DUSHANBE, October 14, 2010, Asia-Plus – The first group of Tajik Hajjis numbering 220 will fly to Saudi Arabia on October 24, Abdughaffor Yusupov, the head of Hajj affairs department within the Committee on Religious Affairs (CRA), told Asia-Plus Thursday afternoon.
According to him, Tajik air carriers, Tajik Air and Somon Air, will carry Tajik pilgrims to Saudi Arabia this year. “They will carry 2,750 Hajjis to Jeddah and the same number of pilgrims to Medina,” Yusupov said.
He added that Saudi Arabia’s company, Durood Tabba (phonetically spelled), would serve Tajik pilgrims in Saudi Arabia this year. “Durood Tabba won an international tender, in which 19 companies participated.”
The CRA official noted that ten physicians would accompany Tajik Hajjis this year.
Saudi authorities have allocated a quota of 5,500 hajjis to Tajikistan this year, which is 500 more than last year. This year, Tajik pilgrims paid 3,191 U.S. dollars (this amount includes travel expenses, board and lodging, and purchase of animal for sacrificing during the Hajj), which is 151 U.S. dollars less than last year.
This year, CRA has introduced age restrictions on those who want to perform the Hajj. Only citizens aged 18 to 80 will be able to perform the Hajj.
This year’s Hajj will take place in November.
The Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. It is currently the largest annual pilgrimage in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so.
