DUBAI // Garages that modify car engines are fuelling a boom in dangerous racing on public roads by sponsoring the illegal events to advertise their services.
"They make young people believe their modifications make a winning car and thus get customers," said Col Saif Al Mazroui, deputy head of the Dubai Police traffic department.
The races are organised by groups of young men aged between 17 and 30. They usually take place from 2am to 4am, and the most popular strips are the Dubai-Al Ain Road, Al Khawaneej and Al Waraqa. Last week CID caught two drivers racing at the airport tunnel.
Garage owners are thought to be encouraging the races to drum up business for their car modification services, which can cost up to Dh200,000 a vehicle.
Last week police confiscated a 4x4 that had been modified to reach a speed of 300kph. It was the second time it had been impounded for a modifications offence. Police released it three weeks earlier after its Emirati owner, 21, promised not to have it modified again.
Last year 82 people were arrested for racing, and police noted a marked rise during Ramadan.
This year 58 people have been arrested so far, 11 of them between the start of the Holy Month and August 14. The racers appeared to be taking advantage of a shift in work patterns, sleeping through the day and taking to the roads at night.
The problem, however, is year-round, and catching the racers is a battle of wits between them and the police.
In 2008 the traffic department created the taskforce Isnad (Arabic for support) to clamp down on reckless driving and identify trends. It keeps at least six of the racing groups under daily surveillance.
Many of the racers remove their number plates to try to avoid detection and are careful in their choice of venues.
"They decide on the time and venue in advance and choose a specific stretch of the road, usually between two interchanges," said Col Al Mazroui.
"They always try to be as discreet as possible so the word does not spread and lead us to the location before them. We always aim to get to this information."
Isnad has two undercover teams that cover Bur Dubai and Deira. Each team consists of 40 policemen and two lead officers who work around the clock.
"We gather information on the races and who is involved," said an Isnad officer. "We also attend the races undercover to be able to document them."
Undercover officers take photographs and video of races, and recruit sources to tip them off about when other events will occur.
The sources also help to identify which cars are modified, what the modifications are and which garages are involved.
Drivers caught are fined Dh2,000 and given 12 black points. Their vehicle is confiscated for a month, although police can decide to keep it for longer.
Modifying a car without permission is illegal and can attract a fine of Dh400 for the owner and confiscation of the vehicle.
"What people do not understand is that modifications are really dangerous, not because of the speed alone but also because of technical faults and poor work, which can result in an accident or the car catching fire," Col Al Mazroui said.
"We have registered many of these cases," he said, without providing an exact figure.
The garages suspected of encouraging the races fall under the jurisdiction of CID, rather than the traffic department. CID was not available for comment on what action is being taken against them.
wissa@thenational.ae
Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder
Started: October 2021
Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Industry: technology, logistics
Investors: A15 and self-funded
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
On racial profiling at airports
MO
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
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.
'HIJRAH%3A%20IN%20THE%20FOOTSTEPS%20OF%20THE%20PROPHET'
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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
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%20four-cyl%20turbo%20%2B%20mild%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E204hp%20at%205%2C800rpm%20%2B23hp%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E320Nm%20at%201%2C800rpm%20%2B205Nm%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E9-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7.3L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2FDecember%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh205%2C000%20(estimate)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Fifa%20World%20Cup%20Qatar%202022%20
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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.
I Care A Lot
Directed by: J Blakeson
Starring: Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage
3/5 stars
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- 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
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
