A total of 49,031 Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims have so far reached Saudi Arabia through 125 Hajj flights.
Director of the Bangladesh Hajj Office Md Lokman Hossain said that 125 flights had landed in Jeddah by 10am on Friday, reports BSS.
According to hajj bulletin, 10 pilgrims died so far due to natural causes till yesterday. Of them, eight were male and two female, eight died in Makkah and two in Medina.
It said that Saudi medical team automatically provided treatment facilities to 17,636 pilgrims while IT Helpdesk gave medical services to 12,342 till Thursday.
He said a total of 78,500 people from Bangladesh have been allowed to perform Hajj this year. Of them, 660 agencies are handling Hajj operations under private management, including 30 lead agencies and 630 coordinating agencies.
According to airline-wise data, 23,203 pilgrims arrived on 58 flights of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, 17,737 on 46 flights of Saudi Airlines, and 8,091 on 21 flights of Flynas Airlines.
The remaining pilgrims 29,344 are expected to arrive gradually through designated airlines, the director added.
The first Hajj flight (BG3001), carrying 418 pilgrims, departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on April 17 at 11:57pm for King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. The flight was inaugurated by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
Of the total pilgrims, 4,565 will perform Hajj under government management, while 73,935 will go under private arrangements, according to Hajj office information.
The Saudi Embassy in Dhaka has issued a total of 78,375 visas so far, including 4,457 under government management and 73,918 under private management.
Subject to moon sighting, holy Hajj is expected to be held in Saudi Arabia on May 26.
The return flight will depart from Jeddah on May 30, while the last return hajj flight on June 30.
Bd-pratidin English/TR
