��������

ISLAMABAD: Hajj applicants can seek a refund or nominate a blood relative to perform the next year’s pilgrimage in their stead if they are unable to proceed further due to any emergencies, Pakistan’s religious affairs ministry announced on Sunday, in major relief for intending pilgrims.

Pakistan has been allocated a quota of 179,210 pilgrims for Hajj 2026. Of these, around 118,000 seats have been allocated to the government scheme and the rest to private tour operators.

Earlier this month, Pakistan’s religious affairs minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said the country has filled its entire quota of 179,210 Hajj pilgrims under both the government and private schemes.

Under the government scheme, applicants deposited a first installment of Rs500,000 ($1,764) or Rs550,000 ($1,941) depending on the package in August while the remaining dues will be collected in November.

“The ministry has uploaded the forms on its website for refund or nominating a substitute for any of the 118,000 government scheme Hajj pilgrims who have already submitted their first installment but are unable to travel due to death or any other serious and valid reason,” Muhammad Umer Butt, a religious affairs ministry spokesperson, told Arab News.

Such applicants may request a refund before paying the second installment or nominate a blood relative, according to Butt. This facility was available because visas or bookings have not been finalized at this stage, giving the ministry time to manage such cases.

“The form outlines certain conditions that must be fulfilled for a substitute, and for refunds, solid reasons must be provided,” he said. “However, if more time passes and the ministry has already spent money on the applicants, those expenses will be deducted from the refund.”

He said deductions are only made when preparations are in advanced stages and someone withdraws, but at present, applicants can claim their full amount by providing a valid reason.

“Valid reasons include death of an applicant, illness or other health issues, or an unavoidable commitment such as examinations that became known after the application was filed,” the spokesperson added.

According to the form seen by Arab News, the ministry will evaluate the case once submitted and upon approval, issue an authority letter for refund which the applicant can present to the bank to receive the payment.

Last year, around 63,000 Pakistani pilgrims were unable to perform Hajj under the private scheme due to delays in payments and mismanagement by private Hajj operators. As a result, Islamabad was forced to surrender these slots to ��������.

For the private scheme, the spokesperson said, the ministry has instructed operators to give priority to more than 21,000 pilgrims who could not perform the pilgrimage last year.

“They have been given Oct. 17 deadline to complete bookings so that Saudi timelines can be met,” Butt said, adding that private operators have already uploaded data for over 24,000 pilgrims on the ministry’s portal, and the remaining entries will be completed before the deadline.

ISLAMABAD: Two Chinese relief flights carrying humanitarian assistance for Pakistan’s flood victims arrived on Sunday, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said, praising the gesture as a reflection of the warm ties between the two countries. 

Heavy monsoon rains and excess water released by Indian dams have killed over 130 people in Pakistan’s Punjab province since late August. The deluges also destroyed thousands of acres of crops, affected over 4.5 million people and forced authorities to evacuate over 2.5 million people to safer locations. 

“Two Chinese relief flights carrying 300 tents and 9,000 blankets landed today at Nur Khan Air Base, Rawalpindi, to support families displaced by the recent floods,” the NDMA said in a statement.

“This gesture underscores China’s enduring solidarity with Pakistan in times of difficulty.”

The disaster management authority said the assistance will help augment the NDMA’s relief support for Punjab’s flood-affected areas. 

Pakistan’s Federal Minister Amir Muqam received the items at the air base, along with NDMA Chairman Lt. Gen. Inam Haider Malik and China’s Ambassador to Pakistan Jian Zaidong. Senior officials of the NDMA and the Pakistani foreign ministry were also present on the occasion. 

Muqam thanked the people and government of China for their “prompt support,” noting that the assistance will bring much-needed relief to thousands of flood-affected families. 

The minister said Pakistan is mobilizing all available resources to ensure swift relief and recovery efforts in the flood-hit areas, the disaster management authority said. 

“The minister reaffirmed the Government of Pakistan’s resolve, in coordination with NDMA and with the support of friendly countries like China, to overcome the challenges posed by the floods and ensure the rehabilitation of the affected population,” the statement said. 

The relief items arrived days after the Chinese embassy announced on Friday that Beijing would offer Pakistan humanitarian items worth $14 million. 

This was in addition to Beijing extending $2 million in emergency assistance to Islamabad last month to deal with the deadly floods. 

Monsoon season brings Pakistan up to 80 percent of its annual rainfall, but increasingly erratic and extreme weather patterns are turning the annual rains, which are vital for agriculture, food security and the livelihoods of millions of farmers, into a destructive force.

The disaster revived memories of the 2022 deluges, when a third of the country was submerged, over 1,700 people were killed and losses exceeded $35 billion.

This year, Pakistan has reported over 1,000 deaths nationwide from rain-related incidents since Jun. 26.