from the desk

Another catastrophe in Doha; another incident that calls into question safety in public places, the rules and the enforcement of those rules; but all of this introspection, sadly, comes only after an accident that took the lives of 11 people and left 35 injured.

The tragedy – an explosion at a restaurant within a petrol station located near Land-mark Mall – blew wide open the pertinent issue of safety at petrol stations. It brought back into focus earlier mishaps: a filling station on C-ring road recently witnessed the caving in of its floor, as did another one near The Mall. While the partly state-owned Woqod petrol stations do seem to follow a standard design with safety features in place, the older-style petrol stations are more commercial complexes than filling sta-tions. As we wait for the final verdict on the cause of the blast at the restaurant, let us start by implementing safety norms within our homes, instilling a culture of safety in our kids, and hope that this will be continued across all spheres of life.

Meanwhile, the construction sector in the country is heating up. Infrastructure proj-ects are at a busy juncture, with March showing all the signs of shaping up to be a dif-ficult month for Doha commuters, with two temporary closures of parts of the Cor-niche. But traffic woes are going to become a regular feature of life in Qatar, with the pace of construction to intensify in the years to come. In less than a year from now 15 huge high-tech tunnel-boring machines will plough through the land beneath for the Doha Metro project. These are exciting times, indeed, for Dohaites as the country gets ready for the 2022 World Cup, and a critical issue at a time of such high-intensity construction activity should be safety for all.

Qatar Today 's March issue keeps track of all the relevant issues; the sukuk market’s record year for Islamic bond sales; the importance of renewables in our energy mix; the American education institution Carnegie Mellon celebrating 10 years of operat-ing a Qatar campus; the ground-breaking technology insights of the Qatar Science and Technology Park; and another interesting breakthrough by the Qatar Computing and Research Institute (QCRI) to help humanitarian workers in times of disaster.

It was ironic that as the entire nation grieved over the untimely death of 11 unsuspect-ing expats, close by at the Qatar National Convention Center the Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition carried on with business as usual. The exhibition is now one of the biggest of such shows globally, and does considerable amount of business in the small country where it is hosted. Luxury seems to be a staple in Doha even when tragedy strikes at close quarters.

SINDHU NAIR