JEDDAH, 12 November 2003 — The recent expansion of the mataf (circumambulation) area in the Grand Mosque in Makkah has increased its capacity by 200 percent, according to Dr. Muhammad ibn Nasser Al-Khozaim, vice president for Haram Mosque affairs.
“The pilgrims have started using the expanded facility,” the official said. The project included a special track on the first floor for sick or disabled pilgrims in wheelchairs or carriages.
“The use of wheelchairs and carriages on the ground level has been banned to ensure smooth flow of pilgrims,” Al-Watan Arabic daily quoted the official as saying.
Meanwhile, Haj Minister Iyad Madani said that Taif would be included among the cities pilgrims can visit without a special permit. “The matter has been submitted to Interior Minister Prince Naif for approval,” he said, adding that it will help pilgrims visit the historical places in the summer resort.
Efforts are also under way to ready the Taif airport to receive Haj and Umrah pilgrims in order to reduce pressure on King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah during the peak Haj and Umrah seasons.
According to Dr. Muhammad Saleh Bantan, deputy Haj minister for Umrah affairs, the ministry has issued 2.6 million Umrah visas for pilgrims from more than 150 countries this year.
“Some 1.6 million of these performed Umrah last month. The remaining one million are expected during Ramadan,” he explained.
He said the ministry had introduced a system to make sure that the number of pilgrims staying in Makkah did not exceed 500,000 at any one time to reduce congestion in the city. About 65 percent of Umrah pilgrims arrive by plane, 25 percent by sea and 10 percent by land, he said.
The Haj Ministry has opened 15 information and complaint centers.
“We received some 500 complaints from pilgrims by last Friday, and we solved about 85 percent of them,” he said. “We have also set up 60 mobile squads around the Grand Mosque to check up on the pilgrim accommodation,” the deputy minister said.
Bantan said the number of overstayers had gone down considerably after the implementation of the new Umrah law. “Earlier the number of overstayers was estimated at 30 percent. Last year it was reduced to 14 percent and this year we expect it will come down to seven percent,” he said.
He said the new electronic system introduced by the ministry had helped link the ministries and departments related to Umrah service and facilitated issuance of Umrah visas.
“Pilgrims all over the world now have access to the services of some 200 Umrah companies through this system,” he said.
The phenomenon of pilgrims squatting in public places, especially in the courtyards of the Grand Mosque had been reduced as a result of strict measures taken by government departments, he added.
Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Abdul Aziz Sajeeni, director general of the Passports Department, has urged all shipping companies to transport their pilgrims from the Jeddah Islamic Port without delay to prevent them from sleeping in the streets and other public places in the city. “Companies found violating the rule will be fined,” he said.
