2016 Hajj: Pilgrims airlift begins on Monday

The airlift of 2016 intending hajj pilgrims from Nigeria to Saudi Arabia will start at the Sokoto Airport on Monday, with Zamfara State pilgrims, being the first set to be airlifted.

The Media Assistant to the Sokoto State Pilgrims Welfare Agency, Faruku Umar, who confirmed this to our correspondent in Sokoto on Wednesday, stated that intending pilgrims from Kebbi and Sokoto states would follow suit in that order.

He said that the hajj maximum fare for the Sokoto intending pilgrims had been fixed at N1, 080,400.00 for each male and N1, 083,400:00 for female pilgrims.

Each pilgrim, he said, would be allowed to have $1,000 as Basic Travelling Allowance.

Umar added that the minimum fare stood at N1,031,100.00 and N1,034,100.00 for each male and female intending pilgrim respectively.

They were entitled to $750 Basic Travelling Allowance

In a related development, the Sokoto State Pilgrims Welfare Agency had completed the payment of N159m refund to the 4,997 pilgrims who performed the 2015 hajj exercise.