Ministry calls for Hajj application under ‘zero quota’ by 10 May

The Ministry of Religious Affairs issued a special notification on Friday (7 May) stating that a nominated family member of the pre-registered Hajj aspirant, who no-longer fits the present guideline, will get preference if all other requirements are fulfilled. 

The application under 'zero quota' should be filed by 10 May, it noted.

As per the earlier notification, people over the age of 65 will not be able to make the Hajj pilgrimage from Bangladesh this time considering health hazards posed by Covid-19.

Those who registered for Hajj in 2020 will have the opportunity to go for Hajj this year, but they must be born on or after Jul 1, 1957.

Following the update, family members of registered people - who were born before that time or who died after completing the registration in 2020 - will be prioritized to go for Hajj under zero quota.

For this, they will have to complete the application by the aforementioned date.

Some 57,856 pilgrims from Bangladesh will be allowed to perform hajj this year.

The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah of Saudi Arabia approved the quotas for pilgrims from all the countries around the world for the hajj of 2022, according to a Saudi Gazette report issued Saturday (23 April).

As per the quota, Bangladesh will send the fourth-largest number of pilgrims.

Hajj flights might start on 31 May, according to State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mahbub Ali.

This year, 31,000 people will travel on 75 Biman Bangladesh flights and the same amount on Saudia Airlines.

Hajj pilgrims from Bangladesh will have to count Tk12,000 more in airfare compared to the pre-pandemic level.

The fare for the round-trip to Saudi Arabia will be Tk1.4 lakh. Earlier in 2019, the airfare for hajj pilgrims was Tk1.28 lakh.

The state minister cited the increasing fuel prices as a reason behind the increase.