"It will have talk time of 5 Saudi Riyals and incoming calls can be received with zero balance also. The SIM will be preloaded with contact numbers of all concerned officials of the Consulate as well as other important numbers," Indian Consulate in Jeddah has said.
"The SIM will be distributed to the pilgrims at different embarkation points in India and thus relatives of the pilgrims may have the Saudi contact number of the pilgrims in advance," Consulate added.
The Consulate said it is taking all steps to ameliorate the services provided to Indian pilgrims during Haj.
Indian Consulate, in cooperation with other entities in India and in Saudi Arabia such as Ministry of External Affairs Haj Committee of India, Saudi Arabia Ministry of Haj, South Asian Moassasa and Maktabul Wakla, is making arrangements for successful completion of Haj this season.
"For the first time in recent years, we were able to acquire accommodation for all the pilgrims (about 125,000) well in advance due to the efficacious measures taken in time and hard toil of the team," the Consulate said in a statement.
Last year, State Bank of India has launched Vishwa Yatra Foreign Travel Card denominated in Saudi Riyal to cater to the needs of Haj and Umrah pilgrims from India.
Under the scheme, a prepaid foreign currency card is issued in India which can be operated like any other ATM card.
According to the Consulate, all necessary safety measures are taken to maintain confidentiality and to prevent misuse of the card. These cards can be obtained at embarkation points in India.
