Labor raids ensue in Jeddah

January 10, 2014

Labor_raidsJeddah, Jan 10: Inspection teams from the Labor Ministry have been actively conducting raids on retail market areas in Jeddah to check the status of employees who are working inside shops located in popular market areas.

In a surprise field visit on Thursday, inspection teams carried out ad hoc inspections in a popular mobile phone market located on Palestine Street in Jeddah. Arab News was present on site when the raids occurred.

Some inspectors entered the shops, while others walked around and only revealed their identity when asking expats to show their iqama. A few shops were apparently shut down.

Many expat workers have changed their profession in Labor Ministry records, but have not updated their professions on their iqamas.

The status of many workers was verified by Labor Ministry officials with smart application devices.

Authorities have declared a zero-tolerance approach toward expats working in professions different to those stated on their residency permits.

Many expats working in shops have successfully transferred their sponsorships but have failed to rectify their professional status, officials revealed.

Abdulmohsin Al-Garni, head of the inspection team at the Labor Ministry, told Arab News on Thursday that inspections teams are focusing on specific locations following a series of identification studies.

“We have checked about 200 shops and found that most of the employees working within are under the same sponsor but have failed to change their profession on their iqama.”

Hussain Al-Ghamdi, another official from the Labor Ministry in the Makkah province, said that, “Custodian of Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has given enough time for expats to rectify their status. Those who have failed to do so will incur penalties. The fact that the Makkah province tops employment violations in the Kingdom is worrying,” he said.

“We have been deploying more field inspections teams in recent weeks to ensure compliance with the rules,” he said.

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News Network
July 28,2020

Dubai, Jul 28: A heart-broken father who lost his 19-year-old son in a tragic car accident during Christmas last year has sponsored the repatriation costs of 61 Indians stranded in the UAE.

 The special flydubai repatriation flight, chartered by the All Kerala Colleges Alumni Federation (Akcaf) volunteer group, of which he is a member of, departed from Dubai to Kochi on July 25 carrying 199 passengers.

 On this particular flight, I sponsored 55 air tickets," said TN Krishnakumar, a sales and marketing director. He had lost his son Rohit Krishnakumar in a car accident, which also claimed the life of the teen's friend, Sharat Kumar (21).

"All passengers who were registered with the Indian missions were also asked to register on the Akcaf volunteer group website. Each passenger was further vetted, after which we made home visits to ensure that all the applicants were genuinely in need of financial support and repatriation," he said.

Commenting on what inspired him to dedicate himself to community work, Krishankumar said: "When a situation like this comes up, you realise there is no meaning in money. I invested everything I made into my son, and that had crashed in front of my eyes. He was a third-year medical student at the University of Manchester in the UK and had returned home for a vacation when the accident took place. Since then, I have been involved in a lot of social activities. If I do not do this, there is no meaning to my existence."

Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Krishnakumar said the group has supported thousands of individuals in need of help. "We supported unemployed people with several hundred bags of grocery kits and other necessary items. We also supported Covid-19 patients by transferring them to the medical facility in Warsan, etc.," he said.

"I come from a very middle-class family. I got a scholarship to study in college, and I studied with the help of taxpayers' money. I have always wanted to give back to society. I have grown immensely in life and now is my time to give back.," he added.

Krishnakumar also sponsors the education of over 1,000 academically gifted school children in Kerala's government-aided schools. He is a life trustee at the College of Engineering Trivandrum Alumni Galaxy Charitable Trust and an active participant towards various educational causes.

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Agencies
January 11,2020

Muscat, Jan 11: Oman's Sultan Qaboos bin Said has died, Aljazeera reported citing state television on Friday.

Qaboos was 79-year-old and was ill for a long time. He has served as the ruler of Oman since 1970 when he ousted his father in a bloodless coup.

Qaboos had no children and has not publicly named his successor.

Sultan Qaboos travelled to Belgium for a week in December for what was described then as "medical checks." He returned to Oman but speculations of his deteriorating health were rife.

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Agencies
May 17,2020

Abu Dhabi, May 17: Another 731 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UAE, pushing the total number of COVID-19 infections to 23,358, the Ministry of Health and Prevention announced on Sunday.

Six more deaths from the novel coronavirus have been also confirmed, taking the country’s death toll to 220.

The ministry also announced the full recovery of 581 new cases after receiving the necessary treatment, taking that number up to 8,512 of total recovered patients.

New tests conducted

The latest coronavirus patients, all of whom are in a stable condition and receiving the necessary care, were identified after conducting more than 40,000 additional COVID-19 tests among UAE citizens and residents over the past few days, the ministry said.

It expressed its sincere condolences to the families of the deceased and wished a speedy recovery to all patients, calling on the public to cooperate with health authorities and comply with all precautionary measures, particularly social distancing protocols, to ensure the safety and protection of the public.

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