Hyderabad: After Yemen’s Houthis struck Saudi Arabia’s airports and oil fields, hundreds of Umrah pilgrims were stranded in Saudi Arabia.
Indian authorities and travel agencies are working to assist the pilgrims and ensure their safety until they can return home.
Travel agencies based in Hyderabad told Deccan Chronicle that their local contacts in Saudi Arabia were helping pilgrims in Jeddah and other cities by arranging safe accommodation and meeting their essential needs.
Kareem, a travel coordinator with a Hyderabad-based travel agency, said the agency had sent three pilgrims to Mecca for Umrah.
The group includes one person from Hyderabad and two from Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh.
“We have arranged a safehouse for all three pilgrims in Jeddah and are taking care of their needs.
Our local contacts are keeping track of their safety and ensuring that they have the necessary support,” he said.
Kareem said the agency would arrange for the pilgrims to return to India once flight operations resumed.
“We tried to arrange tickets for them from King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, but missile strikes happened there as well.
As soon as things look normal, and flights resume from airports, we will ensure that they are sent back home safely,” he said.
A Telangana Haj Committee official said the committee was not directly involved in arrangements for Umrah pilgrims, as the pilgrimage was organised by private tour operators.
“Umrah and Haj are two different pilgrimages.
Umrah is facilitated by private travel agencies, and the Haj Committee does not have information about their activities or the pilgrims travelling through them,” the official said.
The official said the Haj pilgrimage organised by the committee generally lasted 44 days, while private operators usually arranged 15-day Umrah packages.
Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of the central ministry of external affairs, said that about 3,000 stranded Umrah pilgrims travelled back to India from Saudi Arabia in the past week.
“Our Embassy in Riyadh and the Consulate in Jeddah are actively engaging with airlines and tour operators to facilitate the early return of affected pilgrims.
Arrangements are being discussed to facilitate the return of other Umrah pilgrims at the earliest,” he said.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
