A total of 60,991 Bangladeshi pilgrims have reached Saudi Arabia on 157 Hajj flights so far, according to the Bangladesh Hajj Office.
Bangladesh Hajj Office Director Md Lokman Hossain said 157 flights had landed in Jeddah by 10am on Saturday.
According to the latest Hajj bulletin, 16 Bangladeshi pilgrims have died of natural causes until Friday. Of them, 12 were men and four women. Twelve deaths were reported in Makkah and four in Madinah.
The bulletin said Saudi medical teams provided treatment to 32,187 pilgrims, while the IT helpdesk delivered medical-related assistance to 17,650 pilgrims until Friday.
This year, 78,500 Bangladeshis are scheduled to perform Hajj. Of them, 4,565 pilgrims are travelling under government management, while 73,935 are going through private arrangements.
A total of 660 agencies are involved in Hajj operations under private management, including 30 lead agencies and 630 coordinating agencies.
According to airline-wise data, Biman Bangladesh Airlines carried 31,639 pilgrims on 80 flights, Saudi Airlines transported 20,896 pilgrims on 55 flights, while Flynas carried 8,456 pilgrims on 22 flights.
The remaining 17,396 pilgrims are expected to travel gradually through the designated airlines, the Hajj Office director added.
The first Hajj flight, BG3001 carrying 418 pilgrims, departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for Jeddah on 17 April. The flight was inaugurated by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
The Saudi Embassy in Dhaka has so far issued 78,387 visas, including 4,465 under government management and 73,922 under private management.
Subject to moon sighting, Hajj is expected to take place in Saudi Arabia on 26 May this year.
Return flights from Jeddah are scheduled to begin on 30 May, while the final return flight is set for 30 June.
