ISLAMABAD: Over 78,000 Pakistani Hajj pilgrims under the government scheme have arrived in Saudi Arabia since last month, state media reported this week, as Islamabad accelerates its pre-Hajj flight operation.
State broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Thursday that 78,929 Pakistani pilgrims have reached Saudi Arabia under the government scheme out of a total of 119,000.
Pakistan is expected to send over 179,000 Hajj pilgrims to the Kingdom this year. Out of these, 119,000 are expected to reach Saudi Arabia through the government scheme and the rest through private tour operators.
“Another 39,905 pilgrims are scheduled to depart from Pakistan by next Thursday,” Radio Pakistan reported.
It added that the pre-Hajj flight operation has run 313 flights so far out of a total of 468 flights.
Pakistan kicked off its pre-Hajj flight operation on Apr. 18. Most Pakistani pilgrims this year are traveling under Saudi Arabia’s Route to Makkah Initiative, which allows travelers to complete immigration and customs procedures before departure from Pakistan.
This enables pilgrims to bypass arrival processing in Saudi Arabia and proceed directly to their accommodations in Makkah or Madinah.
The initiative, previously available only in Islamabad and Karachi, was expanded to Lahore this year.
