It was nothing wanting a “dream come true” second for Rajeev Arikkatt, an Indian expat within the UAE when he gained 15 million dirhams (roughly Rs 33 crore) within the Big-Ticket Abu Dhabi weekly draw.
As per a report by Khaleej Times, Mr Arikkatt had excessive hopes of successful this time, provided that he bought a complete of six tickets for the draw.
However, this win got here as an entire shock for Mr Arikkatt, because it was the complimentary ticket, quantity 037130, which secured his victory.
Mr Arikkatt received his successful ticket as a freebie throughout raffle draw quantity 260.
Now allow us to check out who Rajeev Arikkatt is.
– Rajeev Arikkatt, who hails from Kerala in India, works at an architectural agency within the UAE metropolis of Al Ain.
– The 40-year-old, who purchased the lottery ticket on January 10, has been dwelling within the UAE for greater than 10 years.
– The architectural draftsman lives along with his spouse and their two youngsters—5 years outdated and eight years outdated.
– Mr Arikkatt has been taking part within the Big Ticket attracts for the previous three years.
– This time round, the first-time lottery winner alongside along with his spouse determined to pick the tickets with numbers 7 and 13, that are the start dates of their youngsters.
Talking about his victory, in dialog with the Khaleej Times, Mr Arikkatt mentioned, “I have been residing in Al Ain for more than 10 years. I have been purchasing tickets for the past 3 years. This is the first time I have won a lottery. This time, me and my wife selected tickets with numbers 7 and 13, which are the birth dates of our children. Two months ago, I missed Dh1 million by a whisker with the same combination, but this time I was fortunate.”
Describing his emotions after the massive announcement, he added, “I was speechless. I couldn’t describe the feelings in words. I recognised Richard’s voice, as I had been listening to it for years. I knew he called the winners, but I never imagined it was the first prize. It was a surprise. This is a life-changing moment, not just for me but for others in our group.”