More than two million Muslims from across the world, including Indians, on Wednesday marked the climax of the annual Haj pilgrimage by participating in the symbolic stoning of the devil in the Saudi holy city of Mina.
The Haj stoning ritual got over on Wednesday without any untoward incident, and all 1.5 lakh Indian pilgrims are safe, said Dr Ausaf Sayeed, the Indian consul-general from Mina.
"All the Indian pilgrims have completed the ritual safely and have returned to the camps," Sayeed said last evening. Nearly 20 Indian volunteers helped Saudi authorities in handling the pilgrims during the rituals, he added.
In the past, the rush of pilgrims to the site has led to hundreds of deaths, including 345 during the ritual in January last year. In a similar tragedy, 251 people were trampled to death in 2004.
This year, Saudi authorities have made elaborate safety arrangements, including taking pilgrims of particulaer countries at designated times to the stoning site.
"The Saudi authorities have made elaborate preparations to ensure an incident-free Haj. The Jamarat Bridge has been raised by another level and the pilgrims of all countries, including those from India, are being taken for Rami (stone-throwing ritual) at designated times," Sayeed said.
The Indian pilgrims will now move to Mecca, he said. With the completion of the stoning ritual, pilgrims will now celebrate Eid al-Adha, the day of sacrifice, when animals are sacrificed in memory of Abraham's readiness to sacrifice his son to God.
Indian Haj Mission has set up its camp office in Mina to provide necessary facilities to the pilgrims, including a dispensary to provide treatment to them.
Earlier on Wednesday, the pilgrims from 181 countries massed for the stoning ritual in the holy city amidst tight security with helicopters hovering overhead and a number of ambulances standing by.
The Indian Haj delegation was headed by A R Antulay, Minister for Minority Welfare, and included Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia M O H Farook and Chairman of Haj Committee Iqbal Ahmad Saradgi.
Official Saudi figures said that the number of the pilgrims during this year's Haj season totaled 2,454,325.
Of these pilgrims, 1,707,814 came from abroad and 746, 511 from inside Saudi Arabia.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadnejad, invited by Saudi King Abdullah, was also among the pilgrims. His pilgrimage also assumes political significance in the backdrop of often rocky relations between Shiite Iran and Sunni-dominated Saudi Arabia.
An Iranian demonstration during the Haj in 1987 led to the two countries breaking diplomatic relations. Around 402 people, including 275 Iranians, were killed when the security forces tried to break up the protest. - DDNEWS
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