New Delhi: The Centre will talk to the Saudi Arabia government for increasing India's Haj quota in view of a large number of applications it receives for the annual pilgrimage, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Tuesday. 


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Appreciating the ministry's new Haj policy of allowing women above 45 years of age in a group of four or more for the pilgrimage without a "Mehram" (a male associate whom a woman cannot marry), he said 22 women groups, 18 of them from Kerala, have applied since November 15.


The last date of applying for the next year's Haj is December 7.


"We will have a bilateral agreement with Saudi Arabia in the first week of January. We will request the government there to increase (India's) Haj quota even further," the Union minority affairs minister told reporters here.


Saudi Arabia had, in January this year, increased India's Haj quota from 1.36 lakh to 1.70 lakh.


Naqvi said, "We want the number to go up as much as possible. Last year, approximately five lakh people had applied."


The process of applying for the pilgrimage has been advanced by three months this year. So far, the Haj division has received 30,000 applications online and 3,000 offline, he said, adding 15 per cent of the online applications have come through the government's Haj mobile application.


The Union minister said the Supreme Court had in 2012 directed to increase the role of private tour operators (PTOs) in facilitating transport of pilgrims.


A high-level panel formed by the ministry had also suggested the government to increase the quota of PTOs from current 26.47 per cent to 30 per cent.


Naqvi said, "Some MPs, PTOs have also made suggestions (in this connection). The ministry is examining the same. The present PTO (quota) system has not been changed (yet). We are examining it and after that we will take steps for the betterment of Haj pilgrims."


He said stern action, including the blacklisting, would be taken against PTOs which violate the terms and conditions laid down while facilitating pilgrims.


"Any PTO charging more money from pilgrims will have to forfeit their security deposit of Rs 25 lakh or so. We have already initiated the process of blacklisting three PTOs this time," Naqvi said.