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Muallem fees Desk Report Intending pilgrims made lower-than-expected responses although the deadline to deposit muallem fees for performing the hajj expired Sunday. The target of sending pilgrims under government and private management this season has been fixed at 65,000 but the number of applicants until Sunday was below 10,000.
The hajj officer at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Bazlur Rahman Biswas, told bdnews24.com that the deadline for depositing a muallem fee of Tk 20,256 for the hajj pilgrims expired Sunday.
According to a new system introduced this year, hajj agencies had been asked to pay muallem fees in Bangladesh Bank against individual pilgrims.
Several high officials at the Hajj Branch of the ministry blamed the drop in the number of hajj pilgrims on the economy, price hikes and the political situation, and the upcoming national elections in December.
Ministry officials think that given the rate of responses, the number of hajj pilgrims this year would not top 25,000.
Religious affairs secretary Muhammad Ataur Rahman told bdnews24.com that the time for depositing muallem fees would not be extended whatever the response.
He said other countries had sent their list to the Saudi authorities and the government would soon make a list and send it to the Saudis for proper hajj management.
According to the ministry, this year 15,000 pilgrims were expected to perform hajj under government management and 50,000 under private management.
Last year, the government was to send 10,000 pilgrims under its management but only 5,500 could went to Saudi Arabia.
The ministry has this year moved to increase the number of hajj pilgrims with the cooperation of the district administration and district-level officials of the Islamic Foundation.
This year the number of aspiring pilgrims under government management did not cross 4,000, officials said.
Some 234 hajj agencies have been given the responsibility to send 50,000 pilgrims under private management but as of Sunday only 43 hajj agencies collected 5,805 forms.
The remaining 191 agencies have remained inactive with the Hajj Association of Bangladesh demanding a month's extension of the deadline for depositing fees.
Ataur Rahman said they had imposed strict rules this time to stop irregularities that take place every year in hajj management, which is why the deadline for depositing muallem fees would not be extended.
On Biman Bangladesh Airline's proposal to increase air fare for hajj flights due to rising fuel costs, he said the earlier fare of Tk 93,150 would remain unless the government decided otherwise.
He said the government had taken initiatives to rent house for 6,000 hajj pilgrims and 4,232 houses had been rented.
Hiring house at private initiatives had not yet started, he said, adding the Saudi authorities had imposed strict rules on accommodation for hajj pilgrims.
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