HAAB writes to PM urging steps to reduce hajj airfare

In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) has appealed for her intervention in reducing the airfare for next year’s hajj.

HAAB President M Shahadat Hussain Taslim in the letter on Saturday emphasized the necessity of forming a technical committee to assess and regulate the airfare, raising concerns about the current practice of allowing Biman, a commercial organization, to independently determine the airfare for hajj pilgrims, calling it inappropriate.

The airfare for hajj pilgrims currently stands at Tk1,94,800, which is Tk2,997 less than the previous rate. 

However, HAAB contended that the airfare should be lowered to Tk1,50,000, as other airlines had announced fares as low as Tk75,000 for the Dhaka-Jeddah-Dhaka route under dedicated flight services.

Taslim stressed the urgency of revising the airfare, terming it exorbitant and unreasonable. He added that more affordable airfare was essential to facilitate smoother hajj procedures for pilgrims.