“The registry will contain relevant information pertaining to all aspects of the Umrah pilgrimage and those associated with it,” said Abdul Aziz bin Rashad Sarwaji, dean of the institute.
He said that a comprehensive database of all the aspects of the lesser pilgrimage in terms of its religious and service aspects would be documented.
“The registry would feature the minute statistical details about the pilgrims coming for Umrah from all over the world every year, their stay in the Kingdom and the agencies and departments engaged in serving them. These include the pilgrims’ demographic structure, geographical features, types of meals served to them as well as their health conditions,” he said, adding that this would be helpful for getting minute details about pilgrims staying in Makkah and Madinah with the support of pictures and graphics.
Sarwaji said the scientific study would be based on collecting electronic data from all the concerned government and private departments and agencies engaged in serving Umrah pilgrims. Referring to the demographic features of the database, he said that these included details of pilgrims and their nationalities, numbers of those who died and were hospitalized, and details of those engaged in serving the pilgrims.
“The database would also contain details of pilgrims’ accommodation in Makkah and Madinah, such as names of hotels and residential buildings, their occupancy rates, contact details and other relevant information. The health aspect would consist of the number of sick people among the pilgrims, classification of their diseases, details of hospitals and health clinics catering to pilgrims, ambulance services and the like,” he said, adding that the database would also contain descriptions about meals served to pilgrims during Ramadan in Makkah and Madinah.
Sarwaji also noted that registry would have comprehensive information about all departments, agencies and forces engaged in serving pilgrims and ensuring their safety and comfort. “These include details about security forces, traffic police, Civil Defense personnel, cleaning services and means of transportation,” he said while adding that the registry would enable the concerned authorities and agencies to work out a flawless and sound strategy to implement their Umrah plan in a way to extend the best possible services for pilgrims year after year.
