Dubai: Haj quota for Pakistanis has been increased to 200,000 this year following the visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman to Pakistan early this week.
This year at least 15,790 more Pakistanis will be able to perform Haj as the quota has been increased from 184,210 to 200,000, said Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi while talking to PTV news.
Qureshi thanked Saudi Arabia for the kind gesture and said that message was conveyed to him by his Saudi counterpart Adel Bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir during a telephonic conversation after his recent visit to Pakistan along with the Saudi Crown Prince.
“The government and people of Pakistan are thankful to the Saudi government for this commendable step,” Qureshi said.
Terming the development as another gift from Saudi Arabia for the people of Pakistan, Qureshi said it would provide an opportunity to more people from the country to fulfill their religious obligation.
“This is a great news as thousands are applications of people who intend to go to Haj are in the waiting list,” said Raheem Khan, a Haj operator in Pakistan. He said that the decision would help thousands of people to peform Haj this year within their resources because every year the Haj cost increases due to various reassons.
During his recent visit to Pakistan, the Saudi Crown Prince also ordered the release of 2,107 Pakistani prisoners in Saudi jails following a request from Prime Minister Imran Khan.
