DUBAI (TIP): A 47-year-old Indian expat in the UAE has won a whopping 20-million-dirham grand prize from a leading weekly draw in the country, taking the tally of Indians who have attained millionaire status through the draw to 20. The Mumbai native has been residing in Dubai for 25 years with his wife and three children.
“I have been participating in Mahzooz every week, hoping for a big win one day. This victory is a life-changer for my family and me,” said Sachin.
Meanwhile, Gowtham, another Indian expat, won the guaranteed raffle prize of 1 million dirhams (approximately Rs 2.25 crores) from the draw.
The 27-year-old project engineer was overjoyed when he discovered his triumph through an email notification on Saturday. He has been residing in the UAE for four years and participating in Mahzooz for one year.
Thrilled by his win, Gowtham said he plans to utilize his winnings to build a home in his hometown.
Suzan Kazzi, Head of Communications and CSR at EWINGS, Managing Operator of Mahzooz, said it is no surprise to witness two fortunate winners from India in the same draw.
“The vibrant Indian community constitutes the largest base of enthusiastic participants and winners at Mahzooz. With a remarkable AED (United Arab Emirates Dirham) 164 million awarded to 105,000 Indian winners, the popularity of Mahzooz among NRIs (Non-Resident Indians) is experiencing exponential growth. Sachin and Gowtham’s triumphs add to the milestone of achieving 20 Indian millionaires and a total of 55 millionaires as we continue to change lives and inspire dreams through Mahzooz.”
(Source: PTI)
Tag: Dubai
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Indian expat wins Rs 45 crore grand prize in weekly UAE draw
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ICC Test Rankings; Kohli down to fifth as Root moves up to third after Chennai double century
Dubai (TIP): India skipper Virat Kohli was on Wednesday, February 10, pushed to the fifth spot by his English counterpart Joe Root, who rose two rungs to third in the latest ICC Test rankings for batsmen, even as Jasprit Bumrah and R Ashwin moved up in the bowlers’ chart. Kohli, who had scores of 11 and 72 in the opening Test against England, has 852 points and down one spot in the latest chart issued on Wednesday.
Veteran spinner Ashwin and pacer Bumrah have jumped a rung each to be seventh and eighth respectively.
Root, who helped his team to a memorable 227-run victory in Chennai that kept England in contention for the ICC World Test Championship final, has reached 883 rating points.
It is his highest position since September2017 after a fabulous run in the sub-continent saw him accumulate 684 runs in three Tests, two of which were in Sri Lanka.
Ahead of Kohli for the first time since November 2017, Root is now 36 points behind top-ranked Kane Williamson and trails Steve Smith by only eight points. With Marnus Labuschagne also in the mix, competition for the top five slots is intense with all of them above 850 rating points.
For India, Rishabh Pant’s knock of 91 in the first innings has helped him become the first full-time wicketkeeper from his country to reach 700 rating points as he retained the 13th position among batsmen.
Opener Shubman Gill progressed seven places to 40th position while all-rounder Washington Sundar is 81st after moving up two slots. Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem too has gained two places to reach 85th position among bowlers.
Opener Dom Sibley is another England batsman to gain in the latest rankings update, his knocks of 87 and 16 helping him rise 11 places to 35th, while their players also made the way up in the bowling rankings presently led by Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins.
Formerly top-ranked James Anderson is up to third from sixth and only four points behind compatriot Stuart Broad, a fellow-member of the 500-wicket club.
Anderson is at his highest ranking since the start of the ICC World Test Championship while spinners Jack Leach and Dominic Bess are both at career-best rating points, moving up to 37th and 41st positions, respectively.
West Indies batsman Kyle Mayers, whose scores of 40 and 210 not out helped script an epic win in the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong, has entered the rankings in 70th position with 448 rating points.
It is the best by a West Indian batsman on debut and the second-best ever on debut after RE Foster, who was on 449 rating points back in 1903 after scoring 287 on debut for England against Australia in Sydney.
Others to gain for the West Indies include captain Kraigg Brathwaite (up eight places to 53rd) among batsmen and the spin pair of Jomel Warrican (up 14 places to 62nd) and Rahkeem Cornwall (up six places to 65th).
For Bangladesh, captain Mominul Haque’s 10th Test century has lifted him eight places to 33rd. All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has gained four slots to reach 30th position among batsmen while off-spinner Mehidy Hasan has progressed from 28th to 24th position.
Pakistan completing a 2-0 sweep over South Africa is followed with good news from the rankings perspective as well, especially with regard to fast bowling.
Player of the series Mohammad Rizwan has attained a career-best 16th place after scores of 26 and 115 helped him make a leap of 19 places in the list.
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Indian – Origin 15-Year-Old Girl in Dubai Helps Recycle 25 Tons of E-waste
DUBAI (TIP): A Dubai-based 15-year-old Indian – origin girl has launched a campaign, which helped in the recycling of 25 tons of electronic waste in the Gulf nation, according to a media report on Friday.
Riva Tulpule, a student of grade 10, got the idea to start the campaign while clearing out drawers filled with broken devices in 2016, the Gulf News reported. While shifting to a new house a few years ago, Ms Tulpule found lots of disused electronics while helping her mom clear out drawers. This sparked the beginning of her campaign ‘WeCareDXB” that she said has collected over 25 tons of e-waste for recycling in over four years, the report said.
“I had asked my mom why we can’t we just dispose the items we don’t need. She told me they need to be tacked in a special way but we were not sure exactly how to go about it. So, that made me curious and I decided to do some research into it, which led me to this cause,” Ms Tulpule was quoted as saying by the report.
She said many people just dump old devices and appliances in the general waste as they are not aware of the options for recycling them. Raising awareness through social media and word of mouth, WeCareDXB has enlisted volunteers — students, professionals, the general public — to collect the items for recycling e-waste. Ms Tulpule, a student of GEMS Modern Academy, got in touch with Dubai-based EnviroServe, an electronics recycler and processor, to hand over the collected items. In December last, she held her latest collection round, rallying friends and the wider community to drop off over 2,000 broken laptops, tabs, mobile phones, printers, keyboards and other items. Over 60 students from 15 schools had signed up for the 10-day campaign.
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UAE to reopen all entry points with Qatar
Dubai (TIP): The United Arab Emirates announced on Friday that it would reopen its borders and airspace to Qatar after boycotting the tiny energy-rich country alongside its Gulf allies since 2017.
The decision to restart commerce and travel would take effect on Saturday, Foreign Ministry official Khalid Abdullah Belhou was quoted as saying by the UAE’s state-run WAM news agency. The move comes after Saudi Arabia declared a breakthrough in settling the years-long rift with Qatar during the annual Gulf summit this week, saying the kingdom would restore diplomatic ties and that its allies would follow suit. — AP -
Iran bans Covid-19 vaccines from US, UK
Dubai (TIP): Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday banned Iran from importing of American Pfizer-BioNTech and Britain’s AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines.
“The import of US and British vaccines into the country is forbidden. I have told this to officials and I am saying it publicly now,” Khamenei said in a live televised speech.
“I have no confidence in them. Sometimes they want to test vaccines on other nations … If the Americans were able to produce a vaccine, they would not have such a big coronavirus fiasco in their own country,” said the leader.
The country that has been worst hit by the novel coronavirus in West Asia, launched human trials of its first domestic Covid-19 vaccine candidate late last month, saying it could help Iran defeat the pandemic despite US sanctions that affect its ability to import vaccines.
However, Khamenei praised Iran’s efforts to develop domestic vaccines but said it could obtain vaccines “from other reliable places”. He gave no details but China and Russia are both allies of Iran.
“I’m not optimistic about France either because of their history of infected blood,” Khamenei said, referring to the country’s contaminated blood scandal of the 1980s and 1990s. — Reuters -
Indian-origin author Avni Doshi on 2020 Booker Prize longlist
The Dubai-based Indian-origin author is among the 13 authors longlisted for her debut novel ‘Burnt Sugar’
LONDON (TIP): Dubai-based Indian-origin author Avni Doshi is among the 13 authors longlisted for the prestigious 2020 Booker Prize for her debut novel ‘Burnt Sugar’, alongside double Booker winner Hilary Mantel for ‘The Mirror and The Light’.
The so-called “Booker Dozen” was unveiled on Tuesday, July 28, after judges evaluated 162 novels published in the UK or Ireland between October 2019 and September 2020, with a shortlist of six to be whittled down by September in time for the 50,000-pound literary prize in November.
“This utterly compelling read examines a complex and unusual mother-daughter relationship with honest, unflinching realism — sometimes emotionally wrenching but also cathartic, written with poignancy and memorability,” the judges said of Doshi’s longlisted entry.
Doshi, born in the US and now living in Dubai, has previously spoken about the long journey to her first novel, which was released in India last year as ‘Girl in White Cotton’ and gets a UK release this Thursday as ‘Burnt Sugar’.
For the coveted Booker, Doshi goes head to head with literary heavyweight Mantel, who is in the running for her final instalment in her series set in King Henry VIII’s 16th-century England.
“‘The Mirror and the Light’ completes a tragic arc in which Thomas Cromwell [Henry VII’s Minister] is finally brought down by the police state he designed. Mantel’s masterful exhibition of sly dialogue and exquisite description brings the Tudor world alive,” the judges said, in reference to her book.
British and Scottish nominees this year include Gabriel Krauze for ‘Who They Was’, Douglas Stuart for ‘Shuggie Bain’ and Sophie Ward for ‘Love and Other Thought Experiments’. Zimbabwean writer Tsitsi Dangarembga is nominated for the third novel in her trilogy – ‘This Mournable Body’.
The rest of the longlist is largely dominated by US-based authors, including Diane Cook for ‘The New Wilderness’, Colum McCann for ‘Apeirogon’, Maaza Mengiste for ‘The Shadow King’, Kiley Reid for ‘Such a Fun Age’, Brandon Taylor for ‘Real Life’, Anne Tyler for ‘Redhead by The Side of The Road’, and C Pam Zhang for ‘How Much of These Hills is Gold’.
“Each of these books carries an impact that has earned it a place on the longlist, deserving of a wide readership. Included are novels carried by the sweep of history with memorable characters brought to life and given visibility, novels that represent a moment of cultural change, or the pressures an individual faces in pre and post-dystopian society,” said editor and literary critic Margaret Busby, chair of the 2020 judging panel.
“Some of the books focus on interpersonal relationships that are complex, nuanced, emotionally charged. There are voices from minorities often unheard, stories that are fresh, bold and absorbing. The best fiction enables the reader to relate to other people’s lives; sharing experiences that we could not ourselves have imagined is as powerful as being able to identify with characters,” she said.
Gaby Wood, Literary Director of the Booker Prize Foundation, said: “In this year of seismic change, visibility for new books published in the UK has been drastically low. So, however unintended the ratio, it’s especially heartening to know that some authors who have launched their careers in the midst of COVID-19 may now have a chance to reach the readers they deserve.”
The Booker Prize for Fiction is open to writers of any nationality, writing in English and published in the UK or Ireland. The shortlist of six books will be announced on September 15, with each shortlisted author receiving 2,500 pounds and a specially bound edition of their book at the prize ceremony scheduled for November.
The 2019 Booker Prize for Fiction was won jointly by ‘The Testaments’ by Margaret Atwood and ‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Bernardine Evaristo. First awarded in 1969, the Booker Prize is recognized as the leading prize for literary fiction written in English.
The rules of the prize were changed at the end of 2013 to embrace the English language “in all its vigor, its vitality, its versatility and its glory”, opening it up to writers beyond the UK and Commonwealth, providing they were writing novels in English and published in the UK.
(Source: PTI)
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Indian -Origin Lawyer in UAE Helps Over 2,000 Fellow Citizens amid the Pandemic
DUBAI (TIP): An Indian -origin lawyer in the UAE has helped over 2,000 stranded and jobless blue-collar compatriots with free legal paperwork to facilitate their return back home, according to a media report on Saturday.
Sheela Thomas, 41, has opened 2,200 files of distressed Indians hailing from states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, who have lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to help them for their return to India, according to reports.
“Their paper-work needs to be sorted. Many of their visas have expired, passports still stuck with employers who are not releasing them for some reason or the other. I am taking care of all this work,” she was quoted as saying in the report.
Sheela Thomas, who has been residing in the UAE for the last 25 years, is doing all this work on a pro bono basis, it said.
Though originally from Kerala, she was born and brought up in Hyderabad.
“My mobile has turned viral. I am continuously receiving calls for help from stranded Indians and I don’t have the heart to say no,” she said.
Explaining her work, Sheela Thomas said she tries to understand the workers’ situation, talks to their employers to release their documents and passports so they can travel home, gets the paper-work in place and keeps it ready for their travel when enough flights are available.
“This land has given me so much. It is time to give back to the UAE and its people. These men are the people of UAE and they need help now,” Sheela Thomas said in the report.
She also feeds 300 people from her kitchen at home, the report said.
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Sun Mark holds annual Celebration & Awards Dinner at Gulfood 2018, Dubai
DUBAI (TIP): Sun Mark held its annual Celebration & Awards Dinner in Dubai during the Gulfood exhibition at the lavish Shangri-La Hotel on 19th February 2018. It was, as always, a glittering affair with esteemed guests from the Middle East and South Asian region but with many also flying in from as far away as Canada, Cameroon and South Africa; with the array of guests resembling a gathering of the United Nations. Sun Mark is the only British company to have been awarded the Queens Award for Enterprise in International Trade for an unprecedented 5 consecutive years and exports to over 130 countries. Sun Mark’s achievements are seen as the gold standard and recognized as an Ambassador for UK Business. The Chief Guest from the British Government was the Rt. Hon. Richard Harrington MP, Under-Secretary of State for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The Guest of Honor was Her Majesty’s Consul General to the U.A.E, Mr Paul Fox.
The cricket legend Mr Muttiah Muralitharan at the event The evening was also attended by the cricket legend Mr Muttiah Muralitharan and the Honorable Mr Maalaine Salama, Head of Media Relations at Dubai Municipality. H.E Mirza Al Sayegh, Representative of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Finance Minister of the UAE, could not attend the gala dinner, but conveyed his best wishes to Sun Mark for the event.
Mr Harmeet Ahuja, Director of Sun Mark, welcoming the guests The evening began with Mr. Harmeet (Sunny) Ahuja, Director and CEO of Sun Mark, welcoming the guests. He informed them that 2017 had been a monumental year in the history of the company as it was the year of the 70th birthday of the company’s founder and chairman, Dr Rami Ranger CBE. He then proceeded to show a special video outlining Dr Ranger’s story and milestones through his life.
Dr Rami Ranger CBE, Chairman of Sun Mark, addressing the guests Dr. Ranger, in his speech, paid tribute to all those who worked closely with him and how the success of Sun Mark was a result of a combination of customers, and suppliers and other service providers coming together to help each other to progress. He thanked his team from Sun Mark for all of their efforts. He reminded his guests that with the right values anyone can succeed and told his own story and how it can inspire anyone to do the best they can.
Mr Paul Fox, Her Majesty’s Consul General to the UAE delivering his speech 
The Rt. Hon. Richard Harrington MP, Under-Secretary for the department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy delivering his speech The guests were then addressed by Her Majesty’s Consul General to the UAE, Mr Paul Fox, who spoke of the importance of trade and reiterated its importance in forging improved relations across the world. He also acknowledged Dr. Ranger’s philanthropic efforts and achievements. He spoke of the British food industry being a major employer and is the largest sector of UK manufacturing and an unsung hero of the British economy. He encouraged British companies to work in the UAE and to use it as a base to grow their business further. The Chief Guest, Mr Richard Harrington MP, spoke of Dr Ranger and his team’s achievements and lauded him for acknowledging the efforts of all those who worked for him and also of his wife’s great contribution to the company’s success.
Mr Sunny Kulathakal, Global President of GOPIO (Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin) delivering his speech Mr Sunny Kulathakal, Global President of GOPIO (Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin) addressed the guests and acknowledged the contribution of Dr Ranger in social and cultural arenas and encouraged others to join them in their efforts.
Award presented to: Sir Prince Oji Okisisi of company Prince Oji, Nigeria 
Award presented to Mr Izzat Ullah Khan of Naveed Trading, Pakistan. 
Award presented to Mr Vijay Aswani of Al Vihag Enterprises, Gambia 
Special award for outstanding lifetime achievement presented to Sheikh Khalid Mahmood and his son, Sheikh Omer Khalid of Bismillah Stores, Pakistan. Sun Mark then recognized some of its regional partners and distributors in the region who had made a significant contribution to the growth and development of business. They were Sir Prince Oji Okisisi of company Prince Oji in Nigeria. Mr Izzat Ullah Khan of Naveed Trading, Pakistan, Mr Vijay Aswani of Al Vihag Enterprises, Gambia and there was a special award for outstanding lifetime achievement for Sheikh Khalid Mahmood of Bismillah Stores of Pakistan who collected his award with his son, Sheikh Omer Khalid.
The Vote of Thanks was given by Mr. Harmeet Ahuja, who thanked Dr. Rami Ranger and Sun Mark UK and UAE team for making the evening possible and for bringing together such a myriad of people from all over the world.
The formal part of the evening was then concluded, and dinner was served.
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BURJ KHALIFA LIGHTS UP WITH TRICOLOR
DUBAI (TIP): Dubai’s iconic skyscraper Burj Khalifa was on Feb 10 lit up in the colours of the Indian flag to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second visit to the UAE.
The Indian tricolour was displayed every hour for UAE residents to admire and enjoy, according to the Dubai-based real estate development company Emaar.
“The Indian flag was showcased on Burj Khalifa on Feb 19 every hour from 7.15 pm to 11.15 pm,” an Emaar representative was quoted as saying by the Khaleej Times.
The light show will coincide with Modi’s second state visit to the UAE.
Modi last visited the country in August 2015. On Saturday evening, landmarks in Abu Dhabi and Dubai were also lit up to the colors of the Indian flag.
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Indian Origin Student Commits Suicide At University In UAE
The Dubai Police said that the victim had jumped from the fifth floor of the building at the Murdoch University campus.
DUBAI (TIP): A 19-year-old Indian Origin boy has committed suicide by allegedly jumping from a building at a university campus in the UAE, a media report said today.
Officials found the student lying in a pool of blood and pronounced him dead, Khaleej Times reported.
The Dubai Police said that he had jumped from the fifth floor of the building at the Murdoch University campus.
The identity of the victim was not revealed by the police.
According to a friend of the student, he had come to the university with his father to pay his fees and told his father that he wanted to use the washroom. It was after this that he jumped from the building.
“He was absolutely normal when he spoke to me last night before the incident,” the friend said, adding that he did not notice any signs of depression.
The police are currently carrying out an investigation to ascertain the cause of his extreme step and ruled out any criminal motive behind the incident.
In a statement, Murdoch University, Dubai said: “We wish to express our sincere condolences to family members, friends and colleagues.
“We are working closely with the relevant authorities.
The University is also providing counselling services to all students and staff”.
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Dubai gurdwara creates world record with breakfast for people from 101 nations
A gurdwara in Dubai broke the world record for serving free breakfast to the maximum number of people from diverse nationalities.
Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar entered the Guinness World Record on Thursday for serving continental breakfast titled ‘Breakfast for Diversity’ to 600 persons from 101 countries in an hour-long event in Jebel Ali.
The Khaleej Times reported that schoolchildren, government officials and diplomats attended the event while Indian ambassador to the UAE Navdeep Singh Suri was the chief guest. People from different parts of the city flocked to the Jebel Ali Gardens and filled a temporary tent made for hosting the marathon breakfast event.
The officials from the Guinness Book of World Records confirmed that the gurdwara broke the previous record of 55 nationalities having a continental breakfast, organised by Nutella at the Milan Expo in Italy in 2015.
The gurdwara, which is known for serving free meals to all visitors through its community kitchen, caters to over 50,000 Sikh devotees in the United Arab Emirates.
“Sikhism has always embraced diversity as it has been part of our faith and belief that we are all human beings to be treated with respect,” Surender Kandhari, chairman of the Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar, told the daily. “The gurdwara has been spearheading charity and volunteer work not only for the Indian community but for the entire UAE community as well. We feel blessed to give in any form, as this is our selfless service to the society,” he said.