New Hajj Policy likely in last week of January: official   

• The applicants of over 80 years age would be selected without any balloting.
• The ministry has imposed strict conditions over banks to become eligible for receiving Hajj applications of Government Scheme.
• The eligible banks should have at least 250 branches across the country.

ISLAMABAD: The new Hajj policy would be announced in the last week of January and applications for securing berth for Hajj 2020 would be received from the first week of February, said an official of Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony here on Monday.

Talking to APP, he said this year Government Scheme Hajj package would likely to cross the half a million rupee per person.

The reasons of increase in Hajj expenses was appreciation in Riyal-Rupee parity ratio, increase in insurance premium, imposition of visa fee, Value Added Tax, (VAT), increase in Maktab fee, increase in rents of property at Makkah and Madina and airlines were also bracing to increase Hajj fair.

Sharing salient features of new Hajj policy, he said the quota of private and government scheme would be retained at 40:60 percent.

The applicants of over 80 years age would be selected without any balloting.

The ministry has imposed strict conditions over banks to become eligible for receiving Hajj applications of Government Scheme.

The eligible banks should have at least 250 branches across the country.

The dues of Hujjaj should be kept in Sharia compliant accounts. Over 200,000 Pakistanis would perform Hajj this year.

Saudi government was being contacted for increase in Pakistan quota and start road to Makkah project from provincial capitals also.

Last year the project was successfully implemented at Islamabad International Airport.

According to which the immigration and other formalities of Pakistan Hujjaj was conducted in Islamabad airport thus saving them from standing in long queues for immigration at Jeddah Airport.

He asked the applicants interested in applying for Hajj to ensure having Machine Readable Passport with maximum expiry date of February 1, 2021, a valid Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC), should know about their blood group.