Manama: Bahrain has come up with a list of 49 official Haj tourist operators and is urging all Haj pilgrims to register with them.
"We will not look into any complaint about possible abuse by, or issues with unregistered tour operators," the justice and Islamic ministry has warned. "People planning to perform Haj should be well aware about the status of their operators and avoid problems by keeping away from those which have not been endorsed by the ministry."
According to the list, published in the local media, 41 operators will take Bahraini or Gulf nationals and eight have been designated to sign up foreigners.
The division aims to ease travel, visa and visiting procedures at the Bahraini and Saudi borders and in Saudi Arabia.
Bahrainis and Gulf nationals do not require visas to enter Saudi Arabia and their papers can be processed quickly.
However, foreigners have to undergo a more vigorous inspection at the 25-kilometre King Fahad causeway, the only link between the two neighbouring Kingdoms. This procedure often results in long delays.
Saudi authorities, wary of abuse, have repeatedly warned that they will not allow unregistered operators to enter Makkah, the site of the annual pilgrimage rituals.
Hundreds of Bahrainis and Bahrain-based foreigners suffered problems last year after their unregistered operators took out of the way routes to reach Makkah and avoid Saudi checkpoints.
In one case, pilgrims were abandoned in a remote area after their buses drove off with their luggage, to avoid a police checkpoint.
"We urge pilgrims to sign a binding contract with the tour operators and to make sure they are insured against accidents," Adnan Al Qattan, the head of Bahrain's official Haj delegation, said on Wednesday.
"We are ready to help, but only when the case involves a registered tour operator. At the same time, pilgrims should be well aware of their rights. If there is no contract it makes it difficult to look into complaints," he said.
Al Qattan added that the number of tour operators cannot be increased unless the Saudi authorities agree to bolster the quota of Bahrain-based pilgrims.
"The official quota right now is 5,000 and we have contacted the relevant Saudi authorities to increase it to 12,000 in order to accommodate a larger number of people planning to perform the pilgrimage," he said. "We are optimistic about the Saudi decision, but we have to wait until we receive it."
Saudi Arabia has introduced quotas for all countries to ensure that the pilgrimage locations are not dangerously overcrowded.
