ISLAMABAD: Nearly 4,800 Pakistanis, including 88 women, have been tasked to provide guidance, awareness and emergency services to 200,000 Hajj pilgrims from the country, said a Pakistani official while talking to Arab News on Friday.
Among these individuals, about 3,000 belong to Pakistan’s Hajj Mission run by the country’s Ministry of Religious Affairs while 1,800 are from the Pakistan Hajj Volunteer Group that is based in Saudi Arabia.
According to the ministry’s spokesman, Imran Siddique, the country’s Hajj medical mission has 614 people, including doctors and paramedics.
“They are supposed to provide medical assistance to pilgrims around the clock,” he told Arab News. “Pakistani Hajj Mission has also established two hospitals, one each in Makkah and Madinah, along with 13 dispensaries with all basic medical necessities.”
This undated picture shows workers at a call center in Makkah. The Pakistani Hajj Mission set up the center in the Muslim holy city to guide 200,000 pilgrims from the country who will be performing Hajj this year. (Courtesy Minister of Religious Affairs)
He informed that 338 ministry workers and officials were managing the Hajj operation along with 655 helpers. Moreover, the ministry had also taken services of nearly 1,400 local Pakistanis who were proficient in Arabic and Urdu to properly guide pilgrims without running into communication problems.
“These helpers were groomed in training workshops and were taught to deal with emergencies, engage with pilgrims from different cultures and manage big crowds,” Siddique said.
He informed that Pakistani pilgrims were divided into nine sectors and distributed in 154 hotels, adding that there were two to three helpers at each building. “The mission also established around the clock call center for the resolution of complaints and its contact number is prominently displayed at each building to facilitate pilgrims.”
Muhammad Umar, a helper working with the Pakistani Hajj Mission, told Arab News that all of his colleagues either wore green caps or held the national flag to make them recognizable to pilgrims from a distance. He added: “We work in shifts, and the ministry officials monitoring us as well.”
Officials also mentioned that members of the Pakistan Hajj Volunteers Group held Saudi Iqama and were required to provide services to pilgrims without seeking financial incentives. “They are selected out of 3,000 applicants after undergoing rigorous training and taking an online exam and to help pilgrims,” said the group’s spokesman. “These volunteers do not perform Hajj themselves.”
He added the group had also launched two mobile applications, “Mina Locator” and “Hajj Navigator” that would provide virtual guidance to pilgrims who lose their hotel or camp in Mina.
“A comprehensive system has also been designed to provide food, transport, and other facilities to pilgrims,” Siddique told Arab News. “We have hired the best catering companies licensed by the Saudi government. The authorities in this country keep a check on them and the Pakistani Hajj Mission also monitors them to ensure hygienic and healthy food.”
