Makkah News and Updates

6 September 2011

Is the number of affluent Muslims increasing in India? There is no official data, but if one goes by the number of Hajj applications, the answer could be Yes. For Hajj 2011, the Hajj Committee of India has received till 12th August 2011 applications three times more than the quota. The orginal quota for the country is 104000 but 302616 people have applied for Hajj this year.

In most of the states or union territories, the Hajj applications for 2011 are five to ten times more than their quota. For example, Kerala has the quota of 5918 Hajis but 41431 people have applied for Hajj 2011. Similarly, for Union Territory Daman and Diu, the quota is just 9 but 47 applications have reached the Hajj Committee.

Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest annual pilgrimage in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so.

In India mainly Hajj travels are organized by Central Hajj Committee of India under the aegis of central government through ministry of external affairs and only marginal number of pilgrims performs Hajj by private tour operators. Hajj is considered as one of the most complex organizational tasks undertaken by the Government of India outside its borders for which extensive arrangements are made both in India and Saudi Arabia. During the Hajj season, separate area of ten million passenger capacity is reserved for pilgrimage flights by all airlines to Middle East at Indra Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. There are 21 embarkation points across the country to carry the pilgrims from all states of India. The busy traffic points in season 2010 were Delhi, Lucknow, Kolkata, Mumbai, Calicut, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Srinagar, Bangalore and Jaipur.

Being the third largest Muslim populated country, India’s share is large in number of Hajj performers in Saudi Arabia. Indians constitute around seven percent of the whole pilgrims who performed Hajj in 2010 in Saudi Arabia. Since the Indian society including the Muslims is becoming more affluent in recent years, number of applications is around triple to their allotted quota. To ensure the transparency, government of India allocates its country quota to different states according to the population share of Muslim and the successful candidates are selected through the method of Qurrah. Number of applications is exceeding beyond its allocated quota, specifically in the states of Kerala, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka which have more affluent Muslims. Bihar is the only state in the country which does not utilize its quota fully.

http://twocircles.net/2011sep06/hajj...ore_quota.html

11 September 2011

When the late King Abdul Aziz founded the modern Saudi state, one of the primary concerns was his role in overseeing the well-being of the pilgrims undertaking the annual pilgrimage. Aware that the Grand Mosque could not accommodate the growing number of worshippers, he initiated a refurbishment and expansion program. The practice continued and is being pursued vigorously by the succeding sons of King Abdul Aziz.

Of all the projects undertaken by Saudi Arabia during the reign of King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, it is central to the King’s and Kingdom’s purpose. Thus King Abdullah has spared no efforts and expense in developing the Two Holy Mosques to accommodate safely the vast numbers of pilgrims who visit the Kingdom each year, while at the same time taking great care to ensure that the expansion is entirely consistent with the architectural design of the existing structure.

The Tunisian elites have commended the King’s endeavors to develop the Two Holy Mosques, describing the project launched by King Abdullah to implement the largest-ever expansion in the history of the Holy Haram as a landmark in the history of the Ummah. In fact more than half a billion female and male Muslims in different parts of the globe share this outlook of appreciation and respect for the Saudi monarch. Their hearts are filled with joy for the great care given to the Two Holy Harams, the symbol of the unity of the Ummah.

It is an indisputable fact that these huge projects being carried out in the Two Holy Harams in the service of the Muslims stand as conclusive evidence of the King’s unlimited care for the “Qibla” of Muslims. Thus, he has been mobilizing the Kingdom’s human and financial recourses in the service of the Guests of Allah – pilgrims, Umrah performers and visitors to enable them to perform their rituals with ease and comfort.

The significant role being played by the media made it possible for all Muslims across the world to watch the launch of these mega projects being carried out in their service. This made the Holy Mosque and Prophet’s Mosque ever present in their souls as is in the case of those whom Almighty Allah blessed to perform Haj, Umrah and pray at the Two Holy Mosques.

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...ate=11/09/2011