UP allocated Haj quota of 21,800 this yr

Lucknow, July 5 (UNI) Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today said the centre had allocated a quota of 21,800 Haj pilgrims to the state this year.

''Against the quota, as many as 28,725 applications have already been received,'' he said addressing a function organised by the UP Haj Committee here.

The CM added his government would urge the prime minister to send all the applicants on Haj.

Abdul Kalam of Sant Kabirnagar district was the first Haj pilgrim, whose name was drawn through a lottery.

Meanwhile, state Urban Development and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mohd Azam Khan said the CM had decided to provide Rs five lakh ex-gratia to families of pilgrims, who had died earlier during Haj.

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