''Still Shocked'': Indian Driver Working In UAE Wins Rs 44 Crore Lottery On New Year

A private driver from India working in Al Ain, UAE, had a glorious start to the new year after he won the jackpot prize of 20 million UAE Dirhams (Approximately Rs 44 crore) at the Big Ticket Live draw on December 31. According to Gulf News, Munavar Fairoos was named the lucky winner at the Series 259 Big Ticket Live draw. 

Mr Fairoos who has been buying tickets every month for the past five years, was shocked to learn of his big win. However, is not the sole winner of the amount. He will share the prize money among 30 individuals who contributed to the purchase of the ticket.

“I'm not sure yet because I did not expect this to happen. I'm still shocked and will need to take some time to think about my options,” he told Big Ticket organizers when he received a call from them. 

Apart from Mr Fairoos, 10 other people of Indian, Palestinian, Lebanese, and Saudi Arabian nationalities took home cash prizes worth 100,000 UAE Dirhams.

On the same day, another Indian, Suthesh Kumar Kumaresan was named the fourth weekly e-draw winner for December, taking home 1 million UAE Dirhams, which amounts to approximately INR 22,668,500. Mr Kumaresan is an engineer for Etihad Airways and resides in Abu Dhabi. 

He told Khaleej Times that he always stops by the in-store counters at Abu Dhabi International Airport to buy his tickets each time he travels.

''It was my seven-year-old daughter who chose the winning ticket numbers. My family is very excited about the win. We bought a home in India and plan to use the money to pay off the interest,” he told Big Ticket's representatives.

Last year, Bengaluru resident, Arun Kumar Vatakke Koroth hit the jackpot during the Big Ticket's draw series number 250 held in Abu Dhabi. Mr Koroth won the grand prize of Dh20 million (Rs 44,75,67,571) with his ticket number 261031, bought in March 2023.