[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text dp_text_size=”size-4″]ISLAMABAD – Today (Thursday), the draw for the upcoming Hajj, for applicants under the government Hajj scheme, will be conducted. Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Aneeq Ahmed, will oversee the draw at 4 P.M., following which successful applicants will be notified.
The government did not extend the regular Hajj scheme application deadline, which concluded on December 22nd. However, the caretaker regime extended the application submission deadline for the Sponsorship Scheme until December 31st.
As of last Friday, the government had received over 66,000 applications under the regular Hajj scheme, confirming the draw for this year. The total allocated seats for Pakistan for the upcoming Hajj are around 180,000, including seats for private Hajj operators.
Read more : Government Sets Date For Hajj 2024 Balloting, Sponsorship Scheme
The initial deadline for applications was December 12th, later extended to December 22nd. To attract more applicants, the government allowed those who had performed Hajj in the last 5 years to apply for the upcoming Hajj.
The authorities introduced the Short Hajj package, and the Sponsorship Scheme is valid for this year as well.
For the Long Hajj, lasting 38-42 days with an 8-day stay in Medina, applicants from the South region (Karachi and Sukkur) will pay Rs 10,65,000, while those from other cities (Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar, Multan, Sialkot, Faisalabad) will pay Rs 10,75,000.
For Sponsorship Scheme applicants, the cost is $3765 for the South Region and $3800 for the North Region for the Long Hajj package.
The Short Hajj package costs Rs 11,40,000 for regular Hajj applicants in the South region and Rs 11,50,000 for the North region, lasting 20-25 days.
For the Sponsorship Scheme, the cost for Short Hajj is $4015 USD for the South region and $4050 for the North region.
The government has sought support from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to launch awareness campaigns, aiming to attract more applicants, despite visible inflation discouraging Muslims from applying for the spiritual journey.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
