Question : Withdrawal of Subsidy to Haj Pilgrims

(a) whether the Government has withdrawn the subsidy given to Haj pilgrims and revised the guidelines and if so, the details thereof;

(b) the details of Haj subsidy given by Government during last three years, State-wise with special reference to Hardoi and Sitapur districts of Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka;

(c) whether the Government has finalized the modalities for re-allocation of the subsidy funds and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether there is urgent need for abolishing Government spending on pilgrimages of all religions; and

(e) if so, the measures being taken by the Government in this regard so far?

MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS
(SHRI MUKHTAR ABBAS NAQVI)

(a) and (b) Yes, Madam. The responsibility for making air travel arrangements for Haj pilgrims identified by the Haj Committee of India (HCoI) is with Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA). The amount of Haj subsidy given by the Government of India is reflected in the budget of MoCA, which is the nodal Ministry in this regard. The pilgrims deposit a fixed amount decided on year to year basis towards airfare to HCoI and the balance fare payable to the Airlines is paid by MoCA as subsidy to facilitate the Haj pilgrims. This subsidy is not provided State-wise/ District-wise. The amount of subsidy provided to the Airlines during 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 was Rs. 577.07 crore, Rs. 529.51 crore, and Rs.405.39 crore respectively. For Haj 2017, a budgetary provision for Rs. 200 crore was provided for subsidy to the Airlines for the air travel of HCoI pilgrims. It has been decided to discontinue it from Haj 2018. However to minimize additional financial burden on Haj pilgrims for Haj 2018, choice has been given to intending pilgrims of specified Embarkation Points (EPs) to either opt for designated EP of their State or the nearest economical EP based on the indicative actual airfare for Haj 2017.
(c) The budget for the year 2018-19 for the Ministry of Minority Affairs has been increased by Rs.505 Crore. It has been decided to allocate bulk of the additional funding for educational empowerment of Minority communities especially for Girls.

(d) and (e) Central Government does not provide any direct subsidy for pilgrims of any religious pilgrimage.
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