Hajj pilgrims face financial issues as Pakistan fails to disburse promised subsidies

The dire state of Pakistan’s economy and the incompetency of the country’s government is now reflecting in the hefty Hajj packages where the country’s coalition government has failed to provide subsidies to the pilgrims, media reported.

Because of the lack of subsidies, the Hajj pilgrims are facing financial troubles. According to Pakistan’s local media outlet ARY News, the coalition government of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) parties failed to provide subsidies. The Pakistani pilgrims faced financial challenges in Saudi Arabia as they did not get a Hajj subsidy. Not even a part of the subsidy has been received by the Hajj pilgrims so far.

Notably, the country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had approved a total of PKR 150,000 subsidy to the pilgrims. out of this, the total Hajj expenditures were worth PKR 900,000 and the government was bound to return Rs 150,000 each to 32,000 pilgrims registered under the government scheme.

However, even after these subsidy approvals, the situation on the ground remains uncertain as to when the subsidies will be provided to the pilgrims, as per the media portal.

Though the government had announced the provision of Hajj subsidy worth PKR 4.8 billion it has yet not been disbursed. It will be matter of financial respite if the pilgrims get relief the timely disbursement of their subsidy during Hajj, reported media portal.

Local media citing government sources said that the subsidy amount will be transferred to the bank accounts of pilgrims after they returned to the country after completing Hajj.

Earlier, the federal Minister for Religious Affairs Mufti Abdul Shakoor announced that the cost of the government’s Haj package will be between PKR 650,000 and PKR 710,000.

The minister said the mandatory expenditures on the part of the governments of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were 52 per cent of the total cost, while airfare was 21pc and other expenses 27pc.

The Minister also went on to slam the government led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan saying, “If the previous government would have been allowed to continue and not been overthrown the total expenditures would have gone up to Rs 1.1 million.”(ANI)