Hajj Registration deadline: Poor response leads to ‘final’ extension

Even after extending the registration deadline two times, the government is still not getting the expected response for performing hajj, making hajj agencies concerned about not fulfilling the quota of sending 1.27 lakh Bangladeshis for the pilgrimage this year.

According to officials at the city's Ashkona Hajj Camp, 64,699 people have registered as of yesterday.

Of the total, 9,253 registered under the government's hajj management and the rest 55,446 under private agencies.

Due to the poor response, the government on Tuesday extended the registration deadline for the third and final time till March 16, the religious affairs ministry said in a circular yesterday.

Leaders of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) and Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB) fear that due to the low numbers the quota will not be fulfilled.

Several officials at Ashkona camp also doubt whether Bangladesh will be able to meet the quota this year, because of the high cost of the hajj package.

"Our business will be affected severely if we cannot fulfil the quota. Besides, failure to fulfil it will also have a negative impact on our country," said Abdus Salam Aref, general secretary of ATAB.

HAAB and ATAB leaders said despite the huge interest to go for the pilgrimage, fewer people have registered due to the high costs.

A Bangladeshi will have to spend around Tk 7 lakh to perform the ritual under private and government management this year, up by around Tk 1.61 lakh from the previous year.

HAAB and ATAB leaders said a Bangladeshi pilgrim will have to spend around Tk 8 to 9 lakh on average to complete all formalities of hajj this year, for which many are finding it difficult to gather the money.

HAAB, a platform of around 1,500 private hajj agencies, said this year's airfare is high, for which the cost of the hajj package has increased significantly.

"The airfare of Biman was Tk 1.40 lakh last year. But this year, it is around Tk 2 lakh, which is very high," said HAAB President M Shahadat Hossain Taslim.

Sources at HAAB and ATAB said in India, the airfare is around Tk 1.25 lakh, and in Pakistan, it is less than Tk 1 lakh.

"In previous years, people thronged agencies for registration. But this year, we are running after people; we are not getting the due response," Md Khorshed Alam, managing partner of Al-Madina Travel & Hajj Kafela told The Daily Star.

"In most cases, people are telling us that they are finding it difficult to manage the huge amount of money fixed for the package," he added.

HAAB president Taslim said people from villages generally perform hajj in large numbers. "As the cost of the package has increased, village people in many cases are having trouble."

This year, the hajj will be held on June 27, depending on the sighting of the moon.