A life-changing moment arrived for Thajudeen Kunju, a resident of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, India, as he became the latest Big Ticket millionaire after winning the grand prize of Dh25 million in Series 274 of the popular Abu Dhabi-based draw.

Thajudeen purchased the lucky ticket (#306638) on April 18, and his name was announced during the live draw held in Abu Dhabi on Friday. Despite repeated attempts, Big Ticket organisers were unable to reach him by phone to share the exciting news.

The April edition of the Big Ticket draw offered a guaranteed jackpot of Dh25 million, continuing its reputation as a platform that turns dreams into reality for participants from around the world.

In addition to the grand prize, four other winners, Abdul Mannan, Aquline Verita, Meena Koshy, and Saifuddin Koonari, were selected through the Big Win Contest and invited to attend the live draw. Each of them walked away with cash prizes.

Throughout April, Big Ticket also ran weekly e-draws, awarding Dh150,000 each to five winners as part of its monthly promotions.

A Filipino nurse based in Dubai has been named one of the top 10 finalists for the prestigious Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award 2025, a global recognition that honours nurses making extraordinary contributions to healthcare worldwide.

Fitz Gerald Dalina Camacho, a nurse educator who has been working in the UAE for the past 11 years, was selected from more than 100,000 nominations across 199 countries. He now stands a chance to win the grand prize of $250,000 (Dh918,000), with the winner to be announced at a gala event in Dubai on May 26.

Camacho has led several healthcare initiatives aimed at improving hospital safety and medical education in the UAE. His achievements include launching the Life Support Training Centre in collaboration with the American Heart Association, developing adult and paediatric nursing upskilling programmes, and establishing a Continuous Medical Education (CME) Programme.

This is the fourth edition of the award presented by Aster DM Healthcare, one of the UAE’s leading healthcare groups.

Filipino nurses have consistently stood out in this competition. Last year, fellow Filipino Maria Victoria Juan won the top prize for developing an evacuation system that boosted survival rates in disaster and conflict zones.

This year’s winner will be selected through a final round of jury interviews and public voting. Camacho is the only finalist from the UAE.

Who are the other finalists?

The finalists for this year come from across the globe and include nurses leading programmes in areas like gender-based violence response, telehealth for the elderly, cancer research, and mental health support. They represent countries including Papua New Guinea, Kenya, India, the US, Malaysia, Ghana, Switzerland, and Hong Kong.

The Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award aims to celebrate the dedication, compassion and leadership of nurses who go above and beyond to make a difference in their communities and the world.

Dubai is embarking on a major transformation of its road network to address traffic congestion, enhance capacity, and support the emirate’s rapid growth. 

As part of the Roads and Transport Authority’s (RTA) 2025–2027 Strategic Plan, the ambitious infrastructure programme includes 57 key projects covering 226 km of roads and 115 bridges and tunnels. These upgrades are designed to accommodate Dubai’s expected population growth, which is projected to reach 8 million by 2040.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, recently visited the RTA to review the progress of these critical road projects. During his visit, he was briefed on the comprehensive plans that aim to ease traffic congestion and improve the overall transportation experience across the city.

Three Major Corridors in the Spotlight

Umm Suqeim–Al Qudra Corridor

• Scope: 16 km corridor from Jumeirah Street to Emirates Road
• Current Status: Phase 1 is 50% complete
• Infrastructure: 7 km of bridges and tunnels across four major junctions
• Capacity: Expanding from 8,400 to 12,600 vehicles per hour
• Travel Time: Will drop from 46 minutes to just 11
• Who It Serves: Over 1 million residents

Hessa Street

• Scope: Upgrades to four key intersections
• Progress: 60% complete, some parts already open
• Infrastructure: 9 km of bridges
• Capacity: Doubling from 4,000 to 8,000 vehicles per hour
• Travel Time: Down from 30 minutes to 7
• Residents Benefited: Around 640,000
• Extra Feature: A new 13.5 km cycling and e-scooter track, with two eye-catching bridges crossing Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Khail Road

Al Fay Road Corridor

• Route: Extending Al Khail Road from Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road to Emirates Road
• Infrastructure: 12.9 km of road and 13.5 km of bridges over five intersections
• Capacity: To support an extra 64,400 vehicles per hour
• Residents Benefited: 600,000 once complete

Quick Wins on Sheikh Zayed Road

Sheikh Zayed Road, one of the city’s busiest arteries, sees 2.5 million users daily. A series of “quick-win” traffic solutions rolled out between January and April this year have already made an impact:

• 5–10% drop in congestion
• 9% cut in traffic volumes after dynamic tolling
• 4% increase in public transport ridership
• 2.3% drop in vehicle use and 1% rise in public transport usage thanks to dynamic parking tariffs

Other Corridors Being Upgraded

• Latifa bint Hamdan Street (Al Khail Road to Emirates Road)
• Al Meydan Street
• Al Mustaqbal Street
• Dubai World Trade Centre roundabout

These projects reflect Dubai’s long-term vision to stay ahead of population growth and maintain smooth traffic flow across key residential and commercial zones.