Senior Reporter: The first flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines left Dhaka for Saudi Arabia with 410 pilgrims after two years due to the epidemic.
State Minister for Aviation Mahabub Ali and State Minister for Religion Faridul Haque Khan inaugurated the Hajj procession at the airport at 9 am on Sunday.
Shahjalal International Airport, Executive Director. Kamrul Islam said the pilgrims were brought to the airport by several buses from Ashkona at 5 am on Sunday. The plane carrying them left for Saudi Arabia around 9 am.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated this year’s Hajj program on Friday. This year, a total of 56,575 Bangladeshis are getting the opportunity to go for Hajj. Of these, 4,000 are in government management and 53,585 are in private management.
Out of the total pilgrims, Biman Bangladesh Airlines will carry 29,000 passengers this time. For this, Biman will have to operate 130 flights to and from Saudi Arabia.
The holy Hajj will be held in Saudi Arabia on July 8, subject to the sighting of the moon. Due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Saudi government has given the opportunity to perform Hajj on a very limited scale in the last two years.
One million people around the world are being given the opportunity to take part in the Hajj this year after the dreaded epidemic was over. Saudi Arabia also sets quotas for pilgrims from any country.
In the previous years of COVID, more than one and a quarter lakh people from Bangladesh used to get the opportunity to perform Hajj.
