Hajj to be costlier this year

Hajj for Bangladeshis would be costlier this year. Each pilgrim would be paying at least Tk 14,000 to Tk 21,000 more than what they paid last year.

Asked, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said, "Costs have gone up in several areas. For instance, Taka has fallen against the Saudi Arabian Riyal and US dollar. The house rent has also gone up".

He was talking to reporters after a cabinet meeting that approved “National Hajj and Umrah Policy 2017” and “Hajj Package 2017” yesterday.

This year, 117,198 Bangladeshis will perform Hajj under the private management while the number under the government management would be 10,000.

There would be two government-offered Hajj packages.

Under the first package, a pilgrim would have to pay Tk 3.81 lakh, up from Tk 3.60 last year. Under the second package, the amount would be Tk 3.19 lakh from Tk 3.05 lakh last year.

The base price for private packages would be at least Tk 1.56. It was Tk 1.55 lakh last year. Hajj agencies would offer packages after adding costs of food and accommodation.

The pilgrims under the private management would have to pay for qurbani (sacrificing animals) through the coupons of Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia.

"No one will be allowed to buy sacrificial animals directly as the bank itself will be making the arrangements," Alam said.

The cabinet secretary said the pilgrims under both the government and the private arrangements must rent houses on “common spaces” in Makkah and Madina.

The pilgrims would have to collect foods through catering companies to be appointed by the Saudi government, he said, adding that no one would be allowed to cook food on their own.

Alam said pilgrims under the private arrangement would have to open bank accounts in Saudi Arabia, and that they would have to pay hotel and house rents online.

He said the air fare has been set at $1,500 while like the previous year, online registration and machine-readable passports are must for pilgrims.

The cabinet secretary said each Hajj agency would have to send minimum 150 and maximum 300 pilgrims.