Indian suicides shed light on darker side of Dubai's glitz

Indian labourer Athiraman Kannan kept to his routine in the hours before he jumped off the world's tallest building.

Three weeks ago, he arrived at Dubai's Burj Khalifa at 7 am, clocked in and headed to where he was working on the upper reaches of the 163-storey tower.

About an hour later, the 38-year-old father of one flung himself off the Burj Khalifa's 147th floor, dying instantly when he hit the 108th floor.

"I spoke to him the night before and he seemed fine," said another Indian worker, a friend and former roommate who had known him for seven years. "I still can't believe he did this."

Image: Labourers are seen as they wait for the bus in Dubai May 31, 2011.

Text: Reuters

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