http://acad.uohyd.ac.in/downloads/Pros2014.PDF
CSIR JRF and CASE Exams.
Kepe visiting this space for further updates.
CSIR JRF and CASE Exams.
Kepe visiting this space for further updates.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Monday, September 16, 2013
Bismillah Hir Rahman Nir Raheem!! So the raill journey begins!!
Asak!!
As I sit on board this Saudi Rail train, I am reminded of the airconditioned classes that we have in Indian railways. I am travelling by the Al-Qafilah class, the third class so as to say, with a 60 SR ticket. So far, it has been a little less easier than what I could have made of it. A little confusing too. But each experience makes you wiser and that is true and I couldn't agree more! So moving on: I had a hard time finding the railway station as my room mate, didn't know the way to the station. By the time we made it here, we were already late by 30 minutes or so. So finally I reached the station about two hours before my departure time( I gave my itinerary details in my previous post).
After entering the waiting lounge, I could find a very sparsely populated area, this can be primarily attributed to the density of the train traffic. Once in, I knew I had to get a print of my ticket ( I had read this on the SRO website). So I went to the ticket counter, no queues and it was a relishing site ( but to be honest, I had expected no immediate rush after seeing the waiting lounges, all people seemed to be with tickets). So I went to the official sitting inside the window and asked him about the print. He quoted to me ," Read out the ticket number" and I did. But I guess, he missed the sequence. So he immediately bounced onto me, asking me for my mobile ( on to which I had been staring all this while, reading out the ticket number). He then read and entered the number. Alas!! I had the ticket with me. Then my next obvious question was, " What about the luggage? Do I need to get it checked or transferred somewhere" and the reply was not satisfactory. I have had a longer than usual hibernation in India, forgetting the good Arabic pick-up I had made while at work. So I nodded my head and went back to my seat in the waiting lounge.
To my left was the family waiting lounge and we were sitting in the designated " single" waiting lounge, both separated by a 20 feet tile strip. So I kept staring at unassuming faces and finally found one familiar face, it turned out to be a Paki. Hahah!! I started the conversation in English, asking about the luggage and that man in his late 40's and executive by appearance, kept nodding and said no problem with the luggage. Then I had to anchor the ship, so as to say, I started in Urdu and got an unconfirmed answer.
After a 15 minute wait, I knew I had to take some step as the time was fast approaching for the scheduled reporting time. So I again went to the counter where I met a Saudi passenger, he was of the same opinion but gave some 'guiding' inputs. Yet I got a very hazy answer. So I went ahead after taking my answer.
BREAK TIME: I WAS JUST HAVING A SR 8 CHICKEN BURGER, just finished eating it. Nesma trading are the contracting /catering people.
So as they say , " A bull for its bull-rider", I found the most accurate information after I again approached the ticket counter. I was asked to go the luggage counter if I had a big bag with me and the rest smaller bags, I could carry on-board with me. So I did that. And guys, there is no problem with the weight issues, I think. Because they were least bothered by the weights.
So after that, we were asked to go the departure lounge. Before embarking into it, my eyes glanced towards a restaurant that hid behind the departure lounge, this again was a Nesma undertaking. So I went into the restaurant, it was as expected, empty and manned by Bangladeshis as usual. Infact, on all airports, railstations, saptco stands, the most common sight is that of Bangladeshis :-) They have like conquered the whole system.
So @ the canteen, I bought a 5 SR hummus with no qubus ( bread) and a water bottle of 1 SR and I disembarked, carrying with me a back pack and a laptop bag, heading back to the departure lounge.
Here it was that our tickets were checked and bar-coded for feed. And then our Iqamas were checked. So finally we got into the departure lounge. Here I saw a Cantonese like guy asking the Saudi officer about the ticket and the details. He seemed Filipino to me ( as this country seems infested,oooppps populated, by a large Filipino community). I looked at him and gave him a smile and he reverted the same way. I asked him if he was confused ( his face was indeed a testimony to that), he just crossed me over and sat on a chair in the next row.
After some time, he came up to me and asked if I could understand or speak English, I replied saying I spoke good English and he was like " Thank God" and so we were into an instant bond. He was actually a Chinese working for the Harmain Rail Project and at all times before this, he had a translator travelling with him. So after a brief round-up, we were waiting for the announcement and along the stroll, we both were happy that we had a same-class ticket and then we finally found seats in front and back rows.
As I sat down, I had a Saudi youth sitting beside me, occupying the window seat. We had a brief chat. Before this, my Chinese friend exclaimed that he had an STC plug in device and if I wanted it. I didn't give much notice to it since I knew that the train was wi-fi enable. Alas! I was wrong, there was no unsecured connection on board, so immediately I broke the ice and asked him for the key. He was very gracious in removing the lid off the USB and giving it to me to feed the key and alhamdulillah!! I was able to give you this long information..the story of my first train journey in Saudi Arabia. Indeed I seem to be enjoying it.
Between this, I was scraping through the internet, trying to know " How to find the Qibla on board a train?", " What about prayers at a time when we are unable to find the qibla or move?" . Alhamdulilah I found the answer here :
As I sign off, I am almost 90 minutes into my journey with some 150 minutes or more left.
PS: Find my foto onboard at the end of this post.
I hope you like it. Thanks and have a good day. Cheers!!
Salamualaikum!!
Allah Hafiz!!
As I sit on board this Saudi Rail train, I am reminded of the airconditioned classes that we have in Indian railways. I am travelling by the Al-Qafilah class, the third class so as to say, with a 60 SR ticket. So far, it has been a little less easier than what I could have made of it. A little confusing too. But each experience makes you wiser and that is true and I couldn't agree more! So moving on: I had a hard time finding the railway station as my room mate, didn't know the way to the station. By the time we made it here, we were already late by 30 minutes or so. So finally I reached the station about two hours before my departure time( I gave my itinerary details in my previous post).
After entering the waiting lounge, I could find a very sparsely populated area, this can be primarily attributed to the density of the train traffic. Once in, I knew I had to get a print of my ticket ( I had read this on the SRO website). So I went to the ticket counter, no queues and it was a relishing site ( but to be honest, I had expected no immediate rush after seeing the waiting lounges, all people seemed to be with tickets). So I went to the official sitting inside the window and asked him about the print. He quoted to me ," Read out the ticket number" and I did. But I guess, he missed the sequence. So he immediately bounced onto me, asking me for my mobile ( on to which I had been staring all this while, reading out the ticket number). He then read and entered the number. Alas!! I had the ticket with me. Then my next obvious question was, " What about the luggage? Do I need to get it checked or transferred somewhere" and the reply was not satisfactory. I have had a longer than usual hibernation in India, forgetting the good Arabic pick-up I had made while at work. So I nodded my head and went back to my seat in the waiting lounge.
To my left was the family waiting lounge and we were sitting in the designated " single" waiting lounge, both separated by a 20 feet tile strip. So I kept staring at unassuming faces and finally found one familiar face, it turned out to be a Paki. Hahah!! I started the conversation in English, asking about the luggage and that man in his late 40's and executive by appearance, kept nodding and said no problem with the luggage. Then I had to anchor the ship, so as to say, I started in Urdu and got an unconfirmed answer.
After a 15 minute wait, I knew I had to take some step as the time was fast approaching for the scheduled reporting time. So I again went to the counter where I met a Saudi passenger, he was of the same opinion but gave some 'guiding' inputs. Yet I got a very hazy answer. So I went ahead after taking my answer.
BREAK TIME: I WAS JUST HAVING A SR 8 CHICKEN BURGER, just finished eating it. Nesma trading are the contracting /catering people.
So as they say , " A bull for its bull-rider", I found the most accurate information after I again approached the ticket counter. I was asked to go the luggage counter if I had a big bag with me and the rest smaller bags, I could carry on-board with me. So I did that. And guys, there is no problem with the weight issues, I think. Because they were least bothered by the weights.
So after that, we were asked to go the departure lounge. Before embarking into it, my eyes glanced towards a restaurant that hid behind the departure lounge, this again was a Nesma undertaking. So I went into the restaurant, it was as expected, empty and manned by Bangladeshis as usual. Infact, on all airports, railstations, saptco stands, the most common sight is that of Bangladeshis :-) They have like conquered the whole system.
So @ the canteen, I bought a 5 SR hummus with no qubus ( bread) and a water bottle of 1 SR and I disembarked, carrying with me a back pack and a laptop bag, heading back to the departure lounge.
Here it was that our tickets were checked and bar-coded for feed. And then our Iqamas were checked. So finally we got into the departure lounge. Here I saw a Cantonese like guy asking the Saudi officer about the ticket and the details. He seemed Filipino to me ( as this country seems infested,oooppps populated, by a large Filipino community). I looked at him and gave him a smile and he reverted the same way. I asked him if he was confused ( his face was indeed a testimony to that), he just crossed me over and sat on a chair in the next row.
After some time, he came up to me and asked if I could understand or speak English, I replied saying I spoke good English and he was like " Thank God" and so we were into an instant bond. He was actually a Chinese working for the Harmain Rail Project and at all times before this, he had a translator travelling with him. So after a brief round-up, we were waiting for the announcement and along the stroll, we both were happy that we had a same-class ticket and then we finally found seats in front and back rows.
As I sat down, I had a Saudi youth sitting beside me, occupying the window seat. We had a brief chat. Before this, my Chinese friend exclaimed that he had an STC plug in device and if I wanted it. I didn't give much notice to it since I knew that the train was wi-fi enable. Alas! I was wrong, there was no unsecured connection on board, so immediately I broke the ice and asked him for the key. He was very gracious in removing the lid off the USB and giving it to me to feed the key and alhamdulillah!! I was able to give you this long information..the story of my first train journey in Saudi Arabia. Indeed I seem to be enjoying it.
Between this, I was scraping through the internet, trying to know " How to find the Qibla on board a train?", " What about prayers at a time when we are unable to find the qibla or move?" . Alhamdulilah I found the answer here :
As I sign off, I am almost 90 minutes into my journey with some 150 minutes or more left.
PS: Find my foto onboard at the end of this post.
I hope you like it. Thanks and have a good day. Cheers!!
Salamualaikum!!
Allah Hafiz!!
Saturday, September 14, 2013
A railways travel opportunity in Saudi Arabia ( My first rail ticket coming up....).
Assalamualaikum!!
I have always been intrigued and enticed by new things. I have loved the comfortable inter-city transport that the Saudis have, their bus fleet run by SAPTCO ( Saudi Arabia Public Transport Co.).
You would be suprised to see the technologically advanced and sophisticated system the Saudis use even for their bus travel. At a SAPTCO station, you've got great waiting lounges, neat and refreshing.
Once you purchase a ticket, you are insured of your luggage and given luggage tags, all this information feeded in your ticket details which again is an auto generated ticket, obtained after entering your Residence ID or Iqama, as they call it in Arabic.
The buses are fully air-conditioned and wonderful to travel in. They've got lavatories inside them too. You could expect at least one stop at a highway eatery called Ishtera where you can always find the local staple diet of Faham or Shawaya with roz ( rice). Faham is chicken baked over coal while shawaya is the one made in a steam grill.
For a normal Dammam-Riyadh journey, you are charged 60 SR and the travel time can vary.
And for Riyadh-Jeddah, I think it is 130 SR. ( Please check the rates before travelling).
Now coming to the RAILWAYS!!
Being from India, I have a very close connection to Railways, with our country having the largest rail network in the world. I usually travelled to inter state destinations on a train and not on local destinations.
I have my maternal family ( extended) in New Delhi, so we visit the place quite often during our summer vacations. It is a tedious journey of more than 24 hours if you travel by AP Express, the one we prefer. But there are always more better and expensive options.
I was very excited when I came to know that even SAUDI ARABIA has a rail system. They are still at a nascent stage now but alhamdulillah performing very well.
Right now, the most popular route is guess is the DAM-RIY-DAM route. They are in the process of linking the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madina via Jeddah, the project named HHR ( High Speed Harmain Rail) project. This is going to be a great blessing for all Hajis and the residents in general. I wish them all the best on that.
Since coming here to KSA about 18 months back, I have travelled to Makkah, Madina, Jeddah, Dammam, Jubail, and stayed there and worked in Jeddah, Jubail amongst them. My stop overs have been Al Khobar, Taif, Dahran. This country and each of its part is unique in each way. I have been in Riyadh for most of my time, the place of my arrival.
Alhamdulillah now that I have been offered a job in Jubail, I wanted to travel on the Saudi trains. I am very excited about this. Below, I have imported some snapshots from their website which details about the fares for various destinations and the classes for travel on offer. I am very excited and in sha allah I wish the journey corroborates with that. I am super excited and wish the same for you.
Do visit their official website: www.saudirailways.org
Allah HAFIZ!!
So here comes my E_TICKET on in sha allah ta'ala my first journey on-board a Saudi Arabian Train
I have always been intrigued and enticed by new things. I have loved the comfortable inter-city transport that the Saudis have, their bus fleet run by SAPTCO ( Saudi Arabia Public Transport Co.).
You would be suprised to see the technologically advanced and sophisticated system the Saudis use even for their bus travel. At a SAPTCO station, you've got great waiting lounges, neat and refreshing.
Once you purchase a ticket, you are insured of your luggage and given luggage tags, all this information feeded in your ticket details which again is an auto generated ticket, obtained after entering your Residence ID or Iqama, as they call it in Arabic.
The buses are fully air-conditioned and wonderful to travel in. They've got lavatories inside them too. You could expect at least one stop at a highway eatery called Ishtera where you can always find the local staple diet of Faham or Shawaya with roz ( rice). Faham is chicken baked over coal while shawaya is the one made in a steam grill.
For a normal Dammam-Riyadh journey, you are charged 60 SR and the travel time can vary.
And for Riyadh-Jeddah, I think it is 130 SR. ( Please check the rates before travelling).
Now coming to the RAILWAYS!!
Being from India, I have a very close connection to Railways, with our country having the largest rail network in the world. I usually travelled to inter state destinations on a train and not on local destinations.
I have my maternal family ( extended) in New Delhi, so we visit the place quite often during our summer vacations. It is a tedious journey of more than 24 hours if you travel by AP Express, the one we prefer. But there are always more better and expensive options.
I was very excited when I came to know that even SAUDI ARABIA has a rail system. They are still at a nascent stage now but alhamdulillah performing very well.
Right now, the most popular route is guess is the DAM-RIY-DAM route. They are in the process of linking the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madina via Jeddah, the project named HHR ( High Speed Harmain Rail) project. This is going to be a great blessing for all Hajis and the residents in general. I wish them all the best on that.
Since coming here to KSA about 18 months back, I have travelled to Makkah, Madina, Jeddah, Dammam, Jubail, and stayed there and worked in Jeddah, Jubail amongst them. My stop overs have been Al Khobar, Taif, Dahran. This country and each of its part is unique in each way. I have been in Riyadh for most of my time, the place of my arrival.
Alhamdulillah now that I have been offered a job in Jubail, I wanted to travel on the Saudi trains. I am very excited about this. Below, I have imported some snapshots from their website which details about the fares for various destinations and the classes for travel on offer. I am very excited and in sha allah I wish the journey corroborates with that. I am super excited and wish the same for you.
Do visit their official website: www.saudirailways.org
Allah HAFIZ!!
Friday, September 6, 2013
Kindness of His Majesty- The Saudi King!!
Asak!
Ever since, a correction and job creation process , called Nitaqat was introduced in the system in the kingdom, all seem to be in a win-win situation.
Alhamdulillah, the King's decision to increase the or extend the amnesty period for all expats has really helped us and In sha allah taa'ala shall help more and more people in the near future.
The new correction policy has helped in the creation of jobs for the locals and at the same time has ensured timely wages for expats.
During this period, we are free to change our sponsor and to register our original profession ( based on the respective professional degree) , like for engineering , we can register with the SCE ( Saudi Council of Engineers).
Jazakallah Qairun ya Qadim -e-Harmain al Sharfain . May Allah SWT grant you good health and long life. Aameen!!
Ever since, a correction and job creation process , called Nitaqat was introduced in the system in the kingdom, all seem to be in a win-win situation.
Alhamdulillah, the King's decision to increase the or extend the amnesty period for all expats has really helped us and In sha allah taa'ala shall help more and more people in the near future.
The new correction policy has helped in the creation of jobs for the locals and at the same time has ensured timely wages for expats.
During this period, we are free to change our sponsor and to register our original profession ( based on the respective professional degree) , like for engineering , we can register with the SCE ( Saudi Council of Engineers).
Jazakallah Qairun ya Qadim -e-Harmain al Sharfain . May Allah SWT grant you good health and long life. Aameen!!
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Unity In Diversity ( UID)
Assalamaulaiakum!!
Just some time back, a thought flash my mind after reading an e-mail of ISB boasting about their class diversity.....
Indian is often termed a sub-continent for the great likeness it has to that of a continent, with different people, natural resources, geographical divisions and what not.
Since my blog deals with educational and job opportunities, let's weigh this in terms of diversity in educational institutions:
India has a poor record in the diverse representation of people of different communities in institutions of national importance or the other respected institutions of this country.
I mean there is usually a very poor, under-proportionate representation of different communities in a class of a great institution.
For ex: LB Shastri Academy of Administration Mussourie has only about 3-4 % of representation for Muslims in its hallowed halls. And so it has been the case for a long while.
Coming to other institutions, the story remains the same or sometimes the stats may be read out to be poorer.
So if an institution like ISB talks about diversity only in terms of professional backgrounds of its students, where does the very essence of religious diversity goes into being?? For anywhere around the world, in people management, religious understanding and tolerance are the basic things for any successful manager/entrepreneur/for that matter, a successful human being.
For India is a country where there is a UID ( It sounds similar to the Aadhar thing , right?? Nice acronym in my net today)
Just some time back, a thought flash my mind after reading an e-mail of ISB boasting about their class diversity.....
Indian is often termed a sub-continent for the great likeness it has to that of a continent, with different people, natural resources, geographical divisions and what not.
Since my blog deals with educational and job opportunities, let's weigh this in terms of diversity in educational institutions:
India has a poor record in the diverse representation of people of different communities in institutions of national importance or the other respected institutions of this country.
I mean there is usually a very poor, under-proportionate representation of different communities in a class of a great institution.
For ex: LB Shastri Academy of Administration Mussourie has only about 3-4 % of representation for Muslims in its hallowed halls. And so it has been the case for a long while.
Coming to other institutions, the story remains the same or sometimes the stats may be read out to be poorer.
So if an institution like ISB talks about diversity only in terms of professional backgrounds of its students, where does the very essence of religious diversity goes into being?? For anywhere around the world, in people management, religious understanding and tolerance are the basic things for any successful manager/entrepreneur/for that matter, a successful human being.
For India is a country where there is a UID ( It sounds similar to the Aadhar thing , right?? Nice acronym in my net today)
Monday, September 2, 2013
FORWARD THE HADEES, OH MUSLIMS!
Once Moosa (AS) asked Allah Ta'ala: O Allah ! You have granted me the honor and privilege of talking to you directly, Have you given this privilege to any otherperson? Allah Ta'ala replied, O!! Moosa during the last period I am going to send an ummat, who will be the Ummat of Mohammed (SAW) with dry lips, parched tongues, emaciated body with eyes sunken deep into their sockets, with livers dry and stomachs suffering the pangs of hunger- will call out to me (in dua) they will be much much closer to me than you O Moosa! while you speak to me there are 70000 veils between you and me but at the time of iftaar there will not be a single veil between me and the fasting Ummati of Mohammed (SAW) O!! Moosa I have taken upon myself the responsibility that at the time of iftaar I will never refuse the dua of a fasting person!
NO XENOPHOBIA!
I may not be xenophobic in telling this, further no way close to being seditious, but un-checked migration can really threaten a city's culture and perhaps, can even threaten the locals' rights to education & Work. I am very sad @ saying this:" Hyd may soon fall in the same category". We have a glaring example of Bombay.But as the theory goes " The fittest of all survive", so be it. I know that its always good to have a healthy competition!!! Way to go boys, way to go......
I may not be xenophobic in telling this, further no way close to being seditious, but un-checked migration can really threaten a city's culture and perhaps, can even threaten the locals' rights to education & Work. I am very sad @ saying this:" Hyd may soon fall in the same category". We have a glaring example of Bombay.But as the theory goes " The fittest of all survive", so be it. I know that its always good to have a healthy competition!!! Way to go boys, way to go......
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