Quota for nearly 50k still unfulfilled

FE REPORT | Published: February 01, 2024 23:15:49

A total of 78,757 Bangladeshi pilgrims have completed registration to perform the holy hajj this year as the deadline ended on Thursday.
Of them, 4,165 have so far been enlisted under government arrangement while 74,592 under private arrangement till the filing of this report at 8:00pm.
The Saudi government has approved a quota for 127,198 Bangladeshis to perform hajj in 2024. Of them, 10,198 can perform hajj under the government management.
However, the ministry has not yet decided whether to extend the deadline again. If extended, it will be notified later, said Matiul Islam, additional secretary (hajj wing) at the religious affairs ministry.
"We're running out of time as we have to take several hajj preparations which we can't start until the registration is over," he also mentioned.
Although the ministry informed that there would be no further extension of the January 18 deadline, the government extended the period by another week (from January 25 to February 01) on the request from hajj agencies.
A total of 122,558 Bangladeshis performed hajj in 2023 against the quota for 127,198 devotees.
The hajj registration process began on 15 November. However, the deadline was extended four times.
The hajj pilgrims need to pay Tk 578,840 under general package and Tk 936,320 under special package.
As per a December 28 notice, aspirants have to deposit Tk 205,000 for primary registration and the remaining amount to be deposited by February 29 for final registration.
This year, hajj will be performed on the ninth day of Zilhaj (16 June), subject to the sighting of the moon.
arafataradhaka@gmail.com