Pakistan's Haj Directorate has imposed a fine of SR170,000 on 28 building owners at Mahbas Al-Jinn and Kudai for their failure to provide shuttle bus service to pilgrims, Rao Shakil Ahmad, Director General (Haj), has said. Provision of the shuttle bus service is embodied in the lease agreements with the building owners in compliance with Ministry of Haj guidelines, he said. The amount will be returned to the pilgrims housed in the buildings owned by erring owners, he said. The amount will be sent to the Ministry of Religious Affairs in Islamabad to be disbursed among pilgrims, the official added. Acknowledging that Pakistani pilgrims faced several difficulties during their stay in Mina (over 70 percent of them were accommodated far away from the Jamarat area ), the directorate has requested the Ministry of Religious Affairs to take up the issue with the Saudi Ministry of Haj. Ahmad said the Directorate has taken note of the many shortcomings in the services provided to pilgrims and would try to rectify the situation in the years ahead. The directorate, he said, would strive to give the best services to pilgrims so that they can perform their rituals in ease and comfort. The official said next year the shuttle service for pilgrims will be arranged by the Saudi Bus Syndicate. The directorate shall engage buildings within a kilometer from the Holy Mosque some months before Haj only after ascertaining that all the services required by pilgrims are available for them.
