India and Saudi Arabia signed their 2027 Haj agreement in Jeddah on Monday, confirming 175,025 places for Indian pilgrims. The figure matches the 2026 quota. India’s Ministry of Minority Affairs had said in June it would seek an increase.
Indian Minority Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met Saudi Hajj and Umrah Minister Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah at the Jeddah Superdome before the signing on Nov. 9. The ministers reviewed preparations and discussed how to improve coordination and logistical support. They reaffirmed their commitment to a “safe, smooth and comfortable pilgrimage,” India’s ministry said.
India’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia and the ministry’s joint secretary for Haj took part in the talks. The chief executive of the Haj Committee of India was also part of Rijiju’s delegation on the Nov. 6–9 visit. Rijiju praised Saudi Arabia’s handling of the 2026 pilgrimage and pledged India’s cooperation for the coming season.
What the Quota Means for Pilgrims
India’s June policy projected a 70–30 split, with 122,518 places through the Haj Committee of India and 52,507 through registered private operators known as Haj Group Organizers. Saudi rules require an operating entity to handle at least 2,000 pilgrims. India’s private-operator policy groups individual organizers into combined entities to meet that threshold.
Applications through the Haj Committee opened June 22 via its website and the Haj Suvidha app. By Nov. 5, the committee had released its third waiting list and issued a separate circular calling for a second installment of 125,000 Indian rupees from provisionally selected pilgrims. The committee publishes selection, payment and document notices on its website.
The 2027 policy retains the 20-day Short Haj Package and adds Kolkata as a departure point for it. The committee’s guidelines give priority to applicants aged 65 and older, followed by women under 65 traveling without a mehram, or qualifying male companion, then applicants in the top 20% of their state’s 2026 waiting list, before the general category. Where applications exceed a state or territory’s allocation, the committee uses a computerized draw under its priority rules.
The policy also calls for one state Haj inspector for every 135 pilgrims, up from one per 150, and closer alignment with Saudi medical screening rules. India plans to phase in multilingual voice and text support for pilgrims, including help with applications, payments and flight information, and to link its services with Saudi Arabia’s Nusuk platform. The ministry outlined those changes in June as part of its own Haj policy.
Hajj Conference, Consular Review and Diwali Outreach
Rijiju attended the opening of the sixth Hajj Conference and Exhibition on Nov. 8 and joined a ministerial session chaired by Al-Rabiah. He thanked the Saudi leadership for its work on pilgrim welfare and joined other visiting ministers in a meeting with Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, deputy governor of the Makkah region.
Saudi organizers said the Nov. 8–11 event, themed “From Makkah to the World,” brings together more than 520 government, private-sector and nonprofit organizations, with participants and attendees from more than 150 countries. The program gives pilgrimage offices and providers a place to work on contracts and discuss transport, lodging, catering and health services for the coming season.
At India House in Jeddah, Rijiju attended the Noor-e-Diwali celebration and credited members of the Indian diaspora with strengthening ties between the two countries. He also chaired a review with officials from India’s consulate, the minority affairs ministry and the Haj Committee, urging them to stay in close contact over pilgrim welfare. He visited Haj-related and cultural sites in Jeddah. The two ministers also pointed to longstanding ties between the countries and their communities as a basis for continued cooperation on the pilgrimage.