Ahead of Hajj, Saudi Arabia urges pilgrims not to waste Zamzam water

Cairo: Saudi authorities have made a set of recommendations for Muslim pilgrims, preparing to undertake the annual Hajj rites later this month, to save Zamzam water from waste.

More than 557,000 pilgrims have already arrived in Saudi Arabia in run-up to Hajj due in the final week of June, according to the latest official figures.

Zamzam containers are provided for the faithful at the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, Islam’s two holiest sites.

The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has advised pilgrims to avoid spilling Zamzam on the ground, keep the sites clean, and dispose of used water cups in designated places. The pilgrims are also advised against using supplies of the blessed water in performing ritual ablutions.

Saudi authorities have recently unveiled facilities to make Zamzam accessible to pilgrims.

The Saudi Al Zamazemah Company last month said it has mobilised over 950 employees to man field centres operating round the clock to deliver Zamzam right to residences of pilgrims in Makkah.

A fleet of 137 trucks are mobilised to transport Zamzam to the pilgrims’ houses according to the highest safety standards, Rayan Zamazmi, the deputy supervisor of the season works has said.

The company has also launched an electronic platform with the aim of delivering Zamzam packets to pilgrims’ houses.

Robots were used during last year’s Hajj pilgrimage to distribute Zamzam bottles at the Grand Mosque as part of precautions against COVID-19.

Zamzam is also popular with overseas pilgrims who present it as a gift to relatives and friends after home return.

Upcoming Hajj is set to mark the return of the numbers of the pilgrims from across the globe to pre-epidemic levels.