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Haj flights start today - Lahore_Real_Estate - 10-11-2010 12:07 PM
ISLAMABAD (APP) - The one month pre-Haj flight operation to take around 160,000 intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia would start from today (Monday).
The inaugural flights would take off from Islamabad and Peshawar at 6:30pm and 11:20pm respectively, while regular flights from other cities of the country would start from Oct 12 under both the government and private schemes.
Official sources in the Ministry of Religious Affairs talking to APP on Sunday said that the pre-Haj flight operation would be completed in accordance with the given schedule. They claimed that the ministry had made elaborate arrangements to facilitate pilgrims in Saudi Arabia, adding that this year medicines worth Rs24 million would be provided at medical centres established in Makkah and Madina to ensure medical cover to Hujjaj.
They said Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Saudi Airlines had been given the mandate to ensure smooth and timely conduct of the operation.
Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, Sialkot and Multan would be used as international gateways for Haj flights to Jeddah and Madina, while Faisalabad, Rahim Yar Khan Sukkur would be used as feeder airports unless airlines operation small aircraft from these stations, according to the Haj policy 2010.
The PIA has requested the pilgrims to clearly write their complete names, address on their suitcases so that they could easily be identified during the travel. Each pilgrim would be allowed free baggage up to 32Kg and hand carry not exceeding 7Kg. Excess baggage, if any would be charged from passenger at the rate of 15 Saudi Riyals per kg. Each Haji would be allowed a 10-litre Ab-e-Zamzam bottle on their return. Chairman of Haj Group Organizers (HGOs) Islamabad A Ghaffar Khan Marwat informed APP that the HGOs have also finalised all arrangements for those pilgrims who are going to perform the religious obligation under the private scheme.
Commenting on reports that some unscrupulous persons are looting innocent people by offering Haj application forms even after the closing dates, he said “They are some individuals and HGOs have nothing to do with them.”
Marwat said HGOs were neither offering such forms nor accepting fresh requests for Haj, saying that even they had stopped processing the ‘substitution cases.’