Bangladesh (Commonwealth Union)_ According to reports, the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony had an important discussion on the usage of the ‘Saudi Visa Bio-Application’ in which pilgrims were informed that the online fingerprint biometric has been made compulsory this year. Accordingly, the Saudi Arabian government announced that it will start giving biometric visas to 2023 Hajj pilgrims from Bangladesh. As part of the new scheme, Bangladeshi pilgrims must submit their visa application using the biometric system in order to take their Hajj pilgrimage this year.
In addition, the announcement also indicated that preparations are being made to process visa applications using biometric technology. Pilgrims are instructed to carry their passports with them rather than surrendering them to the Ashkona Hajj Office. It is also necessary to retrieve passports that have previously been turned in. According to the notification, all individuals will be contacted when the visa procedure commences. Muslims consider the Hajj pilgrimage as a highly significant event in their lives, and many Bangladeshis save money for years in order to make the pilgrimage.
Hajj is the yearly pilgrimage to Mecca that Muslims across the world perform at least once in their lives, given that they are physically and financially able to do so. Bangladesh is a largely Muslim nation, and each year, tens of thousands of its citizens go to Mecca to attend Hajj. The Bangladeshi government arranges for the annual Hajj pilgrimage with the help of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. They collaborate with several private Hajj services to arrange the pilgrims’ travel and lodging. The Saudi Arabian government decides the number of Bangladeshi pilgrims permitted to do Hajj every year, while the Ministry of Religious Affairs oversees the selection process.
In the past few years, around 120,000 Bangladeshi pilgrims were permitted to undertake Hajj; however, this number has been drastically cut for 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Generally, pilgrims travel to Saudi Arabia in batches, and the full journey takes several weeks. During this time, they perform different rites and prayers in Mecca and other holy places. The government of Bangladesh and other private groups work tirelessly to ensure that every pilgrim’s journey is safe, comfortable, and memorable.
