Govt extends Hajj registration deadline until May 22

The government has extended the deadline for Hajj registration this year until May 22 (next Sunday).
The Ministry of Religious Affairs in a circular issued on Wednesday extended the timeline.
The registration of Hajj pilgrims (both under government and private management) started on May 16 last, which was scheduled to end on Wednesday.
Passports of the intended Hajj pilgrims must be valid for at least six months until January 4, 2023, said the ministry.
If any intended Hajj passengers cannot travel to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj even after registration, they will get back their money related to airfare and food, it said.
The holy Hajj will be performed on July 8 this year. This year, a total of 57,585 Bangladeshi pilgrims will be able to perform Hajj.
Of the total, 4,000 will perform Hajj under the government management, while 53,585 under private arrangements.
Earlier, State Minister for Religious Affairs Md Faridul Haque Khan, during an executive committee meeting on Hajj management recently at his ministry, announced two packages for the intending Hajj pilgrims under the government management.
An intended Hajj pilgrim has to spend Tk 527,340 under package-1 and Tk 462,150 for package-2.
As per the government decision, the Hajj package price of the private Hajj agencies must not be below the government declared package-2 and not be higher than package-1.
Therefore, an intended Hajj pilgrim has to spend a minimum Tk 463,744 for performing Hajj this year under the private arrangement, according to the Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB).
Bangladeshi Muslims could not perform holy Hajj in the last two years - 2020 and 2021 - following the restrictions imposed by the Saudi government due to the coronavirus outbreak across the globe.

talhabinhabib@yahoo.com