Plants need more care

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This entry was posted in 7daysinabduhabi, Community Reports, Community Service, Letters to the editor, Photo Speaks.

Red Crescent Collection Tent at Abu Dhabi Mall- self explanatory

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This entry was posted in 7daysinabduhabi, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2012, Photo Speaks.

Clicks and Writes at 7daysinabudhabi.com

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‘Abandoned’ Cars gather dust at Abu Dhabi airport

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ABU DHABI // Scores of luxury cars and sports utility vehicles are gathering dust in the short-term car park at Abu Dhabi airport.
According to the airport’s website, vehicles should be left there for no more than three days. And few would choose to with parking costing Dh240 a day.

But many of the cars have clearly been there for months – long enough for tyres to go flat and windows to become caked with sand and salt.

Beneath the grime, the marques are a checklist of luxury – BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, a Chevrolet Camaro S5 and a Jaguar XK8.

Also accumulating dust are sport utility vehicles such as a Nissan Prado, a Ford Escape, a Ford Edge and a Chevrolet Avalanche.

Others include a Kia Optima, Kia Rio, Honda Civic, Honda City, Nissan Altima and Nissan Tiida, Mazda 3, Hyundai Accent, Toyota Yaris, and a Peugeot 207.

“I’ve seen a few cars here that are covered with dust,” said MT Hassan, a Sudanese public relations officer.

“Maybe some of the owners will return, while others may have already left the country. We really don’t know.”

Ramesh Menon, 45, a technical officer at an Abu Dhabi government company, suspects the latter.

He visited the airport in mid-July. When he returned this week, the same cars remained parked.

“If there is a genuine owner who has parked there by mistake, he or she will claim it,” Mr Menon said. “If it is deliberate, the car should be auctioned off to the public.”

The flat tyres are a giveaway, he added. “Abu Dhabi airport has tight security measures. I don’t think someone will go to the car park and puncture the tyres.”

As on dirty cars everywhere, passers-by have inscribed messages in the dust. Some, including a black Ford Edge Sport and a white Honda Civic, bear the time-honoured “clean me”, while the rear windscreen of a blue-green Hyundai Tucson claims its owner has “gone fishing”.

A check on some of the number plates through the police website reveals the cars have a number of traffic and Salik fines.

One, a black Jaguar XK8 with Abu Dhabi plates, has accumulated Dh1,350 in fines – two for speeding in Abu Dhabi in June and July, and another for speeding in Dubai in May.

A grey Nissan Altima with Abu Dhabi plates had five Dubai police fines totalling Dh3,100 between December 2010 and April 2011.

A green BMW saloon, also with Abu Dhabi plates, had two Dubai fines from October 2009, and another from April 2010, totalling Dh1,900. A Kia Optima had a Dh100 fine from Oman, while a Kia Rio racked up nine Salik fines, totalling Dh450, between November 2009 and February 2010. Both cars have Dubai plates.

“The authorities should now consider removing them to allow other cars to park in this area meant for short-term parking,” Mr Menon said. “These cars are eating up a lot of space and it gives a bad image to the city.”
A spokesperson for the Abu Dhabi Airports Company yesterday declined to comment.



Several cars sit covered in dust, seemingly abandoned at the Abu Dhabi Airport short-term parking lot as seen on Wednesday afternoon, August 1, 2012. Silvia Razgova / The National

To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online

This entry was posted in Community Reports, Community Service, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2012, The National, UAE.

Beauty of Bur Dubai Bus Stand

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Beauty of Bur Dubai Bus Station – It depicts the real life that happens in Dubai on a Friday. The crowd from different cities forms the nations face of expats and locals and find it the most favorable choice of transport to move from point to point, irrespective of whether they are affluent or not.

This entry was posted in Daily Passionate Photography Thoughts, Passionate Photographers, PassionatePhotographers, Photo Speaks.

An elephant’s eye view

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An elephant’s eye view. Looking at it closely, I could derive on many management principles of silence whenever and wherever required and a vociferous approach at times of extreme intensity.

Lot to learn from the caparisoned elephants, who are are paraded at temple festivals in Kerala.

This entry was posted in Daily Passionate Photography Thoughts, Passionate Photographers, PassionatePhotographers, Photo Speaks.

Photo Speaks – Sound of Post

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Sound of Post – Remembering the olden days, when we used to wait for the odd letters to arrive by post, the sound at the postal desk back home, where the van deliver a bag full of letters and the postal clerk sort it and stamp each one of it with a heavy thud at his ink filled desk, as we children wait for the news to collect it before the postman delivers it home by walk. The stock of envelopes and stamps – a few still remain, even though now, I never use. The stamps, the letters, the postal mail – the feeling of reading a hand written letter, wonder the new generation ever experienced it !

This entry was posted in Clicks and writes, Daily Passionate Photography Thoughts, Passionate Photographers, PassionatePhotographers, Photo Speaks.

How to cremate a loved one

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How to cremate a loved one
Preeti Kannan/The National


The death of a loved one is a traumatic experience, and handling formalities and paperwork surrounding funeral arrangements can make it even more distressing, especially in a foreign country.


Multi-faith cremations are done at the New Sonapur Hindu Cremation Ground in Jebel Ali, and Al Foah Crematorium and Burial Facility in Al Ain.

Residents must produce several documents. Among them are a death certificate from the hospital with legal translation in Arabic and English, and an attested copy of the death certificate from the ministries of health and foreign affairs.
Residents also must get the deceased’s visa and passport cancelled, acquire a cremation permit, and obtain a release letter from the police. If the deceased is a resident of a different emirate from where the death occurred, a letter from that
emirate’s police department is necessary for transporting the body. Children under the age of five are buried or repatriated to their home countries.

Specialised arrangements can be made for children.

“When some religions prohibit children being cremated, the other option is to bury,” said Don Fox, chief executive at Al Foah Funeral Services. “We have fully landscaped burial grounds with a special area for children.”

Al Foah Funeral Services and the Middle East Funeral Services (MEFS) offer to take care of all the paperwork, arrange transportation for the remains, and facilitate other services.

MEFS usually takes two to three days to complete the formalities, and charges between Dh5,000 and Dh15,000. Al Foah Funeral Services usually completes documentation in a day, and charges between Dh2,000 and Dh18,000. The total
costs vary depending on the family’s needs. The processing time can be longer if it is a police case.

To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online

This entry was posted in Information - General, UAE.

Garden Parks of Bangalore

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 This short video covers the gardens and Park developments in the city of Bangalore , done by its Corporation. Hats off to BBMP Parks division for their wonderful work !

Interesting photo presentation by Sreedhar K, Bangalore.

This entry was posted in TQM India.

Time for Etisalat to improve its airport presence

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Although it is the major telecommunications service provider in the UAE, Etisalat still falls short when it comes to providing good customer service.

At Abu Dhabi Airport, the location of the only Etisalat payment machine is unknown even to many of the airport staff. The plight of a visitor can be imagined.

When I tried to deposit money in the machine recently, it would not accept any notes. When I called the Etisalat contact centre to report this error, I failed to convince the operator about the importance of this issue.

He wanted to have the machine’s ID number, which was not displayed. I told him the machine’s location – it is just in front of the Etihad and NBAD offices on the mezzanine floor – but he was adamant about getting this number so he could log the complaint.

I wonder whether the machine was finally repaired. Considering the value of Etisalat’s reach and its prominence in this country, I think it should have a customer support and sales counter at the airport arrivals terminal.

This is especially significant as the airport will be the gateway for all the visitors arriving for the new season of international events, including the Formula One race.

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online

This entry was posted in Community Reports, Community Service, Letters to the editor, Mind Speaks, The National, TQM, UAE.