Hajj airfare still very high

Leaders of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) and Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB) criticised the high airfare rate for hajj pilgrims, fearing that the quota of 1.27 lakh hajis from Bangladesh may not be fulfilled in the upcoming year.

They claimed Biman arbitrarily increases airfare for Hajj pilgrims to cover up its yearlong losses in order to show itself as a profitable entity.

Contacted, ATAB Secretary General Abdus Salam Aref said the fixed airfare for hajj pilgrims is three times higher than the normal rate.

"In a bid to fulfil Biman's desire, intended hajis have to bear high airfare," he added.

HAAB President M Shahadat Hossain Taslim, in a letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on November 4, demanded that the airfare for hajj pilgrims be reduced.

HAAB said although this year's airfare has been reduced by Tk 2,997 to Tk 1,94,800, the airfare is still very high.

"As Biman is a commercial organisation, it was not fair to fix the airfare under its lone jurisdiction," the HAAB president told The Daily Star.

According to HAAB, different airlines are selling tickets for Dhaka-Jeddah-Dhaka round trip for around Tk 75,000, keeping 20 percent of seats vacant, while Biman operates hajj flights with the seats totally filled up.

The HAAB president said Biman always argues that during hajj flights, they need to operate empty flights while coming to Dhaka from Saudi Arabia, but in reality, the cost of operating empty flights is much lower as fuel costs get reduced by 70 percent on empty flights.

"The maximum airfare could be Tk 1.50 lakh," he said.

HAAB demanded that the government form a technical committee comprising all stakeholders to re-fix the hajj airfare.

"It would be transparent if the hajj airfare was fixed by a technical committee instead of Biman," Taslim said.

The religious affairs ministry announced on November 2 that people planning to perform hajj under the government's management in 2024 will have to spend a minimum of Tk 5.79 lakh, while there is an option to choose a special hajj package at Tk 9.36 lakh.

According to  ATAB, Biman has increased airfare by almost 70 percent in the last six years.