JEDDAH, 27 January 2005 — Hundreds of Indian Haj pilgrims bound for Calicut were moving about in buses in the city yesterday due to the rescheduling of flights by Saudi Arabian Airlines.
Five Saudia Haj flights were scheduled for the day for Calicut, but only one left, according to one of the stranded pilgrims, Shamsuddin of Malappuram in the southern state of Kerala.
“We got into our buses on Tuesday night on our way to the airport, but remained boarded for some hours until well past midnight when we were told about the cancellation of flights,” he said. “We were left to fend for ourselves and did not know when we were supposed to fly back,” he added.
Indian Consul General Dr. Ausaf Sayeed said the return of Indian pilgrims was the primary responsibility of both the Haj Committee of India (HCI) and the South Asian Establishment for Pilgrims (SAEP).
“As per established practice, pilgrims cannot go to the airport to catch their return flights until their flight schedule is confirmed by the SAEP in cooperation with the airline concerned. In this case, the SAEP had not confirmed the flight of pilgrims and that is how pilgrims were not allowed to reach the airport. However, arrangements were made and the pilgrims taken care of and served with food,” said Dr. Sayeed.
In the case of flight cancellation or rescheduling, the airline makes it a point to inform the Bombay-based HCI, which in turn conveys it to the pilgrims. He added that there was apparently a communication gap and the HCI could not inform the pilgrims.
Dr. Sayeed said in all six flights — three regular and three rescheduled, would be operated by the airline from Wednesday-Thursday midnight onward.
