This was stated at a Hajj management final preparation review meeting at the conference room of the Ministry of Religious Affairs with its Adviser Mahbubul Alam in the chair, an official handout said.

Meeting sources said the first flight with 480 ballottee Hajj pilgrims will leave Dhaka for Jeddah at 9:00am on November 26 and the second flight will leave with 301 pilgrims at 5:00pm on the same day.

Civil Aviation and Tourism Adviser M Azizul Haque, Secretary of the Religious Affairs Ministry Muhammad Ataur Rahman and Secretary of the Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry Shaheed Alam were present at the meeting.

Mahbubul Alam sought cooperation of all for 51,000 pilgrims in performing holy Hajj peacefully and smoothly in Saudi Arabia.

Azizul Haque stressed the need for joint coordination between the ministries of religious affairs and foreign affairs to ensure smooth transportation of the Bangladeshi Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.

The pilgrims have started arriving at the Hajj Camp from November 19.