With a monthly salary of Dh900, saving even Dh30 on iftar each day helps Muhammad Azad send money back to his elderly parents back home in Pakistan.
He is among thousands of workers in Dubai and Sharjah who has been receiving free iftar boxes filled with biryani, dates, fruit, laban and water.
The National was on site during one of the distributions on Friday, where nearly 1,200 workers queued up for food outside a labour camp in Dubai Investment Parks.
Pakistan Association Dubai and Model Service Society , two non-profit organisations, handed out the meals.
“If we weren’t receiving these iftar boxes, we would have to go to the grocery store and buy our own food for the day,” said Mr Azad, 27, who has been working in Dubai for 10 years.
“Buying rice, meat, vegetables and fruit every day can be expensive for us. Cooked meals, like a plate of rice, can cost less but it is a small portion.”
He said the uncertain times created by Covid-19 has made it important for him and other workers to save as much money as they can, as their concerns over job security and delayed salaries grows.
The construction sector is one among many affected by temporary closures caused by the pandemic.
But restrictions are gradually easing in Dubai and strict precautionary measures have been set in place for those returning to work in construction sites.
Workers are required to wear protective equipment, including masks, gloves and glasses. Tools and materials must be sterilised. Workers have to stay inside the site during the workday and their temperatures must be taken as soon as they disembark buses.
Ghulam Gaji, 25, has a three-month-old baby back home in India who he supports, as well as his wife and parents.
“Any free meals that we can get will help us," said Mr Gaji, who moved to Dubai nine months ago. "I don’t have a lot of my own personal expenses and I usually just spend on food, so this is helping me save.”
PAD has been sponsoring 2,500 meals for workers every day since May 4.
Rizwan Fancy, the director of the group’s welfare department, said the workers are required to eat the food in their rooms in order to maintain social distancing.
“For the last two months, many companies have no work and the staff have been sitting at home with no salary,” he said.
“They are desperate for food, especially those who rely on these kinds of distribution each year.”
Faiyaz Ahmed, a volunteer at MSS, said his organisation delivers 14,000 meals to 22 camps across Dubai and Sharjah daily.
He said the group is associated with the UAE Food Bank and they do this initiative each year for Ramadan, but the pandemic created a challenge this year.
“Our distribution model was completely different this time,” he said.
"We enjoyed going to the camp and having iftar with the workers. We used to cut the fruit in the camp and get the biryani in huge pots and serve them. Now, we pack the food items in the kitchen and we bring them here for distribution."
About 200 volunteers work with MSS to ensure they reach as many people as possible.
The biog
Mission to Seafarers is one of the largest port-based welfare operators in the world.
It provided services to around 200 ports across 50 countries.
They also provide port chaplains to help them deliver professional welfare services.
What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
Feeding the thousands for iftar
Six industrial scale vats of 500litres each are used to cook the kanji or broth
Each vat contains kanji or porridge to feed 1,000 people
The rice porridge is poured into a 500ml plastic box
350 plastic tubs are placed in one container trolley
Each aluminium container trolley weighing 300kg is unloaded by a small crane fitted on a truck
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
Points tally
1. Australia 52; 2. New Zealand 44; 3. South Africa 36; 4. Sri Lanka 35; 5. UAE 27; 6. India 27; 7. England 26; 8. Singapore 8; 9. Malaysia 3
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
The biog
Name: Mariam Ketait
Emirate: Dubai
Hobbies: I enjoy travelling, experiencing new things, painting, reading, flying, and the French language
Favourite quote: "Be the change you wish to see" - unknown
Favourite activity: Connecting with different cultures
