Saudi Arabia: What is Umrah insurance policy? Bus fire victims to receive Rs 23,63,300

Saudi Arabia: Amid the Umrah bus crash which took the lives of around 40 Indians in Saudi Arabia, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has made insurance for foreign pilgrims mandatory. This is applicable to only foreigners, according to Gulf News.  

What is Umrah? 

Umrah is a name for a pilgrimage to Mecca, which is a shorter version of the annual Hajj pilgrimage. The word “Umrah” is Arabic, which means “visiting a populated place”. Unlike Hajj, which is a compulsory pilgrimage in Islam, Umrah is voluntary. Hajj is a must to perform at least once in a lifetime, whereas Umrah can be performed throughout the year. 

What is Umrah insurance policy? 

The ministry said that the beneficiaries will receive SR 100,000 (Rs 23,63,300). According to the new rule, pilgrims coming from abroad to Saudi Arabia for Umrah are mandated to hold Umrah insurance policy which will be included in the visa fee as the insurance policy is inclusive of comprehensive health, travel fees, medical emergencies, trip cancellations or interruptions, loss of personal belongings, and emergency evacuations. 

The policy also covers these facilities: 

 -Emergency cases of COVID-19 

- Emergency health cases 

 -General accidents and deaths 

 -Cancellation or delay of departing flights 

Regarding the Umrah pilgrims accident, the relatives of the deceased have requested the government of India to bring the bodies to India or allow them to do the same by going to Saudi Arabia. 

Mohammed Tehseen's family, who live in Hyderabad, went to Saudi Arabia last week. They urged Modi government to make arrangements for bringing back the bodies to India. 

“Seven members from my family went to Saudi Arabia...They went to Saudi Arabia last week...We request the Union Government to bring the bodies to India...They were travelling to Medinah from Mecca...,” Tehseen told ANI.  

Forty-five Indian Umrah pilgrims from Hyderabad and other parts of Telangana died, and only one survived in a devastating bus fire near Medina in Saudi Arabia, Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar said on Monday, confirming one of the most tragic overseas incidents involving pilgrims from the state in recent years. 

Addressing the media, Sajjanar said the group was travelling from Makkah to Madinah when their bus collided with an oil tanker nearly 25 km before Medina, causing an explosion that engulfed the vehicle within minutes. “The fire spread rapidly, leaving no time for most passengers to escape,” he said.