The date for passport submission by Hajj pilgrims in respective bank branches has been extended till April 28 by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
Pilgrims have also been advised by the ministry to use Saudi Visa Bio', a smartphone application for biometric verification from the comfort of their home.
According to the ministry, Hajis can visit the nearest Gerry’s Visa Centre between 2pm to 6pm if they face any difficulty.
Last month, Mufti Abdul Shakoor — the late minister for religious affairs — said that 179,210 Pakistani pilgrims would perform Hajj this year.
The estimated Hajj cost for the northern region — which includes Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar, Multan, Faisalabad, Rahim Yar Khan, and Sialkot — is Rs1,175,000 while for the southern region, it is Rs1,165,000.
The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) had already announced that its pre-Hajj operation would start on May 21 and continue till August 12 during which the national flag carrier would lift 38,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.
“Pre Hajj operation will commence from 1st Zilqad till 4th Zilhajj, 1444 corresponding to Gregorian date 21st May till 22nd June 2023 (subject to moon sighting),” according to PIA Hajj circular.
The national flag carrier has decided to charge fares in US dollars for the second year in a row and fixed the fares for pilgrims going to Saudi Arabia under the private Hajj scheme from $870 to $1180 for the Southern region that includes Karachi, Quetta, Sukkur, Hyderabad.
This decision came after the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony last month decided to allocate a 50% special quota in the Government Hajj Scheme-2023 for the pilgrims who will pay in US dollars.
On the other hand, the airfares for the pilgrims from the northern region were in the range of $910 to $1,220. The northern sector includes Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, Multan, and other cities.
The cost of a complete government Hajj scheme-based pilgrimage would be Rs1.25 million.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had vowed that the government would provide all possible facilities to the pilgrims intending to perform Hajj this year.
The financial czar made the remarks while chairing a meeting to review progress on Hajj Scheme 2023 in Islamabad in the first week of the current month.
“Hajj is a sacred religious obligation and the government will facilitate the Hujjaj in every possible manner,” he had said.
The secretary of the religious affairs ministry had informed the meeting that receipt of applications for the Hajj-2023 was closed on the 31st of last month as per the government's Hajj policy.
It was also informed that 72,869 applications had been received in the banks against the quota of 44,190 of the government's regular scheme.
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