Kerala man on 8640 km walking expedition to Mecca for Hajj reaches Maharashtra's Palghar

Shihab Chottura, a 29-year-old resident of Malappuram, Kerala, set out on a walking expedition from Kerala to the holy pilgrimage city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia arrived in Dahanu on Tuesday morning.

Shihab began his journey to Mecca, Saudi Arabia on foot on June 3 from Malappuram, Kerala and reached Dahanu on Tuesday (July 12) morning and was welcomed by locals braving the downpour.

Many of them walked with Shihab to support his goal and also requested him to pray for them once he reaches Mecca.

Shihab offered his prayers at the local mosque before taking the road of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad National Highway. He will walk through Gujarat and reach the Wagah border to enter Pakistan, from there to Iraq, Iran and Kuwait and will reach finally Mecca sometime in early February 2023 just in time for the holy Hajj pilgrimage.

He will apply for the Hajj pilgrimage after his arrival in Saudi Arabia and plans to cover the entire distance in 280 days.

Shihab walks 25 km daily and carries food, water and also a tent with him. "My goal is to perform Hajj at Mecca and hence I decided to walk from Kerala," said Shihab who runs a departmental store in his hometown. Shihab has all the documents from the Ministry of External Affairs which will make his holy trip possible.