Centre drafts proposal to abolish Haj subsidy
Ministry of minority affairs committee has recommended reducing embarkation points for Haj pilgrimage from 21 to nine.
Abolishing subsidy for Haj pilgrims and allowing women devotees above 45 to travel in a group of at least four without a male are some of the key highlights of a proposed Haj policy drafted by a committee appointed by the Centre, sources said.
The proposed Haj Policy 2018-22, by a panel headed by former secretary Afzal Amanullah, also recommends bringing down the number of embarkation points (EPs) from which pilgrims can take flights to Saudi Arabia from the present 21 to nine.
The draft was submitted to Union minority affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.
"The 2018 Haj pilgrimage will be in line with the new Haj policy. It is a better policy, looking at the facilities proposed. It will be a transparent, people-friendly policy. It will ensure safety and security of pilgrims," Naqvi said.
The policy has been drafted in light of a 2012 Supreme Court order asking the Centre to abolish the Haj subsidy gradually by 2022, sources in the ministry said.
"The highlight of the policy is abolishing the subsidy. Besides, it proposes another major reform of allowing women aged above 45 to undertake journey without male Mehram in a group of four," a ministry source said.
Till now, women devotees could not travel without a male Mehram. The term Mehram refers to a male a woman cannot marry at anytime in her life (i.e. father, brother or son etc)
Women aged below 45, however, will have to be accompanied by male Mehrams, according to the policy.
It proposes to increase the quota for Mehrams from 200 to 500.
The cut in funds meant for subsidy will be used for educational empowerment and welfare of Muslims, a source in the ministry said.
The policy suggests sending pilgrims by ship, relatively less expensive than flights. The policy says the Saudi government will be consulted regarding Haj travel by ship and thereafter floating an EOI (expression of interest) to gauge the market for such travel.
According to the policy, the nine EPs will be Delhi, Lucknow, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Cochin. It also proposes to build suitable Haj houses at these EPs "to which states and districts will be tagged properly".
"EPs
are
being
reduced
keeping
in
mind
ship
journeys.
It
proposes
inviting
global
expressions
of
interest
from
vessel
owners
having
a
capacity
of
4,000
plus
passengers...
Even
if
10
such
trips
are
made
to
Saudi
Arabia,
40,000
to
50,000
pilgrims
can
easily
be
ferried,"
the
source
added.
The
proposed
policy
aims
at
rationalising
distribution
of
the
Haj
quota
between
the
Haj
Committee
of
India
and
private
tour
operators
in
the
ratio
of
70:30
for
the
next
five
years.
It
also
stresses
on
breaking
the
cartel
of
contractors
with
a
transparent
bidding
process.
India
has
an
annual
Haj
quota
of
1.70
lakh
devotees.
The
policy
also
proposes
to
ensure
the
stay
of
all
Indian
Haj
pilgrims
in
Saudi
Arabia
within
Mina.
PTI