For the second year, pilgrims travelling through the Haj Committee of India have complained about crowding at the residential tents.
The five-day annual pilgrimage to the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia ended on June 9, and pilgrims will start returning to their countries over the next month.
Pilgrims from India are yet to return; however, many have expressed their anger on social media about the accommodation provided for them, especially at the tent city at Mina, outside Mecca, by the HCI. Over one lakh tents to accommodate around three million pilgrims are set up at Mina annually. This year, around 1,22,000 travelled through the HCI quota. Another 10,000 travelled by booking their journey through private tour companies.
Pilgrims said tents meant for 200 people were filled with 300 or more. "There is no place even to stand. The beds are narrow. How can they push in more people? The situation is similar in the women's section of the camp," said one pilgrim.
Another pilgrim said that when they complained to the Haj inspector, the officials asked them to adjust. "During the training before Haj, we are told there can be difficulties during the pilgrimage. We are prepared for the problems. However, we feel that we are being cheated. I paid Rs 3,60,000 for the pilgrimage. I want to know how the money was spent. The helplines were not working, and there were no officials to hear our grievances," the pilgrim said. One pilgrim who spoke in a viral video said they will file a petition in the Indian courts once they return.
HCI officials were not available for comment. The chief executive officer of HCI is participating in the pilgrimage. Local social workers said even though there are complaints, the problems were not as severe as last year. "Millions of people are taking part in the pilgrimage, so there will be some problems. Unlike last year when pilgrims faced issues at many places, the problems this year were limited to five days in Mina. There were problems, no doubt, but it should not have happened," said Shams Chowdhary from the Haj Pilgrims Social Welfare Group.
