As many as 40,781 Pakistani pilgrims have reached Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj through 158 flights, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Sunday.

According to the spokesperson for Ministry of Religious Affairs, there are 27,686 Pakistani pilgrims in Madinah who are performing Hajj under government scheme. As many as 13,095 pilgrims have been sent so far to Holy Makkah after an 8-day stay in Madinah Munawara.

Along with 18 Hajj group operators, more than 1,000 pilgrims who are performing Hajj under private scheme, have also reached Saudi Arabia.

The spokesperson said that the monitoring team of the religious ministry has completed the field assessment of 12 Hajj group organizers:

He said that 522 employees including assistants and medical staff are present in Saudi Arabia to provide facilities to the Hajj pilgrims.

He further said that 334 officers and staff are stationed in Makkah, 172 in Madinah and 19 at Jeddah Airport:

On the directions of Senator Talha Mahmood, arrangements are being made for the availability of sacrifice coupons near the residences of the pilgrims.

A helpline has been established in Saudi Arabia for the guidance of pilgrims and immediate redressal of their complaints, the spokesperson concluded.

Direct Hajj flight starts from Quetta

The start of direct flights from Quetta to Saudi Arabia has made journey for pilgrims from Balochistan to Saudi Arabia easy.

Hitherto, they had to first travel to Karachi before leaving for Makkah.

PIA’s PK-747 was the first plane to make night-time landing on Quetta airport’s new category-II runway last night.

The same plane, with 145 passengers on board, then left for Madinah.

Later talking to the media, the pilot said that making night-time landing on the new runway was a pleasant experience. 

Later, PK-6133 and PK-6137 left for Saudi Arabia with 300 passengers on board.

Direct flights between Quetta and Saudi Arabia have become possible due to the upgradation of 12, 000 feet long runway.

Reporters Usman Khan and Irshad Qureshi