<div style="text-align: justify; "><b style="font-size: 1rem;">Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today inaugurated the Hajj Programme-2023 (1444 Hijri) at the Hajji Camp in the capital's Ashkona area.</b><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Opening the Hajj Programme, the Premier sought doa from the Hajj pilgrims for the people of Bangladesh so that none could play ducks and drakes with the fate of people of the country.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The first hajj flight is scheduled to depart from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for Saudi Arabia at 2:45am on Saturday.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This year, a total of 122,221 pilgrims from Bangladesh are going to perform the holy hajj. The number of hajj pilgrims from Bangladesh was 57,585 last year due to Covid-19 restriction.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Before the Covid-19 pandemic, 127,198 pilgrims from Bangladesh performed hajj in 2019.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Hajj is expected to be held on June 27 depending on the sighting of the moon.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">With State Minister for Religious Affairs Md. Faridul Haque Khan, MP, in the chair, secretary of the ministry Kazi Enamul Hassan delivered welcome address.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali, Habib Hasan, MP, Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan and president of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) Shahadat Hossain Taslim also spoke on the occasion.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the outset of the ceremony, a video documentary on Hajj Management was screened. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>