Islamabad:
Minister of Religious Affairs Chaudhry Salik Hussain on Tuesday announced a significant reduction in Hajj package costs.
He approached a news conference at the ministry and said the cost of the 40-day long Hajj package has been reduced by RS25,000, which brought the total amount to RS1,050,000. Pilgrims selecting the package must pay a third part of RS450,000.
Similarly, the minister said the 25-day short Hajj package has been further reduced by RS50,000, which sets the new price to RS1.100,000. The third installment for this package will be RS500,000.
He said that all pilgrims must submit their third installment in the designated banks between February 6 to 14.
In another major development, the minister announced the repayment of over RS4.75 billion to the pilgrims that performed Hajj in 2024. He said the refunds have been categorized in seven different groups, based on factors such as accommodation in Mina, lodging in Makkah, and Maktab C allocation. In addition, savings from QURBANI refund and reduction of airline ticket are also transferred to pilgrims.
With the highlight of the statistics on the reimbursement process, the minister said 14 percent of pilgrims (9,588 individuals) will receive RS20,000, five percent (3,358 individuals) will receive RS35,000, 19 percent (12,981 individuals) Receive RS50 RS50, 000, 23 percent (16,037 individuals) receives RS75,000, 26 percent (17,828 individuals) receives RS90,000, 10 percent (6,784 individuals) receives RS110,000 and three percent (2,228 individuals) receives RS140,000.
The refunds are transferred through the designated bank branches. The Minister confirmed that the transfer of funds to nominated banks will begin within the next two days.
