Two Dubai residents travelled through five cities over four days for 40 hours to get from southern India to the UAE, via London.
Ananth Ramakrishnan, 63, and his daughter Priyesha Ananth, 19, travelled on three carriers on their laborious journey back to the Emirates last week.
The two got stuck in India after flights were suspended in March to prevent the spread of Covid-19. The pair have now reunited with Jaya, Mr Ramakrishnan’s wife and Ms Ananth’s mother.
“There was a lot of tension and apprehension in the planning,” said Mr Ramakrishnan, who works with an information technology support company.
At present, India is yet to resume regular passenger flights after grounding flights four months ago.
An announcement of limited flights being operated between India and the UAE was made this week but tickets quickly sold out and several flights were cancelled.
I needed to get back to Dubai. We decided we had to take the plunge as soon as restrictions eased in July around the village I was in
Desperate to return to jobs and family, some UAE residents stuck in India ended up spending thousands of dirhams pooling in with strangers to charter private jets or planning lengthy travel routes like the Ramakrishnan family.
The trip cost about 100,000 rupees (Dh4,900) each – roughly half the amount passengers have paid for a seat on a small jet.
Mr Ramakrishnan clocked 40 hours on road and during air travel beginning on July 8, when he drove from a small village in southern India, Kinathukadavu, to Coimbatore, where he took a plane to meet his daughter in Chennai. The pair then travelled to Mumbai after a stopover in Hyderabad, took a flight to London and then doubled back to arrive in Dubai on July 11.
The 10-hour journey to London on a packed Air India flight required them to wear full personal protective gear.
Exhausted but triumphant, they are relieved to be back in the UAE.
“I needed to get back to Dubai. We decided we had to take the plunge as soon as restrictions eased in July around the village I was in,” said Mr Ramakrishnan.
“My wife was alone for months, my daughter was alone in another city fending for herself so it was better for us to come back together."
When India closed its borders, Mr Ramakrishnan was visiting his 85-year-old mother in Kinathukadavu village after a business trip from Dubai.
His daughter had been studying in Bangalore but travelled to the family’s flat in Chennai after her architecture college closed and moved to classes online.
For months, the family waited for air travel out of India to resume but then heard about a relative who returned to the Emirates via London.
Mr Ramakrishnan and Ms Ananth could travel to the UK, having previously applied for five-year visit visas to see his eldest daughter who studies there.
The journey took two hours to plan over a Zoom call with Mr Ramakrishnan and his teenage daughter in India, his wife in Dubai and elder daughter in the UK.
They booked tickets from Mumbai to London and then London to Dubai first before working backwards to reserve the domestic flights.
Unable to get connecting flights on the same day, they booked hotel stays near Mumbai and London airports.
Their plan was fraught with uncertainty due to frequent flight cancellations and several Indian cities reimposing lockdown measures as a result of rising Covid-19 cases.
To add to their worries, many cities in India require a special electronic permit for road travel with restrictions on commuting for people aged over 60, such as Mr Ramakrishnan.
Ms Ananth was unsure her father would even make the first one-hour plane trip to reach her so they could travel together to the UAE.
“I kept hearing so many different things about the rules changing from different people,” she said.
“It was a relief to finally see him. All through our journey I barely slept. I was so exhausted and it was only on the last Emirates flight to Dubai that I actually crashed.”
They met her elder sister for a short “socially distanced” meeting in London before taking the morning flight to Dubai last Saturday.
The pair also had to navigate each airline’s rules with face shields compulsory on their Indigo flight to Mumbai.
The Air India flight from Mumbai to London was the most difficult. They were each assigned a middle seat and had to wear full personal protective gear, including overalls, gloves, face shields, masks and even shoe covers.
When we got on the Emirates flight, I felt like I was home
The Emirates flight back to Dubai was not as busy and they were able to each stretch out across four seats.
“When we got on the Emirates flight, I felt like I was home,” said Mr Ramakrishnan, who has lived in the UAE for close to 30 years.
“I had kept my fingers crossed right until we boarded.”
About 160,000 people from the Emirates have repatriated to India.
On landing, the Ramakrishnan family were tested for Covid-19 and have since received the all-clear. Despite this, they have remained in self-imposed isolation for at least a week, staying in separate rooms in their home in Karama.
The family plan to celebrate with a group hug on Saturday, when their self-imposed quarantine ends.
“I have been anxious about my husband’s health because he is diabetic and also due to his age,” said Ms Ananth’s mother.
“We are being extra watchful to be sure there are absolutely no symptoms. It has been a tense period for all of us and it is a relief that it will soon be over.”
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
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Guns N’ Roses’s last gig before Abu Dhabi was in Hong Kong on November 21. We were there – and here’s what they played, and in what order. You were warned.
- It’s So Easy
- Mr Brownstone
- Chinese Democracy
- Welcome to the Jungle
- Double Talkin’ Jive
- Better
- Estranged
- Live and Let Die (Wings cover)
- Slither (Velvet Revolver cover)
- Rocket Queen
- You Could Be Mine
- Shadow of Your Love
- Attitude (Misfits cover)
- Civil War
- Coma
- Love Theme from The Godfather (movie cover)
- Sweet Child O’ Mine
- Wichita Lineman (Jimmy Webb cover)
- Wish You Were Here (instrumental Pink Floyd cover)
- November Rain
- Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover)
- Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan cover)
- Nightrain
Encore:
- Patience
- Don’t Cry
- The Seeker (The Who cover)
- Paradise City
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
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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.
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Rating: 4/5
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Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
Points classification after Stage 4
1. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 124
2. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 81
3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 66
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- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
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- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
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Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
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Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
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A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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LA LIGA FIXTURES
Saturday (All UAE kick-off times)
Valencia v Atletico Madrid (midnight)
Mallorca v Alaves (4pm)
Barcelona v Getafe (7pm)
Villarreal v Levante (9.30pm)
Sunday
Granada v Real Volladolid (midnight)
Sevilla v Espanyol (3pm)
Leganes v Real Betis (5pm)
Eibar v Real Sociedad (7pm)
Athletic Bilbao v Osasuna (9.30pm)
Monday
Real Madrid v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
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Rating: 5/5
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John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
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Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos
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Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last
Bharat
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Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
