Saudi Government to Give Free SIMs to Pakistani Hajj and Umrah Pilgrims

By Mehwish Khan | 10, Jul 2012 | 16 Comments

Hajj and Umrah pilgrims travelling from Pakistan to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will receive a free mobile SIM from Mobily, a Saudi mobile phone company, under sponsorship from the Hajeej International and Aroma Group of Companies.

Pilgrims will now be able to concentrate on performing their religious duties instead of wasting time searching for mobile phone SIMs.

Similarly, Indian Government, in association with the Saudi Government will provide free mobile phone SIMs to Indian pilgrims who will leave for Saudi Arabia. These SIM cards will have all the important numbers so that it could help the pilgrim in case of emergency.

It merits mentioning here that all cellular mobile operators in Pakistan offer decreased roaming charges and free international roaming activation (on prepaid subscriptions) for those travelling to Saudi Arabia for Hajj or Umrah.

Moreover, receiving SMS on all Pakistani networks in Saudi Arabia, while on roaming, is free of charge.

http://youtu.be/jlBlfxzr2x0 funny clip

good news, great
- Bilal
  
  source ??
Yzair

Good work.. Must appreciate this effort
Azi

without balance or with balance ?
- http://www.ghumfree.pk Pakistan Classified Ads
  
  Hahaha, Come On Man :P
- Zulqarnain
  
  with 10sr riyals :D
Atif

that is called ultimate sale strategy
Kashif Bashir

lol@ saudi government. During Hajj prices of food stuff, transportation (taxi) and rent goes upto 4 or 5 times (or even more). Harm Pak sy taxi 5 Riyal layti thee aur same taxi Hajj k season may 20 Riyal lyti ha. sim free kr k Allah k bando pr ehsan kr dia. Theek ha na long live Kafeel system. Last week Jang may boht acha article aya tha issi baat pr.
- Bilal
  
  True,
  
  do u remember the date of the article ?
  - Anonymous
    
    @ kashif bashir
    
    In normal days , it takes less than 10 minutes to travel from haram to any hotel near it, while in haj days , it takes more than half hour to travel the same distance.
    
    So the increased in transportation charges is only due to TIME CONSUMED…
http://naseem.amjad.ajsoftpk.com/urdu/ Urdu

Good news indeed, I heard that normally a SIM used to cost Pak Rupees 3,000/= approximately, can anyone confirm ?
http://naqoosh.com Meraj Khattak

A SIM used to cost about 70-80 Saudi Riyals for Hajis. Now once the free SIMs are provided, it will be up to the person on how much to use and add balance to it. So I believe it is a good step.

Regarding fares during Hajj: The 4-5 times fare are only during the peak 3-4 days of Hajj. After that things get to normal. Also, if you use the buses provided by Saudi govt (from Mina to Haram) , they will continue to charge the nominal charges both at peak and without peak time.

I didn’t see the food price increasing during the peak season.
The AJ

Actually, I was in Saudi Arab about two weeks ago for Umrah, and upon my arrival at Jeddah airport, I was handed over a free sim called “sawa’. It was of Saudi Telecom and I was glad to know that it already had 5 riyals worth of balance. But, anyone going for Hajj or Umrah should keep in mind the fact that call and sms charges in Saudia are way to high, and you can end up paying Rs. 30 for a two minute call to a local network.
mawish

ohhhh, nice job
ahmadijaz

its wrong they gave UFONE MOBILE not gave sims and ufone mobile shape is nice…. as my mom and dad goes so thry got these today….
f hashmi

I am going with my family for umrah with a group leader how can i get sim at airport andhow many sims can we get if please anybody can tell me