In November 1972, a young Indian engineering graduate arrived at the old international airport in Bateen on a flight from Mumbai.
Video: 27. Labour card issued by the Abu Dhabi government - 1973
This labour card was issued on January 17, 1973, to Mr Vattappilly Unnikrishnan who at 23 years of age and like so many new arrivals, had left his mother country with hopes of a brighter future in the UAE.
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Vattappilly Unnikrishnan was 23 years old and, like so many new arrivals, had abandoned his mother country with hopes of a brighter future in the UAE.
This small, battered booklet, no bigger than a credit card, was his passport to a better life.
The card was issued on January 17, 1973, by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs on behalf of the Government of Abu Dhabi. Mr Unnikrishnan was worker number 23163.
The card states that it is valid until December 5 of that year, but is renewable. It carries a revenue stamp of one Bahraini dinar, the old pre-union currency of the emirate that would be replaced by the UAE dirham on May 19 that year.
Mr Unnikrishnan had graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from Kerala University three years earlier. After working in Mumbai, he spotted an advertisement looking for telecommunications engineers to work in Abu Dhabi. The lure was the monthly salary of Dh800 a month. In India he was making the equivalent of Dh550.
"I went for the interview at a Mumbai hotel and was accepted," Mr Unnikrishnan recalls. "People who came here were making good money. Of course, I thought I would be here for five years, maybe 10."
In fact, 38 years later, the fresh-faced, slightly earnest young man shown in his official photographs still lives in Abu Dhabi. There are a few grey hairs and some lines, but also a wife and two children.
The company that brought him here, Abu Dhabi Telegraph and Telephone Company, became part of Etisalat in 1973. As a government worker, Mr Unnikrishnan no longer needed a labour card. He kept the original because that is in his nature.
Looking back, he recalls arriving in a city only recently risen from the desert. Many of the major roads had been laid, but the highest buildings were only five storeys tall and there were occasional power cuts. "But the one thing I noticed as an expatriate, was that we had a lot of freedom here."
THE SPECS
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
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- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Empire of Enchantment: The Story of Indian Magic
John Zubrzycki, Hurst Publishers
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The specs: 2018 Maxus T60
Price, base / as tested: Dh48,000
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder
Power: 136hp @ 1,600rpm
Torque: 360Nm @ 1,600 rpm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.1L / 100km
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Blonde
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Teaching in coronavirus times
Brief scoreline
Switzerland 0
England 0
Result: England win 6-5 on penalties
Man of the Match: Trent Alexander-Arnold (England)
