Prospective hajj pilgrims will be able to secure a Machine Readable Passport (MRP) in the shortest time possible as there will be a dedicated desk at the passport offices for them. They will also enjoy an expedited police verification service.
Asaduzzaman Khan, the state minister for home affairs, made this disclosure yesterday while inaugurating the four-day Hajj and Umrah Fair organised by Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC).
The junior minister said: “Hajj pilgrims have to face several difficulties without an MRP. So an MRP has been made mandatory for them.”
He also said as per the instruction from Saudi Arabia, the government had announced the hajj policy ahead of time so that the hajj pilgrims could complete all procedure in time.
Warning the pilgrims of dubious agencies, the minister suggested HAAB members to rein in the two or three agencies who were tarnishing the image of the organisation.
Ibrahim Bahar, president of HAAB, urged to the government to extend the deadline for registration and deposit of hajj fees till June.
He also requested the government to allow all airlines to carry hajj pilgrims. Currently the government allows only Bangladesh Airlines and Saudi Arabian Airlines to carry the hajj pilgrims.
Also present in the event, Secretary of Religious Affairs Ministry Babul Hassan said the government would think about the time extension.
Reiterating concerns about fake agencies, the secretary said: “Tougher action will be taken against those agencies which will try to cheat the hajj pilgrims.”
Hajj is likely to be performed on September 22 this year. And the government is planning to send an estimated 91,758 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia under private management. The estimated cost for each hajj pilgrims this year is minimum Tk2,96,206.