KATHMANDU: The first group of Hajj pilgrims have left Kathmandu for the holy city of Mecca in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, today.
The group consists of 156 pilgrims out of a total of 1,210 pilgrims this year, said Surya Bahadur Khatri, Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA).
The Hajj pilgrimage is managed by the Central Hajj Committee under MoHA.The cost per person for the trip is Rs 200,000 which includes all expenses of travel and accommodation, added Under Secretary Khatri.Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa went to see off the first group of pilgrims travelling to Mecca at Tribhuvan International Airport.
Minister for Urban Development Mohamed Istiyak Rai and Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali were also there to bid farewell to the pilgrims.Likewise, Ambassadors of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Nepal also joined the ministers and other officials to bid the pilgrims farewell.Hajj is the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca considered a religious duty by people belonging to the Muslim community worldwide.The post First group of Nepali Muslims leave for their Hajj pilgrimage appeared first on The Himalayan Times.