Ishar Das Arora, was born in Bela, a small village in West Punjab in 1940. Ishar was 7 at the time of the India-Pakistan partition, when his family – alongside millions of others – fled their homes and crossed the border into what had overnight become a different country. He eventually moved to Delhi after living in many refugee camps.
Kamala Devi, a Sindhi Hindu migrated from Pakistan to Barmer in Rajasthan at the age of 13. She remembers the temple in her village where the elders would sing folk songs. Her family members still remain in Pakistan, but Devi has never been back.
The divisive India-Pakistan partition
When Sir Cyril Radcliffe, a colonial-era British lawyer, was assigned to draw a demarcation line between British India's Hindu and Muslim territories in a span of five weeks in 1947 – one of the most controversial borders drawn – it displaced millions of residents as the soon-to-be-independent country was divided into India and Pakistan, with the eastern territories later becoming Bangladesh.
More than 12 million people were uprooted and, amid communal violence, hundreds of thousands killed as Hindus fled to independent India and many Muslims fled to Pakistan.
Life comes full circle
Ishar's grandson, Sparsh Ahuja, went on to co-found Project Dastaan, an Oxford University-backed initiative, which reconnects displaced survivors of the 1947 partition with their former homes. "Dastaan" means story in Urdu, and stories are what this project is all about.
The initiative aims to give emotional closure to the survivors of the partition and promote peace between the two countries, by connecting refugees from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh to their ancestral homes and communities through VR technology and digital experiences.
The project also wants to showcase the experiences that people of various ethnicities and religions underwent on both sides of the border. Most people’s knowledge of the partition comes from oral accounts by family members, which may be lost forever if not recorded.
Interviewing partition witnesses, seeing the life they had to flee from, and then giving them a view back into it, is very special
“Project Dastaan came into being through a casual conversation between a group of Indian and Pakistani friends at Oxford, when we discussed how difficult it was to help our grandparents travel across the border and return to see their ancestral villages in India or Pakistan, because of the constant uncertainty and hostilities in the relationship between the two countries, the difficulty in getting visas and the wired borders,” says Saadia Gardezi, another co-founder of Project Dastaan.
Gardezi, a Pakistani, grew up listening to tales of partition and refugees from her mother and her grandmother who had volunteered at refugee camps in Lahore. The third member of the team – Sam Dalrymple’s grandfather was a British officer stationed in India during the last stages of colonial rule, and who was terribly scarred by the partition.
Emotional reunion
“It’s a passion project between friends with historical family links to the partition; none of us are [history] experts, but we realised that with just a GoPro and VR technology, we could connect some of the former refugees with their ancestral environments. The project is funded by grant bodies, private donations and cultural organisations such as the British Council,” explains Gardezi.
“Working on this, you get a very close and eye-opening view into history and life in undivided India. Interviewing partition witnesses, seeing the other side, the life they had to flee from, and then giving them a view back into it, is very special.
When we interview the refugees, many have very specific memories of their village and their homes, from what trees grew there to the mosque and its structure
“Also the reactions of children and grandchildren to a place they have never seen before in their lives, but have heard of, is very exciting. It often initiates a conversation with their grandparents about their past lives,” says Dalrymple.
“One of the partition witnesses whom we worked with was Dr Saida Siddiqui, who had migrated from Lucknow to Karachi,” he continues. “Saida has never been able to go back to Lucknow, but still considers it as her home.
“We located the old mandir [temple] opposite her home in Lucknow and the pandit [priest] whom she had played with as a child and shared mithai [sweets] with. The priest and her neighbours had a telephone call with her, and it was such an emotional moment that we were glad we could facilitate,” says Dalrymple.
Tech talk
Project Dastaan also has a team of young volunteers interested in history and the partition, and they connect with survivors through social media as well as submitting stories through its website. Many tech-savvy young people help the older generation come forward and share their traumatic experiences; many grandchildren connect on behalf of their grandparents.
The project has been a great catalyst for young and old to have conversations about a difficult time in history. It also facilitates a peace-building conversation between young people with a shared heritage
Besides the social-impact VR project, Project Dastaan is also making The Child of Empire, an animated VR documentary film that puts its viewer in the shoes of a migrant in 1947; and Lost Migrations, a three-part animated series that tells less-known tales of the partition.
I ask Gardezi how the team manage to track down a place just from the memories of the survivors after more than 70 years. “When we interview the refugees, many have very specific memories of their village and their homes – from what trees grew there to the mosque or the house itself, and its structure. We ask them where they played as children and who their neighbours were. Of course, Google maps makes it easier to plot the probable location.”
The team then uses volunteers in both countries to track down specific places, sometimes making phone calls to witnesses after reaching the spot to confirm details before filming. Places of worship – both temples and mosques – they say, have been great pointers. The places are then shot and edited to six-minute films, and finally shown to the survivors and their families.
The Project Dastaan team had a goal to connect 75 partition witnesses with their ancestral homes by the 75th anniversary of the partition in 2022, but the pandemic has stalled those plans. The team do hope to finish 25 to 35 interviews by next year.
“The project has been a great catalyst for young and old to have conversations about a difficult time in history. It also aims to give the world outside this region a glimpse of an event with far-reaching consequences, which few outside these countries know in detail. It also facilitates a peace-building conversation between the two countries, especially between young people with a shared heritage,” says Gardezi.
“Many times, when the interviewees put on the VR glasses, they become so emotional at being able to revisit the place they were forced to leave as children, they just stand up. Even tough and strong men have had tears in their eyes as they walked down memory lane.”
Company profile
Name: Thndr
Started: October 2020
Founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: pre-seed of $800,000
Funding stage: series A; $20 million
Investors: Tiger Global, Beco Capital, Prosus Ventures, Y Combinator, Global Ventures, Abdul Latif Jameel, Endure Capital, 4DX Ventures, Plus VC, Rabacap and MSA Capital
The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
Results
2.30pm: Dubai Creek Tower – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: Marmara Xm, Gary Sanchez (jockey), Abdelkhir Adam (trainer)
3pm: Al Yasmeen – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: AS Hajez, Jesus Rosales, Khalifa Al Neyadi
3.30pm: Al Ferdous – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: Soukainah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout
4pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah – Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: AF Thayer, Ray Dawson, Ernst Oertel
4.30pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup – Handicap (TB) Dh200,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: George Villiers, Antonio Fresu, Bhupat Seemar
5pm: Palma Spring – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Es Abu Mousa, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Slow loris biog
From: Lonely Loris is a Sunda slow loris, one of nine species of the animal native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore
Status: Critically endangered, and listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list due to growing demand in the global exotic pet trade. It is one of the most popular primate species found at Indonesian pet markets
Likes: Sleeping, which they do for up to 18 hours a day. When they are awake, they like to eat fruit, insects, small birds and reptiles and some types of vegetation
Dislikes: Sunlight. Being a nocturnal animal, the slow loris wakes around sunset and is active throughout the night
Superpowers: His dangerous elbows. The slow loris’s doe eyes may make it look cute, but it is also deadly. The only known venomous primate, it hisses and clasps its paws and can produce a venom from its elbow that can cause anaphylactic shock and even death in humans
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm from 1,500-3,500rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
On sale: now
'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'
Rating: 3/5
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Mads Mikkelson, Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Jude Law
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5