ISLAMABAD: As many as 1, 27,000 Hajj applications have been received under the government scheme while the selection process will be completed by May 20, the federal minister for religious affair Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said.
While speaking at the prize distribution ceremony of National Hifz-o-Qirat competition in Islamabad on Wednesday, the minister said that according to the new Hajj policy 57,000 applicants will be selected under the government scheme this year.
The federal minister said that the selection of the intending pilgrims will be purely made on merit and maximum facilities will be provided to them during the Hajj.
Yousaf further said that the government is working on a programme to include Arabic as compulsory subject in the curriculum up to Secondary School Certificate.