Haj Minister Bandar Hajjar has called on Saudis and expatriates not to proceed to the holy sites for the annual pilgrimage without obtaining the Haj permits.
“Unauthorized pilgrims hamper Haj management,” he pointed out. He said this year his ministry has allocated space for 104,000 domestic pilgrims after a 50 percent reduction in their numbers announced by the government as a result of ongoing expansion works at the Grand Mosque. Hajjar stressed that the government would continue its efforts to prevent unauthorized pilgrims from entering the holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa. Last year about 1.5 million people performed Haj without permits.
The government is working on introducing an e-track monitoring system while developing centers of inspection and screening at the entrance of Makkah to prevent undocumented pilgrims from entering the holy sites.
Over the past years, several studies have confirmed that the key problems facing the Haj management are linked with overcrowding and incidents of stampedes, makeshift tents on roadsides, accumulated waste, campfire cooking and lack of sanitation. “The electronic systems adopted by the ministry were instrumental in substantially reducing the number of pilgrims who overstay their Umrah visas,” Hajjar said. Eight years ago, the number of such overstayers stood at 540,000 while last year it was reduced to 8,000.
The minister has been inspecting various Haj related agencies including Tawafa organizations for pilgrims from different countries to check on their Haj preparedness ahead of the annual event that begins on Oct. 13.
On Thursday, he visited the Zamazima Office and urged them to distribute the holy water among pilgrims at their residences in Makkah. He also visited the Car Syndicate, which is in charge of providing transportation to pilgrims in Makkah and Madinah. “You have to supply good and safe buses for the transportation of pilgrims throughout their stay in the Kingdom,” Hajjar told the Syndicate officials.
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