Union Minority Affairs Union Minister Kiren Rijiju announced on Friday that the central government would begin to accept the application for the Haj pilgrimage in 2026 within a week, urging the pilgrims to ensure timely presentations of documents to avoid future complications.
Speaking to reporters, Rijiju outlined preparations and new measures to facilitate a smooth pilgrimage process, emphasizing digitization and adherence to the time limit set by the Saudi Arabia government.
“Within a week, we will start accepting HAJ applications for 2026 … I request people not to fill their applications on time so that they do not face any problem in the future. Saudi Arabia government has set many strict time limits,” Rijiju said.
He directed the tour operators to strictly follow the deadline and ensured compliance with international requirements, directed the Haj Committee of India to submit payment to the Saudi government before the deadline.
Rijiju also addressed several logistics and policy ideas for the upcoming Haj, which during the pilgrimage, keeping in mind the separate houses for men and women and a partner for pilgrims over 65 years of age.
“I strictly instruct the tour operators to follow the scheduled time limit.
He also said that the entire process will be digital and food options will also be in line with regional priorities.
The Union Minister said, “The whole process will be digital … we will provide food options so that the pilgrims can eat food for their taste.”
Earlier today, during the Haj Review Meeting, Rijiju said, “Haj 2025 was one of the most successful ever.”
“We will build this success to ensure even more easy experience in 2026,” he confirmed.
In a post on X, the Ministry of Minority Affairs said the meeting reviewed the smooth operation of Haj 2025 and started initial preparations for Haj 2026.
The post said, “A record low number of deaths during this Haj was noted as a major achievement.”
The focus was on improving inter-minister coordination, enhancing logistics and pilgrimage support, innovating for HAJ 2025 to HAJ 2026 and learning to strengthen the digital, health and on-of-top infrastructure for Indian Haj pilgrims for next year. (AI)