By TCN News,
Makkah: India Fraternity Forum (IFF) has deployed more than 1000 volunteers in the service of visiting Hajj pilgrims till the end of Haj season. The service was started right on the day when the first batch if Indian Haj flight reached Jeddah with volunteers engaged at Muna and Aziziah.
IFF extends its service to hajis in Makkah, which includes guiding hajis to their accommodations in Makkah and Aziziah, taking sick hajis to the hospitals and clinics, distributing water on hot days etc, a release said.
Volunteers started their work right from Jeddah Airport, where they received the hajis and helped them to complete the formalities. Muna service started on 8th dilhijja, helped the pilgrims to find out their tents inside Mina. On 8th evening, volunteers proceeded to Arafat for continuing the service.
“This year, we have focused more at Arafat deploying 200 volunteers and the hajis found it very useful. Since the tents are not organized as those at Mina and hajis need to go to Masjid Namirah or Jabal Rahma for prayers, they sometimes lose their way and were found wandering in the streets. We could see such hajis till late midnight,” said the release.
The volunteer services are managed by dividing them in two groups, one to work in the field and the second to take care of the tent issues. As many as 50 female volunteers had joined in the service for two days, on 10th and 11th dilhijja. They visited tents where Indian female hajis were lodged and provided them medical assistance, and also carried the sick to the hospital wherever needed.
“Because of communication issues, there were many sick ladies in the tents without proper attention, so our female volunteers helped. Some of the patients were taken to Intensive Care Units,” it said.
A team of about 50 students from Students Fraternity joined in the service on 11th dilhijjah. They served at Mashaer train stations, directing the hajis to their tents and assisting them with wheel chairs. The map designed by IFF is widely used in Mina by Indian Haj mission and all volunteer organizations. IFF also has a help desk arrangement in Jeddah to report all cases of missing-and-found Indian hajis. There were 59 missing cases from six states and 9 were found from Muzdalifa and different places in Muna.
Volunteer service is organized by a committee with Engineer Mudassar Naser as its convener, Abdul Raoof, the joint convener and Mohammed Ali as volunteer captain.