Tag Archives: personality
Government customers urged to avoid cars tomorrow
Government customers urged to avoid cars tomorrow Staff Reporter / 18 February 2014 Parking lots at Dubai Municipality Headquarters to be closed as 64 entities sign up for Car Free Day. Customers of entities participating in tomorrow’s Car Free Day initiative have also been requested to avoid using cars when they visit these departments. Commuters travelling on a Metro train on Car Free Day in Dubai on February 13 last year. — KT file photo As many as 64 government and private departments, ministries and companies are taking part in the 5th edition of Dubai Municipality’s Car Free Day drive. A few schools and universities have also signed up to participate. The Dubai Municipality launched the initiative in 2010 to protect the environment by promoting the use of public transport, especially the Metro and buses, which in turn, reduces road congestion. All parking lots at the Municipality’s headquarters, clinic, pest control section, veterinary section and so on would be shut throughout the day. However, the municipality centres detached to the headquarters are exempted from this, though the employees would ditch their cars to work. Meanwhile the Corporate Marketing and Relations Department of Dubai Municipality announced that the number of people registered online for the green initiative has reached approximately 4,000. Mohammed Al Noori, Director of Corporate Marketing and Relations Department said in a statement: “Civic Body, in collaboration with all major government departments and private companies in the emirate of Dubai, is proud to achieve this level of public awareness supporting the government of Dubai to accomplish its strategic goals in the preservation of environment for a better future. “We expect more people to register on the last day before the event. Our total target of this year was 7,000 to participate in the event. As long as the online registration itself reached 4000, we have great hope to exceed our expectation,” Al Noori said. ‘It’s worth mentioning that the residents of Dubai are well aware of their duty towards the initiatives launched by government departments especially the initiatives of civic body with the aim of achieving its vision to create an excellent city that provides essence of success and comfort of sustainable living,’ he said. “We need to change the attitude of people who are not much aware of the importance of such green initiatives. I am sure majority of the people can do something to spread the great message behind this event through their contacts so as to get the maximum result,” he added. Yousif Murad Salmeen, head of Media Section at Dubai Municipality said the Municipality was fully prepared to mark the event in a sophisticated way. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Dubai Municipality, along with top officials of major government organisations will ride the metro from Etisalat Metro station at 7.30am and will reach to Union station at 7.45am, followed by the inauguration of the huge exhibition of green initiatives and eco-friendly equipment at the car parking area of Dubai Municipality headquarters, Salmeen said. “At 8am, a group of around 100 DM employees will conduct a bicycle rally from Deira City Centre to the DM main building to make a difference in the road culture of the city,” he said. “In addition, there would be a variety of traditional art performances and folk dances alongside the event. Hundred sport bicycles will be distributed to winners from the participants who registered online,” he added. sajila@khaleejtimes.com The participants The participants of this year’s Car Free Day include mainly the Ministry of Environment and Water; Ministry of Public Works; Ministry of Education; Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development; Ministry of Social Affairs; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Economy; Land Department; Etisalat; Dubai Police; GDRFA; DCCI; RTA; Dubai Properties Group; Department of Economic Development; Financial Audit Department; Dubai Mall; Al Bayan; DHA; Dubai Educational Zone; Mohammed bin Rashid Housing; Dubai Healthcare City; Dubai Civil Aviation; American University of Dubai; University of Wollongong Dubai; Emirates Foundation for Cooling Systems; DMI; Dubai Arts and Culture; Al Serkal Group; Radisson Blu Hotel; Public Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare; Department of Finance; Dubai Customs; Department of Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities; Shaikh Zayed Housing Foundation; Awqaf; Minors Affairs Foundation; Dubai Ambulance Services; Civil Defence; Dubai Police Academy; Dubai Courts; Dubai International Financial Centre; UAE Red Crescent Authority; Emirates Transport; Dubai Government School; University of Dubai; Mohammed bin Rashid School; Umm Suqeim School; Institute of Applied Technology; Holiday Inn; Dubai Sports Council; Al-Ahly; Al Wasl; UAE Football Association; Dubai Sports City; and Al Futtaim. 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When the abaya becomes a style statement
When the abaya becomes a style statement Dhanusha Gokulan / 17 February 2014 Emirati designer’s bold take on the dress gets international recognition . The ‘abaya’ or a cloak is a simple, loose over-garment, essentially a robe-like dress worn by women in parts of the Muslim world. At least that is how the Internet defines the abaya. But for Lamya Abedein who specialises in creating chic, wearable, and fashionable abayas, the dress means much more. “Perhaps I would have to write a book on what the abaya means to me. I cannot explain it in a few words,” laughs the Emirati and owner of designer label Queen of Spades. Khaleej Times caught up with this extraordinary self-taught designer and multi-tasker who juggles between being a successful businesswoman, a supportive wife, and a doting mother of three children. Lamya is someone who has customised, or changed the way the Arab world perceives an abaya. She has steered clear of the ‘all black, and sequins at the hem’ kind of designs. Her designs have seen reflections of a unique form of traditional wear like the Indian saree, the Japanese kimono, and sometimes pantaloons, too. She is one among the first Emirati woman and designer to have been recognised by international designers and have her abayas exhibited in international stores like Galeries Lafayette and Harvey Nichols. Perhaps it is her bold take on her designs that caught international attention. Who would’ve dreamt of fur or a brightly coloured belt on an abaya? Take her Betty Boop collection launched in 2010 for example. She adorned it with polka dots, heart-shaped leather frills, detachable aprons, and long red sleeves. “My designs suit the tastes of the cosmopolitan woman. It is for everyone and it is so because, the abaya is a very cool thing to wear,” said Lamya. “It is not just for the women in the Arab world. You can add shawls, belts, colourful pockets and accessories on an abaya. I got a lot of flak for adding a belt on the abaya, because it brings out the shape of a woman. But you push the limits, every single day,” said Lamya. Small beginnings Lamya’s love for fashion began at a very young age and she took a lot of inspiration from her grandmother. “I would sometimes change my school uniform to make it look more fashionable. I used to wear below the knee length skirts, sometimes turn them around my school pants to look like three-quarters, and sometimes try on cowboy pants, as well. I was a very shy child in school,” she said. After graduating with a bachelors degree in Business Administration from Higher Colleges of Technology, Lamya travelled and lived in several countries across the globe with her husband. “When in college, I worked as an HR consultant for special needs children. I had worked with special needs schools across the UAE and I had placed several children across various companies in Dubai. Of all the things I’ve done, this is something I will be most proud of,” said Lamya. “But the real jolt to create a fashion line and make a business out of clothing began when I was staying in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia,” she said. Abaya fabrics from KSA hold something of a fascination for most women across the GCC. “The fabric has a very dark shade of black and it looks very distinguished,” said Lamya. “I began designing abayas for myself and people would love seeing it on me. Slowly I began custom-making them for people I knew and eventually I decided to turn it into a business,” she added. Queen of Spades “I decided to name the company Queen of Spades, because I refer to women wearing by abayas as Queens. They are special, and one of a kind,” said Lamya. A lot of her designs have vintage-inspired elements, including pop colours and antique embellishments. “I love recreating dresses from the 50s and 60s. I love playing with fabrics, as well. I’ve used fleece, jacards, brocades, dyed fabrics, cotton mix, and, brocades,” she added. For the 40th National day celebrations of the UAE, Lamya created a 40-metre-long abaya which was showcased atop the helipad of Burj Al Arab. Lamya said: “My experiences in travelling has helped me a lot in what I am doing right now. Dubai has a very cosmopolitan environment and I am really happy that I can serve my country.” Operational since 2009, Queen of Spades is something like Lamya’s fourth baby. “I spend a lot of time with my children. I have two sons and a daughter, and I can proudly say that I don’t send them to tutors. I teach and sit down for homework with them myself,” said Lamya. When asked if she was ever worried about running out of ideas, Lamya asked: “How can anyone, who is constantly learning, and educating themselves run out of ideas?” dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
New curbs on carrying rupees to India
New curbs on carrying rupees to India Issac John / 17 February 2014 Under the amended Customs Baggage Declaration Regulations Indian citizens will no longer be required to fill immigration forms when they return from abroad. Passengers entering India through its international airports will have to specifically declare Indian currency at the customs if the value exceeds Rs10,000. Effective from March 1, under the new customs rules, passengers arriving at the country’s 19 international airports, will also have to specifically declare, for the first time, prohibited goods and dutiable items, including gold jewellery and gold bullion exceeding the free allowance. However, under the amended Customs Baggage Declaration Regulations Indian citizens will no longer be required to fill immigration forms when they return from abroad. They have to fill up the immigration form only when they go out of the country. In a new detailed form, passengers will have to give details of countries visited in the past six days and mention the passport number on the new customs declaration form. A notification issued on February 10 by the finance ministry said from March 1, passengers must fill out a new detailed customs form that also asks them to declare number of baggage, including hand baggage. The new ‘Indian Customs Declaration Form’ will be different from the detachable perforated strip, which is a part of the current immigration card. For the first time the Declaration Form carries additional fields for declaration of dutiable and prohibited goods, which will help authorities in checking customs duty frauds and keep a record of gold jewellery and bullion being brought into the country. Old fields like declaration of satellite phone, foreign currency exceeding $5,000 or equivalent, aggregate value of foreign exchange including currency exceeding $10,000 or equivalent, meat, meat products, dairy products, fish or poultry products and seeds, plants, fruits, flowers and other planting material have been retained in the new format. Male passengers are now allowed to carry gold worth up to Rs50,000 and female passengers twice as much. Non-resident Indians can take foreign exchange, but they have to declare amounts exceeding $5,000 or equivalent or when the total value of foreign exchange (currencies, travellers cheques) exceeds $10,000. India’s has 19 international airports in Srinagar, Amritsar, Jaipur, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Nagpur, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Bangalore, Chennai, Calicut, Coimbatore,Tiruchirapalli, Cochin, Trivandrum and Port Blair. In August 2013, the Reserve Bank of India slapped new foreign exchange controls restricting the amount of dollars Indian companies and individuals can spend overseas, and banned people from buying property in foreign countries and imposed fresh curbs on gold imports as part of a strategy to shore up the rupee. Under amended rules, an individual can spend $75,000 from the earlier $200,000 in any given year. Companies can now invest only up to 100 per cent of their networth in overseas locations, a fourth of the previous level of 400 per cent. issacjon@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
