MALAPPURAM: Hundreds of Umrah pilgrims who reached the airports in the state on Thursday had to return home after they were informed of Saudi Arabia’s temporary ban on pilgrimage to the country as part of the measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.Many pilgrims reached the airports early in the morning without knowing about the ban. More than a hundred passengers who booked tickets with Air India, SpiceJet and Saudia Airlines to go to Saudi Arabia reached Calicut Airport. Some pilgrims even boarded the aeroplane and they had to disembark after the authorities informed them about the ban.
According to sources with the airport, Saudi Arabia announced the ban only on Thursday. The unexpected move surprised both the airlines and the passengers. The airlines received the order today and so they quickly took measures to implement it. “The Saudi authorities banned Umrah pilgrims today. It is part of a number of precautionary measures announced early in the day as health authorities in the kingdom are closely monitoring the spread of the virus. Pilgrims who reached the airports in the state had to return because of the ban,” said Karipur airport director K Srinivasa Rao.
Officials of Cochin International Airport also said pilgrims who reached the airport had to return after they received the information from the airlines. “The pilgrims had booked tickets with Air India and Saudia to reach Saudi Arabia. We noticed that all of them had to return home today,” said an official of CIAL.
Meanwhile, the passengers who reached the airports expressed disappointment after they were told to return. “Many pilgrims reached the airport at 4 am. Many of them were informed of the ban by the airlines when they were completing the emigration procedures at the airport. Many of them had boarded the aircraft before they got the information. Now, we will wait till the kingdom lifts the ban,” said a pilgrim who reached Karipur airport in the morning.
As per the notification from Saudi Arabia, Umrah visa and visit visa have been suspended temporarily for people from all nations. Tourist visa has been suspended for all passengers and airline crew coming from several countries, including China, Hong Kong, Iran, Italy, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, the Philippines, Singapore and India.
Caution in the air
In the wake of Covid-19 scare, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has banned the entry of people from China, Hong Kong, Iran, Italy, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, the Philippines, Singapore and IndiaSaudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) issued a statement informing that all Umrah visa, visit visa and tourism visa have been suspended temporarily for all nationalities effective from February 27