Monthly Archives: April 2007

Don’t dial 9999 after June

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MUSCAT — In an attempt to simplify the procedures adopted in traffic accidents, the Royal Oman Police, in cooperation with Capital Market Authority (CMA) and the insurance companies, will introduce a new system in case of minor road accidents that do not result in death, serious physical injuries or material damage to public or private property.
Aimed at avoiding traffic jams caused by minor accidents, the new system will also spare the time of road users. Any vehicle involved in minor accidents will be pulled out of the road immediately and referred to the respective insurance companies without the need for procedures at the police stations.
The new system will be introduced on an experimental basis in Muscat Governorate. The new system applies to private, commercial, government and diplomatic corps’ vehicles.
The ROP will organise intensive media campaigns on the new system, which will be introduced during June, July and August in Muscat Governorate as the first experiment.

This is a good thing to happen, and ROP deserves a pat for thinking out of the box. It is no suspense that the present post-accident procedures were a pain for motorists. Both parties involved in accidents had to wait for police to arrive at the scene of the accident, and then make a trip to the police station to get a report, and again visit Qurum yard the following day for damage inspection.

Also, the present system was a bit tough on expats wherein a non-Arabic speaker would find it very very difficult to convey his point of view to the cops in case of accidents. So chances were more that an Arabic speaker would ‘express’ better, and cops would go as per his story.
With the new system, this won’t be possible anymore. I am sure insurance companies will have staff who will be conversant in both English and Arabic. Both sides can put across their side of the story deftly.
But the above report says the new system is applicable only in case of “minor accidents”. But, then, how do the parties involved in accidents classify the nature of the accident? It’s quite tricky since the perception of “minor” differs from person to person.
Also, what will happen to the mishaps that occur during long holidays? Will the insurance companies have 24x7x365 operations?
This process will require a lot of fixes during the ‘trial and error’ period. Wait till June…

Chili’s

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I love Chili’s food. While at Muscat City Center (MCC), this is one restaurant which is packed always. But, again, in the end good memories of food compensates for the 10-15 minutes of waiting on
any given day.
Yesterday, late evening, we went on a stroll to MCC with my wife’s cousin who was here on an official visit from Dubai. After some mandatory shopping at Carrefour’s electronics section, we headed to Chili’s. I must admit City Center is the only mall in Oman which can boast of some class in comparison to malls in Dubai. The expansion work is going on in full swing, and new shops are springing up all over.
At Chili’s, we ordered Fajita Nachos as a starter. The dish itself was quite filling.
For the main course, we had Citrus Fire Chicken and Shrimp (margarita grilled chicken topped with spicy garlic and lime shrimp, and served with rice, grilled fresh veggies)

and Country-Fried Chicken (fried chicken served with country gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet corn on the cob and garlic toast).

Sadly, the portions were quite tasty and generous, and hardly we had any space left to splurge on the Molten Chocolate Cake, which is truly very divine, and the most sought after dessert in Chili’s.

Ultimately, we washed it down with the not-so-heavy Chocolate Mochaccino and Hot Tea.

The service at Chili’s is impeccable and I was particularly impressed with a guy who landed up 2-3 times during the course of our dinner asking: “How is the food, sir?”… “Enjoy you food!”. Though customer service is alien to most businesses in this part of the world, some multinationals do know the art of servicing their customers!

The rugged interiors at Chili’s reminded me of TGI Friday’s in Bangalore. Finally, if you don’t mind spending a bit more, then Chili’s is a nice dining experience.

My rating on a scale of 1 to 10:

Food: 9/10
Ambience: 8/10
Service: 8/10

Kia’s dilemma

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A model stands next to a Kia Kue car during the Shanghai Auto Show in Shanghai. (Pic source: Reuters)
Sleek car or sexy model? Tough choice to make for onlookers who throng auto shows. Well, in a move to focus more attention on the car, South Korean auto giants — Hyundai and Kia motors — had decided in March 2007, at the Seoul Auto Show, to cut down on the number of models at the show and also switch over to more modest dressing.
The above photo is at the Shanghai Auto Show on April 21, 2007. Looks like Kia motors is not in a mood to stick to its earlier decision. Old habits die hard, eh?

FAQs: What Indians back home think?

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Wealth is easily created in Oman
Earning and saving is quite difficult these days. With the cost of living climbing northwards, unless one has a solid paying job, life is not easy for the family types.
If things are not that great why people are not quitting Oman?
Most of the expat Indians have put up 6-10 years of experience in Oman, and they have not added to their skill set as the local market doesn’t require you to update skills quite often. If you go back to India, the requirements for a job will be too high. Left with an option to work for lesser salary, most of them decide otherwise and stay in Oman. Another aspect is easy and comfortable life (less traffic, non-stop power and water, no pollution, etc) in Oman makes people difficult to adjust to the hard-grind scene in India. Finally, one ends up working in a company for 15-20 years.
Why do most of them end up in jobs with average salaries?
Since most of the employment process happens over email or phone, majority of them have little or no knowledge about the cost of living, etc. Most importantly many fall for the conversion rate without bothering to check on actuals. Only, when they report for work, they understand their blunder.

Who has the best chance in Oman now?
With the economy booming, people in the senior management have a good chance of bagging handsome paying jobs.

Event of the week

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A file picture of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai. (Pic source: AFP)

Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai are getting married this week, and already media has been reporting extensively on wedding preparations. Terming it a private function, the Bachchans have invited most of the ‘biggies’ for the event. Notable exceptions include Shak Rukh Khan, and Aishwarya’s former boyfriend, Salman Khan!
Well, excluding National Geographic and Animal Planet all other TV channels will have their OB vans lined up near the wedding venue. Go media, go!

British Airways pilot refuses to fly…

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…as he did not have enough sleep owing to disturbance in his hotel in New Delhi.
British Airways spokesperson said: “The crew hadn’t had enough rest. The safety regulations of British Airways doesn’t allow them to operate in such conditions.”

Meanwhile, a report that appeared last week said British Airways lost more than one million pieces of luggage last year, making the national carrier the worst baggage handler in Europe.
Moral of the story: They care for your lives, and not your luggage!