HSE

My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 18.01.2010 – Don’t read and drive

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My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 18.01.2010 – Don’t read and drive

Gulf News reader Mohammad Ansar Basrur Habibullah said he was horrified
to see a motorist engrossed in reading material while driving. He said: “I took this picture from my mobile phone while I was on Shaikh Zayed Road, driving towards Abu Dhabi. I was watching the [motorist] for quite a long time. He was actually reading something while driving. We were at a speed of between 80km/hr to 100km/hr and there was light traffic. [The sight] shocked me. People need to drive more safely.”

– The reader is a businessman in Dubai

My Comments as follows:

Added 12:44 January 18, 2011

What the driver was doing is absolutely wrong. We get to see many drivers texting while driving, which is another danger. I request the community reporter too to not take photos while driving, if it was he who clicked, it is also a mistake. Safety First – let that be each drivers motto.

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

To read it in original, please visit GULF NEWS Online.

This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2011.

Product Standards Unit needed – My Letters – THE NATIONAL Dt. 14.01.2011

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Product standards unit needed

I refer to the front page news article Food reserve to combat rising prices (January 12). The recent surge in consumer prices, in line with related increases in the world market, especially in Asia, calls for the implementation of a consumer standards unit.

This is essential when we look at the shelf price of various products and discounts offered. Over a period of time, prices of items like tea bags, rice and wheat have increased silently. Some companies’ market items like tea bags with discounts compared to similar products distributed by other companies. These products are of inferior quality and thus the need for the grading of consumer products comes in.

A general assumption is that these products repacked here are not higher quality when outsourced from the world market for short-term profit making. Thus these marketing techniques may lead to identifying UAE products as cheaper quality when compared to others imported and marketed directly. A solution would be a UAE standards unit for consumer products sold within the country

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi

To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online.

This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2011, The National.

Reason for my Safety initiatives – Mrs. Victoria D’Souza and family

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Reason for my Safety initiatives – Mrs. Victoria D’Souza and family

I was not very much bothered about safety till a few years ago. It was in March 2007 that I started keeping a more serious look at road safety. On 26th March 2004, my mathematics teacher from school and her family members, six of them perished in a car accident here in Abu Dhabi. The new Corniche road, i.e. the Eastern Corniche road was being built and the road work was progressing swiftly during those days. Every day, the road directions and route changed, sometimes widening and some narrowing at various stretches. Mrs. D’Souza and family were on a visit to Abu Dhabi from Dubai and it was at one such stretch, a speeding driver drove past their vehicle hitting it. The vehicle was driven by her daughter in law. It was a brand new Land Rover car and they were all coming to Abu Dhabi to meet relatives after purchasing it. She lost control and hit the dividers on the side and the vehicle caught fire instantly. Incidentally, the tank was full and the doors got jammed and they were unable to come out or even rescued by those who approached after the collision.

It was a tragedy, which I can never forget. Mrs. Victoria D’souza was with us in Don Bosco High School and then she moved over here and was working as a Supervisor in one of the schools in Dubai. Her children were known to me from childhood and this was one incident very difficult to forget.

After this, I have always raised my concern over road safety and dangerous driving issues. It is a tribute to them. May their souls rest in peace.

Ramesh Menon
27.12.2010

This entry was posted in HSE, Mind Speaks.

Community Report – GULF NEWS – Dt. 06.12.2010 – A solution to the poster menace around Abu Dhabi

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Community Report – GULF NEWS – Dt. 06.12.2010 – A solution to the poster menace around Abu Dhabi

  • Gulf News reader Ramesh Menon proposed the installation of notice boards around the city, in order to discourage residents from pasting ads on building walls, bus stops and other areas.

    • Image Credit: Ramesh Menon/Gulf News reader
    • A solution to the poster menace around Abu Dhabi

     Municipality could install notice boards at prominent places and charge fee

    In recent times, the authorities have come up with various initiatives to keep Abu Dhabi’s streets neat and clean. These include action against putting up posters and littering.

    Sticking posters on walls and public bus stops has been an issue that spoils the image of cities all around the UAE. Motivated by the authorities’ new initiatives, I went around Abu Dhabi and decided to highlight a few cases.

    I found that putting up bills and posters is not a one-off issue. They are pasted in all possible places at junctions and areas frequented by the public. A closer look brought out the content of most of the posters on display. They are either rooms for rent, tuitions or baby sitting jobs that are available.

    This shows the need for a common, convenient and economic platform for the public who wish to advertise locally.

    The same platform could also be used as an advertisement board to exhibit what is happening locally, within a short time frame.

    Through this community report, I therefore call on the municipality and development departments to install simple notice boards at prominent corners in each neighbourhood.

    People who wish to advertise could then do so after paying a fixed amount to the municipality or relevant authority. Inspectors could then monitor and also penalise those who post indiscriminately in non-designated places and spoil the beauty of our city.

    A section of these notice boards could be used to post advertisements of programmes happening within the city, organised by the authorities as well as private parties. This option would bring in added revenue.

    I sincerely hope this proposed system would help reduce the problem.

    The reader is a technical officer based in Abu Dhabi

    Be a citizen reporter. Tell us what is happening in your community. Write to us and send us your videos and pictures at readers@gulfnews.com

    To read it in original, please visit GULF NEWS online

    This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, Community Reports, Community Service, Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.

    Useful HSE Information – Danger of keeping Laptop in Bed

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    Useful HSE Information – Danger of keeping Laptop in Bed

    A couple in Mequon lost their 25 year old son Arun Gopal in a freak fire accident at home June 4th. This is exactly what happened. Arun had graduated with MBA from University of Wisconsin-Madison just two weeks earlier and had came home from the campus for a day
    .
    He had lunch with his dad at home and decided to go back to to clean up his room at the campus. However, his dad told him to wait and see his mother before returning to the campus as she was due back from work in a couple of hours. He decided to snooze while waiting for his mom while his dad went out.
    Neighbors called 911 when they saw black smoke coming out of the house. The 25 year old Arun died in the three year old house. It took several days of investigation to find out the cause of the fire. It was determined that the fire was caused by lap top in the bed.
    When the lap top is on the bed, the area below it is blocked and the cooling fan does not get air to cool it   and that is what caused the fire. Arun did not even wake up to make any effort to get out of bed as he died of massive carbon monoxide inhalation. The purpose of this “forward” is to make aware that most of us use our lap top in bed and often go to sleep with it next to us. Please make it a practice not to do that. The risk is very real. Make it a rule either not to use the lap top in bed.

    Please be careful friends.

    This entry was posted in HSE.

    My Letters – GULF NEWS Dt. 11.11.2010 – Plan in Advance

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    My Letters – GULF NEWS Dt. 11.11.2010 – Plan in Advance

    Plan in advance

    Personally, I have been with several friends in such a situation and know the enormous paper work, money and procedures involved here and in India to repatriate or cremate a deceased. I thank Gulf News for bringing up these points for the benefit of every reader or resident in the UAE. Death cannot be planned, but what the situation may be with regards to the close ones could be planned or detailed in advance with a bit of timely guidance and attention.

    From Mr Ramesh Menon
    Abu Dhabi
    To read it in original, please visit GULF NEWS online.

    This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.

    School buses are cheaper, not safer – My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 02.11.2010

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    My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 02.11.2010 – School buses are cheaper, not safer

    School buses are cheaper, not safer

    Looking at the number of private 15- and 30-seater mini buses operating within the city during the day, I am alarmed that so few of them conform to any safety regulations. A closer look shows children sitting in the front and playing un-strapped, drivers speeding through the small by-lanes without any caution and often whiletalking on the phone. Parents, and authorities, should call for strict measures.
    Although the school authorities have no control in their operations, they should issue circulars to parents highlighting the danger of using such transport options. Appropriate labelling should be enforced on these vehicles with signage stating “Private – Student Transport vehicle” with the mobile telephone number (in big letters) of the contact person responsible and available to report any dangerous driving situations.

    Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi

    To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online.

    This entry was posted in HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, The National.

    My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 19.10.2010 – Community reporting

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    My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 19.10.2010 – Community reporting

    

    Community reporting

    I refer to recent community reports and a letter which cautions community reporters from taking pictures while driving. It is a good point that has to be given value. Many times, community reports act as an end-user feedback for facilities and services provided by the authorities. Not only do they give interesting insights, but also provide ideas to make the facilities more user-friendly.
    They may be from an area that normally does not get attention from the authorities. However, having said the same, taking pictures while driving is extremely dangerous and should never be encouraged. Photo capturing should never be done by the driver. It should be done by the co-passengers at all times. The importance of a combined effort with your fellow passenger comes into action in community reporting. Additionally, readers should make a concurrent effort instantaneously to log on to the “suggestion and have your say” sites of relevant authorities and report the problem they noticed. This will benefit the authorities as they could take action according to the seriousness of the situation. In my experience, they are receptive to ideas and suggestions.

    From Mr Ramesh Menon
    Abu Dhabi

    Additional note:

    As a regular in Community Reporting, I wish to stress the importance of a collective effort while identifying, preparing and submitting data.

    I will give an example of my own case. I am a regular to community reporting and have an interest for photography and thus carry a sleek and simple automatic camera all the time with me. Whenever I drive, or I am in a car, I am with my family or with my work colleagues, i.e. either my wife, my son or my driver, who are well aware of my keenness to follow and find safety or improvement aspects whenever observed. If I am on the wheels, an indication from me will prompt them to click the pictures for me. In case, I am driving and have no one to assist, I will find a safe place to stop and click it or if it is a moving object, and there is no such place, I wait for the signals or a suitable stop ahead. Even in extreme case where I am unable to do any of these, I note the area and time very clearly in my mind and if possible do a re-run of the same route next time, with someone along with me. The driving habits here have never let me down of such violators as I will find someone else doing the same mistake. However, in all these cases, I will never dare to take a photo of a moving object creating a dangerous driving situation either for me or for other road users.

    An awareness on the importance and advantageous of community reporting should be done amongst colleagues and family so that they come out in open and address issues which they get to see or keep within themselves in normal case. May be they are not able to express it in a nice way and they need your help to write and present it. May be they need more guidance and observation. An encouragement in this line will provide you with lots of leads, whether it is dangerous driving, whether it is safety at public place or even indecent acts towards women and children or any other. Those around you will come out and address them and someone could present it to the authorities who in the normal case would never get to know about it.
    Community reporting should therefore be encouraged and practised as a combined effort by all, at home or office level.

    More and more readers should therefore come out and write without inhibition. Authorities will also find such a proactive scenario benefiting their progressive campaigns and actions. I am sure, the community reporting team of our major newspapers, in particular GULF NEWS would be keen to assist them

    This entry was posted in Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.

    Good drivers stay on the defensive – My Letters – THE NATIONAL Dt. 05.10.2010

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    My Letters – THE NATIONAL Dt. 05.10.2010 – Good drivers stay on the defensive

    In reference to Car flips over in Dubai crash (September 21), these drivers will never learn. I think the only solution here is to have all the cars fitted with speed controllers which restricts a driver to speeds below 120 kph.
    Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi

    To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL Online.

    This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, The National.

    My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 03.10.2010 – Dedicated area

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    My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 03.10.2010 – Dedicated area

    Dedicated area

    This is in reference to a recent community report about jet skis at public beaches. It was an eye-opener regarding the danger it can cause to swimmers who use the beach. Frequent accidents caused due to deliberate and inadvertent attempts to drive powerful vehicles have resulted in their restriction at public beaches in Abu Dhabi. This calls for uniform implementation of such rules in all emirates whenever a life-threatening situation is identified in one of them, as rules are implemented to control it. There should be separate options that are exclusive to water sports and those who indulge in it should limit themselves within their allotted area.

    From Mr Ramesh Menon
    Abu Dhabi

    To read it in original, please visit GULF NEWS Online.

    This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.