Religious ministry starts receiving Haj applications

Islamabad: The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony on Monday started receiving Haj applications under the Government Scheme through different designated banks across the country.

The registration process would continue till April 26 and the applicants could submit their applications through the designated banks accordingly, whereas the draw would be held on April 28 for selection of pilgrims for the Haj 2017, officials sources said.

It is pertinent to mention that this year as many as 179,210 Pakistanis would be performing Haj. Earlier, the Haj quota for Pakistan was reduced to 143,368 in 2013, which has now been restored to 179,210 persons.

The expenditures for or the North Regions (Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa) have been fixed at Rs280,000 per person this year whereas as the expenses for South Region (Karachi, Quetta and Sukkur) would be Rs270,000 per person.

An amount of Rs13,050 for sacrificing animal does not include in it, the sources said.The Haj dues for infants born after August 19, 2015 have been fixed at Rs11,190 for North Region and Rs10,290 for South Region, the sources added.

As per the policy, out of the total pilgrims, 60 percent would be facilitated through the government scheme while 40 percent would be performing this religious duty through private Haj operators.

The sources said the applicants who have performed Haj during the last seven years would not be eligible to apply for Haj 2017 under government scheme while for private Haj schemes, the limit has been restricted to five years.

The banks designated for collecting the Haj applications include Habib Bank Limited, United Bank Limited, National Bank of Pakistan, Muslim Commercial Bank, Allied Banks Limited, Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited, Bank of Punjab, Bank Alfalah, Meezan Bank, and Habib Metro Bank.

The successful applicants would be informed through letters and text messages, whereas the results of successful candidates would also be available at www.mora.gov.pk and www.hajjinfo.org.