The Saudi Arabian government has introduced new measures to prevent stampede and loss of lives during the Jamurat stoning at Mina area after Arafat Day exercise.
At a practical demonstration exercise and visitation to Hajj rites’ sites in Makkah, Representative of the National Hajj Commission, NAHCON, in Saudi Arabia, Aliyu Tanko disclosed that the measures include dividing pilgrims into groups, monitoring these groups using electronic gadgets to and pro the stoning venue and their various tents at Mina.
Mr Tanko also disclosed that arrangements had been made to have dedicated buses positioned to convey Nigerian pilgrims to Arafaat, Muna, and Muzdalifah.
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According to him, the decision followed a series of meetings with the Saudi authorities and representatives of pilgrims’ countries on how best to prevent casualties and loss of lives in the exercise.
“Every year, ideas come on how to improve the process and avoid any kind of casualty; the authorities have therefore come up with measures to control the movement to the Jamurat because that is usually the source of casualties every year.
“So, to avoid any such situations, that is why they have come up with new ideas on how to protect the lives of the pilgrims,” he said.
Mr Tanko added that the Saudi authorities had given serious attention to Nigeria, owing to its position as the country with one-third of pilgrims from the whole of Non-Arab Africa.
“The authorities have a whole portion of road dedicated to Nigeria at Musdalifa from where they would board buses back to Mina whilst they urged states’ officials to ensure orderliness and compliance from their pilgrims.
“Musdalifa is the location where pilgrims return to offer Maghreb and Ishai prayers after mounting the Mount Arafat, before proceeding to cast stones at Jamurat.
“After Arafat and after Sunset, it has been said that people should not pray Maghreb until they arrive at the Musdalifa to combine both Maghreb and Ishai.
“In the past, some pilgrims would go to Musdalifa, while some would go to Mina, and some would get lost and find themselves in Makkah; not in their tent in Mina,” Mr Tanko said.
He pointed out an idea to make the Hajj process easy, safe and at a reasonable time, saying: “It is usually pilgrims who choose to go individually that get lost because of the similarities of the roads and the congestion of pilgrims.”
He, therefore, advised the states’ pilgrim officials to properly educate their pilgrims on the new development by the Saudi government on the devil stoning in order to forestall any eventuality.
