ISLAMABAD – The Ministry for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony on Saturday announced that balloting for applications received under the Government Hajj Scheme would be held on Tuesday (March 12) instead of Monday.
The balloting had been delayed on the request of designated banks on account of their inability to compile the data of applicants by March 10 (Sunday), a ministry spokesman said in a statement.
The spokesman said Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Sahibzada Noor-ul-Haq Qadri would conduct government scheme Hajj balloting on Tuesday to choose over 107,526 pilgrims.
The ministry, he said, had directed the banks to clear the drafts and cheques of intending pilgrims’ deposited Hajj dues by Monday and complete online entry of the applicants as soon as possible.
He said total 216,542 Hajj applications had been in various branches of designated banks. He asked the intending pilgrims to contact 051-9216980 & 051-9216982 for guidance and information.
He said the process for receiving Hajj applications under the government scheme started on February 25. The applicants were being informed about receipt of their applications through short messaging services (SMS) on their mobile phones.
The particulars of the applicants, he said, had also been uploaded on the ministry’s website. He asked the applicants to check their particulars on the website and correct the mistakes if any.