Affordable Hajj 2025: Government Caps Expenses and Enhances Oversight

As reported by Tribune, the government has revealed that it has plans to set fair charges for controlling hajj expenses under the government scheme and it also plans to increase scrutiny of private operators as far as hajj business is concerned in order to provide accessibility as well as quality services. These details were provided by the Secretary of Religious Affairs in a meeting held between the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Religious Affairs with Aamir Dogar in the chair and as aired by Express News.

According to the government plan, the price of Hajj should not exceed Rs 1.1m; the program is expected to accommodate 5,000 people. The ministry is expecting more applications to be presented in the days to come. Other attempts are also being made to improve pilgrims’ comfort in Mecca, where every pilgrim is now given a specific number of mattresses in Mina to better organize the places to sleep.

Responding to issues of private hajj operators, the Secretary disclosed that 764 grievances were filed in the previous year against 218 firms. The private operators who have been involved in hajj operations for more than two decades urged the government to sign long-term agreements with the Saudi authorities to cut costs. But, at the same time the ministry stressed it did not allow exploitation, pointing to the fact that private operators often overcharge by reselling the packages.

When Saudi officials proposed to raise the quota for private operators from 2,500 to 3,000 pilgrims per firm, the move has remained dead on paper for the time being. In the future, this quota can increase to between 2,500 and 3,000.” The ministry also suggested the discontinuation of the quota system as per Saudi policies due to lack of equity in the implementation of the system.

The government, however, reaffirmed its stand that it was not out to frustrate business people but to safeguard pilgrims against exploitative and other unfair business practices. All these reforms relate to a campaign to enhance the organization of the Hajj and guarantee a hitch-free affair for all pilgrims.