Indonesia Calls on Saudi Authorities to Change New Plan on Umrah Pilgrimage
"The B2C scheme is also not in accordance with the regulations in Indonesia, which require the departure of Umrah pilgrims (to be conducted) through a licensed PPIU (Umrah pilgrimage organizer)," Consul for Hajj at the consulate general, Nasrullah Jasam, said in a statement on Friday, Antara News Agency reported.
Earlier, the implementation of the Umrah pilgrimage was carried out through a business-to-business (B2B) scheme, which was managed by the private sector.
The visas of prospective pilgrims were submitted by the PPIU to the related institutions in Saudi Arabia through a third party.
Meanwhile, under the B2C scheme, the prospective pilgrims, as the customers, will send their requirements directly to the related institutions in Saudi Arabia.
According to Jasam’s statement, the implementation of the B2C scheme is considered risky and difficult to supervise since there will be no PPIUs to assist pilgrims if they face any difficulties while performing the pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
The new season of the Umrah pilgrimage started July 30 with the arrival of the first batch of foreign pilgrims.
Saudi authorities say there is no limit with regard to the number of pilgrims as the country has eased COVID-19 restrictions.
Source: Agencies
