14.51 crore sanctioned for Haj pilgrims

Vijayawada : The State Minorities Welfare Department has issued orders sanctioning a financial assistance of Rs 14.51 crore to Haj pilgrims, who would board the flight for Haj pilgrimage-2023 from the embarkation point at Vijayawada airport. Md Imtiaz, the special secretary of State Minorities Welfare department, issued orders in this regard on Monday.

The State government has announced to bear the expenditure of Rs 14.51 crore for the Haj pilgrims after the hue and cry raised by the Muslim minority organisations and TDP leaders over fixing a tariff of Rs 3.83 lakh for the Haj pilgrimage, who board the flight from Vijayawada airport for the pilgrimage in Mecca Saudi Arabia.

The Central Haj committee and Ministry of Civil Aviation had fixed the tariff of Rs 3.05 lakh for the Haj pilgrims travelling from Hyderabad to Mecca. Compared to Hyderabad, the tariff is Rs 83,000 more for the Haj pilgrims board the flight from Vijayawada.

Muslim Minority organisations and the TDP leaders have demanded that the State government should bear the expenditure of Rs 83,000 for each pilgrim. Minister for Minority Welfare Amzath Basha visited Delhi last week and met Union Ministers Smriti Irani and Jyotiraditya Scindia and explained that the tariff for Haj pilgrims of Andhra Pradesh and boarding flight from Vijayawada embarkation point is very high and requested the latter to revise the tariff. But there is no response from the Union government till now.

In this backdrop, Minority Welfare department issued orders to release Rs 14.51 crore towards the financial assistance to the Haj pilgrims boarding from Vijayawada embarkation point. Minister Amzath Basha said 1,982 Haj pilgrims travel from Vijayawada airport this year and the government would give financial assistance of Rs 14.51 crore and the amount would be released.