The government has announced that the entire Haj process will be 100 per cent digital/online.
Staff Reporter
The online application process for Haj 2022 began on Monday Nov 1 with Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi announcing significant reforms and enhanced facilities for the pilgrimage. While announcing Haj 2022 at Haj House in south Mumbai, Naqvi said the entire Haj process will be 100 per cent digital/online.
The Minister said that this time, Indian Haj pilgrims will promote “Vocal for Local”, going to Haj with indigenous products. Earlier, Haj pilgrims used to buy bed sheets, pillows, towels, umbrellas and other items in Saudi Arabia in foreign currency. This time, most of these indigenous goods will be bought in India in Indian currency. While these goods will be available in India at about 50 percent lower prices in comparison to Saudi Arabia, it will also encourage “Swadeshi” and “Vocal for Local”. All these items will be given to Haj pilgrims at their respective embarkation points in India.
Naqvi said that for decades, Haj pilgrims used to buy all these items in Saudi Arabia in foreign currency. Interestingly, most of these items were “Made in India”, which various companies used to buy from India and sell to Haj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia at double or even triple the price. Shri Naqvi said that according to an estimate, this arrangement will save crores of rupees to Indian Haj pilgrims. India sends 2 lakh Haj pilgrims every year.
Selection Based on Complete COVID-19 Vaccination
Naqvi said that the selection process of Haj pilgrims will be done according to complete vaccination with both the doses and guidelines and criteria to be decided by Indian and Saudi Arabia Governments, keeping in view COVID-19 protocols during the time of Haj 2022.
Naqvi said that the entire Haj 2022 process has been chalked out after deliberations among Ministry of Minority Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Haj Committee of India, Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia and India’s Consul General in Jeddah and other agencies keeping in view all aspects of the pandemic challenges.
10 Embarkation Points for Haj 2022
Naqvi said that embarkation points for Haj 2022 have been reduced from 21 to 10. For Haj 2022, the 10 embarkation points are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Cochin, Guwahati, and Srinagar.
Delhi embarkation point will cover Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, western districts of Uttar Pradesh
Mumbai will cover Maharashtra, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Kolkata will cover West Bengal, Odisha, Tripura, Jharkhand and Bihar
Ahmedabad will cover entire Gujarat
Bengaluru will cover entire Karnataka and Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh
Hyderabad will cover Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
Lucknow will cover all parts of Uttar Pradesh except western parts
Cochin will cover Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Andaman & Nicobar
Guwahati will cover Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Nagaland
Srinagar will cover Jammu-Kashmir, Leh-Ladakh-Kargil
E-MASIHA for all pilgrims
Naqvi said that Digital Health Card, “E-MASIHA” health facility and “E-luggage pre-tagging”, providing all information regarding accommodation/transportation in Makkah-Madinah, will be provided to all the Haj pilgrims.
Naqvi said that more than 3000 women had applied for Haj 2020 and 2021 under without “Mehram” (male companion) category. Their applications will be eligible for Haj 2022 also if they want to go to perform Haj 2022. Other women can also apply for Haj 2022 under without “Mehram” category. All the women under without “Mehram” category will be exempted from the lottery system.
Royal Vice Consul General of Saudi Arabia in Mumbai, H.E. Mohammad Abdul Karim Al-Enazi; Joint Secretary, Union Minority Affairs Ministry, Smt. Nigar Fatima; Haj Committee of India CEO Mohammad Yakoob Shekha and other senior officials were present on the occasion.
Haj Mobile App can be downloaded here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hajapp.hcoi
Haj related services provided by Govt. of Saudi Arabia can be accessed at: https://www.haj.gov.sa/en/InternalPages/Details/10234
Before the application process’s submission starts, the following documents are necessary for making an application for Hajj-2022.
Passport: The applicant’s passport with a specified date is the essential document required for making Hajj Application. To avoid a last-minute rush, all intending pilgrims should possess machine-readable valid Indian International Passport issued before the application dates.
Bank Account: Bank account of Cover Head is mandatory for making Haj Application. However, all the pilgrims are advised of opening/updating their Bank Account so that the refund can be credited to their Bank Accounts directly if needed.
Aadhaar Card: Hajj Committee Of India has advised that each pilgrim should obtain Aadhaar Card and mention the requisite details in the specified column in Hajj Application Form. However, Aadhaar Card is not mandatory for making Hajj applications.
Mobile Number: All pilgrims should mention their mobile number in Hajj Application and keep it functional to enable the authorities to contact them whenever required.
A step-by-step guide for Hajj Application Form 2022:
Step 1: New Registration for Haj Application
Step 2: Fill the Haj Application Form
Step 3: Upload Photo & Documents
Step 4: Make Payment of Fee