E-Paper
Dip in number of applications worries Haj officials
Lucknow The officials of UP state Haj Committee are concerned at the decline in the number of applications for Haj pilgrimage this year.
Lucknow The officials of UP state Haj Committee are concerned at the decline in the number of applications for Haj pilgrimage this year.
Earlier, UP was one of the states which received high number of Haj applications, more than its quota.
This year the Haj committee extended the last date for form submission twice. Earlier the last date was November 10 but only 12,000 people applied for Haj against the quota of 30,237 for Uttar Pradesh. After that the last date was extended to December 5 and now it has been stretched to December 23 but till now around 25,000 people have applied. The UP state Haj Committee is still falling short of more than 5,000 pilgrims going by the quota allotted to it by the Centre.
Last year, against the quota of 29,053 seats the UP State Haj Committee received 43,100 applications and 34,000 went on Haj. To select the pilgrims, Qurrah (lottery) was resorted to.
In 2017, the Committee received 51,375 applications against the quota of 26,576 while 29,017 pilgrim went for Haj. It was after public pressure that the Haj quota was increased by the Government of India.
An official of the UP Haj Committee said: “ We are surprised to see the drop in the number of applications. There may be various reasons for the low turnout but we don’t have a clue. This is shocking because the government has increased the facilities and has arranged best of travel for the pilgrims. The UP state Haj Committee widely publicised the dates . All the madrasas were informed and information was also shared through newspapers , TV and other electronic and social media. We hope that we will receive more than 40,000 applications till December 23.”
Minister of state, Minority Welfare & Waqf, Mohsin Raza said, “ The Haj quota for Uttar Pradesh was increased last year. Our government has bettered the amenities for those undertaking the pious trip. As the minister of Haj and waqf I appeal that more and more people should take advantage of this initiative and embark on this holy trip.”
This year the number of applications had declined across India, he said.
