18 years in Dubai, 2 years of trying luck: Punjab truck driver wins ₹1.23 crore in UAE draw; here's what he said

Punjab truck driver Kulwant Singh, who has lived in Dubai for 18 years, won nearly ₹1.23 crore in Abu Dhabi Big Ticket’s Series 291 with five friends. Kerala engineer Muhammed Ijas C. won approximately ₹24.5 lakh with a number inspired by his son’s birthday. 

A 53-year-old truck driver from Punjab, who has been living in Dubai for 18 years, has won Dh500,000 (approximately ₹1.23 crore) in Abu Dhabi Big Ticket's Series 291, reported Gulf News. He was among five Indian expatriates who collectively received consolation prizes worth Dh1.95 million (around ₹4.78 crore).

Kulwant Singh, who lives with his family in Dubai's Jebel Ali area, has been buying Big Ticket entries for around two years. His monthly participation with a group of five friends finally paid off in the latest draw.

Another winner, Muhammed Ijas C., a 30-year-old engineer from Kerala, won Dh100,000 (approximately ₹24.5 lakh), the report noted.

Kulwant has lived in Jebel Ali since 2008. He said he had been following Big Ticket through online videos for years before deciding to participate around two years ago.

What began as an attempt to try his luck gradually became a monthly routine with five friends. For their latest entry, Kulwant selected a ticket at random, unaware that it would bring the group a prize of Dh500,000 (around ₹1.23 crore).

"I was very happy when I found out that we had won. We purchase tickets together every month, so it was a wonderful feeling to finally receive the good news," he said.

The winnings will be divided among the group. Kulwant said he intends to put his share towards his family's needs and their home.

"I want to use the money for my family and towards our home," he said.

He also intends to continue participating in upcoming Big Ticket draws.

Engineer's winning number inspired by son's birthday

Muhammed Ijas, who has been living in Ajman with his family for seven years, won Dh100,000 (approximately ₹24.5 lakh) with a number chosen for a personal reason.

The Kerala-based engineer came across Big Ticket on Instagram and YouTube around six months ago. He subsequently began entering the draws with a group of 10 people.

For the winning entry, Muhammed combined his son's birthdate and birth year to select the number.

"It was one of the most special moments for me. I had chosen the number based on my son's birthday, so finding out that we had won made it even more meaningful," he said.

The prize will be split among the group, and Muhammed said the result had made everyone happy.

"Everyone in our group is so happy. This win gives all of us a little hope, and that's what makes it special," he said.

Muhammed said he already had a purpose in mind for his share of the prize, spending it on his son. "I want to spend it on my son."

He also confirmed that he and his group plan to continue taking part in future Big Ticket draws.

About the Author

Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers. <br><br> With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations. <br><br> Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’. <br><br> He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune. <br><br> He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food & agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP. <br><br> He can be reached on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/garvit-bhirani">LinkedIn</a> or on <a href="https://x.com/GarvitBhirani">@garvitbhirani</a> on X