NEW DELHI: For the first time, Haj aspirants from certain regions will have an additional option to choose from where they want to fly to Saudi Arabia for the annual pilgrimage that would help them save airfare cost.
There are a total of 21 Haj embarkation points (EPs) in the country — Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Cochin, Indore, Srinagar, Bhopal, Guwahati, Mangaluru, Aurangabad, Varanasi, Jaipur, Nagpur, Ranchi, Gaya, Ahmedabad and Goa.
Haj aspirants — for whom the 10 airports of Srinagar, Guwahati, Ranchi, Gaya, Indore, Bhopal, Mangaluru, Goa, Aurangabad and Varanasi are the nearest EPs — will now get additional economical option to fly from.
Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the option is being made available for the first time.
The pilgrims from Jammu and Kashmir, whose nearest EP is Srinagar, can opt to travel from Delhi now, helping them save on (per head) airfare. In 2017, the airfare for the pilgrimage from Srinagar was Rs 1,09,692 as against Rs 73,697 from Delhi. The airfare for Haj 2018 may vary. (AGENCIES)
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