NEW DELHI: Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday embarked on a five-day visit to Saudi Arabia to sign a bilateral agreement for the Hajj pilgrimage of 2025, where India is seeking an additional quota for 10,000 pilgrims.
Rijiju is scheduled to meet Saudi Arabian Minister Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al Rabiah on Monday when the two leaders are expected to sign the bilateral agreement.
“I look forward to visiting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to sign the bilateral agreement on Hajj 2025 and strengthen the people-to-people ties between our two great nations,” Rijiju said in a post on X.
Rijiju will also meet Saleh Al Jasser, the Saudi Minister of Transport and Logistic Services and discuss Hajj flight operations and the pilgrimage-related bus and train services with him.
Rijiju will also visit the Jeddah Haj Terminal, used by Indian pilgrims, where the government has dedicated an office space for facilitation.
Some Indian pilgrims use the Jeddah Airport Terminal One, which also has a high-speed rail service, for transit.
India’s Hajj quota for 2025 is fixed by Saudi Arabia at 1,75,025 pilgrims and the government is seeking an additional 10,000 quota for this year’s pilgrimage.
Rijiju will also visit Madina, where he will visit the mosques at Quba and Qublatain.
During his visit, Rijiju will also meet Prince Khalid Al Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Advisor to King Salman, the governor of Makkah Region and the chairman of the Central Hajj Committee and Prince Salman bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz al Saud, the Governor of Madina.
Out of the total Hajj pilgrims quota allocated to India, 70 per cent would be handled by the Hajj Committee of India while the remaining 30 per cent will be allocated to private Hajj group organisers, according to the government’s Hajj Policy for 2025.
In 2024, the Hajj Committee of India (HCoI) was allotted 80 per cent while the private Hajj group organisers got 20 per cent of the quota.
While the order of priority was 70 plus applicants, ladies travelling without mehrams and the general category in 2024, the new Hajj policy has prioritised 65 plus applicants followed by women without mehrams and then the general category.
