Haj Pilgrims from Srinagar for Jeddah
(January 6, 2003)

          SRINAGAR: The first batch of Haj pilgrims left for Jeddah from Srinagar on Monday, January 6. A sense of mutual trust, geniality and friendliness was evident at the reception centre of the airport. About five flights each way would be operated this year by Air India to transport nearly 6,400 Haj pilgrims to Mecca from Jammu and Kashmir.

First Lucknow-Jeddah Flight Takes Off
(January 5, 2003)

           LUCKNOW: Civil Aviation Minister Shahnawaz Hussain flagged off the first direct flight to Jeddah from Lucknow on Sunday. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati was also present on the occasion. About 40 Air India flights, from each side, would take off this year to ferry nearly 7500 Haj pilgrims to and from Mecca between January 15 and March 29, 2003

           Addressing the first batch of 400 Haj pilgrims, Hussain said direct Haj flights were spread over 12 cities from all over the country during his tenure. He said, the national carrier Air India had liaised with all concerned agencies to ensure that adequate infrastructural facilities were provided at all embarkation points both in India and Saudi Arabia.

          Mujibur Khan, a Haj pilgrim, said he was happy to board the direct flight as it would save him a lot of money. "Earlier we had to go via Bombay and Delhi. There used to be a problem of reservation. Now we can have our breakfast, meet our relatives and board a direct flight," said Khan.

           The Government gives a travel subsidy of 20,000 rupees for every pilgrim. Haj is one of the five tenets of Islam and the holy Quran directs every Muslim to visit the city at least once in a life-time. It is in Mecca where Prophet Mohammed established Islam religion. Over 20 lakh pilgrims from all over the world undertake the journey each year. The Haj involves week-long celebrations and take place nearly 70 days after the end of the holy month of Ramadan (Ramzan). Haj includes several ceremonies symbolising the essential concepts of the Islamic faith.

50 Sikh Pilgrims Off to Pakistan
(November 17, 2002)

         AMRITSAR: The first batch of 50 Sikh pilgrims left for neighbouring Pakistan on Saturday, November 16, to take part in the birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev, founder of Sikh religion.

         Every year, thousands of Sikh pilgrims from across the world congregate in Pakistan to participate in the Gurupurab festivities but tensions between the two South Asian neighbours deterred Indian pilgrims from visiting shrines in Pakistan.

          Last month, India announced a partial troop withdrawal from their common frontier, although both sides said that the pull-back did not apply to Kashmir itself. Pakistan also reciprocated with its troop withdrawal.

           India and Pakistan had massed a million men along their border running from Kashmir through the Punjab plains down to deserts on the Arabian Sea after the December attack on parliament that New Delhi blamed on Pakistan-based Kashmiri separatists.

           Nankana Sahib shrine in Pakistan is the birthplace of Guru Nanak whose birth anniversary falls on Tuesday, November 19. The pilgrims left from Amirtsar in a special train. "It is a thing of great happiness for us that now as the situation along the border has somewhat normalised, the Indian Government has allowed a token pilgrimage of 50 Sikh pilgrims to leave for Nankana Sahib for the celebrations. Now we 50 people are leaving today and tomorrow we will start prayers at the shrine," said Alwinder Singh Pakhoke of SGPC and leader of the Jatha.

           The pilgrims will visit Gurdwara Nankana Sahib, Gurdwara Panja Sahib, Sacha Sahib and Gurdwara Dera Sahib and return on November 23 to Amritsar. Both the Governments have granted special permission for this token pilgrimage.

          The Pakistan Gurdwara Prabandhak (Management) Committee has made boarding and lodging arrangements for the Indian pilgrims. A few thousand followers of Sikh religion are living in Pakistan but majority of them migrated to India after the partition in 1947.

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