In 1967, at the age of 19, I embarked on the journey to UAE (at the time it was called the Trucial States) in search of better job prospects. I had just completed my diploma course in civil engineering from the Government Polytechnic College in Calicut (where I hail from) and the ‘Gulf’ dream was slowly appealing to a lot of youngsters like me. My uncle PK Mohammed who was running a business in Abu Dhabi, had sent me a visa.
On February 3, I arrived in Dubai. I still can’t remember if the chill that went down my spine was due to the wind or my excitement. The voyage from Bombay to Dubai in a ship called Dwaraka took five days. Since there was no port in Dubai, we had to take a boat to get to the shore from the ship that was anchored out in the sea. Most of the stuff that I had brought along with me – which included delicacies from Kerala like halwa, banana chips and other food stuffs – couldn’t be loaded into the boat as there was no space.
When I finally reached the shore, I realised I had no money to pay the porter for some of the bags I did manage to take with me. Sensing my anxiety, a kind gentleman gave me three Bahraini Dinars to pay the porter. The same evening, I travelled with my uncle to Abu Dhabi in a car. There were no paved roads along the way, only tracks.
On the 17th day after my arrival, I got a job as a surveyor in a company called Arabicon Associated Consultants who were in charge of the Abu Dhabi – Al Ain highway and also the town planners of both the cities. Coincidentally, the kind man who had lent me money at the boat was also working in the same company. There was no electricity in the place where I lived, and we had to use a petromax (a kind of lantern) at night. Since there was no fan, we had to sleep outside but it was pleasant at that time as it was pretty cool.
A year later, I was transferred to Al Ain as a surveyor. My work included calculations related to the highway, earthwork, elevations, horizontal and vertical alignment, transition curves, setting out and checking roundabouts, T-junctions, etc.
We were provided with good accommodation and food. We also had all facilities including a huge general generator in the premises which supplied electricity. There were very few asphalt roads at the time including the clock tower road and the Jimi to Hili road.
Soon I applied for a job in Al Ain Municipality Town Planning Department. I was selected and joined the department in February 1969 as a surveyor. After a few years I was promoted to Head of the Survey Section. The Director of our department was a certain gentleman named Dr Abdul Rahman Makhlouf. He had been appointed by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan to plan the cities of Abu Dhabi and Dubai from 1968 to 1976.
Meeting the visionary leader
During this period, I had the honour of meeting Sheikh Zayed several times at his guest house for the town planning and development matters. He was an exceptional visionary and a great leader who wanted to achieve phenomenal success for the country. We used to roll out the plans on the floor of the majlis and he would explain his ideas with great accuracy. Once I was with him while he was visiting the marketplace. When he saw that a huge tree had been cut down to make way for a road and he was very upset. A staunch protector of the indigenous environment, he made it clear that as far as possible we were not to cut down trees when building roads and insisted that if need be, plans should be changed to protect the ecology. Such was his dedication to protect the indigenous environment.
I was also fortunate enough to participate on the first anniversary of Sheikh Zayed’s accession on August 6, 1967. An arch was made through which Sheikh Zayed came in a car and waved his ceremonial sword at the crowd. I was lucky enough to capture this moment on camera. Coloured photos could only be developed in UK back then, so I had to create my own darkroom to develop my photos.
Foundation of Education
By the 70s the Indian community in Al Ain was growing and there were no proper educational facilities for the children of expatriates. A few of us decided we had to do something about it. Thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of a few philanthropists, The Indian School, Al Ain had its modest origin with 13 kids and a single teacher, at the rented premises in Kuwaitat area in Al Ain. As the number of students began to increase the school was shifted to different localities.
In 1982, we appealed to the government and with the assistance of the then Ambassador Lalit Mansingh, Sheikh Zayed allotted a plot of land in the Manaseer area. We then had the gargantuan task of constructing our own building. By 1984, we realised that dream and the next year itself we got CBSE affiliation making it the first CBSE school in Al Ain. All my three children studied in this school.
Since 1992, I have been serving as the General Secretary of the Indian School. With its own building and infrastructure, it houses three blocks: primary, boys section and girls. Today, we have more than 2,000 students and a full-fledged science department with labs for physics, chemistry, biology and computer. For extra curricular activities there is a turf football court, synthetic track and basketball ground.
The eternal Garden City
Al Ain holds a special place in my heart because it has grown very organically to be a wonderful place to live. Over the years, we have hosted many friends and family from other emirates who come to Al Ain whenever they want a break from their bustling city lives. After serving the municipality for 38 years, I retired from the Municipality in 2007 as the head of the Cadastral department. But I still shuttle between my hometown and Al Ain as I am actively involved with the activities of the school and this place is my second home. In fact I have even named my house back in Calicut as Al Ain.
The planning of Al Ain is different from other cities in UAE. All government offices are in the Civic area and all schools are in Manaseer. To maintain the quaint charm of a homely town, buildings are not supposed to be taller than 19meters (except five-star hotels and government offices). Then we have Jebel Hafeet and the Green Mubazara and lot of other natural attractions.
Though not known to many, there are a few firsts the city can boast of. In 1976, the UAE’s first university was started in Al Ain. It also houses the first amusement park, the Al Ain Fun City in Hili.
Currently I am enjoying my retired life with my wife Ummayya. My elder son Sameer is an Event Manager at CNBC. He lives in Dubai with his wife Ramida and two children Ahlam and Arsh. Rizwan, a manager at Oracle, lives in Qatar with his wife Sherin and kids Afiya and Aliya. The youngest, Jamshid is a director at Cognizant and lives in USA with his wife Safa and kids Aliza and Imran.
On the Golden Jubilee year of the UAE, I feel proud to have rendered my services in the town planning of this wonderful country and I hope Al Ain city will reach wonderful heights while retaining its position as the Garden City of UAE.
