Muscat: The Ministry of Labour has instructed the private sector to pay wages to workers in their establishments as per the provisions of the Labor Law on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr for 1444 AH, no later than Tuesday, April 18.
The decision will allow private sector employees to make preparations in time for the Eid al Fitr festival.
As Eid al Adha was celebrated amid the scare of the Covid pandemic in the previous three years, this year's festival is expected to give a big boost to domestic tourism and celebrations across the country.
Abdulwahab al Busaidy, head of the observatory at Oman Astronomical Society, told the Observer that the first day of Eid al Fitr, in all likelihood, would fall on Saturday (April 22), because to be able to see the moon, it should be at least 12 hours old.
"The new moon will be born on Thursday, April 20 at 8.12 am and the sun will be setting at 6.30 pm. So it will be around nine hours or so when the sun sets. This means the moon will stay on the horizon for 21 minutes. The moon will set at 6.51 pm. Inclination will be four degrees and elimination is 0.23 percent," Al Busaidy said.
"So this means it will not be possible to see the moon within those 21 minutes. It is almost impossible because to be able to see the moon, it should be at least 12 hours old," he added. So, based on the calculations and astronomical figures available, Al Busaidy said, it will not be possible to see the moon on Thursday evening, meaning Friday will be the last day of Ramadhan. “Hence Saturday, April 22 will be the first day of Eid al Fitr. However, this is not the case with many other countries including our GCC neighbors who may break their fast on Friday, April 21,” he said.
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