ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has launched one of its largest Hajj medical operations in Saudi Arabia, deploying hundreds of health care workers and expanding medical infrastructure to support pilgrims facing extreme summer heat and rising infection risks during this year’s pilgrimage.
The operation comes as nearly 179,000 Pakistani pilgrims are set to perform Hajj, one of the world’s largest annual religious gatherings, where overcrowding, heat exhaustion and communicable diseases can pose health challenges. Medical teams are operating around the clock across Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah under an expanded health care plan that includes dozens of dispensaries and a newly established hospital.
The expanded deployment follows new Saudi health regulations requiring dedicated medical facilities for pilgrim groups of around 5,000 people, prompting Pakistan to significantly upgrade its health care presence for Hajj this year.
“We were asked to establish 34 dispensaries here at Makkah, three at Madinah and one at Jeddah,” Dr. Muhammad Tauqeer Malik, director of the Pakistan Hajj medical mission, told Arab News.
He added that the 422-member mission includes 160 doctors, nurses, paramedics and pharmacists backed by logistics support from Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs.
