All-women group of Indian pilgrims arrive in Jeddah

Jeddah: A group of all-women Haj pilgrims from the southern Indian state of Kerala arrived at the Haj Terminal of King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday, May 14.

They were welcomed with flowers by India’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Dr Suhel Khan, and his wife Rifat Khan, the Indian embassy of India in Riyadh said on X.

The women are travelling under the Government of India’s ‘Lady Without Mehram’ initiative, which allows female pilgrims to perform Haj without a male guardian.

In 2023, a record 4,314 Indian women performed Haj without a male companion for the first time. That year, India also launched its first all-women Haj flight. Air India Express flight IX 3025 carried 145 women from Kozhikode to Jeddah with an all-women crew.

This year, Haj is expected between June 4 and June 9, 2025, subject to the sighting of the moon.

Haj takes place annually from the 8th to the 12th of Dhul Hijjah, the twelfth month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

The Haj pilgrimage to Makkah is a mandatory religious duty that must be performed by those Muslims who are physically and financially able to perform it at least once in a lifetime.