About 160,000 pilgrims from Pakistan, half of them from the government quota, will perform Haj this year, Syed Hamid Saeed Kazmi, visiting Minister for Religious Affairs, told a press conference at the Pakistani consulate here, Friday. The minister said after talks with Adnan Amin Katib, the chairman of the South East Tawafa Establishment, that it has been decided that all Pakistani pilgrims will be housed in Old Mina and will be given extra amenities. For this the Tawafa establishment will be paid SR500 extra per pilgrim, the minister said. Earlier, the pilgrims were housed in Muzdalifa and their stay was arranged at different places. This year two plots in Old Mina will be reserved for Pakistani pilgrims and all of them will stay together. The Tawafa establishment has also agreed to accommodate 16 persons in each tent of 4X4 meters instead of 22 persons. They will also be provided with pillows, blankets, and sponge beds. The government of Pakistan has been forced to make a substantial increase in Haj package rates because of the high rents of the buildings in Makkah, the minister said. Moreover, he said, the accommodation area per pilgrim has been increased from 3.5 square meters to 4 square meters by the authorities in Makkah. As such, accommodation in Makkah would cost a pilgrim SR3,600 instead of the previous SR3,200, the minister said. He said the stay of pilgrims will be within 2,000 meters from the Holy Mosque. Shuttle bus service will be arranged for them to attend five daily prayers. In Madina, each pilgrim will stay for ten days, and 65 percent of them will stay in the central area around the Prophet's Mosque. In Makkah and Madina, pilgrims will have free treatment from Pakistani medical missions. The government of Pakistan, the minister said, is doing everything it can to make this year's Haj comfortable for pilgrims.
