Biman’s fare hike in Hajj period It’s just to show as profitable organisation

Staff Reporter :
Any pilgrim from Bangladesh, who is eager to perform Hajj this year will have to pay about Tk 7 lakh (Public and private arrangement almost same) without Qurbani.
Apart from this, each pilgrim will has to pay about Tk 22,000 for a Qurbani coupon from the Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia. The amount is used for meeting the expenses for sacrificing animals.
This amount is the highest cost for performing Hajj from Bangladesh in its history.
Interestingly, out of total amount a devote pilgrim will have to pay his/ her expenditure’s lion share for air fare.
Aviation experts said Biman Bangladesh Airlines has increased air fare about 30 per cent. They also said increasing air fare excessively during Hajj period is a bad intention of Biman Bangladesh Airlines to show them as a profitable organisation.
According to Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB), Biman Bangladesh Airlines has increased air fare about 80 per cent during Hajj period in compare to last seven years.
ATAB said, in 2017 the air fare was Tk1.17 lakh during Hajj season, in 2018 it was Tk1.28 lakh, in 2019 it was Tk1.28 lakh, in 2020 it was Tk1.38 lakh, in 2021 Hajj perform was cancelled and in 2022 it was Tk1.40 lakh. But this year it jumped to Tk1.98 lakh which is too burden to the pilgrims.
Leaders of the Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) and ATAB spoke about the excessive expenditure of Hajj including air fare.
Abdus Salam Aref, general secretary of ATAB, said a Bangladeshi pilgrim will have to spend around Tk 8 to 9 lakh to complete hajj this year.
The HAAB, a platform of around 1,500 private hajj agencies, said this year’s airfare was high for which the costs of hajj packages have increased significantly.
“The airfare of Biman was Tk 1.40 lakh last year. But this year it is around Tk 2 lakh ,” said HAAB President M Shahadat Hossain Taslim.
Sources at the HAAB and ATAB said in India, the airfare is around Tk 1.25 lakh and in Pakistan it is about Tk 1 lakh.
“Due to the high prices of hajj packages, we are now worried whether the hajj agencies and the government will be able to send the targeted 1.27 lakh Bangladeshis to Saudi Arabia to perform hajj this year,” he added.
On the issue Biman Bangladesh Airlines clarify about the high air fare saying that during return flight the aircraft fly without any passengers. According the officials they charge from the pilgrims as a round flight.