Pilgrims asked to limit activities outside Hajj rituals

Do not hesitate to ask the officers if you face any problems since the ministry has assigned a lot of officers to help you there.

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas has asked Indonesian pilgrims to limit their activities outside Hajj rituals considering that currently, the mercury is shooting up to 45 degrees Celsius in Saudi Arabia.

"Only carry out the pilgrimage procedures and necessary activities outside of the rituals," he advised while sending off the first flight carrying Jakarta-Pondok Gede Hajj Embarkation (JKG 01) pilgrims from Soekarno-Hatta Airport, Tangerang city, Banten province, on Saturday.

He said he expected the pilgrims to pay attention to the appeal so that their pilgrimage can run smoothly by meeting all of the conditions and pillars of Hajj well.

Furthermore, pilgrims must maintain their health, such as by drinking lots of water and taking vitamins so that they can perform their pilgrimage properly in the scorching weather in Saudi Arabia, he stressed.

"Do not hesitate to ask the officers if you face any problems since the ministry has assigned a lot of officers to help you there," he added.

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Four people have been assigned to accompany pilgrims in each departure group. They comprise one officer of the Indonesian Hajj Guide Team (TPHI), one officer of the Indonesian Hajj Instructor Team (TPIHI), and two officers of the Indonesian Hajj Health Team (TKHI).

In addition, the minister encouraged the pilgrims to perfect their faith by conducting Hajj as the fifth pillar of Islam well and fix their intention to go to the Holy Land only for performing the pilgrimage.

"Let’s pray together that our pilgrimage will be accepted by Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala," he added.

A total of 2,776 Hajj pilgrims from seven departure groups and five embarkation areas left Indonesia for Medina on Saturday.

The embarkation areas include Jakarta-Pondok Gede Embarkation (393 people in one group), Jakarta-Bekasi Embarkation (820 people in two groups), Solo Embarkation (720 people in two groups), Surabaya Embarkation (450 people), as well as Padang Embarkation (393 people in one group)

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Translator: Desi Purnamawati, Uyu Liman
Editor: Suharto
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