ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf has said the government formulated an “effective” Hajj Policy 2026 that is in accordance with guidelines issued by Saudi Arabia.

Pakistan approved the Hajj 2026 policy in July, under which the country has a quota of 179,210 pilgrims. Of which, around 120,000 seats have been allocated for the government scheme and the rest for private tour operators.

The government ensured digitization of Hajj services, electronic monitoring and complaint system, long and short duration Hajj packages, and prioritizing those who could not perform the pilgrimage under the private scheme last year.

Speaking to the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster, Yousaf said that the government is trying to expand the “Route to Makkah” facility to Lahore. The initiative allows pilgrims to complete travel formalities at their departure airports.

“Training for the 2026 Hajj is currently underway across the country, with mandatory sessions being conducted in various districts,” the minister was quoted as saying.

A large portion of the Pakistan’s private Hajj quota for 2025 remained unutilized due to delays by tour operators in meeting payment and registration deadlines, while the government fulfilled its full allocation of over 88,000 pilgrims.

Private operators had attributed the shortfall to technical issues, including payment processing problems and communication breakdowns.

Pakistan this month also requested Saudi Arabia to increase its Hajj quota in proportion to the country’s population of 240 million, Radio Pakistan reported.

“Pakistan has formally requested the Saudi government to increase its Hajj quota to 230,000, in proportion to the country’s population, to allow more people to undertake the pilgrimage,” Yousaf was quoted as saying.