ISLAMABAD: Saudi ambassador to Islamabad Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki met with Pakistani officials on Thursday and discussed ways to facilitate travel arrangements for Hajj pilgrims.
After a hiatus of two years due to COVID-19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia this year announced holding the annual Hajj pilgrimage for all Muslims across the globe.
Pakistan will be sending 81,132 pilgrims for this year’s Hajj, with 60 percent of the quota allocated to private Hajj operators. The maximum age limit for pilgrims this year is 65. Last month, the Pakistan government announced people willing to perform Hajj this year could submit online applications from May 1 to 13, with token money of Rs50,000 ($270).
Hajj pilgrims will be facilitated under the Makkah Route project, an initiative of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, under which all immigration requirements of pilgrims are fulfilled at the airport of origin. This saves pilgrims several hours upon reaching the kingdom since they can just enter the country, having gone through immigration already at home.
The project is a "Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs initiative and is implementing measures to facilitate the Hajj for pilgrims not only from Pakistan but also from Malaysia, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Tunisia also," the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) said on Friday.
"The initiative eases pilgrims’ journey by granting e-Hajj visas and finalizing pilgrims’ entry procedures before they arrive Saudi Arabia."
Under the initiative, pilgrims' fingerprints are taken and passports stamped in the country of departure, according to the PCAA. The entry of pilgrims into Saudi Arabia is processed like a domestic flight, while their luggage is later sent to their places of residence through the Saudi Ministry of Hajj.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs said on Thursday it had received 43,554 Hajj applications through banks in the past four days.
“Saudi ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki in a meeting with a delegation of Makkah Route Initiative and concerned Pakistani officials discussed [ways] to facilitate travel arrangements for Pakistani pilgrims and improve arrangements regarding Hajj,” Saudi Embassy said in a Twitter post on Thursday.
In 2019, Pakistan implemented a pilot project in this regard at the Islamabad International Airport.