By TwoCircles.net news desk,
New Delhi: The External Affairs Ministry has directed the Passport Officers to issue special passports within 15 days for those applicants of Haj pilgrimage who do not already have passports. The decision was taken in the meeting held in Bangalore on Wednesday. Senior officers of the External Affairs Ministry, and Haj Committee Secretaries and Passport Officers of South India were present in the meeting. Special passports became necessary as international passport has been made compulsory for all Haj pilgrims from this year onwards.
The special passport will be made available within 15 days of application. The fee is Rs.500. This passport will be valid for only one year. Documents for proving age and address should be kept along with the allotment document of the Haj Committee when sending application. If those selected for this year’s Haj do not get passport by 20th of this month, they can apply for the special passport. This is to ensure that opportunity for Haj is not lost by the matter of passport.
This year, 1, 15,000 Indians will go to Saudi Arabia to offer the Haj pilgrimage under the Haj Committee