Enforcement of five-litre quota: no extra Zamzam for Hajj pilgrims

Unlike past, the Saudi authorities would strictly enforce a five-liter quota of Zamzam water for Hajj pilgrims this year. At least 10 million liters of the holy water is expected to be carried away this year, 2015, from holy Makkah where two million pilgrims from across the globe are performing the annual rite.
"Ab-e-Zamzam" stands religiously sacred water for Muslims world over who after pilgrimage to the holy Kaaba take away the holy water for their relatives staying back home. The holy water, they believe, heals diseases of all kinds.
In past years, there had been some confusion over the carriage and quantity of "Ab-e-Zamzam" the pilgrims were allowed to take away to their respective countries on the completion of pilgrimage, said Hajj officials.
"Until now... Hujjaj had to manage their own bottles from the official source ie the Zamzam plant," said an official at the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
Sometimes, he said, the holy water was available at the airport and sometimes there was a shortage.
Further, the official said, there also had been confusion about the permissible quantity of Zamzam with pilgrims having been carrying 5-10 liters of the holy water.
Officially, the permissible volume of zamzam is five liters, a quota the Saudi authorities had hardly been able to implement fully.
Aviation authorities at the Saudi and Pakistani airports are said to have been discouraging the carriage of over five-liter Zamzam, but mostly in vain.
"Until last year the restriction on five liters was not imposed fully and some people carried 10 liters also," said the official.
However, this year the Saudi authorities would ensure that Zamzam is provided to pilgrims in their home countries.
"This time all the Zamzam (water) would be airlifted to Pakistan before the Hajj and distributed upon arrival," Syed Abu Akif, member of Pakistan Administrative Service at Director General (Hajj), told Business Recorder.
The Jeddah based official said a rough estimate suggested that every year at least 32 million liters of the holy water is carried away by pilgrims as well as those foreigners living in the Kingdom for work and other purposes.
"Hardly any figures for total pilgrims and residents returning to home country would be available short of going to the Saudi Ministry of Interior which manages the immigration," said Akif, who works at Consulate General of Pakistan in Jeddah.