Process to refund excess fees to pilgrims begins tomorrow

KABUL (Pajhwok): The process of refunding excess fees to pilgrims who performed this year’s hajj pilgrimage will begin tomorrow (Wednesday), an official said on Tuesday.

Acting Minister for Hajj and Islamic Affairs Shaikh Noor Mohammad Saqib told a news conference at the Government Information and Media center on Tuesday that 30,000 Afghans had gone to Saudi Arabia this year to perform the Hajj.,

He said after a detailed calculation by the Ministry, each pilgrim would be paid 3,936 afghanis, and the distribution process will begin tomorrow (Wednesday) and there is no end date.

Pilgrims from the center could go to the ministry with their original ID card and passport, and pilgrims from the provinces can go to the ministry’s directorates to receive their money.

About 282,090 afghanis were collected from each pilgrim, totaling 8 billion 278 million, 772 thousand and 320 afghanis from all pilgrims in Afghanistan, the acting minister added.

Totally, eight billion, 163 million 312 thousand and 537.59 afghanis were spent on this year’s Hajj, and the amount of money spent by a pilgrim is 278,154.19 afghanis.

According to Saqib, a total of 115 million, 464 thousand, 782.41 afghanis remain unspent from the money collected from pilgrims.

Head of Pilgrimage and Umrah, Maulvi Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi explained 18 Afghan pilgrims died during this year’s Hajj.

He added this year, the number of Afghan pilgrims died was less than in previous years.

hz/ma