Govt mulling revival of sea route for Haj pilgrims: Naqvi

The Union government is mulling reviving the option of sending Haj pilgrims via sea route to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Minister of State for Minority Affairs, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said here today.
A high-level committee, formed by the government to frame the Haj Policy 2018 according to Supreme Court's 2012 order, is exploring reviving the option of sending pilgrims via sea route to Jeddah, Naqvi said, addressing a Haj training programme at Haj House here.
"Sending pilgrims through ships will help cut down travel expenses by nearly half as compared to airfares. It will be a revolutionary, pilgrim-friendly decision," he said.

Talks are on with the Shipping Ministry in this regard, he said.
"The practice of ferrying Haj pilgrims between Mumbai and Jeddah by waterways was stopped from 1995. At present, devotees undertake the journey by air from 21 embarkation points across the country," he said.
Another advantage with ships available these days is they are modern and well-equipped to ferry 4,000 to 5,000 persons at a time, Naqvi said.

"They can cover the 2,300-odd nautical miles one-side distance between Mumbai and Jeddah within just two-three days. Earlier, the old ships used to take 12 to 15 days to cover this distance," he added.

The high-level committee will submit its report soon, he said.
The new Haj Policy is aimed at making entire Haj process easier and transparent, he said, adding Haj pilgrims' facilities will be the focus of the policy.
During the three-day training programme, officials from Haj Committee of India, Royal Consulate of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mumbai Municipal Corporation, Saudi Airlines, Air India, Customs, Immigration and doctors will provide information about the Do's and Don'ts during Haj.
The information will be about transport, accommodation in Saudi Arabia and laws of Saudi Arabia, he said.