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This year Haj pilgrimage will be from 4 June to 9 June. Those who have Umrah’s visa can reach Saudi Arabia by 13 April.
Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended the service to give visas to 14 countries. These countries include India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The visa for Umrah, Business and Family visiting may remain banned by the middle of June. Meanwhile, there will be Haj pilgrimage in Mecca.
According to the information, this decision has been taken so that people can be prevented from performing Haj without full registration. However, those who have Umrah’s visa can reach Saudi Arabia by 13 April. This year Haj pilgrimage will be from 4 June to 9 June.
According to reports, the affected passengers have been asked to follow the new rules. If a person violates this order, his entry in Saudi Arabia can be banned for the next five years.
The objective is to stop those who do illegally Hajj
Reports states that this ban has been imposed because many foreign nationals come to Saudi Arabia on Umrah or visit visas and then stay there to illegally participate in Haj. This increases the crowd greatly and also increases in summer.
In Saudi Arabia, a quota system is implemented to control the crowd during Haj, under which a fixed number of Haj pilgrims of each country are allowed to travel. But many times people ignore it.
Decision taken after the incident in 2024
The Haj pilgrimage in 2024 was held from 14 June to 29 June. The influence of heat had increased due to the arrival of a lot of pilgrims in Haj pilgrimage. Due to this, at least 1,200 pilgrims were killed. These included 98 Indians. Last year, 1,75,000 Indians arrived in Mecca to participate in the Haj pilgrimage.
During the Haj pilgrimage in 2024, a picture of those who lost their lives due to crowd and heat.
Haj Ministry said- no political dispute behind the decision
Illegal functioning is also a major reason behind this ban. Officials said some foreign nationals were working illegally in Saudi Arabia using trade or family visas, causing violation of visa rules and causing an imbalance in the wage market.
The Saudi Haj and Umra Ministry has made it clear that this step is not related to any diplomatic dispute, but it is a decision taken to conduct the Haj pilgrimage safely and better.
Last date for release of Umrah Visa 13 April
Saudi officials have said that 13 April 2025 will be the last date for issuing Umrah visas. After this date, citizens of these 14 countries will not be given new visas until the Haj pilgrimage is completed.
Passengers reached Saudi for Haj without a visa
Every year there are thousands of passengers going on Haj, who do not have a visa for it. Due to lack of money, such passengers reach Mecca in wrong ways. Last year too, before Haj, Saudi removed thousands of Haj pilgrims without registration from Mecca.
According to Saudi Arabia officials, climate change is having a profound impact on Mecca. The average temperature is rising 0.4 degrees Celsius every 10 years. In 2023, 240 Haj pilgrims who went on Haj died. Most of them were from Indonesia.
During the Hajj in June 2024, passengers were shown to be incense and heat.
Haj is one of the five duty of Islam
One of the 5 duty in the religion of Islam is Haj. According to beliefs, every Muslim person has to fulfill this duty at least once in life. According to BBC News, in the year 628, Prophet Mohammed started a journey with his 1400 disciples. This became the first pilgrimage of Islam and in this journey the religious tradition of Prophet Ibrahim was re -established. This is called Haj.
Every year Muslims from all over the world arrive in Mecca, Saudi Arabia for Haj. Haj takes five days and it is completed with Eid ul Azha or Bakrid. Saudi Arabia prepares Haj quota according to every country.
Among them, Indonesia has the highest quota. This is followed by the number of Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nigeria. Apart from this, Haj pilgrims from many countries including Iran, Turkas, Egypt, Ethiopia come. Haj pilgrims first reach the city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. From there he goes to Mecca city by bus.