LAHORE: Hundreds of Pakistani Umrah pilgrims were denied clearance and offloaded from flights due to the absence of polio vaccination certificates, ARY News reported on Monday.
At Lahore Airport, several passengers bound for Saudi Arabia were not issued boarding passes because they failed to present the mandatory polio vaccination certificate. This issue was not isolated, as multiple airports across the country reported similar incidents, with hundreds of Pakistani pilgrims being offloaded over the past 24 hours for not meeting the requirement.
Saudi Arabia has made it mandatory for all Umrah pilgrims from Pakistan to provide proof of polio vaccination. However, obtaining the required polio vaccination certificate has proven to be a lengthy and complicated process. While oral polio vaccine (OPV) drops are readily available at health facilities, only District Health Officers (DHOs) are authorized to update vaccination records in the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) system. This limitation has caused significant delays, as DHOs are overwhelmed with the growing number of certification requests.
In related news, Saudi Arabia recently eased another requirement, suspending the meningitis vaccine mandate for Pakistani travellers heading to Saudi Arabia for Umrah or Hajj. The new circular issued by the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) reversed a previous directive requiring meningitis shots for Pakistani pilgrims.
