JEDDAH — The Ministry of Haj relies on technology and cooperation to ensure a comfortable and satisfactory Haj experience for pilgrims, Al-Watan reported. Minister of Haj Bandar Hajjar said the ministry has become heavily technological as almost the entire haj arrangement process is done through the ministry's e-portal. “The ministry has been working on the portal for the past two years. Pilgrims can schedule their arrival and departure dates, choose their service provider and other services through the portal. “The purpose of the portal was to facilitate some of the Haj processes and to ensure rights of both the pilgrims and service providers,” said Hajjar. He also said the portal unified the prices of Haj groups and increased transparency between the pilgrims and the group organizers. “The ministry tries its best to ensure that the Haj remains a pure and spiritual activity for the pilgrims. We do not allow pilgrims or other individuals to use Haj to promote partisan views, either political or religious,” said Hajjar. He said the ministry does not levy any fees for issuing Haj permits. “Pilgrims all over the world should reject any demands for payment in order to issue Haj permits from Haj service offices. Our goal is to make the performance of Haj as easy a process as possible,” said Hajjar. He said the ministry insists on all pilgrims to have a Haj permit to prevent squatting in holy sites. “Pilgrims who squat on roads and other public places do not only cause trouble to police but also to legal pilgrims who are performing Haj through legal channels. The sight of pilgrims sleeping on the streets is not a very dignified sight, something that we do not want to project,” said Hajjar. He said the ministry does not have any political bias and is ready to help people from countries that are experiencing instability preventing them from performing Haj. “The Haj seasons will fall in summer in coming years and we are keeping that in mind. We have several emergency plans in place. The Civil Defense operations room is open to receive reports 24 hours a day, every day of the week,” said Hajjar. He also said the Ministry of Haj cooperates with all pertinent authorities to give the pilgrims the best stay in the Kingdom possible. “We cooperate with the ministries of housing, transport and health to offer the best services to the pilgrims,” said Hajjar. He said the Ministry of Housing ensured that the pilgrims have sufficient residential units and have a comfortable stay. “All rooms for pilgrims have air-conditioners. The Ministry of Health strictly monitors any diseases among pilgrims coming from high risk regions to avoid possible outbreak of epidemics,” said Hajjar. He said the Ministry of Transport is supervising the transportation of pilgrims through buses and train. “The buses receive the pilgrims at the airports the moment they arrive. The ministry also ensures pilgrims are able to reach the different destinations without trouble. Finally after the Haj season is over, the ministry ensures all pilgrims are escorted to the airport not more than six hours before their scheduled departure time,” said Hajjar.
