CHENNAI: Explaining the difficulties faced by senior citizens from Tamil Nadu in taking Haj flights from Kochi instead of Chennai for Haj 2021, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to include Chennai as an embarkation point for Haj pilgrims.
Palaniswami assured Modi that the State government would follow all the prescribed Covid-19 protocols to ensure the safety of the pilgrims while sending them from Chennai. Recalling that every year more than 4,500 pilgrims from Tamil Nadu and neighbouring States proceed for Haj pilgrimage from the embarkation point at Chennai, Palaniswami said direct flights were operated from Chennai to Jeddah and back since 1987.
This benefitted pilgrims from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands. “The Haj Committee of India has now informed that due to the pandemic, the number of embarkation points in India have been reduced from 21 to 10 for Haj 2021 and Chennai has been left out of this list. Pilgrims from TN have been assigned Kochi as their embarkation point,” the Chief Minister said.
Pointing out that it would be logistically challenging for the pilgrims, who are mostly senior citizens, to travel from various locations in Tamil Nadu to Kochi, Palaniswami said these pilgrims had made a representation to him. “Keeping in mind their hardship and inconvenience, I request that Chennai may be designated as an embarkation point for Haj 2021, as in the earlier years,” he added.