Abu Dhabi field hospital set up in record 9 days
abu dhabi — A 46,500-square feet hospital to treat Covid-19 has come up in Abu Dhabi in just nine days. The Al Razeen Field Hospital in Al Wathba is located 60km from Abu Dhabi city, and can be operational for up to 10 years, said top officials who manage the facility.
The facility has 205 beds with ICU facilities for 48 patients. Sixty doctors and 160 nurses will tend to patients from the industrial areas of Abu Dhabi.
The hospital is located near Al Razeen Labour City and admits patient referred by the Abu Dhabi’s Health Authority.
This facility is an initiative by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
Officials said 317 experts, including engineers and supervisors completed the project in record time.
dubai — For Indian expats, especially Keralites, nothing symbolises life in the Gulf better than a little treasure box of goodies they dutifully carry back home called the ‘Gulf Gift’ box or the ‘Persian Petti’.
For the intrepid Indians who left home in search of livelihood with just their passports in hand, the return was marked with this suitcase of gifts, primarily food and grooming products, that showcased the success of their lives across the ocean.
But today, this box is sadly missing from the luggage of Indian expats leaving in a hurry by the thousands due to the situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
A Dubai-based business group is keeping the tradition alive by distributing 100 ‘Gulf Gift’ boxes to severely distressed and ‘deserving’ returning expats.
“Over the last 50 years, it is a custom that has become part of the cultural fabric for expats to bring home a suitcase full of consumer items specifically associated with life in the Gulf. In fact, every time an Indian returns home, opening the suitcase was a ritual in the presence of all family members,” said Faris
Faizal, sales director of the Emirates Companies House, Twar Centre and the project coordinator of the ‘Gulf Gift’ box.
The box, weighing 11kg each, includes a packet of milk powder, dates, cashews, almonds, pistachios, chocolates, flavoured drink mixes, branded perfumes, soaps, nail cutter, a flashlight, pain relief balm, and talcum powder to name a few.
According to Faizal, every Keralite has received these gifts at least once in their lifetime. “We launched the initiative on Wednesday. So far, six such boxes have been distributed to expatriates returning on special repatriation ‘Vande Bharat Mission’ flights. The box is given to deserving candidates with confirmed tickets. In the first phase, we plan to distribute 100 boxes.
“We receive references from Indian associations and those interested in receiving the box can send a WhatsApp text to a number we’ve provided,” said Faizal.
Community volunteers run a background check on the applicant and the box is handed over to them. “We gave the first six boxes to Indian expats who have lost their jobs, were on visit visas, or had medical issues,” said Anwar Naha, social worker and former president of Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC), who inaugurated the initiative by distributing the first set of Gulf Gift boxes.