A businessman in Dubai has vowed to get long-held plans for a low-cost Indian airline off the ground, with a launch date soon to be announced.
Afi Ahmed, founder of Dubai travel agency Smart Travels, told The National he was working to revive Air Kerala, a project first announced by the Kerala state government in 2005.
He is aiming to raise investment to launch Air Kerala as a domestic airline in the southern Indian state before expanding operations to include the Gulf.
Mr Ahmed, originally from Kerala, had previously announced that he had purchased the domain name airkerala.com for Dh1 million.
I have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a meaningful impact
Afi Ahmed
“Next month, I will formally announce the launch of Air Kerala,” he told The National
“The airline is a dream come true for non-resident Indians from Kerala. I really hope I can give wings to Air Kerala.
“I have approached all government entities for permissions. Even otherwise, I am planning to start this is a private entity with the support of NRI [non-resident Indian] businessmen.”
He claims he has already found investors and has handed the project over to consultants for a fiscal report.
“I also have a legal team that is looking into other formalities,” he said.
“We will raise an initial amount of Rs100 Crores [about Dh45 million]. The plan is to launch a domestic carrier in Kerala in the first phase and later expand it as an international airline operating in the Gulf-Kerala sector.
“We cannot reveal more details at this stage. We will decide on the type of carrier and number of flights depending on approvals.”
Aiming to cut costs for passengers
“The idea is to serve the expat community reeling under sky-high airfares,” Mr Ahmed added.
“We will announce the details formally next month.”
Air Kerala was first proposed by the government of Kerala in 2005 and the airline was registered as a fully owned subsidiary of Cochin International Airport Limited in 2006.
Though it was announced with much fanfare and was touted as one of the most popular and ambitious projects to support Keralites living abroad, the project was shelved several times by successive governments.
There are more than one million people from Kerala living in the UAE alone, and the south Indian state has one of the largest expatriate populations in India.
According to the Kerala Migration Survey, the state has more than 2.1 million migrants, the majority living in Gulf countries.
Affordable airline
Surging airfare costs during the Eid holidays have highlighted the demand for cheaper air travel.
Plane tickets to Kerala increased up to tenfold in price on certain dates, with many families unable to fly home to be with their families.
Suhail Kuthirodi, general manager of Smash Tours and Travels in Dubai, said Air Kerala would give a boost to Keralite communities living abroad if it goes ahead as planned.
“Kerala has the largest expat population and the small state has four international airports. Currently, there are not enough services to cater to the demand,” he said.
“It is a great initiative because people should be able to travel home at affordable rates. If airlines can offer good rates during off-peak season, it means they can run the business successfully without having to charge exploitative rates. But unfortunately they are doing so.
“Air Kerala will be a game changer in the industry if they put people’s interests first.”
Mr Ahmed says he is already overwhelmed by the support he has received from community members.
“Several businessmen have already approached me and offered their support. Funding will not be an issue,” he said.
“I have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a meaningful impact. And I am going ahead with it.”
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Company%20Profile
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Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
Results:
5pm: Maiden (PA) | Dh80,000 | 1,200 metres
Winner: Jabalini, Szczepan Mazur (jockey), Younis Kalbani (trainer)
5.30pm: UAE Arabian Derby (PA) | Prestige | Dh150,000 | 2,200m
Winner: Octave, Gerald Avranche, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round 3 (PA) | Group 3 Dh300,000 | 2,200m
Winner: Harrab, Richard Mullen, Mohamed Ali
6.30pm: Emirates Championship (PA) | Group 1 | Dh1million | 2,200m
Winner: BF Mughader, Szczepan Mazur, Younis Al Kalbani
7pm: Abu Dhabi Championship (TB) | Group 3 | Dh380,000 | 2,200m
Winner: GM Hopkins, Patrick Cosgrave, Jaber Ramadhan
7.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) | Conditions | Dh70,000 | 1,600m
Winner: AF La’Asae, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
MATCH INFO
Jersey 147 (20 overs)
UAE 112 (19.2 overs)
Jersey win by 35 runs
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
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.”
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
