BeyondHeadlines

Tag: Dubai

  • Dubai Eid Festivities Week Watered Down by Almost Two Years Rain in One Day!

    Dubai Eid Festivities Week Watered Down by Almost Two Years Rain in One Day!

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) celebrated Eid ul Fitr on April 10, 2024. The Eid celebrations were muted in the Muslim world in general and the Arab world in particular, with the vampire terrorist Netanyahu sucking the blood and consuming the flesh of the innocent 32,000 Palestinians with an unending appetite. As the Eid festivities were closing, the Almighty decided to open the water tap over the UAE, with Dubai and Al Ain bearing the brunt of the storms. It rained camels and elephants in the country! More than one and a half years of rain ripped through different regions. Tuesday turned Dubai roads into an ocean, with water everywhere, including the runway. The Dubai Mall, the Mall of the Emirates, and the Dubai Metro were visited by rain and not by tourists! Luckily, I flew back from Dubai on Monday evening without being stranded. The next day, the Dubai International Airport was dysfunctional for some time as many incoming flights were diverted and more than 25 outbound flights were cancelled as the runway resembled a sheet of water. Emirates and Air India flights were the most affected. There was just one loss of human life.

    The Sultanate of Oman, with less rainfall than the UAE, suffered the most, with different governorates experiencing floods. The worst tragedy struck at Samad A’Shan in the Sharqiyah region, where 10 tiny, beautiful flowers aged between 8 and 10 withered in flood waters while returning from school. The boys belonged to one extended family. It was a heartbreaking scene, as their bodies could be recovered 24 hours after the tragedy. The mountains roared with water, gushing down and submerging large tracts of land. There were 18 deaths in these floods in Oman.

    The cheapest labor comes from Nepal and Ethiopia, leaving behind Bangladesh. Nepalis and Africans have swarmed Dubai in different work places, particularly hotels and restaurants. The Punjabi Kudis (girls) are waitresses at many restaurants who perhaps think that ho jayegi balle balle (life will be good) if they earn a living in Dubai. They work more than 12 hours a day, standing and serving throughout the day. They get one day of holiday per month. More and more Indians, after being ditched of the 20 crore jobs promised by Pied Piper Narendra Modi, are making a beeline to the Gulf countries. Taxi drivers are sailing in the same boat, but they earn more than double that of the waitresses. They survive on AED 400 for food expenses and another AED 400 for bed space. They save about AED 3,000 and send money home when the Indian rupee is bleeding against the onslaught of a resurging dollar.

    The culinary scene is lip-smacking in Dubai, with different popular dishes from the Arab world, India, Turkey, and other places competing for belly effect. The Moroccan, Egyptian, Lebanese, Iraqi, Yemeni, Iranian, and Bosnian food at the Mall of the Emirates caters to the taste buds of the residents and tourists alike. I must confess that I missed my childhood pals Syed Azaz ur Rahman and Syed Mazhar while having the Laham Madfoon dish at the Zam Zam Restaurant opposite Al Ghurair Mall. Azaz, the intellectual and educationist who, when free from building careers in medicine and engineering for thousands of students, relishes good food. He has been a perfect host to the high and mighty of India at his beautiful bungalow in the enchanting hills of Ooty. Mazhar is a reputed builder. The three of us have shared chocolates, smiles, laughter, and fights at All Saints’ High School and graduated to patronizing real good food when we meet now. I fondly recall Azaz’s liking of the Mutton Curry at Fortune Sullivan in Ooty two months ago. He profusely complimented Chef Rashid for the same.

    Cooking lamb meat or beef in a pit oven buried underground, we get the popular dish Laham Madfoon. It is very popular in the Arab world. It is a sort of Biryani in which rice is topped with the meat cooked in Arabic spices. But it is totally different from Biryani. Bakkalawa is an Arabian sweet full of dry fruits. You can wash it down with the Moroccan mint tea or the Arabic qahwa (coffee).

    More often than not, restaurants boast about their food, only to disappoint. A case in point is the Shadab Hotel branch in Dubai. The main one is in Hyderabad. It boasts of the ‘finest Biryani from India.’ This is far from the truth. The Zafrani Kachhe Gosht ki Biryani was only in name; there was no Zafran or saffron in it. Neither taste nor smell! The chicken 65 was crisp and delicious. Haleem was understandably low on spices to cater to international guests. The Eid dinner was more than good!

    Those coming to Dubai from India should avoid booking hotels before coming, as there is a chance that you may be shortchanged. The promised room is not given. The receptionists at hotels from three to five stars will assign a small room and then begin to haggle for more Dirhams for a bigger room. Even in five-star hotels, washrooms have standing water or leaking fixtures. The drainage system is much to be desired. I experienced standing water in the 5-star Hyatt Regency wash room also. The best thing is to arrive at the hotel and have the luxury of looking at two or three rooms before choosing one after haggling for a discount.

    We at BeyondHeadlines do not believe in free lunches. Everything was paid for, and nothing complimentary was received at any point in time. 

  • Dubai Heralds Global Tourism Recovery in First Quarter 2022; Maddening Crowds During Eid Al Adha Holidays

    Dubai Heralds Global Tourism Recovery in First Quarter 2022; Maddening Crowds During Eid Al Adha Holidays

    Dubai – the vertical city of the world heralds global tourism recovery with 3.97 million visitors in the first quarter of 2022. In fact, the Middle East leads travel recovery in the post-Covid-19 era. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) travelers have an important role in tourism recovery due to their huge spending power. According to UNWTO, GCC travelers spend more than 6.5 times the global average. Saudi Arabian travelers reportedly spend the highest globally on travel to Europe. Travel to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is increasing by leaps and bounds among Europeans, Africans, Indians, and GCC citizens and residents. The Sultanate of Oman is also attracting a huge number of tourists. Now, with the Salalah Khareef Festival in progress, the numbers are bound to increase further.

    Dubai tourism has been making spiraling strides due to its tourist-friendly measures and the introduction of different visa types. There are not just single-entry tourist visas but also 5-year multi-entry tourist visas for families, who can show at least $4,000 in their bank accounts. Sometimes, visas are rejected for no reason despite submitting all the documents. Applicants whose requests for visas are rejected stand to lose a part of the visa fees. This needs to be looked into by the federal authority for issuing visas. New hotels are added by the day both in the 3-star and the 5-star category. The Dubai Municipality collects Municipality Tax. Plus there is a Tourism Tax. But some of the 3-star hotels are spoiling the name of the hospitality industry. Even towels are not provided to the guests and rooms are not cleaned despite requests, according to some hotel guests. The Dubai Municipality should cancel licenses of some hotels like The Signature Inn, Deira, after checking with the staying guests and going through the reviews of the guests who left. Many Saudi Arabians visit this hotel.

    During the Eid Al Adha holidays, Dubai witnessed house full boards even at 5-star hotels. Anticipating this huge rush, I had booked Hyatt Regency Galleria in advance. The luxury and ambience provided are worth value for money. Housekeeping was excellent. It is a good place for journalists who do not move about with personal security guards. The world knows how Russian President Vladimir Putin trails and hounds journalists, who speak and write the truth. So, I did not take chances with my security. I cannot expect Ukraine to provide me with security. Thanks to the handsome and courteous Egyptian receptionist Ibrahim Kamar (Qamar), my premium 2-bedroom apartment was upgraded to a premium large 2-bedroom apartment. All the 486 rooms at Hyatt Regency were booked during the Eid holidays. The ballroom that hosts breakfast was bursting with 815 guests on a packed day. It resembled a wedding reception. One should not miss breakfast and particularly the variety spread at the Hyatt Regency.

    There are many attractions in Dubai. But the latest attraction is the Museum of the Future, which opened in the first quarter of this year. Can you imagine life and its advancement in the year 2071? The outer building has a message of hope in Arabic from the Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, which reflects inside the building also through the LED lights. These should not be mistaken as verses from the Holy Quran because of the Arabic language.

    The museum has six floors of superb exhibits that imagine life in the year 2071, including a space station which is named OSS Hope – the same name the United Arab Emirates gave the spacecraft that began orbiting Mars in February 2022.  A digitally re-created Amazon rainforest on a huge screen amazes nature lovers and children. Take a walk through the rich Amazon rainforest and view models of the DNA of 2400 species ensnared in glass cylinders – some are extinct, others are threatened with extinction. Then lift off on the spacecraft I Hope to visit a NASA-approved international space station, about 600 kilometers above our Earth.

    One can enroll as an Ambassador of Mars Colony on Earth like I did myself. In this travelogue, you can see my picture in a space suit with the caption – Ambassador of Mars Colony on Earth. This may give you one reason to laugh while looking at the picture – even laugh at me! Hahaha! Who knows? I may be the pioneer of a Mars Journalists Association there in the future. Even children can enroll themselves in the junior category for different new professions. There is a children’s area, a 345-seat theater, and a cavern-like top floor that could comfortably accommodate as many as 1,000 people for a meeting or event.

    The marvelous 320,000-square-foot Museum has no columns to support its structure but it relies on a network of 2,400 steel tubes that intersect diagonally in its outer frame and onto which slabs of concrete flooring and about 183,000 square feet of cladding were attached. One must explore all the floors of the Museum including the future gadgets and the emerging vehicles of transport. Located beside the Emirates Towers Metro Station on the Red Line, two stops from the Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall station, the Museum of the Future is open 365 days a year from 10 am-5 pm.

    Another attraction — The Dubai Frame was completed at a cost of the Arab Emirates Dirhams (AED) 230 million and opened on 1st January 2018. It is undoubtedly an architectural landmark in Zabeel Park, Gate 4, Dubai. It holds the record for the most giant frame in the world. The Guardian newspaper had described it as “the biggest picture frame on the planet.” It stands 150 meters high and it is 93 meters wide. This 492 ft height of the Dubai Frame makes it one of the best vantage points in the city with stunning vistas of both old and new Dubai. It boasts 15,000 square meters of gold cladding.

    When visiting the Dubai Frame, you will feel as if you have entered a time machine. The Frame takes you on a mesmerizing journey of three time periods in the UAE – the past, the present, and the future. The journey begins on the mezzanine floor where there will be a tour of a multimedia exhibition that features 3D projections and special effects to provide the visitors with a multi-sensory experience of Old Dubai. One can see all the elements of the Emirati traditions and the glorious heritage and how the city rapidly transformed from a humble fishing village to one of the most luxurious and sought-after urban destinations in the modern world. 

    After the tour through Old Dubai, the visitors will get to ride the express lift that will take only 47 seconds to reach the Sky deck, which represents the Present Dubai. Here, one can experience a 360-degree uninterrupted view of both, Old Dubai where you get to see all the residential units and areas in old Dubai. You also get to see the side of New Dubai which features views of the towering skyscrapers of the iconic Burj Khalifa in Downtown and the apartments in Business Bay. The visitors get to walk over the fascinating transparent glass floor.

    At this level, there are many interactive screens which one can use to identify the buildings that can be seen from the Sky deck and take selfies, which will be featured on the ‘Dubai Moments Wall’ in this Dubai attraction. Once the tour of the Sky Deck is completed, the visitors will be taken back to the mezzanine floor where they will get to move through a tunnel, which uses special lights and sound effects to provide an experience of how Dubai will look 50 years from now. With bright, vivid colors and interactive projections, the visitors may feel like they are in an actual time vortex, experiencing a passage through time to Dubai Future. After the tour to the three phases is completed, the visitors are guided to the souvenir shop, where the visitors purchase their souvenirs to boast – I have been there and done that! Whichever attraction one visits it is wise to book tickets online to save time from long queues!

    A stupendous attraction is – At the Top, Burj Khalifa. It is an outdoor observation deck on the Burj Khalifa. The visitors can have breathtaking views on the 124th and the 125th floor and also get to feel the atmosphere at the top. You may have cakes and coffee with your loved ones and watch the world from there. Children would definitely love to be at this place. Watch the sunset from here. At the Top, Burj Khalifa is in between the Burj Khalifa and the Dubai Aquarium. After spending a few hours at the top, you can move to Dubai Mall on the same premises for a shop till you drop experience and entertainment. Book lovers must not miss one of the largest book stores — Kinokuniya in the Dubai Mall. The Dubai Aquarium is one of its kind and surely it is not to be missed. In Dubai Mall, it is a workshop experience! What is a workshop? Marriage is a workshop in which the husband works and the wife shops! There are other places like the mall of the Emirates and the Ibn Batuta Mall to complete the workshop experience. Go to Miracle Garden to refresh yourself.

    Gold Souq – If a femme fatale accompanies you, your trip to Dubai will not be complete without a visit to the Gold Souq or market. Shakespeare opined – All that glitters is not gold! It does not matter if you have a golden heart. A favorite past time of Indian women is hoarding hold in bank lockers after a few fancy appearances at weddings and parties. All that matters is real physical gold for the beautiful lady. Gold, diamonds, gold dresses, purses, and shoes are all up for grabs but for a price. The most expensive gold dress covering the front and the back is only AED 4 million! See the pictures here.

    Before my able Editor, Afroz Alam Sahil hauls me over the coals for a long travelogue, I would better stop this talk of gold and femme Fatales. An important piece of information is that: those visitors on a single entry visa will be reimbursed the tax paid for buying gold while at the airport or the borders. However, this does not apply to those on a 5-year tourist visa.

    Advice: Do not carry any medicines without a doctor’s prescription! 

    The Indian diaspora, Bollywood divas, Indian businessmen, and Mughalai food are inseparable from the Dubai story. Despite the long queues at the airports/borders and some other challenges which include food poisoning, Dubai is truly worth visiting! Hon’ble Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and HH the UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan are great friends.   

  • Actor and Son of BJP Leader Carried Largest Land Scam of India

    Actor and Son of BJP Leader Carried Largest Land Scam of India

    Akela for BeyondHeadlines

    Bollywood Actor and Jayant Mhalagi have allegedly encroached around 650 Acres of Forest and Agricultural land and have developed a private hill station without obtaining required permission from Authorities. The duo has not only cheated the farmers and NRI’s from America, Dubai, Singapore, Goa, Kerala and Nagpur but have also caused very serious damage to the environment.

    The proper investigation into alleged misdeeds of the two can uncover one of the biggest land scams in India. The Accused have Named their Porject ‘Mini Mahabaleshwar’. The Girivan a private hill station is situated at Hotale village near Kolvan of Mulshi taluka of Pune district. Approximately at 2400 feet above sea level and 400 feet above the Lonavala hill station.

    The visit to the place (Girivan) last week revealed rampand dadagiri of security guards.

    According to plot owners the Jayant Mhalagi who is the son of very reputed former BJP Member of Parliament (MP) Rambhau Mhalagi and film actor Vikram Gokhale started project in year 1989-1990. The Mhalagi is the managing director (MD) and Gokhale Chairman of the Girivan Group of Industries. The Mhalagi did these activities under banner of “Sujata Farms private limited”.

    They allegedly encroaches 650 acres farmers (agricultures) and forest lands and started selling lands claiming as they are actual owners. More than 1050 persons from America, Dubai, Singapore, Goa, Nagpur, Kerala, Mumbai and Pune have bought land till now. Among them 250 persons are from Mumbai and 400 from Pune. Politicians, bureaucrats, bankers, doctors, engineers, share brokers and retired central agencies officials have invested their money in the project.

    “I bought land on name of Rambhau Mhalagi thinking his son Jayant will be honest but I was wrong. I have been cheated. The Mhalagi have no paper of the land,” said MS Joshi who bought 18 acres land and run a resort in Girivan.

    The Mhalagi and Gokhale have not only encroached farmers land illegally; they have als encroached few acres of forest land and sold it to investors. Keeping environmental norms aside, the have also cut down down more then Hundred trees. 18 kilometers of road were also constructed after cutting down trees and greenery of forest. Interestingly, Mhalagi constructed this road on lands of plot owners but takes “road tax” Rs 6000 per year.

    “Mhalagi constructed road in my land and demands “road tax” to me,” said Arun Deshmukh, a plot owner.

    The scam came in light in 2005 when a farmer Ganesh Jauhari smell something fishy and demarcated his land. He was shocked to know that his land was sold. The other farmers started demarcation of their lands and then Mhalagi and Gokhale (who fights against corruption in reel life) showed their real face.

    In Typical Bollywood style the reel life heros turned Gunda’s in real life and hired personal security guards to threaten farmers. The guards posted on the entrance started threatening farmers and stopped their entry to their lands. The farmers have their Kuldevi (Bhairavnath and Waghjai) temples inside Girivan. In October 2010 the farmers tried to perform special pooja but security guards did not allowed them. After brief altercations the farmers registered a complaint in Paud police station 11 security guards were arrested.

    Sources told this reporter that Mhalagi and Gokhale divided their roles to manage farmers and government machinery. The Mhalagi managed farmers, sarpanch, tehsildar, district collector and police and Gokhale uses his influence in Ministry of Maharashtra. The whole government machinery knows about this scam but did not dare to take action. The local officials did something but on papers.

    What did government authorities?

    1- Slowly- slowly investors came to know about illegality of Girivan. More than 17 farmers complained in writing to the Tehsildar against Girivan. The farmers had complained that A- Girivan management had changed the route of natural water so they are losing their agriculture. B- The management had encroached their lands and rounded by iron wire and C- the management have constructed road on their land and also not allowing using it.

    On October 31, 2006 Tehsildar wrote a letter (copy available with Author) to the farmers that he visited the place (Girivan) and found correct their complaints. For this Tehsildar have given warning in writing (copy available with Author) to the Girivan.

    2- On August 30, 2007, a plot owner Smita Joshi demanded information through right to information (RTI) to the district collector asking provide papers of the Girivan. On September 28, 2007, collector office replied (copy available with Author) that he have no papers related Girivan.

    3- On December 10, 2007, Member of Parliament (MP) Shivaji Adhalrao Patil

    wrote a letter (copy available with Author) to the Hotale village “Sarpanch” informing that he has written a letter to then district collector Prabhakar Deshmukh demanding inquiry in to the matter. Patil had asked that if anyone found guilty take necessary action on them.

    4- On January 25, 2008 Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Sharad Bajirao Dhamale also written a letter (copy available with Author) to the Tehsildar complaining Girivan illegally has constructed a gate and not giving permission to enter the farmers inside. Look in to the matter and take action but Tehsildar did nothing.

    5-On April 30, 2008 plot owners and farmers met then superintendent of police (SP) Vishwas Nangre Patil and gave a complaint in writing (copy available with Author) demanding inquiry and action in to the matter but Patil also did nothing.

    6- On December 18, 2008 revenue department fined Rs 75 lakh to the Girivan as he illegally dogged a mine. The Tehsildar warned (copy available with Author) that this last warning to stop the illegal activities in Girivan.

    7- On July 2, 2009 development officer, Panchayat committee, wrote a letter (copy available with Author) to the Mhalagi that he has constructed 493 square meter land illegally on name of Sujata forms private limited. Mhalagi had forged the documents but not submitted the original papers. The Panchayat asked to produce original papers neither construction will be declare illegal.

    8- On December 18, 2009 the forest department informed (copy available with Author) to Smita Joshi that he has registered offence against Girivan for illegally encroaching on forest land.

    “I have received complaint. Matter is under investigation,” said P Bhalekar, forest officer.

    9- On September 6, 2011 farmers (land owners) complained in general meeting (Lok Shahi Din) of district collector. The collector ordered (copy available with Author) to the revenue department to inquire in to the matter and take action on Girivan.

    The cheated plot owners formed Girivan plot owners association five years back and now have 250 members.

    The plot owners said…

    1- “I have filed a case in consumer court. Shocking, Mhalagi told the court that I have never bought the land and have encroaches on the land. Mhalagi took money of total 18 guntha but registered only 13 guntha. He have no documents of one guntha land,” said Dr RN Chaturvedi, president of association.

    2-Mhalagi and Gokhale have cheated to us with collaboration of government officials. Now we want justice,” said Arun Deshmukh, vice president of association. Seven years back Deshmukh bought 14,000 square fit lands, in which Mhalagi encroaches 1000 square fit land and constructed the road.

    3- “I collected all documents that prove that Girivan is illegal. I will show on time,” said a plot owner, retired from central investigative agency.

    4- “I feel like prison inside Girvan. If I try to walk in morning or evening the security guards objects that why I am roaming? I am shocked to know that Girvan is illegal,” said a woman plot owner who did not want to publish her name as Girivan management will harass her.

    5- “If project falls in agriculture land then how Mhalagi and Gokhale developed him. Why not they have demarcated their land till now. They are qualified gunda,” said a plot holder who is also member of Girvan management.

    Author visited farmer Ganesh Jauhri’s residence. His mother Sita Bai told that he is out of city for a week.

    The other side

    The management of Girivan replied to our query that, “our Project is absolutely legal. In our project there is no forest land. The land in project (Girivan) falls in Agriculture category. We have not cut trees. We have planted thousands of trees in the project with the help and assistance of the forest department. The revenue department has claimed an amount from us towards royalty. The matter is pending in the Court.”

    “Everything is legal in our project. Some persons are defaming our project. They are creating nuisance. I challenge that if any person prove that we have encroaches forest land we will pay the double land. The some plot holders have illegally developed their plots,” said Vikram Gokhale,” chairman of the Girivan.

    (Akela is working with MID DAY as Principle Correspondent)