₹1.3 crore lottery win! Punjab truck driver in Dubai to share prize with 5 friends

A 53-year-old Indian truck driver from Punjab, who has been living in Dubai for 18 years, has won Dh500,000 (approximately Rs 1.3 crore) in Abu Dhabi Big Ticket’s Series 291 draw. Kulwant Singh, who lives with his family in Dubai’s Jebel Ali area, will share the prize with his group of five friends, with whom he has been purchasing lottery tickets every month for nearly two years.

According to Gulf News, Singh first learned about Big Ticket through online videos several years ago. He eventually decided to participate around two years ago, turning ticket purchases into a monthly routine with his friends.

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For their latest entry, Singh selected a ticket number at random, unaware that it would bring the group a significant financial reward. The win came as a moment of happiness for the friends, who had continued participating together in the hope of winning.

“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,” Singh was quoted as saying by Gulf News.

The Dh500,000 prize will be divided among the group members. Singh said he intends to use his share to support his family and contribute towards their home. Despite the unexpected windfall, he also plans to continue participating in future Big Ticket draws.

Kerala engineer also wins Dh100,000

Singh was not the only Indian expatriate to win a prize in the latest draw. Muhammed Ijas C., a 30-year-old engineer from Kerala, won Dh100,000 (approximately Rs 26 lakh).

Ijas has been living in Ajman with his family for seven years. He discovered Big Ticket on Instagram and YouTube about six months ago and later started participating with a group of 10 people.

Unlike Singh, who selected his ticket randomly, Ijas chose a number with a personal connection. He combined his son's birthdate and birth year to arrive at the number entered for the winning draw.

“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, according to Gulf News.

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The engineer's prize will also be shared among his group members. He said he intends to use his portion of the winnings for his son.

Five Indian expats share Dh1.95 million

Kulwant Singh and Muhammed Ijas were among five Indian expatriates who collectively won Dh1.95 million in consolation prizes during Series 291. The other winners included Setvan Kumar Chauhan, who won Dh100,000, and Ajith Kumar Vannarath, a Kerala-born document controller living in Oman, who won Dh250,000.