[1] He attended the University of Annaba, graduating in 1978 with a degree in civil engineering with a specialization in construction materials.

[2] From 1980 until 1984, Talai attended University of Karlsruhe in West Germany on a scholarship, graduating with a postgraduate certificate in construction infrastructure.

[8] On 23 September 2019, Talai and several other former ministers from the Bouteflika government were arrested following a corruption scandal which involved businessman Ali Haddad.

On 7 July 2020, Talai was convicted of abuse of office; he was sentenced to three years in the Koléa prison and fined 500,000 dinars.

Talai died on 6 August 2022 at the age of 70 in the Mustapha Pacha hospital in Algiers from a kidney disease.