KOCHI: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate this year’s Haj camp at Nedumbassery on August 21 and the first Haj flight will be flagged off from the Cochin international airport to Jeddah on August 22 at 1 pm. A meeting to co-ordinate the Haj activities was held at the CIAL convention centre on Tuesday in which Haj Committee chairman Kottumala Bappu Musalyar, Ernakulam District Collector M.G. Rajamanickam and senior officials of various central and state government departments attended.
A total of 24 services will be operated in the season. The last service will be at 5.30 pm on September 5. There will be two services from August 23 to 31 and one service from September 1 to 5. The return journey will begin from Medina on September 29 and the last flight will reach here at 10.45 am on October 14. This year, Saudi Airlines is operating the Haj service.
A total of 10,500 pilgrims are going for the Haj through the Haj Committee. The camp is at the aircraft maintenance hangar of the airport. KSRTC and KURTC will operate special services to bring the pilgrims to the camp. Check-in of the baggage will be done at the camp itself. Customs and Emigration processes will also be smooth. CISF will be in charge of security and state police will support it.
