51,581 Bangladeshi pilgrims reach Saudi Arabia

A total of 51,581 Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims have so far reached in Saudi Arabia through 132 Hajj flights.

Director of the Bangladesh Hajj Office Md Lokman Hossain said that 132 flights had landed in Jeddah by 10 am today.

According to hajj bulletin, 12 pilgrims were died so far due to natural causes till yesterday. 

Of them, 10 were male and two female. Also the bulletin notified 10 were died in Makkah and two in Medina.

It said that Saudi medical team automatically provided treatment facilities to 22,998 pilgrims while IT Helpdesk gave medical services to 14,869 till yesterday. 

He said a total of 78,500 people from Bangladesh have been allowed to perform Hajj this year. Of them, 660 agencies are handling Hajj operations under private management, including 30 lead agencies and 630 coordinating agencies.

According to airline-wise data, 24,637 pilgrims arrived on 62 flights of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, 18,488 on 48 flights of Saudi Airlines, and 8,456 on 22 flights of Flynas Airlines.

The remaining pilgrims 26,792 are expected to arrive gradually through designated airlines, the director added.

The first Hajj flight (BG3001), carrying 418 pilgrims, departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on 17 April at 11:57pm for King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. The flight was inaugurated by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

Of the total pilgrims, 4,565 will perform Hajj under government management, while 73,935 will go under private arrangements, according to Hajj office information.

The Saudi Embassy in Dhaka has issued a total of 78,373 visas so far, including 4,454 under government management and 73,919 under private management.

Subject to moon sighting, holy Hajj is expected to be held in Saudi Arabia on May 26.
The return flight will depart from Jeddah on May 30, while the last return hajj flight on June 30.