Emphasising on a “cashless Hajj”, the federal government has made particular preparations to fulfill the overseas change necessities of these happening the annual pilgrimage, together with the issuance of a foreign exchange card by way of the State Financial institution of India (SBI).
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The Ministry of Minority Affairs has taken a number of initiatives to make Haj 2023 extra comfy, handy and inexpensive for Indian Muslims, in accordance with an official assertion.
Devoted efforts have additionally been made to make the method of pilgrim choice goal, clear, environment friendly, well timed and free from human involvement.
The method of making use of for Haj and choice of pilgrims was carried out on-line and of the 1.84 lakh candidates, 14,935 have been given assured allotment, together with 10,621 within the 70-plus class and 4,314 girls who will carry out the Haj with no “Mehram” (male companion).
That is the biggest ever contingent of ladies continuing on Haj alone, not accompanied by males, the ministry stated in an announcement.
The purposes acquired over and above the Haj quota have been finalised by way of a web based randomised digital choice (ORDS) course of, with none human intervention, it added.
For the primary time, the checklist of chosen and waitlisted candidates was printed on the official portal instantly after the choice course of within the curiosity of elevated transparency, the assertion stated.
All 1.4 lakh chosen pilgrims have been despatched a textual content message with the data of their choice for Haj 2023. A textual content message has additionally been despatched to the waitlisted candidates, informing them about their place on the checklist, the assertion stated.
The ministry has partnered with the SBI to make particular preparations to offer overseas change to the pilgrims.
In contrast to earlier years, when every pilgrim was given 2,100 Saudi riyals by the Haj Committee of India in lieu of Indian foreign money, no matter his precise necessities, the Haj Coverage 2023 provides the choice to the pilgrims to rearrange their very own overseas foreign money or take a lesser quantity of overseas change, in accordance with their necessities.
The federal government has collaborated with the SBI to make sure the provision of overseas change to the pilgrims on the best charges, the assertion stated.
With greater than 22,000 branches throughout the nation, the SBI shall facilitate offering overseas change and the obligatory insurance coverage to all of the pilgrims to fulfill their necessities throughout their keep in Saudi Arabia.
The financial institution will attain out to the pilgrims by way of textual content messages, the ministry stated.
The power of a foreign exchange card can be being supplied to the pilgrims, eliminating the opportunity of theft or lack of bodily foreign money, it added.
In case the cardboard is misplaced in the course of the pilgrimage, the pilgrim can get his cash refunded from the financial institution.
An official stated the federal government’s goal is to help a “cashless Haj” to make it handy for the pilgrims.
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The SBI will even arrange stalls in any respect the embarkation factors with devoted nodal officers of an applicable stage to assist the pilgrims gather the overseas change in money or by way of the foreign exchange card and in addition to offer any steerage and help as could also be required.
A helpline shall be operated by the SBI and the contact particulars of those nodal officers will likely be made public quickly, the assertion stated.
For the current 12 months, a quota of 1,75,025 Haj pilgrims has been allotted to India. The primary flight for the pilgrimage from India will take off on Could 21. The annual pilgrimage will happen round June finish.