JEDDAH, 16 January — An Air-India flight carrying 407 pilgrims and an infant was the first international flight to land at the Haj Terminal here yesterday afternoon. Indian Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad and Mrs. Ahmad received the pilgrims arriving from Calicut. Two more Haj flights — from New Delhi and Lucknow — were scheduled to arrive last night.
Ashraf Padanna adds from Calicut: The flight, which arrived on schedule at 3.45 p.m., was flagged off by Civil Aviation Minister Shahnawaz Hussain at the Karippur airport in Calicut at 12.45 p.m. in the presence of Kerala ministers and leaders. The minister said A-I’s nonstop Jeddah-Calicut frequency would be increased to twice a week shortly.
A-I will ferry 7,125 pilgrims from Calicut, the third largest embarkation point in terms of the number of pilgrims, by 18 flights till Feb. 1 using Boeing 747 aircraft this season. The Haj flights hired by the private agencies for transporting the pilgrims from the Cochin International Airport at Nedumbassery will begin operations today.
State Haj Minister P.K. Kunhalikkutty, Public Works Minister Dr. M.K. Muneer, Local Administration Minister Cherkalam Abdullah and E. Ahmed, MP were among those who saw off the first batch of Hajis. Hussain flew in by the same aircraft from Bombay in the morning. Some 69,774 pilgrims are using the facilities arranged by the government through the Central Haj Committee while the private tour operators are transporting 40,000 pilgrims.
Bangalore, Calcutta, Madras, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Srinagar, Bombay and Ahmedabad are other official embarkation points. The private agencies have made arrangements at various airports including Cochin international airport in Kerala.
In addition to A-I and Indian Airlines, Saudi Arabian Airlines is also operating Haj services. The minister said 24-hour control cells and check-in counters have been opened at all the embarkation points in India. The customs and immigration clearances have also been made easy and Saudi riyals have been made available for hassle-free pilgrimage unlike the previous years when the pilgrims had to convert rupees into riyals on arrival in Jeddah.
There will be 248 Haj flights altogether from India, of which Saudia will operate 104 and IA 52.
