When Dubai only meant plain sand and the creek

In 1977, when the family made Dubai their home, plain sand and the Dubai creek was all that the eye could see till far.

Twentyeight years down the lane, and the phenomenal growth of Dubai has proved us all wrong. “Dubai’s growth is the vision of the late Shaikh Rashid Al Maktoum, who was a very genuine person,” says Fancy.

“When he laid the foundation stone for Jebel Ali Free Zone, we thought, who is going to visit this place. But we were proved wrong, and today Dubai has more than eight free zones and there is still potential for more,” added Fancy.

Born in 1941 in Kutiyana (undivided British India), Fancy later moved to Pakistan after the partition. Fulfilling his professional duties as executive director with AGF Consultants (FZC) and adviser to Gulf Resources, Emirates Investments Group and Emirates International Holdings, Fancy is a chartered accountant by profession. He joined the Abdul Rahim Al Zarooni Group of Companies in Dubai June 1977 as a group manager, finance-accounts.

“There was no road networking in the emirate at that time. The only number of cars we used to see was two to three and they too were often stuck in the sand,” said Fancy, peeping into the past. Lack of communication also riddled the residents of Dubai.

“The only paper that we got to read was Recorder. It was a cyclostyled kind of newspaper with news cuttings from all over the world,” said Fancy, adding that it was then that Khaleej Times was launched as the first proper newspaper.

“The Pakistani community was made up of a sizeable number of people who were well-settled and well-knit,” he explained. For entertainment purposes, there were hardly any parks. “We used to take the children to Sharjah corniche in the evenings. It was only later that Safa Park came up,” he said.

Among the shopping malls, only Al Ghurair Centre was being constructed while the Trade Centre and Al Mulla Plaza also came up much later.

Explaining, Fancy said at that time video was most popular. “Channel 33 came up much later. People used to watch videos to pass time,” he said.

Security has never been a problem for a fast growing place like Dubai. “Setting up home in Dubai has been an experience of a life time because we have had the opportunity of meeting several people and interacting with different cultures,” he said.

“A reason for this phenomenal growth of Dubai is the way the decisions have been implemented. The implementation here is immediate unlike in other emirates,” said Fancy.

Dubai is a favoured destination because of its close promixity to Pakistan. “Access to our home country is still easier even though we are staying in the UAE,” said Fancy while speaking about travelling.

Fancy also talked at length about the free trade market that the residents of Dubai are enjoying.

“Dubai’s growth is also based on the fact that the country enjoys free trade. We have always had the choice of buying whatever we want and at prices we like,” he said. “The most astonishing fact that I have realised all these years is that the government has made policies which have been shunned by all, but every time we all have been proved wrong and Dubai has grown massively due to these policies,” he concluded.