MADINAH — The Ministry of Commerce carried out 10,458 inspection tours in commercial facilities from the start of this year's Hajj season until the 12th of Dhul-Hijjah, and recorded 491 violations on the spot. The ministry kept pace with the departure of the pilgrims to Madinah after completing their Hajj rituals and conducted intensive tours to check on the abundance of the main foodstuffs and to ensure that the commercial establishments and the sales outlets complied with the Consumer Protection Law. It also implemented its seasonal plan in the second phase of Hajj in Madinah, coinciding with the start of the pilgrims' arrival in the city on Friday and Saturday. The seasonal plan of the ministry for the Hajj season aims to follow up on the availability of foodstuffs, monitor the prices, and ensure that sufficient stocks are secured to meet the demand, in addition to ensuring the validity of the offered products. The monitoring teams carried out inspection tours in several places across Madinah, including markets, shops, sales outlets, gold and jewelry stores, service centers, and gas stations, in addition to the roads leading to the Prophet's Mosque. The locations also included the most frequented places by pilgrims such as the central area of the Prophet's Mosque, the Quba Mosque, the Haramain High-Speed Train, and several others. The monitoring teams also carried out inspections tours in the precious metal and stones sectors, monitoring the service centers in gas stations, following up on the commitment of centers and commercial stores in placing the price tags over the offered products, in addition to ensuring that prices of items matched with the prices registered in the cash boxes. The teams also monitored the discounts and offers.
