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 Qatar British Business Forum (QBBF) held its first-ever “Golf Day” at Doha Golf Club. Around 30 members participated in the tournament, which had Gulf Contracting Company (GCC) as the PRO sponsor. Additionally there was a golf clinic for learners and improvers where Doha Golf Club coach Jeff Mathews, British PGA, guided around 10 participants through the basics of the sport. GCC and its specialist divisions Al Manjara Joinery, and Interspace and Spacemaker, along with QBBF provided the golfers with golf balls, caps and medals. QBBF’s vice-chairwoman Carly-Jane Figgis greeted the participants. GCC general manager Grahame McCaig distributed medals to the winners: First place went to Danny Langfield, guest of Doha British School, second place was awarded to Andrew Salmon from Al Manjara Joinery, and third place went to Rory McGettigan from Dan Bolton Creative Management Agency. Raksha Nair from Marsh was awarded ‘Most Promising Newcomer’ following the golf clinic session. This year QBBF, with over 300 members, has been adding new activities into its event calendar, along with its customary business lunches and evening networking gatherings. Clay Pigeon shooting was held at the Olympic standard range at Lusail Shooting Club in February, followed by a high-tea earlier this month at the National Museum of Qatar to celebrate International Women’s Day.    

The Engineers Cup Season 2 organised by Keralite Engineers Forum as part of World Engineering Day celebration was won by Zero Gravity which beat RSB 2-0. Prizes were handed over by Indian Sports Centre president Dr Mohan Thomas, title sponsor Castle Constructions CEO Mibu Jose and gold sponsor Arcelona Contracting managing partner Sherin Thomas. Indian Business and Professionals Forum president Jaffer Sadik and Engineers Forum members witnessed the final match. A total of 14 teams competed in the tournament which ran from March 4 to 11.    

The two-weeks long sporting event organised by Qatar Indian Social Forum (QISF) as part of the Qatar National Sport Day and Azadi Ka Mahotsav – India at 75 celebrations concluded recently with an array of sports contests at the Al Jazeera Academy. The meet has been rebranded as the Mohammed Sabih Bukhari Memorial Cup. Sofia Bukhari and Saima Sabih Bukhari received the salutes at the march past in the morning session presided by QISF president Ayyub Ullal. VOLIQ Doha, Hassanesco-A, SAK Qatar, Social Forum Karnataka and Social Forum Wakrah emerged winners in volleyball, kabaddi, tug-of-war, football and march past, respectively. The evening session inaugurated by Indian embassy first secretary Suman Sonkar saw felicitations for the winners. Various community leaders and dignitaries including Dr C K Abdulla, Dr Sayyid Jafri, Afroz Ahmad Dawar, Sajjad Aalam, Fayas Ahmad, Mashood Thiruthiyad, Abdulla Moinu, Sakeena Razaq, Mumthaz Husain, Shanib, Shameer and Nishas attended the closing ceremony. QISF general secretary Saeed Kommachi proposed a vote of thanks.    

Having completed five Seasons successfully Asian Premier League (APL) has launched it’s 6th Season recently and unveiled the trophy. The current season will be played with 20 teams comprising of all Asian nationals. There will be 12 Teams for morning sessions and eight for afternoon sessions divided into five groups.The top two teams from each group will qualify for knockout stage. The participating teams are Ain Stars CC, Al Tais C M C, All Stars Cricket Club, Asian XI, Basit XI, BD Bullets, Classic Mangalore, CVS United, Delta Fighters, Doha Risers, Hridoy Bangladesh, KRCC, Leaders Qatar, MBC, MYCQ, NCC,Sea Birds Qatar, Team Telugu, United Spartans, XI Brothers. The draws were conducted Online and streamed live on Facebook and YouTube. The managing committee members of APL – Afzal Khatib, Mujtaba Hussain, Mohammed Ali, Rashed, Imran Shareef, Saif Ali, Shafait Nader, Shabbir Ahmed and Shaan were present. APL president Mohammed Sayeed welcomed all the participating teams and expressed gratitude to patrons.    

      Division G of District 116, Qatar, of Toastmasters International conducted its annual conference – SynerG 2022 - recently on the Zoom platform. The two-day conference included a series of events, such as Toastmasters speech contests in four categories - Humorous, Evaluation, Table Topics and International speech, Banner Parade, dignitaries’ address and an entertainment segment. The online extravaganza had hundred-plus attendees on both days. Champion speakers who had earlier won at the club and area levels competed for the division championship. The first-place winners will represent the division at the District Toastmasters Annual Conference (DTAC) to be conducted on May 13 and 14 at the Torch Doha. The winner of the International speech contest will proceed to compete further up to the international championship to be conducted in the month of August. The winners who will represent Division G in the grand finale, DTAC 2022 (District 116 Toastmasters Annual Conference) are Toastmasters Jacintha Mani, Malathy Sudararaj, Mou Bera and Rinku Saha in the Evaluation, Humorous, Table Topics and International speech contests, respectively. The virtual Banner Parade was hosted by Toastmasters Deepti Potnis and Diana May Tangente. Many dignitaries, including district trio Manzoor Moideen, Rajesh V C, Ravishankar J, past district directors Thayalan K, Sundaresan Rajeswar and other district leaders graced the occasion. The entertainment segment was hosted by Nalini Mathur. Earlier, Division G director Alar Mel Mangai, who was instrumental in organising the event, inaugurated the meeting officially and welcomed the audience. Conference chair Bindu Pillai and her SynerG Task Force comprising Toastmasters Shameer P H, Salman Hilmi, Nazik Cader, Felipe Catinoy, Abdul Muthalib, Aysha Shaheena, Michelle Macaraig, Ritu Maheswari, Rihan Rahman, Fawzan Faiz, Yvonne Cabang, Mohd Azeez, Sham Sundar, Swapna Raghuraman and many others contributed to the smooth conduct of the event. Curtains came down after the winners' announcements with the thanking note by the division director.    

Telangana Jagruthi Qatar celebrated the International Women's Day (IWD) on March 10 at Ashoka Hall, Indian Cultural Centre (ICC). Suman Sonkar, first secretary (head of chancery), and Padma Karri, first secretary (political & information), at the Indian embassy were the chief guest and guest of honour, respectively. Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awardee and Indian Sports Centre (ISC) president Dr Mohan Thomas, ICC president P N Babu Rajan, ICC general secretary Krishna Kumar Bandhakavi and ICC Advisory Council chairman K S Prasad Rao were the distinguished guests. Present on the occasion were Telugu Kala Samithi president Tataji Vusirikala, Andhra Kala Vedika president Venkappa Bhagavatula and Telangana Gulf Samithi president Shanker Goud. Under Nandini Abbagouni, president of Telangana Jagruthi Qatar, the celebrations were held with the theme 'Women in leadership for an inclusive world'. As part of the programme, women community leaders Kuldeep Kaur Bahl, treasurer of the Indian Community Benevolent Forum (ICBF); V Rajani Murthy, head of medical assistance and camps, ICBF; ICC Advisory Council members Jayati B Maitra, Sonal Sharma, Zakia Bilgrami Farookhi and Dr Harsha Bhatia were felicitated along with Vidya Menon, Vani and Radha, who were also felicitated as a mark of respect for their spouses' achievements. The celebrations included some beauty contests. 'Sampradaa, extraordiNAREE in SAREE' for women and 'Butta Bomma' for girls were held to promote traditional and famous Indian garments, which witnessed enthusiastic and wide participation. The contest judges were women and child development specialist Suma Mahesh Gowda and fashion entrepreneur Sunaina Kanumarlapudi. Also, an art competition and cultural performances were presented, depicting the importance of women's empowerment.    

The Nepal Engineers' Association (NEA) Qatar Centre held its 10th general assembly recently. President Arjun Prasad Bhattarai presided. Nepal embassy's deputy chief of mission, Lakshman Khanal, was the chief guest. Padam Narayan Sah and Pradip Kumar Jha were the special guests. NEA first vice president Safdar Imam welcomed the gathering. Acting general secretary Ram lshwar Yadav presented the activities report and treasurer Daniel Ahamed presented the financial report for 2020-2022. Padam Narayan Sah, co-ordinator of the advisory committee and selection committee commissioner for the assembly, spoke. The programme was hosted by Kulchandra Basnet and Jwala Shahi. The new executive committee for 2022-2024 was announced subsequently. They are: president, Safdar Imam, first vice president, Mohammad Ayub, second vice president, Mohammad Nurain, third vice president, Kul Chandra Basnet, general secretary, Ram Ishwar Yadav, secretary, Jwala Shahi. The committee members are: Shyam Nandan Mahato, Mohammed Chand, Md. Abdullah Aajam, Jibachh Raut Kurmi, Abdul Samad, Prabin Kumar Shrestha, Satish Kumar Yadav, Manindra Kumar Ray, Roshan Kumar Sah.    

Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) feted MES Indian School principal Hameeda Kadar, for completing three decades in the education field. The ceremony on International Women’s Day had Indian ambassador Dr Deepak Mittal's wife Dr Alpana as the chief guest. Educationists Meenal Bakshi, Pramila Kanan, Asha Shiju and HOPE Qatar co-ordinator Geeta Shohi Isaac were the other guests. Kamla Thakur welcomed the gathering. Shweta Koshti conceptualised and executed the event. Dr Alpana and ICC president P N BabuRajan spoke. On behalf of ICC, a memento was presented by Dr Alpana to Kadar. Suma Mahesh Gowda, the master of ceremony, presented Walk the Talk by Sheroes, depicting women achievers in all walks of life from India.    

Indian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (IIQS) - Qatar conducted its fourth CPD of 2022 event on the topic ‘Integrated Project Delivery in Construction, A collaborative Approach’ presented by Ahmad Ali al-Ansari, adviser, Ashghal, the Public Works Authority of Qatar. He delivered a comprehensive presentation citing practical examples of some of the major challenges encountered in the construction industry across Qatar. Al-Ansari presented an outstanding note with many useful suggestions evolved from his vast work experience on how such challenges can be tackled through co-operation between various authorities, contractors, and employers. His presentation mainly focused on successful project deliveries through adopting a collaborating approach between the contractors and employers thereby leading to a win-win situation. The event was attended by various members of IIQS Qatar, Indian Business and Professionals Council (IBPC) Qatar representatives and construction professionals. A Q&A session followed the presentation. IBPC Qatar president Jaffer Sadik was the chief guest. The programme was guided by Nidhi. Avinash Gaikwad welcomed IIQS - Qatar president Kiran proposed a vote of thanks.    

Area 8 of Division B, District 116, Qatar, of Toastmasters International recently conducted the annual Area 8 annual speech contest on the Zoom platform. The contest was conducted in four categories - humorous speech, international speech, impromptu speech and evaluation speech. Area 8 comprises four clubs - NIA Hindi Club, Zeal Club, Marathi Club and RISE Club. The first two winners from all these clubs participated in the Area 8 contest. Area 8 director Anjali Pimple conducted the contest with the help of contest manager June Sabadisto, a team of around 10 role players and an anonymous panel of judges. The contest was attended by more than 50 Toastmasters in the presence of Division B director Anita Samantha, CGD Ravishankar J, district administrative manager Sabeena M K, past DBD Riana Pinto, past A8D Chandrashekhar Dudhe and Toastmasters from District 116. The winners of the Area 8 contest will take part in the Division B virtual contest today. Toastmasters International is a worldwide not-for-profit organisation that helps individuals develop communication and leadership skills.    

In celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD), PwC Qatar collaborated with Women of Qatar and hosted a panel to highlight this year’s IWD theme – ‘Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow’ featuring several Qatari female entrepreneurs. The panel was the first of a series and provided an opportunity to highlight and celebrate the contributions of Qatari entrepreneurs to various industries and efforts in building a more sustainable ecosystem for women in entrepreneurship. The panel discussed each of the panelists journeys, the challenges they faced, and how they overcame them. The session featured a diverse panel of accomplished women from across sectors in Qatar which was moderated by Al Jawhara Al Thani from Women of Qatar. The panelists included Shams Al Qassabi owner and founder of AlShomous Products/Shay Al Shomous and AlShomous Products Factory  and the first businesswoman to own a shop and a restaurant in Souq WaqifAsmaa Al Kuwari, a prominent life coach. During the session, the female entrepreneurs discussed the opportunities and challenges in the industry for rising female businesswomen and reflected on the importance of unleashing the knowledge and capability of women that are essential in driving and leading change. Representing PwC Qatar Firas Sleiman, Partner and Technology, Digital & Cyber Leader said: “Entrepreneurship is a challenging field for both men and women, with women historically facing unique cultural and societal challenges that they must overcome. Despite these hurdles, we have seen the relentless efforts, growth and success of Qatari women in breaking all the barriers, ensuring their entrepreneurial triumphs, and bringing the much needed balance to the workplace.” During the panel, Al Jawhara Al Thani commented: “At ‘Women of Qatar’ everyday is women's day. Thanks to PwC’s support we are able to create our first joint event which will help us fulfill one of our main goals, that is to create a stronger community amongst women in Qatar via an insightful panel discussion with inspiring and entrepreneurial Qatari women." Commenting on her career path, Asmaa Al Kuwari said, “Since life coaching was not a popular career choice, I faced several obstacles and one of them was the ability and the motivation to raise awareness of life coaching and how it can be beneficial and an essential part of people’s lives. I remember, we were only 3 or 4 local life coaches at the time and now they are growing at a rapid pace which proves there is willingness to change and adapt.”   “Business has been in my blood since I was a child, and if I did not have the support of other women around me, I would not be able to be one of the first Qatari recipe developers and the first businesswoman to own a shop and a restaurant in Souq Waqif. No journey is free from challenges and difficulties, but the end result of success makes it all worthwhile,” said Shams Al Qassabi.

Pakistan community members held their bi-monthly gathering during which various issues and upcoming events were discussed. Frequent meetings after lifting of Covid-19 precautions have made it easy for community leaders to meet and discuss different matters related to the upcoming major sporting events. The participation of volunteers has also been improving as the community leaders are urging the young generation to signup and participate in all upcoming events. The community members praised Qatar and all its efforts for the residents of Qatar to tackle Covid-19, keeping up with its sporting commitments. In 2022, Qatar will be hosting over 50 sporting events highlighting its role as a global sporting hub. “Pakistani community members have been working diligently to shore up support for FIFA volunteering activities, and spreading awareness for the upcoming major sporting events in Qatar with full commitment of participation at all levels,” a leader said.

The Board of Directors of Toastmasters International appointed Rajeswar Sundaresan, a senior Toastmaster from Qatar, as the 2022-2023 adviser for Region 11 supporting Qatar, UAE, Saudi, Oman, Labonan, Jordan, and Pakistan. He will serve a 15-month term through June 2023. Region adviser is a volunteer position to serve as a mentor to guide and support the districts while helping increase their capacity to build membership and new clubs. They are also an essential link between the Districts and World Headquarters. With Toastmasters for over 20 years, Sundaresan is a distinguished Toastmaster. He is the first district director for Qatar and led the district as the first-ever Smedly Distinguished and Number 1 in the world in 2019 out of 143 countries. He was programme quality director for Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain, and has held many leadership positions. Sundaresan is the group head of internal audit with Teyseer Group of companies, Qatar.

*The presentation dealt with the critical elements required for a startup The Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) Youth Wing has held a workshop on unicorns, inviting a person who could shed light on the process, requirements and roadmap to reach the goal of becoming an entrepreneur. Unicorn is a term used in the venture capital industry to describe a privately held startup company with a value of over $1bn. "Unicorn is the buzzword across the globe and many successful businessmen reached the pinnacle of being called unicorns who attained a $1bn turnover," the ICC said in a statement. The person invited was Cyril Anand, a strategist, presenter and motivational speaker. ICC Managing Committee member Mohan Kumar welcomed the gathering, while general secretary Krishna Kumar Bandhakavi introduced Anand to the audience and invited him to conduct the workshop. ICC president P N Babu Rajan presented a memento appreciating the efforts of Anand, thanking him for the time given to the ICC Youth Wing initiative. ICC vice-president Subramanya Hebbagelu proposed the vote of thanks. The presentation dealt with the critical elements required for startup, the pros and cons with many examples of success stories and the not so successful ones with apt reasoning. At the end of the presentation, the workshop attendees asked relevant queries, to which Anand replied with facts, figures, and examples.

A warm farewell was accorded to longtime Qatar residents and Indian nationals, M V George and his wife Rachel George (seated), at a recent meeting held in Mansoura. The couple has been in Qatar for more than three decades during which they have been very active in social work, extending succour to many in need. Participants in the meeting fondly recounted anecdotes of their association with the George family and thanked them for their help. George is a founder-member of the Adoor Association-Qatar chapter.

Our Kitchen Garden Doha, an organisation supporting organic farming in Qatar, celebrated Harvest Festival Season- 8 recently. The festival started with the theme song of 'Kitchen Garden' and was inaugurated virtually by southern Indian state Kerala's Agriculture Minister P Prasad. Kerala Karshakashree 2022 Bhuvaneswari Amma was the special guest. Our Kitchen Garden Doha general secretary Jiji Aravind, welcomed the gathering. Founder member Ambhara Pavithran announced the 'Karshakaratna' Award for Bhuvaneswari Amma. She received the award from Dr Sudhodhanan. The winners of the first ever Young Farmer Award for school children in Qatar were announced at the event. Dr Suddhodhanan and Agri Qatar marketing manager Mohamed Shafiq spoke. Executive member Madhavikutty proposed a vote of thanks. Managing committee members Benny Thomas, Siros Raveendran, Anil, Ramla Samad, Suraj, Jawahar, Yasser and Razia led the function.    

The Indian Institute of Quantity Surveyors - Qatar Chapter (IIQS-Qatar), associated with Indian Business and Professionals Council, under the aegis of the Indian embassy, conducted its Third Continuing Professional Development (CPD) event of 2022 recently. Joseph Lee and Katie Bremner, of Pinsent Masons, Qatar, delivered a CPD presentation on the topic 'Qatar in 2022 – Trends in Claims in the Lead up to the World Cup.' The speakers apprised the current and the future expected trends in claims including acceleration claims and injunctive reliefs. IIQS-Qatar vice president Ahamed Zubair moderated the event. President Kiran Kumar Podakanti welcomed the attendees. Newly-elected members were presented with membership certificates from IIQS Global Board.    

Dahra Global Technologies & Consultancy Services, a one-stop service provider in defence and security in Qatar, conducted its Interdepartmental Cricket Championship 2022 recently. In a closely contested final, Team Hawks beat Team Oryx and was crowned winners for the second consecutive year. Cdr Anish Thakur (Retd), Cdr MP Felix (Retd) and Sajan Babu were declared top three performers of the tournament. In a closing ceremony, Cdr. Purnendu Tiwary (Retd), managing director, highlighted the importance of sports in maintaining good health, having a good work life balance and camaraderie amongst all employees.    

Engineers Forum Qatar (the apex body of engineers from Kerala, India, affiliated to the Indian Business and Professionals Council under the aegis of the Indian embassy) is organising the Pacific Ocean Electrical Switch Gear EF Professional Cup Sevens Football Tournament 2022 for 24 professional college teams from India. The tournament, which began on Thursday at the Hamilton International School Grounds, will continue till April 1.    

MES Indian School hosted an impressive ceremony recently to welcome the 50thAmir Cup trophy tour. School president K Abdul Karim unveiled the trophy. A welcome dance followed by a fusion of Arabic cultural dance, a soccer performance by the students and a students' parade of the 17 clubs participating in Amir Cup 2022 were among the highlights. A giant replica of the Amir Cup Qatar 2022 trophy was also displayed at the school grounds. Among those who witnessed the welcome ceremony were Fadalah Ibrahim Fadalah, social responsibility expert; Mohamed Hashim Sulaiman, logistics officer; Abdulla al-Mansoori, private schools education consultant, office of the assistant undersecretary for private education; MES Indian School officials Khaleel A P, Ahamed Isham, Ashraf Sharafudheen, principal Hameeda Kadar, and MES alumni official Shaheen Mohamed Shafi. Earlier head prefect Jeswin Binu Chacko welcomed the gathering and Sehla Kabir proposed a vote of thanks.