The direct impact of the current international situation in the world and the ever-increasing inflation is now clearly visible from the everyday life of common people to their sacred religious journeys. Millions of Muslim pilgrims across the world hoping to undertake the holy Haj pilgrimage this year have suffered a huge financial shock. Due to the dangerous consequences of America and Israel’s ongoing war with Iran, the total cost of Haj pilgrimage has increased much more than before.
According to a latest and extremely shocking report released by Semaphore on Wednesday (May 20), there has been a huge reduction in the capacity of flights flying over the Persian Gulf. Due to the war, many air routes have been blocked and there have been major obstacles in supply routes. This is the reason why just before the start of Haj pilgrimage, the prices of its travel packages have suddenly increased by three to four times. In view of this huge increased expenditure, the governments of many Muslim countries of the world including Indonesia, Pakistan and Malaysia have announced special subsidy schemes for their pilgrims to make this annual holy journey to Mecca easier so that the financial burden on the people can be reduced.
If we look at the government data on the average per capita expenditure on Haj pilgrimage during the last three years, the inflation graph appears to be moving rapidly upwards. In the year 2023, the average per person expenditure on Haj pilgrimage was around Rs 3.25 lakh, which increased slightly to an average of Rs 3.35 lakh per person in the next year i.e. 2024. After this, in the year 2025, this average per capita expenditure reached the level of Rs 3.40 lakh. But this year, i.e. in the year 2026, due to war and global crisis, all the records have been broken and now this expenditure has increased to more than Rs 3.74 lakh.
The Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, as the nodal ministry, is fully prepared to run the Haj pilgrimage smoothly in India. The Ministry, in collaboration with the Haj Committee of India, other concerned Central Ministries, various State Governments and senior officials of Saudi Arabia, has prepared very comprehensive and robust arrangements for the Indian Haj pilgrims. The only main objective of all these big efforts of the government is that the Haj pilgrims going from the country can easily get all kinds of better and world class facilities in logistics, travel, accommodation and at the ground level.
The official start of the holy Haj pilgrimage of 2026 from India is going to start from April 18. As per the schedule, the first batch of Haj pilgrims will fly to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia from different international airports and cities across the country. In view of the increasing travel expenses and emergency situations, the Modi government at the Center has taken a very commendable step this time. The government has also ensured a strong insurance coverage of approximately Rs 6,25,000 for each Haj pilgrim. This major decision will provide excellent financial and health security to all pilgrims during Hajj pilgrimage, enabling them to perform their prayers without any worries.
