Okaz/Saudi Gazette MAKKAH — The Ministry of Haj and Umrah has asked domestic pilgrim companies to submit SR400 bank guarantee per pilgrim to start the procedures for the allotment of tents in Mina. The tent allotment process is scheduled to continue till Thursday, June 1. Bank guarantees must have a one-year validity. The Kingdom decided to restore from this year the quota of Haj pilgrims which was reduced five years ago due to expansion work in the Grand Mosque and the holy sites. The authorities imposed a 20 percent cut in the quota for foreign pilgrims while the number of people allowed to perform Haj from within the Kingdom was reduced by 50 percent to ensure the safety of pilgrims during the largest ever expansion in the history of the Grand Mosque. The floors of most of the tents in Mina have been covered with ceramic tiles under a three-year project which began two years ago. The tents, which measure 8 meters by 8 meters, were permanently constructed by the Saudi government in 1990 and were upgraded in 1997 to be fireproof.
