Armenia has turned into a sought-after quarantine centre for hundreds of Indian travellers serving Covid-19 regulations before they are cleared to enter the UAE.
Indians trying to get back to their jobs, businesses and family are taking long routes back to the Emirates.
They spend two weeks quarantine in countries from where travel to the UAE is considered safe during movement restrictions to control the spread of Covid-19 variants.
The UAE suspended incoming flights for most travellers from India on April 25, and the ban is likely to be in place until the end of the month.
The only passengers permitted are diplomats, UAE citizens and golden visa holders, and people on business jets.
I was grieving for my father and I was also worried about how I would fly back to my family in the UAE
Travellers say Armenia – one of the most affordable places within a three-hour flight of Dubai and Abu Dhabi – replaced the Maldives as a popular quarantine spot after the resort islands banned the entry of passengers from India last month.
People spend a little over Dh4,000 on flights, accommodation and food in Armenia.
They post information on Facebook and WhatsApp groups to help with information on the routes they took.
The past few months were an emotional upheaval for Sujay Sarigommula, 35. He is finally back in Dubai using the Armenia route after cremating his father in India.
The engineer knows of at least 150 UAE residents completing quarantine requirements in Armenia.
Greyar Dsouza, 29, was among the last groups of Indians allowed into the Maldives before the nation of 1,192 islands shut its doors last month to travellers from India.
He was always nervous about not making it back to the UAE.
“The fear was always there in case of a rule change,” he said.
“What if I tested positive for Covid, I can’t go to India or the UAE? I would be stuck in a country where I didn’t know anyone.”
Why Armenia fits the budget
Mr Sarigommula’s father died of a cardiac arrest on April 24 and he left for the funeral a day before the UAE imposed travel restrictions on incoming flights from India.
"I was grieving for my father and I was also worried about how I would fly back to my family in the UAE," he told The National.
The Dubai resident checked travel routes through Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Moscow before deciding on Armenia because of his budget and the ease of getting an e-visa or travel permit online.
The cost from India via Armenia to Dubai including flights, accommodation and food was 85,000 rupees (Dh 4,300).
He drove 200km from his hometown in southern Warangal on May 12 to the nearest airport in Hyderabad and flew to Qatar.
He reached Yerevan, Armenia’s capital, the next day after a 15-hour layover in Doha.
Mr Sarigommula worked from his hotel room in Yerevan and stayed in touch with groups of travellers online for posts on new travel advisories.
He flew to Dubai after the two-week quarantine.
“I was so excited to see my baby daughter. I was just crying holding her because I was so tense about not reaching [Dubai]. This is our second home, if I’m not accepted back here, where would I go?” Mr Sarigommula said.
“The biggest regret of my life is that my dad could not see my child because of the lockdowns and worry about travelling with a small baby.
“My mother is now alone and I feel the pain of leaving her.
“But I could not take more leave. I’m the only earning member so I researched all options to get back. We hope the ban ends soon so I can get my mother here to finally see her grandchild.”
Quarantine on a resort island
Sharjah resident Greyar Dsouza needed to return to manage the family automobile workshops and a trading business in the emirate.
He was in Mangalore in southern India to plan his sister’s wedding on April 24, the day before the UAE suspended incoming flights from India.
He chose the Maldives when the UAE suspended flights from Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh.
After much research, he travelled from Mangalore to Mumbai on May 11, stayed in the city for a day and took a flight to Male on May 12.
The day after he and a cousin landed in the capital of the Maldives, the country stopped flights from India.
"Ours was the last flight in,” he said.
He met travellers headed to Saudi Arabia and the US using the Maldives to quarantine.
There were also dozens of UAE residents who flew back last week and he left on May 27 for Dubai.
"We tried to relax as much as possible, but because nothing was certain, there was always a lot of anxiety."
He spent Dh8,000 ($2,178) on the flights, accommodation and food for travel from India via the Maldives to Dubai.
Travellers forge a bond
Groups of travellers looking for routes to return from India are constantly messaging each other in chat rooms for information on safe journeys back to the UAE.
Sushant Dalai, an engineer from Abu Dhabi, knows what it means to be stranded and is assisting about 700 residents on WhatsApp, Telegram and Facebook groups.
When India and the UAE shut international borders in March last year to stem the spread of Covid-19, Mr Dalai had just got married and was separated from his wife for five months.
"There are families and women travellers so we try to provide support, from checking information about flights or asking people who have returned about hotels and meal services," he said.
Commercial flights from India to the UAE are suspended until the end of June at least, as the country battles to control a deadly variant that has overwhelmed health services in cities and villages.
Covid-19 relief sent to India – in pictures
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The%20specs
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Healthy tips to remember
Here, Dr Mohamed El Abiary, paediatric consultant at Al Zahra Hospital Dubai, shares some advice for parents whose children are fasting during the holy month of Ramadan:
Gradual fasting and golden points - For children under the age of 10, follow a step-by-step approach to fasting and don't push them beyond their limits. Start with a few hours fasting a day and increase it to a half fast and full fast when the child is ready. Every individual's ability varies as per the age and personal readiness. You could introduce a points system that awards the child and offers them encouragement when they make progress with the amount of hours they fast
Why fast? - Explain to your child why they are fasting. By shedding light on the importance of abstaining from food and drink, children may feel more encouraged to give it there all during the observance period. It is also a good opportunity to teach children about controlling urges, doing good for others and instilling healthy food habits
Sleep and suhoor - A child needs adequate sleep every night - at least eight hours. Make sure to set a routine early bedtime so he/she has sufficient time to wake up for suhoor, which is an essential meal at the beginning of the day
Good diet - Nutritious food is crucial to ensuring a healthy Ramadan for children. They must refrain from eating too much junk food as well as canned goods and snacks and drinks high in sugar. Foods that are rich in nutrients, vitamins and proteins, like fruits, fresh meats and vegetables, make for a good balanced diet
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
SPECS
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
