of every month. Contact: Abdulla

99445880/98292846 Morgan

1 Bedroom attached, toilet & kitchen

in AL Khuwair R.O 140/-.

Contact: 95154331

2 bedroom fully furnished luxury

flat for rent at Ghala for short or long

term basis. Contact: 91786526 /

99881653

Luxury fully furnished 2 bedrooms

flat at Al Khuwair & luxury fully fur-

nished 5 bedroom villas at Madinat

Al Ilam. For short or long term lease

contract. Contact Atlas Real Estate &

Rent a Car LLC.

Contact : 93201688 / 92888376

Tel: 24833848 / 24834888

4bedrooms villa with 2 halls,

4 bathrooms in Darsait behind

Khimijis Mart. Contact: 92584715 /

24700120

D2 M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

DAILY GUIDE

Industrial shed / warehouse for

immediate lease in Rusayl industrial

estate. Contact : 24792173

Email: abcon@omantel.net.om

3 Bedroom flat at Al Khuwair.

Contact: 99447257/97014234

2+ 6 BHR villa Al Khuwair.

Contact: 99024730

1+2 BHK Ruwi, Darsait. Contact : 99024730

We have 3BHK fully furnished villa

in Ghubra 18th November near Auto-

matic Restaurant.

Contact: 93782735/ 99208033

2 BHK Flats for rent Muttrah near

Oman house. Contact: 97007934 /

92629232

2+3 BHK Qurum. Contact: 99024730

Studio flat Al Khuwair.

Contact : 99024730

1+2 BHK Wadi Kabir. Contact: 99024730

Spacious 2BHK in MBD.

Contact : 99713489

3 BHK, 3 bathrooms 2 balconies,

nr. Al Hassan , W/Kabir R.O 325/-.

Contact: 99384640

Basement in MBD. Contact: 99713489

Pent house for rent 1 sitting,

1 bedroom, 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen

RO 225/-, location Al Khuwair, near

DHL Courier. Contact 95620900 /

92976722

3Bedrooms Flat in Al Hail 92817777

Room with A.C Al Khuwair R.O 120/-

. Contact: 97799175

1000 sq mtrs industrial land for rent

in Ghala suitable for warehouse etc.

Contact: 24700120 / 92584715

3BHK well maintained flat (villa

type) G. floor split A/C separate en-

trance, parking, and compound

available in Al Khuwair behind Sagar

Polyclinic Way no. 3922, Block 239,

Villa No. 1839. Contact: 99253125

House for rent in Sidab 8 rooms,

6 toilets RO 550/-.

Contact: 96606679 / 99856551

Flat for rent near Al Nahdha Hospi-

tal in Hamriya. Contact: 97380548 /

99680499

4 bedroom villa with 3 maid room,

big compound & parking area. Ideal

for kindergarten or expat tenants

residency. Contact:24566217 /

24564686

Office & retail space available -

Alasfoor Plaza, Qurum.

Contact: 24566217 / 24564686

Store with an area of 121m2 in Souq

Ruwi Street, Al Hamriya (suitable

for building materials store or home

furniture and curtains workshop).

Contact: 99434499

2BHK flat available near medical /

Darsait. Contact 24705742

Villa for rent in Al Khuwair 33,

8 bedrooms & 5 bathrooms with

parking area near Taimur Mosque.

Contact: 99366624

Flat and show room for rent Al Khu-

wair 33, Al Ghubrah, Darsait and

Jibroo. Contact: 24485240 /

24485241 / 93651633 / 92109563

Room for rent. Contact Farahat

98020768, Hilal: 96541263

Flat for rent penthouse Al Amerat

Al Mahaj. Contact: 92738298

1,000 sq mtrs industrial land in

Misfah Industrial area near to

Khanco. OMR 1,500 Monthly. It has

Electricity and boundary wall.

Tel: 99333479 or 95215360

1 & two bedroom flats available for

rent in wadi-kabir (opp: pencil bldg),

ideal for company staff / families -

bulk corporate deal possible.

Contact 97677170

Bath attached room for rent

Al Khuwair. Contact 99743569

Available furnished meeting hall for

seminars on a hourly, daily,

monthly, yearly basis.

please contact 93203773 :

Email: mbdeast@gmail.com

Furnished room for rent at

Al Khuwair R.O 225/- for family only.

Contact: 99251975

2 bedrooms at Darsait Behind Indian

School. Contact: 99336255

For rent office & flat Ruwi- CBD.

Contact: 92820734/ 95345909

One BHK Wadi Kabeer near Sana

RO 190/-. Contact: 95094028

Bobcat Grader and roller for rent.

Contact: 94584688

1BHK flats available for rent in CBD

area. Contact: 98116480

2 & 3 BHK flat in Al Khuwair.

Contact 99792181

1, 2, 3 BHK flat in Qurum.

Contact 99792181

3 & 4 BHK Villa in Al khuwair.

Contact 99792181

3 BHK flat in Azaiba.

Contact 99792181

New 1 & 2 BHK in Ruwi, total 15 flats.

Contact 99792181

New 1 & 2 BHK flat in Ghubra.

Contact 99792181

Various rooms for rent in

Al Khuwair near Ibis Hotel.

Contact : 95124975

Shop/ comm./ Resi building 1&2 bed

flat available in Wadi Kabir (near

Lulu) one bedroom flats 200/- Wadi

Kabir & Misfa land for rent 1000 SQM

Al Khuwair 6 bedroom villa 900/- .

Contact: 99451168

3BHK Flats & 6BHK Villa in Azaibah.

Contact : 96775026

FOR RENT

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5 D3

Shop for sale in Al Khoudh.

Contact: 92820541

Restaurant for sale in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 99425461

Beauty salon in Ghubrah for sale

Contact: 94689448

Sales tyre shop. Contact 97964518

Aluminium workshop at Wadi Kabir

with all machineries and 3 skilled

workers. Contact: 99536206 /

99605915

Used Fabrication machinery

for sale : Fabrication machinery and

tools in excellent condition for

immediate sale.

Contact 94652485/ 99273774/

99202278

FOR SALE

LOSTLOST

NOTICE

Used vehicle Mercedes Benz car

E- 230, Model : 2009, KM run :

187,500 good running condition.

Vehicle is available for inspection

in NTS camp at Ghala. Interested

parties may contact on 99259157.

Sealed offer should be submitted on

or before 13th September 2015 with

security deposit.

Furnished room available in Ruwi.

Contact: 92435784

Independent rooms in Qurum /

Al Hail. Contact 95529970

Fully furnished room with attached

bath and sharing kitchen, living &

dining with all other facilities in

Ghala - RO-160/-

Contact 99763306

Single bedroom flat at Ruwi,

Al Falaj area. Contact: 95698714

Separate room with A/c, Small

Fridge and Bed, for non-cooking

Asian bachelor, behind Shell filling

station, Ghoubra round about.

Contact: 94263390

Sharing accommodation in CBD

area for non cooking Executive

bachelors, wifi free, advance deposit.

Contact 91852710

ACC. AVAILABLE

ACC. AVAILABLE

AVAILABLE

Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting,

Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crockery,

Glassware, Chafing Dishes, Ice Sculp-

tures, to Large Sound Systems and spec-

tacular lighting. Call Andrea 9606 2222

for Catering and Croyden 9623 5555 for

Sound & Light. ww.tunesoman.com,

E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

UNIVERSAL SCRAP BUYERS AT

AMAZING PRICESConvert ANY type of Scrap into Money by selling us the scrapGreat prices are guaranteed

for our clients!Call this number now for

urgent response - 96059470

*Kindly note that the scrap should be 50 tons onwards

AFFORDABLE QUALIFIED STAFF AVAILABLE:

Hurry and call this number now! 95967902

Our professionals give YOU:

CLASSY, CREATIVE AND AFFORDABLE INTERIOR DESIGN

Hurry now and call this number 91494149

Flats for rent near Indian School in

Wadi Kabir. Contact 99777122

Shops for rent in Wadi Kabeer.

Contact: 99888390

Luxury 4 BHK flat in Al Wattaya

with split A/C and private parking.

RO.475/- Contact – 93191111

Commercial 20 BHK twin open

villa in Al Mawalah Mazoon street

RO.2000/- Contact – 93191111

1BHK flat with split A/C in Wadi

Adai RO.200/- Contact – 93191111

3 BHK flat with split A/C in Wadi

Adai RO.200/- Contact – 93191111

Brand new 6 BHK villa in Al Aziba

with split A/C and lift RO.1200/-

Contact – 93191111

Brand new showroom of 595 SQM

in BowsherRO.5 each sqm.

Contact – 93191111

Villa for rent: 6 bed rooms, 1 sitting

room, 2 halls, 1 kitchen and 1 pantry.

Al Mawaleh South phase 3 close to

Al Sahwah roundabout, first line

behind Amwag perfume factory.

Contact - 99360366

Jenah Al Naser Al Dhaabi for Trad

ASSO company which is recorded

under the commercial register

number 1040887 in the treading

& industry Al Batinah is going to

change its legaly shape from ASSO

company to Joint company And in

accordance with Article 13 of the

Commercial Companies Law No.

4/74 . And change name to Jenah

Al Naser Al Dhaabi for construction

joint company. This is to inform any

body who concerns about that to 2

months from the date publishing this

advertising

FOR EXPATS

From owner plot of land near

Zanzibar, airport price RO 15000.

Contact 99348943

SELL/BUY

Looking for purchase of a

residential building with minimum

25 unoccupied flats in Ghala, Boush-

er, Azaiba, Ghubrah. #99261522

Used furniture & Electronic items, office & house. Contact: 99834373

/96642500

MOTOR VEHICLE FOR SALE

Used cars saloon cars, SUV 4WD

and Pickups for sale on as is where

is basis. Vehicles are available for

inspection in NTS camp at Ghala.

Interested parties may contact on

99259157 / 93891398. Sealed offers

with vehicle wise quote should be

submitted on or before 13th Septem-

ber 2015 with security deposit.

Single room, bath Darsait R.O 140/-.

Contact: 93289652

NRI

MATRIMONIAL

A 28yrs Keralite Muslim good

looking boy working in Oman from

a decent family, looking for alliance

from similar background.

Contact: 99230928

Seeking alliance for our son from

Muslim families. Interested families

Contact: 99889590

Jitin Daswani has lost Indian Pass-

port No. H 3444233. Finder please

handover to ROP

Mohammed Sulaiman has lost

Bangladeshi Passport No. BB

0856062. Finder please handover

to ROP

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

DAILY GUIDED4 M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION VACANT

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifieds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

DOMESTIC HELPER

DOMESTIC HELPER

DRAFTSMAN

EDUCATION

ENGINEER

ACCOUNTANT

BEAUTY

Chinese/ Arab/ continental cook &

helper wanted. Contact 95529970

Wanted an experienced Accountant. Forward your CV to

lawfirmfm@gmail.com

Urgently required for leading Com-pany : Accountant between 5 to 10

yrs experience, Accountant

(Petrol Station) between 3 to 5 yrs

experiences. Fax: 24478522,

Email : gh1.careers@gmail.com

DRIVER

MEDICAL

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

Required Beautician for a beauty

salon in Muscat (visa available).

Contact: 97605308

ADMIN

DESIGNER

Egyptian language school Mus-cat requires 2 English Teachers (bachelor degree in education) + 5

years experience with IELTS or Toifel)

applications with supporting docu-

ments to be sent by mail to

egymuscat@yahoo.com

or fax 24697047

Post Graduate researcher required. Contact 99229700

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

SITUATION WANT-ED

SIT. WANTED

IT SALES / MARKETING

SALES / MARKETING

Accountant 35 years with 5 years

experience in Oman urgently seek-

ing suitable jobs accountant & Ass.

Admin& HR valid D/L N.O.C. Contact:

968 99176112 /968 91818124 Email:

aamirjaved24@hotmail.com

M.Com female good knowledge in

computer and tally 4 years experi-

ence in accounts and Administration

seeks suitable placement on visit

visa. Contact: 96992431 / 99450130

Male, Finance Executive / Sr. Ac-

countant with Experience in Oman

having Graduate degree in Com-

merce looking for suitable position.

Contact: 98570383

Email: hadee.rasheed@gmail.com

Accountant 7Years Experience with

D/L and NOC. Contact 97712084

Male, Finance Executive / Sr. Accountant with Experience in

Oman having Graduate degree in

Commerce looking for suitable

position. NOC available.

Contact: 98570383

Email: hadee.rasheed@gmail.com

Indian Housemaid looking for full

time job with accommodation, 7 yrs

exp with European family. Prefer

European family. Contact: 92567618

Indian male having 8 years experi-

ence in Oman, working as a ware-

house in charge seeking suitable

placement. N.O.C available. .

Contact 96184236

House maid looking for job.

Contact: 99879576

Jordanian Mechanical Engineer, Expertise in Manufacturing, Design,

Steel Work, AutoCad, SolidWork

3D, Nesting/Plasma Cutting, Sales,

Speaking, Russian & English

GSM#90198575/99201710

Mechanical Engineer 22 yrs Indian

male currently on permanent visa

and valid Omani driving license

seeking for suitable job.

Contact : 91652927 / 99680181

Email: fawariz.09@gmail.com

Indian Mechanical Engineer 31 yrs

8+ yrs experience in sales & BUS.

DEV. having Oman driving license

& NOC. Contact 97116858 Email:

menonamit1984@gmail.com

Pakistani Civil diploma Engineering

experience 3 years in Oman building

construction, 2 years in Pakistan,

having driving license.

Contact 96512518 Email:

qaiser.abbas006@gmail.com

DAE (civil) having 4.5 years

experience with driving license of

Oman, Seeking for suitable place in

construction field NOC and release

available contact 96968554,

email- mehranahmad26@yahoo.com

Indian male 27 years BE Mechani-

cal, 2 years experience in Training

AutoCAD Revit MEP PDMS Soft-

wares. Contact: 94183625

Civil Engineering Diploma 7 years

experience in building construing in

Oman with NOC. Contact `99512416

/96488479

D.A.E (Civil) Engineer + safety of-

ficer course (OSHA & IOSH) for U.K

need the job. Contact: 97850996

Civil Engineer, 6 yrs experience

having Oman D/L, looking for a

suitable position. NOC available.

Contact: 93523507 / 95961336

Email: eyousuf04@yahoo.com

B.Tech Electrical & Electronics with

1 year experience seeking for suit-

able job. Contact: 91 9497883413

Email: rakesh1.mohan@gmail.com

B.Sc Civil Engineer Bangladeshi

male 6 yrs exp of building con-

struction drafting structural design

valid D/L seeking suitable position.

Contact :91220753,

Email: engr_jashim21@yahoo.com

Electronics technician 20 years

experience India, Saudi Arabia.

Contact 91969726

Electrical Eng. Degree (MEP) need

suitable job of construction 12 yrs exp.

Email: mohd.ateeq.khan@gmail.com

Required Marketing Manager

for educational programs.

Contact: 99674870

Required Dentist, Endodontist, Orthodontist with MOH license.

Contact 99010755 for dental Centre

in Muscat Khuwair

Email: akdmuscat@hotmail.com

Required Nurse with MOH license

for Dental Centre in Khuwair Muscat.

Contact: 99010755

Email: akdmuscat@hotmail.com

Immediately required lady Doctor (DGO) or GP with Gynecology expe-rience & lab technician. #99310590

Email: tjmaluke@gmail.com

Gynecologist . G.P and others need-ed for a reputed clinic in Al Khoudh ,

contact :+968 92584362 , mail CV to

towershr70@gmail.com

Medical CARE Centre, Multi Spe-cialty Clinic, Seeb, requires General Practioner, Medical Lab Technician & Pharmacist. Send CV at Email

: sarita_h23@yahoo.com or call

97884856

ART DIRECTOR

DRIVER

DRIVER

Fresher looking for a career

opportunity B.Com good physique,

quick learner English speaking.

Contact: 93368464

5 years experience Accountant look-

ing for suitable position having driv-

ing license presently working in Mus-

cat also having NOC. 96893893641

Finance Manager 22 years Oman ex-

perience and NOC. Contact: 91302906

/ 91335205

MBA Graduate 24 years Indian male,

1 year experience Accountant seek-

ing suitable job. Contact: 94083260

Email: jithinnambiar777@gmail.com

Accountant Indian male B.Com 2

years experience currently on visit-

ing visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact : 94649272,

Email: sherin.am01@gmail.com

Indian CA 10yrs of Oman experi-

ence in treasury, financial report-

ing, consolidation, ERP implemen-

tation in Trading, construction,

Oil & Gas sectors. NOC available.

Email: caramdas.s5@gmail.com

GSM: 91310237

Male 29 yrs, 5+ experience, 4 yrs in

HME (Office Assistant) 1 yr experi-

ence in accounts & marketing seek-

ing for suitable position.# 96505486

Pakistani Qualification M.Com (fi-

nance) experience 2 years as Internal

Auditor, 3 years as Finance Manager.

Contact: 00968- 91490367

Part time Accountant, up to fina-

lization, looking for job after 5pm

(location prefer - MSQ to Al Hail).

Contact: 95694737

Part Time Accounting, Accounts

Finalization, Audit Preparation,

Internal Audit, Monthly Profitabil-

ity Reports, Onsite Tally Training,

Contact : 96975454,

Email :ibfc.gcc@gmail.com

Part time Accounting qualified &

experienced Accountant.

Contact: 93858725

Accountant with more than 6 years

experience in SAOG company look-

ing for middle management position.

Strong English/Arabic correspond-

ence. Valid DL. NOC available.

Contact 91116924

Jordanian Accountant (ACPA) with

more than 15 yrs experience in Oman

(Accounts, Purchase & finance.

Contact: 92881223

Email: kamal_sarhan@yahoo.com

Indian male MBA finance & pursu-

ing CMA having 2.6 years experi-

ence in Auditing & accounts field

looking for a job in Muscat.

Contact 92640613,

Email: shabeersha797@gmail.com

13 years exp (7.5 years Gulf exp)

B.Com Graduate, looking for Account-

ant job, GSM No:-92957064 ,

NOC Available.

MBA finance having 5+ years experi-

ence in accountant with UAE D/L &

NOC available. Contact : 96970930

Email: tahirabbas85@hotmail.com

B.Com, CA Inter (Indian) with 5 years

experience (2 years GCC) in Accounts

& Audit field. Contact: 95584531/

razikthumbe@gmail.com

Accountant 4 yrs experience look-

ing for job. Contact 96182302 Email:

rishad.sainudheen@gmail.com

Indian female B.Tech (EEE) MBA

finance with 1and half years experi-

ence as Bank Officer in India seeking

suitable placement.

Contact: 91358676 / 98157895

Email: sujivu88@gmail.com

Indian male B.Com Graduate 24

years looking for suitable place-

ment. Contact: 97219505

25 years male BBA (Hons) CFAC

ACCA having 3 years experience

as top management operations,

Accounts seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact : 92829595

Email: saqib4u1@hotmail.com

Young, energetic 24 yrs, ACCA

finalist, Advanced diploma in

Accounting and business, seeking

suitable placement in accounts,

finance or audit. Contact: 92430152

Email: rau_dey@yahoo.com

Indian CA with 15 yrs exp. working

as Head of Finance for US MNC. NOC

Available - 94047434

A Sri Lankan lady chartered

accountant with five years experi-

ence (including article ship), on

family visa in Oman looking for a

suitable job. Contact: 91259845

Email: amashermila@gmail.com

Need Heavy Drivers with valid GCC

D/L.Contact.92252507

Email:- hamood@omankmtc.com

Heavy Duty Driver with license &

NOC. Contact: 95959494 or

E-mail: jobdsint@gmail.com

REQUIRED URGENTLY Heavy Driver & Light Driver, Omani National. Contact -99752720.

Email : cvoman5@gmail.com,

Fax : 24703313

Looking for an experienced house driver for an Omani family. Inter-

ested candidates may

Contact: 96203333

Light vehicle driver. Contact: 99347515

Filipino,29,Male, 5years experi-

ence: Admin/Payroll/Finance/

Document Control. Excellent

Communication/MS Office skills.

Contact: patrick110486@yahoo.

com/95057206

Indian female 24 years BE Elec-

tronics now in Oman visiting visa

searching job for any administrative

sectors telecommunicating

banking teaching.

Contact: 95935867 / 99536948

Email: anjujose011@gmial.com

Filipina, 10 yrs experience in

Fashion Retail, Shipment, Logistics,

Inventory, Warehouse Control and

Store Management is seeking

employment. Call +971565833126

or 97728418.

Indian male MBA 33 yrs having 10

yrs exp seeking suitable placement

in Administration / HR/ Operations/

Coordination/ Logistics etc. Holding

valid D/L. Contact - 99054786

Indian male 2+yrs oman exp in HR.

joing immediatly. release available.

Contact :93671437

Indian Female MBA, 3 Year Experi-

ence in Admin MIS ,

Family Visa. Contact 98234427,

jkjsmith01@gmail.com

14 years of gulf experience in HR /

Admin & logistics fluent in Arabic /

English with D/L looking for suitable

position. Contact: 95824598

Art director / creative director/ 8 years experience with Omani

license, NOC. Contact : 95136862

Email: aunmoeid@gmail.com`

Leading construction company requires two Civil Engineer with

minimum 5 years site experience in

gulf. require gulf license and NOC.

Send your CV to

degree.engineer2015@gmail.com

A Mechanical Engineer with sales-

manship experience of 5 years &

above preferable with Oman drivers

license and NOC. Please forward your

CV to almaadhi.trd@gmail.com

Require experienced Electricians for immediate appointment in Dubai.

Applicants must be able to work inde-

pendently. Contact: 99869002,

Email: fwi2009@outlook.com

Vehicle with driver 12 years in

Oman seeking suitable job.

Contact: 92762258

Pakistani Driver (light vehicle) age

50 yrs seeking job as driver. Can

speak both Arabic and English.

Contact: 95435008

Bangladeshi want job, 6 years work

exp. in Dubai and Oman.

Contact: 93822195

20 years experience. Contact : 94795033

Pakistani male light vehicle driver

looking for job. Contact: 96474528 Driver with car. Contact : 91452930

Wanted driver. Contact 95112461

Driver job wanted. Contact: 99343782

Car with driver or without cat

specially Companies.

Contact 97943750 / 97408900

Light duty driver 5 years exp in

Oman. Contact: 92602182

Looking for driving job driving

experience more than 3 years.

Contact: 97459022

Driving job. Contact: 99109458

Looking for job driver with car.

Contact 96493236

L.T.D driver exp, 5 years know Hindi,

English, Arabic, and Education B.A.

Contact 98522914

Pakistani driver, 5 years ex seeks

placement. Contact: 97429442

Pakistani diploma civil (Eng) 24 year

1.5 years experience in Pak)

2 years in (Oman). Contact: 97138320

Indian Civil Draftsman looking

suitable placement 5 yrs experience

(Gulf). Contact: 98064097

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

A new Multi-Purpose hall at Sohar

city is urgently looking for an Event Manager. Pls send your CV to

oec.oman@gmail.com

A Pest control supervisor required urgently /Call 92660005

Reputed buildings material com-

pany looking for outdoor Sales Executive having valid Omani driv-

ing license with more than 2 years

local sales experience in Tiles /

Sanitary ware.

Fax your CV to 24798709 /

email: united@omantel.net.om

Sales man / interior designer

wanted for prestigious interior

design and office furniture Supply

Company. Experience and drivers

license needed.

Excellent remuneration package.

Email: tony@materials-plus.com

Required Salesman in Salalah very

good commission.

Contact 92760281

Indian 24 years MBA finance

2 years experience seeking suitable

placement. Contact: 98222753

Email - shemeejup@gmail.com

12 yrs of Oman experienced Chief

Accountant looking for immediate

placement. Contact 99513082

Email: devan801@gmail.com

Accounts finance Indian male

35 yrs B.Com, M.B.A tally exp

9.7 yrs exp 1.5 yr Oman family visa

N.O.C available. Contact : 93257426.

Email: sibigeorgep@gmail.com

MEP design and Drafting, all kind

of shop drawing preparation and

detailed section drawings. Contact

: Mr Sandry Menon. Contact: (+968)

98471463 / 98471463

Sales Executive urgently required

for a well-established business of

building material (tiles, kitchens,

bathrooms and interiors) with selec-

tive European brands. Candidate

should have industry knowledge and

proven local experience, a valid D/L

& NOC. Send CV to

alrawahy.hafidh@gmail.com

Driver available 24, HRS, car with-

out car. Contact: 98522914

Looking job LTV D with car.

Contact: 94436276 / 97433432

Driver looking for job, 20 years

experience. Contact: 94795033

Light driving with 6 years experi-

ence in Oman. Contact: 94001751

Light vehicle Driver 5 years of

experience, with Oman driving license

looking for a job. Contact 97319805

/ 92171166

Indian light duty driver. Contact

94269229

Light Driver. Contact 95779594,

Ruwi

H.T. V Driver, Pakistani experience,

6 yrs, seeks work in company only.

Contact 93985087

Light duty driver, 8 yrs exp.

Contact: 96736744

Sri Lankan driver. Contact: 97387112

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5 D5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

Lecturer in nursing(MSc) special-

ized in OBG, 3 years experience, on

visit visa, seeking teaching opportu-

nities Contact:90125347

Lecturer in Nursing (MSc) special-

ized in OBG, 3 years experience, on

visit visa, seeking teaching opportu-

nities/ nursing educator.

Contact: 90125347

Indian male, Audiologist and

Speech language pathologist, 5

years experience looking for job.

Contact: 98490687, 9597597067

mail- kesavan.sundar7@gmail.com

Indian female BSc Nurse with 4

years experience with Oman promet-

ric 64% looking for suitable place-

ment in capital area. # 95847286

Dental Surgeon with 3 years experi-

ence (Indian male) on visit visa.

Contact: 95154648

Indian male, MSc, MPhil, BEd

Chemistry,2 Yrs Teaching experi-

ence and having experience in lab

analyst, currently on visit visa, seeks

suitable post. Contact 90208673

ENT surgeon board degree & pro-

metric exam looking for a job in pri-

vate hospitals & medical complexes.

Contact: 91347226

OB/ Gynecologist board degree &

prometric exam looking for a job in

private hospitals & medical com-

plexes. Contact: 91347226

SALES / MARKETING

SALES / MARKETING

IT

IT

MEDICAL

MISCELLANEOUS

MISCELLANEOUS

PROJECTS

SECRETARIAL / OFFICE

Indian male, having 14 yrs of exp. in

Business Development/ Market-

ing with Omani D/L seeks business

development / Marketing Manager

post. Contact 968 93400177

Indian male B.Com, MBA having 2

years experience in Marketing and

Advertising on visit visa looking for

suitable openings. # 96559835

Email: rintomatam@gmail.com

10 yrs financial products sales &

marketing experienced 5 years in

banking Indian male 32 yrs on visit

visa looking for suitable position.

Contact : 92882053

MBA 15 years experience in Sales &

Marketing in telecom, FMCG, pres-

ently in India C/O Saif Kazi.

Contact : 99625957

Email Id: a_kazi123@yahoo.co.in

Indian male, experience Sales

Executive with D/L seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 97853426

MBA graduate having 6 years exp

in Sales & Marketing, presently

working in PEPSI, India seeks suit-

able placement in Oman.

Cont : + 91 9895388937,

Email : samir.pag@gmail.com

Indian male 25 yrs BBM Graduate

3 yrs of experience Sales / Market-

ing in Oman looking in suitable

placement. Contact : 93185316

Email: karsh794@gmail.com

Indian 41 years, 2 years Dubai ex-

perience Sales of banking insurance

products looking for suitable job.

Contact: 96564721

Have the previous experience in

building material sales field and

also experience as store keeper,

with release paper & visa valid

upto 19/09/15. Contact: 96451129 /

95563071

Indian male 32 years MBA (Mar-

keting) with 7 years experience in

Oman and having driving license

seeks suitable placement. NOC

available. Contact: 95902458

Sales and marketing - male 27 yrs,

2 years experience seeking suitable

placement with Oman D/L.

Contact: 95642740

Email: shaijichakkara@gmail.com

Management Professional account-

able, responsible for profitable man-

agement can handle the entire op-

erations, HR/Recruitment, Business

development & Sales & marketing &

etc, Great organizational skills with

over 23+yrs exp. in Bombay, Saudi

Arabia, Dubai-UAE & Oman(11yrs)

as General Manager - Publications,

Printing,Media. open to any industry,

can Join immediately w/NOC. Con-

tact : +968 98864706/99574638

Mail : akdas_uae@yahoo.com

SKILLED/ UNSKILLED

Building construction supervisor looking for small Omani company

to handle independently or suitable

placement in good company with

Oman D/L. Contact 93061107

Indian male, with 8 yrs exp. in

Oman (BA- Graduate) working as

a project Sales Coordinator, with

Oman D/L, looking for suitable job,

ready to join immediately with NOC,

open for Sales & Marketing also.

Contact 95245057

Indian BE, BA diploma quality mate-

rial management 13 years experi-

ence procurement, stores, inventory

warehousing manager construction

industry on visit. Contact 90287850

22 years B.Com Graduate having

experience in trading of car accesso-

ries and also with valid GCC driving

license looking for a suitable job.

Contact 98504698

Facility / Project Management 5 yrs of exp holds BE (ECE) MBA,

Indian on visit visa looking for suit-

able openings. Contact : 98580569

Email: arafacareer@gmail.com

Supervisor / Forman interior / elec-

trical with Oman driving license.

Contact: 98767559

Indian male 24, Diploma in Civil

Engineering 2 years experience as

Site Engineer on visit visa.

Contact 98023153

Civil Engineer (Diploma) with 7 +

5 years Oman experience in Interior

QS AutoCAD & Construction with

Oman D/L NOC available.

Contact: 98085006

Shaiju K.S (30) M diploma in

Mechanical Engineering (DME)

work experience: 7 years, 9 months

as a tool designer and in tool room

(India) Hyderabad , on three months

visit visa. Contact: 92945232

HSE Engineer, NEBOSH IGC and IOSH

certified with 2 years industry and Oil

& Gas experience looking for urgent

placement. Contact 91476537.

Indian diploma Civil Eng, 2 yrs

exp. Infrastructures project (4G –

Towers, substation) landscaping &

Auto CAD. Contact: 94756183

Email: indianexpat1@gmail.com

Over 22 years of comprehensive

experience in overall construction ex-

ecution& management qualification.

BE (Civil). Contact : +968 91816590

Building Construction Supervisor looking for small Omani co. to handle

independently or suitable placement

with Omani D/L. Contact: 93061107

Civil Engineering Diploma, Site co-

ordinator now preset in Oman, seek-

ing job in Oman. Contact : 92887561

Email: jubincivileng@gmail.com

Mech. Engg Indian male having

1 year exp looking for suitable job.

Contact : 92835957

Indian 22 years male, Mechanical

Engineer, B.Tech has done

internships, born and brought up in

Oman with Omani driving license,

seeking suitable jobs.

Contact: 92791637 Email:

ashwinsureshkotturethu@gmail.com

Indian male, 23 years Electrical &

Electronics Engineer having 1 year

experience in Google company need

suitable placement.

Contact: 91118694,

Email: sharath2909@gmail.com

Indian mechanical Engineer 31

yrs, 8+ experience in sales & BD

including GCC, having Oman driving

license & NOC. Contact: 97116858

Email: menonamit1984@gmail.com

C-SWIP 3.1 ASNT level 2 QC Mech.

Engr 5+ yrs exp Indian male 26

seeks placement. Contact : 91823331

Email: kannasekhar46@gmail.com

Indian male 27 yrs BE mechanical

& W/diploma in automobiles 2 yrs

teaching experience in designing

(AutoCAD) seeking suitable position.

Contact: 94183625

Indian male 29 yrs old B.E elec-

tronic & Communication Engg (5 yrs

experience in Oman) with valid D/L.

Contact : 96652145

MSC Electronics Female, 24 years,

1 year experience in MR Scan

Testing on visit visa looking for

suitable job. Contact 91111675

28 years male diploma in Civil Engi-

neer 6 years experience in Oman

valid Omani driving license seeking

suitable placement.

Contact: 98666735 /90289111

Email: engrjahedbd@yahoo.com

Civil Engineer Pakistani 12 +2 years

Oman experience D/L seeks place-

ment. Contact: 94392616

Indian male BE Mechanical currently on 2 yrs free visa with NOC

& local release. Looking for suitable

job in Muscat. Contact – 90296975 /

ali.syedausaf@gmail.com

25 years experience in Civil Engi-

neering looking for job at

consultancy from for suitable position.

Contact : 97803710

Young BA looking for a job as

Secretary / document controller,

typewriting 40 W.PM shorthand also

available. NOC from the present co.

available. Contact: 93085851

Indian male, Supervisor Electrician

Diploma 8 yrs in Oman. NOC avail-

able. Contact 95057068,

jratheesh@yahoo.com

Mechanical Engineer 23 having

knowledge in HVAC looking for suit-

able vacancy. Contact: 95434381

Email: shuhaibuman313@gmail.com

Indian male Mechanical Engineer

having 2+ years experience in rele-

niery piping + equipment seeking

suitable position.

Contact: 94768977

Civil Engineer with 6 yrs experience

in can satiny firms structural design

and supervision also worked as mate-

rials engineer. Contact: 96086214

Indian male Civil Engineer with

Engineer with 2 years experience in

Building project is available currently

on visit visa. Contact: 92841583

Indain male, 23 yrs, B.E in Mechanical post Graduation Diploma

in piping Engineering, seeking job in

relevant field.Contact : 94786570

Email: asim.hajwani6@gmail.com

Tunisian Civil Eng, Graduated flam

the University of Tunisia past expe-

rience supervised several projected

in the Island of djerha in the capital

Tunis I have good experience with

consulting engineer and contractor

now in Muscat. Contact: 94745527

Email: khereddianeb@gmail.com

Civil Engineer diploma holder having

a 4 years experience seeking a suit-

able replacement. Contact: 98782698

Email: engr.rabiul007@gmail.com

Instrumentation Engineer, nearly

4 yrs experience in oil & gas industry,

seeks job in Oman. Contact 90198210,

Email : terinsam@gmail.com

Indian male 25MBA having 4years

Gulf experience in Coordination with

contracting company .NOC Available.

Looking for(Store,Coordination,Admin

Backoffice) Jobs Ph:95405885

Mechanical and manufacturing Engi-

neer , age 26 yrs masters ( Singapore)

having 2 years Oman work experi-

ence with valid Oman driving license

on visit visa available immediately.

Contact: 95498953

B.Tech Mechanical Engineer with

2 years experience in HV AC and

plumbing - nikhilchandpm@gmail.

com ; GSM: 97654489

MEP foreman looking for a suitable

position. Contact: 99526958

Indian BE (MECH) aviation BE

degree diploma in material quality

management 17 years Navy aviation

13 years construction purchase stores

professional on visit.

Contact: 90205082 /98796982

Civil Engg, B.Tech fresher Indian male

currently on visit visa seeks suitable

placement. Contact 91702450

Email: tijoct2015@hotmail.com

Indian Male, IT Support Engineer,

2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experi-

ence. Contact 97311847

Engineer with 3 yrs experience in

Indian in MEP, HVAC& mechanical

maintained field on visit visa looking

for suitable job. Contact 99191535

Email: fareed029@gmail.com

SUPERVISOR: Indian male site

supervisor (AIR CONDITIONING)

25 years of experience with valid Oman

Driving license, seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact: 97498809, 93391910

Email: hilariankj@gmail.com

Electrical Engineer, Indian male,

29 yrs having 5 yrs of experience in

industrial automation & utility

maintenance in India (MRF yres)

seeks suitable placement.

Contact 92789995, Email :

akhilabrahamlktr@gmail.com

Btech computer science graduate

2015 passout.. Android application

marketing.. Having good communi-

cation skills and mindset to work in

a team. Contact 91024385

Civil Engineer Indian male 10 yrs

exp having Omani D/L looking

for suitable placement. Contact:

94194399 (shiblyrock@gmail.com)

Electrical and Electronics Engineer with one year experience and GCC

licence holder seeking a job

mail – shyjalpk@gmail.com

Civil Engineer (diploma) 3.5 yrs

exp, seeking for placement.

Contact: 95200650

TOURS & TRAVELS

Indian male 27, looking for suit-

able placement in Piping Design

& Engineering, having 7 years of

experience in AutoCAD. Also familiar

with PDMS (11.6 Version),CAESAR

ll. Contact : 97351786 / 96143708,

E-mail :

mohammednazeer07@gmail.com

Indian male having 14years of expe-

rience in HR, Purchase Dept, having

Oman driving license looking for a

suitable position at Salalah.

Noc available.

Mail: Madhuvtk@ gmail.com,

Contact : 91182907

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT Indian male

55 years. 30 Years experience, pres-

ently working in Oman as a Senior

Accountant last 10 years.

NOC available, seek suitable oppor-

tunity. GSM 99685800.

Email:- sanatoman@gmail.com

Indian Male, 29, 9 years exp in

Sales in Oman (Buraimi) with valid

D/L looking for suitable placements,

NOC available .Ph: 9360 1947

Female, BE(hons) Systems Admin-

istration, 2 years teaching experi-

ence. Seeking suitable placement in

Higher Education/Training industry.

Email: sadia_fatima@hotmail.com

Contact:96447091

Indian male B.Eng. in IT,CCNA,

MCSA,MCSE, 2yrs + exp. in IT sup-

port, networking and server support

valid Omani D/L seeking suitable

placement in IT/Network/Server

support. Contact 92607532

Store Supervisor or Site Supervisor,

Indian male 30 years, looking for

suitable placement in any reputed

company. Having 5 years of gulf ex-

perience with good communication

skills. Willing to work in any GCC

country. Contact: 00968 97756269,

Email: razzakbmt@gmail.com

Indian female, 25yrs Bsc nursing

with MHA (Master of Hospital Ad-

ministration) looking for a suitable

placement. Currently on visit visa

valid up to 25 November 2015.

Contact: 9951 3267, email:

alinaelshaddai@gmail.com

IT Engineer, 6 yrs exp in software

projects & development (Java, PL/

SQL Unix) on visit visa.

Contact: 99487493

Indian male, a Jetking certified

hardware and networking profes-

sional seeking job, with hardware &

networking, troubleshooting skills.

Contact: 99637296

Email: abdulsalamkola@yahoo.com

Indian male 34 yrs M.Tech Indus-

trial biotechnology having teaching

experience seeking for job.

M. Ramkumar. Contact : 96674521,

0091-9940586051

Email: rmkumar28@gmail.com

Network System Engineer switch-

es, Routers, Servers, load balancers,

CCTV 5 years of exp holds B.E (ECE)

CCNA looking for good opportunity

Indian visit visa. Contact 91911792

Email: arafakdnl@gamil.com

Tunisian Master degree in

Computer Science, with experience

in creating websites in development

looking for a job in the Sultanate of

Oman currently in Muscat.

Contact: 94745546

Email: safouane.gouja@gmail.com

BE, ECE Mumbai university skills

in C, C++, windows, linux, controller

and processor RTOS, Electronics,

Networking, 6 months experience in

embedded software seeks place-

ment. Contact : 917774864736

Email: sadatbtisekar@gmail.com

SAP BW Analyst : Indian male, 26

yrs, B.Tech (CS & E) from ASET, New

Delhi, worked as a Business

Analyst in Software Industry.

Contact 98008127 / 92878708,

vaisakh.bhaskar@gmail.com

IT Engineer, 6 yrs exp in software

projects & development (OCJA) on

visit visa. Contact: 99487493

Five years experience in Travel

field ,BCom., IATA & pursuing MBA,

Presently working in the Travel

Desk of (ITC managed) Five Star

Hotel in India, looking for a suitable

position in the Middleeast.

pls contact 9470 5767

11 yrs experience in travel field

B.Com, IATA, MCSE working for

Qatar Airways, Sales reservation

ticketing driving license & NOC

available. Contact 92954613

Senior Sales Engineer 4 years

experience in Oman with D/L, Sales

electrical products PDO OXY supply

liaison with MEP contractors and

consultants NOC available.

Contact: 0091 9895799737

Email: thomasjmuscat@gmail.com

Contact : 99447853

Nine years UAE experienced Gradu-

ate Indian male with valid UAE/

GCC, D/L on visit seeks sales / admin

position. Contact: 98826959

Business intelligence / Global Mar-

keting management specialist with

9 years of experience developing

brand value & managing overall pro-

jects to achieve business objectives

seeking suitable position on family

visit. Contact: 91902154

PGDM in Marketing & finance and

specialization in SCM in Belgium

University, 14 months experience

in cooperative relations looking for

suitable job. Contact: 92050773

Indian male, 2 yrs exp. in Sales

with D/L seeks suitable placement.

Contact 92055093

Indian male Graduate with 2 yrs

exp in sales advertising, presently

on visiting visa looking for suitable

opening. Contact: 95462921

Supervisor fabrication. 30 years

experienced in oil and gas industry

with thorough knowledge of PDO

procedures. contact 99365694,

92362946, 99208102

email: tapasroy21@yahoo. com

Indian Male more than 15 years

gulf experience in Office / Sales

Coordinator, Admin, Secretarial and

purchase with good computer skills.

Having Driving license and NOC

available, looking for suitable place-

ment. Contact 95149624

28 M, Indian, have done master

degree in computer application,

2 years exp in Oman,

looking suitable placement.

Contact: 93295112

Email: syedsadathali.mca@gmail.com

Chartered CIPD HR, MBA having 5+

years of experience in Oman and 7

years in GCC looking for job opportu-

nities. Call 97728418

Store Supervisor or Site Supervisor .

Indian male 30 years age.

Looking for suitable placement in any

reputed company. Having 5 years of

gulf experience with good

communication skills. Willing to work

in any GCC country. # 97756269 ,

Email: razzakbmt@gmail.com

32 years Indian Male MSC, MBA-

HR having 7+yr Exp(HR and SAP

operations) with Oman valid driving

license, seeking suitable opening in

Human Resource & Admin/backend

jobs.Contact: 00968-99322978

Iranian male. ME Civil- structural

Engineer, 8 Years Structural engineer

experience, Looking for Structural

Designer, supervisor or site engineer

Position. Contact: 93696929

Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com

Land Surveyor experience 6 years

in landscape , construction and

roads for contact : 0096895244840,

0096899703488, e-mail:

eng.amr_salama@yahoo.com

Indian male 27, looking for suit-

able placement in Piping Design

& Engineering.Having 7 years of

experience in AutoCAD. Also familiar

with PDMS (11.6 Version),CAESAR

ll. Contact : 97351786 / 96143708/

97357143

ACCA Affiliate, Oxford Brookes Bsc,

2.5 years experience in audit, fi-

nance in Big 6 and oil industry, NOC

release available. a.saran891@gmail.

com, 95140445

B.com .5 yrs exp. of oman Looking

for an Accounts job work, preferred

to do from home. Well versed with

TALLY Accounting software.

Contact 95482970

Pakistan Male: 24 years, M.Com

Finance having 2.5 year experience

as a accountant & marketing execu-

tive looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 97670816,

e.mail: naeem.ahsan68@gmail.com

Indian looking for a part time ac-

counting or Internal Auditing job,

contact 99196621.

Pakistani, Male, Pak, Exp 14 Years

in IT Trainer, looking for a better

position in Oman, already working in

Prestigious Construction Company.

Contact:- 95983711.

Join.mtmali@gmail.com

Civil Engineer Indian 20 years expe-

rience (1 year in Oman) in manage-

ment and construction seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 91718976 ,

email : mdnaveed71@gmail.com

Male, 32 years M.A. English M.Sc

Psychology and B.Ed in English

having 4 years experience in teach-

ing present company is ready to issue

release letter. Contact : 99869535

Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com

Pakistani, Male, Pak, Exp 14 Years

in Computer Teacher, looking for

a better position in Oman, already

working in Prestigious Construction

Company. Contact:- 95983711,

join.mtmali@gmail.com

Light duty driver, 23yrs. Can speak

Arabic, Hindi, Bangla and under-

stand English. Release available.

Ph.92854775 / 93487450

ME Civil- structural Engineer, 8 Years Structural engineer experi-

ence, Looking for Structural Designer,

supervisor or site engineer Position.

Iranian male, Contact: 93696929

Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com

ACCOUNTANT, Male, 8 years expe-

rience, presently working in Oman

as a Senior Accountant with Oman

Driving license. NOC available,

seeks suitable opportunity.

GSM: 98184170

Civil Engineer Indian 20 years expe-

rience (1 year in Oman) in manage-

ment and construction seeks suitable

placement. Contact: 91718976

Male, 32 years M.A. English M.SC

psychology and B.Ed in English hav-

ing 4 years experiences in teaching

present company is ready to issue

release letter. Contact : 99869535

Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com

Filipino (Male), 33 yrs/old, 9 yrs.

experience in marine transporta-

tion (seaman/deck crew), & 3 yrs. in

sales (electronic devices) currently

on visit visa & looking for a suitable

employment. GSM: 94750459

Indian male, 14 yrs Experience in

Maintenance & Supervisor in hotel

field ( Electrical . Ac Mechanical &

Plumber) N O C available

Contact 95253640

email-hareeshma24@yahoo.com

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D6 M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

SIT.WANTED

SIT.WANTED

Senior Accountant Indian male

Graduate CA Articleship completed

18 years of experience currently on

visit visa seeks suitable placement

contact.97498809,93391910

Email.hilariankj@gmail.com

Electrical Maintenance Engineer,

29, Indian Male, having 7+ years

exp. in reputed companies. Seeking

suitable placement in Oman.

Contact - 98440637. Mail ID :

venkatbadri23@gmail.com

Indian male 22 years, Looking for

suitable placement in Hardware and

Networking field, 1 year exp. in india

an have done training in al ameen

computers. With good communica-

tion skill, Qualification is Diploma

in Electronics and Communication.

Contact : - 95632209,95068075,

Email- fairozhuded13@gmail.com

Sudanese 29 male (Bsc com-

puter science, diploma computer

engineering), 6 yrs. experience ,

dba oracle pl-sql , ms sql-server ,ms

visual studio vba, network, Omani

Driver licence language English,

Arabic. Email:chastity643@gmail.

com, Mob:91415886

Having 9+ years exp. in Admin &

HR in reputed companies. Presently

working in Muscat and seeking for

suitable placement.

Contact No.: 97693456. email :

muralimahdav77@gmail.com

Pakistani, Male, Pak, Exp 14 Years

in Accounts, IT & Administration,

looking for a better position in Oman,

already working in Prestigious

Construction Company. Contact:-

95983711.Join.mtmali@gmail.com

Indian male 24 years,B. Tech (Elec-

trical & Electronic) having 2 years

working experience as an Electrical

site Engineer, currently on visit visa.

Seeking suitable placement.

Contact no. 98045482, Email:

mastanshaik1008@gmail.com

Indian male 23 years, B. Tech (Elec-

trical & Electronic) having 4 years

working experience as an Electrical

site Engineer, currently on visit visa.

Seeking suitable placement.

Contact no. 98045482 Email:

mastanshaik1008@gmail.com

29 years femaile (MBA-Finance)

with 4 + years experience (India &

Oman) in administration & teaching

seeking suitable placement in an

established organization.

Contact- 96371655.

Male, 32, having 7 years experience

in New Car sales and rental. Currently

working for one of the most reputed

Brand in India is seeking a suitable

change. Contact +91 9045232273

Looking for managerial post

(full time ) ,More than Ten years of

experience in Team Development

,Training ,Planing, Administration,

Sales & Marketing, Advertisement

and Credit Control and Logistics.

Contact 91076608 /+919048648108

NOC available

Sales Representative or Purchase

officer. Indian male 31 years, Looking

for suitable placement in CONSTRUC-

TION INDUSTRIES and OILFIELD

INDUSTRIES. Having 7 years of

gulf experience in FASTENERS and

BUILDING MATERIAL. Having a valid

D/L. Contact: 00968 92480985,

Email: fayubeig@gmail.com

Indian Male, 28, B.Com, 6+ yrs exp in

Accounts, 2 yrs in Oman with Valid

Oman D/L, NOC available.

Contact 9719 4864

BRANCH-HEAD, MBA-BBA, Indian

Male having experience in UAE, India,

Oman total 5 years (including MNC),

looking for similar or same openings.

NOC available. mobile: 92700670,

email:catanalur131@gmail.com

Accounts Head/Manager looking for

job with Gulf Experience (NOC avail-

able). Contact : 94164650.

email: msaleem.kr@gmail.com

Sales Representative or Purchase

officer. Indian male 31 years,

looking for suitable placement in

construction industries and oilfield

industries. Having 7 years of gulf

experience in fasteners and building

material. Having a valid driving

license. Contact: 00968 92480985,

Email: fayubeig@gmail.com

Pakistani, Male, Pak, Exp 14 Years

in Accounts, IT & Administration,

looking for a better position in Oman,

already working in Prestigious

Construction Company. # 95983711.

Join.mtmali@gmail.com

Male available for a part time

accounting & admin job,

Contact:99196621.

Babar Ali Male, Pak, Exp 14 Years

in Accounts, IT & Administration,

looking for a better position in Oman,

No need of Visa, already working in

of the Omani Construction Company.

Contact:- 95983711.

Indian male MBA finance and mar-

keting. Having 2 year experienced in

accounting, looking for suitable job

opportunities. Available on visit can

join immediately. Cont: 94676974

Email: anfalruk@gmail.com

SALES MANAGER (MECHANICAL

ENGINEER)-Over 5 yrs in Oman, with

experience in Industrial Products &

Services with Noc & driving license

looking for the challenging oppor-

tunities. Notice period Ends on 27th

August -2015 . GSM - 95291830

ACCOUNTANT, Male, 8 years experi-

ence .Presently working in Oman

as a Senior Accountant with Oman

Driving license. NOC available seeks

suitable opportunity. GSM: 98184170

Housemaid looking for job.

Cont : 95587492

Indian Female Lawyer having 11

yrs experience presently working in

Oman seeks placement in Legal/HR/

Admin etc. NOC available

Contact-94436960

Email: famidakhan123@gmail.com

Mechanical Engineer : Indian , male

23 years, 2 years experience, on visit

visa . Seeking suitable placement.

Contact : +968 91409712 ,

Email : nibin.nani@gmail.com

INDIAN MALE 23 YEARS,B. Tech

(Electrical & Electronic) having

4 years working experience as an

Electrical site Engineer, currently on

visit visa. Seeking suitable place-

ment. Contact no. 98045482

21 years, B. Com, graduate male

‘fresher’ well versed in English,

Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam with

Driving license looking for a suitable

job. Contact: 96799287

Filipino (male), 37 yrs. old, having

8yrs. experience in Operation (Ship-

ping & Logistics) currently on visit visa

looking for suitable job.

Contact 97121525

24 years, ACCA affiliate, 2.5 years

of experience in audit, finance in

Big6 and oil industry, looking for

suitable placement, NOC release

available. Contact 95140445,

Email: a.saran891@gmail.com

INDIAN MALE 24 YEARS, B. Tech

(Electrical & Electronic).Having 2

years experience as Electrical Site

Engineer in Constructions. Done

IOSH & NEBOSH- IGC certifications.

Seeking for suitable placement in

constructions or in any

related industries.

Contact no: 98045482/

mastanshaik1008@gmail.com

Indian male, 29 yrs, B.Tech Electron-

ics & Communication Eng. + diploma

in SAP, 7 years professional experi-

ence, looking for a job in Oman /

other GCC countries.

Contact: 0091 973 928 5790,

Email: rahul.rn198@gmail.com

Indian Male, 28, B.Com, 6+ yrs exp

in Accounts, 2 yrs in Oman with

Valid Oman D/L, NOC available.

Contact: 9719 4864

AutoCad Civil Draftsman – Having

3 years- experience, looking for a

placement.(Full- time or Part time)

99627427 / 96154564.

Indian male MBA finance and mar-

keting having 2 year experienced in

accounting. Having good knowledge

in Tally ERP and advanced excel.

Looking for suitable job opportuni-

ties. Available on visit visa can join

immediately. Contact:94676974,

Email : anfalruk@gmail.com

Indian Male, 37 Years , B Tech

Graduate Electrical. Having 12 Years

Experience of DCRP Works / Jobs in

Oman with Driving License, Looking

for an suitable opening, NOC Avail-

able. Contact – 92122338, Email -

saiviharvasanth@gmail.com

Part- Time Accountant, well experi-

ence senior accountant ,doing all type

of accounting works, Finalization,

Budgeting available.

Contact 98803439

Masters in Information Systems

and IT with more than 12 years ex-

perience seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 98502793,

email:jobsrs6@gmail.com

Indian male executive secretary

having vast experience in admin,

logistics & procurement well versed

with computer seeks suitable place-

ment. Contact : 99514286

Indian Female, 25 years, M.Sc Elec-

tronics + Multimedia, having one year

teaching experience in Government

college in India, seeks suitable place-

ment. Contact GSM 99367448

Advertising/media executive with

15 years gulf experience with oman

driving license. Seeks good opening.

Contact 93031168

Available for a part time accounting

job. Contact 99196621

Indian Male 28 years MSM, B. Com

having 6years experience in Gulf and

India as a HR and Admin looking for

suitable placement. # 97914340.

Email: rajkv30@gmail.com

Indian male 23 years Graduate,

working as a sales coordinator cum

purchase & office coordination

2 YEARS in oman Having oman

license & NOC looking for suit-

able job in Muscat. GSM:97475860

mail:yadhukrishnan08@gmail.com

B.E Mechanical engineer,2 years job

experience in Oman in pipeline field,

having ASNT level ll in UT,RT,MT and

PT, fluent in English, Hindi, Gujarati

and Marathi, with valid Omani driv-

ing license (light) searching for job.

Contact +968 92745691

Indian female with MBA in finance

on visit visa seeking immediate

placement. Contact :968-93316493

Well qualified Indian Female Bsc,

Computers diploma 9 years of

experience as Executive Secretary

seeks placement.

Contact 95423692,91374217

ACCOUNTANT: Indian male senior

Accountant, Graduate & CA Article

ship completed. 18 Years of experi-

ence. Currently on visiting visa.

seeks suitable placement. Contact:

97498809, 99769743,

Email: hilariankj@gmail.com

Indian male, B.com, MBA, having

5 years experience (3 years in U.A.E)

is currently seeking suitable

opportunities within finance/

accounts/admin dept.

Contact:93953613,

allen.mathew83@gmail.com

B.Com graduate, 11 years experi-

ence in Accounts, 9 years Oman

experience , Oman valid driving

license, looking for suitable post.

Mob:92758404 NOC Available.

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian

male,29 years.8 years experience

.Presently working in Oman as a

Senior Accountant with oman Driv-

ing license. NOC available. Seek

suitable opportunity.

GSM: 97705854

Indian male 35 yrs, 10 yrs UAE ex-

perience in FMCG, looking for a suit-

able position in sales and market-

ing, valid GCC license on visit visa.

Contact 93438747, 95723635.

Having exp in the following, MS

Windows Server 2003 & 2008,

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 & E-

Mail Client Administration,Linux

Administration, Service Desk Ad-

ministration, Network Management,

Technical Support. Presently the

candidate in India.Mob:97239854

Filipino (male), 37 yrs. old, hav-

ing 8yrs. experience in Operation

(Shipping&Logistics) currently on

visit visa looking for suitable job.

GSM: 97121525

Quantity Surveyor-MEP (Estima-

tion/Project) ,Total 10 Years Experi-

ence (3 years in Oman).

Having NOC & Oman D/L, Looking for

suitable job, Contact - 97906551

Sales Representative or Purchase

officer. Indian male 30 years ,

looking for suitable placement in

construction industries and oilfield

industries. Having 5 years of Gulf

experience in FASTENERS and

building material. with good com-

munication skills. #97756269,

Email: razzakbmt@gmail.com

Software Developer, Indian female,

B.Tech (AE & I), M.Tech (VLSI

Design), asp.net, C#,.net, C++, Core

Java, Android Java, looking for suit-

able placement. Contact 95906935,

Email : amalpkku@gmail.com

Electronics / Instrumentation En-

gineer, Indian female, M.Tech (VLSI

Design), B.Tech (applied Electronics

& Instrumentation), ASP.Net, C++.Net,

C++, Android Java, looking for suitable

placement. Contact 95906935,

Email : amalpktu@gmail.com

Two year experience in Oman,

experience in sales, purchase and

system admin, Having GCC license.

Contact number 97475860,

Yadhukrishnan08@gmail.com

Indian Male, 32 yrs, MBA-HR, Train-

er & Faculty worked on Omanisation

& nationals development activities

with 10 yrs of experience seeking

suitable job. Contact : 93891401

saiprasad_18@yahoo.com

Sudanese 29 male (Bsc computer

science,diploma computer engineer-

ing), 6 yrs. experience dba oracle pl-

sql , ms sql-server ,ms visual studio

vba,network Omani Driver licence

language English, Arabic

Tel: 91415886

Piping Design Engineer, Indian

male 27, looking for suitable place-

ment in Piping Design & Engineer-

ing. Having 7 years of experience in

AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS

(11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact :

97351786 / 96143708/97357143

Indian female, 24yrs, M.COM (Ac-

counts) having 3 yrs experience

in Accounts, HR, Administration,

Customer Service. Good Computer

Proficiency seeking Suitable Posi-

tion. Visa Transfer/NOC Available.

Contact: 99654913

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5 D7

SITUATION WANTEDSERVICES

Split & widow unit A.C servicing &

repairing. Contact: 99557080

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your

marble. #24793614/ 99314807

Building maintenance: Tiling,

painting etc. Contact: 99325827

One stop shop business services : Public Relation (PRO) formation new

companies, LLC companies, Investor

visa, business setup, prepare busi-

nesses & companies accounts, legal

services, representing you and your

company. Contact: Saleh : 96723485

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile pol-

ishing, pest control & anti-termite

treatment, general cleaning paint-

ing, Plumbing, Electrical, shifting.

Contact Mundhir Al-Rizaiqi trading.

L.L.C. # 24810137, 99450130

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance. Contact ABU QABAS-

99320217 /24788722

A/C Technician, all refrigerator

items, installation. # 92279370

Air condition maintenance split

and window A/C split a/c ducted

and package type units.

Contact: 98667326

Split & window A.C servic-

ing & maintenance. Contact

93769089/95323517

All maintenance & repairs. Contact Rizwan: 99429071,

RMPM Trading.

GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet

& sofa shampooing, Contact

99314807/24792998

WEBSITE

WEB, ERP and Business Intel-

ligence (BI) creation and man-

agement at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

COMPUTER

CLASSES

General cleaning in buildings vil-

las all types interior, exterior, pol-

ishing dry cleaning carpets, rugs,

marble etc. Contact 94134784 /

98598280

Water proofing ABUQABAS-

Contact 99320217/24788722

House shifting & packing. Contact: 99657644 /98518013

Spoken English IELTS & Computer classes.

Contact: 92088325 / 24799938

DRIVING

TRANSPORTATION

Transportation. Contact 99508282

Shifting transporting truck. Contact : 99008442

Transport available in Ghala, Ruwi ,

Ghubra, Al Khuwair & Azaiba.

Contact: 91495819

Transportation. Contact 99664703

Transportation. Contact 99508282

Transportation available. Contact: 99867456

GOOD NEWS

SIT.WANTED

Ayuredic massage backache,

joint pain, neck pain etc.

Contact 98254909

Ayurvedic treatment for backache,

paralysis, arthritis etc & massage,

All Season (Vaidyaratnam). Contact

24475280 / 95371664 / 92504980

www.siddhayur.com

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT ISLAM. If you would like to know

more about Islam, please call:

99425598, 99250777, 99353988,

99253818, 99341395, and

99379133. For ladies: 99415818,

99321360, 99730723

Orvisit:www.islamfact.com

Required SUB Contractors for

new projects. Contact: 99755534 /

96600581

Required investors for different

projects. Contact: 99674870

SITUATION WANT-ED

BUSINESS

Split & window unit A.C servicing

& maintenance. #96236476

Window & split unit A.C ser-

vicing & maintenance. Contact

93769089 / 95323517

Indian male 27 years B.E & MS Me-

chanical Engineer working in Delhi for

last 4 years inJcb India pvt. ltd., seeks

placement in Oman. #93393768

Female MBA gold medalist, with

computer proficiency, Oman driving

license looking for job opportunity

in event management companies in

Muscat. Ph : 99012949

Indian female B. Com MBA finance

,5 years experience in oman as an

account seeking suitable placement.

Contact 99044292

Indian male 23 years Graduate,

working as a sales coordinator cum

purchase & office coordination 2 yrs

in oman Having oman license & NOC

looking for suitable job in Muscat

Email:yadhukrishnan08@gmail.com,

GSM:97475860

Indian Male 22 Years , Graduation

In Electronics Seeking Jobs In Su-

pervisory , Sales & Sales Co-ordina-

tion Fields , Good Communication

Skill # 96141317,

E-mail: akhilek5@gmail.com

DIPLOMA+B.E.(CIVIL ENGINEER),

Indian, 4 years of experience, cur-

rently on visit visa; Seeking Right

Position. GSM:91570703.

ME. Civil Engineer, Structural

Designer, 3 Years Structural Design,

6 Years Str. Engineer Experience,

Looking For Structural Designer

Position. Iranian Male.

Contact: 93696929,

Email: mhsaz1359@gmail.com

Driver looking for job exp 2 yrs.

Contact: 98522914

B-tech Electrical Engineer with

more than 2 years of experience in

erection and designing of HT and LT

electrical systems. Seeking for

suitable job in Muscat.

Contact: 98269366.

Email: sijincleetus@gmail.com

Male Graphic designer cum anima-

tion, non linear editing VFX, seeking

suitable position.

Contact: 97792661 / 96229406

Indian lady 30 years Graduate hav-

ing work experience in India and

Oman looking for Admin or any other

suitable job. Contact : 95676957

Indian Female Accountant, CA Final

(Group I cleared), 5+ year’s experi-

ence in the field of Accounts, Audit

and Financial ERPs. Currently avail-

able in Muscat and seeking suitable

job opportunities.Ph:94704800

email id: vinithsavith@gmail.com

B.E (IT) 1 year exp complete school-

ing in Muscat needs job in software

/ net working / java/ WEB design or

marketing. #97136248 / 99313821

Data Entry operator cum Buyer,

Indian male,26years.BA, Computer

proficiency :Operating system (Win-

dows 2000xp & Windows7) E plus

and Tally ERP9, 4 yrs Experience in

Oman seeks suitable placements.

Mob: 95360255

Indian Female BSC nurse with 8+

years of experience including 3

years of GCC exp. Oman Prometric

passed with 57 %. Currently in Oman.

Contact : 98034384

Senior Accounts Professional,

Indian Male, 36 years, M.Com, MBA

(Fin) 9 years in Oman, with valid

Oman DL and NOC available. Capable

to handle accounts up to finalization.

Contact 9602 3965.

Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a

Suitable Job in Telecom / Network-

ing, 1 year sales experience. M. Sc.

Communications Engineering &

Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com

Indian, presently on visit visa in

Salalah looking for job B.com failed

UAE experience in accounts, com-

mercial Admin & warehouse. Con-

tact: 92754071 /93346931 Email:

sathyanathanuk@gmail.com

Indian male, 39 yrs, MSC Computer

Science 10 years experience IT sup-

port, FMS Engineer, bank experience

looking for suitable job.

Contact: 94276449

MBA (Marketing /HR) with 45 years

exp in business development and

marketing, having valid Oman driv-

ing license seeks suitable placement

currently available on family visa.

Contact 97618033

Email: vjgeorge12@gmail.com

SIT.WANTED

Civil site coordinator, Diploma,

Male 25, now present in Oman, Seek-

ing job in Oman. # 92887561,

jubincivileng@gmail.com

Indian male 63 years have 30 years

Muscat experience all office work

sales business development insur-

ance administration accounts with

Oman driving license. # 99249412

Indian female LLB (Advocate) 2

years experience looking for suitable

post legal advisor company secretary

etc. # 93343190 / 94476387

Email: shafu1019@gmail.com

Indian female, B.Sc, PGDCA, cur-

rently on family joining visa, 2 years

working experience in oman as

customer care / sales co-ordinator,

immediate joining seeks suitable

placements. Contact no. (968)

95573205 / 95949230 / 95800792

Indian male 22 years ACCA affiliate ,

BSc, Graduate in applied accounting 2

months working experience seeking

suitable placement in Finance / Ac-

counts / audit immediately. Contact:

97378607 / 92558734

B-tech Electrical Engineer with more

than 2 years of experience in erection

and designing of HT and LT electrical

systems. Seeking for suitable job in

Muscat. Contact: 98269366.

Email: sijincleetus@gmail.com

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461 Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D8 M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 7, 2 0 1 5

RENT A CAR

RENT A CAR

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise

with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain

Marine Tours Contact- 98029602,

92808636

TOURS

SITUATION WANTEDCARGO

SITUATION WANT-CARGO

SITUATION WANTEDCARGO

FOR HIRE

Volvo 12 Ton Truck for monthly

rent. Contact: 98713900