More pilgrims can go for Haj this year as quota cuts lifted

Jeddah - Minister of Haj and Umrah said "the authorities have made preparations to receive the additional number of pilgrims for the forthcoming Haj."

If you're planning to go to the Holy city of Makkah for Haj this year, you may be in luck.
According to Saudi Gazette, the Kingdom has decided to lift from this year the cuts in the quota of both domestic and foreign pilgrims imposed five years ago. The proposal to restore the pilgrimage quote prior to cuts was put forth by Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior.
Minister of Haj and Umrah, Mohammed Saleh Bantan said "the authorities have made preparations to receive the additional number of pilgrims for the forthcoming Haj."
Earlier, the authorities had imposed a 20 per cent reduction in the quota for foreign pilgrims coming from each country. The number of people allowed to perform Haj was reduced by 50 per cent. A lot of people hailed it as a great move to ensure the safety of the pilgrims.
Meanwhile Indian Consul General Mohammed Noor Rahman Sheikh congratulated the Saudi leadership for the decision to lift the quota cuts.
He told Saudi Gazette, "The Indian Haj Committee could accommodate only one fourth of the applicants after the quota cut. The reduced quota for pilgrims under the Haj Committee was 100,020 but the number of applicants exceeded 400,000 last year. A total of 136,020 Indian pilgrims performed Haj during the last five years after imposition of a cut in quota in 2012, and they included 100,020 under Haj Committee and 36,000 who come through private tour operators. India's quota for Haj-2012 was 170,000, but later the year the government reduced the quota by 20 per cent."
The move comes even after the Haj tragedy of 2015 when more than 700 lives were lost as 2 million people converged in the holy city of Makkah. Critics argued that countries should find ways to prevent such calamities fom happening again while considering bringing down the numbers they send annually for the journey.

• Saudi Arabia
• MENA