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Firms fl outing Ramadan timings to be penalised

TARIQ AL HAREMItariqh@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Fines will be imposed on companies found violating the ministerial decision regarding work hour restrictions during the Holy Month of Ramadan, an offi -cial of the Ministry of Manpower has said.

The labour law stipulates that companies face a fi ne and may even be sent to court for repeated violation, the offi cial said.

The ministry recently an-nounced a six-working-hour day or thirty-hour week for Muslim employees of private companies during the Holy Month of Rama-dan, which begins this week.

Some private sector employees had voiced their frustration over their companies not following the rules imposed by the ministry and being made to work for more than six hours during the Holy Month.

The ministry has assured em-ployees that anyone not follow-

ing the decision will be punished. “Companies do not have an excuse since it is a clear law by the minis-try,” stressed the offi cial.

According to the Omani Labour Law, Part Four, Chapter Three, Article 68: “The maximum work hours during Ramadan shall be six hours a day or thirty hours a week for Muslim employees. The min-istry may determine the timing of the work hours.”

Penalty for such a violation is elaborated in keeping with the Omani Labour Law, Part Ten, Ar-ticle 117: “Whoever violates the provisions of Chapter Three of Part Four shall be punished with fi ne not exceeding OMR100 and the fi ne shall be multiplied by the number of workers who are the subject of such violation and penalty shall be doubled in case of repetition of such violation.”

The ministry offi cial reassured that if employees are being un-justly made to overwork, exceed-ing the time set by the ministry during the Holy Month, they can fi le a complaint at the Directorate General of Labour Welfare at the Ministry of Manpower.

“As long as there is proof that the company is violating the rules or the employee has been sub-jected to extra working hours, an initial warning (with fi ne) will be issued to the company,” said the offi cial.

“If the company violates the rule again, then we will send them to court,” he added.

A private sector employee working in an Oman-based travel agency expressed his irritation at his company which made him and another employee work for up to 11 hours a day during the previous Ramadan. >A5

Oman’s Labour Law stipulates that

companies face a fi ne and may even

be sent to court for repeated violations

Water bottles distributed among workers as mercury rises

A4

New-look Times website tuned for all your devices The biggest has just got

better as Times of Oman launches its new-look

website www.timesofoman.com which is now mobile, tablet, lap-top and desktop friendly.

Whether you are on the go on your smartphone, at home with your tablet, or in your offi ce catch-ing up with the latest headlines, www.timesofoman.com is the ideal way to stay up to date with all the news in Oman and around the world.

This major launch is the latest chapter in a proud history of inno-vation for Times of Oman. In the past year our site has grown to be-come largest online media site in the Sultanate, dwarfi ng all media competitors in the country com-bined (source: similarweb.com).

Our social media reach has also boomed, our Facebook page is now the fastest-growing page in

Oman (source: socialbakers.com) with 155,000 followers, last week our posts reached more than 3 million people on the social me-dia platform (June 8 to June 14, source: Facebook).

And as we know more than half of our growing online audience now access timesofoman.com on the move we’ve not only made sure your experience on mobile is a rich one, but we’ve made sharing even easier.

The new sharelines feature on articles now means you don’t even have to type a tweet or a Fa-cebook post, we’ve done it for you – simply share in an instant. Also

we’ve added ‘in–article’ sharing. Spot a quote that has your blood boiling, again just highlight the area you want to tweet it or post it to Facebook in a second.

We know you love multimedia so now there’s more pictures and more videos, whether its vital Oman news, the latest viral vid-eo or a stunning picture gallery, www.timesofoman.com is now bursting with material you’ll want to share with your friends.

You can have your say and in-teract too. Now with the new Dis-qus tool it’s even easier to voice your opinion on any story. Plus our social media channels are al-ways on screen to allow you get involved on whichever platform you choose.

So come and be part of one of the biggest online community’s in the Sultanate and take a fresh look at www.timesofoman.com.

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

Authorities working

overtime to restore

normality after storm

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Authorities across the Sultanate are working overtime to restore life back to normality following the recent tropical storm Ashobaa.

Ministry of Transport and Communications, Royal Oman Police and Masirah Municipal-ity are putting in their best ef-forts in the clean-up operations.

Municipality offi cials in Ma-sirah, which received maximum rainfall during the storm, are supervising the clean-up opera-tions after heavy fl ooding was reported.

Royal Oman Police helped the citizens and residents remove their vehicles stuck in wadis in Masirah.

Meanwhile, National Fer-ries Company (NFC) resumed the service between Masirah and Shannah.

Ministry of Transport and Communications is continuing its eff orts to remove the debris from the streets and roads.

The ministry is providing the necessary services and procedures to help restore the situation to normality. They are working on opening the roads blocked because of the accu-mulation of soil and mud that fl owed from mountains and wadis during the heavy rains.

The ministry has taken all steps and precautions to deal with the situation and has called upon people to contact them in case of need. >A5

A S H O B A A

ON THE JOB: Authorities are working hard on opening the

roads that were blocked because of the accumulation of soil

and mud that fl owed from mountains and wadis during the

heavy rains during tropical storm Ashobaa. -ONA

OMANMillennium Resort Mussanah e-services

1Millennium Resort Mussanah is taking smart technology even further

with the introduction of several e-services. They are introducing mobile phone applications for hotel reservations and check-ins, online feedback from guests, and iPads for presentations and showcasing services to cater to the demands of the new generation travellers who want instant information and value services that save time. >A5

OMANMuscat Hills houses ready for handover

3Muscat Hills Residences, which includes a master plan with pristine real

estate overlooking a par-72, 18 hole green golf course, is ready to hand over the initial set of second phase luxury villas beginning in June 2015, it was announced. Forty residences, comprising an elegant mix of 4 and 5 bedroom villas, are nearing completion. All villas have contemporary exterior designs with elements of Omani architecture. >A3

OMANOman Post launches ‘Door-to-door’ service

2Customers will now be able to specify a time for their mail to be delivered

and Oman Post staff will visit to collect the mail from the place of the customer. This becomes possible as Oman Post Company has launched a new service called ‘Door-to -door.’ The new service is available inside Oman and the delivery is done upon receiving a request from the customer. >A4

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

hours of work is the maximum for Muslim employees during the

Holy Month of Ramadan

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PDO renews pledge for social service Times News Service

MUSCAT: Displaying its com-mitment to society, Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has pledged to spend more than OMR500,000 on six projects to benefi t Omani communities, as well as the environment.

The expenditure, the latest in a series of social investment commitments, will include help for the disabled, animal welfare, environmental protection and awareness, along with tourism.

Almost half of the investment will fund four mobile veterinary clinics, with two operating in the North of PDO’s concession area and two in the South, to as-sist livestock owners in caring for their animals. Additionally, there will be support for ecological conservation eff orts, including at Dimaniyat Islands, Oman’s only protected marine area.

Six memorandums of un-derstanding (MoUs) relating to the projects were signed by

PDO Managing Director Raoul Restucci and External Aff airs Director Abdul Amir al-Ajmi, and senior Government and non-government organisa-tions’ (NGO) representatives.The commitments, which were unveiled at the signing ceremony at PDO’s Knowledge World, in-cludes funding for four mobile veterinary clinics, the construc-tion of a public majlis in Sadhun village, Qatbit, supporting ESO environmental protection and awareness campaigns, building of fi ve retail kiosks to display and sell local products to tourists vis-iting Al Jabal Al Akhdar, as well as purchasing 15 special basket-ball wheelchairs for Oman’s par-alympic players and 110 wheel-chairs for OAD members.

Restucci noted, “PDO is proud to support a range of worthy caus-es through our Social Investment Programme, which is targeted at promoting sustainable develop-ment, both in the environment and community.”

C O R P O R A T E S U P P O R T

Dhofar gears up for Khareef fest

MUSCAT: With Khareef ap-proaching, Dhofar Municipality has started preparing for the au-tumn tourist season which starts every year from June 21 and lasts until September 21.

This is one of the most impor-tant tourist seasons in the Gulf region and last year, 431,105 peo-ple had visited the Governorate of Dhofar. The weather in the Dhofar

coasts is very unique – mist, dew, cold breezes, light rain and green cover everywhere.

The public organisations are making great eff orts to develop the service and tourist utilities at the touristy and historic attractions in the Governorate. The major de-velopment projects during the au-tumn season this year include the Salalah airport, which will start operations on Monday.

The project includes a passen-ger terminal spread over 65,000 square metres, capable of accom-modating two million passengers per annum in the fi rst stage and later to be expanded to handle six million passengers in the future.

The new airport includes an information systems centre, a luggage handling unit at the pas-senger terminal, retail shops, res-taurants and other services. Dur-ing the autumn season, Oman Air will operate 284 fl ights between Muscat and Salalah, an 11 per cent increase in the number of fl ights

compared to 2014. Dhofar Munic-ipality is improving its public ser-vices in diff erent wilayats. These include improving the internal road network, infrastructure, pav-ing public parks with interlocking tiles and constructing rest areas along the coasts.

The Ministry of Tourism is cur-rently implementing a project to develop A’Dahareez beach which includes pathways for pedestrian, shades, barbecue area, paved areas for families, water fountains and car parks.

Each autumn, the Ministry of Tourism establishes temporary centres for tourism related infor-mation, in addition to the perma-nent centres along the border ar-eas and at airports.

The Royal Oman Police also op-erates patrols along Adam-Thum-rait Highway and provides aerial and land ambulance services in collaboration with the Public Au-thority for Civil Defence and Am-bulance (PACDA).-ONA

With the launch of

the new Salalah

airport, authorities

are gearing up

for the annual

Khareef season

GREEN CHARM: Last year, 431,105 people had visited the Governorate of Dhofar during the Khareef

season.– ONA

Haya Water inks two pacts for sewage in Baushar, SeebMUSCAT: In a major step to-wards improving sewage network, Oman Wastewater Company (Haya Water) signed two separate agreements, awarding the works of construction of a modern sew-age network in Madinat Sultan Qaboos (MSQ) in the Wilayat of Baushar and the project of execut-ing package of the sewage network in Wilayat of A’Seeb.

The agreements were signed by the CEOs of the executing com-panies. The MSQ project will cost about OMR8 million. The new net-work will replace the current one and will also have additional net-works along with the construction

of a 14.5 km fi bre-optic line net-work. More than 700 properties will benefi t from this vital project.

This project was awarded to the Oman Consolidated Contractors Company and is scheduled to be completed within two years. Asso-ciated Consulting Engineers Com-pany LLC will provide all consult-ing engineering services.

The project to execute pack-age C6 of the sewage network in A’Seeb was awarded to M/S Arab Contractors Company and Na-tional United Engineering and Construction Companies.

The total cost of the project is about OMR18 million and it will

take two years from the awarding date to be implemented.

Parsons International Com-pany has designed the facilities. Pursuant to the agreement, 65 km of main line for sewage drainage will be constructed, in addition to house connections along more than 98 km, benefi tting more than 3,500 properties.

Mohsen bin Mohammed Al Sheikh, Chairman of the Muscat Municipality and Haya Water, said, “Haya Water is proceeding towards completing the networks in the Wilayat of Baushar as soon as possible because of the urban development expansion.”-ONA

C I V I C F A C I L I T Y

Muscat Hills set for handoverTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Muscat Hills Resi-dences, which includes a master plan with pristine real estate over-looking a par-72, 18 hole green golf course, is ready to hand over the initial set of second phase luxury villas beginning in June 2015, it was announced.

“Muscat Hills Golf Course and Country Club and Oman Urban Development Co combined their expertise to produce the fi nest villas in the Sultanate. The low density development has created exclusivity that is unparalleled. The unsurpassed quality and fi n-ish stamp of Towell Construction Company has been provided for each stage of construction. The motive behind creating Phase II was to build the most luxuri-

ous and exclusive villas, with the homeowner in mind,” a press re-lease said.

In a press statement, Rawy Kais Al Said added, “We are glad to an-nounce that forty premier resi-dences, comprising an elegant mix of 4 and 5 bedroom villas, are near-ing completion. All villas have con-temporary exterior designs with elements of Omani architecture, and maximizing the use of inter-nal space. The fl ow of the homes are well designed and have high ceilings, premium marble fi nishes, fully ducted air conditioning, built in wardrobes, premium European brand amenities and fi nishes. The additional feature of fully fi nished roof terraces and designated guest parking areas are appealing for so-cial evenings”.

He said, “The spacious villas are

featured with fl oor to ceiling glass windows in each room, allowing natural light to enter and also of-fering homeowners unobstructed panoramic views of the green golf course, water features, and the beauty of Oman’s natural land-scape. Nearly all of the villas enjoy golf course views.”

There are six distinct types of villas, including Sacra, Carteri, Freana, Rivea, Acacia and, last but not least, the signature villa Rega-lis, each having their own separate identity to suit diff erent tastes.”The 18-hole PGA-certifi ed golf course, designed by Paul Thom-as, was intended to complement Oman’s natural landscape, so it was built on the foothills of Al Ha-jar Mountains, incorporating the carved canyon-like wadis with the remarkable views.

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OMAN

Cold water distributed to workers as mercury soars

TARIQ AL HAREMI tariq@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Providing timely suc-cour, I-Care Initiative distributed more than 6,000 bottles of water to construction workers on Sat-urday as part of its eff orts to raise awareness about the importance of appreciating the builders of the country during the 15th I-Care Water Distribution Event.

More than 160 volunteers were involved with the distribution of cold water to workers across 17 ar-eas in Muscat.

“We need to thank the work-ers for standing in the sun for hours, day in and day out, build-

ing the country,” said Shorooq Abu Nasser, founder of I-Care.

“Somehow, I feel responsible and can’t simply pass by a worker without giving him anything,” she added. The event kicked off at the Oman Automobile Association (OAA), the venue where volun-teers were arranged in groups, each responsible for an assigned area for distribution.

“It is a very strong initiative. We

have to help others and not think of ourselves all the time. We hope I-Care continues its eff orts many years to come,” said Moamin Al Rawahi, track manager of Muscat Speedway, HSE manager of OAA and head of Drive Smart Initiative.

Amid the soaring temperature in the Sultanate this year, con-struction workers are being forced to rest during hot hours under open sunny skies.

According to the Labour Law issued by Ministerial Decision No. 286/2008, Article 16 prohib-its the employment of workers at construction sites, or in open spaces, during periods of high temperature, particularly from

12:30pm to 3:30pm in the months of June, July, and August. Despite that, construction workers are still left to rest under the sun ad-jacent to the site without proper resting facilities.

Water was distributed to Ruwi, Darsait, Hamriyah, Wadi Ka-beer, Muttrah, Qurm, Madinat Al Ilam, Shatti Qurm, Madinat Sul-tan Qaboos, Boshar, Al Khuwair, Al Athaiba, Al Ansab, Ghubra, Ghala and Seeb.

Shurooq revealed plans for Ramadan and Eid, saying, “Meals will be distributed during Rama-dan days and packages” and meals will be given out at local mosques on time for iftar.

Amid the soaring

temperature, the

I-Care Initiative

distributed water to

construction workers

across 17 areas

in Muscat to

appreciate their role

Oman Post launches ‘Door-to-door’ service

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Customers will now be able to specify a time for their mail to be delivered and Oman Post staff will visit to col-lect the mail from the place of the customer.

This becomes possible as Oman Post Company has launched a new service called ‘Door-to -door.’ The new service is available inside Oman and the delivery is done upon receiving a request from the customer.

Under the new service that promises to ensure safety and speed. Those in the govern-ment or private sector can just call the post offi ce for their mail packages to be collected from their place.

“These postal services con-nect urgent mails to various government institutions within a specifi ed time band indicated by the customer himself. These services also foresee the privacy required by some private sector clients for their transactions, such as banks and insurance companies. The door-to-door service will involve delivery of local mail from the sender’s ad-dress to the messenger service to him up to 30 kg of weight. In this plan, the applicant will contact the company to deliver postal shipment for it to be de-livered within the borders of the Sultanate,” a release said.

The service is an eff ort to cope with the requirements of the customers and develop the postal services market.

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HELPING HAND: The event kicked off at the Oman Automobile Association (OAA), the venue where volunteers were arranged in groups, each responsible for an assigned area

for the distribution of water bottles.–Supplied photos

Oman Air wins another global awardTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Oman Air has won the Best Business Class Airline 2015 – Middle East category in the Business Destinations Travel Awards. The award recognises the outstanding quality of Oman Air’s Business Class passenger expe-rience, both on the ground and in the air.

This year marks the fourth time Oman Air has won the award, having previously taken the title in 2011, 2012 and 2013. No other airline has won the award as many times as Oman Air.

Paul Greogowitsch, CEO Oman Air, welcomed the award, saying: “Oman Air is delighted to accept the title of Best Business Class Airline 2015 – Middle East in the

Business Destinations Travel Awards. It is a wonderful acco-lade to receive as we continue our ambitious expansion programme, which will enable many more air travellers to enjoy the Oman Air Business Class passenger experience.

“This is the fourth time that Oman Air has been presented with this award, which is a won-derful testament to the consist-ently high standard of our pre-mium product. Over that time, we have continued to introduce more innovations and add even greater luxury to our Business Class ser-vice. For example, we have un-veiled new airport lounges, intro-duced a superb premium check-in lounge at Muscat and launched a range of new products and servic-

es for our Sindbad frequent fl iers.“However, perhaps the most

noticeable development has been the introduction of brand new Business Class cabins on our new Airbus A330 and Boeing B737 air-craft. Unveiled in late 2014, these retain the comfort and luxury of their predecessors, whilst adding even more features and contem-porary styling.

“As a result, we are experi-encing even greater demand for Business Class seats throughout our international network, and last year we carried more pas-sengers than ever before. I would therefore like to thank the Busi-ness Destinations Travel Awards judges for this invaluable recog-nition and, most importantly, our customers for their loyalty”

A V I A T I O N

LUXURY ON AIR: This is the

fourth time that Oman Air has

won this award.

Royal Opera House Muscat to hold auditions for extras

Times News Service MUSCAT: Off ering local resi-dents an opportunity to go on stage, the Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) is looking for ‘extras’, or amateurs in non-sing-ing roles, for its production of Turandot, the opera selected for the inauguration of the Royal Op-era House in 2011.

Set in ancient dynastic China, Turandot, Giacomo Puccini’s fi -nal masterwork, relates the myth-ical story of an imperial princess whose cold, vengeful heart is eventually won by a prince with a love so great that he would will-ingly sacrifi ce his life for her. With all the magnifi cent origi-nal sets and costumes, Turandot will again be performed by the incomparable Arena di Verona, its Orchestra, Chorus and Corps de Ballet – on October 1, 3 and 4 this year. But this time, ROHM’s Turandot will include 51 extras. This is a chance for amateurs to discover their talent and become part of the history of the Royal Opera House.

“Applicants will need to be available for all scheduled re-hearsals and performances, al-though this does not necessarily mean that those selected (partic-ularly children) will be required at all the times set out below. They may also be required to come in slightly earlier to don the costume

for dress rehearsals. For perfor-mances, they would need to come one hour early, at 18.00 for the 17.00 start. Single daily rehearsal would be from 16.00–20.30 hours on the following dates in Septem-ber: Sunday through Thursday - 13, 14, 15, 16, & 17.

“Saturday through Monday - 19, 20, 21, twice daily rehearsals in September from 14.00–16.00 hours and from 18.30–22.00 hours Wednesday through Sun-day September 23, 24, 25, 26, 27. Once daily rehearsal in Septem-ber from 14.00–8.30 hours, Mon-day and Tuesday, September 28

and 29. Performances are from 8.00 pm, arrival at 7 pm, on Octo-ber 1st, 3rd and 4th,” a press state-ment said.

For the application process, the press release said, “Please send an email to extras@rohmuscat.org.om which includes: 1) a full length photograph of yourself; and 2) a headshot photograph; along with, 3) a covering e-mail telling us a little about yourself, including your name, age, height, clothing size and contact tele-phone number; and, 4) one or two concise paragraphs on why you would like to be involved.”

C L A S S I C A L D R A M A

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ROLE 35 men: Age: 18 – 45. Size: Average build.

Height: 1m72cms–1m90cms. Roles: Soldiers, peasants, mandarins, executioners and princes. Qualities: Men who love the theatre and arts, are passionate and like new experiences.

4 women: Age: 20 – 35. Size: Average build. Height: 1m64 – 1m75. Roles: Peasant women and princesses. Qualities: Women who love music, are energetic and like new experiences.

12 children: Boys or girls: Age: 6 – 12. Size: Average build. Roles: Peasants and attendants. Qualities: Children who love music, are energetic and like new experiences.

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Millennium Resort Mussanah e-services target young guests

RAHUL DASrahuldas@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: Latest hospitality buz-zword among the newest line of hotels is “millennial”, referring to Generation Y, and the race is heat-ing up between hoteliers to grab a fair share of the burgeoning Omani market. One immensely impor-tant consumer demographic com-prises people born between 1980 and 1996 (aged 18 to 34), which presents a host of complex but ex-citing opportunities for the hos-pitality sector, nowhere more so than in Oman.

“To cater to this generation, Mil-lennium Resort Mussanah is tak-ing smart technology even further with the introduction of several e-services,” said Maurice de Rooij, General Manager of Millennium Resort Mussanah.

Speaking exclusively to the Times of Oman, he said that to-day’s travellers are constantly con-nected but with time constraints.

“They want instant information and they value services that save time. So we are introducing mobile phone applications for hotel reser-

vations and check-ins, online feed-back from our guests, and iPads for presentations and showcasing our services,” said de Rooij.

Besides that, the resort is us-ing Micros Systems’ software and hardware throughout its opera-tion, including touch screen com-puters for serving staff to place orders, which are then sent to the kitchen and bars’ printers for preparation.

“This system is also being used in our outlets named M Station. Then social media is used more frequently to interact with the guest and the hotel or to communi-cate promotions and off ers. Adver-tising is now moving more towards e-marketing,” he said.

The resort, which has hosted over 334,677 guests since open-ing its doors, also supports a wide range of activities and initiatives.

“Millennium Resort Mussanah was the fi rst resort to implement Omran’s ‘Musahamatee’ initiative. As hosts of the pilot launch, held in partnership with Omran, the re-sort’s developer, guests can donate

to Dar Al Atta’a (‘House of Giving’) directly at various points of billing to support local communities in Oman,” de Rooij added.

Community empowerment“In addition, the resort is empow-ering farmers in the Governorate of Al Batinah by using locally-sourced fruit and vegetables to strengthen the local supply chain. In the past year, Millennium Re-sort Mussanah has bought nearly 66,000 kilograms of fresh fruit and vegetables from eight farms in the region to supply its four onsite res-taurants,” he said further.

“We also sponsor and support local associations with hotel fa-cilities, and Omani trainees from these venues are invited to com-plete their professional training at our resort,” said de Rooij.

“Regular cleaning of the beach is conducted to ensure that the ho-tel’s private coastline is well main-tained; we invite local schools to participate in these cleanup cam-paigns and other environmental initiatives, as a means of sharing environmental values while pro-moting a strong work ethic,” he explained. This year for example, Millennium Resort Mussanah in-vited 20 local students and teach-ers from Al Khalil Bin Ahmed Al Farahidi School to take part in Earth Day 2015. The visiting stu-dents and faculty were welcomed to the resort where they partici-pated in a recycling project organ-ised by the venue.

“We also assist in training and educating young Omanis who as-pire to a career in the hospitality sector and assist local handicraft companies to display their items, which are then sold to our guests. We also support the writer and photographer Maher bin Malal-lah Al Zadjali for his book Musna’a – a Journey in Time Through the Wilayat,” he said.

To promote this hotel to the world, a wide variety of initiatives are being planned, he said.

“We run promotional cam-paigns all over the world alongside the Ministry of Tourism and other international offi ces, in addition to participating in international trade and exhibition shows like the Arabian Travel Market and Satte India. This has proven productive for Oman as a tourist destination and Millennium Resort Mussanah as a leading lifestyle destination,” he said. “There is a growing inter-est among international tourists visiting the Sultanate, and Millen-nium Resort Mussanah as a fully-integrated beach resort that is perfectly positioned to off er some of the best of Oman in terms of tourism products and facilities, as well as nearby historical and natu-ral sites of interest. The Damani-yat Islands are a mere 50 minutes away by boat and a world-class Un-esco diving site, making it a prime location for snorkelling and diving activities,” he said.

De Rooij said that Millennium Resort Mussanah is the only fully-integrated resort property for the group in this region that stands out for its location, with extensive sport and leisure facilities, includ-ing the famous Zayna Spa; a centre for wellness and rejuvenation, of-fering a whole host of treatments from an international team of pro-fessional therapists.

“The resort holds facilities such as the beach, marina, water, dive centre, a sailing school op-erated by Oman Sail, fi ve swim-ming pools, and the uniqueness of Oman as a tourist destination. In addition, the resort hosts interna-tional world championship events in sailing and related marine ac-tivities as a preferred location for Oman-based companies to hold ‘away days’, as the resort has ex-tensive beach, pool, leisure and marina facilities for both male and female guests respectively. Chil-dren are most welcome too and fully catered for,” he said.

The services include

mobile phone

applications for hotel

reservations and

check-ins, online

feedback from

guests, and iPads

for presentations

and showcasing

the services

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DREAM DESTINATION: There is a growing interest among international tourists visiting the Sultanate,

and Millennium Resort Mussanah as a fully-integrated beach resort that is perfectly positioned to off er

some of the best of Oman in terms of tourism products and facilities, as well as nearby historical and

natural sites of interest. -Supplied photo

Private fi rms fl out law

“They say we are a private com-pany, so why should we follow government company policy in Ramadan. They say we will schedule the Ramadan timings and you have to follow these,” said the expatriate employee, who wished not to be named.

‘For Muscat only’“They also said that Ministry’s rules are for Muscat only,” he added. He also said that they cannot do anything but fol-low the company’s rules which were also implemented during last Ramadan.

Mohammad Kabir Ahmed, Managing Director of United Dreams LLC, said the workers should not be made to work for more than six hours a day. “We should follow the Ministry of Manpower’s rules and regula-tions,” he said.

He also said the Ministry of Manpower should carry out regular inspections during the Holy Month and urged employ-ees to fi le a complaint if they are being made to work overtime. “Many employees are not aware that they should work for only six hours and because of that, in some cases, small companies take advantage,” he said.

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< FROM

A1

< FROM

A1Residents

thankful

“Emergency teams have done an outstanding job in responding to this storm. We thank them for the cooperation and under-standing as the clean-up contin-ues,” said a resident of Masirah.

Matar bin Salim bin Rashid Al Balushi, Commander of the Royal Army of Oman (RAO) felicitated the 23rd Infantry Brigade who participated in the rescue operations during the tropical storm. -With inputs from ONA

P O S T - A S H O B A A C L E A N U P

A6

OMANM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Hotels’ revenues show impressive increase

MUSCAT: Key performance in-dicators of hotels in the Sultan-ate have recorded a noticeable increase in revenue during the previous year compared to the fi gures of 2013.

The hotel revenues stood at OMR216,526,000 compared to OMR198,835,000 in 2013, ac-cording to the data issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The revenues during 2014 in-cluded room revenues, which amounted to OMR126,316,000, food revenues totalling OMR50,579,000, beverage rev-

enues totalling OMR24,774,000, and miscellaneous revenues which stood at OMR4,858,000.

The number of hotels increased from 266 in 2013, to 287 in 2014. The number of employees working in this sector in 2014, increased to 10,763, which included 3,381 Oma-nis and 7,382 expatriates, com-pared to 9,893 recorded in 2013, which included 3,195 Omanis and 6,698 expatriates.

The tourist nights recorded during last year reached 2,690,000 compared to 2,518,000 in 2013.

Omanis spent 895,000 nights in the Sultanate’s hotels in 2014,

while GCC nationals spent 258,000 nights, and other Arab tourists spent 145,000 nights. Eu-ropean and Asian visitors spent 689,000 and 511,000 nights, re-spectively.

The number of hotel guests in the Sultanate in 2014 reached 2,426,000 compared to 2,048,000, the year before.

During last year, the number of Omani guests reached 983,000, while GCC guests numbered 208,000. Other Arab guests num-bered 104,000, while Europeans and Asians numbered 517,000 and 494,000, respectively.

The Governorate of Muscat topped the growth chart in 2014. The number of guests recorded in Muscat hotels touched 1,257,000 and the revenues reached OMR147,194,000.

The tourist nights reached 1,712,000 and the occupancy rate was 61 per cent.

The number of visitors in the Dhofar governorate totalled 143,000, and they generated OMR13,120,000 in revenues. In the South A’Sharqiyah gover-norate, the number of guests in 2014, stood at 97,000, who gener-ated OMR3,566,000, while the number in North A’Sharqiyah reached 55,000, and generated OMR2,094,000.

The North Al Batinah gover-norate generated OMR7,349,000 from 114,000, while hotels in South Al Batinah received 80,000 guests who generated OMR5,696,000.

The number of guests in the Musandam governorate reached 44,000 and they generated OMR11,114,000 in revenues, while hotels in the Al Buraimi received 123,000 guests who generated OMR1,697,000.

In A’Dhahirah governo-rate, 14,000 guests gener-ated OMR187,000, while in A’Dakhiliyah 90,000 generated revenues of OMR5,487,000.–ONA

Oman hotels’

revenues last

year stood at

OMR216,526,000

compared to

OMR198,835,000 in

2013, data shows

Al Lajal village, an oasis between mountains and valleysWADI AL MA’AWIL: Called the eastern gate of the wilayat of Wadi Al Ma’awil, the village of Al Lajal holds a unique charm for visitors.

Al Lajal is located in a wilayat of the Governorate of South Al Bati-nah, which borders the wilayats of Barka on the north-east, Nakhal in the south-east, and Al Awabi and A’Rustaq in the south-west. The Wadi Al Ma’awil is 100 kilometres from Muscat governorate.

Wadi Al Ma’awil includes many townships and villages, which are considered an oasis between the mountains and the valleys, includ-ing the village of Al Lajal, which is often referred to as an oasis and a pearl between the mountains. It is located in the east of the wilayat. It separates Wadi Al Ma’awil from the wilayat of Bidbid and Fanja town. Al Lajal village is 50km from Mus-cat governorate.

It has several archaeological and tourist, economic and develop-mental milestones. It tells the story from the past to the present and looks up to the promising future with its unique location and natu-ral treasures like the warm falaj

(ancient irrigation system or water channels), springs, diverse farms, natural vegetation, and wildlife, part from trees, forts, towers, and old and modern mosques.

Residents of Al Lajal village are engaged in the traditional crafts and old industries, such as making

fabric, date-palm frond crafts, mak-ing sweets such as ‘halwa’, and also daggers and pottery. They also raise animals like camels and livestock, and breed bees for natural honey. They also work in agriculture, trade and other professions. The village is famous for the cultivation of citrus,

like lemon, fodder, and varieties of date palm. Tourists from within and outside the Sultanate visit the village, especially in the rainy sea-son and during the formation of ponds, which add to the beauty of the village.

In the village of Al Lajal, there

is a wadi, whose waters fl ow down throughout the year from the east-ern mountains. The residents of this area are famous for their friendliness and generosity. The village has seen a lot of develop-ment and has electricity, paved roads, lighting and other services.

A stone castle with a number of rooms lies in the centre of the village. It is surrounded by a semi-circular wall, very skilfully tended to by the old Omani villagers.

There is also an ancient village in the centre of Al Lajal, which is built with mud and whose remains can still be seen. There is also an old Al Qash mosque, built with Omani Sa-rooj or cement.

The village has several falaj sys-tems, including Al Subaikha, which is characterised by its healthy wa-ter. It is the most famous and larg-est falaj in the village that feeds half of the town’s farms. It fl ows from the south-eastern mountains.

Al Qash falaj also fl ows from the same mountain, but its wa-ter is not as warm as Al Subaikha. Sometimes it is referred to as Al Ghaith or Al Sagheer or ‘small falaj,’ which passes by Al Qash mosque, then meets the Al Subaikha falaj to water the farms of the town. The village of Al Lajal also contains Al Mahyool falaj, Al Mahdeeth falaj and Al Saleel falaj, which is also called Al Falaj Al Sharqi or ‘the Eastern falaj’.–ONA

R U R A L O M A N

NATURAL BEAUTY: In the village of Al Lajal, there is a wadi, whose waters fl ow down throughout the year from the eastern mountains.

The residents of this area are famous for their friendliness and generosity. A stone castle with a number of rooms lies in the centre of the

village. It is surrounded by a semi-circular wall, very skilfully tended to by the old Omani villagers.– ONA

ECONOMIC BOOM: The number of hotel guests in Oman in 2014

reached 2,426,000 compared to 2,048,000, the year before.–ONA

1,257,000guests were booked into Muscat hotels and the revenues reached OMR147,194,000.>A6

Scientifi c bags to help pupils carry out experiments in labsTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Under a Memoran-dum of Understanding signed between the Muscat Electricity Distribution Company (MEDC), part of Nama Group, and the Min-istry of Education represented by the Directorate General of Educa-tion, the project for distributing scientifi c bags was formalised.

A scientifi c bag contains mate-rial to carry out various scientifi c experiments which suit diff erent age groups. A total of 150 bags will be distributed to schools’ labora-tories in Muscat.

Saeed bin Abdullah Al Battashi, head of the section of Energy Ef-fi ciency & Conservation at the MEDC, stated that “the com-pany’s participation in the scien-tifi c bags project is a part of the memorandum of understanding between the two institutions which was signed in November 2014 and was among several pro-jects for school students in the governorate of Muscat. It is con-sidered a very interesting project for students as it contains educa-tional experiments that develop students’ talents.”

Al Battashi further added, “The company supports this project as part of the role it envi-sions for itself to ensure sustain-ability. This year and the past year, the MEDC participated in several initiatives, such as ‘The book portfolio’ and ‘We live with

electricity’ competition.”As a gesture of the ministry,

the MEDC’s website link was added on the educational portal’s website to make it accessible to all who want to take a look at the company’s site and understand more about its services and vari-ous activities.

The ‘We live with electricity’ initiative comes as a result of the

cooperation between the directo-rate and the MEDC.

It features a contest for stu-dents of diff erent age groups to express their understanding re-garding saving electricity through their drawings.

The contest received a lot of participation as the fi nal en-tries were shortlisted by the judging committee.

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

This year and the

past year, the MEDC

participated in several

initiatives, such as

‘The book portfolio’

and ‘We live with

electricity’ competition

Saeed Al BattashiMEDC section head

A7

REGIONM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Eight young Tunisians were kidnapped... close to Tripoli

Hussein Yahyaoui, Tunisian lawmaker

Houthis head to Geneva for UN-sponsored peace talks

SANAA: A delegation of Yemeni rebels headed on Sunday for UN-sponsored peace talks in Geneva as their forces gained ground by seizing a provincial capital near the border with Saudi Arabia.

After repeatedly delaying their departure, the delegation left from the capital Sanaa aboard a UN plane for the Swiss city, where the talks are due to start on Monday, a day late. The UN’s peace envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, said in a statement that Monday would see the start of “preliminary inclusive consultations” bringing together the country’s warring fac-tions for the fi rst time.

AppealHe appealed for participants to take part “in good faith and with-out pre-conditions, and in a cli-mate of trust and mutual respect”.

Yemen has been wracked by confl ict between Houthi rebels and the internationally recog-nised government of exiled Presi-dent Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.

The rebels, supported by mili-tary units loyal to former presi-dent Ali Abdullah Saleh, have seized control of large parts of the

country including Sanaa, forcing Hadi to fl ee to Saudi Arabia.

Riyadh has been leading a cam-paign of air strikes against the re-bels since March 26 but has so far failed to force them from territory they have seized.

On Sunday the rebels faced lit-tle resistance as they took control of Al Hazm, the main city of Jawf province, residents and pro-gov-ernment fi ghters said.

The city lies only 150 kilome-tres (90 miles) south of the border with Saudi Arabia.

In Yemen’s main southern city of Aden, coalition air strikes on Sunday killed 13 rebels, a military source close to them said.

Fighting raged on across several districts of Aden, residents said, accusing the rebels of fi ring Katy-usha rockets on residential areas

and destroying at least six homes.And in Daleh farther north, six

rebels and four pro-government fi ghters died in 24 hours of clash-es, the province’s deputy governor said. Analysts say the confl ict has reached a deadlock and pressure has been mounting for an attempt at a political solution.

The rebel delegation that left Sanaa on Sunday included fi ve representatives from the Houthis and Saleh’s General People’s Con-gress party, an aviation offi cial and a source close to the rebels said.

Hassan Zaid, the head of oppo-sition party Al Haq, was also in the delegation and two other Houthis were heading to Geneva.

Representatives of Hadi’s gov-ernment had arrived on Saturday for the talks, which had been due to start on Sunday but were de-

layed after the rebels refused to board a UN plane that had been scheduled for a stopover in Saudi Arabia. The talks had fi rst been due to take place on May 28 but were postponed.

In Geneva for preliminary meetings, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was to take part in the opening session of the talks.

He has said the negotiations are aimed at securing a ceasefi re, agreeing on a withdrawal plan for the Houthis and stepping up hu-manitarian aid deliveries.

The delegations would “start with what we call proximity talks in two separate rooms with the hope they can be brought togeth-er,” UN spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told reporters in Geneva.

The UN Security Council and Ban have both called for a re-

newed humanitarian halt in the fi ghting following a fi ve-day truce last month. The Security Council this week heard a report from new UN aid chief Stephen O’Brien de-scribing Yemen’s humanitarian crisis as “catastrophic,” with 20 million civilians in need of aid -- 80 per cent of the population.

The World Health Organiza-tion (WHO) said on Friday that 2,584 people had been killed in fi ghting in Yemen as of June 7, with 11,065 wounded.

International powers are keen for a resolution to the confl ict, fearing the growing power of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the Yemeni branch of the militant network which has taken advan-tage of the chaos to seize territory including the southeastern city of Mukalla. — AFP

After repeatedly

delaying their

departure, the

delegation left from

the capital Sanaa

aboard a UN plane

for the Swiss city,

where the talks are

due to start today

Eight Tunisians kidnapped in LibyaTUNIS/TRIPOLI: Eight Tuni-sian citizens working in Libya’s capital Tripoli have been kid-napped not far from the city, a lo-cal politician told Tunisian state radio on Sunday, two days after gunmen snatched 10 staff from the Tunisian consulate.

Libya is in turmoil, with two ri-val governments and their armed factions battling for control. Armed groups have kidnapped foreign nationals and diplomats in the past year to try to pres-sure their governments to release jailed Libyan militants.

“Eight young Tunisians were kidnapped... close to Tripoli,” lo-cal lawmaker Hussein Yahyaoui told state Tataouin Radio. Tuni-sian offi cials did not immediately

confi rm the abduction. No group has claimed responsibility for kidnapping the consular staff , but Tripoli’s self-declared govern-ment said it hoped they would be freed soon after making contact with the captors and hearing the hostages were in good condition.

ArrestedTunisian authorities last month arrested Walid Kalib, a member of Libya Dawn, the armed group that took over Tripoli last summer. On Thursday, a Tunisian court re-fused to free Kalib, who faces kid-napping charges in Tunisia.

Libya Dawn, a loose alliance of former rebel brigades and harlin-ers’-leaning groups, seized power in Tripoli, expelling the existing

government, which now operates from the east of the country, and setting up its own. It also reinstat-ed a previous parliament.

Meanwhile, in Tripoli, a Libyan militant alliance said it had large-ly driven IS group militants out of their stronghold city of Derna after declaring war on the rival group last week. Street fi ghting has raged for several days between members of the local umbrella group Majlis Mujahideen and IS loyalists, who have been trying to increase their infl uence in the port city for more than a year.

Derna, a conservative city where hardliners resisted Muam-mar Gaddafi before his 2011 fall, was the fi rst place IS tried to gain support in Libya. A Majlis spokes-

man told local Libyan Nabaa TV that more than 70 IS militants had surrendered during the fi ght-ing, in which some were severely wounded. “Ninety per cent of Der-na city is now under the control of Majlis,” he said. “Majlis forces are dealing carefully with the snipers around the city.” Confi rming de-tails on the ground is complicated in places like Derna where there is little state presence. But local residents said on Saturday that armed locals had joined with Maj-lis forces to push back IS militants and retake parts of the city.

Majlis, a hardline outfi t linked to former rebel groups who fought Gaddafi , enjoys some local sup-port in Derna going back to the revolution. — Reuters

T R I P O L I

Court bars Sudan’s Bashir from leaving South AfricaJOHANNESBURG: A South African judge barred Sudan’s in-dicted president from leaving the country on Sunday, in a deepening rift between Africa and the West over what Pretoria called anti-poor country bias in the Interna-tional Criminal Court (ICC).

President Omar Al Bashir, vis-iting South Africa for an African Union summit, stands accused in an ICC arrest warrant of war crimes and crimes against hu-manity over atrocities commit-ted in the Darfur confl ict. He was fi rst indicted in 2009. A judge is expected on Monday to hear an application calling for Bashir’s ar-rest, though this appears unlikely as South Africa’s government has granted legal immunity to all Af-rican Union delegates.

South African President Jacob Zuma’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) responded fu-riously to Sunday’s court order, accusing the Hague-based ICC of seeking to impose selective West-ern justice by singling out Afri-cans. “The ANC holds the view that the International Criminal

Court is no longer useful for the purposes for which it was intend-ed,” the ANC said in a statement.

“Countries, mainly in Africa and Eastern Europe... continue to unjustifi ably bear the brunt of the decisions of the ICC, with Sudan being the latest example.”

Judge Hans Fabricius post-poned the hearing until 0930 GMT on Monday to allow the gov-ernment time to prepare its case, urging South African authorities to “take all necessary steps” to

prevent Bashir leaving the coun-try. Sudan’s government defended the South African visit of Bashir, who was sworn in this month in Khartoum for another fi ve-year term, and said the court order had “no value”. “We contacted South Africa in advance and informed them that the president would participate and they highly wel-comed his participation,” Sudan’s State Minister for Foreign Af-fairs, Kamal Ismail, told reporters in Khartoum. — Reuters

I C C W A R R A N T

Egypt refers 58 to military trial; 23 others jailed for killings

CAIRO: Egypt on Sunday referred 58 hardliners suspected of links with the outlawed Muslim Broth-erhood to a military court over al-leged “terrorist attacks” against the police and public property.

Also on Sunday, an Egyptian court has sentenced 23 people to 14 years in prison for the killings by an angry mob of four men out-side Cairo two years ago. The four dead were among attacked in June 2013 by a mob of several hundred residents as they gathered at a house in the town of Abu Musal-lam. The court handed down the sentences on Saturday, acquitting eight other defendants, a court of-fi cial said. Prosecutors accuse the 58 hardliners, 37 of whom are in custody, of working for the Broth-erhood and carrying out “terrorist attacks” between August 2013 and October 2014.

They were charged with “at-tempted murder of police offi cers, acts of sabotage against public buildings and property, resisting security forces, and vandalism”, a prosecution statement said.

It said the accused wanted to deal a blow to the Egyptian econ-omy, already battered by years of political turmoil, and sow terror among the people.

The authorities have waged a crackdown against the Brother-hood since the army overthrew former president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, and accuse the movement of being behind attacks against the security forces.

The Brotherhood, which scored major political gains after the 2011 ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak, was blacklisted as a “terrorist group” after Morsi’s overthrow. Hundreds of civilians have been tried before military tri-bunals since President Abdel Fat-tah Al Sisi, the former army chief who ousted Morsi, issued a decree in October allowing military trials of civilians suspected of attacking state infrastructure. — AFP

V E R D I C T

PEACE TALKS: From left, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Special Envoy for Yemen Saleh Al Qunaieer, GCC Secretary General Abdullatif

Al Zayani, United Nations (UN) General Secretary Ban Ki-moon and the United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh

Ahmed, pose after a meeting on Sunday at the UN offi ce in Geneva on the eve of Yemen peace talks. – AFP

IN THE DOCK: Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir wipes his eyes

as he attends the opening session at the 25th African Union Sum-

mit in Sandton, Johannesburg, on Sunday. – AFP

A8

INDIAM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

PROTEST AGAINST RAIL TICKET PRICE HIKEActivists of National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) stop a train at Rajendra Nagar terminal during a protest against the NDA

government for rail ticket price hike, in Patna on Sunday. - PTI

Hindi, 3 other Indian languages fi nd place in UAE driving testsDUBAI: Four Indian languages including Hindi can be chosen while appearing for driving tests here in the UAE from September.

Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali, Chinese, Russian and Persian languages can be opted by aspiring drivers besides the three existing languages for both theory tests as well as eight man-datory lectures.

The Roads and Transport Au-thority (RTA), which currently conducts tests in three languages — English, Urdu and Arabic, will off er knowledge tests and lec-tures in seven more languages from September.

“We will be having text on screen as well as voice over in 11 languages, which the candi-date can listen to through head-phones. In case a person cannot read, a voice will read out the questions and then the candidate can choose the correct answer from multiple options available,”

Arif Al Malek, Director of Driv-ers Training and Qualifi cations at RTA, was quoted as saying by a leading newspaper.

The mandatory lectures and knowledge test are required to obtain a driving licence.

The computer-based knowl-edge test needs to be passed by every candidate before moving on to the practical driving classes.The 30-minute test includes the text on screen and the voice over.

“We already have lectures in some of these languages, but we will be upgrading our system soon to conduct the lectures in a more organised manner so that every candidate has thorough knowledge of what it takes to drive on roads. For this we will ensure candidates are taught in the language of their choice,” Al Malek added.

Driving schools in Dubai wel-comed the move to introduce new languages. -PTI

D R I V I N G L I C E N C E

Sushma in row over travel documents of Lalit Modi

NEW DELHI: Indian External Aff airs Minister Sushma Swaraj was on Sunday at the centre of a major row for helping scam-tainted former Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi to obtain British travel documents but found strong support from the government and the BJP which rejected opposition demands for her resignation.

The genesis of the controversy was disclosure of emails showing that she had spoken to Indian-or-igin British MP Keith Vaz and its High Commissioner James Bevan favouring the grant of travel docu-ments to Lalit Modi, who is want-ed in India and has made London his home since 2010 to avoid a probe in this for alleged betting and misappropriation of funds in the T20 cricket tournament.

According to British media which quoted leaked emails, Vaz cited Swaraj’s name to put pressure on UK’s top immigration offi cial to

grant British travel papers to Lalit Modi, who subsequently got the documents in less than 24 hours.

Vaz also off ered to help Swaraj’s nephew Jyotirmay Kaushal to ap-ply for a British law degree course, the report said.

ReportsAfter the reports surfaced, 63-year-old Swaraj said in a series of tweets that she had taken a “hu-manitarian view” and conveyed to the British High Commissioner that they should examine Modi’s request as per their rules and “if the British government chooses to give travel documents to Lalit Modi - that will not spoil our bilat-eral relations”.

“I genuinely believe that in a situation such as this, giving

emergency travel documents to an Indian citizen cannot and should not spoil relations between the two countries,” the External Af-fairs Minister said.

“I may also state that only few days later, Delhi High Court quashed the UPA Government’s order impounding Lalit Modi’s passport on the ground that the said order was unconstitutional being violative of fundamental rights and he got his passport back,” Swaraj said.

On Vaz reportedly off ering to help Swaraj’s nephew to apply for a British law degree course, she said, “Regarding Jyotirmay Kaushal’s admission in a Law course at Sus-sex University, he secured admis-sion through the normal admis-sion process in 2013 — one year

before I became a minister.”Swaraj’s husband Swaraj

Kaushal and daughter Bansuri have reportedly been lawyers for Lalit Modi.

Call to investigateConservative MP Andrew Bridgen has written to Kath-ryn Hudson, UK parliamentary standards commissioner, urg-ing her to investigate whether Vaz had breached the MPs’ code of conduct.

Giving the chronology of events, Swaraj said on Twitter, “Some-time in July 2014, Lalit Modi spoke to me that his wife was suff ering from cancer and her surgery was fi xed for 4th August in Portugal.

He told me that he had to be

present in the hospital to sign the consent papers.

“He informed me that he had applied for travel documents in London and the UK Government was prepared to give him the trav-el documents.

However, they were restrained by a UPA Government commu-nication that this will spoil Indo-UK relations.

“Taking a humanitarian view, I conveyed to the British High Commissioner that the British Government should examine the request of Lalit Modi as per Brit-ish rules... If the British Govern-ment chooses to give travel docu-ments...that would not spoil our bilateral relations,” she added.

According to the British media, Indian-origin British MP Keith Vaz cited the name of Sushma Swaraj to put pressure on UK’s top immigration offi cial to grant Brit-ish travel papers to Lalit Modi.

Lalit Modi is facing an Enforce-ment Directorate(ED) probe into allegations of fi nancial irregulari-ties in the IPL.

Illegal bettingHe has been in the UK since 2010 when the IPL was caught in a huge storm over an alleged illegal bet-ting scandal.

The ED had also issued a look-out notice against him.

Meanwhile, rejecting opposi-tion demands for Sushma Swaraj’s resignation, the government, the BJP as well as Rashtriya Swayam-sevak Sangh (RSS) on Sunday de-fended the Indian External Aff airs Minister over the Lalit Modi trav-el documents issue, asserting that she had done no wrong and only acted on “humanitarian” grounds.

“We want to make it clear that whatever she has done is right.We justify it and the government completely stands by her,” Home Minister Rajnath Singh said after meeting Prime Minister Naren-dra Modi over the controversy. -PTI

According to British

media which quoted

leaked emails, British

MP Keith Vaz cited

External Aff airs

Minister Sushma

Swaraj’s name to put

pressure on UK’s top

immigration offi cial

to grant British travel

papers to ex-IPL boss

IN THE EYE OF STORM: Sushma Swaraj with former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi during an IPL

match in New Delhi in 2010. - PTI fi le photo

Doordarshan plans Republic Day-like coverage of International Yoga Day

NEW DELHI: Public broadcaster Doordarshan has readied plans for a Republic Day-like coverage of International Yoga Day event to be held at Rajpath where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also be present.

Doordarshan would be deploy-ing more than 20 hi-defi nition cameras for the coverage of the event on June 21, declared as In-ternational Yoga Day by the UN, sources said.

While two cameras will be posi-tioned atop India gate, there will be other cameras on jibs and another one on a several feet high hydrau-lic crane to give a bird’s eye view of the entire Rajpath from India Gate to Vijay Chowk.

It is expected that a record breaking number of people would participate in collectively per-forming yogic asanas at the event.

Around 18 cameras will cover the main stage and also ensure an all-round coverage of the perfor-mances, sources said, adding the aim was to have a Republic Day-like coverage.

Several Outdoor Broadcast vans for live coverage will also be put into service.

Sources say latest equipment will be used to ensure that the cov-erage is of international standards.

A special team comprising en-gineers, cinemtographers, sce-nic and property experts will be on duty for the live telecast of the event.

Most of these crew members have experience in the outdoor production of mega events like Independence Day, Republic Day, Commonwealth Games etc, sources added.

When contacted, Prasar Bharati

Chairperson A Surya Prakash said, “It is a unique event and a matter of great pride and the public broadcaster would leave no stone unturned to ensure that the broadcast is of highest

international standards.”Ahead of the fi rst International

Yoga Day celebrations on June 21, Indian yoga guru Ramdev on Sunday held a preparatory ses-sion with a large number of his

followers and children at Jawahar Lal Nehru stadium here. Brav-ing rains, 5,200 teachers from his Patanjali Yogpeeth and other practioners including children re-hearsed a 35-minute long “Com-mon Yoga Protocol” formulated by AYUSH Ministry this morning.

The rehearsal yoga programme was attended by those who will participate in the main pro-gramme on International Yoga Day at Rajpath, said S. J. Tijarwala, spokesman of Ramdev.

Ramdev also demonstrated a package of Yogic Asanas that keeps people healthy and helps them lead a medicine-free life, he said.

People from other faiths, includ-ing Mufti Sahmoon Qasmi, gen-eral secretary of an organisation of Imams, attended the session, he stated.

Later, the yoga guru said on a mi-

croblogging site Twitter: “Whole world should get up in morning & do yoga for a medicine-free healthy life.”

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) su-premo Mayawati on Sunday wel-comed celebration of Yoga Day on June 21 but condemned the way Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its“off shoots” are playing “com-munal card” through it.

“Our party is not against pro-grammes to be held on the Inter-national Yoga Day on June 21 and welcomes it.

But we condemn the way BJP and its off shoots are trying to play dirty game of using communal card on the occasion,” she told re-porters here.

She also accused the Narenda Modi government of starting “new controversial traditions” but did not elaborate. - PTI

G E A R I N G U P

REHEARSAL: Participants take part in yoga during the practice ses-

sion of International Day of Yoga Rehearsal Camp at Jawarhar Lal

Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday. -PTI

‘Cash for votes has brought disgrace to Tamil Nadu’

SIVAGANGA: Decrying the use of money to lure voters in elec-tions, former union minister P. Chidambaram on Sunday said it has brought “disgrace” to Tamil Nadu and asked people to take a vow not to accept cash for votes.

“Disbursement of cash for votes has brought disgrace to Tamil Nadu all over the country where people ask how much money will you get for the next election, Rs500 or Rs1,000 (per vote),” the senior Congress leader said.

He was making an apparent reference to allegations of wide-spread disbursement of cash for votes in the state in past elections, including last Lok Sabha polls.

Hoisting the Congress fl ag at 22 places in the district, his native, he said people should take a vow not to take money for casting votes in any poll.

Without naming the ruling AI-ADMK, he said one party in the state which was “cash-rich is very insolent” because they thought they could buy votes. Chidam-baram, who had represented Siva-ganga constituency in Lok Sabha, claimed several people told him that they were not even aware of their present (AIADMK) MP.

Chidambaram’s son Karti un-successfully contested the last Lok Sabha election from Sivaganga.-PTI

L U R I N G V O T E R S

P. Chidambaram

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A. Surya Prakash, Prasar Bharati chairperson

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INDIAM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

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RAINFALL 5% ABOVE NORMAL UNTIL NOWPeople walk during rains in Gurgaon on Sunday. The country has received fi ve per cent more rainfall than the normal limit until

now even as northwest India, the southern peninsula and Central India have received below normal rainfall, the MET depart-

ment said on Sunday. Overall, the country received 53.5 mm of rainfall as compared to normal rainfall of 50.5 mm of precipita-

tion from June 1 till date. - PTI

‘Tomar not cooperating with probe’

NEW DELHI: Delhi Police on Sunday said former Law Minister of the national capital Jitendra Singh Tomar was “not cooperat-ing” in the investigation in the fake degree case, saying he was “reluc-tant” to answer questions during interrogation.

Granted two-day extended police custody of Tomar by a court here on Saturday, the cops were unable to utilise the fi rst day as educational institutes and government offi ces where they intended to take him were closed being a Sunday.

A senior police offi cer said that when Tomar was being questioned by the investigating team, he was reluctant to answer and was “not cooperating” in the investigation.

Senior police offi cials said they may take the AAP MLA to some colleges in Delhi and the Nation-al Capital Region ton Monday, which could reveal more details in the probe.

Delhi Police claimed that docu-ments produced by him were “fab-ricated” and charges under Pre-vention of Corruption Act might also be invoked in the case.

The police had also said that Tomar, who quit as the Law Min-ister of Delhi after his arrest, was required for further custodial interrogation to know about the persons who had allegedly con-nived with him in procurement of purported fake educational certifi cates. - PTI

F A K E D E G R E E C A S E Ex-servicemen hold protests over pension scheme’s delay

NEW DELHI/JAIPUR: Hun-dreds of ex-servicemen took to the streets on Sunday across the country protesting delay in the implementation of the ‘One Rank, One Pension’(OROP) policy, de-manding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi forthwith fulfi l his promise made a year back on it.

The former soldiers have threatened to go an a relay hun-ger strike from Monday and also seek the intervention of President Pranab Mukherjee.

The protests comes after talks — both formal and back- channel — with the government failed as the ex-servicemen were not given a specifi c timeline for the imple-mentation of the long-pending One Rank, One Pension.

CommittedDefence Minister Manohar Par-rikar on Sunday sought to assuage their concerns, saying the promis-es made will be kept and that they should be “patient”.

“I assure you whatever we have promised that all would be done...but some people need to be pa-tient,” Parrikar said addressing a conference in Jaipur on chal-lenges and solutions regarding border safety.

Close to 2.2 million ex-service-men and over 600,000 war wid-ows stand to be the immediate benefi ciaries of the scheme which envisages uniform pension for the defence personnel retiring in the same rank with the same length of service, irrespective of their date of retirement.

“Currently, the pension for re-tired personnel is based on the Pay Commission recommendations at the time when he or she retired.

So, a Major General who retired in 1996 draws less pension than a Lieutenant Colonel who retired after 1996.

The ex-Defence personnel said this policy was “lopsided” and needed to be rectifi ed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured us that it will be im-plemented, but it has been one year,” said Col.(retd)Anil Kaul, the media advisor to Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM) at a rally in Jantar Mantar in the national capital.

Protests were also held in Pun-jab, Karnataka, Kerala,Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and other states covering over 50 cities, he said.

Major Gen(retd) Satbir Singh, vice-chairman of IESM, told the media that the protests will con-tinue till OROP is implemented.

The ex-servicemen maintained that they were not against any government but are pressing to get their long-pending dues.

They also said that they have sought an appointment with the President Pranab Mukherjee to take up this matter.

The Modi government has said that it is committed to OROP, one

of its key poll promises, but has been unable to implement it till now, they said.

In his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio talk, Modi had assured ex-servicemen that his government would soon resolve the OROP issue but this has not happened, they lamented.”

The Prime Minister’s voice still echoes in our minds when he roared at the ex-servicemen rally on September 15, 2013, in Rewari and demanded a white paper on OROP from the UPA Government.

He did not stop there, but de-clared that had there been BJP government in 2004, OROP would have been reality by now,” a state-ment released by the Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM), which is spearheading the agita-tion, said.

It said that ex-servicemen had believed Modi as they had found a leader who had the will to ap-prove the long-standing demand of OROP.

“Ex-servicemen all over In-dia not only voted for Modi (PM candidate) but as they also were the opinion makers in rural India where a majority of the defence personnel reside. Consequently BJP received an unprecedented mandate,” it said.

Interestingly, some farmers’ groups and students from Delhi University and Jawaharlal Nehru University also joined the protests on Sunday.

The slogan of ‘Jai Kisan, Jai Jawan’ was raised as a group of farmers joined the protest at Jan-tar Mantar here to support the ex-servicemen.

Even though the government has said it is committed to imple-menting OROP, there has been no offi cial word on why the scheme is getting delayed, they said.

Defence ministry sources said that the OROP fi le is with the Fi-nance Ministry for a fi nal budget-ary approval.

Meanwhile, a group of ex-ser-vicemen considered to be close to the RSS, wrote over the weekend to Finance Minister Arun Jait-ley seeking the implementation of OROP so as to not“breach the trust” lakhs of retired soldiers.

In an open letter, it also sought that a defi nite date be declared for the implementation of OROP.

Recalling that Modi had at a September, 2013, rally at Rewari promised to look after armed forces personnel if elected to power at the Centre, the Akhil Bharatiya Poorva Sainik Seva Par-ishad said OROP is a burning and emotive issue.

“The ex-servicemen across the country felt that fi nally here was a political party that is friendly and empathetic towards the cause of a soldier.

“As a result, most of us went all out to campaign for the BJP throughout India,” Lt Gen.(retd) VM Patil, president of the Pari-shad, said in the letter. - PTI

The protests come

after talks — both

formal and back-

channel — with the

government failed as

the ex-servicemen

were not given a

specifi c timeline for

the implementation of

the long-pending One

Rank, One PensionUP IN ARMS: Ex-servicemen of Gujarat state protest to demand the ‘One Rank One Pension’ scheme

in Ahmedabad on Sunday. - PTI

‘Sino-India ties on upward trajectory after Xi, Modi visits’MUMBAI: Sino-India ties have been taken on an upward trajec-tory by the recent visits of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, top Chi-nese leader Zhang Dejiang said on Sunday.

Zhang, who is chairman of the standing committee of People’s National Congress of China and third in the heirarchy, is leading a Chinese parliamentary delegation to India.

He also paid glowing tributes to Dr Dwarkanath Shantaram Kot-nis, who was part of the Indian Medical Mission to war-torn Chi-na in 1938, saying he is the symbol of Sino-Indian friendship and his legacy should be carried forward.

“Indians demonstrated their friendship with China in its grav-est hour,” he said while referring to Kotnis’ services and added that Kotnis is still commemorated and remembered in China and India.

Zhang said, “The visit of Chi-nese President Xi Jinping to India followed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China recently took the ties between the two countries on upward trajec-tory. My trip here will keep up the momentum,” the Chinese leader said. Xi had visited India in Sep-tember last year while Modi had gone to China last month.

The visiting dignitary was speaking at a gathering after meet-ing the late physician’s relatives and members of Dr Kotnis Memo-rial committee.

He also inaugurated an exhibi-tion highlighting Kotnis’ life and times to mark the diamond jubi-lee celebration of Indian Medical Mission to China.

A team of fi ve Indian physicians, of which Kotnis was a part, had provided medical assistance to Chinese soldiers fi ghting the Japa-nese in 1938.

Zhang described Dr Kotnis as a symbol of Sino-Indian friendship and stressed the need to carry for-ward his legacy.

In the eyes of Chinese people, Dr Kotnis and Indian Medical Mission represent the great and friendly people of India, he said.

“Dr Kotnis was a great friend of Chinese people. In 1938, at the age of 28, he bade farewell to his family in India and came to China which was facing Japanese aggression. We remember his noble character and should carry forward his spir-it,” Zhang said.

Describing the India-China friendship initiative of Dr Kotnis Memorial committee as a noble undertaking, he stressed the need to join hands to “give life” to the physician’s spirit.

Manorama, the 94-year-old sister of Dr Kotnis, called for increased people-to-people exchanges and cooperation

between the two countries.Atul Hule, secretary of Ven-

gurla-based Dr Kotnis Memo-rial Committee, said 2015-16 is the birth centenary year of Dr Kotnis’ wife Guo Qinglan.

“The committee has planned to observe it as a friendship year be-tween India and China. We plan to construct a hospital at Vengurla in Sindhudurg district, the native place of Dr Kotnis.

“Similarly, Vengurla city would be developed into a clean and model city in Maharashtra. We also want to establish a’sister city’ concept of Vengurla with one of the cities from China,” he said. -PTI

B I L A T E R A L R E L A T I O N S

Jitendra Singh Tomar

BOOST TO BILATERAL TIES: Chairman of the Standing Committee

of the National People’s Congress of China, Zhang Dejiang with wife

Xin Shusen waves on their arrival at Indian Air Force station Palam

in New Delhi on Sunday. - PTI

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

Underwater search for

missing plane begins

CHENNAI: Naval submarine INS Sindhudhvaj has begun un-derwater search along the coast-line of south Indian state of Tamil Nadu to trace the missing Coast Guard Dornier aircraft even as an expert team started scouring the area to locate the plane’s cockpit voice data recorder.

“Submarine INS Sindhudhvaj arrived in the area (coastline in Karikkal-Cuddalore region) late on Saturday and commenced un-derwater search,” a Coast Guard statement here said.

The search is to confi rm the transmission of 37.5 Khz from so-nar locator beacon of the missing aircraft, reported by INS Sand-hayak on June 12, it said.

“In order to provide further fi l-lip to the search, ICGS Vigraha has embarked with a National In-stitute of Oceanography (NIOT) team and a black box detector.

“The search probe will be low-ered at sea for reception of the

signal from the beacon of the air-craft,” the statement said.

Inspector General S. P. Shar-ma, Commander, Coast Guard (East), Chennai, said that the missing aircraft is equipped with a cockpit voice data recorder.

“Our team of four scientists is on board a Coast Guard ship to help locate the cockpit voice data recorder of the missing plane,” Director of Chennai-based NIOT, M. A. Atmanand said.

Meanwhile, the search for the missing aircraft and its three-member crew by CG and Naval ships and aircraft continued for the sixth consecutive day on Sun-day. Eight ships and aircraft of CG and Navy have been deployed for the search with the Coast Guard and naval aircraft logging in 124 hours in the operations.

National Remote Sensing Cen-tre, Hyderabad was requested by the Coast Guard to provide it the satellite imagery of the aircraft. - PTI

D O R N I E R A I R C R A F T

COMMEN ARYT I M E S O F O M A NM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Founder: Essa bin Mohammed Al Zedjali Chairman and Editor-in-Chief: Mohamed Issa Al ZadjaliDeputy Editor-in-Chief: Anees bin Essa Al Zedjali Chief Executive Offi cer: Ahmed Essa Al Zedjali

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T I M E S O F O M A NA12

It is often assumed that emerging-econ-omy living standards are bound to con-verge with those in developed countries. But, leaving aside some oil exporters and the city-states of Hong Kong and Singa-pore, only three countries – Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan – have come from far

behind to achieve per capita GDP of at least 70 per cent of the developed-country average over the last 60 years. China hopes to do the same, but it faces a distinctive challenge: Its sheer size.

Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan depended on export-led growth to catch up with the developed economies. But China – home to almost 20 per cent of the world population and responsible for 15 per cent of global output – is simply too large to depend solely on external markets. To reach the next stage of development, it will need to forge a diff erent growth path – and that will require more diffi cult reforms than those on which attention is often focused.

To be sure, export-led growth has fueled China’s economic rise so far, with its current-account sur-plus growing to 10 per cent of GDP in 2008. But such high surpluses are ultimately impossible to sustain. There simply is not enough import demand in the world to absorb ever-growing Chinese exports.

The global fi nancial crisis exposed that reality. Be-fore 2008, China’s massive surpluses were matched by unsustainable credit-fueled defi cits in developed economies. When boom turned to bust, falling glob-al demand hit China’s export sector, and threatened to increase unemployment.

In response, China turned to the domestic growth engine of credit-fi nanced investment in infrastruc-ture and real estate. Since 2008, credit has surged from 125 per cent of GDP to more than 210 per cent of GDP, enabling investment to increase from 42 per cent of GDP to nearly 48 per cent last year.

Across China, concrete was poured into apart-ment blocks, multilane highways, convention cent-ers, railway stations, and airports. Real-estate in-vestment now accounts for 15 per cent of China’s GDP, compared to less than 5 per cent in 2000; when related industries like steel and cement are taken into account, that fi gure rises to one-third of China’s GDP. Almost 60 million Chinese workers are em-ployed in construction today, up from just below 20 million in 2007. China’s current growth path stands in stark contrast to that followed by Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. When those countries’ per cap-ita GDP stood at current Chinese levels, real estate played only a minor role in their economies; indeed, the sector was often deliberately starved of credit.

The investment boom has kept China’s urban em-ployment growing strongly. But a country needs only so much housing.

True, total capital stock per capita in China still

lags far behind that of developed countries. But a recent International Monetary Fund report reveals the startling fact that China has now surpassed Ja-pan and South Korea in square meters of housing per capita, having reached a level near – or, in some smaller cities, well above – the European average.

As China’s construction frenzy ends, the economy is experiencing a major slowdown. By some esti-mates, China’s growth stalled almost completely in the fi rst quarter of this year. Even offi cial fi gures indicate that several provinces outside the more dy-namic coastal regions are in outright recession.

This leaves China facing two major challenges. One is fi nancial: How to deal with the unsustainable debts of many local governments and state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Fortunately, the solutions here are obvious. Local-government debts can be shifted to the central government, or bank loans can be writ-ten off and banks recapitalised.

The second, more profound challenge relates to the real economy: How to redeploy workers and cap-ital from the industrial sectors facing overcapacity and the most overbuilt cities.

This imperative is sometimes denied. Hundreds of millions of people, it is said, have yet to migrate to cities, where they will demand housing. But, given that almost half of China’s rural workers are already over 50 years old, many may never migrate. And Chi-na’s total population will begin to decline within 15 years. Far from being on the cusp of a wave of urbani-sation, China is within 10-15 years of its completion.

Even if urbanisation did continue at a high rate, many workers would not migrate to the second- and third-tier cities where overcapacity is most extreme, but to the major coastal cities. Though the govern-ment can use its hukou (household registration) system to slow that migration, even it cannot direct people to the specifi c cities with the most excess ca-pacity. So what can be done?

One option would be to export construction ex-pertise and workers. Indeed, this is one rationale for China’s “one belt, one road” initiative, which aims to recreate the ancient overland and maritime Silk Roads connecting China to Europe.

But, as with any export-based strategy, the im-pact of this approach would be limited by the size of potential external markets, relative to China’s economy. No feasible level of construction exports can fully compensate for faltering domestic invest-ment. Domestic consumption, supported by strong wage growth, must instead be the dominant driver of growth. The good news is that wages are already growing faster than GDP – a trend that is likely to continue, as demographic change restricts the sup-ply of new labour.

Over the next decade, the number of Chinese aged 15-30 will fall by almost 25 per cent. — Project Syndicate

China needs to fix its real economic woes

Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan depended on export-led growth to catch up with the developed economies. But China – home to almost 20 per cent of the world population and responsible for 15 per cent of global output – is simply too large to depend solely on external markets

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

REFORM PLAN NEEDED

The decision by Apple to introduce the Nastaliq script to its op-erating systems and make it available to users later this year is a signifi cant triumph for Urdu, which has been struggling to

hold its own, both against the onslaught from an ‘anglicised’ version of the language, increasingly used in the subcontinent in both written and spoken form and from the Arabisation it is confronting. The lack of keyboards specifi cally designed for Urdu has resulted in those using the Naskh script designed for Arabic to be used for Urdu typing. The decision to introduce Nastaliq comes after a long campaign, forming part of an attempt to save Urdu from being corrupted by the addition of outside infl uences. Indeed, this infl uence from the Middle East is especially notable at home,. Words have been subtly altered to sound more Arabic even though the results sometimes sound ridiculous.

The fact is that Urdu is a beautiful language used by poets, writers and scholars for centuries. The Nastaliq script, developed in 14th cen-tury Persia, brings with it a rhythm and fl ow that is unique. It has been used by calligraphers and others to depict the beauty of Urdu writing. The step taken by Apple will help save a language which has faced a consistent threat.

The availability of Nastaliq on keyboards should encourage people to use the purer version of Urdu once more and prevent some of the corruption which we are currently seeing. A tool is now available to help ensure this. The willingness to use it and keep Arabic — another beautiful language — out of Urdu is important. It makes little sense to mingle the two and in the process ruin the elegance of both.

This is something about which we need to spread awareness. The campaign to introduce Nastaliq will now be taken to Microsoft as part of the eff ort to promote a language the subcontinent has used for cen-turies. — Express Tribune

A big boost for Urdu

With the campaign against IS faltering, US President Barack Obama has agreed to dispatch 450 more US troops to an Iraqi air base near the provincial capital of Ramadi, which

the terrorists captured last month. The underlying logic of his policy, however, hasn’t changed. Rather than aiming to destroy IS, Obama is focused on limiting US engagement. The result is an under resourced eff ort that remains unlikely to succeed.

The new deployment, which will raise the number of US military personnel in Iraq to 3,550 at four diff erent bases, would partly address some of the weaknesses in the US-led campaign to date. Administra-tion offi cials say US trainers deployed to the Taqaddum base will work directly with minority sect tribesmen who are needed for any suc-cessful counterattack on Ramadi, but who have been marginalised — despite promises to the contrary — by the Iraqi government. Offi cials say they also plan to speed up US arms deliveries to these tribes and Kurdish militia, who remain outgunned by IS.

Obama’s escalation nevertheless is most notable for excluding the steps that American and Iraqi commanders and military experts have been saying for a year are necessary to decisively reverse IS’ momen-tum. These include the deployment of US advisers to front-line Iraqi units, along with spotters who can call in airstrikes, and an increase of close-in air support. Such tactics worked during the US “surge” in Iraq, and they allowed Afghanistan’s Northern Alliance to overthrow the Taliban government in 2001-2002. That they are not being used now, despite IS’ recent gains, seems to be explained only by Obama’s political resistance to reversing his decision to withdraw US forces four years ago. A White House spokesman said Obama doesn’t want to do for Iraqis “what they can do for themselves.” But Iraqis cannot pilot attack helicopters or serve as tactical air controllers.

General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , told reporters Thursday that the new deployment might be the fi rst of several to new bases around the country that would serve to pre-pare Iraqi army and tribal forces for assaults on other IS-held areas. If that is Obama’s plan, then he should announce it and quickly move it forward. The incrementalism of his approach, with small and iso-lated steps taken too late, cannot change the momentum of the war. IS continues to attract thousands of recruits and to inspire new affi li-ates abroad because of the widespread perception that it is holding the United States at bay.

Iraq’s speaker of parliament, Salim Al Jibouri, pointed out during a visit to Washington this last week that the longer IS holds cities such as Ramadi and Mosul — the latter of which fell a year ago this last week — the more dangerous it becomes. It is well within the capacity of the United States to destroy IS. But it won’t happen until the presi-dent makes that — and not the minimisation of US intervention — the objective that determines military deployments. — The Washington Post

The US should try to

destroy IS extremists

A D A I R T U R N E R

Need to install timers at important traffi c signalsThis is regarding the solutions to the traffi c woes faced on Muscat’s roads. At the time of driving train-ing, the learner is told about the importance of lanes at intersec-tions and junctions. However, as per my observation, a large num-ber of drivers simply overlook this important rule which results in major traffi c jams. In my opinion, the essence of lane driving should be inculcated in such a manner that it also improves traffi c fl ow. The Royal Oman Police (ROP) is doing a commendable job in regulating the traffi c by the use of state-of-the-art cameras that capture speeding and other of-fences. However, in case of people being trapped between the red and green light while crossing the intersections, the authorities need

to look into installing timers at all important traffi c signals — like in many other countries all across the world — so that the drivers can be alerted to slow down to stop for an expected red signal. I hope that this suggestion can help us make Muscat a much better place to drive.Joel LoboMuscat

Speed up the closure of Guantanamo Bay prison I fi nd it very strange that the Guan-tanamo Bay detention camp is still being run by the US. The inmates there comprise both innocents and criminals. All of them live in a state of dread and uncertainty as they are routinely tortured. It is indeed high time that the real face of the prison is exposed to the world

and the prisoners are released or relocated to correctional centres. What’s more important is that the prison itself must be shut down immediately. Sensitivity and em-pathy towards our fellow beings is the need of the hour in our society, where gizmos and new fads have been given a dangerous place. Terrorists and criminals must be punished, but the lost years of tor-ture and dread of many innocent lives can never be justifi ed. Let the shutdown of Guantanamo deten-tion camp be hastened.Anna KavalamMuscat

Bangladesh PM should fl ay the anti-women remarksI found Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent remarks against women very infl ammatory

and derogatory. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in whose presence he made the comment, and the women in his cabinet should protest. The enlightened segment cannot believe that the country is helmed by a sexist and insensitive person. Abdul RasheedMuscat

No need for ban pop corns from cinema theatresI fi nd it strange that people are calling for a ban on eating of pop corns in cinemas. The fact of the matter is that pop corns and moviegoers go hand in hand. This is a tradition and it seems those proposing this ban are ignorant of the culture of moviegoers.Annabel Samuels Al Khuwair

READERS’ FORUM

The future will be better tomorrowDAN QUAYLE

website: www.newindiaoman.com

NEW INDIA ASSURANCENew India off ers a wide range of HEALTH INSURANCE COVERS to you/family/employee.

PERSPEC IVET I M E S O F O M A N M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5T I M E S O F O M A N A13

Larry is the sort of person who comes 30 minutes early to his appointment

and brings a novel to read in the reception room. We talk blood pressure, the publishing industry, his prostate cancer history, his grandchildren. At the end of our visit, I recap our plan. We’ll try the higher dose of his beta blocker, keep a sleep diary to address his insomnia and start physical ther-apy for his arthritic knee. Then the clincher: Let’s see each other again in three months.

We rarely think about all the calculations that go into those fi nal words. There’s the clinical question of when a diagnostic test might yield results or an interven-tion might take eff ect. Practically speaking, putting an appointment on the calendar means the patient and his problems are not (as we say in medicine) lost to follow-up. And it constitutes a relationship-building expression of concern: I care about your health. We are in this together.

As doctors, we usually base the timing of follow-up visits on some mix of habit and a gestalt of pa-tient need, all within the arbitrary structure of the lunar calendar. Not surprisingly, then, Dartmouth

researchers have shown that visit rates vary tremendously.

In a study of Medicare data, they found that seniors in Grand Forks, North Dakota, average less than three visits each year, while those in East Long Island, New York, go to the doctor as many as 12 times a year on average. Patients tend to have more visits per year if they are sicker, the study found, but also if they live in an area with more doctors or with doctors who tend to ask patients to come in more often, even when adjusting for factors such as health status. What the patient prefers seems to have no signifi cant association with visit rates.

The timing of follow-up visits, in other words, has tended to fall under the art, rather than the sci-ence, of medicine. While studies suggest that connecting with a doctor is generally a good way to build a trusting relationship and to promote health, we don’t re-ally know the right frequency of visits. The few studies that exist on the subject pertain to specifi c conditions, such as kidney fail-ure: In one observational study of patients on haemodialysis, patients who had four visits per month had the same risk of death

and only a slightly lower risk of hospitalisation in the following year compared with those who had less-frequent visits. Several other studies, of prenatal care, for instance, have found that fewer visits may be just as good.

So the broader trend toward evidence-based practice in medi-cine hasn’t quite caught up with the basic question of how often to see your doctor. With appoint-ments harder and harder to come by, medical costs still rising and a long-standing problem of both overuse and underuse of health care in the United States, doc-tors ought to pay closer attention to how and how often we ask pa-tients to see us. Cutting out un-necessary visits would free up doctors to see patients who truly need care, shrinking lengthy wait times (like the 66 days it takes to book a physical in Boston, where I practice primary care) and poten-tially reducing visits to specialists or emergency departments for problems that primary-care doc-tors could treat better.

This is particularly important in light of the projected increase in visits by a growing insured pop-ulation under the Aff ordable Care Act. — The Washington Post

ELECTRICITY, WATER PANEL MEETS MUSCAT: The AGCC committee for electricity and water rationalisation met here yesterday under the chairmanship of Abdullah bin Ali bin Dawood, undersecretary of the Ministry of Electricity and Water. Dawood said the committee discussed papers prepared by two working groups on electricity and water tariff s and use of the two services. He said the committee also discussed proposed measures including graded pricing of electricity and water consumption, and including the rational use of water and electricity as part of school syllabuses and the use of heat insulation. He said the committee will report recommendations to the AGCC panel meeting to be held in the fi rst week of July. The committee also reviewed the topics to be discussed at the fi fth Gulf Water Conference scheduled to be held in Qatar in March 2001.

FROM OUR ARCHIVES

There are times when I wish somebody would stand up in the National Assembly at the risk of being expelled from his party, thump the table and say that most of what is discussed in the assembly is a lot of twaddle

When I switched on the telly a couple of days ago, PTV World, the least hysterical

of the local TV channels, was televis-ing the debate on the 2015-2016 fed-eral budget. Attendance in the Na-tional Assembly (NA) was relatively thin. Suddenly, the prime minister walked in rather deliberately, shook hands with a few gofers and sat down close to his fi nance minister.

To emphasise the point that this was supposed to be an important event, the ticker at the base of the screen reminded us that Prime Min-ister Nawaz Sharif was attending the National Assembly session.

This, of course, gave me the im-pression that as a rule the prime min-ister did not make a habit of entering the National Assembly. I got a good look at some of the people who had been elected. Except for Mushahid Hussain, who always has a twinkle in his eye, the rest of the motley crowd appeared a little bored.

Once again PTV World came to the viewer’s rescue with another ticker which announced that the session was being chaired by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ayaz Sadiq. I always thought that that was what the speaker was supposed to do — chair meetings. Anyway, the speaker gave the fl oor to Tariqullah of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), who had been fi dgeting for some time and wanted to be the fi rst in line to give the nation a lesson in economics.

He had the right mixture of right-eous indignation and outrage tem-pered by an irrepressibly jaunty op-timism. But he came across as too linear, too single-issue, too obvious. Afraid that somebody might steal his thunder he hit on a number of points in rapid succession from a prepared speech and occasionally looked up to see if anybody was listening.

Nobody appeared to be interested. The camera picked out one lawmak-

er who was picking his nose, another who sat totally impassive, and a lady in white who sat two rows behind, her head suitably covered.

She remained expressionless and was probably wondering if her clean-ing woman had turned up that morn-ing. A ticker appeared which an-nounced that a murderer convicted in 1992 of killing three people had just been hanged. We also learned that Sartaj Aziz had condemned the Indians for their provocative state-ments. A few other condemnations followed. Somebody said “We will not be provoked.” The Speaker sud-denly interrupted the JI lawmaker to state that it would soon be time to off er prayers. I don’t know what hap-pened after that because the electric-ity suddenly went off .

There are times when I wish somebody would stand up in the Na-tional Assembly at the risk of being expelled from his party, thump the table and say that most of what is discussed in the assembly is a lot of twaddle. Take for instance The Pro-tection of Women Act. What is the point of re-introducing something which has been initiated and passed during the Pakistan Peoples’ Party’s heyday but never has and never can be implemented in this country?

Themes like protecting women and children are just ploys to di-vert attention from the real issues plaguing the country — issues like the desperate shortage of electricity and water both for agriculture and domestic consumption.

Currently the prime minister is obsessed with the Metro Bus Service which is being put together at phe-nomenal cost. Couldn’t this money have been used to set up small dams and water reservoirs or desalination plants, and to tap energy from the sun in the rural hinterland?

Or do we have to wait until some other party takes over? — Express Tribune

How about tackling the major issues Mr. PM?

TODAY IN HISTORY1381 The Peasant’s Revolt, led by Wat Tyler,

climaxes when rebels plunder and burn the Tower of London and kill the Archbishop of Canterbury.

1645 Oliver Cromwell’s army routs the

king’s army at Naseby. 1846 A group of settlers declare California

to be a republic. 1907 Women in Norway win the right to

vote. 1965 A military triumvirate takes control

in Saigon, South Vietnam.

HISTORYNET.COMGraphicsGraphic News /

Twitter’s financial woes

Source: Twitter, NYSE, Twopcharts

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo is stepping down after failing to stem the messaging platform’s slowing user growth. Despite revenue of $1.4 billion last year, it hasn't made a profit since its stock market debut in 2013

2014 2015JulJun

50

45

40

35

30Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

Quarterly revenue

Twitter share price ($)

2014: Report suggests 44%of users have never tweeted

$312mQ2

$361mQ3

$479mQ4

$436mQ1

$470m*Q2

$35.84

*estimate by Twitter’s chief financial officer

Oct 9: $55.29

Apr 7: $52.87

Apr 27:$51.66

Nov 10: $39.59Apr 27-29: Share price falls25% as Q2 revenue fails tomeet expectations

Oct 24: Share pricefalls following Q3losses of $175mand user growth ofjust 4.8% over Q2

Pick up any newspaper or magazine, and you’re likely to see some la-

ment about the economics of college: “Too many degrees are a waste of money,” says the Economist; an education spawns “crippling” debt, says Salon; it “isn’t worth the mon-ey,” says USA Today.

I entered academia 52 years ago as a student of Latin and Greek expecting to encounter a placid sector of American life. Now, with a college de-gree replacing a high school diploma as the required ticket for a career, what used to be a quiet corner is now a favour-ite target of policymakers and pundits. Unfortunately, most commentary on the value of college is naive or com-pletely misses the point of higher education.

Increasingly, people evalu-ate college in purely economic terms, reducing it to a com-modity like a car or a house. How much does the average English major at University X earn 18 months after gradua-tion? What is the average debt of University Y’s alumni? How much more does the average college grad earn over a life-time compared with someone with only a high school diplo-ma? (The current number ap-pears to be about $1 million.) There is now a cottage indus-try built around such data.

Even on purely economic grounds, such questions, while not useless, begin with a false assumption. If we are going to treat college as a commodity, and an expensive one at that, we should at least grasp the essence of its eco-nomic nature. Unlike a car, college requires the “buyer” to do most of the work to obtain its value. The value of a degree depends more on the student’s input than on the college’s cur-riculum. I have seen excellent students get great educations at average colleges and unmo-tivated students get poor edu-cations at excellent colleges. I have taught classes that my students made great through their eff orts, and classes that my students made average or worse through their lack of eff ort. Though I would like to think I made a real con-tribution to my students’ learning, my role was not the sole or even the determining factor in the value of those courses to them.

The courses a student takes (or doesn’t take), the amount of work she does, the intel-lectual curiosity she exhibits, her participation in class, her focus and determination — all contribute far more to her educational outcome than the college’s overall curriculum, much less its amenities and social life. Yet the American national debate appears to believe that students simply receive their education from

colleges the way a person walks out of Best Buy with a television.

The results of this kind of thinking are pernicious. Gov-ernors and legislators, as well as the press, treat colleges as purveyors of goods, students as consumers and degrees as products. Students get the message. If colleges are re-sponsible for outcomes, then students can feel entitled to classes that do not push them too hard, to high grades and to material that does not chal-lenge their assumptions or make them uncomfortable. Hence colleges too often cater to student demands for trig-ger warnings, “safe rooms” and cancellations of com-mencement speakers. When rating colleges, as everyone from the president to weekly magazines insists on doing nowadays, people use per-formance measures such as graduation rates and time to degree, as though those fi g-ures depended entirely upon the colleges and not at all upon the students.

This point is made suc-cinctly by an apocryphal story about a university president who said this to new freshmen each year: “For those of you who have come here in order to get a degree: Congratula-tions, I have good news for you. I am giving you your degree to-day, and you can go home now. For those who came to get an education, welcome to four great years of learning at this university.”

So let’s acknowledge that college is not a commodity. It’s a challenging engagement in which both parties have to play an active and risk-taking role if its value is to be realised. Professors need to inspire, to prod, to irritate, to enable learning that can’t happen simply from reading books or watching fi lms or surfi ng the Web. Good teachers “supply oxygen” to their classrooms, in the words of former Emo-ry University president Bill Chace; they do not merely supply answers or facts.

The ultimate value of col-lege is the discovery that you can use your mind to make your own arguments and even your own contributions to knowledge, as do many students pursuing research in college.

That, too, is a new sensa-tion, and a very good one. Yes, it generally leads to higher career earnings. But it is the discovery itself that is life-changing.

To create what is, for most of us, that new sensation, you need a professor who pro-vokes and a student who stops slumbering. It is the responsi-bility of colleges and universi-ties to place students in envi-ronments that provide these opportunities.

It is the responsibility of students to seize them. Genu-ine education is not a com-modity; it is the awakening of a human being. — The Washington Post

College is not a commodity

How often should you see the doctor?

H U N T E R R AW L I N G S

I S H A N I G A N G U L I

A N W E R M O O R A J

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PAKISTANM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

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Executions halted for a month in Ramadan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has im-posed a one-month moratorium on executions during Ramadan, offi cials said on Sunday, giving a temporary reprieve to a death row prisoner whose lawyers say he was a juvenile at the time of the crime.

Shafqat Hussain was sentenced to hang for killing a seven-year-old boy in 2004, when his lawyers and family say he was under 18 and therefore not eligible for ex-ecution. But last Wednesday the Supreme Court rejected an appli-cation by Hussain’s lawyers to set up a judicial commission to deter-mine his age.

On the same day, despite inter-national condemnation, authori-ties hanged for murder another man who was said to have been a minor at the time of the crime and who was allegedly tortured into confessing.

“It is a tradition that nobody is executed in Ramadan and the au-thorities have ordered that this tradition continues this year too,” said Nusrat Mangan, Inspector General of Prisons in the southern

province of Sindh where Hussain has been held.

“We have to seek death war-rants two weeks prior to hang any convict, so his hanging will take place after at least one month,” Mangan told AFP.

An offi cial in the federal interi-or ministry confi rmed that a noti-fi cation had been issued to halt ex-ecutions during Ramadan, which starts this week in Pakistan.

But Nazeer Farooq, Inspec-tor General of Prisons in the country’s most populous prov-ince of Punjab, said his depart-ment had not received such a notifi cation yet.

“We have to execute around two dozen convicts before Ramadan in any case,” he told AFP.

The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says the country has hanged over

150 convicts since restarting ex-ecutions in December following a Taliban school massacre.

A moratorium on the death penalty had been in force since 2008, and its end angered rights activists and alarmed some for-eign countries. Amnesty Inter-national estimates that Pakistan has more than 8,000 prisoners on death row, many of whom have exhausted all avenues of appeal. Critics say the country’s criminal justice system is marred by police torture and poor legal representa-tion, meaning many of those now facing the gallows have not had a fair trial. — AFP

It is a tradition that

nobody is executed

in Ramadan and

the authorities have

ordered that this

tradition continues

this year too, said

Sindh province’s

inspector general

of prisons

TEMPORARY REPRIEVE: Pakistani policemen keep vigil outside the central jail in Karachi on Janu-

ary 13, 2015, where authorities are said to have executed a prisoner. — AFP fi le photo

Nazeer Farooq, Inspector General of Prisons in the

Punjab, said his department had not received a

notification yet. He added that around 24 convicts

had to be executed before Ramadan in any case

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

NGO working for children allowed to start operationsISLAMABAD: Days after author-ities in the federal capital sealed the offi ces of international non-governmental organisation Save the Children, the interior ministry has allowed the NGO to resume operations in Pakistan.

Save the Children has previ-ously been accused of involve-ment with the Central Intelligence Agency and Dr Shakeel Afridi in tracking down the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad.

Suspending its fi rst order in which it sealed offi ces and op-erations of the NGO in Islamabad earlier this week, the Ministry of Interior let the international NGO to continue its work in the country.

“The undersigned is directed to refer to this ministry’s letter of even number dated 11th June 2015 on the subject noted about. The competent authority has desired that the action on above letter may be held in abeyance till further order,” reads the letter issued by Ministry of Interior.

A copy the letter issued by a sen-ior offi cer of the ministry is also available with The Express Trib-une. “The organisation (Save the Children) can continue its work in Pakistan as it has been doing for

decades until any further orders,” a senior offi cial of interior Min-istry said. “We are in process of regulating all international NGOs and NGOs and all international or-ganisations have been directed to follow the new laws or close their offi ces,” he added.

Streamlining operations Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar has said the government is work-ing on streamlining the operations of all non-profi t organisations working in the country to regulate their activities.

Speaking to reporters outside the National Assembly in Islama-bad on Friday, Nisar said a com-mittee constituted by Prime Min-ister Nawaz Sharif was working on drafting new laws to set a mecha-nism for operations of all such organisations. Sharif ’s Adviser on Foreign Aff airs Tariq Fatemi heads the committee.

He added that no NGO work-ing against the country’s national interest would be allowed to con-tinue working in Pakistan.

“We just want to regulate the system. We do not want to shut down NGOs, which follow our laws.” — Express Tribune

S A V E T H E C H I L D R E N

Legendary Gwadar cinema lies in ruinsKARACHI: A decade ago Gwadar was a tiny city but had immense opportunities for entertainment; one of them being Taj Mahal Talk-ies, a cinema very popular among the locals.

According to gwadar.pakvoices.pk, audiences would enjoy perfor-mances by renowned artists such

as Sultan Rah and Waheed Murad on a regular basis at the cinema.

Unfortunately, a decade ago Taj Mahal Talkies was shut down and all that remains is the edifi ce of a once imposing structure. The crumbling building of Taj Mahal Talkies is now home to migrants from other provinces. — Express Tribune

N O S T A L G I A

SHUTTER-DOWN STRIKE IN SINDHSamina, 8, adjusts her scarf as she sits beside her father, who is a labourer and napping

outside closed shops during a strike along a market in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sunday. The

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) political party called a shutter-down strike across

Sindh province on Sunday to protest against the provincial budget 2015-16, according to

local media. — Reuters

2 million youth to be trained in various skills: ShahbazLAHORE: Chief Minister Shah-baz Sharif said on Saturday the government aimed to train two million youngsters in various skills over the next three years.

“The youth make up 60 per cent of the population of the coun-try. They hold the key to a bright future,” the chief minister said at the inauguration of two-day Skills Expo and Job Fair-2015. The Technical Education and Vocational Training Author-ity (TEVTA) has organised the event at the Lahore International Expo Centre.

Interest-free loansSharif announced interest-free loans of Rs75,000 each for 4,000 youth trained by the TEVTA in collaboration with Akhuwat Foundation. He said the scheme would help the youth earn a live-

lihood. He said Rs11 billion inter-est-free loans had been distrib-uted among 1.1 million families through Akhuwat Foundation. The recovery rate is more than 99 per cent, he said. He said provid-ing technical training to the new generation was an investment.

“Development goals cannot be achieved unless we empower our youth,” he said. He praised the TEVTA for promoting tech-nical education and providing a skilled manpower fulfi lling the market needs.

The chief minister called the expo a step towards producing a skilled workforce. He said the TEVTA, the Punjab Vocational Training Council and the Tech-nology Upgradation and Skill Development Company had been working according to the govern-ment’s vision.

“Equipping the youth with technical education is the need of the hour.

The country will progress if we train youngsters in the skills re-lated to agriculture and the indus-try,” he said.

IndustrialistsHe said the government favoured a close relationship between the industry and the vocational training institutions. He urged industrialists, vocational training institutions and teachers to rec-ommend courses aimed at pro-ducing the manpower according to market needs.

Sharif said a seminar should be arranged so that an eff ective plan could be chalked out for the purpose. He said arranging road shows could be a step in the right direction. — Express Tribune

V O C A T I O N A L T R A I N I N G

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GLOBAL EYEM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

GERMAN CYCLISTS PROTEST: Cyclists ride during a rally through Berlin, Germany, on Sunday. More than 200,000 people are expected to take part in the demonstration to draw attention to the need for better

road conditions for cyclists in Berlin, according to the organisers of the event. — Reuters

LOS ANGELES MINIMUM WAGE GETS BOOST: Members of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ group protest the death of Ezell Ford as the Los Angeles

Mayor Eric Garcetti signs into law an ordinance raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020, in Los Angeles, California on Satur-

day. Los Angeles is the fi rst major city to sign the ordinance and the increase will be $6 per hour. — AFP

DIPLOMACY JAPANESE STYLE: US ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy, right, and Akie Abe, wife of Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo

Abe, dressed in traditional work clothes, prepare to plant rice seedlings at a paddy fi eld in Shimonoseki, western Japan, on Sunday. Ken-

nedy transplanted rice seedlings with Akie Abe on Sunday during a visit to Shimonoseki, the hometown of Shinzo Abe. — Reuters/Kyodo

DAKAR FASHION WEEK: Models present creations by fashion

designer Zak Kone during the 15th edition of Dakar Fashion Week

on the Place de l’Obelisque (Obelisk Square) in Dakar, Senegal, on

Saturday. — AFP

KITE FLYING IN MALAYSIA: Locals fl y kites on a beach in Kota

Kinabalu, in the Malaysian Borneo state of Sabah on Sunday. — AFP

LEBANON LANTERN FESTIVAL: People release sky lanterns during

Lebanon Lantern Festival in Beirut, on Saturday. The festival took

place this year under the slogan ‘We Remember’, inciting people to

recall their good memories they had in the city. — Reuters

CHINA’S PEARL RIVER DELTA BRIDGE: The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-

Macao Bridge (HZMB), which will link the three cities in the Pearl

River Delta, is seen under construction off Hong Kong’s Lantau

Island, China, on Friday. — Reuters

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Zoo animals create chaos in flood-hit Georgian capital

TBILISI: Lions, tigers and even a hippopotamus escaped from a zoo in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Sunday, adding to chaos caused by fl ooding that killed at least 12 peo-ple, offi cials said.

Police and soldiers were hunt-ing down the animals, recapturing some and shooting others dead, while rescuers airlifted scores of people trapped by the fl oods. Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili called on Tbilisi residents to stay indoors while the animals were still at large, describing the damage to the city’s infrastructure as “substan-tial” after the River Vere burst its banks after hours of torrential rain.

Without shelter“Our latest estimate is that the death toll is 12,” Tbilisi Mayor Da-vid Narmania told journalists.

The mayor’s offi ce said dozens of families had been left without shelter and thousands without water and electricity in the city.

Several main roads were com-pletely destroyed and small hous-es and cars were swept away by the torrents, while half a dozen coffi ns in a city cemetery were washed out of the ground and lay on the mud.

Tbilisi Zoo spokeswoman Mzia Sharashidze told the InterPress-News agency that three dead bod-ies had been found on the grounds of the zoo, including those of two employees.

“Search for animals continues, but a large part of the zoo is simply non-existent. It was turned into a hellish whirlpool,” Sharashidze said. She said 20 wolves, eight li-ons and an unspecifi ed number of tigers, jackals and jaguars had been shot dead by special forces or were missing. “Only three out

of our 17 penguins were saved,” she added.

Rustavi 2 television broadcast footage showing a hippo swim-ming in the fl ooded Heroes’ Square in downtown Tbilisi as rescuers struggled to capture the animal.

The corpses of a lion and a pony lay on the road close to the zoo on Sunday afternoon, an AFP jour-nalist saw. The government set up a hotline for residents to inform the emergency services if they

spotted any of the predators.President Giorgi Margvelash-

vili sent his condolences to the victims’ families as he visited the aff ected area to observe the clean-up operation. “The human losses that we have suff ered are very hard to tolerate. I express my con-dolences to all the people who lost their relatives,” Margvelashvili told local television. Jacob Janju-lia, a 21-year-old student who was among the residents volunteering to help rescuers, said parts of Tbi-lisi were “ravaged”.

“It’s the duty of all citizens to help rescuers, to help the aff ected people,” he told AFP.

Another Tbilisi resident, 46-year-old dentist Anna Korinte-li, wept as she surveyed the scene.

“Such a terrible tragedy, people died, many lost their homes. I can’t stop crying,” she said.

“My heart bleeds when I think of what happened to the animals in Tbilisi zoo.”

The head of the immensely infl uential Georgian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Ilia II, blamed the fl oods on the “sin” of Com-munists who he said built the zoo using money raised from destroy-ing churches and melting down their bells. “A terrible tragedy hap-pened, people died in the fl ood. Tbilisi Zoo is ravaged. When the Communists occupied Georgia, and started repressions against Christians and the clergy and the destruction of churches and monasteries, they ordered church

bells to be melted, the metal sold and a zoo to be built with that money,” he said in his Sunday morning sermon.

He said the zoo therefore “can’t fl ourish on that place. It must be relocated to a diff erent place. A sin never remains without punish-ment,” he added.

Interior ministry spokeswom-an Nino Giorgobiani said rescuers were airlifting scores from fl ood-aff ected areas after the heavy rainfall also caused a landslide on the Tskneti-Betania road outside the capital. In May 2012, fi ve peo-ple, including a mother and her two children, were killed in fl ood-ing that swept through Tbilisi’s ramshackle slums that are home to the city’s poorest. — AFP

Prime Minister Irakli

Garibashvili called

on Tbilisi residents

to stay indoors

while the animals

were still at large

Thousands fl ee as Kurdish forces clash with IS groupAKÇAKALE (TURKEY): Kurd-ish forces advanced on Sunday to the gates of a Syrian town and clashed with IS militants, an up-surge in violence that saw Turkey open its border to fl eeing civilians.

Backed by Syrian rebel fi ghters and US-led air strikes, the Kurd-ish militia pressed their off ensive on the northern town of Tal Aby-ad, a strategic supply route from Turkey to IS’s self-proclaimed capital of Raqa.

Hussein Khojer, a commander with the Kurdish People’s Pro-tection Units (YPG), said fi ght-ing raged on the eastern edges of Tal Abyad, just 50 metres (yards) from the town itself.

“We are fi ghting for control of the fi rst checkpoint,” Khojer said in Beirut, adding that the advance came after three days’ of heavy clashes.

He said IS had tried to block the advance by blowing up two bridg-es. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Kurdish fi ght-ers “just waded across” and had reached the town’s southeastern edges but had yet to enter.

Kurdish sources say the goal is to cut off a crucial supply line for the militants, who have been ac-cused of bringing in foreign fi ght-ers and supplies across the Turk-ish border.

Major battleFearing a major battle, Arab and Kurdish civilians fl ed their homes and headed for the border fence with Turkey, where thousands had been clustered behind barbed wire at the Akcakale crossing.

Turkey later began accepting onto its territory refugees, an AFP photographer said.

Dozens of them, many carry-ing sacks of possessions, started

passing through the Akcakale border gate onto Turkish terri-tory as thousands more awaited their turn to cross on other side.

It came after two days of them being trapped between the IS militants on the Syrian side of the border and Turkish troops on the other who fi red water cannon and even pepper spray to keep them at bay. Fears have been building in the area for days, as the Kurd-ish YPG militia and its allies ad-vanced from east and west on the town of about 15,000.

By Saturday the YPG had seized at least 20 villages south-west of Tal Abyad, according to the Britain-based Observatory which relies on a wide network of sources across Syria.

The advance sparked fear among civilians who fl ed in droves and slept the night at the fence in the open.

Many could be heard asking in Arabic for help, and holding up

empty bottles, pleading for water in scorching early summer tem-peratures.

A Kurdish activist who visits the front line daily said residents were seeking refuge wherever they could. “Tal Abyad is almost completely surrounded,” Arin Shekhmos said.

The town lies on the border be-tween the mainly Kurdish town Kobane and Syria’s most popu-lous ethnic Kurdish region -- Ha-sakeh province -- in the northeast.

Backed by US-led air raids, YPG units scored a landmark vic-tory against IS in January in Kob-ane. Since then, Kurdish forces have been chipping away at jihad-ist territory on either side of Raqa -- from Hasakeh province to the east and Aleppo to the west.

“We are waiting for the whole border area to be liberated -- from northeastern Syria all the way to Kobane,” said Mustafa Ebdi, a Kurdish activist in Kobane. — AFP

T O W N O F T A L A B Y A D , S Y R I A

Rouhani slams critics of nuclear negotiations

TEHRAN: Iranian President Has-san Rouhani hit out on Sunday at critics of his drive for a nuclear deal with major powers, saying they belittled the impact of sanc-tions on ordinary people.

“Those who say that sanctions are not important probably don’t know anything about people’s wal-lets,” Rouhani said in a televised speech, adding that they had raised the cost of imported goods by 10 to 15 per cent.

Speaking at a rally in the north-eastern city of Bojnord, Rouhani used sweeping rhetoric to play up the benefi ts of easing Iran’s long international isolation.

“With the guidance of the Su-preme Leader and the support of the people, we will enrich both uranium and the economy in Iran,” he told a crowd of thousands.

“We want the nation to be happy and productive, to have a bright economy and social welfare — and to have centrifuges too.”

In recent weeks, the president’s conservative critics have claimed that the main cause of Iran’s eco-nomic woes is not Western sanc-tions imposed over its nuclear programme but failings in govern-ment policy.

Tehran mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said earlier this month that “mismanagement and a lack of planning in the current and previous governments have had more impact than sanctions”.

Parliament speaker Ali Larijani said only “20 to 30 per cent of the economic problems” of the coun-try were due to international sanc-tions. Rouhani has made the quest for a deal lifting the sanctions in return for reining in Iran’s nuclear programme the centrepiece of his two years in power.

Iran and world powers are work-ing to a June 30 deadline for a com-prehensive agreement. Sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States on Iran’s oil and fi nancial sectors since 2012 have plunged the country into a deep economic crisis with infl a-tion rising to more than 40 per cent. On Saturday, at a news con-ference also marking the anniver-sary of his election, he was more measured about the prospects for the talks, warning that a deal could be delayed if world powers brought new issues into play. — Agencies

S A N C T I O N S - H I T N A T I O N

ROAMING FREELY: A man directs a hippopotamus after it was shot with a tranquiliser dart at fl oods in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Sunday. – Reuters

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

FLEEING FOR SAFETY: A Syrian child fl eeing the war is lifted over

border fences to enter Turkish territory illegally, near the Turkish

border crossing at Akcakale in Sanliurfa province on Sunday. – AFP

LONDON: Britain has pulled out agents from live operations in “hostile countries” after Rus-sia and China cracked top-secret information contained in fi les leaked by former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, the Sunday Times reported.

Security service MI6, which operates overseas and is tasked with defending British interests, has removed agents from cer-tain countries, the newspaper said, citing unnamed offi cials at the offi ce of British Prime Min-ister David Cameron, the Home Offi ce (interior ministry) and security services.

Snowden downloaded more than 1.7 million secret fi les from security agencies in the United States and Britain in 2013, and leaked details about mass surveil-lance of phone and internet com-munications.

Identify agentsThe United States wants Snowden to stand trial after he leaked clas-sifi ed documents, fl ed the country and was eventually granted asy-lum in Moscow in 2013.

He went to Russia via Hong Kong, and although he claimed in 2013 that the encrypted fi les remained secure, Britain be-lieved both Russia and China had cracked documents which contain details that could allow British and American spies to be identifi ed, the newspaper said, citing offi cials.

British Foreign Secretary Phil-ip Hammond said Snowden had done a huge amount of damage to the West’s ability to protect its citizens.

“As to the specifi c allegations this morning, we never comment on operational intelligence mat-ters so I’m not going to talk about what we have or haven’t done in

order to mitigate the eff ect of the Snowden revelations, but nobody should be in any doubt that Ed-ward Snowden has caused im-mense damage,” he told Sky News.

No evidenceAn offi cial at Cameron’s offi ce was quoted, however, as saying that there was “no evidence of anyone being harmed.” A spokes-woman at Cameron’s offi ce de-

clined to comment when contact-ed by Reuters.

A Home Offi ce source told the newspaper that Russian Presi-dent Vladimir Putin did not grant Snowden asylum for nothing.

“His documents were encrypt-ed but they weren’t completely secure and we have now seen our agents and assets being targeted,” the source said.

A British intelligence source

said Snowden had done “incalcu-lable damage”.

“In some cases the agencies have been forced to intervene and lift their agents from operations to stop them being identifi ed and killed,” the source was quoted as saying.

British security agencies de-clined to comment.

The Russian and Chinese gov-ernments were not immediately available for comment.

Security services’ abilityThe revelations about the impact of Snowden on intelligence opera-tions comes days after Britain’s terrorism law watchdog said the rules governing the security ser-vices’ abilities to spy on the public needed to be overhauled.

Conservative lawmaker and former minister Andrew Mitchell said the timing of the report was “no accident”.

“There is a big debate going on,”

he told BBC radio. “We are going to have legislation bought back to parliament (...) about the way in which individual liberty and pri-vacy is invaded in the interest of collective national security.

“That’s a debate we certainly need to have.”

More powersCameron has promised a swathe of new security measures, in-cluding more powers to monitor Briton’s communications and on-line activity in what critics have dubbed a “snoopers’ charter”.

Britain’s terrorism laws re-viewer David Anderson said on Thursday the current system was “undemocratic, unnecessary and - in the long run - intolerable”.

He called for new safeguards, including judges not ministers approving warrants for intrusive surveillance, and said there need-ed to be a compelling case for any extensions of powers. — Reuters

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Britain pulls out spies as files leaked by Snowden crackedThe ‘Sunday Times’

reported that the

UK security service

MI6 has removed

agents from certain

countries after

Russia and China

deciphered the top-

secret information

WHISTLEBLOWER IMPACT: Former intelligence agency contractor Edward Snowden, centre, and Sarah Harrison, left, of WikiLeaks

speak to human rights representatives in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport on July 12, 2013. — Reuters fi le photo

As to the specific allegations this morning, we never

comment on operational intelligence matters so

I’m not going to talk about what we have or haven’t

done in order to mitigate the effect of the Snowden

revelations, but nobody should be in any doubt that

Edward Snowden has caused immense damage

Philip HammondBritish Foreign Secretary

Comet probe Philae wakes up with ‘Hello Earth!’ messagePARIS: Europe’s tiny robot lab Philae, hurtling through space on the back of a comet, awoke over-night and sent home its fi rst mes-sage in nearly seven months, mis-sion offi cials said on Sunday.

Jubilant that the nail-biting wait was over, they declared Philae may soon resume science work, opening up a new chapter in its exhilarating voyage.

“Hello Earth! Can you hear me?” the washing machine-sized lander tweeted under the hashtag #WakeUpPhilae, break-ing a silence that had lasted since November 15 when its batteries ran out.

“We got a two-minute... suc-cessful communication” at 2228 Central European Time (2028 GMT) on Saturday, mission manager Patrick Martin told AFP from the operations centre in Madrid.

‘Philae is healthy’“This was suffi cient to confi rm that Philae is healthy and that its sub-systems are OK in terms of energy and temperature for ongoing communication with Rosetta,” he said, referring to the lander’s mothership orbit-ing Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

The mission seeks to unlock the long-held secrets of comets -- primordial clusters of ice and dust that scientists believe may reveal how the Solar System was

formed. Philae, equipped with 10 instruments, may now get a grandstand view of the gas, dust and icy crystals that blast from the comet as it gets ever closer to the Sun, scientists hope.

Perihelion, the closest point to the Sun in the comet’s orbit, will be on August 13, after which “67P” will veer off again into the deeper reaches of space.

Philae touched down on the comet on November 12 after an epic 10-year trek piggybacking on Rosetta.

But instead of harpooning it-self onto the iceball’s surface, the lander bounced several times before settling at an angle in a dark ditch.

It had enough stored battery power for about 60 hours of ex-periments, enabling it to send

home reams of data before going into standby mode.

The hope was that better light as the comet approaches the Sun would recharge Philae’s batteries enough for it to reboot, then make contact, and ultimately carry out a new series of experiments.

But three bids to make contact, in March, April and May, all came to nothing.

“We were surprised, yes, be-cause we didn’t expect it at all last night, on a weekend -- it’s really exciting,” Martin said.

Unable to make contactAn ESA statement said Philae communicated with its ground team for 85 seconds, and prelimi-nary analysis of the data showed it must also have been awake ear-lier but unable to make contact.

According to Martin, the lander’s core temperature was about minus 36 degrees Celsius (-29 Fahrenheit) and its energy was at 24 watts -- both higher than the minus 45 C and 19 watts required to operate.

“Philae is doing very well,” said Stephan Ulamec, Philae project manager with the German space agency DLR. “The lander is ready for operations.”

Martin was more cautious, saying: “We have already lined up more communication win-dows which hopefully will see a repeat of this successful communication. — AFP

S I L E N T F O R S E V E N M O N T H S

The mission seeks to

unlock the long-held

secrets of comets --

primordial clusters of ice

and dust that scientists

believe may reveal how the

Solar System was formed

Kenyan troops kill 11 Shebaab militants

MOMBASA (KENYA): Suspected Shebaab gunmen raided a Kenyan military base and briefl y took over a village on Sunday in the latest at-tacks highlighting the insecurity that plagues parts of the country. Both attacks in Lamu county on Kenya’s coast close to the border with Somalia, were blamed on the Somali-led Al-Qaeda affi liate that has in recent months focused more attention on Kenya.

A spokesman for the Kenya Defence Forces claimed that 11 Shebaab militants were killed, including “two fi ghters of Caucasian origin”.

Pre-dawn assaultTwo Kenyan soldiers were also killed in the pre-dawn assault on a military camp in Baure, said Colo-nel David Obonyo.

Obonyo said weapons including 13 AK-47 assault rifl es, fi ve rocket-propelled grenades and eight hand grenades were recovered.

Also early Sunday, at least 60 militants raided the nearby town of Mangai, ordering residents out of their homes and gathering them at a mosque where they preached for three hours, according to local media.

Chief Yusuf Nuri, a local offi cial, told the Daily Nation newspaper that the gunmen also conducted prayers, ransacked a dispensary and burned mattresses at a prima-ry school before escaping.

Sunday’s raids come on the anniversary of attacks that be-gan in mid-June 2014 in which close to 100 people were killed in a series of armed assaults on the town of Mpeketoni and surrounding villages.

Collapse in tourismThe attacks in Mpeketoni, close to the once-popular holiday island of Lamu, led to a collapse in tourism on Kenya’s coast after foreign gov-ernments warned their nationals against travel to the area.

Under pressure in Somalia where it has for years been fi ghting to overthrow the Western-backed government, Shebaab is now in-creasingly targeting Kenya.

In the group’s deadliest attack to date four gunmen killed 148 peo-ple, mostly students, at a univer-sity in Garissa in early April.

In 2013, four Shebaab gunmen killed at least 67 people in an as-sault on the Westgate mall in the capital Nairobi. — AFP

A T T A C K O N A R M Y B A S E

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Bank Sohar, QNB sign $77.5m loan pact with Dalma Energy

Times News Service

MUSCAT: A syndicated loan worth $77.5 million has been joint-ly signed by Bank Sohar and Qatar National Bank (QNB) for Dalma Energy International’s oil drilling rig project.

An event to commemorate the signing of the syndicated facility was held at Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz Carlton Hotel on June 4.

The project oversees the con-struction of three 1,500 HP drill-

ing rig packages to be deployed by Dalma Energy with Saudi Aramco from Saudi Arabia, while the sup-plier of the drilling rig is Shandong Kerui from China.

The total facility requirement of $77.5 million has been achieved by the syndicated fi nance package provided by Bank Sohar, one of the most prominent banks in the Sultanate, and QNB, ‘one of the world’s strongest banks’.

As per the terms of the deal, Bank Sohar is the facility agent,

onshore account bank, onshore security agent as well as custom bond guarantee bank.

Dalma Energy is one of the larg-est operators of drilling rigs in Oman with business interests in Saudi Arabia and Algeria. Within

the Sultanate, Dalma Energy has grown to operating 19 land rigs under contract with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), posi-tioning itself as the largest drilling contractor in Oman.

Dalma Energy has created jobs

for 1,669 people in Oman, out of them 1,524 or around 91.3 per cent are Omani.

Attending the event on behalf of Bank Sohar were Rashad Ali Al Musafi r, acting chief executive offi cer; Sasi Kumar, deputy gen-eral manager and head of strategy and corporate banking; Jeanan S. Sultan, Sr. AGM government in-stitutions and project fi nance and syndication; and Sanjeet Kumar Verma, head of project fi nance and syndication.

The event was also attended by Saad Musa Al Jenaibi, general manager of QNB Oman and Juma Al Sulaimani, acting head of cor-porate at QNB Oman.

Representing Dalma Energy In-ternational were Sheikh Salah Al Qahtani, chairman; Fredric Young, chief executive offi cer; and Rajat Khurana, chief fi nancial offi cer.

Commenting on the occasion, Bank Sohar’s acting CEO said, “This agreement marks yet an-

other signifi cant accomplishment for Bank Sohar. As a proud Omani bank, we are pleased to fi nance such a signifi cant project. The syndication reinforces our capa-bilities and commitment to con-tinually collaborate with local and international corporates towards supporting key strategic projects that contribute towards Oman’s economic growth and prosperity.”

The general manager of QNB Oman said, “This agreement re-fl ects the bank’s commitment to maintain and further enhance QNB’s position as a leading fi nan-cial institution in the country and in Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region. QNB is commit-ted to support the business com-munity of Oman by fulfi lling their fi nancing requirements and sup-porting growth of Oman’s econo-my. QNB is also working closely with the local banks to jointly sup-port large value projects, which is well refl ected in this transaction.”

As per the terms of the deal, Bank Sohar

is the facility agent, onshore account

bank, onshore security agent as well as

custom bond guarantee bank

SIGNING CEREMONY: The project oversees the construction of

three 1,500 HP drilling rig packages to be deployed by Dalma

Energy with Saudi Aramco from Saudi Arabia. — Supplied picture

‘Invest Easy’ initiative sees more than 4,000 requestsELHAM POURMOHAMMADI elham@timesofoman.com

MUSCAT: More than 4,000 e-Commercial Registration re-quests have been submitted through Invest Easy, which off ers fast and easy e-services for set-ting up a company in Oman.

According to the information provided by the Ministry of Com-merce and Industry (MOCI) to Times of Oman, 4,342 e-CR re-quests were submitted since the launch of the new service on April 5 until May 31.

The statistics show that 3,768 applications were unfi nished, 391 in process, 219 were can-celled, and 35 were recorded electronically.

One-stop-shopThe Invest Easy portal (One Stop Shop) and mobile application, which are part of the compre-hensive development project for a single window clearance, are expected to be fully ready by the end of this year, with the aim of eliminating paperwork and sav-ing costs and time.

Global statistics show that Oman is the second hardest place in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region to open a company.

Oman was ranked 66th out of 189 economies in the ‘Doing Busi-ness 2015’ report of the World Bank Group.

The group measures regula-tions aff ecting several areas of the life of a business, such as starting a business, dealing with construc-tion permits, getting electric-ity and registering property apart from getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes and trading across borders.

In addition, the Global Com-petitiveness Report 2014-2015 ranked Oman 46th out of 144 economies. Oman was in the 33rd place out of 148 countries in the 2013-2014 report.

According to the report, the most problematic factors for do-ing business in Oman include restrictive labour regulations, inadequately educated work-force, ineffi cient bureaucracy, poor work ethics in the national labour force, inadequate supply of infrastructure and insuffi cient capacity to innovate.

Three stages of the six-phase Invest Easy project, which has been developed to enhance the ease of doing business in the Sul-tanate, have been completed so far. The total number of CR cer-tifi cates printed electronically

since October 24, 2014 stood at 1,218. There are at least 38 Sanad offi ces authorised to handle e-CR applications.

The applications have been made from different parts of the country, including Al Buraimi, Duqm, Haima, Ibra, Ibri, Mu-sandam, Nizwa, Rustaq, Sala-lah, Sohar, Sohar Free Zone, Sur and Muscat.

The number of Invest Easy mo-bile application users also shows the success of the project so far.

There are 1,430 Android us-ers and 1,200 iPhone users who have been using the Invest Easy application.

Invest Easy provides several self e-services such as checking the availability of a commercial name, searching company list-ing, checking the application status and requesting digitally signed certifi cates. The Invest Easy portal can be accessed at www.investeasy.gov.om and the mobile application can be easily downloaded.

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

GROWING POPULARITY: Statistics show that 3,768 applications were unfi nished, 391 in process,

219 were cancelled, and 35 were recorded electronically. — Supplied picture

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Phoenix Power share off er receives bids worth OMR1bMUSCAT: Phoenix Power Com-pany’s initial public off ering (IPO) has been heavily oversub-scribed, attracting over OMR1 billion worth bids from investors totalling 9.137 billion shares.

The company sought to raise OMR56.3 million by off ering a 35 per cent stake in an off er open to both local and international in-vestors, which ran until June 8.

The refunding of excess money will start on June 21 and shares will be listed on the Muscat bourse on June 22.

The consolidated data point out that the subscription of the fi rst category investors exceeded six times, while institutional catego-ry was subscribed by more than 18 times.

As many as 65 per cent is re-served for the fi rst category, who apply for shares between 1,000 and 600,000, while the second category is institutions and high-net worth individuals who apply for shares between 600,100 and 51,191,000. The allotment will be on a pro-rata basis.

Bank Muscat, the fi nancial ad-visor and issue manager, will ad-vise the Capital Market Authority (CMA) on June 17, on subscrip-tion and proposal for allocation of shares.

The fi nancial advisor and the issue manager will get the ap-proval of the CMA on the alloca-

tion of shares on June 18, 2015.Phoenix Power Co’s off er price

was fi xed at 110 baisas. As the largest power plant in

Oman, the contracted plant’s power capacity of 2,000 mega-watt represents 27.8 per cent of the main interconnected system in the country. - ONA

H E A V I L Y O V E R S U B S C R I B E D

ROBUST DEMAND: Company sought to raise OMR56.3 million

by off ering a 35 per cent stake in an off er open to both local and

international investors, which ran until June 8. — Supplied picture

Saudi stocks advance before foreigners get direct accessRIYADH: Saudi Arabian stocks advanced the most in two months a day before the Arab world’s big-gest bourse allows foreigners di-rect access. Dubai’s benchmark index rose.

The Tadawul All Share Index climbed 1.3 per cent to 9,644.57 at the close in Riyadh, led by Al Rajhi Bank, the stock with the biggest weighting on the gauge. Saudi Ba-sic Industries Corp., the world’s top petrochemicals manufacturer by sales, was the second-biggest contributor to the gain with a 2.3 per cent increase.

“We expect to see retail inves-tors piling in prior to tomorrow’s actual opening up” to direct for-eign investment, Tariq Qaqish, a

fund manager at Al Mal Capital in Dubai, said by e-mail. “What’s also helping is that oil prices are stabilising above the $60 level.”

Saudi Arabia, Opec’s biggest exporter, is opening one of the world’s least accessible stock markets to direct foreign invest-ment for the fi rst time as the government pushes ahead with eff orts to diversify the econo-my. The Riyadh-based Capital Market Authority last month published regulations allow-ing foreigners access starting Monday. Investors from outside the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) currently gain entry through equity swaps and exchange-traded funds.

The kingdom’s index has risen 16 percent in 2015, the most in the Middle East. The bourse is big-ger than all the major stock mar-kets in the GCC combined. Brent crude, the benchmark for more than half the world’s oil, climbed 11 percent this year to $63.87 a barrel on Friday.

Al Rajhi gained 1.9 per cent, the most since May 14, to SR66.95. Sabic climbed to SR105.54.

Dubai bourseDubai’s stocks increased 0.6 per cent led by Emaar Properties. The builder of Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower in Dubai, advanced 2.1 per cent to Dh8.19, the highest since May 21. — Bloomberg News

S T O C K M A R K E T

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MARKETM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

China’s stock market value crosses a whopping $10 trillionHONG KONG: The value of Chi-nese stocks rose above $10 tril-lion for the fi rst time, the latest milestone for the nation’s world-beating rally.

Companies with a primary list-ing in China are valued at $10.05 trillion, an increase of $6.7 trillion in 12 months, data shows. The gain alone is more than the $5 trillion size of Japan’s entire stock market. The United States is the biggest

globally at almost $25 trillion.China’s equities boom —

spurred by individuals buying with borrowed funds to bet gains will continue — is making history. No other stock market has grown this much in dollar terms over a 12-month period. Yet signs of ex-cess have emerged. Valuations are the highest in fi ve years and mar-gin debt has climbed to a record, all while the economy is mired in its

weakest expansion since 1990.Outside of China, investors

aren’t showing the same enthusi-asm toward the nation’s equities. Funds pulled a net $6.8 billion out of Chinese stock funds in the seven days through Wednesday, Barclays said in a research note, citing EPFR Global data. Dual-listed Chinese shares cost more than twice as much on average on mainland exchanges than they do

in Hong Kong. MSCI’s June 9 de-cision against including mainland equities in its benchmark gauge had little impact on the Shanghai Composite Index, which climbed 2.9 per cent last week to its high-est level since January 2008. For-eigners are limited by quotas when buying shares in Shanghai via an exchange link with Hong Kong, while similar access to Shenzhen-traded stocks will likely start this

year, according to the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Stock valuationsThe Shanghai gauge has rallied 60 per cent in 2015, the most among global benchmark indicess, and trades at about 26 times reported earnings. Less than a year ago, the gauge was valued at about 9.6 times, the lowest since at least 1998. The Shenzhen Compos-

ite Index, tracking stocks on the smaller of China’s two exchanges, trades at 77 times profi ts after surging 122 per cent this year.

While the latest data showed the economy stabilising, indica-tors from retail sales to industrial output are still growing near the slowest pace in years and trade remains weak. Exports slumped in May and imports declined for a seventh month. - Bloomberg News

RECORD

Greece, institutions in last-ditch bailout talks

ATHENS: Greece and its credi-tors are locked in last-ditch talks, with European Commission pres-ident Jean-Claude Juncker trying to broker a deal over the weekend.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras sent a delegation to Brussels this weekend with a new set of pro-posals to close diff erences on pen-sions, taxes and a primary surplus target. With positions hardening, the talks are Juncker’s last at-tempt to reach a compromise, ac-cording to a European Union offi -cial, who asked not to be identifi ed.

Representatives of the Inter-national Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Stability Mechanism are waiting in the wings to join the negotiations if progress is made between Greece’s envoy and Juncker’s chief of staff . The aim is to reach an deal before markets

open on Monday, the offi cial said.European leaders from German

Chancellor Angela Merkel to Eu-ropean Union president Donald Tusk have voiced growing exas-peration with Greece’s brinkman-ship that has pushed Europe’s most-indebted country to the edge of insolvency.

Juncker warned Tsipras on Thursday that the Eurogroup would start making preparations for a Greek euro exit if creditors didn’t approve a last-minute deal, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonn-tagszeitung reported on Sunday, without saying how it obtained the information.

Flitting between intransi-gence and conciliatory overtures, Tsipras has spent four months locked in an impasse with the creditor institutions.

The latest Greek counter-pro-

posal is the second in June. The fi rst was dismissed.

Attempt at compromiseGreek stocks dropped 5.9 per cent on Friday, with bank shares dropping 12 per cent, as talks re-mained deadlocked. The yield on Greek 2017 bonds rose 137 basis points to 20.03 per cent. United States and European equities and the euro-area’s higher- yielding bonds also tumbled amid grow-ing concern Greece will run out of time for reaching a deal to stave off default.

The IMF spiked an attempt by Juncker to broker a compromise allowing Greece to defer €400 million ($451 million) of cuts in small pensions if it reduced mili-tary spending by same amount, ‘Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonn-tagszeitung’ reported, citing uni-

dentifi ed people with knowledge of the negotiations. The EU de-clined to comment on the report.

Seeking debt reliefThis must “be the last negotiation taking place in crisis conditions,” Finance Minister Yanis Varoufa-kis said in an interview broadcast Sunday on Alpha TV. “The target of the negotiation is get out of the crisis. For that you need Greece to go back to markets, so a restruc-turing of the debt is needed.”

Greece won’t sign up to a fi scal plan that doesn’t work, Varoufa-kis said. While a primary budget surplus of 1 per cent of gross do-mestic product was achievable in March, a deterioration of the economy since then means that it isn’t any more, he said.

Merkel told Tsipras it’s time to accept the framework for fi nan-cial aid. Greece’s bailout exten-sion expires on June 30 and some national parliaments need to rati-fy any agreement before funds can be disbursed, which narrows the window for a deal. - Bloomberg News

Greece Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras sent a

delegation to Brussels this weekend with a

new set of proposals to close diff erences on

pensions, taxes and a primary surplus target

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B3M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

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Egypt sees Suez Canal a big boost to economy

ISMAILIA (Egypt): Egypt’s New Suez Canal will open on August 6, its overseer said on Saturday, a project President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi sees as a potent symbol of national pride and a major chance to stimulate an economy suff ering double-digit unemployment.

The army began work 10 months ago on the $8 billion ca-nal, fl anking the existing, historic 145-year-old waterway and part of a larger undertaking to expand trade along the fastest shipping route between Europe and Asia.

The Suez Canal is a vital source of hard currency for Egypt, particularly since the 2011 uprising that scared off tourists and foreign investment.

“The digging and dredging works will conclude on July 15. The opening of the New Suez Ca-nal will be on August 6, according to the orders of the Egyptian peo-ple and the Egyptian president,” Mohab Mameesh, chairman and managing director of the Suez Canal Authority, told a news con-ference in Ismailia.

“Once President Al Sisi orders the start of navigation on August 6, ships will be able to go through

the canal.” Mameesh said the new canal would reduce navigation time for ships to 11 hours from about 22 hours, making it the fast-est such waterway in the world. The new and old canals are con-nected by four small channels.

Eighty fi ve per cent of dredging works have been completed, with 219.3 million cubic metres of sand excavated from a total of 258 mil-lion cubic metres, Mameesh said, adding that the new waterway would be fully secured.

“They are not only digging or dredging works, but also prepar-ing the maritime path to be valid and secure for global navigation. We will not allow any ship to pass unless it has navigational secu-rity,” he said.

The existing canal earns Egypt around $5 billion per year, a vital source of hard currency.

The new canal, which will

allow two-way traffi c of larger ships, is supposed to increase revenues by 2023 to $15 billion, Mameesh said.

The government also plans to build an international industrial and logistics hub near the Suez Canal that it expects will eventu-ally make up about a third of the Egyptian economy. .

Mameesh said he hopes a law designed to ease red tape for in-vestors in the new Suez industrial hub will be enacted this week, adding that the new canal and the hub projects could help Egypt to realize an extra $100 billion in revenue per year. - Reuters

Army began work on

the $8 billion canal

to expand trade along

the fastest shipping

route between

Europe and Asia

Middle East airlines expected to register $1.8b net profi t: IATADUBAI: Middle Eastern airlines are expected to post a $1.8 billion net profi t for 2015 for an average net margin of 3.1 per cent or $9.61 per passenger, it has said.

According to the Interna-tional Air Transport Association (IATA), the region’s carriers are expected to see a 12.9 per cent growth in passenger numbers this year, the only region with a dou-ble-digit expansion. IATA said an improvement in profi tability is also expected to be driven by lower fuel costs.

At the global level, IATA an-nounced an upward revision of its 2015 industry outlook to a $29.3 billion net profi t. On expected revenues of $727 billion, the

industry would achieve a 4 per cent net profi t margin.

Impact of global factorsThe signifi cant strengthening from the $16.4 billion net profi t in 2014 refl ects the net impact of several global factors, including stronger global economic pros-pects, record load factors, lower fuel prices, and a major apprecia-

tion of the US dollar, IATA said.“All regions are expected to see

an improvement in profi tability in 2015 compared with 2014. There are, however, stark diff erences in regional economies, which are also refl ected in airline perfor-mance. The industry’s fortunes are far from uniform. Many air-lines still face huge challenges,” Tony Tyler, IATA’s director gen-eral and chief executive offi cer, said in a statement.

IATA said the recent decline in fuel prices was a welcome devel-opment. The 2015 industry out-look is based on an average Brent crude oil price of USD 65 per bar-rel, which is 36 per cent below the 2014 price of $101.40. - PTI

A V I A T I O N

Renaissance board approves repurchase of convertible bondsTimes News Service

MUSCAT: Renaissance Services board has approved a scheme to buy back mandatory convertible bonds (MCBs) issued by the com-pany in July 2012.

The plan will be presented to the company’s shareholders for ap-proval at an extraordinary general meeting and to the bondholders for their approval at the MCB holders’ general meeting, Renaissance said in a statement.

The board has also approved the issuance of Perpetual Notes by the company’s wholly-owned overseas subsidiary to fund the scheme. The Perpetual Notes will be issued to major local and regional institu-tional investors.

The repurchase plan is benefi -cial for the company’s shareholders and bondholders.

Additional optionThe purpose of the scheme is to create an additional option for MCB holders, where they can opt for cash in place of shares in the company. The convertible bonds will be bought back, depending on the fi -nancing arrangements in place, according to the company.

The scheme will provide the agreed rate of return on the MCBs up to the date of the buyback. The record date for the fi rst buyback is July 25, 2015, and the buyback price for this fi rst repurchase will be OMR0.170.

D E B T I N S T R U M E N T

Subsidy reforms ‘key to

GCC economic growth’

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have been urged to follow Bahrain’s model in diversifying their economies.

UK-based economist Scott Cor-fe, economic adviser for the Insti-tute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), said plans to eliminate subsidies on food and power in Bahrain was key to surviving the aftermath of lower oil prices, but added more action was needed, according to a report published by Gulf Daily News.

“Many GCC countries are on the right path for diversifying their economies, but with lower oil pric-es here to stay, more action needs to be taken,” said Corfe, who is also

the associate director of the Cen-tre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR).

“The situation can be conducive for implementing much-needed subsidy reforms in a range of coun-tries. We expect more countries will follow in Bahrain’s footsteps, which recently cut fuel, utility and food subsidies for expatriates,” he added. “The fact that all Arab and GCC countries are peeling off their subsidies is nothing unique to us ‘“ the lowering oil price justifi es this, which is in a way crippling our economies.”

The report also discussed fi scal, environmental and resource sus-tainability, with a particular focus on how the various economies in the Middle East were adjusting to lower oil revenues.

E C O N O M I C R E F O R M S

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EXPANDING TRADE: The Suez Canal is a vital source of hard currency for Egypt, particularly since the 2011 uprising that scared off

tourists and foreign investment. - Reuters

Ensure proper disposal of garbage.

Don’t litter a beautiful country like OMAN.

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MUSCATSECURITIES MARKET

SHARE PRICE BULLETIN FOR SUNDAY, JUNE 14

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

OM0000003125 ............GLOBAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT ................ 195,000 ...........24,240........................8 ............0.122 ........... 0.125 ...........0.122 ........... 0.124 .............0.120 ........... 0.004 ............. 3.333 ................0.124 .............. 0.123...................0.124 .................. 24,800,000 ........0.100

OM0000002374............UNITED FINANCE ..................................................... 182,340 ............27,033......................18 ............0.147 ........... 0.149 ...........0.147 ........... 0.148 ............. 0.146............ 0.002 ............. 1.370 ................0.149 .............. 0.148...................0.149 ................... 45,993,211 .........0.100

OM0000001483 ............NATIONAL BANK OF OMAN ................................. 185,491 ............. 61,112........................8 ........... 0.326 ........... 0.330 ...........0.326........... 0.330 .............0.326 ........... 0.004 ............. 1.227 ................0.330..............0.330...................0.334 ................ 442,434,383 .......0.100

OM0000001772 ............AL ANWAR HOLDING............................................... 945,821 .........239,248..................... 60 ........... 0.250 ...........0.254 ...........0.250........... 0.253 .............0.250 ........... 0.003 ............. 1.200 ................0.254..............0.253...................0.254 ..................33,016,500 .........0.100

OM0000004768 ...........AL MADINA TAKAFUL .............................................. 20,922 ............... 1,883........................6 ........... 0.090 ...........0.090 ...........0.090........... 0.090 .............0.089 ............0.001 ............. 1.124 ................0.090..............0.089...................0.090 .................. 15,750,000 .........0.100

OM0000002796 ...........BANK MUSCAT ............................................................ 488,305 ......... 271,312..................... 20 ........... 0.552 ........... 0.556 ...........0.552 ........... 0.556 .............0.552 ........... 0.004 ............. 0.725 ................0.556 ..............0.552...................0.560 ...............1,274,253,364 ......0.100

OM0000001160 ............NATIONAL GAS .............................................................10,000 ...............3,940........................4 ........... 0.394 ........... 0.394 ...........0.394........... 0.394 .............0.392 ........... 0.002 ............. 0.510 ................0.394..............0.392...................0.400 ..................19,700,000 .........0.100

OM0000003141 ............ACWA POWER BARKA ................................................. 7,000 ...............5,880........................ 1 ........... 0.840 ...........0.840 ...........0.840 .......... 0.840 .............0.836 ........... 0.004 ............. 0.478 ................0.840..............0.840...................0.000 ................ 134,400,000 .......0.100

OM0000005005 ...........ALMAHA CERAMICS ..................................................83,065 ............44,522......................15 ........... 0.536 ........... 0.538 ...........0.534........... 0.536 .............0.534 ........... 0.002 ............. 0.375 ................0.538 ..............0.538...................0.540 ..................28,140,000 .........0.100

OM0000001681 ............OMAN AND EMIRATES INV. HOLDING ........... 342,000 ........... 38,648..................... 27 ............0.113 ........... 0.114............ 0.113 ............0.113 ............. 0.113 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................ 0.113 .............. 0.112................... 0.113 ................... 13,771,875 .........0.100

OM0000001707 ............OMAN CABLES INDUSTRY ...................................... 21,361 ............ 46,994........................4 ........... 2.200 ...........2.200 .......... 2.200 .......... 2.200 .............2.200 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ............... 2.200 ............ 2.200...................2.300 .................197,340,000 ........0.100

OM0000001962 ............AL MADINA INVESTMENT .....................................70,896 ............... 5,595........................7 ........... 0.079 ...........0.080 ...........0.078 ........... 0.079 .............0.079 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.078 ..............0.078...................0.079...................16,364,959 .........0.100

OM0000002176 ............AL JAZEERA STEEL PRODUCTS ................................398 .................. 100........................ 1 ........... 0.250 ...........0.250 ...........0.250........... 0.247 .............0.247 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.250............. 0.242...................0.250 ..................30,849,796 .........0.100

OM0000002366 ...........AL BATINAH DEV. INV. HOLDING ...........................7,251 ...................921........................2 ............0.127 ........... 0.127 ...........0.127 ............0.127 ............. 0.127............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.127 ..............0.126...................0.127 .................... 3,810,000 ..........0.100

OM0000002614 ............ONIC. HOLDING ............................................................12,500 ...............5,900........................2 ........... 0.472 ........... 0.472 ...........0.472 ........... 0.472 .............0.472 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.472 ..............0.472...................0.480 .................. 81,855,774 .........0.100

OM0000003026 ...........OMAN TELECOMMUNICATION ..........................29,549 .............51,525......................31 ............1.740 ........... 1.750............1.740 ............1.745 ............. 1.745 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................ 1.745 .............. 1.740................... 1.745 ................1,308,750,000 ......0.100

OM0000003224 ...........RENAISSANCE SERVICES ......................................... 1,602 .................. 481........................ 1 ........... 0.300 ...........0.300 ...........0.300 ...........0.318 ............. 0.318............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.300 .............0.306...................0.318 ...................89,706,036 .........0.100

OM0000003398 ...........BANK SOHAR................................................................ 164,593 ............31,105..................... 10 ............0.188 ........... 0.189 ...........0.188 ........... 0.189 ............. 0.189............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.189 .............. 0.188...................0.189 ..................272,432,160........0.100

OM0000003661 ............VOLTAMP ENERGY ....................................................... 5,227 ...............2,154........................ 1 ............0.412 ........... 0.412 ...........0.412 ........... 0.412 ............. 0.412............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.412 .............. 0.412...................0.420 ..................24,926,000 ........0.100

OM0000003968 ...........OOREDOO....................................................................... 231,600 ......... 180,648..................... 28 ............0.780 ........... 0.780 ...........0.780 ........... 0.780 ............. 0.780 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.780 ..............0.780...................0.792 ..................507,736,499 ........0.100

OM0000004735 ...........SEMBCORP SALALAH .................................................. 5,000 .............13,225........................2 ........... 2.645 ........... 2.645 ...........2.645........... 2.645 .............2.645 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................2.645 ............. 2.400...................2.645..................252,484,281 .......1.000

OM0000004925 ...........AL BATINAH POWER ................................................ 126,638............ 26,222........................7 ........... 0.207 ...........0.208 ...........0.207........... 0.207 .............0.207 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.208..............0.207...................0.208 ................. 139,701,698 ........0.100

OM0000004933 ...........AL SUWADI POWER ...................................................... 5,000 ...............1,028........................2 ........... 0.206 ...........0.206 ...........0.205........... 0.206 .............0.206 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.205..............0.205...................0.208 ................. 147,167,706 ........0.100

OM0000001525 ............OMAN INVESTMENT AND FINANCE .............. 116,000 .............27,724........................8 ........... 0.239 ........... 0.239 ...........0.239........... 0.239 .............0.240 ...........-0.001 ............-0.417................0.239 ..............0.239...................0.240 ..................47,800,000 .........0.100

OM0000002168 ............AL ANWAR CERAMIC TILES ............................... 249,282 ..........106,811......................13 ........... 0.430 ........... 0.430 ...........0.428........... 0.428 .............0.430 ...........-0.002 ........... -0.465 ...............0.430..............0.430...................0.432..................126,779,456 ........0.100

OM0000002200 ...........AHLI BANK .................................................................... 100,000 ........... 20,950........................2 ............0.210 ........... 0.210 ...........0.209 .......... 0.209 .............0.210 ...........-0.001 ........... -0.476 ...............0.209..............0.207...................0.209 .................297,832,554 ........0.100

OM0000002820 ...........GULF INVESTMENT SERVICES ........................... 90,738 ............. 12,616........................6 ............0.139 ........... 0.141............0.139 ............0.139 .............0.140 ...........-0.001 ............-0.714 ................0.139 .............. 0.139...................0.142 .................... 8,179,207 ..........0.100

OM0000002440 ...........AL SHARQIA INVESTMENT HOLDING ............. 41,700 ............... 5,755........................3 ............0.138 ........... 0.138 ...........0.138 ............0.138 .............0.140 ...........-0.002 ........... -1.429 ...............0.138 .............. 0.138...................0.140 ...................12,420,000 .........0.100

OM0000003521 ............GALFAR ENGINEERING AND CON. .................. 837,453 ...........110,108..................... 95 ............0.135 ........... 0.136 ...........0.130 ............0.131 ............. 0.137 ............-0.006 ........... -4.380 ...............0.130 ..............0.129...................0.130 ................... 37,987,463 .........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 4,576,732 ... 1,367,678...................392 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... TRADED SEC. ......29........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

PARALLEL MARKET ................................................................................................................................................................................. OM0000002580 ...........OMAN EDU. & TRIN. INV. HOLDING.................... 10,697 ................1,551........................ 1 ............0.145 ........... 0.145 ...........0.145 ............0.145 ............. 0.135 .............0.010 ............. 7.407 ................0.145 .............. 0.145...................0.000 ..................10,150,000 .........0.100

OM0000001566 ............OMAN FISHERIES .......................................................10,000 .................. 580........................2 ........... 0.058 ........... 0.058 ...........0.058 ........... 0.058 .............0.056 ........... 0.002 ............. 3.571 ................0.058 ..............0.055...................0.058.................... 7,250,000 ..........0.100

OM0000002564 ...........AL HASSAN ENGINEERING.................................... 11,430 ............... 1,166........................4 ............0.102 ........... 0.102 ...........0.102 ........... 0.102 .............0.102 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.102 ..............0.100...................0.102 .....................7,671,216...........0.100

OM0000001400 ...........OMAN FLOUR MILLS ..................................................17,140 ...............8,604......................11 ........... 0.502 ........... 0.506 ...........0.500........... 0.502 .............0.508 ...........-0.006 ............-1.181 ................0.500..............0.500...................0.518 ...................79,065,000 .........0.100

OM0000004420 ...........BANK NIZWA ................................................................ 288,064 ........... 20,826..................... 27 ........... 0.073 ........... 0.073 ...........0.072........... 0.072 .............0.073 ...........-0.001 ........... -1.370................0.072 ..............0.072...................0.073................. 108,000,000 .......0.100

OM0000001368 ............CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS IND. .................. 198,542 .............. 7,965........................7 ............0.041 ........... 0.041 ...........0.040 .......... 0.040 ............. 0.041 ...........-0.001 ........... -2.439 ...............0.040 ............ 0.040...................0.042 ...................3,400,000 ..........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 535,873 ........... 40,692..................... 52 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

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

BONDS MARKET ........................................................................................................................................................................................ OM0000005971 ............B.MUSCAT COMPL. CONVR. B.B.3.5 ................... 517,662 ............. 51,150......................13 ........... 0.098 ........... 0.100 ...........0.098........... 0.099 .............0.096 ........... 0.003 ............. 3.125 ................0.099 ..............0.099...................0.100...................32,092,000 ........0.100

OM0000004602 ...........BANK MUSCAT CONV. BONDS 4.5 ...........................5,745 .................. 597........................ 1 ............0.104 ........... 0.104 ...........0.104 ........... 0.104 .............0.104 ........... 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.104 ..............0.104...................0.108 ...................31,485,908 .........0.100

OM0000004628 ...........BANK SOHAR BONDS 4.5 ............................................ 5,000 ..................500........................ 1 ........... 0.100 ........... 0.100 ...........0.100 ........... 0.103 ............. 0.103............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.100 ..............0.100...................0.102 .................... 7,364,500 ..........0.100

OM0000004867 ...........BANK MUSCAT C C B 4.5 ........................................... 13,292 ...............1,342........................ 1 ............0.101 ........... 0.101............0.101 ............0.101 ............. 0.101 ............ 0.000 .............0.000 ................0.101 .............. 0.101...................0.000 ..................32,283,910 .........0.100

.............................................SUM: .................................................................................. 541,699 ........... 53,590......................16 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... 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 ....................................... 6,489.04 ...............6,481.37 ................... 6,488.82 ...................6,482.34 ....................6.48 ................... 0.10Financial Index ..................................... 7,874.79 ............... 7,853.70 ....................7,871.80 ................... 7,854.38 .................. 17.42 ...................0.22Industrial Index ................................... 8,424.88 .............. 8,400.46 ................... 8,405.72 ....................8,431.91 ................-26.19 .................. -0.31Services Index .......................................3,513.20 ...............3,512.00 ................... 3,513.20 ................... 3,512.92 ....................0.28 ................... 0.01MSM SHARIAH INDEX.......................998.21 ..................997.20 .......................997.48 ...................... 998.21 .................. -0.73 .................. -0.07

Trading SummaryVolume ................ Turnover ..........Trades .............. Market Cap............. Up ............Down ............. Equal .........Sec. Traded5,654,304 ....................1,461,960 .................... 460 ................15,007,199,167 ................ 12 ........................9 .................... 18 .........................39

MSM index ends higher

MUSCAT: Amid weak trad-ing activity, the MSM30 Index gained 0.10 per cent to close at 6,488.82 points. The MSM Shari-ah Index closed at 997.48 points, down by 0.07 per cent.

While Al Anwar Holding was the most active in terms of vol-ume, Bank Muscat was the most active in turnover. Oman Educa-tion & Training, up by 7.41 per cent, was the top gainer, while Galfar Engineering, down by 4.38 per cent, was lost the most.

As many as 460 trades were executed in the session, gen-erating a turnover of OMR1.46 million with over 5.65 million shares changing hands. Out of 39 traded securities, 12 advanced, 9 declined and 18 remained un-changed. GCC and Arab Inves-tors were net buyers to the tune of OMR263,000 worth of shares, while foreign investors were net sellers at OMR254,000 followed by Omani Investors, who sold shares amounting to OMR8,000.

Financial Index gained 0.22 per ent and closed at 7,871.80 points. Global Finance & Invest-

ment, United Finance, NBO, Al Anwar Holding and Al Madina Takaful gained 3.33 per cent, 1.37 per cent, 1.23 per cent, 1.20 per cent and 1.12 per cent respective-ly. Al Sharqia Investment, Bank Nizwa, Gulf Investment Services and Ahli Bank declined 1.43 per cent, 1.37 per cent, 0.71 per cent and 0.48 per cent respectively.

Industrial Index retreated 0.31 per cent to end the session at 8,405.72 points.

Oman Fisheries and Al Maha Ceramics increased 3.57 per cent and 0.37 per cent respec-tively. Galfar Engineering, Construction Materials, Oman Flour Mills and Al Anwar Ce-ramics declined 4.38 per cent, 2.44 per cent, 1.18 per cent and 0.47 per cent respectively.

Services Sector Index ended on a fl at note 3,513.20 points, up by 0.01%. Oman Education & Train-ing, National Gas and ACWA Power increased 7.41 per cent, 0.51 per cent and 0.48 per cent respectively. OIFC, down by 0.42 per cent, was the only sector loser.

– United Securities

Oman Education & Training, up by 7.41%, was

the top gainer, while Galfar Engineering, down

by 4.38%, lost the most on Sunday

US economy rebounding as Federal Reserve likely to hold off on rate riseWASHINGTON: Evidence is piling up that the United States economy is rebounding from the past few months’ stall, with consumers spending more, a re-bound in job creation, and wages beginning to rise.

But analysts believe that the United States Federal Reserve will want to see more when it meets in the coming week to again weigh hiking interest rates.

The Federal Open Market Committee meets on monetary policy on Tuesday and Wednes-day, about the very time that, a year ago, it expected to be an-nouncing a rise in its benchmark federal funds rate.

The rate has sat at an extraor-dinarily low zero perc ent since 2008 in an eff ort to rebuild the US economy from the Great Reces-sion with a fl ood of cheap dollars.

Persistent underemployment, extremely low infl ation and weak wage growth has kept the rate in place, with the Fed worried the economy could still be vulnerable to tighter monetary conditions, six years after the recession ended.

The surprise economic con-traction of the fi rst quarter put any action on hold, though the FOMC has said that it views the causes of the stall of the past few months as “transitory.”

Since April, though, key data which the FOMC looks at to de-cide whether the economy can handle higher rates -- infl ation, employment and wages -- have all shown signs of improvement.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen has re-peatedly stressed the need for signs of fi rm tightening in the jobs market, even if infl ation stays low.

Released on June 5, the May job creation report was surpris-ingly strong, with the jobs market absorbing a surge of returnees, and wages turning up at the same time, all signs of tightening.

Good new numbers Data this week backed that up: job vacancies rose and employ-ers said they are and expect to be paying people more. But the other data is mixed.

Consumer spending has risen, but mainly on cars; otherwise, US shoppers seem very cautious. Prices are weaker than the Fed — which wants to see infl ation around two percent — favours.

Analysts say that because the FOMC needs to see steady im-provement over time, it will likely wait a couple months more to move, even if Fed poli-cy-makers seem anxious to get past the initial increase.

“The June FOMC (policy) statement will largely be a place-holder for what we continue to believe will be a September rate hike,” said Deutsche Bank Friday.

“A June rate hike is not entirely off the table, but is highly unlikely.

September is more likely, but that fi rst hike is data-dependent,” said economists at IHS.

Normalising hikes When it does, it will likely be the fi rst in a series of increases aim-ing to “normalize” US monetary policy, the Fed says. That prospect has driven volatil-ity in global markets for two years now, pushing the dollar higher and spurring capital fl ows out from emerging markets, which has left many struggling to shore up growth.

Partly for that reason, in the past two weeks both the Interna-tional Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have encouraged

the Fed to hold off rate increases until 2016. Worried about the impact of higher interest rates on poorer countries, the IMF said the Fed “should remain data-depend-ent and defer its fi rst increase in policy rates until there are greater signs of wage or price infl ation than are currently evident.”

“Barring upside surprises to growth and infl ation, this would put lift-off into the fi rst half of 2016.” - AFP

E C O N O M Y

IMPROVING: Since April, key data which the Federal Open Market Committee looks at to decide

whether the economy can handle higher rates — infl ation, employment and wages — have all shown

signs of improvement. - Bloomberg News

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

Booming taxi-app companies in India encounter rough ride MUMBAI: India’s ultra-competi-tive app-based taxi-hailing market has quickly become a multi-bil-lion-dollar industry, but contro-versy surrounding safety, rejected licences and protesting cabbies threatens to slam the brakes on its spectacular rise.

Domestic company Ola Cabs and US-based Uber are boom-ing, fuelled by a rising number of professionals wanting an easy-to-book, clean and air-conditioned cab in India’s rapidly growing and congested cities.

“We have barely scratched the surface. We need to be in every corner of India and it is a huge country, so the potential is huge,” Ola spokesman Anand Subrama-nian said.

But it hasn’t been a completely smooth ride, with Indian authori-ties rejecting Uber and Ola’s ap-plications to operate in New Delhi, even impounding their cars, and both fi rms facing angry protests from traditional taxi drivers.

Internet startupOla Cabs has soared from fl edgling Internet startup to the leader of India’s smartphone taxi-hiring in-dustry in just fi ve years and is now worth an estimated $2 billion.

It recently bought up domes-tic competitor TaxiForSure for a reported $200 million and is also outperforming web and mobile app-based rival Meru Cabs in a crowded marketplace.

Private but often shoddy and un-comfortable cabs have long plied

India’s notoriously vehicle-and-animal-congested roads, fi lling a void created by patchy and unreli-able public transport networks.

But in 2010, two young entre-preneurs in Mumbai — Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati — de-cided that India’s tech-savvy and wealthy middle-classes wanted the convenience of a comfortable ride with just a couple of clicks of their smartphones.

Recruitment driveThey founded Ola and started op-erating with only a handful of vehi-cles before increasing the number of cars on its network to 10,000, across ten cities, by last year. An aggressive recruitment drive over the past 12 months has resulted in its operations rising more than tenfold and Ola now oper-ates 150,000 vehicles in 100 cities stretching the length and breadth of India.

Ola notched 200,000 rides a day in January and predicts it will record over a million a day this month. They have also started to off er auto-rickshaws for hire and are to start delivering groceries too. It doesn’t own the majority of the cars itself but helps drivers ac-quire loans which are then repaid in small sums.

Some of those drivers joined hundreds of others working for Ola and Uber at a demonstration in New Delhi on Monday, saying the city government’s crackdown on the industry had forced them off the roads. - AFP

T A X I S E R V I C E

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMSECTION

E- IMESTECH STUFFTECH STUFF

BKEEPING YOUR COMPUTERS COOL AND DRYHeat and humidity can aff ect a computer or tablet, causing erratic performance, shortened battery life and a buildup of condensation inside the device — especially when it is moved between temperature extremes. Air-conditioning, fans, desiccants or a dehumidifi er in the room can help keep heat and humidity under control. Your computer manufacturer should have environmental guidelines for its products listed online or in the manual.

M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

S M A R T P H O N E A P P S

A photo frame shop in a phone

SLOW DOWNENJOY THE RIDE

SMARTPHONES HAVE turned us all into photographers.

Now with the help of some apps, we can also be photo artists, framing our snaps and making collages.

A horde of such photo-en-hancing apps have sprung up in the age of Instagram and Snapchat, which use images as a primary mode of commu-nication. But many of these apps are poorly designed be-cause the entire category is not particularly high tech. One exception is Moldiv, which is carefully designed and easy to use. It off ers a large variety of prearranged photo frames for a single image, with shapes and cut-outs, or space for eight or more photos. Tapping on one frame puts the app into editor mode. With a few taps, you can drop a new photograph or one from your phone’s archive into the frame. There are options to adjust the photos, by dragging or zooming to get just the right part of the image in place in the frame, and you can add special eff ects, including sepia or black and white tones.

The app lets you adjust the frame, changing the thickness of margins around an image and even the roundness of the corners. If you’re feeling more creative, you can make the backdrop to your photo a diff erent colour, pattern or — amusingly — another photo. Text labels can go on top, in a variety of styles, and there’s an option to add stickers like hearts, fl owers, speech bubbles and more. When you’re done, a few taps save the image or share it on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. The core app is free on iOS and Android.

For a simpler photo frame app, check out PicFrame by ActiveDevelopment. It does a few things well, with almost no frills or distractions: It can add a customisable frame around your photos, or let you squeeze a group of photos into one framed image as a collage. You can also embed videos, to take advantage of video features on social media like Instagram.

PicFrame uses a system of gestures for adjusting and ed-iting your photos. It also lets

you add text labels, colored frame backgrounds and so on, but it one does not off er hun-dreds of frame options. It is $1 on iOS and Android. An alter-native is Photo Grid-Collage Maker, which is free on iOS and Android and may be my fa-vourite in this category. Photo Grid, which has some of the professional feel of PicFrame and some of the visual fl air of Moldiv, off ers more than 300 frame layouts. The photo edit-ing system also includes op-tions like blurring and retouch-ing, as well as the usual fi lters.

Photo Grid has an array of frames, stickers and text labels and its interface makes it easy to edit and arrange photos in a frame or collage. It also has a feature that turns photos into a video slide show, with back-ground music, text and stick-ers. A “poster” section lets you apply frames and text that make your photos look like a poster. Framatic, another pop-ular photo-framing app, has a “magic shake” option: If you shake your phone, the app will randomly select some frame settings for your image. The re-sults can be surprisingly good.

One caution: The app, which is free on iOS and off ers a wide range of frames and style ad-justments, puts a watermark on your images. To get access to all special eff ects, you have to buy in-app packs that can cost up to $5. Lastly, for an over-the-top photo framing app, test out Imikimi, which is $2 on iOS and $1 on Android. If you’ve ever wanted a photo of yourself against a backdrop painting of frolicking penguins in a rainbow-covered ocean, or a portrait that fades out at the edges into crystalline snow-fl akes, this is the app for you.

Quick callLine has a new off shoot called Popcorn Buzz that off ers some-thing diff erent and potentially rather strange. Buzz is a phone-call-like social app that lets you speak to a group of people at once. It’s free on Android, works over your data connec-tion and lets you call up to 200 people simultaneously. — KIT EA-

TON/The New York Times News Service

What was overlooked in defence of ‘privacy’

Timothy D. Cook, Ap-ple’s chief executive, delivered a speech last week that raised some eyebrows in the tech-

nology industry.“I’m speaking to you from Sili-

con Valley, where some of the most prominent and successful compa-nies have built their businesses by lulling their customers into com-placency about their personal infor-mation,” said Cook, who was being honoured by the Electronic Privacy Information Centre (EPIC), a pri-vacy watchdog group.

His blistering defence of privacy, which he and other Apple execu-tives repeated at the company’s de-veloper conference, was notable. It isn’t every day that you hear a tech executive admit there is an opaque trade-off at the heart of his industry.

We users give digital giants ac-cess to our most private informa-tion, and they shower us with tech-nology we can’t do without. It is an arrangement baked into every decision made in every boardroom in Silicon Valley, and it is a bargain that many of us are uneasy about. Now, fi nally, here was the leader of the world’s most powerful company asking whether that deal is worth the trouble.

Digital privacy awarenessBut while Cook raised awareness for digital privacy, his speech glossed over two main issues. For one, he ne-glected to mention that Apple also collects a great deal of data about how we use technology. While it has more protections for that data than many rivals, the company plainly states in its privacy policy that it does use private data in many ways, including to build and market its own products, and to build its own advertising network.

Apple’s most profi table devices sit at the centre of a tech ecosystem teeming with businesses that col-lect our data — and if those social networks, search engines and other free apps didn’t exist, Apple’s prod-ucts would be far less useful.

Cook also failed to fairly ex-plore the substantial benefi ts that free, ad-supported services have brought to consumers worldwide. Many hundreds of millions of peo-

ple now have access to more infor-mation and communication tech-nologies because of such services. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.

The fact that Apple goes out of its way to include free services like Google search in its iPhones and iP-ads suggests that it agrees with the rest of the tech industry — and many users — that ad-supported services can, on balance, be good for the world. The question to ask is not whether we should ever use those free services, but rather whether, when we do use them, we are given enough information and disclo-sure to be able to make those deci-sions rationally.

“There are timeless principles around fair dealings with consum-ers,” said Nuala O’Connor, the presi-dent and chief executive of the Cen-tre for Democracy and Technology, a tech-focused think tank. “And the fi rst and main thing is, does the customer know what’s happening to them?”

Cost-benefi t analysisShe argued that if companies were transparent and honest about how they use people’s data, customers could freely weigh the benefi ts and costs of online services.

In his speech to EPIC, Cook off ered a much starker, and less practical, view of privacy. “We don’t want your data,” he said. “We don’t think you

should ever have to trade it for a ser-vice that you think is free but actually comes at a very high cost.”

That bold pronouncement got me wondering whether Cook uses a diff erent iPhone from every iPhone that Apple has ever sold me. On my iPhone, Google is right there in the search bar, by default. Microsoft’s Bing is built into Siri, and Facebook and Twitter beckon me from the sharing menu.

If Apple really didn’t think that its customers should trade their data for free services, you’d guess that it would build its own ad-free Web search engine for its devices. But Apple does not do so. Instead, it sells off the search bar to ad-supported search companies.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs say that Apple’s current deal with Goog-le is worth billions; at least indirect-ly, then, Apple benefi ts fi nancially from Google’s ad-gotten gains.

And that’s not all. When I go to Apple’s App Store, I’m presented with a bevy of free apps that are supported either in whole or in part by ads. This vibrant marketplace works in Apple’s favour — the more free apps there are, the more useful the iPhone becomes.

That dynamic explains why, in 2010, Apple created iAd, its own ad-vertising network meant to foster the ad-supported app marketplace. IAd lets marketers target users of

Apple’s devices based on their pur-chases from the iTunes store, pur-chases that Apple of course tracks by default. (You can use an ad-sup-ported search engine like Google to fi nd instructions for opting out.)

There’s nothing terribly wrong with any of this. Yes, there are downsides to the ad-supported tech industry, and, yes, privacy ad-vocates and tech insiders like Cook should continue to push the entire industry to more stringently pro-tect our data. But it would be in-sane to argue that we haven’t seen benefi ts in return for this data. Anyone who uses devices like the ones Apple makes can see that ad-driven businesses like Google, Fa-cebook and Twitter have improved people’s lives in major ways.

Among other things, ad-support-ed services give us instant access to more information than was ever stored in the entirety of the world’s libraries just a few decades ago. They also create systems that al-low for instant communication and organisation between more than 1 billion people. They are helping to provide life-changing miniature computers, also known as phones, to people in developing nations for about $50 each. They’ve given us ar-tifi cial-intelligence supercomput-ers that can instantly translate lan-guages or recognise speech. — FARHAD

MANJOO /The New York Times News Service

Question to ask is

not whether we

should ever use

these free services,

but rather whether,

when we do use

them, we are given

enough information

and disclosure to be

able to make those

decisions rationally

B6 M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

ROUND-UP

NBO staff receivestraining certifi ed by Dale CarnegieMUSCAT: National Bank of Oman (NBO) has announced that 40 of the bank’s senior and mid-level management have suc-cessfully completed the world re-nowned Dale Carnegie-certifi ed employee engagement training.

The training programme was part of the bank’s employee en-gagement initiative that aims to train, mentor and empower em-ployees in leadership roles.

The programme is based on the principles of acclaimed Ameri-can writer Dale Carnegie, famous for his bestseller How to win friends and Infl uence people.

Dale Carnegie training em-phasises practical principles and processes through programmes that off er employees the knowl-edge, skills and practices needed to add value to the business. The training is internationally recog-nised as a leader in bringing out the best in people.

“We fi rmly believe that invest-ing and empowering our em-ployees is the foundation to our continued success. We are de-lighted that 40 of our most prom-ising employees have successful-ly completed the Dale Carnegie employee engagement training

programme. I am certain that the practical knowledge and insights they have received will not only benefi t them greatly, but also in-fl uence their teams and overall productivity at the bank,” com-menting on the training, Nasser Al Hajri, chief human resources offi cer and head of Corporate Af-fairs at NBO, said.

“The employee engagement initiative is a part of our com-mitment to equip our employees with globally recognised best-practice skills. The training will help our managers strengthen interpersonal relationships, manage stress better as well as deal optimally with fast-chang-ing workplace conditions,” Al Hajri added.

National Bank of Oman is one of the largest employers in the banking sector in Oman. Over the years, the bank has maintained a steady focus on sustainable growth through a four-pillared strategy: Putting customers fi rst, creating the best working envi-ronment for employees, yielding strong and sustainable returns for shareholders and investing in the community, to achieve its vi-sion: To be the bank of choice.

E M P L O Y E E E M P O W E R M E N T

Mars opens its new outlet in Ibra

MUSCAT: Mars International opened its 14th shopping destina-tion in Ibra. The outlet was inau-gurated by Sheikh Saqar bin Sul-tan bin Mohammed Al Shukaili, wali of Ibra. V. T. Vinod, managing director of Mars International, Naveej Vinod, executive direc-tor of Mars International, Saif Al Malki, GM (Administration), Un-nikrishna Pillai, general manager along with the management team shared the inaugural event, says a press release.

A number of high-ranking gov-ernment and police offi cers, repre-sentatives from the local business community attended the grand opening. A huge crowd assembled

at the gate of the new outlet at the time of the opening, giving a tough time to the security guards man-ning the entrance of the mall.

The Mars hypermarket Ibra is structured in three fl oors with ample parking space. The service layout will be unique and has been designed in order to enable a con-venient shopping experience to the customers. A wide bouquet of brands at the cheapest price will be the major highlight of the new facil-ity. Wide variety of sections com-prising fresh fruits and vegetables, farm fresh meats and fresh fi sh, in house bakery, FMCG products, gar-ments, household, electronics, ap-pliances, stationery, etc. have been

showcased at Ibra outlet. Well ex-perienced staff and dedicated cus-tomer service ensures hassle free shopping experience.

“Mars will bring convenience plus rich shopping experience for the people of Ibra. This is our 14th outlet in the Sultanate and we plan to create a signifi cant presence across the country. The great of-ferings that we provide to our cus-tomers both in terms of quality and competitive pricing have helped us earn the trust of the people across the country. We are very much hap-py to open the outlet in Ibra and will continue to exceed our customers’ expectations,” said Vinod.

“Mars has always represented

the best in retail concepts and provided maximum convenience to our valuable shoppers. I believe that our success is the result of wide set quality merchandise of-fered at aff ordable rate in a knowl-edgeable service base. I’m sure that the residents of Ibra can expe-rience a new level of shopping with Mars,” said Naveej.

Mars International holds a leg-acy in the fi eld of retail industry for more than 24 years in Oman. Hence it knows the pulse of the country and trends in the market, more than anyone prevalent in the country. More projects are coming this year including Mudhaibi, Al Khoud and Al Amerat.

1 4 T H H Y P E R M A R K E T

Bank Muscat wins another AIWA Best Performing Company award

MUSCAT: Bank Muscat, the fl ag-ship fi nancial services provider in the Sultanate, has been ranked the top performer among large companies listed on Muscat Secu-rities Market (MSM) in the Best Performing Company awards in-stituted by Alam Al-Iktisaad Wal A’Mal (AIWA) business magazine.

Waleed Al Hashar, group gener-al manager - Corporate Services, received the award from Nasser bin Khamis Al Jashmi, under-secretary at the Ministry of Fi-

nance, at the ceremony attended by dignitaries, senior government and private sector offi cials, says a press release.

“Bank Muscat is proud to once again receive the AIWA award in recognition of its commitment to excellence in corporate leadership. As a listed company, Bank Muscat pursues benchmark corporate governance and investor relation-ship culture in Oman, aimed at en-hancing value for all stakeholders.

“We are delighted to note that

all our innovative initiatives and unique achievements are being noticed and acknowledged as the bank is the recipient of all pres-tigious foreign, regional and local awards and accolades.

“Consistently winning prestig-ious awards helps Bank Muscat to defi ne benchmarks in opera-tional excellence,” stated Waleed Al Hashar.

The 2014 AIWA Best Perform-ing Company award was based on a survey of companies listed on

Muscat Securities Market (MSM). Gulf Baader Capital Markets (GBCM) conducted the survey and evaluated key fi nancial param-eters of the companies and the re-sults were validated by KPMG.

The ranking of companies was based on their performance in the last fi scal year, taking into account a defi ned set of broad parameters, including growth, return ratios, productivity and profi tability ra-tios measuring the growth and ef-fi ciency of the companies.

Bank Muscat is proud to once again

receive the AIWA award in recognition of

its commitment to excellence in corporate

leadership, stated, Waleed Al Hashar, group

general manager, Corporate Services

SECTION

RECRUIJ O B P O S T I N G S

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Great vision without great people is irrelevant. — Jim Collins

QUOTES

Some people can do

one thing magnificently,

like Michelangelo, and

others make things

like semiconductors

or build 747 airplanes

-- that type of work

requires legions of

people. In order to do

things well, that can’t be

done by one person, you

must find extraordinary

people.

— Steve Jobs

As a business owner or

manager, you know that

hiring the wrong person

is the most costly

mistake you can make.

— Brian Tracy

Tips for grads on nailing job interviewONE of the biggest keys to be-ing asked to join the professional world is looking and acting pro-fessional. However, a recent survey of more than 500 human resources and business profes-sionals found that half of all col-lege graduates do not exhibit professionalism at work. Consist-ently topping the list of problem areas is inappropriate appearance and poor communication skills.

Because 85% of job success de-pends on one’s level of profession-alism, it’s crucial that recent grads know, and nail, the basics of busi-ness behaviour.

Before the interview: 1. Research the company: Learn

the company’s history, mission, and recent activities. Be sure to

look at the company’s website and online press room.

2. Clean up your digital image: Remove photos, links, and text that might be viewed as inappropriate from all social media websites and the websites of your friends.

3. Listen to your voice mail mes-sage: Make sure your outgoing message is clear, concise and not off -putting to potential employers.

4. Customise your resume: Your resume should highlight the skills most relevant to the career you are pursuing.

5. Get ahead of the curve: Invest in a personal business card that can be printed inexpensively by one of the many e-retailers or visit your local stationery store. Cards should be kept simple with just your name and contact info.

6. Practice, practice, practice: Rehearse answers to standard in-terview questions like: “what are your weaknesses?” “what are your strengths?” “where do you hope to be in fi ve years?”

The day of the interview: 1. Arrive early: Busy people do

not like to be kept waiting; and it shows disrespect. Arrive fi ve minutes early but don’t rush; you want to be calm and poised for the interview.

2. Dress like you mean business: Wear neutral colours and, if in doubt, err on the side of dressing “too professional.”

3. Turn your phone off : All mo-bile devices should be turned off completely. Nothing says “this interview is unimportant to me”

more than taking a call or looking at a text during a meeting.

4. Connect with people: From the receptionist to the last person you meet, make direct eye contact, 40 - 60% of the time, in between the eyes and off er a fi rm hand-shake to the interviewer when ar-riving and departing.

After the interview: 1. Go old school. Send a handwrit-

ten thank you note on quality paper within 24 hours of the interview. Research shows this simple gesture boosts hiring chances by 20%.

2. There are no magic solutions for fi nding employment fresh out of college. But, if you put your best, professional, foot forward it will help you nab a job off er. — Pamela Eyring/ Reuters

M O D E R N E T I Q U E T T E

B8

ROUND-UPM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

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Win OMR50,000 with Mitsubishi

MUSCAT: General Automotive Company (GAC), the offi cial dis-tributors of Mitsubishi vehicles in Oman, recently unveiled details of their highly anticipated Ramadan off er for 2015.

In addition to off ering custom-

ers free insurance, free service, free registration and cash gifts on the purchase of a new Mit-subishi, GAC will also be hosting a special draw with a cash pool of OMR50,000 with lucky winners, says a press release.

Customers who purchase a Mitsubishi Lancer EX, ASX, Out-lander, Pajero Sport, Pajero or L200, will enjoy special Ramadan only benefi ts including free insur-ance, a two year/30,000km service package, free registration and a cash gift of up to OMR1,000.

Additionally, during the four-week period of Ramadan any showroom visitor also stands a chance to win an iPhone 6, with one phone being given away each week during the holy month.

Customers who purchase a new Mitsubishi during the off er pe-

riod, which will come to a close on July 30, will also be entered in an exclusive draw with a prize pool of OMR50,000. The draw will be conducted at the Mitsubishi show-room in Azaiba on August 12 and will see over nearly 100 customers strike it lucky.

Highlighting the 2015 Rama-dan off er, Rajesh Sharma, na-tional marketing manager of GAC said, “Our latest Ramadan off er has been designed to off er our customers a real sense of value that will go hand in hand with the power, reliability and perfor-mance that Mitsubishi vehicles are known for, a complete pack-age that provides total peace of mind motoring.

“Especially for 2015, we’re also adding to the excitement with a great prize pool of OMR50,000 for new car buyers.

“Furthermore, our special iP-hone weekly draw starting in Ram-adan ensures that everyone has a chance of being rewarded during the holy month just by visiting one of our 12 showroom locations.”

Customers will enjoy special Ramadan

only benefi ts including free insurance,

a two year/30,000km service package,

free registration and a cash gift of up to

OMR1,000

Lulu launches Dream Drive campaign 2015MUSCAT: Lulu Oman, reputed for conducting the most excit-ing promotions, has launched its much awaited Lulu Dream Drive 2015 campaign.

Having commenced on June 7 and running for two whole months until August 5, the scheme gives Lulu shoppers a chance to win six luxurious BMW X5 35i cars and a range of mar-vellous and useful products from Ikon. The campaign will go on in all the Lulu branches in the Sul-tanate, says a press release.

The Lulu Dream Drive has al-ways been a much anticipated event with a number of excit-ing rewards for the customers. As Oman gears up for the festive month, Lulu Hypermarket has kickstarted the excitement.

Lulu has been successfully run-ning the Dream Drive promotion across Oman for 15 years in a row. Their customers look for-ward to this campaign as it re-fl ects dreams, hopes and aspira-tions; a true refl ection of the holy month of giving.

With every purchase of OMR10, customers get a raffl e coupon for the lucky draw. This year, Lulu has six BMW X5 35i cars to give away. Along with that, custom-ers can also win 30 Ikon products like Ikon 48” LED TVs, Ikon auto-matic washing machine, Ikon air coolers, Ikon halogen air fryers, Ikon tablets and a host of other household and electrical appli-ances from Ikon. To keep the ex-citement ongoing, the draws will take place at regular intervals all through the two months at diff er-

ent Lulu branches. The fi rst draw will take place on June 16 with August 9 marking the last draw for this annual campaign.

The Lulu Dream Drive is yet another endeavour from Lulu to make shopping a more rewarding experience. It is a good example of how the country’s most sought af-ter hypermarket is constantly in tune with the vibes of the season - in this case the fast approaching season of Ramadan. The Dream Drive campaign blends in per-fectly with the massive prepara-tions that constitute a major part of the pre-Ramadan period.

“We believe happy custom-ers are our motivation to do even better. We attribute our success to our customers. In return for their loyalty and ongoing patron-age, we come up with reward-

ing campaigns that continue to enthral them. As a completely customer centric organisation, all our promotions are designed keeping in mind customer needs and demands,” said Ananth A. V., regional director, Lulu hypermar-kets, Oman. “Our Dream Drive Campaign that coincides with the Holy Month of Ramadan has been receiving an over-whelming re-sponse every year and we are cer-tain it will get the same response this time too.”

Along with the Dream Drive campaign, Lulu Oman will also be hosting a variety of promotions on popular Ramadan essentials in addition to an array of other great off ers and deals. Lulu is committed to give to their customers some-thing new and exciting to look for-ward to every time they shop.

P O P U L A R P R O M O T I O N

Hyundai picks 1st promotion winnerMUSCAT: OTE Group-Hyundai recently launched the ‘Hyundai gives you gold’ promotion, coin-ciding with the Ramadan season. The fi rst raffl e draw winner was announced recently and Aminah, a happy Hyundai customer from Salalah was picked up as the lucky winner in the fi rst of the four raffl e draws that was held for half kilo gold, says a press release.

As part of the ongoing promo-tion, a total of 12 kilos of gold will be given away as gifts. Four cus-tomers will get a chance to win half kilo gold each through a fort-nightly raffl e draw. Also, fi rst 2,500 customers buying any Hyundai car will get a 4 grams gold coin as an assured gift.

These apart, the promotion also off ers a host of other attractive benefi ts such as zero percent in-terest for a two-year fi nance term, cash as gift upto OMR1,000, fi ve years/10,0000km service, insur-ance, fi nance up to six years, LG Home theatre as gift with every purchase. All these are in addition to a very attractive price.

Promotion elements may vary for diff erent models, exact details can be checked out at any of the Hyundai showrooms closer to you. This promotion is generat-ing tremendous interest across the cross-section of custom-ers and has resulted in a steady increase of customer walk-ins across all Hyundai showrooms in the Sultanate.

Aminah had recently taken de-

livery of her favourite Hyundai Elantra from the Salalah Hyun-dai showroom, as soon as Hyun-dai Ramadan promotion was launched. She was thoroughly ex-cited on hearing the news of win-ning half kilo gold and so was her happy family. She also got a 4 gram gold coin as an assured gift.

OTE Group is the exclusive dealer of Hyundai’s range of vehicles in Oman.

H A L F K G G O L D

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM

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SECTIONC M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

OMAN BAG ARAB NATIONS INDOOR HOCKEY TITLEIn a pulsating fi nal played at Aspire Academy in Doha, Oman edged Qatar in the sudden death penalty shootout to emerge the inaugural champions of the Arab Nations Indoor Hockey Cup. >C3

Five-star Ashwin shines in drawn Test at Fatullah

FATULLAH: Ravichandran Ash-win grabbed a fi ve-wicket haul as India enforced the follow-on be-fore the rain-ruined Test against Bangladesh ended in an inevitable draw in Fatullah on Sunday.

After the entire morning ses-sion was washed out, India bowled out Bangladesh for 256 in their fi rst innings to gain a lead of 206 runs over their own eff ort of 462-6 declared. Given 30 overs to bat a second time, the hosts were 23 without loss after 15 overs when both sides agreed to call off the match at the Khan Shaheb Osman Ali stadium.

Ashwin and fellow off -spinner Harbhajan Singh shared eight wickets to lead India’s brave bid to win a match in which bad weather interrupted play on all fi ve days. The entire second day was washed out. The duo took centre-stage af-ter Shikhar Dhawan (173) and Mu-rali Vijay (150) had shared an open-ing partnership of 283 and Ajinkya Rahane made 98 after India had won the toss and elected to bat.

For Bangladesh, star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan picked up four of the six wickets before opener Im-

rul Kayes top-scored with 72 and debutant Litton Das made 44.

Indian captain Virat Kohli saw his team slip from third to fourth place in the offi cial rankings be-hind South Africa, Australia and New Zealand because of the draw.

“It was disappointing for both teams,” he said. “We would have liked to have fi ve days of cricket. But whatever time we had on the fi eld, the boys had top intensity and put in a really good eff ort.

“We had a really good time with the bat, especially Vijay, Shikhar and Rahane. It was a selfl ess per-formance to score quickly, know-ing we won’t have too much time because of the rain.

“Ashwin and Harbhajan are quality spinners, so watching them bowl together is very pleasing for a captain. They put batsmen under pressure throughout.”

Kohli expects a tough fi ght in the three One-day Internationals in Dhaka on June 18, 21 and 24.

“Bangladesh have shown they are a really talented side, especial-ly in one-day cricket,” he said.

Bangladesh captain Mushfi qur Rahim said a 3-0 sweep of the one-

day home series against Pakistan in April would leave his team in good stead. “The one-day squad is looking pretty good, but this is a strong Indian side,” he said. “We played well against Pakistan, so hopefully we will get confi dence from that.”

When play started after lunch

on the fi nal day, Bangladesh added 10 runs to their overnight score of 111-3 before Ashwin broke through by having Shakib caught behind by Wriddhiman Saha for nine.

Saha was in action again when he stumped Kayes off Harbhajan, before Soumya Sarkar was bowled by Varun Aaron to make it 176-6.

Shuvagata Hom added 43 for the seventh wicket with Das, who fell six short of a half-century on debut when he became Ashwin’s fi fth victim through another catch by Sharma. Tamim Iqbal (16) and Kayes (seven) played out time in the second innings before the game ended. — AFP

Ashwin and fellow off -spinner Harbhajan

Singh shared eight wickets to lead India’s

brave bid to win a match in which bad

weather interrupted play on all fi ve days

India 1st innings: 462-6 declared (M. Vijay 150, S. Dhawan 173, A. Rahane 98, Shakib Al Hasan 4-105)Bangladesh 1st innings (overnight 111-3):Tamim Iqbal st Saha b Ashwin 19Imrul Kayes st Saha b Harbhajan 72Mominul Haque c Yadav b Harbhajan 30Mushfi qur Rahim c R. Sharma b Ashwin 2Shakib Al Hasan c Saha b Ashwin 9Soumya Sarkar b Aaron 37Litton Das c R. Sharma b Ashwin 44Shuvagata Hom c R. Sharma b Ashwin 9Taijul Islam not out 16Mohammed Shahid c Dhawan b Harbhajan 6Jubair Hossain run out 0Extras (lb-9, nb-3) 12Total (all out; 65.5 overs) 256Fall of wickets: 1-27 (Tamim), 2-108 (Mo-minul), 3-110 (Rahim), 4-121 (Shakib), 5-172

(Kayes), 6-176 (Sarkar), 7-219 (Shuvagata), 8-232 (Das), 9-246 (Shahid), 10-256 (Jubair).Bowling: I. Sharma 7-0-24-0 (nb1), Ashwin 25-6-87-5, Yadav 7-0-45-0, Aaron 9-0-27-1 (nb2), Harbhajan 17.5-2-64-3

Bangladesh 2nd innings:Tamil Iqbal not out 16Imrul Kayes not out 7Total (for no loss, 15 overs) 23Bowling: Yadav 2-1-4-0, Ashwin 6-2-8-0, Harbhajan 5-2-11-0, Vijay 1-1-0-0, Dhawan 1-1-0-0.Result: Match drawnToss: IndiaUmpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SRI) and Nigel Llong (ENG)TV umpire: Sharfuddoula Saikat (BAN)Match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM)

S C O R E B O A R D

HONOURS SHARED: Indian captain Virat Kohli, left, and Bangladesh skipper Mushfi qur Rahim pose for

with the tournament trophy after honours were shared. – AFP

PICK OF THE BOWLERS: India’s Ravichandran Ashwin, right, celebrates with teammates Virat Kohli,

left, Ajinkya Rahane, second left, and Murali Vijay, the dismissal of Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan on

the last day of the Test cricket match between them in Fatullah. – AP/PTI

Shikhar can do what Viru used to do, says KohliFATULLAH: Mighty impressed with Shikhar Dhawan after his blazing 173 in the one-off Test against Bangladesh, India skip-per Virat Kohli today said that the opener has it in him to replicate the swashbuckling Virender Se-hwag at the top.

“For Shikhar, we were always confi dent that if he gets going in Test matches, he can do what Viru paaji (Sehwag) used to do because he is one player who can turn the session around. Hopefully, he will carry the confi dence of this game into other series in future,” said Kohli at the end of the fi fth and fi -nal day’s play here.

Sehwag has not played for India since 2013 when he was dropped from both Test and ODI sides.

India settled for a draw against an edgy Bangladesh in the rain-marred one-off Test, which was interrupted by downpours on all fi ve days. But Kohli felt his boys, especially the bowlers, gave their 100 per cent in whatever opportu-nity they got.

“This is the way we want to play cricket. Just that we had just two days of proper cricket. One good thing to come out is the inten-sity shown in bowling. Everybody bowled with a lot of intent. That’s what we wanted to do as a team and we did that, so the credit goes to the bowlers who were willing to do everything despite hot and humid conditions. “There were no

excuses and as a captain that was very pleasing,” said Kohli.

Heaping praise on the spin twin — Harbhajan Singh and Ravichan-dran Ashwin — Kohli said it was exciting to watch the two bowlers perform. “Both are quality bowl-ers. Bhajji has got more than 400 wickets and Ashwin has been bowling well for us in last one year. Watching them bowl together was exciting as a captain.

I would like to have players

who can win us games and both of them certainly have that ability,” he said. “I am very happy for Harb-hajan, he has won so many games for India. He is a proven match winner and we know he can win us games at any stage. He bowled really well in this game.

“Ashwin is priceless. We won’t get anybody better than him, he understands the game well and as a captain you don’t have tell him much,” insisted the skipper. - PTI

C R I C K E T

MAN OF THE MATCH: India’s Shikhar Dhawab. – AFP

UAE may host next year’s Asia Cupin March

KARACHI: The next edition of the Asia Cup one-day tour-nament is likely to be held next year in the United Arab Emir-ates in the fi rst week of March.

Although no fi nal decision on the host country was tak-en during the fi nal meeting of the Asian Cricket Council Executive Board in Malay-sia recently but UAE is the strongest candidate to host the biannual event.

“None of the Asian Test play-ing nations expressed interest in hosting the Asia Cup, includ-ing India and Sri Lanka.

“So, the members decided the best possible option was UAE and a decision on the venue will be taken in the next one month,” a well-placed source in the Pa-kistan Cricket Board told PTI on Sunday.

He said India had shown no reservations about playing in the UAE since they have al-ready hosted a part of the IPL there last year.

India-Pakistan seriesIndia are also slated to play Pa-kistan in a bilateral series in the UAE in December but the series is yet to be fi nalised.

“The most important thing is that the ACC now no longer exists and its offi ces in Kuala Lumpur have been closed down,” the source said.

He said it was decided at the fi nal Asian cricket Council board meeting that in future all development programs of the Asian region will now be direct-ly handled by the International Cricket Council.

“There will be only two peo-ple one of them Sultan Rana of Pakistan and a fi nance offi cer who will be based in Singapore to coordinate Asian region cricket aff airs for the ICC,” the source added.

ACC staff fi redHe said most of the 18-member staff of the ACC secretariat in Kuala Lumpur had been fi red after the meeting.

He said the development of-fi cers working for the ACC will now be under the umbrella of the ICC and report directly to them until December 2016. - PTI

O D I S H O W P I E C E

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PCB aims to mend relations with Shoaib

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has de-cided to improve its relations with Shoaib Akhtar as the for-mer fast bowler has stepped up eff orts to get back seven million rupees, which he paid to the Board as a fi ne.

The PCB had in 2009 de-ducted the fi ne amount from Akhtar’s annual earnings af-ter an appellate tribunal of the PCB fi ned him on discipli-nary grounds.

The appellate tribunal fi ned and banned Akhtar for 18 months for violating his con-tract and striking teammate Mohammed Asif with a bat before the World T20 in South Africa in 2007 and later on for criticising the Board and management.

PetitionBut after the fast bowler fi led a petition, the Lahore High Court (LHC) Justice Shams Me-hmood Mirza in February this year set aside the seven million fi ne and the ban.

Justice Mirza also directed the Board to return the deduct-ed fi ne amount.

The court after hearing argu-ments of the petitioner and the defendant had reserved the ver-dict since last year which was announced in full recently.

The PCB deducted the en-tire amount from Akhtar’s an-nual earnings, which included his central contract payments, match fees and win bonuses (from January 2009 to Novem-ber 2009).

Reliable PCB sources con-fi rmed that the Board of gover-nors at its meeting on Saturday had authorized chairman Sha-haryar Khan to work out a com-promise with Akhtar by off ering to return four million instead of the seven million.

“The board of governors felt it was time the PCB had better relations with its senior and former players like Akhtar and should try to invite him for tea and have a talk with him,” one source said.

He said the Board in return will not pursue the case in the Supreme court as the Board of governors also didn’t agree to this step.

Akhtar since beginning his stint on television in Pakistan and India has many times lashed out at the PCB and termed it an incompetent body.

Another source admitted that one reason for trying to mend fences with Akhtar was also because of the clout he now car-ried on media.

“It will be interesting to see what happens because the PCB is now ready to be happy with a fi ne of just three million rupees instead of seven million,” the source said. But Akhtar appears in a strong position since he has got the LHC decision in his fa-vour.” - PTI

M E N D I N G R E L A T I O N SWilliamson, Taylor deny England

SOUTHAMPTON: Kane Wil-liamson and Ross Taylor both scored hundreds in a record-breaking stand as New Zealand beat England by three wickets in the third one-day international at the Rose Bowl on Sunday to go 2-1 up in the fi ve-match series.

New Zealand, chasing 303 for victory, were struggling at 36 for two. But a stand of 206 between Williamson and Taylor turned the tide, although England dropped both batsmen with Taylor given several reprieves.

Williamson made 118 and Tay-lor 110 — his second century in as many matches after his unbeaten 119 during New Zealand’s 13 run-win at The Oval on Friday levelled the series at 1-1.

That match also saw William-son and Taylor share a partner-ship of 121. But their stand at the Rose Bowl was a New Zealand re-cord for the third wicket in all ODI cricket, surpassing the 180 put on by Adam Parore and Ken Ruther-ford against India at Vaodara in 1994. New Zealand lost a couple of late wickets and it needed a four by

Tim Southee off Ben Stokes to see the World Cup fi nalists complete victory with an over to spare.

England were left regretting being bowled out for 302 with 28 balls of their innings left after skipper Eoin Morgan won the toss.

New Zealand’s reply got off to a shaky start when Martin Guptill — who made 189 not out in the cor-responding fi xture on this ground two years ago — was lbw for two to an inswinger from left-armer David Willey, called up following Chris Jordan’s series-ending side injury. New Zealand captain Bren-don McCullum also fell cheaply, the dangerman lbw for 11 to Dur-ham quick Mark Wood, playing after Liam Plunkett was ruled out with a side strain.

Taylor gave a tough chance on 17 when wicket-keeper Jos But-tler, anticipating his sweep off leg-spinner Adil Rashid, just failed to hold what would have been a spec-tacular one-handed catch.

Williamson, meanwhile, reached fi fty with an on-driven four off Rashid — the fi rst of 18 runs he scored in an over.

Taylor was dropped on 67 when Buttler failed to cling on to a one-handed chance off Wood.

And he was missed again on 72 when Stokes dropped a sharp chance off a full-blooded hook, with Wood again the unlucky bowler. The elegant Williamson then completed an 88-ball hun-dred, including 11 fours.

He was missed twice after reaching three fi gures, with Wood dropping a sitter at mid-off off Wil-ley when Williamson was on 109.

Williamson drove Willey for a seemingly eff ortless six but next ball he was out when Wood held a far tougher chance than the one he had missed.

Taylor, whose hundred came off 105 balls, was eventually out when he played on to Willey.

Earlier, Tim Southee and debu-

tant Ben Wheeler took three wick-ets apiece as New Zealand held England to a below par total.

Morgan made 71, Stokes 68 and Joe Root 54.

But England lost their last fi ve wickets for 14 runs.

Southee fi nished with three for 44 in 8.2 overs and Wheeler, re-placing Trent Boult after his fellow left-arm paceman was ruled out of the rest of the tour with a back in-jury, three for 63 in 10 overs.

Morgan’s toss decision was un-surprising given England had piled up a record 408 for nine in a 210-run win after being sent in during the series opener at Edgbaston, while New Zealand made 398 for fi ve batting fi rst at The Oval.

But Wheeler scuppered Eng-land’s hopes of a 350-plus total when he dismissed both Sam Bill-ings, caught at short third man, and Stokes, bowled leg-stump.

The series continues at Trent Bridge on Wednesday. — AFP

A stand of 206

between Williamson

and Taylor turned

the tide, although

England dropped

both batsmen

with Taylor given

several reprieves

ENGLANDJ. Roy b Southee 9A. Hales c Southee b Wheeler 23J. Root b Santner 54E. Morgan b Williamson 71B. Stokes b Wheeler 68J. Buttler c Ronchi b Southee 13S. Billings c McClenaghan b Wheeler 34A. Rashid c Guptill b Henry 0D. Willey c McCullum b Henry 8M. Wood not out 3S. Finn b Southee 0Extras (lb-5, w-14) 1 9Total (all out, 45.2 overs) 302Fall of wickets: 1-34 (Hales), 2-34 (Roy), 3-139 (Root), 4-194 (Morgan), 5-227 (But-tler), 6-288 (Billings), 7-290 (Rashid), 8-298 (Stokes), 9-300 (Willey), 10-302 (Finn)Bowling: Southee 8.2-1-44-3 (1w); Wheeler 10-0-63-3 (2w); Henry 10-0-64-2 (6w); Mc-Clenaghan 8-0-67-0; Santner 5-0-30-1 (5w); Elliott 2-0-17-0; Williamson 2-0-12-1NEW ZEALANDM. Guptill lbw b Willey 2B. McCullum lbw b Wood 11K. Williamson c Wood b Willey 118R. Taylor b Willey 110G. Elliott c Root b Rashid 5M. Santner c Root b Stokes 21L. Ronchi c Roy b Stokes 13B. Wheeler not out 3T. Southee not out 5Extras (lb-6, w-12) 18Total (7 wkts, 49 overs) 306Did not bat: M Henry, M McClenaghanFall of wickets: 1-4 (Guptill), 2-36 (McCullum), 3-242 (Williamson), 4-249 (Elliott), 5-284 (Santner), 6-290 (Taylor), 7-300 (Ronchi)Bowling: Finn 10-0-55-0 (2w); Willey 10-1-69-3 (1w); Wood 10-0-48-1 (2w); Rashid 10-0-72-1 (1w); Stokes 6-0-35-2 (2w); Root 3-0-21-0Result: New Zealand won by three wicketsSeries: New Zealand lead series 2-1Toss: EnglandUmpires: Bruce Oxenford and Tim Robin-son. Third umpire: Steve Davis (AUS)Match referee: Javagal Srinath (IND)

S C O R E B O A R D

TON MAKERS: New Zealand’s Kane Williamson, left, celebrates reaching his century with teammate

and ton maker Ross Taylor. – AP/PTI

C3

SPORTSM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Oman emerge inaugural champions of Arab Nations Indoor Hockey Cup

Times News Service

MUSCAT: Oman overcame hosts Qatar in the sudden death penalty shootout to emerge the inaugural champions of the Arab Nations In-door Hockey Cup organised in the Qatari capital of Doha on Saturday.

According to information re-ceived here, the teams fought tooth and nail in a pulsating fi nal played at at Aspire Academy and were tied 5-5 at the end of regula-tion time.

After the shootout too the score-line remained the same. However, Oman clinched the match and the title in sudden death with a fi nal score of 6-5 thanks to the eff orts of goalkeeper Fahad Al Noufl i and Ahmed Al Balushi.

Oman dictated the pace from the word go and soon found the go-ahead goal through the stick of

Mohammed Bait Shamaiaa. How-ever, Qatar fought way their way leading to Sohail Mustafa scoring the equaliser.

See-saw battleBut there was no stopping the Omanis as their captain Moham-med Bait Jandal once again put

them ahead, though Qatar scored the equaliser for the second time through Sheraz Ali.

Then it was the turn of the hosts to take take the lead which they did right after the break when Sohail Mustafa scored scored his second and team’s third goal.

Fortunately for the Oman,

Mahmood Bait Shamaiaa bril-liantly converted a penalty corner to bring the score to parity.

Moahmmad Bait Jandal con-verts another penalty corner for Oman. Then it was the turn of Mo-hammedd Samiullah to make it 4-4.

The see-saw battle continued till the end of the regulation time

when the teams were tied at 5-5.In the ensuing shootout, both

teams missed their fi rst three at-tempts. Sohail Mustafa, Adnan Aslam and Sheraz Ali were the culprits for Qatar while Ahmed Al Balushi, Younis Al Noufl i and Ashraf Al Nasseri disappointed the Omani contingent.

In the sudden death, Omani custodian Fahad Al Noufl i denied rival captain Sohail Mustafa. And Ahmed Al Balushi kept his cool to slot the ball home as Oman emerged the champions.

Earlier, the United Arab Emir-ates defeated Sudan 4-3 to settle for the third place.

In a pulsating fi nal

played at Aspire

Academy in Doha,

Oman edged Qatar

in the sudden death

penalty shootout

to bag the title at

the inaugural Arab

Nations Indoor

Hockey Cup

ONA

Azzan welcomes decision to host NBO Amateur FinalMUSCAT: Azzan Al Rumhy, Oman’s leading amateur golfer, has welcomed the announcement at a recent planning meeting of the National Bank of Oman (NBO) and the European Challenge Tour of the fi rst-ever NBO Amateur Final, to be played alongside the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final set to take place at Almouj Golf, The Wave in Muscat from November 4 to 7.

The NBO Amateur Final will take place during the last two days of the European Challenge Tour’s season-ending Champion-ship, where the leading 45 players compete for the 15 places on off er to play on the 2016 European Tour International Schedule.

The NBO Golf Classic Grand Final will be played over 72 holes (four rounds) beginning on No-vember 4, and concluding on No-vember 7. The NBO Amateur Final will run in parallel over 36-holes (two rounds) on the Friday and Saturday respectively.

After two hugely successful edi-tions of the NBO Golf Classic at

Almouj Golf in 2013 and 2014 the tournament earned the honour of hosting the prestigious European Challenge Tour’s season-ending Championship.

In the previous two years of the National Bank of Oman Golf Clas-sic the tournament included an amateur competition for players around the Middle East and sev-eral Omani amateurs participated.

“It was a wonderful experience for me and the other Omani ama-teurs to play with the European Challenge Tour stars of tomorrow for the last two years but I appreci-ate that in hosting the Grand Final the event can no longer be played in the same format,” says Azzan.

“To take a positive view, it will be a good thing for the Omani amateurs to have an Omani tour-nament (the NBO Amateur Final) taking place alongside the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final.

“It is a credit to the National Bank of Oman and to the Sultanate itself to have been chosen to host the Grand Final of the Challenge

Tour season and we all under-stand that the publicity that golf in Oman, the National Bank of Oman, Almouj Golf and the supporting sponsors will receive as a result is a considerable benefi t to our busi-ness and tourism.

“With the added publicity of the Road to Oman, with the Muscat event being mentioned every week whenever there is a tournament on the Challenge Tour, it is also an ideal way of promoting Oman. I also follow The European Tour’s Race to Dubai weekly podcast which is presented by Ewan Mur-ray and Robert Lee and they were talking about the Oman Grand Final when it was announced. It’s all good promotion for Oman. I’m sure there are lots of people world-wide who follow the podcast.

“This is good news for Oman’s amateurs and it will provide a great incentive for them to practice and improve their game in an eff ort to get into the Omani-only NBO Amateur Final. With the tourna-ment being played off the forward

tees it will open up the opportunity for Omani amateurs, particularly the youngsters, to enjoy the course and to play on the same fi nal two days of the Grand Final will be a great thrill.”

Alain de Soultrait, Director of the European Challenge Tour, commented: “We are pleased that it has been possible to accommo-date the Omani amateurs in the tournament. The NBO Amateur Final will give the opportunity to the best Omani amateurs to gain experience, as they will play the exact same course as the Chal-lenge Tour players.”

Azzan continued: “I’ve been struggling this season with my game so I’ll have to get in good shape in readiness for the big event. It was good to see our Oman Junior team do so well at the GCC Golf Championships in Kuwait. They had a chance of winning the U-18s’ section but lost out on the last day. They love the game and they really enjoy competing at a higher level.

“The same can be said for the

National Team. It’s good that there are some promising juniors com-ing through because they need to push the older players. We can’t have the National Team stagnating because there is nobody threaten-ing their place. It’s the same for the juniors — we have four good juniors, but they need competi-tion to push them and make them improve so they can challenge for places on the National Team.

“We should encourage young-sters to take up the game in every way we can, with golf being part of the curriculum in the schools and with coaching the juniors at the golf clubs. Oman has a great golfi ng fu-ture and we should encourage peo-ple of all ages to take up the game.

“We’ve got some big events com-ing up to look forward to, particu-larly the Asia Pacifi c Champion-ship in Hong Kong in October; the Nomura Cup at Yas Links in Abu Dhabi in October and the Pan Arab Golf Championships in November in Tunisia. It’s going to be an excit-ing year all round for golf in Oman.”

G O L F

DELIGHTED: Azzan Al Rumhy

C4

SPORTSM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

‘I’ve the greatest job in the world’

JASON Gillespie is the coach England decided they did not want. All the smart money

and most of the column inches were devoted to Gillespie. York-shire, where he has been coach for three years, were making succes-sion plans.

Then it was announced that he was not the preferred candidate.

If Gillespie was disappointed after all the attention, none of it sought, much of it defl ected, it was matched by relief. While he believes that all people, not only sports coaches, should stretch themselves as far as they can, he is as happy as Larry at Yorkshire and has unfi nished business there.

There were some doubts about taking the England job well before it was off ered instead to his fellow Australian Trevor Bayliss, about whom Gillespie, typically, had only good things to say. Gillespie, perhaps bizarrely for a lad from Adelaide, has become part of the furniture in the Broad Acres.

Michael Vaughan, the former England captain, said the oth-er day that when he thought of Gillespie he thought of him these days as a Yorkie (notwithstanding, presumably, the 394 international wickets he took for Australia, 259 of them in Test matches). One day, perhaps, his relaxed style of coach-ing will be examined in the inter-national arena, but for now he is abundantly content to concen-trate on continuing to help lead the great Yorkshire revival.

“I have the greatest job in the world,” he said. “I was sitting back in a chair in the viewing area at Headingley not long back, with a coff ee and a grin on my face be-cause I’m watching a young leg-spinner turning it square, tossing it up, getting wickets, bowlers steaming in.

“I’m just sitting there watching cricket and watching Yorkshire perform well. I just thought, ‘How lucky am I?’ I thought where else would I want to be, watching a ge-nius at work. I just sat there and enjoyed it. I sat back and watched and it was brilliant. I jump out of bed every morning.”

The match was against Hamp-shire last month and the genius to whom he referred was Adil Rashid. It is not diffi cult to discern where Gillespie might lie in the debate over Rashid’s readiness for the England

Test team. Rashid is one of six York-shire players who were on England’s tour of the Caribbean this year.

Cheekily but forlornly, the coun-ty asked for him to be sent back to bolster their Championship cam-paign when it was clear he was not going to feature in the series.

It is the loss of so many players to international duty that makes so marvellous Yorkshire’s triumph in the Championship last sum-mer, their 32nd title, and their

determined drive to retain it. At present they are second, the only unbeaten team, 11 points behind Durham (this is the true northern powerhouse) with a game in hand. Gillespie’s other task is to try to ensure that they start to perform more convincingly in the limited-overs competitions.

He arrived in Yorkshire as the surprising choice to remodel their coaching structure in 2011. While he had spent two happy seasons

there as a player, it was an unex-pected call. He was in the middle of Zimbabwe at the time in his fi rst proper permanent coaching job.

“I had to start somewhere and I said if I’m going to be taken se-riously I need to go and do some coaching,” Gillespie said. “I had coached the South Australian country side to last place, I had done some pieces but I hadn’t run a team really.

“It was a hand-to-mouth exist-

ence in Zimbabwe. I remember one day driving to training and it was payday for the team. I’m driv-ing through the middle of Kwekwe, a little mining town and there were these queues about 150 metres long for the bank. As I drive slowly past it I see a few red shirts, about six of our players. They’re 100 me-tres back and training starts in 20 minutes. They want to get their money so they can take it home but they don’t know the bank is going to have money if they turn up after training.”

For six weeks, the Gillespies — he and wife Anna have four chil-

dren under 10 — had no running water

in their house. It turned out to be a small,

easily repaired fault but they had to save what water they could when it was

available. These were instruc-tive experiences which have helped to inform his coaching life since.

The approach from Yorkshire came from their director of crick-et, Martyn Moxon, with whom Gillespie had formed a close bond in his playing days at the county. Moxon saw him as the perfect fi t.

It is fascinating to hear Gillespie talk of his coaching style, this lanky (very) fast bowler who, back in the day, wore his hair long, sported earrings and was part of one of the greatest of all teams. His fi rst match at Headingley was in 1997 when he took 7 for 37 in England’s fi rst innings.

As he appeared diffi dently, nerv-ously at the post-match press con-ference, his words racing away barely before they had formed on his lips, it was impossible to imag-ine him in this job now.

“At the start, I was quite me-thodical and planned,” he said. “Because I was new to it all, I was very structured.

“It was all written down. I still do that now but with county cricket you know your routines, you don’t need to plan it out. I didn’t have all the answers, I certainly don’t have them now.”

As a coach, Gillespie’s main strength is as man manager, some-one who can empathise with play-ers. Some coaches pride them-selves on their technical prowess. Gillespie is not one of them.

“That’s not a strong suit of mine at all. I look for some basics but I genuinely see myself as a manager, really. We have had a number of situations here at Yorkshire.

“Last year, for instance, we lost to Middlesex and Steve Patterson wasn’t himself. I said to Ian Dews, our academy coach, that some-thing wasn’t quite right but I can’t pinpoint it. Now Dewsy has been watching Patto bowl since he was 15, he knows every intimate de-tail of his action. He had a look at the DVD and after 15 minutes came back out and said, ‘I’ve got it, I’ve got it.’ He was like a kid in a candy store.”

Patterson, one of the more un-sung Yorkshire heroes, was jump-ing a fraction higher than normal at the crease, aff ecting his timings and length. It was rectifi ed quickly.

“For me, that’s what coach-ing is – work together as a team,” Gillespie said.

“It doesn’t matter who comes up with it, get the lads back on track.

“I’ve developed a style just from doing it. I like to get to know the person. That will give me an in-sight into how I can work with him. If you have a bit of an idea what’s going on away from cricket that helps.

“I don’t want to know all the per-sonal details but, if I know he’s a family man with two kids at home and his missus is pregnant, I have to take into account that maybe I just need to look after him and make sure training doesn’t drag on for him, whereas this other kid, single, lives just round the corner, is not doing anything tonight, he can hang around.

“It’s about the person and I learnt that in Zimbabwe. There was no better education for me in coaching than going there with the whole set-up there. Their biggest challenges are almost nothing to do with cricket and you learn that.”

Gillespie became part of a great Australia team almost by accident and certainly against the run of play. He remembers with abso-lute clarity the evening everything changed. He was 17 and playing third-grade cricket for Adelaide Cricket Club. He had had a growth spurt which caused injuries. One night he and some mates were sit-ting round talking about what they intended to do with their lives.

“Some of the lads said they were going to be a fi reman and that sort of stuff . When I was asked what I was going to do, I said, ‘Well, I’m going to play Test cricket’. And they just all burst out laughing. They started to call me the Lion of Adelaide and just absolutely taking the mickey out of me. It hit me a like a bolt of lightning. I had always had this in my mind that I was going to play cricket for Aus-tralia but no one else could see it.”

What happened next changed everything. Gillespie went to a net, measured a run-up and bowled as fast as he could. For 40 minutes he steamed in. The club’s A-grade captain happened to be passing. The rest is history. Within two years he was playing for South Australia, within four for Australia and weeks after that became “Diz-zy” to anyone in cricket.

He bowled fast, he was a perfect complement to Glenn McGrath (“a great bowler, a great friend and the most confi dent man I’ve ever met”) and had an auspicious ca-reer. He remains a little irritated with himself about how it ended.

“I look back at the last couple of years of my career and I realise that I was just about done because I didn’t want to do the extra which I had always done.

“I had a poor Ashes tour in 2005, I came back, took 40-odd wickets for South Australia, bowled well and then got picked for a tour of Bangladesh. There were injuries, I got eight wickets in a two-match series, which in those conditions was good. I bowled well but I knew somehow it was my last match.”

More famously, of course, that last match in Chittagong featured Gillespie making 201 not out after going in as nightwatchman. It was unprecedented and if he had to go out it was some way to do it.

— STEPHEN BRENKLEY/THE INDEPENDENT

Jason Gillespie holds

no regrets at losing

out to Trevor Bayliss

as the new coach.

He is settled in

Yorkshire, and, as

he says can draw on

his unconventional

rise to appreciate

what he has

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Nadal achieves clay-grass double at Stuttgart Open

STUTTGART: Rafael Nadal earned his second title of the sea-son and his fourth on grass as he defeated Serb Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 on Sunday to become the fi rst man to triumph on both clay and turf at the Stuttgart Open.

The Spanish top seed set another minor record, as he won the inau-gural grass edition after taking clay trophies here in 2005 and 2007. Stuttgart made the switch to grass starting with this edition as part of the new Wimbledon pre-season.

Nadal’s 66th career title marked his second in 2015 after claiming a trophy on South American clay last February. The Spaniard now owns two grass titles at Wimble-

don plus 2008 Queen’s Club, Lon-don and now Stuttgart.

The 14-time Grand Slam cham-pion who is ranked 10th, polished his record against eighth seed Troicki to 5-0, last facing the Serb in a Tokyo semifi nal nearly fi ve years ago. Nadal took victory as he played his his 95th career fi nal, now standing 66-29 in fi nals.

His last grass fi nal came at Wim-bledon in 2011 when he lost to No-vak Djokovic. Troicki was playing his seventh career fi nal — and fi rst on grass — and now stands 2-5 in title matches.

Nadal’s victory boosted him to 33-10 this season as he prepares for what he hopes is a better sec-ond half of 2015. He is now 17-2 in

Stuttgart, where he last competed eight years ago.

“I’m not bothered by the expec-tations of others,” said the 29-year-old. “I’m only motivated by my own goals, There is no pressure on me.

“It’s fantastic to win here on grass after winning on clay. Victor is a tough opponent.

“But I’ve been gaining confi -dence over the past month and a half after a very poor fi rst three and a half months of this season.

“I’ve been feeling my game better since after my fi rst match in Monte Carlo (mid-April). It was mentally tiring for me to play tennis in the fi rst part of the year. I was not feel-ing comfortable on court.

“I was not able to play the way that I wanted. I didn’t feel confi -dence. But that has been changing and my focus now if to prepare as best as I can for Wimbledon.”

Nadal added: “My level has al-ways been there, I’ve not forgotten how to play tennis. But now things are coming together for me.”

Nadal spent 48 minutes in win-ning the opening set, which he took into a tiebreaker with a love game. The top seed grabbed the early 4-2 lead in the decider and fi red a ninth ace to wrap up the opener. In the second, the Spaniard broke for 3-1 and took victory on his third match point, ending with 11 aces in the 88-minute contest. - AFP

The Spaniard set

another minor

record, as he won

the inaugural grass

edition after taking

clay trophies here

in 2005 and 2007

MINOR RECORD: Spain’s Rafael Nadal poses with the trophy after

defeating Serbia’s Viktor Troicki in the fi nal match of the Stuttgart

Open in southern Germany on Sunday. – AFP

Lorenzo cuts Rossi’s lead to one pointBARCELONA: Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo slashed teammate Val-entino Rossi’s championship lead to a single point on Sunday with his fourth win in a row at an eventful Catalunya Grand Prix.

The victory on a scorching af-ternoon also handed the Span-iard a MotoGP record with 103 successive laps led, breaking Australian Casey Stoner’s previ-ous benchmark of 88.

Rossi completed a one-two fi n-ish for Yamaha, the team’s second of the season, while Honda’s Dani Pedrosa was third.

“The conditions were diffi cult as it was very hot,” Lorenzo told reporters. “Valentino likes these conditions and performs better but it is the opposite for me.

“The bike was moving a lot but I didn’t make any mistakes and the hard work paid off .”

Rossi now has 138 points to Lorenzo’s 137.

World champion Marc Mar-quez’s poor season continued as he failed to fi nish for the second successive race, crashing out on the third lap while challenging Lorenzo for the lead.

“I was on my home circuit and I wanted to give 100 percent,” the Honda rider, now 69 points behind Rossi and with his hopes of a third successive title fading fast, told reporters. “The thing

is though that if you are not at your best then these things can happen. I felt strong but couldn’t brake into the corner.”

Rossi’s poor form in qualify-ing continued and he had to work his way through the pack, having started in seventh, but could not put any real pressure on Lorenzo once in second place.

“This time I was happy with the bike. Starting on the third row meant that I lost time but I am pleased with my race,” Rossi said.

“My speed was equal to Jorge’s today and so now after seven races there is only one point between us so it should be interesting.” - Reuters

C A T A L U N Y A G P

Jorge Lorenzo

Rampant Aussies sweep the seriesKINGSTON: Australia defeated the West Indies by 277 runs after lunch on the fourth day of the sec-ond and fi nal Test at Sabina Park in Jamaica on Sunday.

It gave Australia a 2-0 sweep of the series after winning the fi rst Test in Dominica.

Earlier, Josh Hazlewood lifted his match haul to seven wickets in removing Darren Bravo and Jermaine Blackwood.

Mitchell Starc, who started the rout by dismissing both openers in the fi rst over of the innings late on the third day, got the ball roll-ing again for the tourists when he bowled Shane Dowrich off his pads after 19 minutes’ play.

Despite struggling to fi nd his rhythm throughout the match, Mitchell Johnson joined the rampant wicket-takers when he breached the defence of Shai Hope for the sixth wicket of the innings.

Jason Holder, who took on the Australians with the bat and ver-bally during an entertaining fi rst innings of 82 not out the day be-fore, failed to have any impact the second time around.

With his captain, Denesh Ramdin, off ering a measure of resistance at the other end, the promising all-rounder pushed a straightforward catch to Starc at short midwicket off Shane Wat-son 15 minutes before the interval.

Starting the morning at 16 for two, Bravo and Dowrich were kept un-der a virtual state of siege by the outstanding pace and persever-ance of Starc and Hazlewood.

Despite his status as the most experienced West Indies bats-man in the match given the una-vailability of Marlon Samuels, left-handed Bravo struggled to get the ball away. - AFP

C R I C K E T

Australia 1st innings: 399West Indies 1st innings: 220Australia 2nd innings: 212 for 2 declaredWest Indies 2nd innings:K. Brathwaite b Starc 0R. Chandrika c Marsh b Starc 0D. Bravo c Marsh b Hazlewood 11S. Dowrich b Starc 4S. Hope b Johnson 16J. Blackwood b Hazlewood 0D. Ramdin c Clarke b Johnson 29J. Holder c Starc b Watson 1V. Permaul not out 23K. Roach c Smith b Lyon 3J. Taylor b Lyon 0Extras (b-13, lb-11, w-2, nb-1) 27Total (42 overs, all out) 114Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-1, 3-20, 4-27, 5-33, 6-55, 7-62, 8-111, 9-114.Bowling: Starc 13-5-34-3 (1w, 1nb), Hazlewood 10-5-18-2, Lyon 7-3-12-2, Johnson 8-1-23-2 (1w), Watson 4-2-3-1.

S C O R E B O A R D

WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COMSECTIONC M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5LIFE & STYLE

he has been fea-tured in Teen Vogue and has shopped for vintage cloth-ing while being trailed by a re-porter. A style

blog chronicles her socially-conscious fashion choices. She has walked red carpets, played at the White House and performed at the request of President Barack Obama at the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize Concert, a celebration that re-quired three diff erent evening gowns.

Fashion has become integral to Spald-ing’s relationship with the public, even though it was not her personal passion and it was not part of her coming-of-age story. That tale centres around growing up as a musical savant amid challenging circumstance in Portland, Oregon.

And now, fashion has become a sto-rytelling tool and a way for her to exert control over her own narrative.

“Since I was never concerned with dressing up and looking fabulous, when I realised it was going to be part of my life, I wanted to fi nd a way to make it interesting to me,” Spalding tells The Washington Post. Doing so has meant choosing costumes that expand on her repertoire, that build meaningful con-text around her music and that defi ne her as an idiosyncratic musician with a distinctively cool point-of-view.

Spalding is not a brand name-wearing cover girl. Her clothes are off -beat and odd. Rarely are they blandly beautiful. They are almost always intriguing.

“I like to tinker with meaning and metaphor and intention,” she says.

Spalding, 30, is performing in the guise of “Emily” — her middle name — as part of her D+Evolution Tour. “I didn’t use the Emily for the last 15 years,” Spalding says. Using it now has been “like opening up that childhood-space again.”

“I look at it like going back and re-membering the dreams of your youth,” she says — noting that she’s paraphras-ing jazzman Wayne Shorter, with whom she has collaborated. “I am doing every-thing I want to do, don’t get me wrong.” But Spalding’s music career began in her teens; there were childhood notions “I never really explored,” she says.

While Spalding is known for her bil-lowing afro and her eccentric glamour, “Emily” is defi ned by her teal-coloured schoolgirl spectacles and the rope-like twists that trail down her back. Emily’s clothes are vaguely dowdy and a lit-tle bit old-fashioned. They would look at home being marched down a Prada runway. Emily is a stylised version of a young Spalding, one who is depicted in an old photograph on Spalding’s Tumblr page — a gap-tooth kid with red glasses, a bright green cardigan and a head full of tiny, squiggly braids.

Spalding is loathe to describe Emily as a character or the clothes that she wears as costumes. And yet, aren’t they cos-tumes if you’re wearing them on stage in the middle of a performance? “Kind of. I mean no. Gosh. I guess if you were to see a play on the street or in a park and it took you through a series of events over the course of the year, I think you won’t notice so much what they’re wearing,” Spalding says. “I don’t want people to ex-pect a full stage production.”

She is hoping that the person, the clothes, the music and the performance all merge into a singular, improvisation-al experience that is both melodic and visual. She would be very happy if critics would refrain from attempting to give the moment a name, if people would stop attempting to categorise the work. “You don’t have to understand the meaning,” she says, a notion that’s highly unset-tling within a culture that prefers labels to ambiguities and doesn’t like its artists to go rogue.

Like a lot of jazz artists, Spalding has long given consideration to her stage persona. Jazz has a history of men in elegant suits and women in so-phisticated evening gowns. Jazz — see Miles Davis or Thelonius Monk — gave popular culture hipster cool. It roman-ticised broken, suff ering beauties such as Billie Holiday.

Spalding expands on that style tradi-tion. In the past, she has used fashion to tweak the staid image of classical musicians and underscore her desire to spark a musical shift. With the CD Chamber Music Society, “I wanted to assume the persona of a buttoned-up person coming home and having a con-versation musically.” So there she was in her afro and a white shirt — buttoned up — under a black vest.

When she performed for Sting at the Kennedy Centre Honours, she wanted her dress to speak to his work but also her own interpretation of it. She sang his moody jazz elegy Fragile. And as her tiny hands pulled on the strings of her massive upright bass, she made a deli-cate, aesthetic nod to his Canary in a Coalmine. The Honours performance “was about reminding us that we’re very fragile, like a canary in a coalmine,” Spalding says. She sang as the canary in a “yellow dress, but it was glamorous and high end” because the Honours are held within the grand confi nes of the John F. Kennedy Centre.

Ultimately, Spalding — the musician — is hoping that fashion will help au-diences experience something wholly new: “I hope people will be able to forget that we’re playing music.” — Robin Givhan/The Washington Post

Fashionto turn up

the volumeon music

Grammy-winning bassistEsperanza Spaldinghas been called an ‘It Girl’by ‘Vogue’ magazine.She uses fashion and musicto merge into a singular,improvisational experience that is both melodicand visual

In Noah Baumbach’s recent movie, While We’re Young, Josh and Cornelia, ageing Genera-tion X Brooklynites (played by Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts)

who are desperately trying to re-claim their youth, are struck by what passes for home décor in the Bushwick loft of their new, pain-fully on-trend young friends Jamie and Darby (Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried).

Along with the familiar hipster household clichés (the electric typewriter, the wall of vinyl re-cords), the young couple proudly displays a Reagan-era library of movies on VHS tapes, along with a shelf of music cassettes.

“It’s like their apartment is full of everything we once threw out,” Cornelia says with an air of wonder.

The tech detritus of the 1980s and ’90s is fi nding a second life as a new generation of artists, design-ers and geek-nostalgists is repur-posing the early-digital-era fl ot-sam of its youth as art, home décor and jewellery, along with plenty of irony-laced kitsch.

Think of it as the next evolution of retro-chic style. Self-conscious ana-logue style may have owned the last decade, at least among tastemakers in shuttle-loomed denim with their vintage phonograph players, type-writers and mechanical watches.

But as the children weaned on Nintendo and Napster mature to the point that they suff er occasion-al fi ts of cultural nostalgia, the dis-posable plastic junk of their youth may fi nally be ready to have its due.

“We’re just to the point where we can look back at the VHS tape

and realise how cool it was,” said Erika Iris Simmons, a 31-year-old Chicago artist who works under the name Iri5, fashioning portraits of luminaries like Jimi Hendrix and Marilyn Monroe not with a brush, but with swirls of tape from old audio and VHS cassettes.

To Simmons, cassette tape re-calls a more physical, tactile as-sociation that children of the ’80s and ’90s once had with their gadg-ets; she remembers knowing how to blow into her Nintendo game cartridge just so, to get it working when it would not load. “We all have that shared experience of in-teracting with the technology that you don’t get to know with MP3s,” she said.

In a similar vein, Chris Mc-Cullough, 40, a Los Angeles archi-tectural designer who creates art for his spaces, renders portraits of cultural icons like James Brown using audiocassettes like mosaic tiles. Not only are discarded cas-settes inexpensive and abundant, he said, but they resonate with au-diences his age.

“Cassettes represented the fi rst popular portable music medium you could share and personalise yourself,” McCullough said, before services like Spotify made music “ever disposable.”

(While cassette tapes are tech-nically analogue, they reached their cultural zenith in the early digital era of the ’80s, just as PCs were entering the mainstream.)

Old Nintendo peripherals them-selves can also function as art, or at least eye-catching home décor. Jeff Farber of Oshkosh, Wiscon-

sin, sells pop-art-style desk and fl oor lamps fashioned from vin-tage PlayStations and Nintendo 64s and the like on his Etsy shop Woody6Switch, which are intend-ed to celebrate an era when gadg-ets, even cheap plastic ones, had a certain staying power.

“When I was a kid, technology advanced much more slowly than it does today,” Farber, 36, said. “Like a beloved pet, you took care of it and it gave you joy and enter-tainment for many, many years.”

By contrast, he added, “today’s technology advances and upgrades are so fast that a device you buy to-day can become virtually obsolete in a matter of months, so there is no real time to fall in love with it the way you could in those golden years of video game infancy.”

There is certainly no shortage of the stuff . As the life cycle of the average electronic gadget shrinks to a virtual eye blink, the moun-tains of electronic trash continue to rise, expected to surpass 70 mil-lion metric tons this year, from about 19 million in 1990, according to a 2014 report by Step, a United

Nations-affi liated sustainability initiative. Except in unusual cases — like the recent story about a Bay Area woman dumping a rare Apple I computer from the 1970s worth $200,000, apparently by accident, at a recycling facility in Milpitas, California — few look at that trash heap and see treasure.

But that has started to change. While some regard the so-called upcycling of old gadgets into pic-ture frames or planters as an eco-logical gesture others see it as a celebration of shared technologi-cal heritage.

Jake Harms, 31, who lives in Hil-dreth, Nebraska, started a business recycling old iMacs into aquari-ums and desk lamps in 2007 after a boss directed him to toss an out-moded iMac G3. The candy-col-oured, egg-shaped desktop com-puter, introduced in 1998 as one of Steve Jobs’ fi rst iconic pieces during Apple’s late-’90s comeback, seemed too lovely to toss, Harms reasoned. So after some online re-search, he decided to turn it into a computer fi sh tank (a longstanding hobby for some techies), and has since sold more than 1,000, he said.

To Harms, the iMac is functional art, like a classic car. And just as a 1960s Ford Mustang may not make an ideal daily drive but is great for a weekend cruises, “an old computer may not run current software, but make some modifi cations and it makes a pretty sweet aquarium or lamp,” he said.

Apple products created early in the reign of Jonathan Ive, the com-pany’s design guru since 1996, are a natural for reuse as household objects since many were hailed as classics from the outset. For ex-

ample, Lonnie Mimms, a Georgia real estate executive who owns a collection of vintage computers he values at more than $1 million, re-cently staged an Apple Pop Up Mu-seum in a former CompUSA store near Atlanta.

Other die-hards have fashioned discarded eMacs into pet beds, G4 towers into mailboxes, G5 towers into outdoor benches and G4 Cube computers into tissue boxes.

The customer base for these up-cycled products tends to be narrow and self-selective.

“They’re geeks; they’re nerds,” said Rob Connolly, a retired Flo-ridian who, with his partner, Rita Balcom, makes intricate wall clocks and desk clocks out of old hard drives and motherboards. A few years ago, for example, their company, Tecoart, which sells on Etsy and Amazon, fi lled an order for 2,400 such pieces from Google, which passed them out as employ-ee incentive awards, he said.

Not surprisingly, these techie hobbyists share their passion in online communities. One of the more popular forums is a DIY tech blog run by Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories, a family company in Sunnyvale, California, that pro-duces open-source hardware. The site features tutorials on making earrings out of linear regulator chips, wine charms from capaci-tors and a wooden footstool in the shape of a classic 555 integrated circuit chip from the ’70s.

“Most of us are deep in the maker communities,” said Lenore Edman, a founder, “so these items are symbols of both our history and our knowledge.” -Alex Williams/ The New York Times News Service

C8

EXTRAM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF RETRO-CHIC STYLE

Today’s technology advances

and upgrades are so fast that a

device you buy today can become

virtually obsolete in a matter of

months, so there is no real time

to fall in love with it the way you

could in those golden years of

video game infancy

The tech gadgets of the 1980s

and 1990s is fi nding a second life as

a new generation of artists, designers

and geek-nostalgists is repurposing

the early-digital-era fl otsam of its youth

as art, home decor and jewellery

JESSAMYN West, an author who died in 1984, said, “We want the facts to fi t the preconceptions. When they don’t, it is easier to ignore the facts than to change the preconceptions.”

In bridge, we have suit fi ts, about which some players have preconceptions. In this deal, North-South have a 5-3 spade fi t and a 4-4 heart fi t. Which is preferable?

Today we will study the 5-3 fi t, tomorrow the 4-4.

Against four spades, West leads off with the diamond ace. What should happen?

In the auction, after North jumped to two no-trump and South rebid three hearts, North should have raised hearts, but gave preference to spades. South continued with three no-trump to describe his 5-4-2-2 distribution, and North removed to four spades because he was worried about diamonds. That was understandable, although here, because diamonds were 4-4, three no-trump would have been a lucky make. In contrast, four spades was an unlucky fail.

At trick one, East signaled enthusiastically with his diamond 10.

When encouraging, play the highest card you can aff ord — no half measures. West cashed his diamond king, then continued with another diamond, which South ruff ed.

Everything looked easy to South; surely he had fi ve spades, four hearts and one club. But after drawing trumps, he started on the hearts. When West discarded on the second round, declarer led a low club toward his queen, but his luck was still out. West had the king and South had to lose one heart, two diamonds and one club.

— By Phillip Alder

C9

ENTERTAINMENT

Is the 5-3 or 4-4 fi t preferable?

B I G N A T E

B O R N L O S E R

M A R M A D U K E

A C E S O N B R I D G E

K I D S P O T H E A L T H C A P S U L EC R O S S W O R D

Answer to previous puzzle

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M O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

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AFRAH MAHMUDJune 15, 2002

ACROSS 1 Kimono sash 4 Leaf through 8 No diff erent12 Was in front13 What the suspicious smell (2 wds.)14 Deuces15 Bermuda Triangle ocean17 Charles Lamb18 Fuels19 Far East cuisine21 Yes, to Angus23 As a joke (2 wds.)27 Stack30 Account entry33 Novelist — Levin34 Dr.’s visit

35 Tyrannosaurus —36 Lobster pot37 Craven or Unseld38 Ooze out39 Morays40 Ship bottoms42 Unwitty comebacks44 Archaic preposition47 Dull green51 Invitation info54 Personalised a ring56 Mystique57 Deli breads58 Previously59 Honey60 Wheel part61 — Antonio

DOWN 1 Norwegian saint 2 — noire 3 Lazing about 4 Bright fl ower 5 Wall hanging 6 Stride 7 Draw on glass 8 Tankard 9 Belt maker’s tool10 French word for ‘me’11 Spanish “that”16 Get accustomed20 Zero in on22 Gael republic24 Bake pottery25 Europe-Asia range26 Dozes off 27 Bird of prey

28 Fencer’s need29 Basilica area31 Casual wear32 Montreal player36 Physicist Nikola —38 9-digit ID41 Type of eclipse43 Cowboy’s partner45 Prefi x meaning “trillion”46 Black gemstone48 Currier’s partner49 Aloe —50 Blissful spot51 Fat cat’s bundle52 Shade53 Period55 Toothpaste type

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Premam (Mal) (Com) Cast: Nivin Pauly, Anupama Parameshwaran & Sai Pallavi 3:30, 6:30, 9:00 pm at Cinema MainRomeo & Juliet (Tamil) (Act/Rom) Cast: Jayam Ravi & Hansika Motwani 3:30, 6:30 & 9:30pm at Cinema -2 Hamari Adhuri Kahani (Hindi) (Rom) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, Rajkummar Rao, Sara Khan 3:45, 6:45 & 9:45 pm at Cinema-3 Chandrettan Evideya (Mal) (Rom/Com) Cast: Dileep, Namitha and Anu Sree 3:45, 6:45, 9:45 pm Cinema -4 Next Change: Laila O Laila ( Mal ) Eli (Tamil) Kakka (Tamil)(Subject to change)

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Hamara Adhuri Kahani (2D)(Dra) (PG)Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan 9:00pmSan Andreas (3D) (Act) (PG)Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario12:15 & 5:00pmJurassic World (3D) (Act/Adv) (PG12)

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Jurassic World - 2D (Act/Adv) (PG12)Cast: Chris Pratt, Ty Simpkins3:00 pmJurassic World - 3D (Act/ Fi) (PG12)4:45, 9:15, 11:30 pmA Mouse Tale – 2D (Animation) (PG)3:00, 5:05pmSan Andreas – 3D (PG) (Act, Dr)6:45, 11:45pmPremam – 2D (Com, Romance) (TBC)Cast: Nivin Pauly, Anupama Parameshwaran; 8:45pmDil Dhadakne Do – 2D (PG12) (Drama)Cast: Ranveer Singh, Priyanka Chopra 3:30pmRomeo Juliet – 2D (Tamil) (Dr) (PG)Cast: Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Vamsi Krishna6:30pmHamari Adhuri Kahaani - 2D (Drama) (TBC)Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan9:15 pmSpy - 2D (18+) (Action, Comedy)Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi 7:00, 11:45pm

Jurassic World (3D) (Action) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins, 4:15, 9:30, 11:45 pmJurassic World (2D) (Act | Adv) (PG12) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins 2:45pm

San Andreas (3D) (12+) (Act, Dra, ) Cast: Dwayne Johnson, 5:15, 11:55pmSpy (2D) (18+) (Action, Comedy) Cast: Jude Law, Raad Rawi, 12:30, 11:30 pmInsidious: Chapter 3 (2D) (15+) (Hor) Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, 2:00, 10:05pmDil Dhadakne Do (2D) (PG12) (Dra) Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra; 2:15pmJurassic World (3D) (PG12) (Sci-Fi ) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 7:15, 9:30, 11:45pmJurassic World (2D) (PG12) (Sci-Fi ) Cast: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, 12:00 pmRomeo Juliet (2D) (PG) (Com) Cast: Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Vamsi Krishna, 5:45pmHamari Adhuri Kahaani (2D) (PG) (Drama, Romance) Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Vidya Balan, 7:30pmBetter Living Through Chemistry (2D) (15+) (Comedy, Drama) Cast: Sam Rockwell, 5:45pmA Mouse Tale (2D) (PG) (Animation) Cast: Tom Arnold, Drake Bell, 12:15, 4:00 pm

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C10

FIND-IT-ALLM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

MONDAY

FLT NO ARRIVALS FROM ETA WY672 MEDINA  0005WY648 KUWAIT  0005WY406 CAIRO  0005WY676 JEDDAH  0005WY682 RIYADH  0010WY914 SALALAH  0020WY916 SALALAH  0120TK774 ISTANBUL  01354H583 DACCA  0200PK229 LAHORE  0215GF560 BAHRAIN  0325QR1132 DOHA  0345ET624 ADDIS ABABA  0350EK866 DUBAI  0350EY384 ABU DHABI  0400FZ041 DUBAI  0415WY114 FRANKFURT  0515WY658 BAHRAIN  0635WY638 ABU DHABI  0640WY902 SALALAH  0645WY644 KUWAIT  0650WY154 ZURICH  0700WY144 MALPENSA  0705WY668 DOHA  0715WY674 JEDDAH  0735WY102 LONDON HEATHROW  0740FZ043 DUBAI  0800WY422 BEIRUT  0805WY602 DUBAI  0805WY346 ISLAM ABBAD  0815WY342 LAHORE  0825WY272 JAIPUR  0830WY202 BOMBAY  0835WY236 HYDERABAD  0900G9114 SHARJAH  0905WY226 COCHIN  0920EK862 DUBAI  0930WY210 GOA  0935WY242 DELHI  0935WY212 TRIVANDRUM  0950WY252 MADRAS  0955QR1128 DOHA  1000EY382 ABU DHABI  1010WY844 MANILA  10209W530 TRIVANDRUM  1045WY604 DUBAI  1115WY918 KHASAB  1115WY3302 MUKHAIZNA  1120GF562 BAHRAIN  1130FZ037 DUBAI  1140WY372 COLOMBO  1140IX337 CALICUT  1155PA450 LAHORE  1215WY705 DARESSLAM-ZANZIBAR  1215WY822 KUALA LUMPUR-SINGAPORE  1215WY634 ABU DHABI  1220WY818 BANGKOK  1220WY904 SALALAH  1230WY670 DOHA  1250WY324 KARACHI  1300WY332 KATHMANDU  1305WY632 ABU DHABI  1335WY606 DUBAI  1340WY920 KHASAB  1445FZ045 DUBAI  1535WY3304 MUKHAIZNA  1550WY656 BAHRAIN  1635QR1126 DOHA  1650WY204 BOMBAY  1655WY292 CALICUT  1710WY264 LUCKNOW  1740WY664 DOHA  1745EK864 DUBAI  1745WY232 HYDERABAD  1750WY246 DELHI  1750WY254 MADRAS  1750WY284 BANGALORE  1750WY3922 DUQUM OMAN  1755WY610 DUBAI  1800GF564 BAHRAIN  1810G9116 SHARJAH  1905WY684 RIYADH  1915WY646 KUWAIT  1920FZ047 DUBAI  1940WY614 DUBAI  2025WY848 JAKARTA  2035WY338 KATHMANDU  2040WY434 TEHRAN  2055FZ049 DUBAI  2100KL441 AMSTERDAM-DOHA  2105AI977 BANGALORE-HYDERABAD  2105WY124 MUNICH  21054H561 DACCA  21159W534 COCHIN  2115AI973 DELHI  21256.00E+81 BOMBAY  2130BA073 LONDON HEATHROW-ABU DHABI  2140WY624 DUBAI  2150WY906 SALALAH  2155AI907 MADRAS  2200WY312 CHITTAGONG  2210QR1134 DOHA  2225LX242 ZURICH-DUBAI  2225GF566 BAHRAIN  2240LH616 FRANKFURT-DOHA  2245WY717 ZANZIBAR-DARESSLAM  2250SG061 AHMEDABAD  2300EY388 ABU DHABI  2300WY910 SALALAH  23109W540 BOMBAY  2315WY908 SALALAH  2320AI985 BOMBAY  2325WY662 DOHA  2335WY654 BAHRAIN  2340WY636 ABU DHABI  2340WY928 SALALAH  2345WY816 BANGKOK  2350WY612 DUBAI  2355WY696 DAMMAM  2355

TUESDAY

FLT NO ARRIVALS FROM ETA

WY406 CAIRO  0005WY648 KUWAIT  0005WY676 JEDDAH  0005WY682 RIYADH  0010WY914 SALALAH  0020BG021 DACCA  0100WY916 SALALAH  0120NL768 LAHORE  0130TK774 ISTANBUL  01354H583 DACCA  0200PK281 ISLAM ABBAD-SIALKOT  0300GF560 BAHRAIN  0325QR1132 DOHA  0345EK866 DUBAI  0350ET624 ADDIS ABABA  0350EY384 ABU DHABI  0400FZ041 DUBAI  0415WY114 FRANKFURT  0515WY412 AMMAN  0515WY658 BAHRAIN  0635WY638 ABU DHABI  06404H562 JEDDAH  0645WY902 SALALAH  0645WY644 KUWAIT  0650WY326 KARACHI  0650WY686 RIYADH  0655WY154 ZURICH  0700WY144 MALPENSA  0705WY678 MEDINA  0710WY668 DOHA  0715WY132 PARIS  0735WY674 JEDDAH  0735WY102 LONDON HEATHROW  0740FZ043 DUBAI  0800WY432 TEHRAN  0805WY602 DUBAI  0805WY346 ISLAM ABBAD  0815WY342 LAHORE  0825WY272 JAIPUR  0830WY202 BOMBAY  0835G9841 RAS AL KHAIMA  0855WY236 HYDERABAD  0900G9114 SHARJAH  0905WY282 BANGALORE  0910EK862 DUBAI  0930WY242 DELHI  0935WY252 MADRAS  0955QR1128 DOHA  1000IX817 MANGALORE  1010EY382 ABU DHABI  10109W530 TRIVANDRUM  1045WY3302 MUKHAIZNA  1050WY604 DUBAI  1115WY918 KHASAB  1115WY652 BAHRAIN  1125GF562 BAHRAIN  1130FZ037 DUBAI  1140WY372 COLOMBO  1140IX337 CALICUT  1155WY384 MALE  1210WY822 KUALA LUMPUR-SINGAPORE  1215WY705 DARESSLAM-ZANZIBAR  1215WY904 SALALAH  1220WY634 ABU DHABI  1220WY818 BANGKOK  1220BG023 DACCA-CHITTAGONG  1230WY670 DOHA  1250WY324 KARACHI  1300WY332 KATHMANDU  1305PA950 SIALKOT  1310PK191 GWADUR  1320WY606 DUBAI  1340WY906 SALALAH  1440WY920 KHASAB  1445FZ045 DUBAI  1535WY632 ABU DHABI  1605WY656 BAHRAIN  1610QR1126 DOHA  1650WY3304 MUKHAIZNA  1650WY204 BOMBAY  1655WY292 CALICUT  1710WY264 LUCKNOW  1740WY664 DOHA  1745WY216 TRIVANDRUM  1745EK864 DUBAI  1745WY232 HYDERABAD  1750WY246 DELHI  1750WY610 DUBAI  1800WY694 DAMMAM  1805GF564 BAHRAIN  1810TG507 BANGKOK-KARACHI  1900SV534 RIYADH  1900G9116 SHARJAH  1905WY374 COLOMBO  1915WY646 KUWAIT  1920FZ047 DUBAI  1940WY908 SALALAH  2000RG125 ABU DHABI  2005WY386 MALE  2020WY224 COCHIN  2025WY614 DUBAI  2025WY338 KATHMANDU  2040FZ049 DUBAI  2100WY124 MUNICH  21059W534 COCHIN  2115AI973 DELHI  21256.00E+81 BOMBAY  2130WY254 MADRAS  2135BA073 LONDON HEATHROW-ABU DHABI  2140WY624 DUBAI  2150UL205 COLOMBO  2155AI907 MADRAS  2200WY312 CHITTAGONG  2210LX242 ZURICH-DUBAI  2225QR1134 DOHA  2225GF566 BAHRAIN  2240LH616 FRANKFURT-DOHA  2245EY388 ABU DHABI  2300WY910 SALALAH  23109W540 BOMBAY  2315AI985 BOMBAY  2325WY662 DOHA  2335WY654 BAHRAIN  2340WY636 ABU DHABI  2340WY928 SALALAH  2345WY816 BANGKOK  2350WY696 DAMMAM  2355WY612 DUBAI  2355

FLT NO DEPARTURES TO ETD AI986 BOMBAY  00209W539 BOMBAY  0020WY657 BAHRAIN  0055WY225 COCHIN  0105WY637 ABU DHABI  0105WY211 TRIVANDRUM  0110WY235 HYDERABAD  0110WY201 BOMBAY  0115WY643 KUWAIT  0120WY345 ISLAM ABBAD  0125WY271 JAIPUR  0135WY341 LAHORE  0145WY601 DUBAI  0145WY371 COLOMBO  0155WY123 MUNICH  0200WY901 SALALAH  0215WY847 JAKARTA  0215WY241 DELHI  0215WY667 DOHA  0225TK775 ISTANBUL  0230WY209 GOA  02554H584 DACCA  0300PK226 KARACHI  0315WY331 KATHMANDU  0350EK867 DUBAI  0450ET625 ADDIS ABABA  0450EY385 ABU DHABI  0500FZ042 DUBAI  0510QR1133 DOHA  0515GF561 BAHRAIN  0715WY603 DUBAI  0750WY903 SALALAH  0750WY3301 MUKHAIZNA  0800WY917 KHASAB  0815WY323 KARACHI  0835WY669 DOHA  0835FZ044 DUBAI  0845WY633 ABU DHABI  0900WY815 BANGKOK  0905WY253 MADRAS  0915WY291 CALICUT  0915WY263 LUCKNOW  0940WY717 ZANZIBAR-DARESSLAM  0940WY821 SINGAPORE-KUALA LUMPUR  0945G9115 SHARJAH  0955WY231 HYDERABAD  1000WY283 BANGALORE  1000WY631 ABU DHABI  1015WY605 DUBAI  1020WY203 BOMBAY  1025WY245 DELHI  1040EK863 DUBAI  1045WY337 KATHMANDU  1050QR1129 DOHA  1100EY383 ABU DHABI  1105WY311 CHITTAGONG  11409W533 COCHIN  1145WY919 KHASAB  1145GF563 BAHRAIN  1215WY655 BAHRAIN  1215FZ038 DUBAI  1225WY3303 MUKHAIZNA  1230IX350 CALICUT  1255PA451 LAHORE  1315WY113 FRANKFURT  1320WY663 DOHA  1330WY683 RIYADH  1335WY131 PARIS  1345WY645 KUWAIT  1350WY143 MALPENSA  1350WY101 LONDON HEATHROW  1400WY153 ZURICH  1420WY927 SALALAH  1430WY405 CAIRO  1440WY609 DUBAI  1445WY433 TEHRAN  1445WY3921 DUQUM OMAN  1455WY675 JEDDAH  1615FZ046 DUBAI  1620WY613 DUBAI  1710WY905 SALALAH  1735QR1127 DOHA  1750WY681 RIYADH  1840WY623 DUBAI  1840WY647 KUWAIT  1845WY909 SALALAH  1850GF565 BAHRAIN  1855WY907 SALALAH  1900EK865 DUBAI  1910WY695 DAMMAM  1915WY661 DOHA  1920WY653 BAHRAIN  1920G9117 SHARJAH  1955WY913 SALALAH  2000WY635 ABU DHABI  2015FZ048 DUBAI  2025WY611 DUBAI  2035WY411 AMMAN  2100WY915 SALALAH  2100FZ050 DUBAI  2145AI978 HYDERABAD-BANGALORE  22004H561 JEDDAH  2215KL442 DOHA-AMSTERDAM  2220WY817 BANGKOK  22259W529 TRIVANDRUM  22306.00E+82 BOMBAY  2245AI908 MADRAS  2300WY677 MEDINA  2310WY705 DARESSLAM-ZANZIBAR  2310AI974 DELHI  2310GF567 BAHRAIN  2325LX243 DUBAI-ZURICH  2325BA072 ABU DHABI-LONDON HEATHROW  2330QR1135 DOHA  2330WY673 JEDDAH  2350LH617 DOHA-FRANKFURT  2355EY381 ABU DHABI  2355

FLT NO DEPARTURES TO ETD AI986 BOMBAY  00209W539 BOMBAY  0020SG062 AHMEDABAD  0030WY657 BAHRAIN  0055WY637 ABU DHABI  0105WY235 HYDERABAD  0110WY281 BANGALORE  0110WY685 RIYADH  0115WY201 BOMBAY  0115WY643 KUWAIT  0120WY251 MADRAS  0120WY345 ISLAM ABBAD  0125WY271 JAIPUR  0135WY601 DUBAI  0145WY341 LAHORE  0145WY431 TEHRAN  0155WY371 COLOMBO  0155WY123 MUNICH  0200WY325 KARACHI  0210WY901 SALALAH  0215WY241 DELHI  0215WY667 DOHA  0225WY383 MALE  0230BG022 CHITTAGONG-DACCA  0230NL769 LAHORE  0230TK775 ISTANBUL  02304H584 DACCA  0300WY331 KATHMANDU  0350PK282 SIALKOT  0400EK867 DUBAI  0450ET625 ADDIS ABABA  0450EY385 ABU DHABI  0500FZ042 DUBAI  0510QR1133 DOHA  0515GF561 BAHRAIN  0715WY651 BAHRAIN  0730WY3301 MUKHAIZNA  0730WY903 SALALAH  07404H562 DACCA  0745WY603 DUBAI  0750WY917 KHASAB  0815WY323 KARACHI  0835WY669 DOHA  0835FZ044 DUBAI  0845WY633 ABU DHABI  0900WY373 COLOMBO  0900WY215 TRIVANDRUM  0900WY815 BANGKOK  0905WY291 CALICUT  0915WY263 LUCKNOW  0940WY385 MALE  0945G9842 RAS AL KHAIMA  0945WY821 SINGAPORE-KUALA LUMPUR  0945G9115 SHARJAH  0955WY231 HYDERABAD  1000WY905 SALALAH  1020WY605 DUBAI  1020WY203 BOMBAY  1025WY245 DELHI  1040EK863 DUBAI  1045WY337 KATHMANDU  1050IX818 MANGALORE  1100QR1129 DOHA  1100EY383 ABU DHABI  1105WY311 CHITTAGONG  1140WY919 KHASAB  11459W533 COCHIN  1145GF563 BAHRAIN  1215WY223 COCHIN  1215WY655 BAHRAIN  1215FZ038 DUBAI  1225WY631 ABU DHABI  1240IX350 CALICUT  1255WY253 MADRAS  1255WY113 FRANKFURT  1320WY693 DAMMAM  1330WY3303 MUKHAIZNA  1330WY663 DOHA  1330WY131 PARIS  1345WY143 MALPENSA  1350WY645 KUWAIT  1350WY101 LONDON HEATHROW  1400BG024 DACCA  1400PK192 GWADUR-TURBAT  1405PA951 SIALKOT  1430WY927 SALALAH  1430WY405 CAIRO  1440WY609 DUBAI  1445WY907 SALALAH  1540WY675 JEDDAH  1615FZ046 DUBAI  1620WY671 MEDINA  1705WY613 DUBAI  1710QR1127 DOHA  1750WY623 DUBAI  1840WY681 RIYADH  1840WY647 KUWAIT  1845WY909 SALALAH  1850GF565 BAHRAIN  1855EK865 DUBAI  1910WY695 DAMMAM  1915WY661 DOHA  1920WY653 BAHRAIN  1920G9117 SHARJAH  1955SV535 RIYADH  2000WY913 SALALAH  2000TG508 KARACHI-BANGKOK  2005WY635 ABU DHABI  2015FZ048 DUBAI  2025WY611 DUBAI  2035RG126 ABU DHABI  2045WY915 SALALAH  2100FZ050 DUBAI  2145WY411 AMMAN  2205WY421 BEIRUT  2215WY817 BANGKOK  22259W529 TRIVANDRUM  22306.00E+82 BOMBAY  2245AI908 MADRAS  2300UL206 COLOMBO  2305AI974 DELHI  2310GF567 BAHRAIN  2325LX243 DUBAI-ZURICH  2325BA072 ABU DHABI-LONDON HEATHROW  2330QR1135 DOHA  2330WY673 JEDDAH  2350LH617 DOHA-FRANKFURT  2355EY381 ABU DHABI  2355

A I R L I N E S

PHARMACIESRound the clockAl Hashar Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24783334; Appolo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24782666; Muscat Pharmacy, Ruwi: 24702542, Salalah: 23291635; Atlas Pharmacy, Ghubra: 24503585; Ruwi 24811715Muscat RegionApollo, Al Hamriya. Tel: 24787766Muscat, A Seeb Market. Tel: 24421691Muscat, Al Khuwair. Tel: 24485740Muscat, Al Hail South. Tel: 4537080Dhofar RegionMuscat, Al Nahdha Road, Salalah. Tel: 23291635

HOSPITALSAl Amal Medical & Health Care Centre: 24485052Atlas Hospital: Ruwi: 24811743/ Ghubra: 24504000Al Musafi r Specialised Medical Clinic: 24706453Hatat Polyclinic LLC,Ruwi: 24563641, Azaiba: 24499269, Sohar: 2683006Al Raff ah Hospital: 24618900/1/2Al Massaraat Clinic & Laboratory: 24566435Al Makook Medical Coordinance Centre: 24499434Apollo Medical Centre, Hamriya: 24787766, 24787780Capital Polyclinic: 24707549Badr Al Samaa Polyclinic, Ruwi: 24799760/1/2Capital Clinic, Seeb: 24420740Ceregem National Raak: 24485633Dr Harub’s Clinic: 24563217Elixir Health Centre: 24565802Emirates Medical Centre: 246045401st Chiropractic Centre: 24472274Hamdan Hospital: 23212340International Medical Centre LLC: 24794501/2/3/4/5Kims Oman Hospital: 24760100

24 Hrs Emergency: 24760123Lama Polyclinic, Sohar: 26751128, MBD: 24799077, Al Khuwair: 24478818Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital: 24568870Muscat Private Hospital: 24583600Welcare Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, Al Khuwair: 24477666Al-Hayat Polyclinc LLC: 22004000

ROYAL OMAN POLICEEmergencies and inquiries: 9999General Directorate of Passport and Residence: 24569603Directorate General of Customs: 24521109Traffi c violations inquiries: 24510228Public Relations Admin: 24560099

ACCOMMODATIONAl Bahjah Hotel: 24424400Al Bustan Palace: 24764000 Al Khuwair Hotel Apartments: 24478171Al Madina Holiday Inn: 24596400Al Maha International Hotel: 24494949Al Fanar Hotel: 24712385Al Falaj Hotel: 24702311Al Qurum Resort: 24605945Azaiba Hotel Apartments: 24490979Beach Hotel: 24696601Bowshar Hotel: 24491105Coral Hotel Muscat: 24692121Crowne Plaza Muscat: 24660660Crystal Suites: 24826100Golden Tulip Seeb: 24510300Grand Hyatt Muscat: 24641234Haff a House Hotel: 24707207Hotel Muscat Holiday: 24487123InterContinental Muscat: 24680000Majan Continental Hotel: 24592900Marina Hotel: 24711711Midan Hotel Suites: 24499565Mina Hotel: 24711828Muttrah Hotel: 24798401

Nuzha Hotel Apartments: 24789199Oman Dive Centre: 24824240Park Inn: 24507888Qurum Beach House Hotel: 24564070Radisson Blu Hotel: 24487777Ramee Dream Resort Seeb: 24453399Ramee Guestline Hotel: 24564443Ruwi Hotel: 24704244Safeer Hotel Suites: 24691200Sheraton Oman Hotel: 24772772Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa: 24776666The Chedi Muscat: 24524400The Treasurebox Muscat Hotel: 24502570Sifawy Hotel +968 24749111Juweira Hotel +968 23239600

AIRLINE OFFICESMuscat Airport Flight information (24 hours): 24519456/24519223Aerofl ot: 24704455, Air Arabia: 24700828, Air France: 24562153, Air India: 24799801, Air New Zealand: 24700732, Biman Bangladesh Airlines: 24701128, British Airways: 24568777, Cathay Pacifi c: 24789818, Egypt Air: 24794113, Emirates Air: 24404400, Ethiopian Airlines: 24660313, Gulf Air: 80072424, Indian: 24791914, Iran Air: 24787423, Japan Airlines: 24704455, Jazeera Airways: 23294848, Jet Airways: 24787248, Kenya Airways: 24660300, KML Royal Dutch Airlines: 24566737, Kuwait Airways: 24701262, LOT Polish Airlines: 24796387, Lufthansa: 24796692, Malaysian Airlines: 24560796, Middle East Airlines: 24796680, Oman Air: 24531111, Pakistan International Airlines: 24792471, Qatar Airways: 24771900, Qantas: 24559941, Royal Jordanian: 24796693, Saudi Arabian Airlines: 24789485, Singapore

Airlines: 24791233, Shaheen Air: 24816565, SriLankan Airlines: 24784545, Swiss International Airlines: 24796692, Thai Airways: 24705934, Turkish Airlines: 24703033

MUSEUMSBait Al Baranda: Corniche (seafront opp fi sh market), Open from Saturday to Thursday 9am to 1pm and 4 to 6pmNatural History Museum: Al Khuwair, Tel: 24604957, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm; Thursday: 9am to 1pmMuseum of Omani Heritage: (former Omani Museum), Madinat Al Alam, Sat-Wed 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday - 9am to 1pm, Tel: 24600946Armed Forces Museum: Bait Al Falaj, Tel: 24312651, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm; Thurs 9-12pm and 3-6pm; Fri 9-11am and 3-6pm. Al Hoota Caves 24498258; Turtle Beach 96550606/96550707Children’s Science Museum: Shatti Al Qurum, Tel: 24605368, Open from Saturday to Wednesday: 8am to 1:30pm, Thursday: 9am to 1pmOman-French Museum: near Muscat Police Station, Tel: 24736613, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pmBait Al Zubair, Muscat: Tel: 24736688, Al Saidiya St., Muscatmuseum@baitalzubairmuseum.comOpen from Sat to Thurs: 9:30am to 6pm.National Museum Ruwi: Tel: 24701289, Open from Sat to Wed: 8am to 1:30pm, Thurs: 9am to 1pmSohar Fort Museum: Tel: 26844758, Open from Saturday to Wed: 8 to 1:30pm Thurs: 9am to 1pmMuscat Gate Museum: at Al Bahri Road, Muscat open from Sat to Wed 8am to 2pm

PRAYER TIMINGS

W E A T H E R

Dhuhr 12.12pm

Asr 3.30pm

Maghrib 7.00pm

Isha 8.22pm Fajr (Tomorrow) 3.52am

Sunset 6:54pm

Sunrise (Tomorrow) 5.20am

High tide 8:23am 7:16pm

Low tide 1:54pm 2:17am

OMAN

Max 40Min 34

Max 33Min 30

Max 35Min 29

Max 42Min 30

Max 32Min 28Max 38

Min 28

Max 41Min 28

Max 33 Min 29

Partly cloudy skies over the governorates of south Al-Sharqiya, Al-Wusta and Dhofar with chances of isolated rain, clear to partly cloudy skies over rest of the Sultanate with chances of convective

clouds developments and isolated rain over Al-Hajar mountains and adjoining areas during evening. Chances of late night to early morning low level clouds or fog patches along the coastal areas of Oman Sea.EXPECTED WIND: Along the coastal areas of Dhofar and Al-Wusta governorates wind will be southwesterly moderate to fresh and over rest of the Sultanate wind will be northeasterly to easterly light to moderate occasionally fresh.

SEA STATE: Rough along southeastern coast with a maximum wave height between 3.0 to 8.0 metres and slight to moderate along rest of Oman’s coast with a maximum wave height of 1.5 metres.HORIZONTAL VISIBILITY: Good over most of the Sultanate and moderate during rain.THE NEXT 48 HOURS OUTLOOK: Partly cloudy to cloudy skies over governorates of south Al-Sharqiya, Al-Wusta and Dhofar with chances of isolated rain. Chance of convective cloud development over Al-Hajar mountains during afternoon.

Max Min

GULFAbu Dhabi 40 29Doha 41 31Dubai 40 30Kuwait 48 31Manama 37 31Riyadh 40 27

WORLDAthens 33 24Baghdad 42 28Beijing 32 21Berlin 21 9Boston 18 14Cairo 34 30Colombo 30 28Frankfurt 24 12Hong Kong 31 27Istanbul 27 21Johannesburg 21 5Kuala Lumpur 32 24Lisbon 22 16Paris 26 14Perth 20 11Singapore 31 28Tokyo 30 19Toronto 22 17

WORLD

Max 27Min 19

Max 37Min 28

Max 22Min 16

Max 34Min 29

Max 28Min 17

Max 19Min 13

Max 29Min 18

Max 37Min 29

LONG DISTANCE BUS TIMINGS (OMAN NATIONAL TRANSPORT COMPANY SAOC) *SUBJECT TO CHANGE

QURIYAT - SUR - JAALAN (Route 36)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 15:00 Quriyat 16:30 Daily15:00 Sur 18:00 Daily15:00 Jaalan 19:30 Daily

FROM JAALAN-SUR-QURIYAT (Route 36)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 05:30 Sur 06:45 Daily05:30 Quriyat 08:30 Daily05:30 Ruwi 10:00 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41)06:30 Sohar 08:50 Daily06:30 Buraimi 11:00 Daily08:00 Buraimi 14:30 Daily via Ibri13:00 Sohar 15:45 Daily13:00 Buraimi 17:40 Daily16.00 Sohar 18.35 Daily16.00 Buraimi 20:20 Daily

TO AL BURAIMI (Route 41)07:00 Sohar 08:55 Daily07:00 Ruwi 11:40 Daily13:30 Ruwi 20:20 Daily via Ibri13:00 Sohar 14:55 Daily13:00 Ruwi 17:40 Daily13:00 Sohar 19:20 Daily17:00 Ruwi 22:15 Daily

TO SINAW (Route 52)17:30 Sinaw 20:50 Daily

TO SINAW (Route 52)07:00 Ruwi 10:25 Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54)14:30 Nizwa 16:50 Daily14:30 Yanqul 19:30 Daily

To Yanqul (Route 54)06:00 Nizwa 08:40 Daily06:00 Ruwi 11:00 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54)08:00 Nizwa 10:20 Daily08:00 Al Araqi 12:30 Daily

TO IBRI (ARAQI) (Route 54)15:40 Nizwa 17:55 Daily15:40 Ruwi 20:20 Daily

TO SUR (Route 55)07:30 Sur 12:00 Daily14:30 Sur 18:45 Daily

TO SUR (Route 55)06:00 Ruwi 10:45 Daily14:30 Ruwi 19:00 Daily

TO FAHUD - YIBAL (Route 62)06:30 Fahud 10:30 Daily06:30 Yibal 11:15 Daily

TO YIBAL - FAHUD (Route 62)12:30 Fahud 13:15 Daily12:30 Ruwi 17:30 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201)06:00 Sohar 08:30 Daily06:00 Dubai 11:30 Daily13:00 Sohar 15:30 Wed,Thur13:00 Dubai 18:30 Wed,Thur15:00 Sohar 17:35 Daily15:00 Dubai 20:55 Daily

TO DUBAI (Route 201)07:30 Sohar 10:50 Daily07:30 Ruwi 13:40 Daily13:00 Sohar 16:15 Thur-Fri13:00 Ruwi 19:10 Thur-Fri15:30 Sohar 18:45 Daily15:30 Ruwi 21:35 Daily

TO MARMUL-SALALAH (Route 100)07:00 Salalah 20:00 Daily10:00 Marmul 20:30 Daily10:00 Salalah 23:30 Daily19:00 Salalah 07:40 Daily

TO SALALAH -MARMUL (Route 100)07:00 Ruwi 19:50 Daily10:00 Marmul 13:15 Daily10:00 Ruwi 22:30 Daily19:00 Ruwi 07:30 Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101)06:00 Marmul 16:50 Daily

SALALAH TO DUBAI (Route 102)15:00 Dubai 07:00 Daily

TO MARMUL (Route 101)06:00 Marmul 16:30 Daily

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

TO DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 07:00 Fujairah 11.45 Daily07:00 Sharjah 13.30 Daily07:00 Dubai 14.00 Daily

FROM DUBAI VIA FUJIRAH & SHARJAH (Route 204)Dept Destination Arrival Operating Time Time Days 16:00 Sharjah 16:30 Daily16.00 Fujairah 18.15 Daily16.00 Ruwi 23.00 Daily

FROM MUSCAT (RUWI) TO MUSCAT (RUWI)

LISTINGS

—www.met.gov.om

BORN today, you are, unquestionably, one of the most remarkable and memorable individuals born under your sign. That is surely something to rejoice over, but is it enough? The likelihood that simply being remarkable and memorable will be enough to secure your place in the world is very slim, so what must you do to make a success of yourself ? You must follow your passion, surely, and do the things — personally and professionally — that are true to you, that carry your own unique stamp and that can be judged as excellent the world over. In other words, you must do what truly comes from your heart, and do it in a way that has real value in the world. Indeed, you must do something that counts to others!

The choice of this certain something is sure to be critical to your life and your lifestyle. You want to be able to live exactly as you want, without having to follow orders in any way. Your autonomy is precious to you; once you have won it, you aren’t likely to give it up for anything — but you have to earn it fi rst!

Also born on this date are: Ice Cube, rapper and actor; Neil Patrick Harris, actor; Courtney Cox, actress; Helen Hunt, actress; Waylon Jennings, singer; Tim Lincecum, baseball player; Jim Belushi, actor; Jim Varney, actor; Wade Boggs, baseball player; Harry Nilsson, singer-songwriter; Mario Cuomo, politician; Julie Hagerty, actress; Jake Busey, actor; Simon Callow, actor and author.

You may be wondering if there isn’t something bigger than yourself pulling the strings. Indeed, signs seem to point to something!

VIRGO [AUG. 23-SEPT. 22]

LIBRA [SEPT. 23-OCT. 22] LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL[S[[[S[S[S[[S[SS[SSSS[S[[[[SSSSSSSSSS

SCORPIO [OCT. 23-NOV. 21] S[

SAGITTARIUS [NOV. 22-DEC. 21] S[[[[[[[[[[[[[[

AQUARIUS [JAN. 20-FEB. 18]

Your expertise is widely sought by others. You may fi nd yourself getting busier and busier as you give them what they most need.

You can aff ord to treat yourself a little better, but avoid the kind of needless expenses that do you more harm than good.

You may hear a story or two that leave you wondering what is true and what is not — but in your heart, you know exactly what is what.

You may be reunited — if only briefl y — with someone who was an important part of your upbringing, perhaps long ago.

You will have a great deal of enthusiasm for a project put forward by someone who knows that you are instrumental in bringing it to life.

You’re likely to be introduced to someone who can do much to further your current eff orts — and vice versa.

It may be diffi cult to do what is expected of you, but all such expectations may be dashed by circumstances.

PISCES [Feb. 19-March 20]

You’re in need of some companionship, but your activities may require you to spend more time alone — at least for now.

GEMINI [MAY 21-JUNE 20]

CANCER [JUNE 21-JULY 22]

LEO [JULY 23-AUG. 22]

CAPRICORN [DEC. 22-JAN 19]

Y O U R B I R T H D A Y

ARIES [March 21-APRIL 19]

TAURUS [APRIL 20-MAY 20]

Your attitude about certain personal issues is beginning to change — subtly, but signifi cantly. Don’t misinterpret trends.

Honesty is the best policy, almost always. You may have to broach a diffi cult subject with a loved one, and frankness will be key.

Focus on the things that have the simplest explanations. You’ll take great comfort from such basics, and their meaning will increase.

C11

EXTRAM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Fears, not facts, support GMO free food

Despite myriad assurances from scientists that foods containing genetically modifi ed ingredients

are safe to eat, consumers are likely to see more and more products labelled “GMO-free.” As happened with the explosion of gluten-free products, food companies are quick to cash in on what they believe con-sumers want regardless of whether it is scientifi cally justifi ed.

Responding to consumer concerns about genetically modifi ed organisms, or GMOs, in foods, as well as individual company and state actions on GMO la-belling, the Department of Agriculture last month announced a voluntary cer-tifi cation programme that food compa-nies would pay for to have their prod-ucts labelled GMO-free.

Soon Abbott, the maker of Similac Ad-vance, began selling a GMO-free version of the nation’s leading commercial baby for-mula (it already has such a product, sold as Similac Organic) to give consumers “peace of mind.” In April, Chipotle Mexican Grill announced it would start preparing foods with no GMOs, although the restaurant will not be free of such ingredients.

Last year, Vermont passed a law requir-ing the labelling of foods that contain GMOs. (Connecticut and Maine have labelling laws that will go into eff ect

only when surrounding states also pass them.) And Whole Foods Market, with 410 stores in 42 states, Canada and Brit-ain, announced that it would require all foods they sell with GMOs to be so la-belled by 2018.

GMO labelling is already required in 64 countries, including those of the Eu-ropean Union; Russia; Japan; China; Aus-tralia; Brazil; and a number of countries in Africa, where despite rampant food scar-city, American exports have been rejected because the crops contained GMOs.

However, a review of the pros and cons of GMOs strongly suggests that the issue refl ects a poor public understanding of the science behind them, along with a rebel-lion against the dominance of food and ag-ricultural conglomerates. The anti-GMO movement, I’m afraid, risks throwing the baby out with the bathwater. What is need-ed is a dispassionate look at what GMOs mean and their actual and potential good, not just a fear of harmful possibilities.

Let’s start with the facts. Humans have been genetically modifying food and feed plants and animals for millennia, until re-cently only by repeatedly crossing exist-ing ones with relatives that have more de-sirable characteristics. It can take years, even decades, to achieve a commercially viable product this way because unwant-

ed traits can exist in the resulting hybrids. While it may be nice to have a tomato that can withstand travel, the fruit also has to ripen evenly and taste good.

Genetic engineering makes it possible to achieve a desired outcome in one gen-eration. It introduces only a single known gene or small group of genes that dic-tate production of desired proteins into a plant, imparting characteristics such as tolerance of frost, drought or salt, or resistance to disease or weed killer. The

technique can also be used to enhance a plant’s growth or content of an essential nutrient, or, in the case of animals, reduce the feed they need.

Thus, Golden Rice, genetically en-hanced to be rich in a precursor of vitamin A, can counter blindness. Another gene inserted into rice boosts iron content to fi ght anaemia. A gene from the ocean pout speeds the growth of farmed salmon, re-ducing its dependence on wild fi sh feed. And a bacterial gene inserted into the DNA of corn enables it to better withstand drought. The often-voiced concern that introducing genes from diff erent species is unnatural and potentially dangerous ignores the fact that we share thousands of genes with other species. (We share 84 per cent of our genes with dogs!)

As for safety, every GMO must be evalu-ated and approved by the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency before it can be sold. Developers must test the product for toxic-ity and allergenicity and assure it is at least as nutritious as its non-GMO counterpart.

Yes, this depends on the developer’s honesty, but note — There is no such test-ing required for traditionally bred foods, any number of which can cause life-threatening reactions in some people.

Many non-GMO foods, including broc-

coli and mushrooms, contain natural toxins, though the foods are not harm-ful when consumed in normal amounts. Kiwis, with hundreds of novel proteins, many of which have allergic potential, were never tested for allergenicity.

Peanuts, shellfi sh, celery and straw-berries have not been banned despite some people being allergic to them. It may even be possible to use genetic engi-neering to get rid of allergenic proteins.

Other actual and potential applications of the technique include using bacteria outfi tted with the human insulin gene to produce insulin to treat diabetes; using a yeast with a gene for chymosin from the stomach lining of calves to churn out a vegetarian version of the enzyme needed to produce cheese; and employing various genetically modifi ed organisms to pro-duce vast quantities of vaccines, antibod-ies or drugs rapidly and inexpensively.

Safety testing of GMOs often goes be-yond their intended use. In an eff ort to en-rich soybeans used for animal feed with the amino acid methionine, a gene from Brazil nuts was used.

But when testing showed that people allergic to Brazil nuts produced antibod-ies to the protein in engineered soybeans, research on the modifi ed beans was aban-doned. -The New York Times News Service

‘Golden age’ of animal tracking is here

ANIMALS WEARING new tagging and track-ing devices would give one a real-time look at their behaviour and at the environmental health of the planet, a new study shows. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Ornithology used the Au-tomated Radio Telemetry System on the Smithsoni-an’s Barro Colorado Island in Panama to monitor sleep in wild sloths as they moved through the forest. “We suggest that a golden age of animal tracking science has begun. The upcoming years will be a time of exciting discover-ies,” said Roland Kays. -IANS

STUDY

A review of the pros

and cons of GMOs strongly

suggests that the issue reflects

a poor public understanding of

the science behind them,

along with a rebellion against

the dominance of food and

agricultural conglomerates

Despite much evidence that genetically modifi ed organisms help make what we eat safer and healthier, more people are looking for food without them

C12

EXTRAM O N DAY, J U N E 1 5, 2 0 1 5

Do physicists need empiricalevidence to confi rm their theories?

A few months ago in the journal Nature, two leading re-searchers, George Ellis and Joseph

Silk, published a controversial piece called Scientifi c Method: De-fend the Integrity of Physics. They criticised a newfound willingness among some scientists to explic-itly set aside the need for experi-mental confi rmation of today’s most ambitious cosmic theories — so long as those theories are “suf-fi ciently elegant and explanatory.” Despite working at the cutting edge of knowledge, such scientists are, for Ellis and Silk, “breaking with centuries of philosophical tradition of defi ning scientifi c knowledge as empirical.”

Whether or not you agree with them, the professors have identi-fi ed a mounting concern in fun-damental physics — Today, our most ambitious science can seem at odds with the empirical meth-odology that has historically given the fi eld its credibility.

How did we get to this impasse? In a way, the landmark detection three years ago of the elusive Higgs boson particle by researchers at the Large Hadron Collider marked

the end of an era. Predicted about 50 years ago, the Higgs particle is the linchpin of what physicists call the “standard model” of particle physics, a powerful mathemati-cal theory that accounts for all the fundamental entities in the quan-tum world (quarks and leptons) and all the known forces acting be-tween them (gravity, electromag-netism and the strong and weak nuclear forces).

But the standard model, despite the glory of its vindication, is also a dead end. It off ers no path for-ward to unite its vision of nature’s tiny building blocks with the oth-er great edifi ce of 20th-century physics — Einstein’s cosmic-scale description of gravity. Without a unifi cation of these two theories — a so-called theory of quantum gravity — we have no idea why our universe is made up of just these particles, forces and prop-erties. (We also can’t know how

to truly understand the Big Bang, the cosmic event that marked the beginning of time.)

This is where the spectre of an evidence-independent science arises. For most of the last half-century, physicists have strug-gled to move beyond the standard model to reach the ultimate goal of uniting gravity and the quantum world. Many tantalising possibili-ties have been explored but so far with no concrete success in terms of experimental validation.

Today, the favoured theory for the next step beyond the stand-ard model is called supersymme-try (the basis for string theory). Supersymmetry predicts the existence of a “partner” parti-cle for every particle that we currently know. It doubles the number of elementary particles of matter in nature. The theory is elegant mathematically, and the particles whose existence

it predicts might also explain the universe’s unaccounted-for “dark matter.” As a result, many researchers were confident that supersymmetry would be experimentally validated soon after the Large Hadron Collider became operational.

That’s not how things worked out, however. To date, no super-symmetric particles have been found. If the Large Hadron Col-lider cannot detect these par-ticles, many physicists will de-clare supersymmetry — and, by extension, string theory — just another beautiful idea in phys-ics that didn’t pan out. But many won’t. Some may choose instead to simply retune their models to predict supersymmetric particles at masses beyond the reach of the Large Hadron Collider’s power of detection — and that of any fore-seeable substitute.

Implicit in such a manoeuvre is

a philosophical question — How are we to determine whether a theory is true if it cannot be vali-dated experimentally? Should we abandon it just because, at a given level of technological capacity, empirical support might be im-possible? If not, how long should we wait for such experimental machinery before moving on — 10 years? 50 years? Centuries?

Consider, likewise, the cutting-edge theory in physics that sug-gests that our universe is just one universe in a profusion of sepa-rate universes that make up the so-called multiverse.

This theory could help solve some deep scientifi c conundrums about our own universe but at considerable cost — Namely, the additional universes of the multi-verse would lie beyond our powers of observation. Multiverse advo-cates argue nonetheless that we should keep exploring the idea — and search for indirect evidence of other universes. But if nothing is found, our next steps may prove to be diffi cult and controversial, challenging not just how we do science but what it means to do science at all. - Adam Frank and Marcelo

Gleiser/The New York Times News Service

Experimental confi rmation being the very heart of science,

a growing controversy at the frontiers of physics and

cosmology suggests that the situation is not so simple

Can active video gaming replace outdoor play?

ACTIVE VIDEO gam-ing can make children of fi ve to eight years of age expend as much energy as unstructured outdoor play does, new research says. “Our study shows video games which wholly engage a child’s body can be a source of physical ac-tivity,” said Hollie Raynor, associate professor of nutrition at University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in the US.

Your social media activity refl ects your personalityYOUR social media activity reveals much more about you than you can imagine. A new study by Fractal Analytics and BuzzStream — both digital analytics platforms es-tablishes the connections between gender, educa-tion, political leanings, and preferred publications of Facebook users, adweek.com reported.

Why we can’t recall the exact colour we sawDO YOU know that although we can see mil-lions of colours, we can remember only the few basic ones? When we see a colour, our brain stores it as a basic, general hue. So when we try to remember a precise colour, we err, a new study reveals. For example, there’s azure, there’s navy, there’s cobalt and ultramarine. The human brain is sensitive to the diff erences between these hues — we can tell them apart. But when storing them in memory, people label the colours as “blue”, researchers from Johns Hopkins University found. -IANS

BR I E FS

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

CONNECT H E D A I LY G U I D E

D

D4 VACANCY CARGO D7

M O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

RENT D2

*Classifi ed Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon

for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

DAILY GUIDEEmail: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifi eds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

FOR RENT

Basement Store, 146 SQM,

Wadikhabeer, Opposit Al-Hassan.

99441193, 93004802

We have 2BHK fl ats in Ghubra

North 18th November Street new

Mars Hypermarket fl ats with 2

rooms, 3bathrooms large sitting

hall & kitchen. Contact: 93782735 /

99208033

Furnished room for rent at

Al Khuwair R.O 225/- for family only.

Contact: 99251975

We have offi ces in Ghala, Ghubra,

Bousher & Ruwi diff erent type of

available, open space, 2 BHK, 3 BHK.

Contact 93782735 / 99208033

We have 230 sq metre show room

in Ghubra main road very nice loca-

tion suitable for banks, showroom,

Retail shop or any business Golden

opportunity. Contact: 93782735 /

99208033

We have 1 BHK, 2 BHK fl ats in

Mabela + brand new building very

nice fi nishing on the main road,

1BHK 175/- OMR , 2BHK 200/- OMR.

Contact: 93782735 / 99208033

Tent for wedding Iftar party for rent.

Contact: 97380496/ 96242910/

94029752

3BHK special apartment at

Al Khuwair with wardrobe and A/C.

Contact : 94232344

Villa for rent (family residence) :

New 4 bedroom villa with majlis,

family hall and outside kitchen. With

split AC in Al Khoudh phase 7 close

to Seeb polyclinic. Call 99332525

(owner).

2BHK fl ats in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158

Deluxe 4 bedrooms, living, dining

4 bathrooms with split AC in Ghubra.

Contact: 95282986 / 24707340

We have 1 BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK fl ats

in Ghala very nice building on main

road outside the building lot of park-

ing available. Contact: 93782735 /

99208033

We have 5 BHK villa in Al Khuwair

33, 5 rooms, 6 bathrooms, sitting

hall, Majlis & large kitchen suit-

able for offi ce or families. Contact:

93782735 / 99208033

2 bedroom fl at at Hamriya, main

road with A/C. Contact 99331448

Flat in South Al Hail, 2 bedrooms,

Majlis, 2 bathrooms, kitchen RO

250/-. Contact 93221474

Flat in Ruwi Mumtaz 2 BHK RO 300

or 1 BHK 250 RO. Contact 98588240

Flats for rent behind Indian School.

Contact 99777122

4 BHK single villa in Al Khuwair.

Contact: 97616158

3BHK 8 Nos fl ats in Ghobrah.

Contact: 97616158

D2 M O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

2 BHK apartments AL Khuwair with

Balcony 350/- & 4 BHK villa Al Khu-

wair with Garden 800/-.

Contact: 95178930

2BHK fl at for rent near Muscat

Municipality, Darsait, big terrace,

nice location, rent OMR 325/-.

Contact: 96241707

Two air-condition fl ats in excel-

lent condition behind City Center

Carrefour Al Seeb no 1: 4 bedrooms &

family hall No 2, 2 bedroom & family

hall. Contact: 93366421

1BHK fl ats at Muttrah near Oman

House. Contact: 93231403

Shop/Offi ce 68 SQM, Wadi kabeer,

Opposite Al-Hassan. Contact

99441193, 93004802

2 BHK, 2 baths, Split A/C, Wadi ka-

beer, Near Indian Elementary School.

Contact 99441193, 93004802

Villa for rent villa at Al Fay Housing

Complex near Al Khodh main police

station 4 bedrooms, servant quarter.

Contact: 96419690

Shop/Offi ce, 56 SQM, Wadikabeer,

Opposite Al-Hassan.

Contact 99441193, 93004802

500 sq mtrs offi ce space on mezza-

nine fl oor near Royal Hospital. OMR

6.500 per sq mtr. Tel: 99333479 or

95215360

MBD area, fully equipped AC Execu-

tive offi ce @ RO 200 pm with confer-

ence room. Unlimited local calls &

internet services. Contact 99451845

/ 99232271.

Deluxe 1, 2 BHK fl ats in Darsait,

AL Khuwair 1deal for offi ce &

residence. Contact 99369081

/99142314

Flats and shops for rent in rent,

Honda road and Rex Read.

Contact: 97293708/ 94579531

/94141943

Flat in Amerat, Phase 5, 4 rooms, 3

bathrooms, kitchen with A/C.

Contact : 95522405

Luxury 3 BHK fl at in Al Wattaya

with split A/C & private parking.

RO.500/- Contact – 93191111

1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK new fl at avail-

able at Mabela in front of Modern

English School Contact: 96239126

Well maintained spacious 2 BHK at

Rex Road. Contact 92227165

Villa of 5 BHK in Al Ansab with split

A/C. RO.650/- Contact – 93191111

2 BHK fl at in Al Ansab with split

A/C. RO.250/- Contact – 93191111

Flats for rent Al Ansab (Ghala) 2

bedrooms, 2 toilets, 1sitting room &

kitchen. Contact: 94229023

3 bedroom at Al Khuwair 33. House

No. 866, Way No. 4712. Contact

Mohamed : 99580484, Ahmed :

99486805, Awadh 95525509

Commercial 3 BHK fl at in Al Ghobra

18 Nov Street. RO 700/-

Contact 93191111

2 BHK fl at in Al Azaiba near sea,

with split A/C. RO.340/-

Contact – 93191111

Villa for rent in Al Khuwair 33, 8

bedrooms, 5 bathrooms with parking

area near Taimur Mosque.

Contact: 99366624

Furnished fl ats for rent in

Al Buraimi, daily, weekly, monthly.

Contact 97819981 / 93593336

Brand new 6 BHK villa in Al Azaiba

with split A/C & lift. RO.1200/-

Contact – 93191111

4 Ware house at Barka Falaij.

Contact: 99337857

Flats for rent in Muttrah near Oman

house 2 BHK. Contact: 97009734 /

92629232

For rent in Darsait new fl ats.

Contact: 99777351

For rent in Darsait, new fl ats.

Contact: 99311525

Flats/villas owned by ROP pen-

sion fund available for rent in

Muscat. Contact 99349526

Villa for rent : 4 bedroom villa

with kitchen available in Azai-

ba. Sharing / Family. Contact :

98048207/99261773

2BHK Darsait R.O 325/-, 300/-.

Contact: 92144045

Villa for rent - Al Seeb/Al Mawelah

- Block 5 - 4 bedrooms with attached

bathrooms, Majlis, 2 halls, kitchen

and storeroom. split Ac and carpark.

Contact 99564616

Flats, shops and basement for rent

in Khuwair, behind RAWASCO.

Contact: 99441122 , 95893518

2BHK in Ghoubra South behind Ex-

tra (350/- R.O). Contact: 99342661

1BHK in Darsait near ISM (220/-

R.O). Contact: 99342661

1BHK in Ghoubra South behind

Extra (280/- R.O). Contact : 99342661

3000 sq mtrs Industrial landß,

in Barka Sanaiya, with electricity

400KW, shed, staff accommodation

and offi ce. Ready to start any kind

of factory. Contact 99384255.

Flat at Darsait. Contact 99326879

Deluxe 3 Room Penthouse with

Seaview, ideal for offi ce / residence

at Qurum near PDO. Contact:

9772 1313 / 9507 0421

1BHK, Darsait, walking distance

to ISM, neat and clean building,

ground fl oor, OMR 260/- per month

rent. Contact Iqrar on 99076557

3BHK & 2BHK in Darsait.

Contact 94268564

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 D3

ACC. WANTED

FOR RENT

LOST

Sharing fl at in Wadi Kabir.

Contact: 99335057

Spacious bedroom, toilet & kitchen

in Wadi Kabir. Contact : 96098443

Furnished single rooms available

for Executive bachelors at Ruwi.

Contact: 98049288

Fully furnished 1 BHK Flat available

in Ruwi 2 months only (July/August)

Contact: 99369081

3bedrooms Al Hail. Contact 92817777

AVAILABLE FOR SALEFOR SALE

Party & Wedding equipment rentals.

Full line, from Tables, Linen & Skirting,

Chairs & Chair covers, Cutlery, Crock-

ery, Glassware, Chafi ng Dishes, Ice

Sculptures, to Large Sound Systems

and spectacular lighting. Call Andrea

9606 2222 for Catering and Croyden

9623 5555 for Sound & Light.

www.tunesoman.com,

E-mail: info@tunesoman.com

Required a room or studio fl at in

Darsait / WadiKabir /Ruwi area.

Contact : 95405033

Running computer shop for sale

Souq Sohar. Contact 99420543

Clinic for sale in al amerat.

Contact:93753655

Used & refurbished Porta

cabins, Toilets unit avail-

able for sales. Contact: 99215560

Email:omegaunitedoman@gmail.

com

4000 sqm building ware house

area for sale or rent next to Express

highway also used 40 ft seaworthy

container for sale in very good con-

dition. Contact 99771466

Ice cream & juices shop in Ruwi,

good location for sale, 1.5 mt fi sh

display machine for sale.

Contact 92150455

Well running Bricks Factory for

Lease in Seeb. Contact. 99711003

Beauty parlor for sale near Muscat

Palace monthly rent 350/- OMR

serious buyers. Contact: 91902154

Training center with license.

Contact: 91121277

Indian restaurant fully furnished

and equipped with banquet hall

and spacious parking opposite Na-

seem Garden for sale. Contact Eng:

99771466 Arabic: 99454415

Commercial land for sale 3000 m

in quriyat road main high way can

use as a petrol station license avail-

able asking price 350,000

For more information please call on

99070701 with out name

1BHK Ghubra R.O 275/-.

Contact 92144045

1 BHK Flat in Wadi Kabir.

Contact 92275454

Flat for rent in Al Khuwair 33.

Contact: 92277419

3 rooms with attached bath room,

hall Brand new in Mabelah near

Sharahe Noor. Contact 99663905/

99415119

For rent 3 industrial land.

Contact 92702891/ 95490842

1BHK Mumtaz R.O 250/-.

Contact: 97799175

Flats shops and store for rent in

Ruwi, MBD Honda road.

Contact 97293708 / 92433127

Bath attached room for rent

Al Khuwair. Contact 99743569

Labor camp available with all facili-

ties at Sohar Falaij (Near Sohar Sea

port) - Contact – 92982172

Super market in (Hairoon Hairithi)

Thamrith road. Contact 98189810 /

99675190.

Shop for sale in Ibra and Bid Bid.

Contact: 95304693

We have planned industrial lands

in a prime location (Bowshar / Al

Misfah) the space 8575 SQ. M for

each plot, meter price 120/- OMR

only. Contact: 99883338

MOTOR VEHICLE FOR SALE

Toyota Yaris 2006, 1.3 cc Automatic,

Gray, 101000 k.m, accident free, well

maintained & sparingly used by diplo-

mat. All services done through Toyota.

R.O. 2000. Contact 96530053

Peugeot 206-2007 Model, expat

driven. Contact 99209285

2 Prime Movers Man 2008 with 40

ton petrol tank each working at the

moment in Al Maha. Price OMR 35

Thousand each. Contact 97000155

or 92688692

Land Cruiser 2012.

Contact GSM- 99336093

Hyundai Accent 2004, fully auto-

matic. Contact: 99045803

Excellent big room, with A/C

kitchen available near Ontc bussta-

tion (Ruwi). Conatct 95569740

Semi furnished room with at-

tached bathroom for Executive

bachelors at CBD area behind

chamber of commerce. Contact:

96389375/93554942

MATRIMONIAL

RC girl (28 yrs) hailing from kan-

jirappally dioces working in Royal

Hospital looks for suitable alliances.

Contact: 92801093 / 97498373

Muslim family seeking

alliance for our son interested

families. Contact 97664009

Hindu Ezhava family, settled in

Muscat looking for suitable groom

working within Oman for their

daughter 25 yrs (MBA) working

with a reputed company in Muscat.

Contact : 98689663

ACC. AVAILABLE

ACC. AVAILABLE

Family sharing villa room available

at Al Khuwair. Contact: 99382008

Semi furnished single room for

Executive bachelors behind Kamat

Restaurant Al Khuwair.

Contact 94271085

Furnished room attached bath for

lady in Wadikabir (Mars Hypermar-

ket) – 95941515

Subey Chand has lost Indian Pass-

port No. F 9056594. Finder please

handover to ROP

TRANSPORTATION

TRANSPORTATION

Transportation. Contact:

98244078

Pick & drop available. Contact

96913836.

Transportation. Contact:

95190627

Pick & Drop anytime Contact:

91653903

Kerala Nair girl, B.Com, 22 yrs, 5.2”

very fair, slim, (Star Uthrattathi)

Presently working in infosis, Chen-

nai. Financially sound, from parents

of nair boys from Trissur, Palakkad

and Eranakulam & Calicut dist. .

Contact :0091 8301865688

email: raveendrandr@yahoo.com

Alliance invited for a Nair girl 24 yrs, 5ft, 1”, fair, slim, B.Tech

graduate reputed family of Ernaku-

lam dist. (Star Thiruvonam Sudha-

jathakam) fi nancially sound, from

parents of B.Tech nair boys from

Trissur, Palakkad and Eranakulam

dist. .

Contact :00919495924302

email: raveendrandr@yahoo.com

Driver with vehicle. Contact:

99159277

Pick & Drop any time. Contact:

97014786

Pick & drop with car & driver

available any time.

Contact: 9615828/

96502406/92218001

DAILY GUIDED4 M O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION VACANT

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com classifi eds@timesofoman.comTel.: 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 /431 / 456 / 461

CATERING

DOMESTIC HELPER

BEAUTICIAN

HOSPITALITY

ENGINEER

ENGINEER

ADMIN

EDUCATION

SALES / MARKETING

SALES / MARKETING

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

Required looking for full time Housemaid for Omani family

at Mabela, visa available. Contact

92454170

Urgent required House maid in

Mabela. Visa available.

Contact 95200180.

M.Com, CA (Article ship), 15 years

Gulf experience looking for suitable

position in fi nance & accounts on

visit visa valid up to 10/7/2015.

Contact: 97767828, knowledge of

quickbooks, Tally 9, Focus V.5 Email:

altabhossain2008@hotmail.com

SECRETARIAL & OFFICE

Required Offi ce Assistant

160+25+Acc, Contact 99454425

ACCOUNTANT

MISCELLANEOUS

Urgently required: (1) female dermatologist with minimum 3

years experience (2) female Omani reception coordinator for a medical

center in Qurum.

Contact: 96062933

Well established and premier

music Educational Group in Oman

invites teachers in drawing , karnatic vocals, piano and drums interested can candidates can mail

their portfolio CV to

musicjoboman@gmail.com

A company from UAE require 2 merchandisers in retail food

supply, store keeper with English

and invoicing experience. Email:

yesterdaysun@hotmail.com

Mason, C.C.T.V, Technician, Electrician cum Plumber. Contact: 99383044

A well reputed company is looking

for experienced digital Signage Technicians & Managers. Send CV

to hr.oman@yahoo.com

A leading Civil construction co.

in Muscat requires the following:

- Construction Manager, Project Manager, Site Engineer. Please

send CV : hr.azatllc@gmail.com

Urgently required for a fi rst grade construction company Graduate Civil Engineer (5 years experi-

enced) shuttering carpenter mason

(Block, Plaster, Tile Fixing)

Civil Foreman building work.

Contact: 24700373/ 99427674

Fax: 24701368

Email: rajma@omantel.net.om

Required swimming pool Engi-neer/ civil /M& P / Draughtsman with D/L, Preferred gulf experience.

Email: jvacancy05@gmail.com

Mechanical / Civil Site Supervi-sor; diploma / ITI fi tter; 3-4 year’s

exp in supervision of Erection work

of sheds, customer coordination,

and project execution. Omani D/L is

must. Contact: hr@khancogroup.com

/ 99102383

Construction Company in Oman

urgently requires following candi-

dates: BE Civil Engineer, minimum

3-5 years gulf experience & Civil site foreman, minimum 5 years gulf

experience, diploma not required.

Email: applyforoman@gmail.com

Required professional Teachers

for teaching Science, Mathematics,

Accountancy, Business Studies &

English IELTS/ TOFEL in schools &

Universities. Contact 99674870

A well known private school is in

need of English, Math, Science, Computer and Physics Teachers. Contact: 96910649

Male 24, B.Com /PGD having 2

years experience in accounts and

inventory fi eld looking for suitable

job on visit visa. Contact: 94129550

Experienced up-to fi nalization accountant looking for part time job.

Contact : 99002390

Indian male, well experienced in

Accounts & Admin looking for a suit-

able vacancy. NOC available.

Contact 98717938

Accounts part time, up to fi naliza-

tion of monthly accounts. Handled

by a CA. contact 96293120

Accounts & fi nance Indian male

B.com M.B.A (F) Tally ERP9, 35 years,

8 years experience 1.5 years Oman

family visa N.O.C available.

Contact: 93257426

Email: sibigeorp@gmail.com

B.com graduate with NOC more than

4 years of experience in Oman with

valid Oman driving license for a suit-

able job ready to join immediately.

Contact: 98976252

Senior Accountant 13 years experi-

ence FMCG & retail Noc available.

Contact: 93473942

Indian male B.Com Accountant 10

years in Oman experience in ac-

counts (upto fi nalization) & Admin

knowledge of tally ERP9, focus RT.

Having NOC & D/L looking for suit-

able job in Muscat.

Contact: 93086105

Indian female 25 years married,

MBA Finance, Diploma in foreign

accounting 3 months experience in a

CA fi rm on family visa.

Contact: 95916769

Email: sikhapadoor@gmail.com

MBA Indian male looking for suitable

position having 2 years working

experience as an accountant now in

Oman a visiting visa.

Contact: 99424803

Young, energetic 24 yrs, ACCA

fi nalist, Advanced diploma in Ac-

counting and business, seeking suit-

able placement in accounts, fi nance

or audit. Contact : 92430152,

Email: rau_dey@yahoo.com

Indian female 23 yrs BBM Graduate,

diploma in computer application and

qualifi ed e-fi nance in computer, hav-

ing well knowledge in tally, peach

tree, busy software etc. 2 yrs exp in

account, looking for suitable place-

ment in any fi eld. Contact: 95601158

Indian Female 25 MBA looking for a

suitable opening in Accounts, Admin/

Hr. Contact 97013375

Indian male, B.Com, 1 year Exp in

Accounts/ Sales, on Visit Visa,..

Contact – 98295101

Indian / Keralite – CMA (US) , CA-

Inter , M.Com, total 20 years experi-

ence with 11 years M/ East experience

as Finance / A/ Cs Manager, seeks

suitable off ers from reputed compa-

nies in Oman. Sunil V.S.

Contact : +91-9526756488

Email: sunil_ramanin@yahoo.co.in

Sudanese Accountant seeking job

in Nizwa state experience 10 years 3

years in Saudi Arabia, 7 yrs in Sudan.

Contact : 97796394 / 94003247

Indian male Graduate 26 yrs 5 yrs

experience in Accounts and Adminis-

tration looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 91301983

Family in Muscat seeking to hire an experienced butler. Hotel experi-

ence is preferred. Candidate must

hold a valid driver’s license. Please

send CV’s on

vacancyinmuscat@gmail.com

A leading excellent grade company

at Muscat looking for Junior Accountant with min.1 year Gulf

experience. Please send CV to

pmjino@gmail.com

Urgently required Senior Account-ant 1 no. atleast 5 yrs experience.

Interested candidates may Email

their CV’s at fi ndjobs2015@hotmail.

com

Urgently required Junior Accountant. Please send CV :

hr.azatllc@gmail.com

Urgently required Indian experi-ence Beautician (good package) in

Al Hail, visa available.

Contact : 92139922 / 92284899

Required Beautician visa available,

salary accommodation.

Contact: 91902154

MEDICAL

SKILLED

Urgently required G.P doctor with or

without MOH license for one month

from 01/07/2015. Contact: 93824902

Urgently required General Prac-titioner and Specialist Gynecolo-gist with MOH license & NOC for a

reputed specialized center based in

Muscat. Please forward your CV to

alqaimtrd@gmail.com

Required full time Nurse for a

residence. Contact: 99014435

Required Gynecology, General Phy-sician, Dentist, Staff Nurses, Lab technicians, Pharmacists,X Ray technicians. Contact : 95133572 / 96064925

Email: kunoozghala@gmail.com

Wanted Staff Nurse for a polyclinic

in Sohar. Contact :93457270

Required a MOH licensed female Nurse for a private clinic near

Al-Suwaiq. Call 93746086

Urgent required staff Nurse

in Mabela. Contact- 95200180.

Email: amanammc@gmail.com

Driver & Business co coordinator speaking English urgently required.

Contact : 95327813

DRIVER

Omani male Sales Executive with

Degree/Diploma in Mechanical or

Electrical Engineering Age : 25-35

years. Minimum 2-5 years experi-

ence in Sales of Industrial machin-

ery. Apply to careers@teejanequip-

ment.com Fax : 24560806

Marketing Executive for digi-

tal painting company. Contact:

94356769 / 96936564

Required sale people with local

experience & Omani driving license

ready with NOC. Send CV to:

nationalbluesky@yahoo.com

Urgently required Sales Executive atleast 3 yrs experience in the fi eld

& having Oman driving license. In-

terested candidates may Email their

CV’s at fi ndjobs2015@hotmail.com

Looking for Outdoor Salesman for

heavy equipment spare parts.

Contact - 93292015,

Email: mail.om@gulfcenter.co

SITUATION WANT-

EDSIT. WANTED

Required male or female candidate with 5 years experience in renting

of properties. Interested candidates

may please mail to

alqurumprop@gmail.com

Urgently required outdoor Sales Executive for furnishing company

with valid Oman D/L and minimum

3 years experience.

Contact 93231403 /

rainbowfurnishing156@gmail.com

Required male candidates to work

full / part time in an international

Café “franchise”. They will be trained

for the job. Contact 97673395

Salesman experienced 5 yrs in

Oman, in the fi eld of industrial &

oilfi eld service, garage equipment

tools & spares, safety wears &

rescue equipments. Please forward

your CV to almaadhi.trd@gmail.com

Sales Coordinator : Mechanical

Diploma holder with 3-4 yrs exp.

in sales department preferably in

Metal fabrication Company. Omani

D/L is must. Contact: 99102383

hr@khancogroup.com

Urgently required Advertising & Media Sales Executives with Oman

D/L. Trainee positions available

for Freshers.

Email: jobs@interacoman.com

Required Sales man - 1 Person

Qualifi cation. Gulf Experienced

- Minimum 5 Years with Oman

Driving Licence Language - English

Education:- Any Degree Further

Contact :Mr. Abdul Hameed Na-

shabat - Mobile No: 97414307 and

-92807399 amn@yaqeeneng.com

A leading tissue paper and food stuff s company requires Sales and Marketing person with minimum

5 years exp in Oman with good

communication skills & valid Oman

D/L. Candidate with Interior market

knowledge & experience preferable.

Send CV: allub@alhosnigroup.com

Fax: 24451430

Required urgently energetic Mar-keting Executive for acquiring new

customers. Should possess a Valid

Omani D/L. Contact 96545020.

Urgently required Sales and Market-ing Executive for Graphic designing

company. Contact: 96727631

mail: smartgraphic518@gmail.com

Sales man required for printing

press preferable with car.

Contact : 97842797

Indian CA with 15 yrs exp working

as Finance Head for MNC looking

for suitable job. NOC available.

94047434

Urgently required a silk Screen printer with good knowledge and

release letter or NOC. Contact:

93280288 or send CV to

albayanstamps@gmail.com

Indian male B.Com MBA (HR), 2 yrs

experience in HR & Accounts depart-

ment, on visiting visa seeking for job

in any fi eld. Contact: 96491347

Email: aswinsajeev@hotmail.com

Indian male 22 yrs B. Com Graduate

1 year exp in Accounts, currently on

visit visa. Looking for suitable job.

Contact 94341848 /

Email – mohdhaji7272@gmail.com

ACCA & B.Com with Noc more than

5 years of experience in accounts

& fi nance looking for a suitable job

can join immediately. # 97012146

MBA Graduate with 6 yrs exp in

fi nance/accounts/ auditing. Special-

ized in accounts payable dept, Ora-

cle app user, profi cient in Sap (fi co)

end user & tally 9.0. lean &six sigma

certifi ed trainer on visit visa.

Contact – 91967213 / 99064780

Accounts part time works up to

fi nalization on monthly basis. Profi t

& loss A/C and fi nancial statements,

MS Reports Etc. Contact: 96247295

ACCA affi liate , BSc Honors in ap-

plied Accountancy advance diploma

in Accounting and Business, CAT

Affi liate 1 year hand on working

experience of Oman, with Oman

driving license looking for a suitable

placement in Audit fi rm. Having

NOC can join immediately.

Contact : 98989970

Indian male, 32 years, M. Com.

7 out of 9 years experience in Oman

in Accounts/fi nance. Having NOC and

valid Oman D/L. Contact 98277143,

Email: anzarks@gmail.com

Indian male 25 yrs B.com having

experience in accounts for 3 yrs

currently on visit looking to job.

Contact: 97937868 Email:

rehman.naseer999@gmail.com

Finance Manager, CPA, with more

than 15 yrs. of experience in GCC.

Fully knowledgeable in Finance,

General & Management Accounting .

NOC available. Contact 96209331

Indian male with total 5 year experi-

ence (2 years experience in Account-

ant cum sales co ordinator in a FMCG

Company in Oman) in accounts fi eld

and NOC available. Looking for suit-

able job Contact 92130188

Indian Accountant: Male, M com,

7 Yrs experience in Accounts up to

fi nalization, having knowledge of

ERP, Tally, seeks suitable placment.

contact 93950138 Email:

lijinrajan123@gmail.com

Chef for Yacht. International cuisine.

Minimum 15 years chef experience.

alibadawy@gmail.com

Required full time Social Network-er for sites like twitter, LinkedIn,

face book.

Email: mhca@mhabibgroup.com

Construction Company in Oman

urgently requires the following:

B.Sc Civil Engineer, minimum 3-5

yrs Gulf experience. Civil Site Fore-man, minimum 5 yrs experience

with operating knowledge of Tally.

Please Email CV ;

applyforoman@gmail.com

ACCOUNT. & FINANCE

SITUATION WANTEDSIT. WANTED

Tanzanian male, 25 yrs Accountant

successful experience in Tanzania

looking for suitable placement in any

fi eld. Contact : 96710154

Tunisian lady has Professorship in

social and economical sciences and

accounting, diploma in Experimen-

tal Sciences degree in English for

media. Contact 95391050,

aysser2013@gmail.com

An Indian lady Chartered Account-

ant with fi ve years experience

(including article ship) on family

visa in Oman looking for a suitable

job. Please Contact 9621 0347 /

9943 5346,

shincycrajan@gmail.com

Indian female with 10 yrs of experi-

ence in HR/Banking/Operations

seeks a suitable placement.

Can be contacted on 98919015 or

sherianne.coelho@gmail.com

MBA (international business) from

London, 4 years of UK experience in

operations with D/L, looking for suit-

able position. Contact 91710075

Indian female MBA – HR 1 and half

years experience seeking suitable

job. Contact : 99257214

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 D5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

ADMIN

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

DESIGNER

DRAUGHTSMAN

LOGISTICS

ENGG. / TECHNICAL

Quantity Surveyor with 5 Years ex-

perience (one year in Oman) looking

for job. Contact 91090036

Mechanical Engineer, Indian, 24

years with Piping Engineering,

Autocad, Ansys NX- Cad, pro-e,

Catia & PDMS now on visiting visa

seek suitable placement. Contact:

99168054 / 96684345

Email: : mbkishore@hotmail.com

BE Mechanical Engineer 2 years

experience in fabrication and erec-

tion of heavy structures as project

Engineer in India, now on visiting

visa seeks suitable placement.

Contact: 92151818

B.Tech Civil Engineer Indian male

13 year’s exp seeking suitable job.

Contact 0091 9640973798 Email:

fi rozbakhtiar2@gmail.com

Indian male 24 yrs B. Tech (Mech.

Eng) on visit 1 yr experience in

production fi eld looking for suitable

placement. Contact: 98925685

Indian male, 28 yrs, Electronics &

Instrumentation Engineer with 4 yrs

experience in Industrial Automa-

tion (SCADA) seeking suitable job.

Contact 93154156 / 98416190

Indian male 23 yrs B.Tech Civil hav-

ing 2 years exp, currently on visit

visa looking for suitable job.

Contact: 98031034

Email: musheer786.mm@gmail.com

B.Tech in Electronics Engineering, Indian male 26 years with around 5

years of experience (Including work

experience in Japan) looking for a

job in any fi eld & can join imme-

diately. Contact: 91902646 Email:

ajumalmajeed@gmail.com

B.E (Civil Engineer) with 5 yrs expe-

rience, valid Omani driving license.

Noc available. Contact: 91693008

Indian male Diploma in Mechani-

cal Engineer with 14 years Gulf

experience in heavy equipments and

vehicles valid Oman driving license.

NOC available looking for a suitable

placement. Contact: 91985028 /

95463430

BS Electronics & Communication Engineer, Cisco (CCNA) Certifi ed N /

1 yr experience in outside broadcast-

ing, networking & knowledgeable in

VOIP systems, looking for suitable

placement presently on family join-

ing visa. Contact: 93937026 Email:

ron2_55@yahoo.com

Indian male 47 years DM Civil,

PG PGDMM, I& M, having 25 years

of experience Manager in Civil,

Stores Purchase, Inventory, cargo,

transports, Admin , looking for best

job in Muscat. Currently on visit

visa. Contact: 91170749 / 97672647

Email: gdp4767@gmail.com

BE (Electrical), MBA, certifi ed

PMP and Chartered Engineer with

10 years experience in EPC Project

management for substation con-

struction (onshore/off shore) GCC

employed Indian, seeking oppor-

tunity to lead challenging projects,

position in managerial role.

Email ID: jacobmval@gmail.com

Site Engineer(Civil) Diploma in

Civil Engineering / Supervisor 6

years experience (with N.O.C).

Contact : 99512416.

Indian M 25 yrs B.E Mechanical,

3 yrs exp in Oil & Gas project Engi-

neer now on visit visa. # 96487013

Email: riarun.007@gmail.com

B.Tech Mechanical Engineer Indian

1 year experience HVAC (MEP) avail-

able in Muscat on visit visa seeking

suitable job. Contact : 93670280

Email: jinv.avm@gmail.com

Iraqi female Communication

Engineer having 5 yrs of exp in

teaching computer program.

Contact : 99132159

Email: marwan.saad39@yahoo.com

Iraqi male Medical Equipment

Engineer one year of exp in Iraq

looking for suitable job in Oman.

Contact: 99132159

Email: marwan.saad39@yahoo.com

Electrical Engineer Pakistani male

4 years B. Tech & 3 years’ diploma

seeking a suitable placement.

Contact: 96752080

Email: ilyasoader97@gmail.com

MEDICAL

MISCELLANEOUS

Indian female looking for suitable

position 2nd rank in MSC microbiol-

ogy, fresher now on visiting visa.

Contact : 91633089

Email: mansytk4@gmail.com

BSc Staff Nurse with license.

Contact 92765457

Indian female Dentist MOH Oman

passed seeking a suitable placement

in capital region. Contact– 91377681

hashimsarawat@gmail.com

Dentist with MOH license looking

for locum post. Contact 93571021.

Indian male Nurse, 31 years

Oman prometric passed 6 yrs ICU

experience. Contact : 94195150 /

92758895

Lab Technician, Civil (8yrs Gulf ex-

perience) looking for a suitable job

(NOC available) Contact-93344378

Omani Mechanical Engineer, has

3 years experience ,has HSE, H2S,

Riggers/Banks men Permit, Drawing

/ cad, SCBA, Safety Leadership and

Initial Fire Response Courses. good

with computer and English language

looking for suitable job. Contact

99224319-98454500

Indian male 22 Mechanical Diploma

holder Engg with HVAC certifi ed,

having 1 year exp. seeking suitable

position. Currently available on visit

visa. Contact - 92835952

DRIVER

Indian male fresher BCA young and

energetic, seeking good opportu-

nites.email: jlaxmimenon@gmail.

com, Contact 00919567722270

Highly Qualifi ed & Experienced

Finance Manager Pakistani with

USA , UK & Canadian Degrees, CPA ,

ACCA-UK . MBA-USA ,IFA- Financial

Consultants Canada , Corporate An-

alyst USA Professional of Banking ,

Audits ,ERPs & Profi t Maximizations

(NOC available) call 94 504505 –

94403270

Sr Manager, B.Tech, MBA, Prince -2

from UK. 24 yrs exp in EPC project

management of oil & gas pipelines,

refi neries & power plants. Seeking

job immediately / on visit/

Contact: + 00968912639

Email: josececy25@gmail.com

Indian Female M.C.A 4 years of

experience looking for suitable

position as as programmer/lecturer/

Web Designer/Admin. Contact No:

99486374.

Indian male 2+yrs oman exp in HR.

joing immediatly. release available.

Contact :93671437

Over 14 years of gulf experience in

Admin /HR /Logistics, fl uent in Ara-

bic & English with D/L looking for

suitable position.Contact 95824598

Filipino Female, 30 yrs, with 8yrs

experience in Payroll/Admin/HR and

2yrs experience as Technical Sup-

port/Cashier/Secretary. Currently in

Muscat on Family Visit Visa, Seeking

for suitable placement. # 96708114

Email: lucy08_tm@yahoo.com

Indian, male, 26, Commerce gradu-

ate, three years experience as Ad-

ministrative Assistant in UAE, seeks

a suitable job in Oman.

Contact: tkjasbeer@gmail.com;

+971-558291437.

Indian female, Postgraduate in HR,

with 8 years working experience in

Oman(HR and administration), look-

ing for suitable placement.

Contact 97411008

Indian female 29 MBA (HR) BSc,

4 yrs exp in HR& Admin looking suit-

able placement. Contact : 95619537

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

MANAGER/ SUPERVISOR

Sr Manager, B.Tech, MBA, PRINCE-2,

British National. 24 yrs exp in EPC

Project Management of Oil & Gas,

Pipelines, Refi neries & Power Plants.

Seeking job immediately/on visit/

Contact- 00968-91263952/

josececy25@gmail.com

Interior Architecture Engineer, 7 years experience (5 years in Oman)

expert in exterior & interior architec-

ture designs presented by 3D MAX-

V ray AutoCAD Photoshop, fl uent in

Arabic & English.

Contact: 96519172 Email:

eng.interiorarchitect@gmail.com

Civil Engineer 7 years experience

valid Omani D/L looking for job

immediately, ready to join.

Contact : 96936406

Electronics and Instrumentation En-

gineer, Indian female, B. Tech (AE &

I), M.Tech (VLSI design), asp.net, c#,

c++, core java, android java, presently

on visit visa, looking for a suitable

placement. contact : 95906935,

amalpktu@gmail.com

Land Surveyor, one and half year

experience in India, well handle total

station, auto level and AutoCAD.

Looking for suitable placement.

Contact: 95140761 / 99208290

Email: binu.brijiv@gmail.com

4 yrs exp (Money Exch. Services &

hospitality services in Oman& India)

Indian male 27, Graduate in Hos-

pitality Science, fl uent in English,

Hindi & Arabic seeks job.

Contact 91383167

HOSPITALITY

IT

IT

EDUCATION

Omani Citizen searching a job in

the fi eld of computer especially in

data base professional in operating

Oracle SQL, PL/ SQL, form6i, Report

6i. Contact 96977368

Email: talaloml@yahoo.com

Indian male, completed diploma in

Computer technology fresher, seek-

ing suitable position, currently on

visit visa. Contact : 93596096

M.Sc 3+ years exp from France &

India in IT Support Engineer / Hard-

ware & Networking / Server support

/ scientifi c system support looking

for suitable position. Indian, male

on visit visa, contact 98898781/

anoopys@gmail.com

M.C.A Indian male 36 yrs experi-

ence in IT Support/ customer serv-

ing support with 5 yrs experience

seeking suitable position.

Contact: 92041909

Male 26 completed MBA and have

1.5 years experience, good knowl-

edge of computer, software’s, look-

ing for job in procurement / ware-

housing. On visit visa till 5th Sep

/2015. Contact: 00968 91795092

Email: jameel6345@gmail.com

Computer Networking/Facility

Mgmt 5 Yrs of Exp Holds B.E(ECE),

CCNA Looking for Good Opportunity,

Indian - Visit Visa. Contact 91911792/

arafakdnl@gmail.com

Indian male, B.E ( computer science

engineer), MBA (fi nance), OCA certi-

fi ed, having 5 years of experience in

oracle Dba/ oracle apps Dba, seeks

a suitable position in the fi eld of IT.

Contact: 96212062

email: zubairkhan11@gmail.com

Well experienced MOH Licensed

Indian GP Doctor looking for

locum / permanent position in the

Capital area. Contact 98140024

email:drgpoman@yahoo.com

We are looking for personal driver with experience in Oman. We want

him to be driver for home and farm.

Please contact 96060344

Driver available with car and with-

out car. Contact 96771598

Pakistani male light vehicle driver

with 2 yrs exp looking for job.

Contact : 96342684

2 years experience driver looking

for job in companies or residence, re-

lease available. Contact: 98051400

Pakistani, male light vehicle driver

looking for job. Contact 97943750

Driver light with 5 yrs experience,

knowing English, Arabic, Hindi, edu-

cation B.A. Contact 98522914

Light driver valid GCC license look-

ing for job. Contact 99531802

Indian male, 3 yrs exp. as Driver in

Oman looking for job.

Contact 98238043

Light duty driver looking for job.

Contact: 94040926

Light duty driver looking for

vacancy NOC available. Contact:

97319564

Driver with car. Contact:

97705694/98988208

Looking for job driving Bangla-

deshi. Contact : 94077119

Bangladeshi Driver seeks suitable

job K. S.A 12 years Oman 3 years

42 yrs. Contact 95796030

Looking for job driving Bangladeshi.

Contact: 97418036

Pick up and drop anytime.

Contact: 96748967

Light driver for job. Contact:

95779594

Driver light. Contact: 91020999

Pakistani driving available.

Contact : 96913836

Light Driver having own visa look-

ing for job as driver.

Contact: 97073429

Driver looking for job with visa,

release available, 5 yrs driving

experience. Contact: 96261895

Faruqu.

Light Driver needs Job.

Contact: 93284327

MCA, BCA with 2 yrs relevant expe-

rience seeking suitable opportunity.

Contact: 96377039

Looking for job building mainte-

nance electric and plumbing.

Contact: 99365092

Ware house In charge or store

keeper 27 yrs Gulf experience 4 yrs

in Oman NOC available.

Contact: 97657823 Email:

rusaikmzm_2009@yahoo.com

In search of job. Qualifi cation b.com,

key skills- MS offi ce, Tally, Inter-

net with valid Oman light driving

license. *NOC available.

Contact:92239065

Indian Female with over 9 yrs ex-

perience with good communication

skills seeks jobs in customer service

or sales fi eld. Contact : 96108289,

shijipaul84@gmail.com

Part- Time Accountant, well experi-

ence senior accountant ,doing all

type of accounting works, Finaliza-

tion, Budgeting available.

Contact 98803439

13 Years UAE experienced in MNC &

reputed fi rms logistics distribution

looking for a suitable placement, on

visit visa contact 99838743,

gani.dawood@gmail.com

Experienced, competent, English

teacher for high school and college.

Contact: 91954541

Indian female MCA, Three years

experience in teaching fi eld, seeks

placement currently on visit visa.

Contact: 93431567

Email: fi vona.mel@gmail.com

English Teacher female (M. A. B. Ed)

Having 14 years experience with

11 years experience in Oman with

reputed institute and school.

Contact: 92289080 / 99318276

Email: babujosev@yahoo.com

10 yrs exp in Oman in logistics-

have Oman D/L-looking for suitable

placement-contact 96410767 .

Contact email: harishkts@yahoo.com

Graphics Designer/ prepress C.T.P

Pagination 3 yrs exp. in Muscat

Photoshop Illustrator, Indesign,

CorelDraw autocad premier preps ap-

poge Indian male now on visit visa.

Contact 97436606

Indian female 23 yrs, Autocad Civil

Draftsman with 3ds max & rivet, 3

yrs exp. looking for suitable vacancy

in Muscat now on visit visa.

Contact: 95601266.

Indian, male, Civil Engineering

graduate with 8 years Dubai experi-

ence in Estimation, Project/Design

Co-ordination seeks suitable job in

Oman. Hold UAE driving license.

Contact: shibupnbr@ gmail.com;

+971-501426982

Civil Engineer, Indian Female, 3 yrs

experience, on visit visa seeking

suitable placement.

Contact: 99195433

B. Tech Instrumentation Engineer more than 4 year experience SCADA,

PLC, DCS, ESD (Honeywell, Yoka-

gawa). Contact: 93670890

Email: mojin.a.kabeer@gmail.com

Structural Engineer 4 years experi-

ence Indian, will handle projects

independently, able to get

Municipality approvals easily.

Contact: 91668044

Indian male 29 years Civil Engineer

diploma 4 years Oman experience,

2 years road construction looking

placement. Contact: 93298395

N.O.C available

Sudanese Industrial Engineering &

Management, experience 12 years

in QA/QC and production. Contact:

94041960 / 94044784,

Email: mekkimedani@hotmail.com /

mekkimedani78@gmail.com

Indian Male, IT Support Engineer,

2 yrs in Oman & 5 yrs Indian experi-

ence. Contact 97311847

Indian male, B.Tech Mechanical

having 4 years experience with QA/

QC / CSWIP looking for a suitable

position. Contact: 99447106

Email: dhanubhasi87@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

Electrical Eng. Degree (MEP) need

suitable job of construction 12 yrs

exp. Email: mohd.ateeq.khan@gmail.

com

Engineer with 3 yrs experience in

Indian in MEP, HVAC& mechanical

maintained fi eld on visit visa looking

for suitable job. Contact 99191535

Email: fareed029@gmail.com

Indian female, B.Tech biotechnology with strong computer

skills and 2 years experience as

associate research analyst (Media

Monitoring) in Nasdaq Oman seek-

ing growth oriented jobs. Contact

92044603 /918056169148 or

angeline.babithac@gmail.com.

IT Desktop Support Engineer 2 years Oman 3 years in Indian Exp.

Contact 91937060

IT & Media Sales specialist looking

for job opportunities also decent

exposure to H.R & customer rela-

tions currently in Muscat on visit

visa kindly. Contact : 96238199 or

99874205

Email Id: m_cadri@rediff mail.com

Network system Engineer B.E / ECE

+ CCNA & Ms certifi ed with 4+ yrs exp

looking for a job. Currently in Oman

on visit visa. Contact: 92589502

Email: careersjegan@gmail.com

Beautician exp Gulf, looking job

from India. Contact 99531802

BEAUTICIAN

DOMESTIC HELPER

Looking for job for House maid.

Contact : 93599302

Laundry Housekeeping profession-

al looking for a opening in Oman

with 18 years experience.

Contact : 91957861

B.Com Diploma in Material manage-

ment having 12 years experience in

local / overseas prelease, logistics,

ware house. NOC available.

Contact: 96477638

SALES / MARKETING

Indian Male, M.B.A. (U.K) 10 Yrs of

Experience, looking for suitable posi-

tion in Sales/Marketing/Retail/ H.R/

Admin. Contact No: 99271903.

Indian male MBA 7 years experience

in Hospitality industry, operation,

sales & marketing looking for suitable

vacancy. Contact 92115860

Email vibin.py@gmail.com

Looking for good job 2 years

experience Oman sales marketing

valid driving license Indian Kerala.

Contact : 98626682

Graduate having 6 yrs experience

Lubricant sales looking for sales job

with D/L. Contact : 93410723

Indian male, MBA with 5 yrs of

experience as a Lecturer in Depart-

ment of Marketing & Business

Management, looking for suitable

position. Contact 93126770

Sales & marketing professional

having 5 yrs exp with D/L.

Contact 92262680

Outdoor salesman with car looking

for job. Contact 91615715

Indian male, 34 yrs, 10 yrs exp. in

UAE in sales & merchandise with

valid GCC license, looking for suit-

able position. Contact 93438747 /

93033252

Indian male, 39 yrs having 15 yrs

Gulf experience (UAE, Qatar, Oman)

in sales & marketing looking for a

suitable position with NOC.

Contact 94054730

M.B.S (Management) looking for

suitable Marketing job.

Contact: 96487152

Indian male over 5 years experience

in media marketing sales collection

looking for suitable job.

Contact : 95064202

Indian male, 27 yrs, Post Graduate,

5+ yrs exp in Oman in Sales & Credit

Control, with valid Oman driving

License, NOC available, looking for

suitable placements. Ph: 91993376

Indian male MBA Marketing cur-

rently on visit visa seeking for Sales

& marketing job 2 years experience.

Contact: 94460405 Email:

arshidmohammed222@gmail.com

Sales man looking for a opening in

Oman with 18 years Gulf experience.

Contact: 91957861

An Indian male having rich

experience in procurement, Sales

marketing and offi ce administration

seeking suitable position.

Contact: 93689602

8 years store experience Indian

male looking for placement. N.O.C

available. Contact: 98456535

Indian 23 years B.Com Graduate,

2 years experience in Sales knowl-

edge of TALLY, ERP & MS Offi ce.

Contact: 93134643

Email : syedismailnoor@gmail.com

8 years purchase experienced

Indian male looking for job. N.O.C.

available. Contact: 98161323

Indian male, B.Sc (Mathematics)

PGDBM (Marketing). 9 yrs of Oman

experience in sales in midlevel

management, NOC available.

Valid Oman D/L. Contact: 95278838

Email: anup2p4p@yahoo.com

PROJECT

B.E.Civil, 13Yrs (10Yrs Oman),

Driving License, Leaving Oman on

20.06.2015, NOC Available

GSM: 98486969

Project / Construction Manager-

Electrical 15++in OMAN and UAE,45

yrs, married,D/L Oman, Qatar &

UAE),Manage with Arabic, Good

Knowledge in Metro Viaduct, UG &

OG stations, Live airport projects,

multi cuisine hospital project (Cleve-

land clinic Abu Dhabi,). Holding of

FEWA, ADCC and OMAN electri-

cal license. Contact Venkatesh on

+97477394707/

geetvenkat2002@gmail.com

Indian male, with 8 yrs exp. in

Oman (BA- Graduate) working as

a project Sales Coordinator, with

Oman D/L, looking for suitable job,

ready to join immediately with NOC.

Contact 95245057

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D6 M O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

SITUATION WANTEDSITUATION WANTED

Sudanese male (B.Sc Computer sci-

ence) (diploma computer engineer-

ing) 6 yrs. experience DBA Oracle pl-

sql, MS sql-server ,ms visual studio

vba, network. Contact :91415886

Indian male with 8 yrs experience

in FMCG in Oman as Sales Supervi-

sor looking for suitable placement.

NOC available. Gsm: 96495206

B.Sc. Mechanical Engineer Su-

danese 3 yrs of exp. In industrial

fi eld available in muscat on vist

visa seeking suitable job . Contact:

95868922, Email: almouthanaos-

man@yahoo.com

IT system and Printer engineer ME,

5Years bank IT Management exp in

India looking for full time job visit

visa contact 94462150

24 year Indian Chartered Account-

ant male with 3yrs of experience is

seeking suitable placement in Mus-

cat, currently on visit visa & ready

to join immediately. Contact him on

98201476 or email at lokeshkaluri@

gmail.com

MCA IT Professional Indian Female

seek placement in Teaching/ Non

Teaching fi eld. Presently on visit

visa. 9588 7051,

ashwininakod@gmail.com

ACCA Affi liate, Indian, 2.5Years

experience in Audit/ Finance in Big

6 Audit Firm and Oil Accounting in

PDO, For Permanent Placement for

Finance or Accounts or Audit. Re-

lease NOC Available on hand.

Contact #95140445,

a.saran891@gmail.com

Finance ACCA Affi liate, Worked as

an Auditor with 2.5 Years Experience

in reputed fi rm, Handled independ-

ent audit/fi nance assignments, Look-

ing for permanent placement, NOC

available. #95140445.

a.saran891@gmail.com

Piping Design Engineer, Indian

male 27, looking for suitable place-

ment in Piping Design & Engineer-

ing. Having 7 years of experience in

AutoCAD. Also familiar with PDMS

(11.6 Version),CAESAR ll. Contact :

97351786 / 96143708, E-mail :

mohammednazeer07@gmail.com

Indian Male, Graduate, 11 years

Sales experience in Lighting /

Industrial products, ready to join im-

mediately. GSM: 9710 5356

Indian heavy duty driver with 8

years experience in oman available

with NOC. GSM : 93601943

GSM : 94496457

Over 15 years experience in Gulf.

Interior Architect, Lebanese Nation-

ality, on visit visa seeking a suitable

Placement. 96268005.

M.Sc 3+ years exp from France &

India in IT Support Engineer / Hard-

ware & Networking / Server support

/ scientifi c system support looking

for suitable positions. Indian, male

on visit visa, contact 98898781/

anoopys@gmail.com

Indian male, 34years having 10

years of experience in Sales, Sales

Coordination and Administration.

Experienced in SAP and MS Offi ce.

NOC available. Contact # 94686594

British Beauty Therapist looking

for suitable position. please contact

:97175240

Indian male seeking suitable vacan-

cy in offi ce works 30 years Muscat

experience. Contact: 99024055

Indain Male MBA Marketing/HRM

3 year experience with Omani D/L,

seeking suitable jobs.

Contact: 97424188

email: dharwesh@gmail.com

Indian, Male, 23 years, BE Electri-

cal, having 2 years experience in

Electrical Works-H.T. cabling etc, &

Construction, looking for a suit-

able placement. # +968 96927880

(Oman), +91 9765376109 (India),

Email: rahulrevi6@gmail.com

Indian Female M.Com with Comput-

er Skills and Four Month Experience

as Accountant ,Currently On Family

Visa Looking for a Suitable Place-

ment, Available Immediately.

Contact : 95846642,

Email : dhanyashree91@yahoo.com

ACCA Affi liate, Experience in audit/

fi nance of 2.5 years in Big 6 Firm

and Oil industry, looking for suitable

permanent placement, Release NOC

available. Contact: #95140445

a.saran891@gmail.com

B.Tech Computer Engineer Wanted

job to work on(IT/Banking/Admin-

istrator/Technical/Offi ce works)

having NOC with the limited time

from (04/06/2015 to 13/06/2015).

Mobile:98402389

email:naresh6672@gmail.com

Indian male Executive Secretary

having vast experience in admin,

logistics & procurement well versed

with computer .seek suitable place-

ment. Contact : 99514286

SALES / MARKETING

Indian Male, B.Com Graduate, 23,

with experience in Sales looking for

suitable placements.

Contact 98371144

Pakistani Female Bachelor of

Information Technology with 8

years’ experience in Banking, Sales,

business development, retail & cus-

tomer service seeking for a suitable

placement. Having valid D/L& NOC

available. Contact 94699970 shehla.

chohan@gmail.com

Indian male 45+ yrs , 20 yrs exp as

sales supervisor in India looking for

indoor sales /stores /cashier or any

suitable placement can speak Hindi

, English, Malayalam, Tamil, kannada

can join immediately on visit visa.

Contact 93086105/33016546

Pakistani male 34 yrs Intermedi-

ate 2 yrs exp in sales & marketing

in Oman. Looking for suitable job.

Contact - 92146864

SKILLED/UNSKILLED

Experience skilled candidate with driver license seeks position in

sales in Salalah. Contact: 98579382

Mason, sh/carpenter, steel fi tter, looking job. Contact 95175192

Electrician, Plumber, Welder , exp

gulf and india looking job.

Contact 99531802

Helper /cleaner looking for job.

Contact 95175192

SECRETARIAL/OFFICE

Indian female completed computer

literacy program (patiently funda-

mental, MS Offi ce, word processing)

and off set printing, seeking suitable

job in Muscat. Contact : 97236545

Email: sun2giri@gmail.com

25 Indian female B.S.C. Fashion

Technology. 5 years experience in

textile industry as a merchandiser

and good in fashion marketing.

Currently available on visit visa,

seeking for a suitable job.

Contact 96990368.

Email: simmy.missy@gmail.com

TOURS & TRAVELS

MISCELLANEOUS

MISCELLANEOUS

Highly Qualifi ed & Experienced

Finance Manager Pakistani with

USA , UK & Canadian Degrees , CPA

,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA ,IFA- Financial

Consultants Canada , Corporate An-

alyst USA Professional of Banking ,

Audits ,ERPs & Profi t Maximizations

( NOC available ) call 94 504505 –

94403270

27 year Indian female who has 4

years of experience with logistics

function in distribution of spares

for both heavy machinery & wind

turbine parts. Kindly contact me on

+91 9790769104

E-mail: joemohana@yahoo.co.in

Looking for managerial post (full

time ), More than Ten years of expe-

rience in Team Development ,Train-

ing, planning, Administration, Sales

& Marketing, Advertisement and

Credit Control and Logistics. Contact

91076608 / 99322748. RELEASE &

NOC AVAILABLE

Indian male MBA (U.K), 10 Years

of experience in Admin, Sales, HR,

stores and logistics seeks suitable

placement. Contact 99271903.

Indian Female MCA, 4 plus Years

of experience in Web designing, Ad-

min, P.A, seeks suitable placement.

Contact 99486374

7 and half years experience working

accounts / inventory manager look-

ing suitable job. Contact: 96991782

Email: srinivasu.sp@gmail.com

Indian male, 28 yrs MBA (HR/M) 2

years experience in Indian Oman in

HR & admin seeks suitable place-

ments. NOC available.

Contact 97484159

Email: rameshkapa86@gmail.com

Indian female , MCA BCA, certifi ca-

tion PL SQL , 6months training PHP,

date warehouse looking for suitable

placement. Contact : 95694330

Email: mondkashyapodl@gmail.com

B.Com with more than 5 yrs exp.

looking for an accounts part tome

job work. know with tally.

Email-shilpa_62@yahoo.com

Part- time accountant, well experi-

ence senior accountant , doing all

type of accounting works, fi naliza-

tion, budgeting available.

Contact : 98803439

Indian male, looking for a part time

accounting job. Having additional

knowledge & experience in HR ad-

min & purchase. Contact 99196621

HSE Advisor, NEBOSH IGC, Indian

male, 4 years experience in con-

struction and oil fi elds, seeking suit-

able jobs. Gsm: 97458900,

Mail: miroshbabu@gmail.com

Highly Experienced Finance

Manager, CPA ,ACCA-UK . MBA-USA

, Professional of Banking, Audits ,

ERPs Sap , Management as Team

Leader and Problem Solver call 94

504505 / 94403270

Indian male MBA Finance presently

OMAN IN visit visa, 26 years, look-

ing for an accountant job.

Contact 95240641, email Id

mohammadabdulazharuddin@

gmail.com

Admin Executive, 31, Indian Male,

having 9+ years exp. in reputed

companies. Seeking suitable place-

ment in any gulf region. Contact

+968 99276601 & 97693456. email :

muralimahdav77@gmail.com

Indian Female, 24yrs, M.COM (Ac-

counts) having 3yrs experience

in Accounts, HR, Administration,

Customer Service. Good Computer

Profi ciency. Seeking Suitable Posi-

tion. Visa Transfer/NOC Available.

Contact: 99654913

MEP Quantity Surveyor-Estima-

tion-Project, 10 Years Experience

(3 years in Oman). Having NOC &

Oman D/L, looking for suitable job,

Contact - 98291626

Indian house maid looking full time

job. Contact : 98254909

B.E. Civil Engineer age 27, total

3 years of experience in Mumbai

looking for placement asap in oman

now on visit visa of 1 month

ph 9571 3441

Email. Khatrialeem@gmail.com

Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP,

MCITP having Bachelor degree and

6 years of experience in Networking

looking for job. 96760618 /

varghese.manthara@gmail.com

ACCA affi liate, with 2.5 years

experience in Big6 audit fi rm and

Oil industry, looking for permanent

placement in Accounts/Audit.

Release available

Contact :95140445

a.saran891@gmail.com

Sudanese male, 31 year old,

have 3 year Diploma in electrical

engineer, 5 years experience in

diff erent activities . Mobile No ;

+96894549609

8 yrs exp Site supervisor cum 2d,

3d Draughtsman (holding Omani

driving license) seeking job.

Contact : 93790601

Indian Male, 29 years, CCNP, MCITP

having Bachelor degree and 6 years

of experience in Networking looking

for job. 96760618 /

varghese.manthara@gmail.com

B.E. Civil Engineer from India with

3 years of experience looking for

suitable vacancy in oman now on

visit visa. Contact 9571 3441,

Email . Khatrialeem@gmail.com

Indian male 21 IT Eng. networking &

computer hardware diploma, 1 year

experience, currently on visit visa

looking for a suitable job.

Contact 96036273

email: faizanfarooqui23@gmail.com

Indian, 32 years, completed M.A.

English, M.Sc. Psychology and B.Ed

in English. Searching for suitable

job in the fi eld of teaching. To

Contact: 00968 99869535

Email: sahadkeyi33@gmail.com

SITUATION WANT-

EDSIT. WANTED

*Classifi ed Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00 noon

for next day’s publication. * Subject to space availability

DAILY GUIDEM O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 D7

SITUATION WANTEDCARGO

Dolphin Watch, Dhow Cruise

with Buffet, & Land Tours Al- Ainain

Marine Tours Contact- 98029602,

92808636

RENT A CAR

RENT A CAR

TOURS

GOOD NEWS

Ayurvedic massage backache, joint

pain & neck pain etc.

Contact: 98254909

Ayurvedic treatment for joint pain,

backache, paralysis massage, steam

bath, obesity, spondylitis IDEAL ,

CARE Ayurvedic Clinic 18 November

street, Azaiba. Contact 99639695 /

99117987

Taimour Ayurvedic Clinic, Ruwi

off ers genuine & eff ective treatment

for back pain, paralysis, cervical and

lumbar spondylitis, osteoarthritis,

joint pains, sinusitis, migraine, al-

lergic problems, varicose vein and

all other health related problems.

Kerala massage and rejuvenation

package available. For details please

Contact 92197920/ 24799689

FREE INFORMATION ABOUT IS-LAM. If you would like to know more

about Islam, please call: 99425598,

96050000, 99353988, 99253818,

99341395, and 99379133.

For ladies: 99415818, 99321360,

99730723

Orvisit: www.islamfact.com

Ayurvedic treatment for backache,

paralysis, arthritis etc & massage,

All Season (Vaidyaratnam).

Contact 24475280 / 95371554 /

92504980

www.siddhayur.com

Genuine Ayurvedic treatments &

massage, Ayurvedic clinic at

Al Khuwair.

Contact 24478618 / 97263637

/93309131

Butter cup rent a car presents fantastic off ers all vehicles are model 2016.

Contact : 97249449

Available car with driver daily,

weekly and monthly basis.

Contact : 95518612

DAILY GUIDE Tel. 24726666 Ext: 413 / 430 431 / 456 / 461Fax: 24812624

Email: dailyguide@timesofoman.com

D8 M O N D AY, J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5

SITUATION WANTEDSERVICES

SITUATION WANT-SERVICES

Specialist available for explosive

growth in term of restructuring

all modules of businesses with

over 30 years of experience across

continents with a decade in Oman.

Contact 96733578

Email : profi toman@gmail.com

Split & window A.C servicing &

maintenance. Contact 93769089 /

95323517

House shifting & transporting.

Contact 92490422

Carpet & sofa cleaning, house clean-

ing. Contact 99542979 / 98855815

Split & window A.C servicing &

maintenance. Contact: 96236476

Window & split unit A.C servicing

& repairing. Contact 99557080

Split & window A.C servic-

ing & maintenance. Contact

93769089/95323517

Air condition maintenance split

and window services AC specialist

ducted and package type unites.

Contact: 98667326

Carpet Shampoo, marble & tile

polishing, pest control & anti-ter-

mite treatment, general cleaning

painting, Plumbing, Electrical,

shifting. Contact Mundhir

Al-Rizaiqi trading. L.L.C.

# 24810137, 99450130

Ramadhan Gifts with company

name printable advertisement

on t-shirt, clock.

Contact: 98796982

House shifting packing.

99657644 / 98518013

WEBSITE

WEB, ERP and Business Intelli-

gence (BI) creation and man-

agement at rock bottom price.

Contact: http//webviewoman

CLASSES

COMPUTER

ACCOUNTANTS AND CONSULTANTS

WE ARE PROVIDINGACCOUNTING/ AUDITING

TAX/ CONSULTINGCONTACT: 24 567 251 / 95 498 033

GUARANTEED CLEANING: Carpet

& sofa shampooing, Contact

99314807/24792998

MARBLE CRYSTALLIZATION restore the original shine of your

marble. #24793614/ 99314807

House shifting. Contact 99708138

Learn Cup cakes, exotic cakes, Icing

decorations, handicrafts.

Contact 95941515

DRIVING

Learn driving with professional

only automatic. Contact

94022250

NRI

Ready / under construction apart-

ments / villas. Near guruvayur.

Contact: 00919846877773

BUSINESS

General Investors. Contact

99674870

*Classifi ed Advertisement space booking with text, should be done till 12.00

noon for next day’s publication. * Subject to

space availability

SITUATION WANT-MANPOWER

Available for longer period : Mig

Welder 5 nos, General worker with

PDO pass 10 nos, Helper 10 nos,

Mason 8 nos. Contact 99610703

Wanted Sub Contractors : Shut-

tering work, steel, concrete block

work, plastering, tile fi xing for

Buraimi, School project.

Contact : 99427674/ 24700373/

Fax: 24701368

SITUATION WANT-

EDSIT. WANTED

Water proofi ng ABUQABAS-

Contact 99320217/24788722

Marble Restoration, Mosaic tiles

polishing, carpet shampooing,

maintenance.Contact ABU QABAS-

99320217 /24788722

Iraqi Pharmacist with 15 years

experience as regulatory aff airs and

Marketing Manager seeking job in

pharmaceutical co.

Mobile 96720441

B.E Biomedical Engineer, having 5

years of experience in Diagnostics

division seeking suitable position.

94151658

8 Years successful experience,

SENIOR ACCOUNTANT, Indian

male,29 years. Presently working in

Oman as a Senior Accountant with

oman Driving license seeks suitable

opportunity. GSM: 97705854

Indian Female, Commerce Gradu-

ate, Total 9 yrs of experience in

India. worked as Accounts Assistant

and Business executive seeking for

suitable placement.

Tel : 96173533/24222457

Email : topranidivya@gmail.com

Indian Male 24 years, Looking for a

Suitable Job in Telecom / Network-

ing. 1 year sales experience. MSc.

Communications Engineering &

Valid Driving license. Ph: 91280121.

Email: jackrprasad@yahoo.com

Female Executive Assistant/Execu-

tive Secretary with 27+ experience,

worked with top management/Board

in fi nancial services with shorthand

skills & Omani driving license, seeks

suitable placement.

call 95941515

26 years Indian male with MBA &

PGDFM, Total 3.8 years experience

in Administration, seeking suit-

able placement in any gulf region.

Holding Oman valid driving license.

Contact :94501423

Finance ACCA Affi liate, 2.5 years

experience in audit/fi nance and oil

company in reputed fi rms. Looking

for suitable permanent place-

ment. Release available. Contact

95140445, a.saran891@gmail.com

24 year Indian Chartered Account-

ant male with 3yrs of experience is

seeking suitable placement in Mus-

cat, currently on visit visa & ready

to join immediately. Contact him on

98201476 or email at

lokeshkaluri@gmail.com