Tag Archives: weather
Over 1 million come to Dubai for work daily
Over 1 million come to Dubai for work daily Salah Al Deberky / 20 February 2014 Figures released by Dubai Statistics Centre says 1.1 million people enter the emirate during the day and leave it at night. Dubai’s population of 2.2 million gets pushed up by over a million during the daytime, as per figures released by the Dubai Statistics Centre. As per their figures, 1.1 million people enter the emirate during the day and leave it at night. By the end of 2013, the centre said, of the 2.2 million people living in Dubai, there were 1.6 million males and 356,515 females — constituting 75.77 per cent and 24.23 per cent respectively. This means that for every 100 females in Dubai, there are 313 males. This is not surprising as majority of the expatriate employees in the emirate are males whose families are not living with them. The statistics attributed the increase in the movement of population during the daytime to two main reasons. One, investment opportunities in the emirate attracts businessmen from other emirates, and two, many people working in Dubai reside in neighbouring emirates due to the relatively low rents of accommodations. The number of employees living outside the emirate, and those who live temporary in the emirate is estimated at 1.5 million. “Two-third of the population are in the age group of 20 to 39,” the statistics said. The statistics covers the number of people who are present in the emirate at daytime, residents and employees in federal and local government entities and private sectors. All these are in addition to the number of people who entered and exited the emirate in the day. news@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
Charred body found in gutted warehouse
Charred body found in gutted warehouse Afkar Abdullah / 19 February 2014 18 warehouses gutted; firefighter of Sharjah Civil Defence receives serious burn injuries. A charred unidentified body was found during the cooling operation of the fire that gutted 18 warehouses in Sharjah Industrial Area 13 on Monday night. A firefighter of the Sharjah Civil Defence also received serious burn injuries while battling the blaze to prevent it from spreading. Residents of nearby buildings watch a huge fire engulfing a cluster of warehouses in Sharjah Industrial Area 13 on Monday night. – KT photos by M. Sajjad Firefighters from Sharjah, Ajman, Dubai, and Umm Al Quwain worked hard to douse the massive fire that erupted at 9pm. The team managed to control the fire by 12:30am and cooling operations continued for five more hours. The fire destroyed warehouses of metal and aluminium equipment, furniture, garments and some stores of flammable material like perfume and oils. The strong winds were making it hard for the firefighters to control the blaze from spreading fast. The police cordoned off the area and closed the road to help the firefighters. Also tenants and workers from nearby buildings and labour accommodations were evacuated to safety as the fire started to spread. The police have launched intensified investigations to determine the cause of the fire and the body has been sent to the forensic department to identify the body. afkarali@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
Admission age for KG-1 in Abu Dhabi set at four years
Admission age for KG-1 in Abu Dhabi set at four years Olivia Olarte-Ulherr / 19 February 2014 Adec clarifies on dates after confusion over Ministry of Education’s order, no rule change in Dubai. The new admission age for kindergarten 1 (KG-1) is four years for all schools — public and private — in Abu Dhabi emirate. This was clarified by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) following confusion over the Ministry of Education’s recent ruling. Likewise, first-time enrollees in KG-2 should be five years while those in Grade 1 six years. According to the Adec, this “is the same for all schools” across the emirate. New Bangladeshi students who started school in January should be four by April 31 while those joining the Asian and Indian curriculum in KG-1 in April should be four years by July 31, and other curricula starting the academic year in September should be four by December 31. An official from Adec’s Private School and Quality Assurance (PSQA) Sector said that they met the principals in September last year and issued a circular in January explaining the new age limit. The new regulation takes effect from the 2014-2015 academic year. “Our education system is clear as to what age the school should start with… our electronic student information system is programmed accordingly,” said the PSQA official. He stressed that the new age applies only to first-time enrollees and that continuing students are exempted from this. The clarification came after parents and schools expressed confusion over the Ministry of Education’s (MoE) ruling that raises the entry level for kindergarten from the previous 3.6 years and 5.6 years for Grade 1 by October 1 in public schools and those following the MoE curriculum. Other private schools previously accepted students in KG-1 at three years but with the new regulation, many parents were left disappointed to have to wait for another year. Rosario Soares’ daughter will be 3.7 years in April when he hopes to start her in KG-1 but was told that they cannot accept her due to the new age limit. “This is not ideal because my other two daughters started at three years,” complained the Indian national. “It was very clear; a child should turn four by December 31 if he/she is joining a school in September… By first of September, a child should be 3.8 years minimum to become four years by December 31. (Similarly), a child should be 3.8 by January 1 if joining the Bangladesh school,” the PSQA official said. He noted, however, that this does not apply for the Foundation Stage 1 (FS-1), which is equivalent to nursery in the British curriculum and accepts students at three years. But FS2, equivalent to KG-1, should follow the same regulation. To be in line with the Adec regulation, the British International School Al Khubairat (BISAK) has renamed the FS-1 to nursery and is accepting students at three years while FS-2 admission is for four-year-old students. A random check of other schools in the Capital showed that many schools have since adjusted their admission age. The Horizon Private School has set 3.8 years as the minimum age by September 5 while the Twenty First Century Private Academy set the same by September 1. The Abu Dhabi Indian School following the CBSE curriculum has set its admission age at 3.8 by March 30 while Bright Riders by March 31. The Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Bangladesh Islamia School, meanwhile, only admitted new students in KG1 at 3.8 years by January 1. Mir Anisul Hasan, vice-principal of the Bangladesh school, said they used to accept new students as young as three years but now have to abide by the regulation. As the only Bangladesh community school in the Capital, he said parents initially found it “tough, but we have to stick to the rules of Adec”. No change in Dubai In Dubai, schools and parents also expressed confusion over the new MoE regulation. But in response to Khaleej Times enquiry, the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) assured that this does not apply to private schools in Dubai. “At present, the rules remain unchanged and the minimum age is determined by each school/curricula. We will update them if there are any changes,” the KHDA said in a statement on Tuesday. olivia@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
