Staff Reporter :
The Cabinet on Monday approved the draft Hajj Package of 2018, fixing the minimum cost for a pilgrim at Tk 3,97,929, up by Tk 16,421 from the previous year under the government management.
The approval was given in the weekly meeting of the cabinet held at the Prime Minister’s Office with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
In a press briefing after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said a total of 1,27,198 pilgrims from Bangladesh will be able to perform hajj this year.
Of them, 7,198 will perform hajj under the government management and 1,20,000 under private management, he said.
The airfare for each pilgrim from Bangladesh has been fixed at Tk 1,38,198, which was Tk 1,24,723 in the previous year, he added.
In the first package of the government arrangement, a pilgrim would cost Tk 3,97,929 and in the second package the cost will be Tk 3,31,359.
The minimum cost excluding house rent for a pilgrim who would perform Hajj under private arrangement has been fixed at Taka 1,68,277.
The cabinet secretary said all pilgrims will have to carry machine readable passports for performing Hajj this year.
A Hajj agency could send a highest 300 and minimum 150 pilgrims from Bangladesh, he said adding, an aircraft can carry the pilgrims of three Hajj agencies and three Moallems.
The pilgrims under the private management will have to pay money for qurbani (sacrificing animal) through the coupon of Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia.
The cabinet secretary said every person willing to perform Hajj will have to make pre-registration through online, which would be synchronized with the central NID database.
Later, they will have to complete registration process to get pilgrim ID, he said, adding that the registration would remain valid for two years.
About the increase of air fare, Religious Affairs Secretary Anisur Rahman said the fare has been increased following the rise of jet fuel price, devaluation of taka against dollar and for some other reasons.
The Cabinet on Monday approved the draft Hajj Package of 2018, fixing the minimum cost for a pilgrim at Tk 3,97,929, up by Tk 16,421 from the previous year under the government management.
The approval was given in the weekly meeting of the cabinet held at the Prime Minister’s Office with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
In a press briefing after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam said a total of 1,27,198 pilgrims from Bangladesh will be able to perform hajj this year.
Of them, 7,198 will perform hajj under the government management and 1,20,000 under private management, he said.
The airfare for each pilgrim from Bangladesh has been fixed at Tk 1,38,198, which was Tk 1,24,723 in the previous year, he added.
In the first package of the government arrangement, a pilgrim would cost Tk 3,97,929 and in the second package the cost will be Tk 3,31,359.
The minimum cost excluding house rent for a pilgrim who would perform Hajj under private arrangement has been fixed at Taka 1,68,277.
The cabinet secretary said all pilgrims will have to carry machine readable passports for performing Hajj this year.
A Hajj agency could send a highest 300 and minimum 150 pilgrims from Bangladesh, he said adding, an aircraft can carry the pilgrims of three Hajj agencies and three Moallems.
The pilgrims under the private management will have to pay money for qurbani (sacrificing animal) through the coupon of Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia.
The cabinet secretary said every person willing to perform Hajj will have to make pre-registration through online, which would be synchronized with the central NID database.
Later, they will have to complete registration process to get pilgrim ID, he said, adding that the registration would remain valid for two years.
About the increase of air fare, Religious Affairs Secretary Anisur Rahman said the fare has been increased following the rise of jet fuel price, devaluation of taka against dollar and for some other reasons.
