Tamil Nadu CM requested Centre to re-designate Chennai Airport as embarkation point for Haj pilgrimage

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has requested the Centre to re-designate Chennai Airport as the embarkation point for Haj pilgrimage. In a letter to the Union Minority Affairs Minister Muktar Abbas Naqvi yesterday, Chief Minister Stalin said, every year more than 4,500 pilgrims used to proceed on Haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia from Chennai.

Direct Haj flights were operated from the city to Jeddah and back from 1987 till 2020, benefiting the pilgrims from the state and



its neighbourhood. Mr Stalin said, the Haj Committee of India had informed that due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the embarkation points have been reduced from 21 to 10, resulting in the removal of Chennai from the list.

The Chief Minister said, Saudi Arabia has now relaxed all Covid related restrictions for International pilgrims. He said, therefore, Chennai should be redesignated as the embarkation point for the pilgrimage from this year.