The co-existence of various communities in Bhatkal should be example for rest of India: Ateeq Muniri
►Muniri facilitated chartered flight for stranded Kannadigas from UAE to Mangaluru on June 11, and has two more scheduled
Bhatkal: Amidst the coronavirus crisis globally, the Indian government initiated an operation under the name 'Vande Bharat' to expatriate Indians stranded across the global.
However the non-resident Kannadigas especially those in middle-east countries repeatedly complained that they were feeling left out from the operation and the government is unable to facilitate their expatriation to their home state.
Taking note of the plights of the stranded Kannadigas, a few noted businessmen came forward and offered help to them by arranging chartered flights free of cost or at minimal costing. They co-ordinated with the authorities and government to help Indians stranded in gulf countries return back to India.
The list also includes private entities like SAQCO which expatriated over 170 Kannadigas from Saudi Arabia who were awaiting their return to home owing to various emergencies back home.
Another businessman Ateequr Rahman Muniri who is the chairman of Nuha General Trading in Dubai also facilitated similar act of expatriating stranded Indians from UAE. Chartered flight arranged by Muniri, landed at Mangaluru Airport on June 11 with 184 passengers who had medical emergencies and other needs for their urgent return.
Vartha Bharati, spoke to Ateequr Rahman Muniri, for an exclusive interview wherein he informed that he has arranged for two more chartered flights in the coming days, one of which will land at Mangaluru Airport on June 23.
Here are the excerpts from the interview:
Q: Please tell us something about your business and the background you come from.
A: I am Ateequr Rahman Muniri, I initially worked in KSA for 12 years before moving to UAE, where I currently have business of promoting Indian Basmati Rice throughout GCC. This results in generating huge revenue to India by export.
Q: People have been lauding your efforts in facilitating the expatriation of so many stranded people from UAE to their home state. How did you come up with a plan like this personally?
A: The whole COVID pandemic had a huge impact on me personally. I was upset reading and hearing about the stories of stranded fellow men. There were pregnant women, aged people, handicaps, patients and others who needed immediate assistance. There were also people who had lost jobs due to the pandemic and were going through financial difficulties. So I thought I should step in and help people with whatever little I can do for them.
Q: How did the whole process pan out? How many people were involved in making this a successful operation?
A: The vision was not easy. I had never been a part of anything like this before. But then, I had made my mind to go far it. And with a team of a lot of my community members and with Allah's will we did it.
Q: How were the passengers who would take the flight shortlisted?
A: It was a challenge to shortlist passengers. But as they say, nothing is impossible. Once you decide to do something, you do it. There were a few criterias that we followed to ease the process and the needs and urgency of people to go back to India were given priority.
Q: Do you think the government neglected NRIs in Gulf while allocating flights under Vande Bharat?
A: I won't say they neglected us. They too have a lot of challenges in situations like these. They were happy to allow us facilitate chartered flights. They helped us and that clears their intentions. That's what I believe.
Q: Where do you think the government could've done better?
A: State like Kerala has taken very good initiatives for their NRIs. I believe if our governments would take similar steps that it would've been very much appreciatiable.
Q: You hail from Bhatkal which is known for some wrong reasons in the media. What are your opinions on that?
A: I am a proud Bhatkally Indian. The negative image is created by media only to butter their bread. Most of the Indians are gentle and peace loving. We also have very pleasant and peaceful atmosphere here in Bhatkal which also has a huge population of non-Muslims. The two communities co-exists so beautifully, that it can set examples for every other place of the country. In our first flight, there were non-Muslims too, we did not discriminate on any lines.
Attequr Rahman who is also the vice-president of local socio-political organization Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem concluded adding that his gesture was transpired by another Bhatkally businessman and community SM Khaleelur Rahman, who Muniri said guided him throughout.
Two more flights arranged by Muniri will arrive at Mangaluru Airport on June 23 and July 3 frim Ras-Al-Khaima.
He also pointed that, people who were from well-to-do background and were able to afford were urged to pay 1050 AED but were not forced to or compulsorily charged. He also added that the rest of the amount was paid by his company.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
